US Marines fan out across dangerous Afghan south

[laststeamtrain]

Source: AP

US Marines fan out across dangerous Afghan south
By CHRIS BRUMMITT, Associated Press Writer Mon Jun 8, 4:50 pm ET

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan – Teams of builders worked through dust storms Monday to expand a base for a brigade of U.S. Marines now fanning out across southern Afghanistan to change the course of a war claiming American lives faster than ever before.

Some 10,000 Marines have poured into Afghanistan in the last six weeks, the military said Monday, transforming this once small base in the heart of the country's most violent province, Helmand, into a desert fortress.

The statement to embedded journalists, including a team from The Associated Press, was the first confirmation that the military has fully deployed the first wave of 21,000 additional troops President Barack Obama ordered to Afghanistan this year to help stanch an increasingly violent Taliban insurgency.

<snip>

An Army brigade of some 7,000 troops will follow this summer along with 4,000 forces to train Afghan security forces.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090608/ap_on_re_as/as_afghan_surge

[bbinacan]

1. Good. Now that we have basically

finished our business in Iraq, let's get back to where the real problem is. President Obama is right.

[laststeamtrain]

2. You're out!

Strike one: we've finished our business in Iraq.

Strike two: the real problem.

Strike three: President Obama is right.

You're out!

[bbinacan]

3. Strike 3 I'm out?

I don't follow.

[Alamuti Lotus]

4. three false assumptions in rapid succession *nt

[bbinacan]

5. Welcome to DU

:toast:

[No Elephants]

33. And the "real problem" is what, exactly?

[applegrove]

6. Thank god. Finally enough troops in Afghanistan to win the war.

[laststeamtrain]

7. You forgot the :sarcasm: thing, right? n/t.

[applegrove]

8. Nope. I don't like al Qaida. They killed 3000 Americans and Nato went to war

with the Taliban and al Qaida in Afghanistan. They need to stop bin laden. They have to win. They took their eye off the ball. Now that Obama is the leader more attention is being paid to that part of the world as it should be. I agree with Obama on this one.

[Bigmack]

11. Win??? In Afghanistan??

Hoo Boy! Good luck on that one. Ask the Brits and the Soviets how that worked out for them.

[laststeamtrain]

17. Some recent & past history at the link to this post.

:thumbsup:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=454850&mesg_id=454850

[jpak]

18. Sorry - the US does not have the same objectives or use the same tacticcs as the Imperial UK or USSR

Nope

NOT an occupation...

Nope nope nope...

[Alamuti Lotus]

22. are you joking?

if not, my next question is "are you high?!"

[Bigmack]

29. 750 overseas bases...

and battle fleets in every ocean makes us an Empire... fading, but Empire, nonetheless.

You can say "Nope" all you want, but the US is planning on staying in Iraq.. why not the same pinheaded plans for Afghanistan?

Isn't it possible the the US simply cannot bend the world to its wishes? Isn't it possible that we aren't god-appointed to square the world away?

`I believe that if we had and would keep our dirty, bloody, dollar soaked fingers out of the business of these (Third World) nations so full of depressed, exploited people, they will arrive at a solution of their own. And if unfortunately their revolution must be of the violent type because the `haves' refuse to share with the `have-nots' by any peaceful method, at least what they get will be their own, and not the American style, which they don’t want and above all don’t want crammed down their throats by Americans.' –
Gen. David Shoup, United States Marine Commandant Medal of Honor recipient.

[Alamuti Lotus]

23. so nice that war & occupation is cool again!

I was greatly distressed there for a bit, but it's nice to see the warmongers back aboveground around places like this. Why, just 8 months ago, this sort of business was -- believe it or not -- frowned upon. But, no longer.

[No Elephants]

36. That was because Republicans were responsible 8 months ago. Now that Democrats are doing it, it's

righteous.

Get with the program. Everything's different now that Democrats are in charge.

I bet you don't even like the Emperor's new wardrobe.

[Mari333]

27. show me a link that anyone from afghanistan was responsible for 9/11.

15 of the 19 hijackers were from saudi arabia..do you think we should occupy saudi arabia?
now, show me a link. a verified link that someone in afghanistan was responsible for 9/11. facts. not hearsay.

[No Elephants]

35. And you think Al Qaida are all in Afghanistan? They are all over the world, including

in the US. And thanks to us, the biggest concentration of Al Qaida is now probably in Iraq. Yet, we are (supposedly) withdrawing from Iraq to go to Afghanistan. What on earth does that have to do with your not liking Al Qaida?

[TheLastMohican]

15. The Soviets kept a far larger force there

Didn't help them one bit.
Of course Brzezinski and Kissinger were supplying Mujas with modern tools.
Oh wait, they still run the show in DC, it is going to be tough with those dinosauruses still dictating the foreign policy.

[maxsolomon]

19. the opposition to the USSR was funded by the US of A

a proxy war with weapons, money, training provided by our tax dollars and implemented by the mujahedin.

what/who funds the Taliban today? heroin & opium? arab oil money? the ISI? is it really the ungovernable graveyard it is reputed to be when the support network is disconnected?

i don't know. does anyone?

