When David McKiernan was summarily fired from his post as commanding general in Afghanistan, I was shocked. Rajiv Chandrasekaran has a superb insider account in today's WaPo that fills in some of the gaps.

The firing of General McKiernan in Afghanistan and his replacement with General McChrystal has prompted some interested debate and discussion. Three of the arguments that emerged are of particular interest and deserve further comment.

The United States is making a shocking shake-up in the leadership of the Afghanistan mission, replacing General David McKiernan with Lt. General Stanley McChrystal, according to various reports.  McKiernan has been in his post less than a year.

The New York Times headline "U.S. General Says Allies ‘Not Winning’ Afghan War" grabbed my attention. After all, the Atlantic Council issued a widely-cited report fourteen months ago which began, "Make no mistake, the international community is not winning in Afghanistan."

The Taliban is in de facto control of an increasing part of Afghanistan, Jason Straziuso and Amir Shah report for the AP. The Taliban has long operated its own shadow government in the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan, but its power is now spreading north to the doorstep of Kabul, according to Associated Press interviews with a dozen government officials, analysts, Taliban commanders and Afghan villagers.

Transcript by Federal News Service, Washington, D.C.

During his address this evening to the Atlantic Council, ISAF commander General David McKiernan emphasized the many positive trends in Afghanistan, noting that he preferred a "Glass Half Full" view. 

General David D. McKiernan, the Commanding  General of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan and NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Commander, spoke tonight at the Atlantic Council as part of the Commanders Series organized by the Council's Program on International Security.