I’m really confused now! The military mantra of no man left behind is apparently not the same one our politicians and a couple of bought generals use. Essentially, they’re saying that IF an American civilian can make it to the airport, they won’t be left behind PROVIDED that they pay upward of $2000 for the plane ride. Of course, they (whoever those monetary minded individuals are) are offering a payment plan. Each civilian who cannot come up with the cash or a good credit card can offer up their passport as collateral. Now, I cannot imagine anyone who is working in Afghanistan who wouldn’t have that kind of money in the bank but it’s the principle of the thing. They are in a war zone and could be killed so we’ll just blackmail the civilians into paying for their ride to safety. Note: If said captured American civilian is a Christian, there is no doubt in my military mind that they will be killed and probably in some horrific manner. No so amazingly though, the French and the U.K. have paratroopers on the ground looking for their civilians and escorting them to safety but us, the United States of America, the most powerful (cough) nation on the planet are saying, if you can make it to the airport, we’ll take care of you uh, provided you have the money. Note 2: If those in our government care so little about Americans left in a potentially life threatening situation, I wonder how much the government leadership cares about the rest of the American population? They don’t. Our government is a business, a failing business.
I don't know about military strategy but I do know you don't leave a terrorist standing up. If in the 60s and 70s the government of Argentina had allowed the guerrillas to run free today my other country will be the South American Cuba.
Our soldiers have their hands tied with an edict that says they can’t defend themselves or rather, shoot unless there is a reason to do so, like getting shot at. In Nam, we soldiers didn’t really adhere to that but with the sword of Damocles hanging over our heads (courts martial) we were very careful about being on the offensive end of the stick lest the wrong person witness the event. As a door gunner, I was told that even if my chopper was being fired upon I was supposed to ask the A/C (aircraft commander) if I could fire back. I never asked. I do imagine that it’s the same today. Even if it’s obvious that a man is the enemy, our soldiers “are supposed” to ask for permission to use deadly force.
Even if the enemy is shooting and even hits and killed some of our troops if they turn and run we cannot shoot them in the back. That has been the rule for many years and I am sure is even stricter today.
Anyone who believes this administration cares about the American people... they aren't paying attention!
Just watched that liar stand before us and outright lie again. He and the one who stands behind him need to be impeached.
Somebody once told me "We are not savages"..... to which I answered "Water doesn't protect you from viruses."
Our current government is as much of an enemy to the American people as anyone else on the planet. Certainly, the Taliban are far less of a threat than the people behind our own government. That said, I don't think Biden has anything at all to say about what our government does. I doubt he's even consulted.
Some Thoughts about the Afghanistan Disaster and Biden There are two things quite obvious about the pull-out: it's the right thing to do, and it's a disaster. I agree with the commentators who argue that it would have been a disaster a decade ago or a decade from now. In order to understand the seeming contradiction of these two 'things,' we need to go back to the Clinton administration and read about the Neocon think tank entitled 'Project New American Century (PNAC). An internet search brings up plenty. Good reading would be “PNAC Letter to Clinton,” and “Rebuilding America's Defenses.” The second, 90 pages, is the manifesto. In a nutshell, it argues that since the Soviet Union, the other super power, is no longer, now is the time for the US to take over the world in different aspects, most importantly, militarily. It specifically argues that the US military presence in Western Europe should be expanded to Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_the_New_American_Century is quite good and lists further info. (I know I know... being a teacher and claiming to be a scholar I shouldn't support Wikipedia!!! But I do. One has to be careful since anyone can change the items, which happens.) Most important is to note that Bush the Lesser's cabinet was made up of contributors of PNAC. Vice Pres Cheney was also a PNACer. Another point of interest might be that in 2016 several PNAC members supported H. Clinton, rather than Trump. What I am arguing here, is that the toppling of Sadam, and invading Afghanistan had as much or more to do with the march to US world hegemony as with 9/11. The second part of my screed is easier. It simply asks dear readers to to do an internet search “US Afghan Corruption.” One of the things that came up when I did is that the Afghan troopers we are supposedly training haven't rece ved any of the money that we taxpayers has been providing for that. Finally: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/worl...he-defense-contractors-did-opinion/ar-AANxu5E
It was simply too abrupt. The withdrawal, retreat, departure, or whatever should have been organized, with appropriate withdrawals and evacuation prior to the abrupt action. In Vietnam, the haste was required, but in Afghanistan there was no need for the haste, as things were in equilibrium with only 2500 American personnel providing intelligence and air cover. The Chinese and Russians are now entering into the vacuum left behind in Afghanistan due to the poorly planned, poorly executed flight of America from the field. We still have far more troops still stationed in Japan, Korea, and even Germany.
@James Hintze, I don't think anyone's arguing that we should have remained in Afghanistan forever. I supported Trump's proposal to withdraw our troops, but that was with the reasonable assumption that it wouldn't have been done haphazardly, abandoning American citizens and others who were owed our protection, and equipping the Taliban with military bases, Blackhawks, weaponry, and who knows what else we've left them. If there was any genuine thought (which Biden is incapable of) put into the withdrawal of our troops, it seems that the intention may have been to encourage renewed calls for our military to return, perhaps in response to the atrocities that we're sure to see, and/or to have an excuse to bring thousands of unvetted Afghans into the country.
Another piece of proof of that is when Biden came out of hiding for the second time, he didn’t have one thing to say about Kabul or the American citizens trapped in Afghanistan. All he talked about was the batch of lies that he and the other paid broadcasters of propaganda perpetuate: the need for masks and vaccinations. It’s a moot topic and isn’t even worth broadcasting nor the expense for doing so but yup, gotta tell the ignorant serfs out here that we need masks just one more time and maybe we’ll forget about the lies he’s already told about the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Now Harris in hiding, Circle back to it Psaki is in hiding and good ol Joe is still on vacation. Edit: I stand corrected: Joe Biden did speak today. And with that, I present a short video complete with the sharks in Washington and the left wing media eating one of their own…Joe Biden.