What are we doing in Afghanistan?

Much ado has been made of Michael Steele's recent comment that Afghanistan is "a war of Obama's choosing." Given Obama's 2008 campaign rhetoric, it's hard to argue against this point. However, a larger point needs to be made: What exactly are we doing in Afghanistan?

According to CIA director Leon Panetta, there are maybe 100 al-Qaida militants currently operating in Afghanistan. Do we really need 100,000 US troops to hunt down 100 al-Qaida militants? Seems a bit like overkill, no?

In his 1961 farewell address President Eisenhower warned us to beware the military industrial complex. As we approach the tenth anniversary of our involvement in Afghanistan and the 50th anniversary of this speech, perhaps we would be wise to heed Eisenhower's warning.