Who will help an abandoner?

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

When American troops first arrived in Afghanistan, no one spent months vetting the loyalties of Afghan interpreters, soldiers and scouts. Instead, we quickly and gladly accepted their help. Now that we’re leaving Afghanistan, bureaucratic hurdles are slowing their rescue from probable annihilation. This same story played out in Vietnam. Let us not forget the unfulfilled promise of full veterans’ benefits that was made to World-War-II-era Filipino soldiers who fought with us against the Japanese.

I don’t wish to see America ever going to war, but the reality has been that for more than half my life we’ve had troops fighting somewhere. I wonder if those whom we’d ostensibly be helping will want to assist us once they learn how we mercilessly abandon our new ‘allies’ once we realize we’re caught in yet another quagmire and have decide to leave them to their fates.

 

PAUL L. NEWMAN

Merion Station, Pa.