6 U.S. service members among 9 people killed in Afghanistan

[zeezee]

In the 9 years we have been waging war in Afghanistan, more American military men have died since bho has taken office. God Bless our TROOPS but if we are not there to win than get us the he!! out. The life of one US Military member is not worth the whole f'n country. :angry: Please God, bring them home safe.

6 U.S. service members among 9 people killed in Afghanistan - CNN.com

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[longcolt]

This is always the result when the civilians with little military experience decide to take over running the war.

When the legal elites determine that we must read the enemy their rights, the war is over. When our troops are not allowed to have ammo in their weapons in some locations or allowed to defend themselves when attacked in a crowed area, its over for us.

With the current administration in charge it is unlikely there will be a happy ending to this conflict.

I wonder why Obama has not been able to capture or Kill Osama, he said he was going to do that ASAP.

 

[56kninja]

Not fond of war. I'd rather we not fight it, but if we are going to be there.. do or do not. Do not involves a lot of plane trips carrying troops back home.

 

[Riot]

President Karzia isn't helping the maters either. He does everything he can to win the next election...crapping on the US the entire way.

If we weren't there his head would be cut off on prime time Al Ja' Zeera...the least he could do is not bite the hand that feeds him.

 

[MikeSettles]

For a news compendium, try The Long War Journal.

I see our Afghan intervention as a "good" mission: We were attacked by a group (Al Qaeda) on 9/11 which had been provided shelter and resources by the (at the time) government of that country (the Taliban).
Taliban still want to take back control, and reinstitute their harsh government on a people who are still trying to recover from 35 years of chaos.
We are experiencing more casualties because we finally have more troops going out on missions, though still not nearly enough. In the province where I worked in 2008, there were 60 miles of paved roads, 120 miles of gravelled/culverted "all-weather improved". No more than 25% of males, nor 5% of females could read at a 6th grade level. This in an area the size of Vermont. The Taliban burned schools, threatened teachers, murdered or intimidated government workers. The Taliban never built anything, but enjoyed being "in charge" and telling people what to do. Mostly they operate as brigands; rolling into a village, taking food, money, fuel, and sometimes shanghai-ing young men.

Consider the state of the Afghan Police (not separate police agencies at different levels of govt, as we have here, just the national police - that is all there is): Think of your county having between 15 and 25 policemen, largely untrained, who have a hodgepodge of old weapons, little ammunition, and three pickup trucks to patrol in. The trucks are often broken down, and there is no fuel. These guys are often unpaid for long periods, and (because it's all cash), when they DO get paid, some of their cash sticks to the fingers of every bureaucrat through who's hands the money passes. Largely, the local police only act as guards for the district centers (county seat). Tribal elders handle the rest of local problems, as they have for thousands of years. District Governors do best when they act as intermediaries between tribes, and between tribes and the central government. None have formal training. District and Provincial officials are men (and the occasional woman) who largely want to help their country climb out of the dark ages. But they have little training in their areas of responsibility. Some ARE thieves, it's true. Same as here. We tend to see corruption as "black and white"; in that part of the world, corruption is a continuum - is an official corrupt? Ask a local, because by OUR definitions, they ALL are. But what works there, works there, and what works here wouldn't necessarily work there.

My entire point to this rant is that our mission is worth doing, so that Afghanistan won't slide back into the 1990's, so that we won't be attacked from there again. Our largest challenge is not the Taliban, nor Al Qaeda, but our own lack of patience in the progress of this effort. In some ways, we continue to shoot ourselves in the foot because of our rotation policies (not one 9-year war, rather 9 wars, one year at a time) and the fact the the State Department, USAID, and other civilian organizations still won't poney up the resources to be successful.

Regardless, I get to go back one more time to contribute what I can to this effort. I leave next Friday for several days in Michigan with a Civil Affairs unit there, then to Camp Atterbury, IA, for pre-deployment training. We should hit Bagram by the end of September. I will be with the Paktiya Provincial Reconstruction Team at Gardez.

