Reply With Quote
(In a probabilistic universe, things may stand otherwise, granted.)
Damning with faint praise, no?
(In a probabilistic universe, things may stand otherwise, granted.)
Slight refrain:
Ain't we killed enough Muslims yet?
I understand that we had to come hard at the beginning, but here we are, nine years later, and we're not getting it done.
"[Team Obama] are trying to manipulate perceptions because there is no definition of victory – because victory is not even defined or recognizable," says Celeste Ward, a senior defense analyst at the RAND Corporation who served as a political adviser to U.S. commanders in Iraq in 2006. "That's the game we're in right now. What we need, for strategic purposes, is to create the perception that we didn't get run off. The facts on the ground are not great, and are not going to become great in the near future."
But facts on the ground, as history has proven, offer little deterrent to a military determined to stay the course. Even those closest to McChrystal know that the rising anti-war sentiment at home doesn't begin to reflect how deeply ed up things are in Afghanistan. "If Americans pulled back and started paying attention to this war, it would become even less popular," a senior adviser to McChrystal says. Such realism, however, doesn't prevent advocates of counterinsurgency from dreaming big: Instead of beginning to withdraw troops next year, as Obama promised, the military hopes to ramp up its counterinsurgency campaign even further. "There's a possibility we could ask for another surge of U.S. forces next summer if we see success here," a senior military official in Kabul tells me."
http://www.alternet.org/module/printversion/147302
==========
The all-powerful, super-wealthy corps pursue profits no matter what the costs to everybody else.
The all-powerful, super-wealthy military pursues "victory" no matter what the costs to everybody else.
America is ed.
+1this is why i'm enlisted instead of an officer...
I think he should've apologized, taken a scolding from POTUS, and got back to his job.
MacChrystal is the asshole who orchestrated the PR campaign to cover up Tillman's fragging.
No dailykos or alternet link?
truthout.borg
Nope, got that one from Mo Dowd!
Ya gotta any Heritage, Cato, Billy Kristol, Fox News, Limbaugh link saying MacChrystal wasn't the asshole hiding Tillman's fragging?
According to the Rolling Stones Reporter, most of the opinions in the article were obtained from McChrystal's staff during a Berlin-based drink-a-thon when McChrystal and his staff were unable to get back to Afghanistan from London during the Volcano-induced cloud above Europe earlier this year.
According to the reporter, they had gotten stuck in London, so the entire entourage went to Berlin, set up at the Ritz-Berlin, got pretty lit, and the reporter was with them, and they started talking 'drink-talk'.
How stupid!
If what the reporter says about how the quotes came about, I'm willing to see the guy get fired for general stupidity...he knew the reporter was with them, and he let it all happen. THAT was a serious enough error in judgement to warrant dismissal.
No surprise, but McCrystal fired.
so is Magic Negro, beating up on old white guys, now Tuff Enuff for right-wingers?
then you get the heck out
Not "surprising", but a controversial decision nonetheless. The Afghani government appreciated and respected McChrystal and his methodology; in fact, he ushered in a new era of Afghani-US relations and Hamad Karzai openly opposed McCrhystal being relieved after the article's comments went public.
The polls said Obama needed to kick some ass.
so....the puppet leader is unhappy?
It's likely that Obama simply decided based on past presidents' histories regarding these Civilian-Military divisions. The President, ie Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, must never be disrespected by the military publicly, especially those in command of tens of thousands of men and many billions of dollars in resources.
There are differences, though. Has any president relieved two commanding generals in a single campaign before?
Last edited by z0sa; 06-23-2010 at 02:38 PM.
bush got rid of abizaid and casey.
you still worked up about tillman
isn't this reason enough to fire the guy?
Which campaign were they both in charge and subsequently relieved?
Why are we in Afghanistan if we can't even get the government we're supposedly helping to support us?
Exactly my point, Karazai isn't that guy, so if he likes McChrystal, then good riddance. (BTW I am not implying that Gen. Mac is shady and that is why Karazai likes him at all. Just that for whatever reason Karazai likes him and Karazai is shady).Why are we in Afghanistan if we can't even get the government we're supposedly helping to support us?
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions