We’d have Afghanistan in our front pocket right now if Uncle Sam hadn’t ditched it to go play hide and seek with the evil Iraqui “who tried to kill Bushie’s dad” and put a competent, not corrupted government in place.
scott; That’s what we wanted to do all along.
Too bad it doesn’t involve depleted uranium and nobody can stand on a boat claiming “Mission Accomplished”.
charliek, agree with your post, mixed metaphors and all!
And as many people, of all political leanings, have pointed out, some of our actions in Iraq, have ensured the insurgents have a continuing supply of new recruits.(Rounding up every civilian in the vicinity of an IED and throwing them all in prison camps for long periods, including the taxi driver who was killed while being tortured, one of the other scandals of Abu Ghraib)
but it’s not afghanistan that needs to be conquered
it’s the taliban - and afghanistan/pakistan is where they are concentrated right? that’s the hard part because they know the territory and can slither like snakes into holes and not be found. both afghanistan and pakistan governments (both predominantly peacefully islamic btw) want them taken down - they are just unable to do it alone.
Until WWII Japan had not been successfully invaded since about 900AD. We managed to turn it from a failed democracy turned Monarchy back into a democracy and into a internationally responsible country after WWII.
We can do the same to Afghanistan, all it takes is the right leader and a bit of patients.
ahab, yes I did. and it is exactly those kinds of activities that turned so many Iraqis against us and led so many young men to join the insurgents. I hate it when people who want to be informed, who want to know what other countries know, who want to understand, are labeled traitors and un-American. When did seeking facts and knowledge become un-American? And I think it’s an abomination that the troops doing the grunt work were charged or disciplined but none of the higher ups who wrote the orders. It should never be that way in our country.
I think we’re in dire straights right now for both wars. As you say, our troops have been subjected to stop/loss provisions, extended tours, less time between tours and sent right back again for too many times. I don’t think our country should ever go to war if there are not adequate troops to carry it out. And it galls me that this was all put into motion by a handful of men who never served their country. (Yes I know Bush 43 did a sort-of fulfilled stint in the elite national guard unit his father got him into.)
(sorry, this turned into a rant. I feel strongly about how badly we treat our troops. and not ranting at you. We seem to agree.)
HOWGOZIT is a good example of someone who has lost any ability to think critically! This is what happens when people listen to FOX NEWS instead of studying the truth with any sense of justice.
God help us against such greedy little pissants!!
The CIA recruited and trained Afgan fighters to combat the Soviets but left them swinging in the wind and soon afterward they began to hate the US and were then recruited by Al Queda. How did that work out?
Howie it is most appropriate for Obama to gather more input from his advisors, both military and civilian, to determine the best course of action. I wish Bush had done that more. I think most agree our military troops are stretched much too thin. We can’t keep deploying the same people over and over again.
There will be more. In the service I was part of our nuclear weapons defense team. Part of that training included the fact that if hostages were involved, our first job was to shoot them, even if they were women and children. We were instructed to do this because if the weapon got away, many many other women and children would probably die.
I realize there will probably be more patients and corpses. But how many patients and corpses will be prevented by doing the one thing every one in the middle east says can’t be done, defeat Afghanistan?
With the conversion of Afghanistan, the others will have to decide to either go with the flow of international responsibility or face the fact that attacks on the US will result in their not being what they were.
Although there are no guaranties, my best guess is they wouldn’t want the US occupying them and changing their society.
The long term part that needs a good leader is the one that can convert Afghanistan into an internationally responsible country, and do it with the minimum amount of force.
Are you a Canadian? I ask because you wrote “Your VA”. I’m American by the way.
DrCannot, this notion that we (U.S.A.) should stick our noses into every other nations’ business just won’t go away. Many of us wonder why in the world we’ve spent 8 years blowing up wastelands of sand & rocks, inhabited by hate-filled medievil people who just want to be left alone to raise opium poppies, abuse women & terrified sheep, kill competing tribal members and pray to allah 5 times per day. If we would just mind our own bidness, they should become extinct. I’m hoping we don’t decide to invade Canuckistan!
HARVIN over 14 years ago
And get us thirty thousand body bags, stat!
charliekane over 14 years ago
Not so easy when your on the big chair.
Our incursion into Afghanistan after 9/11 was correct. Dub’ya dropped the ball. To mix metaphores, BO now has to sweep up the china shop.
Do we pull the plug, and render the sacrifices made there meaningless? Do we “surge up” and hope we get lucky like Dub’ya?
None of this take’s place in vacuum.
