U.S. Military in Afghanistan Isn't Going Anywhere

Somebody tell Barack Obama that they started without him. Ladies and gentlemen, your military industrial complex:

While the Obama administration weighs whether to send additional troops to Afghanistan, the U.S. military is spending billions of dollars on construction projects to ensure the country's infrastructure can support American and coalition personnel in 2010 and years beyond.

The military has already spent roughly $2.7 billion on construction over the past three fiscal years. Now, if its request is approved as part of the fiscal 2010 defense appropriations bill, it would spend another $1.3 billion on more than 100 projects at 40 sites across the country, according to a Senate report on the legislation.

At the main U.S. base in Afghanistan, Bagram, the military is planning to build a $30 million passenger terminal and adjacent cargo facility to handle the flow of troops, many of whom arrive at the base north of Kabul before moving onto other sites. Under the proposed schedule, those facilities will not be completed until late 2010 and go into operation early in 2011, according to military sources.

This as reported by Walter Pincus in today's Washington Post. And yes, that's Gitmo Jr., Bagram Air Force Base getting the facelift. Further along in the story:

Pittman (Rear Adm. Hal Pittman, director of communications for U.S. Central Command)recalled that Bagram Air Base had cement block buildings constructed by the Soviets in the 1970s and '80s. When U.S. forces began to arrive in December 2001, most had to be put up in tents. While some troops are still housed in the Soviet-constructed buildings, close to $500 million has been spent to upgrade the base, which has 32 acres of ramp space, four large hangars, new barracks and an improvised terminal.

Now, there's a touch of America at the base, including fast-food options including Burger King and Pizza Hut.

Oh the irony. Our soldiers are staying in old Soviet-constructed barracks and we're upgrading them. The last empire to bog itself down in Afghanistan left the light on for us. What else are we using? British reinforcements? Oh. (My favorite part of that story about 500 British troops going to Afghanistan: Sir Peter Tapsell, a member of the Conservative opposition, said, “Anybody who believes that an Afghan army composed of different ethnic groups is going to defeat the Taliban is living in a political cloud-cuckoo-land.”) And they have Burker Hut! It's like they never left home.