Posted on 08/25/2010 1:13:25 PM PDT by autumnraine
Reconciliation with the Taliban will ultimately be a goal for Afghanistan once U.S. and Afghan forces create conditions to allow it, Gen. David Petraeus said Wednesday.
Speaking in Afghanistan to Fox News' Jennifer Griffin -- in her first overseas assignment since recovering from breast cancer -- Petraeus said that orders approved by provincial governors and local leaders Wednesday enable implementation of measures ordered by Afghan President Hamid Karzai to reintegrate the "$10-a-day Taliban" into society.
Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, said those low-budget fighters are the first to return to society's fold since they are "local individuals, almost chameleon-like sometimes, in their allegiances because that's how they stay alive over 30 years of war here in this country."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I really don’t understand. I used to think I was intelligent. But the more I read about Obama’s actions and the actions of our military under him as Commander in Chief, teh dummer I get.
It’s liek evry tyme he duz sumthing, mor of my brain sellz dye.
WHY are we reconciling? These are people who want to kill us, and who support- through actions and contributions- other people who are trying to kill us.
And we are going to RECONCILE?
I iz r dum, apparently.
imagine if we had fought our past wars like this crap.
So some of my old pals died there for this?????????????
They’ll take money and still bomb us, just bring them back if this is how we fight wars now for crying out loud
Kinda like the Israelis and Palestenians?
That’s b.s.!! If that’s the mission I say bring our people home now!
Eisenhower Very Optimistic for Reconciliation with NazisPhilippines Really Isn't That Important, says MacArthur
“Not a COLB, but reason why COLB is vital” ping.
“Reconciliation With Taliban is Ultimate Goal for Afghanistan’s Future”
They TRIED that before, right?
If that's the policy then there is no need for one more soldier or marine to get wounded or killed while serving under a CIC whose goal is to bend over for the Taliban.
Depends what the meaning of “is” is.
The Petraeus strategy in Iraq was to win over the local insurgents leaving the “foreign” Al Qaeda fighters odd man out.
The Taliban are the Pashtuns who make up half the country. He needs to win over the Pashtuns again leaving the foreign “Al Qaeda” elements isolated. It will be tough to do though.
You bring up a critical point. We have to win them over, not merely surrender to them. I’m sure Petraeus knows the difference but I’m not sure if the Obamists do. And if your only goal is to bug out, its easy to mistake the one for the other. And if both your friends and your enemies believe you’ll be bugging out any day now, it completely changes the dynamic and reduces your effectiveness by about 90%. You have to convince your enemies that they will never win, as a first step toward winning them over.
What a disgrace.
The goal of Obama and the Left is to lose the war against Islamofacists, who are the Left’s natural allies. Natural, that is, unless only the two of them remain standing. Then the Western Left would quickly discover the truth about radical Islam.
The Taliban were identified as a major state sponsor and backer of terrorists. Even before Sept. 11th they were classified as such.
After Sept. 11th, President Bush spoke to the nation. In his speech, he identified the Taliban government of Afghanistan as enablers of Al Qaeda and Bin Laden.
Bush declared, and I paraphrase, that “The Taliban must comply with our demands to turn over all terrorists in your land to us. If the Taliban do not comply with these demands, then the Taliban will share the fate of the terrorists”.
And Bush also said at various times that we will make no distinction between terrorists and governments which enable and sponsor terrorists.
So we overthrew the Taliban government of Afghanistan years ago, but, now we’re saying that they must be accomodated now? Is this for real? What are we fighting for? Who are we fighting? Is the Taliban no longer considered an enemy? What’s going on?
Recent statements by the General have been very disappointing.
...if not yesterday.
I take it the Taliban will be able to continue cutting off noses & ears & killing young women & boys at will. And grow poppies.
I cannot imagine how hard it must be to be there.
900 Generals and Admirals (approx) in “Command” of
1.5 1.7 million men and women. Using the most sophisticated Command and Control Mechanisms in world history.
Nearly 10 years and victory eludes.
300 Generals and Admirals in Leading 15 to 17 million men at arms.. Defeat Germany, Japan, Italy and a half dozen Arab Nations.. in but a few years. Using Shortwave Radios, Morse Code key sets and mechanical encryption machines. (Well they did have Semaphore Flags).
Today
American Marines and Soldiers never out fought..
American Generals and Admirals out thought at every turn.
W
As I said a couple of days ago, nation building is not for militaries. We kill people and break stuff. Also, nation building presumes the recipients of our efforts actually want to be nations, and in this case, it just ain’t so.
Colonel, USAFR
What would you like to happen?
Kill every Taliban? You will need maybe 5 times the army for next 10-15 years. It is doable but how do you intend to PAY for it? Nuclear option may speed up things, but then camel riders would manage to score one and as sure as sky is blue, they will manage to sneak one here, and that may not be as fun as it sounds fantasizing about it.
Since the war began, National Debt has gone from 5 Trillion to 13 Trillion + we are on hook for 27 Trillion in liabilites. The second Dip of double-dip recession is almost here. They are hiding for now and will start the CRASH right after the elections. They may start it even before it if they really want the left-puppets to be replaced by right-ones in even more overwhelming numbers, then they are already going to be replaced. As of now, 1/5 Americans is out of Job, and there doesn’t seem to be any recovery on the horizon. Central Bankers are having trouble getting foreigners to borrow, so now they printing paper to buy their own paper.
But hey, if you want more and it is worth it, by all means. I don’t really need a house, I can sleep in my car if it comes down to it, my job requires 10-12 hours of work, and I am sure I don’t really need it as unemployment benefits should allow me to hang in there and eat McDonalds for couple of years.
The funny thing is that other than being hassled by troops, Taliban life-style has NOT been affected even one bit. It is business as usualy in Talibaan land. So decision for more war is kind of easy for them.
I am ok with either way. Slaving away to make bankers rich is not working for me, so I might as well start enjoying the perks of printed money that is handed to me to not riot in the streets.
More and more it appears that Iraq and Afghanistan are just futile exercises in the spilling of American blood.
If not, then what are they? Bet that in 10 years in Iraq and Afghanistan no traces will be found that Americans were ever there.
I stand corrected — we’ll send large chunks of our industry to those countries in order to boost their economy and lower ours as part of our globalization effort so that we may share in the wold’s misery.
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