Wars & Rumours of Wars

nivek

As Above So Below
But this specific situation appears to have been avoidable and is totally owned by the current administration - Saigon with a dash of Benghazi sauce.

Whatever happened to 'the buck stops here' ? The commanding officer of anything is supposed to take charge and responsibility, the one that whines and points his or her finger elsewhere loses credibility and respect. I'd say that if DT did this or anyone else.

Yep, Biden owns this mess completely, this particular situation is all on him, he is the Commander in Chief and made the call, now he must own it...You can't reason with the party liners, they cannot see any wrongdoing within their own parties because the political parties have a cult-like mentality and grip, both the left and right, which each will deny because they cannot see it in their own, they only see it in the opposing party...Both political parties have shown they don't represent the interests of the American people anymore, both parties are ruining this country with their extremist actions and ideals...Two ends of the same rotten stick...

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Sheltie

Fratty and out of touch.
Where is President Biden? If Trump, or Obama, or Bush, or Clinton were president, we would be seeing them nonstop addressing the nation. Certainly Bill Clinton, as much as he enjoys public speaking, would be completely controlling the news cycle right now.

Even CNN is calling him out for hiding from the public:
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
We're forced to pick and choose the corn nuggets from all this political shit.
I preferred border security and an end to the forever war that didn't include this criminal stupidity.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Wonderful, my nephew is stationed at Fort Bragg and now he's on standby to go to Afghanistan...

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dr wu

Noble
I agree but from what you've written suspect that if this train wreck occurred on DT's watch you might be expressing that differently. Whatever our reasons for being there, humanitarian concerns were probably not at the top of the list. More likely because we couldn't leave easily for reasons just like what we are seeing. But this specific situation appears to have been avoidable and is totally owned by the current administration - Saigon with a dash of Benghazi sauce.

Whatever happened to 'the buck stops here' ? The commanding officer of anything is supposed to take charge and responsibility, the one that whines and points his or her finger elsewhere loses credibility and respect. I'd say that if DT did this or anyone else.

DT was a major dick ,but he's not to blame for us being there in the first place....that would be George H Bush.
Unless one decisively wins a war the exits are always messy ,but I suppose this admin could have done better...maybe no one could have . Everyone who thinks they know better.....are all armchair experts.
 

wwkirk

Divine
If the US abandons the Afghans who risked their lives in helping us to fight Islamic fanaticism, it will be difficult or impossible to get similar help elsewhere in the future.* That's the pragmatic argument. There is also a strong, relevant ethical argument.


*I concede there may always be criminals and other desperadoes willing to cooperate with us for purely mercenary incentives.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Biden’s Betrayal of Afghans Will Live in Infamy

Our abandonment of the Afghans who helped us, counted on us, and staked their lives on us is a final, gratuitous shame that we could have avoided.

There’s plenty of blame to go around for the 20-year debacle in Afghanistan—enough to fill a library of books. Perhaps the effort to rebuild the country was doomed from the start. But our abandonment of the Afghans who helped us, counted on us, staked their lives on us, is a final, gratuitous shame that we could have avoided. The Biden administration failed to heed the warnings on Afghanistan, failed to act with urgency—and its failure has left tens of thousands of Afghans to a terrible fate. This betrayal will live in infamy. The burden of shame falls on President Joe Biden.

(More on the link)

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nivek

As Above So Below
Afghans who clung to departing US plane fall to their death

At least seven individuals have been killed in the chaos at Kabul's international airport on Monday as thousands of Afghans desperately attempt to flee the Taliban's capture of their country, according to senior military officials speaking on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press.

Videos circulating on social media show hundreds of Afghans running across the tarmac as U.S. troops fired warning shots in the air. One showed a crowd pushing and shoving its way up a staircase, trying to board a plane, with some people hanging off the railings. Another shows several individuals plunging to their death after attempting to cling onto a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane as it took off.

AP21228596458984.jpg


Hundreds of people run alongside a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane, some climbing on the plane, as it moves down a runway of the international airport, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Aug.16. 2021. Thousands of Afghans have rushed onto the tarmac at the airport, some so desperate to escape the Taliban capture of their country that they held onto the American military jet as it took off and plunged to death.


