Afghan firefight shows challenge for US troops

[laststeamtrain]

Source: AP

Afghan firefight shows challenge for US troops
By CHRIS BRUMMITT, Associated Press Writer 2 mins ago

NOW ZAD, Afghanistan – Missiles, machine guns and strafing runs from fighter jets destroyed much of a Taliban compound, but the insurgents had a final surprise for a pair of U.S. Marines who pushed into the smoldering building just before nightfall.

As the two men walked up an alley, the Taliban opened fire from less than 15 yards, sending bullets and tracer fire crackling inches past them. They fled under covering fire from their comrades, who hurled grenades at the enemy position before sprinting to their armored vehicles.

The assault capped a day of fighting Saturday in the poppy fields, orchards and walled compounds of southern Afghanistan between newly arrived U.S. Marines and well dug-in Taliban fighters. It was a foretaste of what will likely be a bloody summer as Washington tries to turn around a bogged-down, eight-year-old war with a surge of 21,000 troops.

"This was the first time we pushed this far. I guess they don't like us coming into their back door," said Staff Sgt. Luke Medlin, who was sweeping the alley for booby traps as Marine Gunner John Daly covered him from behind when the Taliban struck.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_afghan_taking_on_the_taliban

[tabasco]

1. Godspeed to the troops in Afghanistan

The dirty rotten Taliban need to be wiped out.

Unfinished business thanks to AWOL Bush's oil war in Iraq.

[laststeamtrain]

4. The only way that will happen is if we send the right people.

I'm thinking Chuck Norris or Sly Stallone.

[tabasco]

5. Those guys are sissies

compared to the average US infantryman.

[Bigmack]

6. Got to disagree...

with you on this one, tabasco. Not worth the lives of good men to bother with those assholes. I advise time therapy.... history therapy. Their weird shit won't last (in historical time), and a bunch of Americans will see their grandchildren who won't if we try to wipe them out.

They helped the bad guys after 9-11? Well, the Viet communists weren't our buddies, either, but now we buy their products and they buy ours. Lotta good guys died for nothing.

Fuck 'em. Let them rot in their own crap.

[Yupster]

7. I just finished a book

Called something like "Confessions of a Mullah Warrior."

Written by a Afghan guy who fought against the Russians and later graduated from Harvard (though he had virtually no education) and ended the book with his return to Afghanistan.

According to him the main problems are the refugees in Pakistan only have religious schools financed by the Saudis to send their kids to. The schools funnel the kids right into the Taliban. It's a very ad-hoc system. The kids get no training at all, a Taliban leader will come through the camps recruiting for a specific operation and kids will jump on board for the money and excitement. Then their into the pick-up trucks, into Afghanistan for a mission, and then within a few weeks they're back in Pakistan bragging about their entry into the Mujahadeen.

Each regional warlord has his own schools and own superhero status among the students.

The schools need to be closed, the Saudis need to be chased away and secular schools need to be opened.

Interesting book. Author had Masood in his name. Unfortunately I've turned it back into the library.

[saigon68]

8. Good luck chasing the saudis away

I have had some of my posts deleteted for ecxplicitly saying naughty things about them.

However the US is a saudi bitch, sucking black gold to drive monster trucks.





Our last "fearless leader" was a kept bitch of the (insert epithet)


Diplomacy will do nothing to get these(insert additional epithet) dwellers to enter the secular 21st century.

[ixion]

2. the challenge should be to get the hell out of Afghanistan

no good will come of our continued presence there.

[Turborama]

3. AP: Raw video of the battle

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trdhHeYhXho

[western mass]

9. Gee, I thought the Russians already fought this war.

Or maybe it's just time for Vietnam: The Sequel.

[saigon68]

10. They slunk out with their tails between their legs

[Flaneur]

11. Wonder when it'll be our turn to slink away.

How many foreign occupiers and Afghans are going to die before we figure it out?

[saigon68]

12. It will go on for a long time

As long as the sheep believe that blasting the fuck out of these afghans, allows amerikans "FREEDOM" --whatever the fuck that means.