The United States spent more than $74 billion on Afghanistan over the course of a 20-year war, the longest in American history. To many people, the withdrawal of U.S. troops felt messy, dishonorable, chaotic, emotional, disloyal, and terrifying.

The Peoria Area World Affairs Council is hosting two esteemed former U.S. ambassadors to help sort out what we did wrong, what we did right and how we should move forward.

Robert Ford, former ambassador to Syria, and Ronald Neumann, former ambassador to Afghanistan, Algeria and Bahrain, will speak at the PAWAC 50th anniversary dinner Sept. 16.

Don Samford, past president of PAWAC and retired social studies teacher, helped organize the event.

“Yes, initially we should have been there. We had no choice,” Samford said. “But it was mishandled afterward.”

Some of the difficulties could be foreseen but others were unforeseen, he said.

Initially, this was a war on terrorism following the terrorist attack Sept. 11, 2001, on the World Trade Center in New York City. Then it became a nation building venture, and then it became a humanitarian effort.

Top of the list foiling U.S. effort was the corruption in the Afghan government.

“Some of the Afghan forces are outstanding, but will you fight for a government that’s corrupt?” Samford said.

Osama bin Laden, the Al Qaeda leader who ran his terrorist operation from a base in Pakistan before being captured and killed by the U.S., is laughing at us from the bottom of the ocean, Samford said.

The best way to figure out how to move forward and avoid the same mistakes is to analyze the mistakes and the successes of the U.S. initiative. Adding to the urgency to analyze Afghanistan is the fact both Pakistan and India have nuclear weapons. Disinformation played a significant role in the U.S. involvement in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

“The Obama administration was such a tight-knit group, not open to divergent opinions,” Samford said. “Being intelligent doesn’t mean the right decisions are made. You can go to Harvard or Yale and still make wrong decisions.”

What are some take-aways: seek alternative voices, learn the culture, learn from history, don’t think the American president is a dictatorship. For democracies to work, an informed citizenry and access to the voting booth are essential.

The PAWAC dinner starts 6 p.m. followed at 7 p.m. by the program, Sept. 16 at Bradley University Student Center Ballroom. For more information go to www.pawac.org.