“That’s the awful danger of this decision. Sometimes cutting the knot and removing U.S. troops opens the way for peace; more often, in recent years, it has been a prelude to greater bloodshed.” WaPo’s David Ignatius: History will cast a shadow over Biden’s decision to withdraw from Afghanistan. It’s already cast a shadow over former presidents who decided not to withdraw. Twenty year wars tend to be lose-lose situations.

+ NYT: Three Afghans from disparate walks of life, now each asking the same question: What will become of me when the Americans leave?

+ The Atlantic’s George Packer on the vital importance of getting our allies out along with our troops. “Seventeen thousand Afghans who have worked for America in Afghanistan, along with tens of thousands of their family members, are waiting for the excruciatingly slow bureaucratic wheels of the U.S. government to process their visa applications. At the normal pace, they will still be waiting years after the last American troops leave their country. While they wait, trying to hide, many of them will be hunted down by the Taliban. We will be gone, and Afghans who believed our promises will be killed. Our war will be over—Americans might not even hear the news of their deaths.”