Afghan crash inflicts double blow on US psyche

Throughout Afghanistan, as coalition troops withdraw, the Afghans are simply unable to come in and create civic order. Last week, the International Crisis Group reported that despite the $57 billion in aid spent in Afghanistan, sustaining nation building was “virtually impossible.’’ The Afghan police and army “have thus far proved unable to enforce the law, counter the insurgency, or even secure the seven regions’’ handed over to them.

The Wardak district where the raid took place is only 60 miles from Kabul. Though NATO has been focusing military missions and monetary support there consistently for more than a year, the Taliban is clearly able to organize and launch attacks. This isn’t the hinterlands of the border with Pakistan, or even the Taliban’s historic stronghold in regions further south. Little outside of Kabul itself seems ready for independent governance.

Limiting ground troops, the sought-after panacea for making a difficult war more palatable, will not necessarily limit danger. To be clear: air warfare and special operations are deadly endeavors. Helicopter crashes constitute 10 percent of US fatalities in Afghanistan. As Mark Thompson describes in Time magazine, the only way to fight in Afghanistan is often flying “low and slow’’ in the dark of night, making the helicopters ideal targets for attacks. Afghanistan’s rugged mountain terrain makes for thinner air, which is dangerous for helicopters. Forget combat; helicopters are more often brought down by mechanical or crew error than the Taliban.