If the invasion of Afghanistan had been a success, we would not still be fighting the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. If the invasion of Iraq had been a success, we would not be fighting there.

Two invasions of practically defenseless countries with obsolete weapons and decaying infrastructures have to be termed failures. Both the civilian leadership in Washington and the military's officer corps share the blame.

The big mistake the Washington hotshots made was not understanding the history and culture of the two countries they decided to attack. They were thinking "liberation"; the people were thinking "occupation by foreigners." I haven't googled mankind's complete history, but offhand I cannot think of any instance where occupiers were welcomed by the native population.

Failures