By the way: Every Afghan family, by law, can keep an AK47 and a few magazines of ammo for self-defense. The problem is that few can afford it.

Home next July, God Willing.

Mike

 

[Jamie6.5]

Mike.
Thank you for your service. Come home safe and whole. And you can pass that along to your service brothers and sisters.

Godspeed from me, and I think all of us here at NWFA.

 

[zeezee]

Go with God my friend, we will keep you in our prayers.
Keep in touch

 

[Riot]

The only "peace" the Middle East will see are all the "pieces". -Me

 

[Bruce]

It is time to relax the Afghan presidents security detail just enough for a sniper (any sniper, ours or theirs) to hit the mark. He has proved to be unreliable and counter productive.

To put a politician in place was a mistake, we should have backed the warlord that best suited our goals and not the retards at the U.N.

Our concern for Europe's opinion is pathetic and needs to end.

 

[michaelhacker]

Hello zeezee:

After a Google search and news accounts, if the war ended today, the count is this: 1,047 bush, 377 obama.

-Michael

 

[Riot]

For a news compendium, try The Long War Journal.

I see our Afghan intervention as a "good" mission: We were attacked by a group (Al Qaeda) on 9/11 which had been provided shelter and resources by the (at the time) government of that country (the Taliban).
Taliban still want to take back control, and reinstitute their harsh government on a people who are still trying to recover from 35 years of chaos.
We are experiencing more casualties because we finally have more troops going out on missions, though still not nearly enough. In the province where I worked in 2008, there were 60 miles of paved roads, 120 miles of gravelled/culverted "all-weather improved". No more than 25% of males, nor 5% of females could read at a 6th grade level. This in an area the size of Vermont. The Taliban burned schools, threatened teachers, murdered or intimidated government workers. The Taliban never built anything, but enjoyed being "in charge" and telling people what to do. Mostly they operate as brigands; rolling into a village, taking food, money, fuel, and sometimes shanghai-ing young men.

Consider the state of the Afghan Police (not separate police agencies at different levels of govt, as we have here, just the national police - that is all there is): Think of your county having between 15 and 25 policemen, largely untrained, who have a hodgepodge of old weapons, little ammunition, and three pickup trucks to patrol in. The trucks are often broken down, and there is no fuel. These guys are often unpaid for long periods, and (because it's all cash), when they DO get paid, some of their cash sticks to the fingers of every bureaucrat through who's hands the money passes. Largely, the local police only act as guards for the district centers (county seat). Tribal elders handle the rest of local problems, as they have for thousands of years. District Governors do best when they act as intermediaries between tribes, and between tribes and the central government. None have formal training. District and Provincial officials are men (and the occasional woman) who largely want to help their country climb out of the dark ages. But they have little training in their areas of responsibility. Some ARE thieves, it's true. Same as here. We tend to see corruption as "black and white"; in that part of the world, corruption is a continuum - is an official corrupt? Ask a local, because by OUR definitions, they ALL are. But what works there, works there, and what works here wouldn't necessarily work there.

My entire point to this rant is that our mission is worth doing, so that Afghanistan won't slide back into the 1990's, so that we won't be attacked from there again. Our largest challenge is not the Taliban, nor Al Qaeda, but our own lack of patience in the progress of this effort. In some ways, we continue to shoot ourselves in the foot because of our rotation policies (not one 9-year war, rather 9 wars, one year at a time) and the fact the the State Department, USAID, and other civilian organizations still won't poney up the resources to be successful.

Regardless, I get to go back one more time to contribute what I can to this effort. I leave next Friday for several days in Michigan with a Civil Affairs unit there, then to Camp Atterbury, IA, for pre-deployment training. We should hit Bagram by the end of September. I will be with the Paktiya Provincial Reconstruction Team at Gardez.

By the way: Every Afghan family, by law, can keep an AK47 and a few magazines of ammo for self-defense. The problem is that few can afford it.

