COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

US Afghan strategy a total failure?



US suspends joint military operations with Afghanistan after attacks

Joint US-Afghan missions halted after four US and two British troops killed in an insider attack on the weekend

GUARDIAN


The US military has suspended joint operations with Afghan forces because of a collapse in trust after a surge in the number of Americans and other Nato soldiers killed by the men they are fighting alongside or training.
The chief US military officer, General Martin Dempsey, described the sharp rise in "insider attacks" by rogue Afghan soldiers and policemen, which saw four American and two British soldiers killed at the weekend, as "a very serious threat to the campaign" against the Taliban.
American commanders said that joint operations on the ground will be suspended "until further notice" in a dramatic admission that the strategy to shift responsibility for fighting the insurgents to local forces has been deeply compromised by Afghan government soldiers and policemen killing 51 Nato soldiers in 36 attacks this year. At least 12 attacks were carried out last month alone, leaving 15 dead.
The US defence secretary, Leon Panetta, described the attacks as the "last gasp" of a weakened Taliban. But the admission that Nato troops are no longer safe from the forces they are relying on to keep the Taliban at bay after the final US pullout in 2014 is a severe blow to Washington's military plans.
Under the strategy, members of the soon to be 350,000 strong Afghan security forces gain experience patrolling and fighting alongside American and other foreign soldiers. But the killings have led to a collapse in trust.
The US army said it is "not walking away" from Afghan military units and will continue to advise them. But Nato troops will patrol with them only when specific approval is given by a regional commander.
American officials say the insider attacks are carried out by a mix of Taliban infiltrators dressed as soldiers, by insurgents who have got themselves recruited and Afghan soldiers angry about their treatment because of personal insults or cultural differences.
US commanders had already assigned soldiers to guard their comrades as they slept, ate or interacted with Afghan forces because of the increasing number of "insider killings". American troops were also ordered to carry loaded weapons at all times, even inside their own bases.
Nato attacks on Afghan civilians have added to the strain. In the latest, an air strike killed eight women and girls collecting firewood.
The loss of trust in the force the US is relying on to prevent the Taliban taking control of Afghanistan again, compounds other concerns about Washington's strategy. The additional 33,000 soldiers Barack Obama despatched two years ago as part of the "surge" are expected to complete their withdrawal this week. The remaining 68,000 US troops are supposed to gradually shift responsibility to Afghan forces which, under the American strategy, are to take the lead in combat as early as next year.
But despite gains on the battlefield, questions persist about whether the Afghan forces will have the ability and will to keep an undefeated Taliban at bay once Nato forces have left.

3 comments:

  1. Besides the fact that Afghanistan is costing us $300 million a day, much of the real costs are accumulating and being pushed into the future.

    The war and veterans claiming disability is wrecking the military.

    Current US veterans are the most medically and mentally troubled generation of former troops in history, with a staggering 45 per cent of the 1.6 million veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan seeking compensation for injuries they say are service-related.

    That is more than double the estimate of 21 per cent who filed such claims after the Gulf War in the early 1990s.

    The health care costs are believed to be in the $600 billion to $900 billion range.

    Veteran disability payments range from $127 a month for a 10 per cent disability to $2,769 for a full one. Most of those awarded small percentage disabilities escalate the percentage of disability as the age of the veteran increases.

    Woman now account for 12% of all VA claims. How many woman were in actual combat? How many do a better job than a male? Not many.

    That is a very high cost for social experimentation.


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  2. Obama's plan for Afghanistan is working out perfectly.

    As I have said for years Obama wanted to teach the USA that war against Islam is un-winnable, better to learn to submit.

    Obama is cuckholding America and Americans are embracing their new role as "submissive" and "war weary" right on schedule.

    Folks like you Deuce and Rat are perfect examples of Obama's plans.

    America the weak, America the submissive, America on the retreat.

    That way Islam will have the ability to rise, Iran will have the ability to arm and Israel (and America) will LEARN their place.

    Congrats Deuce, you have learned what Obama has been training you to learn perfectly.

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  3. If McCain won, we'd be hunkering down for another century in Asscrackistan.

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