Seems to be the SATURDAY BUZZWORD, readers.
"McChrystal says stage set for ‘real progress’ in Afghanistan effort" by Thom Shanker, New York Times | February 5, 2010
Yeah, let the NYT prep you for the poop.
ISTANBUL - The senior commander of American and allied forces in Afghanistan offered a guarded but unexpectedly upbeat assessment of the war effort yesterday, saying that while the situation remained dangerous it was no longer deteriorating, and that the stage was set for “real progress.’’
How many times have we heard this the last nine years?
The commander, General Stanley A. McChrystal, noted that last summer he believed security in Afghanistan was at risk of significant decline, but that he felt differently now. “I am not prepared to say that we have turned the corner,’’ he cautioned. “So I’m saying that the situation is serious but I think we have made significant progress in setting the conditions in 2009, and beginning some progress, and that we’ll make real progress in 2010.’’
What, Bush leave a cheat sheet from Iraq lying around?
Meanwhile, a suicide car bomber detonated his explosives near a hotel in southern Afghanistan yesterday, killing at least six people and wounding nearly two dozen, officials said.
The blast in Kandahar happened as NATO and Afghan forces prepare for a joint offensive against Taliban militants in the neighboring province of Helmand in a major bid to break their stranglehold on the south.
Related: The Other Afghan Option
McChrystal’s assessment of the war effort came as NATO officials gathered here for a session in which Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates was expected to press allies for contributions of several thousand additional trainers to expand and improve the Afghan Army and police forces....
Oh, THAT is why the general changed his tune; who wants to give to a LOSING CAUSE, 'eh?
Meanwhile, NATO acknowledged yesterday that it lacked almost half the trainers it had promised to help build up the army and police in Afghanistan....
The failure to send all the trainers promised in October underscores the difficulty the US-led military coalition faces in trying to get Europe to live up to its commitments, even though Europe favors a greater emphasis on training and development aid.
Then f*** 'em!!!
Who needs 'em!?
Oh, right, we do.
And now your SLOW SATURDAY DAILY DOUBLE!
"Afghan coalition is now more optimistic; Plans to deploy thousands more police, soldiers" by Anne Flaherty, Associated Press | February 6, 2010
ISTANBUL - NATO and US officials are putting a more optimistic face on the eight-year-old Afghanistan war, suggesting that tens of thousands more foreign troops can finally turn the corner against a growing Taliban insurgency.
I still smell something.
“After a difficult year in 2009, we now see a new momentum in 2010,’’ NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said yesterday....
We've turned it around in just five weeks before all the troops get there?
Then ABOUT FACE, 'murkn!!!!
However, despite the upbeat outlook provided this week by General Stanley McChrystal, Fogh Rasmussen, and other officials attending a two-day NATO meeting, the allied effort in Afghanistan faces serious challenges....
Taliban insurgents.... nearly 30,000 now.
Major world powers decided last week that Afghanistan’s military should be boosted to 171,600 by October 2011, up from the current 98,000 troops. They also decided to increase police numbers to 134,000 by that date, from about 90,000 today.
Related: Boston Globe Censorship: Troops Outnumber Taliban
Yeah, HOW the HELL are we losing?We OUTNUMBER THEM -- allegedly -- 12-to-1!!!!!
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced yesterday that the United States will sell a version of its mine-resistant vehicles to its allies. In some cases, the vehicles will be provided to countries that cannot afford to pay for them.
Why not?
We are already paying their occupation costs just for being there, America.
What do you mean you didn't know that?
The vehicles have proven helpful in protecting against roadside bombs.
It's going to take a lot more than that!
--more--"
And then I saw that WORD again!
"Delays left Afghan base a target, US says" by Joshua Partlow, Washington Post | February 6, 2010
KABUL, Afghanistan - Delays in closing a remote US military outpost in eastern Afghanistan increased the vulnerability of the base, where eight American soldiers were killed during a prolonged siege by 300 insurgents last October, according to a summary of a military investigation released yesterday.
Related: AmeriKa Abandons Afghanistan Base
The attack on Combat Outpost Keating in the Kamdesh district of Nurestan Province was one of the worst insurgent attacks against American troops in Afghanistan. It came to symbolize the dangers of posting small groups of soldiers in sparsely populated areas of the country, something commanders have moved away from under a new strategy to protect more populous areas.
The investigation into the attack, led by Major General Guy C. Swan III, drew on interviews from about 140 people at the outpost or who had information about the attack. The inquiry found that the roughly 60 soldiers stationed there fought courageously, killing about 150 insurgents as they defended their base.
But the report also said those soldiers were stationed in a place of “no tactical or strategic value,’’ and said critical intelligence and surveillance capabilities that could have helped them prevent such an onslaught had been diverted to other missions.
Translation: They DIED for NOTHING but a LIE!!!!
With limited manpower and located in a ravine surrounded by steep hillsides, the mission for Bravo Troop, Third Squadron, 61st Cavalry had devolved into protecting its base, Swan concluded. During their five months at the outpost they were attacked about 47 times, three times as often as the unit that came before them, the report found. “As a result, the chain of command decided to close the remote outpost as soon as it could,’’ the report said.
Related: The October Lull in Afghanistan
Huh?
But a scheduled closure between July and August 2009 was delayed because the equipment needed to haul away base supplies, and to conduct surveillance and gather intelligence, was sent to another operation in Barg-e-Matal and to search for a missing soldier in southern Afghanistan, the report said....
The report said commanders should have done more to improve the base’s defenses and to analyze intelligence reports that the enemy was planning a major assault. It recommended that the squadron commander overseeing the outpost receive a letter of reprimand. Military officials said the brigade commander was given a letter of admonishment.
Oh, how harsh!
Of course, same said leadership left them hanging out there.
The letters are part of a new push by top military brass to hold commanders accountable for major incidents in which troops are killed or wounded.
What about our mass-murder of Afghans?
Who is going to take responsibility for that?
The attack on Oct. 3 began at 5:58 a.m. with a deluge of insurgent gunfire and mortars from all sides and a simultaneous attack on another nearby American outpost that limited the US soldier’s ability to fire mortars in return. Afghan soldiers helping to guard the outpost couldn’t hold their positions, and insurgents entered the base in three locations, the report said. US soldiers regained the momentum with the help of fighter jets and Apache helicopters.
Yeah, lot of that happening.
---more---"
Looks like we lost a little overnight, AmeriKa:
"Border guards kill seven civilians
A brief? A frikkin' brief!
KABUL - Seven civilians were shot to death as they were apparently mistaken for a group of insurgents trying to cross the frontier from Pakistan, an Afghan police official said yesterday. The Afghan official, Abdul Raziq, who leads the border police in Kandahar province, said the seven men were from a village in Shorabak, a remote district on the Pakistani border. They were killed Friday when they strayed close to a checkpoint manned by Afghan border police, who opened fire because they believed that their post was going to be overrun.
By SEVEN GUYS?
The border guards “thought they were insurgents,’’ Raziq said (New York Times)."
So they just LET FLY with the BULLETS, huh?
Btw, I would ABANDON that POST because HIS RELATIVES will be COMING to SEE YOU -- and it will be a LOT MORE than 7, I guarantee it.
