Why are we still feeding our soldiers into the Taliban mincing machine?

The type of warfare all soldiers most loathe and fear is the type where you can't shoot back. Every "Tom" relishes a firefight. It's why he (or she) joined up. What takes its toll - as it did in Vietnam, and is now doing in Afghanistan - is the nerve-shredding anxiety of going out day after day on patrol knowing with near-certainty that somewhere on your route is the IED which is going to kill or maim you or one of your mates.

Talk to any politician who supports our Afghan engagement, and they're