(More on the link)

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nivek

As Above So Below
Our military generals told Biden not to do this but he didn't listen to their advice...

My nephew did his tour of Afghanistan, he wasn't supposed to go back, now he been assigned and departing for Afghanistan again, this time the circumstances will be different and likely much more violent...Thanks Joe...

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nivek

As Above So Below
Biden's statement 'washing hands' of Afghanistan 'is one of most shameful in US history': Left and right-wing media unite in condemnation of America's 'chaotic retreat' and 'betrayal' of Afghan people



Media outlets across the political divide in the US and Britain have united in their condemnation over America's handling of the Afghanistan crisis amid what is being billed the biggest foreign policy catastrophe in 65 years. The Wall Street Journal condemned Joe Biden's statement 'washing his hands' of the situation, saying it should 'go down as one of the most shameful in history by a Commander in Chief at such a moment of American retreat'.

As the Taliban seized Kabul, a CNN columnist said the 'debacle of the US defeat and chaotic retreat in Afghanistan' was a 'political disaster' for the US President and slammed his 'failure to orchestrate an urgent and orderly exit'. And an opinion writer in The Atlantic said there was enough blame attached for the Afghanistan crisis to 'fill a library of books', condemning the 'betrayal' of the Afghan people as he placed the 'burden of shame' on Mr Biden.

Meanwhile a New York Post editorial said Mr Biden's claims that he 'inherited' his predecessor Donald Trump's withdrawal plans were a 'lie' and the situation is 'as humiliating an end as the rooftop scramble in Saigon in 1975'. Columnists in the British Press also hit out at Mr Biden today, with The Sun's editorial saying he 'ignored repeated warnings, then withdrew crucial air support for the Afghan army it has spent billions arming over 20 years'.

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nivek

As Above So Below
After days of lying low, Biden RETURNS from his Camp David 'vacation' to address the nation at 3.45pm EST on the Afghanistan collapse that has humiliated America



President Joe Biden cut his trip to Camp David short and returned to the White House Monday afternoon to deliver remarks on Afghanistan. The president landed at Fort McNair a little after 1 p.m., and will deliver a speech at 3:45 p.m., according to updated guidance from the White House. The president landed at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C. a little after 1 p.m., and will deliver a speech at 3:45 p.m., according to updated guidance from the White House. He took no questions as he walked by reporters to the waiting motorcade. Biden was originally supposed to stay at Camp David until Wednesday as part of an August vacation. The nature and speed of the Afghan government's collapse in the face of a Taliban advance poses the most serious test of Biden's presidency so far. At least eight people were killed during chaos at the Kabul airport on Monday, as thousands of Afghans traveled to the airfield in hopes of escaping the Taliban.

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nivek

As Above So Below
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Rescue Mission Impossible? US 'takes over international evacuation from Kabul airport' after Central Command held 'deconfliction' negotiations with the Taliban

The evacuation operation at the international airport in Kabul has been thrown into chaos, with thousands awaiting airlift after chaos on the runways that killed eight and halted all flights.

American's initial plans to evacuate tens of thousands of Afghan civilians now appear unlikely to succeed, with Taliban militants in U.S.-issued armored vehicles now surrounding Hamid Karzai International Airport, cutting it off from the rest of Kabul.

There are currently about 3,000 U.S. troops inside the airport, with that number expected to soon swell to 6,000, as concerns mount that Afghan security contractors may mutiny if they suspect they will not be given passage out of the country.

A U.S. State Department spokesperson said that all embassy personnel had been transferred to Kabul airport, but it remained unclear on Monday how many had been successfully extracted from the country.

It was also unclear how many Afghan nationals are currently at the airport seeking evacuation, but insiders say that at most, only one or two thousand translators and other civilians are likely to be airlifted out.

The confusion comes as Germany said it wants to evacuate up to 10,000 people, including 2,500 Afghan support staff, human rights activists, lawyers and others whose work Chancellor Angela Merkel fears puts them at risk of the Taliban.