[No Elephants]

34. The war against who or what, exactly? Isn't the leader of Afghanistan the puppet we installed?

[western mass]

9. Vietnam - Obama style.

[Mari333]

28. the quagmire, the giant black hole that sucks tax money nt

[Bigmack]

10. Fanning out?

As in small units spread around? Ah, yes.... live bait for the Taliban to came and get. Same old Corps.

It's gonna take another Khe Sanh or worse to convince the US to leave.

[ShortnFiery]

12. I hope that I'm wrong, but this will not end WELL.

There's no up-side to an occupation of a mountainous Narco-State.

How many more American Troops must die before we realize that they don't want us there? :(

[IDFbunny]

13. Al Queda and their Taliban protectors don't want us there.

Cut and run is no option either.

[ShortnFiery]

14. Oh please? No warmongering propaganda. We are occupying a sovereign nation.

After all our bombing of wedding parties, media, red cross buildings and YES - Innocent children, we've burned up ANY POTENTIAL good will we could have hoped to acquire. Just like Vietnam, "the locals" are going nowhere and can meld back into tribal areas.

Ya can't bomb em all into the Stone Age.

We killed 2 MILLION Vietnamese, yet they kept resisting.

Why? Nationalism ... they can wait us out and cause us to go broke.

[maxsolomon]

20. please don't use the GOP frame of "cut and run"

did we "cut and run" in vietnam? withdrawal seemed like a rational policy to me.

if you say yes, please check the website you're posting at.

[No Elephants]

31. Cut and run? Where have I heard that before? (Welcome to DU.)

[gratuitous]

16. We now have more mercenaries than soldiers in Afghanistan

According to Bill Moyers:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5808924

This is not going to begin, continue, or end well. We will spend another trillion dollars, another several thousand people will die, and not a goddam thing will be accomplished.

[ohio2007]

21. Bill Moyers said all the contractors are sniper trained mercenaries ?

He should get the dot org to distinguish between NGO's and the #'s in those private armies.

[tabasco]

24. Finishing the mission that AWOL Bush abandoned.

OIL was more important to Bush than our security.

[Mari333]

26. what mission??

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

30. Dude, they wanted to run an oil line through Afganistan

[Mari333]

25. Its all about an OIL PIPELINE and money people

and keeping a lot of corporate entities in business..its an occupation.

http://www.alternet.org/world/139983/pipeline-istan:_everything_you_need_to_know_about_oil,_gas,_russia,_china,_iran,_afghanistan_and_obama/

send a letter to your congressman..takes ONE MINUTE PUT AN END TO THIS OCCUPATION OF AFGHANISTAN

i AM writing to urge you to cosponsor H.R. 2404, Rep. McGovern’s bill requiring an exit strategy for Afghanistan by the end of the year.
There is little evidence that escalating the war in Afghanistan will make us safer. Military force has historically been ineffective in combating terrorism, and civilian casualties and displacement are creating resentment and driving people toward extremism. We need a new approach.
Rather than continuing a failed military strategy, we need to invest in policing, intelligence, development and aid. Currently, too many resources are going toward a military approach.
A first step is to determine what the plan is for ending the occupation. The American people deserve to know that there is a clear strategy, especially as Congress is about to pass another $90 billion funding bill.
I urge you to cosponsor H.R. 2404. Please write to let me know what action you will take on this issue.





http://act.peaceactionwest.org/peaceactionwest/issues/alert/?alertid=13501896

never thought Id see the day when the warmongers would be on DU. sickening.

[TrogL]

37. Here's the pipeline

http://members.shaw.ca/trogl/oilwar

[Mari333]

38. thank you bookmarking

I dont think a lot of people know, and prefer the right wing talking points that Obama admin is using now, just like the ones Bush used...'we have to fight them over there blah blah blah'...

[No Elephants]

32. Sooo, all these troops are looking for Bin Laden?

[Mari333]

39. hah

they will find a corpse.

[Bragi]

40. This will end very badly

The only question is how many troops and how many Afghanis need to die before America leaves this hell hole.

Obama foolishly making this his war doesn't make it either sensible or winnable.

- B

[ohio2007]

41. Dutch general: new US troops will disrupt Taliban ( it's going to get bad before it gets worse)

HOUTHEM-SINT GERLACH, Netherlands (AP) - New American troops pouring into southern Afghanistan will allow NATO-led forces to drive deeper into the heart of the Taliban insurgency, the Dutch general commanding allied forces in the region said Wednesday.President Barack Obama has ordered 21,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan and some 10,000 already have been deployed. They aim to pacify the vast region and train local forces so the Afghan government can take control and eventually allow foreign soldiers to return home.

In an upbeat assessment of the coalition campaign, Maj. Gen. Mart de Kruif said the extra troops would strengthen efforts to disrupt the insurgents and combat roadside bombs that are their chief weapon.The allied forces have been fighting the Taliban for eight years with limited success, and the extra troops are intended to reverse an upswing in insurgency violence.

De Kruif said the addition of troops and vehicles means "we will go into areas we have never been before, disrupting the insurgents' leadership, their logistics and their IEDS" - or roadside bombs that are the Taliban's most deadly weapon, accounting for 70 percent of all coalition casualties in southern Afghanistan.


snip
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090610/D98NV9FG0.html

B]pouring into southern Afghanistan
"we will go into areas we have never been before

Hemland province is the birthplace of the Taliban. When the Taliban start to execute 'spy's', it'll be members of some chieftains family.