( CNN) In recent days, with Afghanistan's Taliban insurgency continuing to gain steam and America's longest war staggering through its 16 th year, analysts have started invoking the v-word( and it's not “victory” ).
Vietnamis a sadly apt analogy. Indeed, just as they did in Vietnam 50 years ago, US troops in Afghanistan are opposing a costly, intractable, and unending conflict against a relentlessly resilient asymmetric rival.
However, it's not a perfect analogy. The Vietnam War elicited impassioned debate back home, but Americans are hardly discussing the war in Afghanistan. It's completely off the radar.
