Afghanistan Cont...

Today, the Washington Post is running the resignation letter of Matthew P. Hoh in an attempt to further the debate on how the US should approach Afghanistan. Mr. Hoh is/was the Senior Civilian Representative of the United States government in the Zabul Province of Afghanistan. Prior to this position, he served as a Marine in Iraq.

The letter is worth reading in full (see here), but the reason for his resignation is because he believes the United States is creating more problems than our presence in Afghanistan can solve. Indeed, he writes, "The United States military presence in Afghanistan greatly contributes to the legitimacy and strategic message of the Pashtun insurgency." Furthermore, he states:

The US and NATO presence and operations in Pashtun valleys and villages is as well as Afghan army and police units that are led and composed of non-Pashtun soldiers and police, provide an occupation force against which the insurgency is justified. In both RC East and South, I have observed that the bulk of the insurgency fights not for the white banner of the Taliban, but rather against the presence of foreign soldiers and taxes imposed by an unrepresentative government in Kabul.

In short, the United States presence in Afghanistan is responsible for the creation of the insurgency groups. Can anyone tell me how an escalation in troops or commitment will cure this defect?

He also points out that our involvement in Afghanistan is almost equal to the time the Soviet Union spent in Afghanistan and we are just interfering with an ongoing civil war; but his closing is worth repeating. In closing he writes:

Thousands of our men and women have returned home with physical and mental wounds, some that will heal or will only worsen with time. The dead only return in bodily form to be received by families who must be reassured their dead have sacrificed for a purpose worthy of futures lost, love vanished and promised dreams unkept. I have lost confidence such assurances can anymore be made. As such, I submit my resignation.

I'm trying to listen to the other side, but I can't find any convincing arguments. Can we really justify staying in Afghanistan for an indefinite period of time without any realistic prospect of victory? Can you justify it after reading this letter?