Home next July, God Willing.

Mike

I used to think that way...on my first deployment over there.

You'll see...you can't teach patriotism. The guns we give the Afghan Police are used to fight other tribes to take over their land. These people don't WANT to get any better and think we're tyrants for trying to help them and show them better. If we truely wanted to erradicate the Talliban we would be in Pakistan, not just sitting on our thumbs in Afghanistan. Any firefight they get in, the police or military alike empty a mag, drop their rifle and run.

You want to know what the biggest international product that comes from Afghanistan? It's OPIUM.

Sure, we can build schools arm and train the police and military...but they have to WANT to get better.

The Afghanis are culturally immature....and until they get tired of killing each other for drugs, more land, camels and trade children for sexual profits I won't ever think that any US soldier that dies over there is for "a good cause".

We'll never go to Pakistan, so sitting on our hands in Afghanistan is pointless.

We've bled enough fighting their war for them...it's time to bring our boys home.

 

[Riot]

Hello zeezee:

After a Google search and news accounts, if the war ended today, the count is this: 1,047 bush, 377 obama.

-Michael

That's not even half of those that died from the World Trade Center....you want to talk about bodies, you can't ignore how we got here in the first place.




My only beef with Obama is that he promised to have the troops home in 6 months after being elected.

How many months is it now?

 

[MikeSettles]

Riot: I hold that if we just pull out, we would eventually be back. It's like fighting cancer: If you don't beat it the first time, it's much worse, and harder to defeat, the second time.

There are many bad things to this war, including the Afghan Govt, but it is STILL necessary. How encouraged do you think that Al Qaeda and its tentacle organizations would be if we cut & run? Or do you believe that there is no threat? Do you really think that we can secure our country by putting troops shoulder-to-shoulder on the border? You must stamp out a cancer where it lives, not where you live. That includes Yemen, Somalia, the Sudan, southern Phillipines, etc.

Our largest failure to date has been a lack of resolve to do the tough stuff & put people in harms' way on the part of our State Dept. And the UN sucks too! Our troops always do what is necessary. Diplomats (mostly) want to hang out by the pool at the embassy in Kabul.

By the way: When were you there, and in what capacity?

Me: 405th CA Battalion at Bagram in '06-'07; PRT Paktika (Sharana) in '08; MNC-I J9 at Victory Base in Iraq last year. PRT Paktiya (Gardez) starting the end of September.

 

[Just Jim]

Mike, what is the end game? What has to happen for you to declare victory? How many are you willing to let die or kill to get to your end game?

jj

 

[Riot]

Riot: I hold that if we just pull out, we would eventually be back. It's like fighting cancer: If you don't beat it the first time, it's much worse, and harder to defeat, the second time.

There are many bad things to this war, including the Afghan Govt, but it is STILL necessary. How encouraged do you think that Al Qaeda and its tentacle organizations would be if we cut & run? Or do you believe that there is no threat? Do you really think that we can secure our country by putting troops shoulder-to-shoulder on the border? You must stamp out a cancer where it lives, not where you live. That includes Yemen, Somalia, the Sudan, southern Phillipines, etc.

Our largest failure to date has been a lack of resolve to do the tough stuff & put people in harms' way on the part of our State Dept. And the UN sucks too! Our troops always do what is necessary. Diplomats (mostly) want to hang out by the pool at the embassy in Kabul.

By the way: When were you there, and in what capacity?

Me: 405th CA Battalion at Bagram in '06-'07; PRT Paktika (Sharana) in '08; MNC-I J9 at Victory Base in Iraq last year. PRT Paktiya (Gardez) starting the end of September.

Read everything in my post there Chief....we should either go to Pakistan or leave. Being stationary targets in Afghanistan doesn't do anything but fill our graves back here.

*edit*

82nd MP attached to 1/504 PIR, 82nd ABN Div
2003= Kowst, Gardez, Shkin
2006= Kowst, Kandahar (and virtually every base in between)

*Riot Out*