One problem is how to measure the human cost. Sure, you can do so by lost lives (and standard of living for the wounded), but at what point does one more loss of life make it not worth it? If there had been only one KIA with the same outcome against the Taliban and AQ today, how is that one life worth less than the other 2,000+ that have also been lost?
The other problem is hindsight. The aim of war is to compel the enemy to accept our conditions by destroying his will or capabilities. This hasn't been accomplished, so the political outcome is uncertain. Naturally, this raises questions about why lives (and treasure) were expended in the first place. If we had achieved a more definitively favorable outcome, would this have altered perceptions about the lives lost?
I personally think war, while sometimes necessary, is a terrible waste of human potential. The original goal (destroying al-Qaeda) is laudable, but the rest is a mix of tragedy and farce.
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