Because the USA has sunk so many dollars and so many lives into the Afghan and Iraq wars, they are having trouble ending the occupation. They feel an overwhelming need to save face. They keep throwing bodies on the fire simply to postpone the wound to the pride when they eventually withdraw. But consider the Afghans and Iraqi who have hundreds of times as many casualties, mostly children. Surrendering to the infidels who did this would be impossible.
~ Roedy (born: 1948-02-04 age: 61)

Americans are worse than bullies. Not only does pride drive them to defeat their victims (accomplished long ago in the first days of each war), they torture them and they demand abject surrender. They even drive them to abandon their religious beliefs.