Posted on Sep 2, 2017
Are ‘restrictions’ keeping us from winning in Afghanistan? | American Military News
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Are ‘restrictions’ keeping us from winning in Afghanistan? What is your take on the situation?
America's longest wartime engagement is, undoubtedly, taking its toll on every military resource involved, materiel and manpower, alike. Given those factors, are there solutions that we are not trying? Are there restrictions, political or otherwise, that are being placed upon our military that are limiting our efforts to bring this conflict to a swifter conclusion?
http://americanmilitarynews.com/2017/08/are-restrictions-keeping-us-from-winning-in-afghanistan/?utm_campaign=DailyEmails&utm_source=AM_Email&utm_medium=email
America's longest wartime engagement is, undoubtedly, taking its toll on every military resource involved, materiel and manpower, alike. Given those factors, are there solutions that we are not trying? Are there restrictions, political or otherwise, that are being placed upon our military that are limiting our efforts to bring this conflict to a swifter conclusion?
http://americanmilitarynews.com/2017/08/are-restrictions-keeping-us-from-winning-in-afghanistan/?utm_campaign=DailyEmails&utm_source=AM_Email&utm_medium=email
Afghanistan
Foreign Policy
Southwest Asia
Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR)
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 5
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It's hard to assess the strategy and tactics when you don't know the mission. Just what the hell are we attempting to do? Answer that first and then we can talk about the rest.
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SCPO (Join to see)
An astute observation, Jack. I'm beginning to wonder if there is not an overabundance of pride involved. Are we hanging on to the bitter end just to say we outlasted the Russians?
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CPT Jack Durish
SCPO (Join to see) - It does seem that way, doesn't it? Also, there are those who want to recreate America in Afghanistan, a fool's errand at best. It reminds me of an old episode of Pogo comics where Pogo and his friends travel to Mars where they meet a Martian named Noah. They're convinced that his presence is an omen of an impending flood. They give him a copy of the Bible and convince him to build an Ark. He follows the instructions to the letter but the result is that he builds it upside down. There being no water on Mars, how could he conceive of the purposes of the different parts of a vessel? US trying to recreate American in Afghanistan is similar.
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SCPO (Join to see)
I love that analogy, sir!!! Yes, on the subject of recreating our democracy everywhere we want to leave our footprint, I come absolutely unglued. Where in God's name did we ever think we have that right? And let me clarify here: I also get very pissed off when the "we" in "we" is meant to include all Americans. I have had nothing to do with the wars in Southwest Asia. That foreign policy belongs to people in Washington. I get more than a little tired of hearing this "we" crap. You, me, and Johnny Apppleseed are doing our plain-old Middle America stuff every day, and that ain't on the list!!!
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MSgt Steve Sweeney
Absolutely correct. What does "winning" mean? Until the desired endstate is well defined, you have no means to determine if you are getting closer to the goal line.
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Afghanistan - what was the mission? Does anyone know what the mission was? Hearts and minds of a people that absolutely detests American values, American freedoms, American Culture? A people that would gladly bomb a school with children in it? We should have just gone in, reduced them to hunter gatherer state of evolution, warned them if they attacked Americans again, we would reduce them to the stone age, and left them to rebuild. Instead, we sacrifice our youth to a culture that will never change, Theocracies are by nature, totalitarian, instead of a civic, they use religion to oppress their people. We need to stop utilizing our armed forces to nation building, and use them for what they are intended, fuck the living shit out of our enemies. You cannot save and enlighten a people that refuses to be saved and enlightened.
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Everyone is touchy-feely and not wanting to hurt people. Innocent people are going to die in war. We can try to keep innocent people safe BUT the ACM is not fighting fair and is using the ROE in their favor. Loosen up the ROE . Let the troops go do what they have been trained to do.
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SCPO (Join to see)
Yes, we are always worrying about collateral damage in Afghanistan. Does anyone recall the collateral damage that we intentionally inflicted during WWII? Now, I'm definitely not saying we should bring the memory of anyone up on war crimes charges, but, Geesh, those numbers were staggering!!! Yes, let our military WIN this goddamn thing and come home, or just come home!!!
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