(More on the link)

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wwkirk

Divine
clusterf*ck
Military term for an operation in which multiple things have gone wrong. Related to "SNAFU" (Situation Normal, All Fucked Up") and "FUBAR" (Fucked Up Beyond All Repair).
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Screenshot_20210816-170314.jpg

'The buck stops with me', says Biden but then proceeds to blame Afghan fiasco on Trump and locaIs who failed to fight the Taliban - before ducking questions and fleeing for Camp David

President Joe Biden defended leaving Afghanistan during remarks at the White House Monday. 'I stand squarely behind my decision,' Biden said. 'After 20 years I've learned the hard way. That there was never a good time to withdraw U.S. forces.' The president said he wanted to be 'straight' with the American public. 'The truth is - this did unfold more quickly than we anticipated,' the president said. Biden pointed a finger at former President Donald Trump's agreement with the Taliban - to pull out American troops by May 1, 2021. Biden also slammed Afghanistan's political leaders and military forces for refusing to come to the table for a diplomatic answer and also refusing to fight.

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nivek

As Above So Below
So Biden went back on vacation while Afghanistan falls and thousands of Americans are stuck trying to flee the Taliban, some Commander in Chief...

Why didn't he evacuate everyone BEFORE the retreat?...Its likely we will never know since the Dear Leader doesn't take questions from reporters on this issue...

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wwkirk

Divine
View attachment 14739

'The buck stops with me', says Biden but then proceeds to blame Afghan fiasco on Trump and locaIs who failed to fight the Taliban - before ducking questions and fleeing for Camp David

President Joe Biden defended leaving Afghanistan during remarks at the White House Monday. 'I stand squarely behind my decision,' Biden said. 'After 20 years I've learned the hard way. That there was never a good time to withdraw U.S. forces.' The president said he wanted to be 'straight' with the American public. 'The truth is - this did unfold more quickly than we anticipated,' the president said. Biden pointed a finger at former President Donald Trump's agreement with the Taliban - to pull out American troops by May 1, 2021. Biden also slammed Afghanistan's political leaders and military forces for refusing to come to the table for a diplomatic answer and also refusing to fight.

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Biden's speech made a reasonable case for withdrawal. But that shouldn't have been the focus, as withdrawal in principle already had bipartisan support. What he failed to explain is why the manner of withdrawal has been botched so badly. Some experts have argued that the withdrawal of US civilians and Afghans allied with America could have, and should have, been conducted surreptitiously over many months while conditions were manageable, and a sufficient US military presence was still in place. The need for a truly abrupt withdrawal was not explained during the press conference. And Biden declined to answer questions, to boot.



McConnell: Biden ‘Overruled His Own Military Leaders’ On Withdrawal
“It won’t surprise you I was in a number of these briefings over the last couple of months, it was pretty obvious to me what was gonna happen. I’ve predicted it, and I’m not in the intelligence business, that the Taliban would be in power by September the 11th, which is a date of historical significance. Just based on what we were hearing in these briefings, I know for a fact that the President’s military leaders argued against this decision,” McConnell said.

“I think the President felt strongly about this, obviously; he overruled his own military leaders to do it, and he owns it,” McConnell added.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Taliban commander who gave taunting victory speech from Kabul palace was released from Guantanamo Bay after claiming he was a 'simple shopkeeper' who 'helped Americans' and wanted to return to Afghanistan to care for his sick father



A Taliban commander claimed he spent eight years in Guantanamo Bay in a triumphant speech from inside the Presidential Palace in Kabul. This came as the militants declared an Islamic state of Afghanistan after President Ashraf Ghani fled his country amid chaotic scenes. Experts identified the commander and former Gitmo detainee as Gholam Ruhani, who was accused of being a longtime security agent for the Taliban. DailyMail.com can reveal that he was released after promising authorities he was returning to Afghanistan to care for his sick father. Ruhani secured his freedom by telling an administrative review board that he was a 'simple shopkeeper' who 'helped Americans'. State Department documents confirm that Ruhani was one of the very first prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, the Cuban-based military prison meant to cage the world's most dangerous terrorists. The documents show that he spent five years there, from 2002 to 2007.

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