I'm sorry I'm no longer into the Boston Globe, dear readers. I'm just sick of reading war-promoting, agenda-pushing shit.
"Mass. native guides war in Afghanistan to a close; General Joseph F. Dunford Jr., son of a Boston officer, is leading the wind down of our mission" by Brian MacQuarrie | Globe Staff, August 04, 2013
KABUL — Joseph Dunford is the top US and NATO military official in Afghanistan, a four-star Marine general who has been chosen to wind down America’s longest war, while at the same time protecting this traumatized country and strengthening Afghan forces so they can combat a stubborn and violent insurgency....
But we are still going to have troops there with no chance of peace.
An improved Afghan army and police force are taking the fight to the Taliban, Dunford said. The coalition has transitioned almost completely to a train-and-advise role. And attacks by the Taliban, he argued, have been sporadic, scattered, and ineffective.
Really? That sure isn't the way my newspaper has portrayed things over the last six months!
“Our goal now is to make sure that what we have done over the past 10 years continues on into the future,” Dunford said.
That goal includes halving the US military presence, currently at 61,000 troops, by February and withdrawing more service members before the end of 2014. The United States and Afghanistan are currently engaged in difficult talks about the size and role of coalition troops that might remain in 2015 and beyond.
As Dunford works the endgame, he leans on his commanders from home....
In this time and place, Dunford’s stated objective is “winning.” But this kind of victory is not the “Mission Accomplished” that President George W. Bush proclaimed weeks after the fall of Baghdad in 2003.
Nor was that a victory. WTF is with the distortion of history?
Related: This is what winning looks like
Then it is time to leave!
Dunford, who received master’s degrees from Georgetown University and the Fletcher School at Tufts University, has a nuanced and transitional definition of success in Afghanistan, with an emphasis on military training, transparent national elections in 2014, and a difficult-to-quantify goal of national confidence.
Got a problem? Change the metric!
“The future of Afghanistan is, in fact, in the hands of the Afghan people,” Dunford said.
Always was, a**hole!
At its core, Dunford’s game plan resembles the blueprint of a master mason whose job has been scaled back to lay a foundation, train other builders, and leave the tools behind to finish the project. But if that goal falls short of the traditional concept of battlefield victory, Dunford’s aides said he has embraced this complicated mission with a quiet, evangelistic zeal.
Yup, got a "game plan" for the WAR!
I'm so sorry I am sick of this dog shit, dear readers.
The general distributes 5-by-8 cards to staff that outline “What Does Winning Look Like?” with a stress on values as old-fashioned as the cards themselves — self-reliance, legitimacy, and accountability.
He recently carved a half-hour from another long, hot day to thank two-dozen Romanian troops — in earnest, emotional remarks outside headquarters — for their service in Afghanistan. And after he arrived in Kabul, he began referring to a “decade of opportunity” in the country rather than a “decade of transformation,” which is an official phrase used in NATO and US documents.
For McClelland, the choice of semantics is subtle but powerful. “He changed that the day he came here,” the colonel said.
Have I told you HOW F***ING TIRED I AM of IMAGERY and ILLUSION being the "news" in my paper?
Abdullah Amini, who fought the Soviets in Afghanistan for eight years and has served seven American commanders as cultural adviser, described Dunford as a good listener who is willing to be challenged. Amini said that Dunford and Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who meet once a week, have a good professional relationship.
He's an "Al-CIA-Duh!!!!!"
That relationship is important because Karzai has been a notoriously prickly partner. He has excoriated the United States and its allies on issues such as detainee control, civilian casualties, and air strikes, but also realizes that international support will be crucial for Afghanistan’s future.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm not falling for the Karzai is independent cover story. If we removed support for him he would be done. Enough with the imagery and illusion and deceptions and distortions, 'kay?
Amini, who became a US citizen, gave a nod to the intrigue and unpredictability that are deeply woven into Afghan society....
--more--"
Oh, WAR is now an ART, huh?
That explains the preponderance of that $phere in my paper as well!
