Leadership: What Would You Do? Wesley Ryan Neuman

If I could be the leader of any organization, I would want to be the President of the United States of America. Given the sheer complexity and vast array of policies necessary to govern the US, for brevity’s sake I will touch solely upon the changes I would implement in South and Central Asia, most specifically in Afghanistan. When it became evident that the US was going to become militarily engaged in Afghanistan, I became very interested in this part of the world; a small project I did for the US Navy in 2004 only further served to fan the flames of my curiosity. In the country advertised as the graveyard of empires, President Obama has committed to sending 30,000 additional troops; if we’re to succeed where all others before us have failed, then first and foremost, the conflict needs to be rebranded and redefined. The American public needs to be scrupulously informed and be made aware of the reality on the ground, so that our elected officials are not forced to prematurely withdraw our forces. Afghanistan has experienced four decades of continuous violence and instability, and it will take significant, continual efforts to build this country from the ground up in what will be a most difficult nation building task.

Be it...