CorosiveFrog Premium Member over 14 years ago
We’d have Afghanistan in our front pocket right now if Uncle Sam hadn’t ditched it to go play hide and seek with the evil Iraqui “who tried to kill Bushie’s dad” and put a competent, not corrupted government in place.
CorosiveFrog Premium Member over 14 years ago
scott; That’s what we wanted to do all along. Too bad it doesn’t involve depleted uranium and nobody can stand on a boat claiming “Mission Accomplished”.
believecommonsense over 14 years ago
charliek, agree with your post, mixed metaphors and all!
And as many people, of all political leanings, have pointed out, some of our actions in Iraq, have ensured the insurgents have a continuing supply of new recruits.(Rounding up every civilian in the vicinity of an IED and throwing them all in prison camps for long periods, including the taxi driver who was killed while being tortured, one of the other scandals of Abu Ghraib)
parkersinthehouse over 14 years ago
but it’s not afghanistan that needs to be conquered
it’s the taliban - and afghanistan/pakistan is where they are concentrated right? that’s the hard part because they know the territory and can slither like snakes into holes and not be found. both afghanistan and pakistan governments (both predominantly peacefully islamic btw) want them taken down - they are just unable to do it alone.
anatheist2009 over 14 years ago
Until WWII Japan had not been successfully invaded since about 900AD. We managed to turn it from a failed democracy turned Monarchy back into a democracy and into a internationally responsible country after WWII. We can do the same to Afghanistan, all it takes is the right leader and a bit of patients.
believecommonsense over 14 years ago
ahab, yes I did. and it is exactly those kinds of activities that turned so many Iraqis against us and led so many young men to join the insurgents. I hate it when people who want to be informed, who want to know what other countries know, who want to understand, are labeled traitors and un-American. When did seeking facts and knowledge become un-American? And I think it’s an abomination that the troops doing the grunt work were charged or disciplined but none of the higher ups who wrote the orders. It should never be that way in our country.
I think we’re in dire straights right now for both wars. As you say, our troops have been subjected to stop/loss provisions, extended tours, less time between tours and sent right back again for too many times. I don’t think our country should ever go to war if there are not adequate troops to carry it out. And it galls me that this was all put into motion by a handful of men who never served their country. (Yes I know Bush 43 did a sort-of fulfilled stint in the elite national guard unit his father got him into.) (sorry, this turned into a rant. I feel strongly about how badly we treat our troops. and not ranting at you. We seem to agree.)
babka Premium Member over 14 years ago
oh yes! tell it.
“tomorrow the world” part 2.
hastynote Premium Member over 14 years ago
HOWGOZIT is a good example of someone who has lost any ability to think critically! This is what happens when people listen to FOX NEWS instead of studying the truth with any sense of justice. God help us against such greedy little pissants!!
pilotx over 14 years ago
The CIA recruited and trained Afgan fighters to combat the Soviets but left them swinging in the wind and soon afterward they began to hate the US and were then recruited by Al Queda. How did that work out?
believecommonsense over 14 years ago
Howie it is most appropriate for Obama to gather more input from his advisors, both military and civilian, to determine the best course of action. I wish Bush had done that more. I think most agree our military troops are stretched much too thin. We can’t keep deploying the same people over and over again.
anatheist2009 over 14 years ago
DrCanuck:
Error in syntax and spell check didn’t catch it.
There will be more. In the service I was part of our nuclear weapons defense team. Part of that training included the fact that if hostages were involved, our first job was to shoot them, even if they were women and children. We were instructed to do this because if the weapon got away, many many other women and children would probably die. I realize there will probably be more patients and corpses. But how many patients and corpses will be prevented by doing the one thing every one in the middle east says can’t be done, defeat Afghanistan? With the conversion of Afghanistan, the others will have to decide to either go with the flow of international responsibility or face the fact that attacks on the US will result in their not being what they were. Although there are no guaranties, my best guess is they wouldn’t want the US occupying them and changing their society. The long term part that needs a good leader is the one that can convert Afghanistan into an internationally responsible country, and do it with the minimum amount of force.
Are you a Canadian? I ask because you wrote “Your VA”. I’m American by the way.
bikemaster over 14 years ago
DrCannot, this notion that we (U.S.A.) should stick our noses into every other nations’ business just won’t go away. Many of us wonder why in the world we’ve spent 8 years blowing up wastelands of sand & rocks, inhabited by hate-filled medievil people who just want to be left alone to raise opium poppies, abuse women & terrified sheep, kill competing tribal members and pray to allah 5 times per day. If we would just mind our own bidness, they should become extinct. I’m hoping we don’t decide to invade Canuckistan!