How politics stuck troops in Afghanistan

My experience in Afghanistan was a cake-walk compared to Ed Edstrom's, but I identify with his description of how we ended up spending 20 years in a war without significant public pushback:

1. There were fewer deaths than Vietnam.
2. There was no draft.
3. We financed the entire thing through debt, and even managed to lower taxes three times.
4. We set the tone early on that we had to "support the troops," and preferred "thanking" to "thinking." [Source]

Others paid the ultimate price for their service.

I, on the other hand, received 10+ years worth of paychecks (they got me through the Great Recession), had all my federal student loans repaid, and will recieve disability benefits for the rest of my life.

It's not fair.