Counterinsurgency and the Human Terrain in Afghanistan
Question: In May of 2010, the former commander of all US Armed Forces in Afghanistan suggested that the idea of counterinsurgency appears to be a viable way for success on paper[but] counterinsurgency methods are not proving to be effective in practice. He also noted that [t]he human terrain layer of the battlefield is a necessary component of mission planning and success in a counterinsurgency environment. Dividing the essay into two component parts, please answer the following questions: 1) Exactly what is counterinsurgency (COIN) doctrine and do you believe it can achieve a successful result in Afghanistan? And, 2) Is it ethical to recruit from the universities, including students and professors, for the US militarys Human Terrain Systems (HTS) project whose work will be used in the COIN process?