The Military veterans

THE orator-in-chief has not lost his touch. Addressing a crowd of military veterans on August 17th, Barack Obama thanked them for their service and vowed to give their successors in uniform everything they might need, while also cutting waste from the military budget. He reminded them that he was canceling plans for a costly presidential helicopter that, among other things, would have let him cook a meal while under nuclear attack. If America is under nuclear attack, he assured them, “the last thing on my mind will be whipping up a snack”. The main purpose of his speech, however, was to drum up support for the war in Afghanistan. “This is not a war of choice,” he said. “This is a war of necessity. Those who attacked America on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al-Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans. So this is not only a war worth fighting. This is fundamental to the defense of our people.”