That said, I've read in the past that we were setting up firebases near the Pakistan border region to help interdict Taliban and al Qaeda traffic crossing the border into Afghanistan. This is one result:
Pakistan admitted that, although they forbid it, they have tolerated American artillery in Afghanistan firing across the border at Taliban mortar and rocket teams, that were themselves firing across the border into Afghanistan. The Taliban also send teams across the border to attack American camps with AK-47s, RPGs and hand grenades. The survivors of these attacks then flee back across the border, and American artillery can often catch them on the trails.
In Vietnam, the enemy mistook isolated infantry companies dug in with an artillery battery as vulnerable targets. In fact, they were hard targets that could robustly defend themselves and call on nearby firebases and aircraft for support. The enemy lost many troops trying to take down these "vulnerable targets."
It looks like the Taliban are making the same mistake in Afghanistan. And with precision firepower and superior recon ability, we are likely hammering the enemy a lot harder as they flee.
