Rethink Afghanistan: "We're F*cking Losing This Thing."

[Hissyspit]

Run time: 01:21 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AyKmkfwzmk   Posted on YouTube: June 27, 2010 By YouTube Member: rethinkafghanistan Views on YouTube: 16   Posted on DU: June 27, 2010 By DU Member: Hissyspit Views on DU: 888

 
Robert Greenwald's Brave New Foundation:

rethinkafghanistan | June 26, 2010 | 1:21

General McChrystal's resignation has distracted the media from the real story found in the explosive Rolling Stone article:

"...e're f***ing losing this thing." --Staff Sergeant Kennith Hick

General McChrystal's inner circle knew better than to get us into this war. Share the video with your friends. With your help, we can seize the moment and build momentum to end the Afghanistan War.

[saigon68]

1. It will go down as Obama's greatest failure

[Chulanowa]

3. Thanks to people like you

Who have all forgotten who started, then abandoned the war, allowed it to fester and rot into the situation it is today, then handed it over with a big smirk, knowing a bunch of short-sighted, know-nothing dumbfucks would immediately start blaming Obama.

After all, it's what got those same short-sighted know-nothing dumbfucks to blame Somalia on Clinton, rather than Poppy.

[saigon68]

4. Its more "Change we can Believe in"

I'd tell you to go **** yourself for that comment

[Chulanowa]

6. Maybe you weren't paying attention

In fact, I'm certain you weren't.

Never once was there a promise to haul ass the fuck out of Afghanistan. I know, I know, that's "reality" and such trivialities aren't of consequence when compared to your imagination.

You want change? Okay, here's some change; between 2002 and 2009, the Bush Administration paid absolutely no attention to Afghanistan. Despite high public support for that war, the Bush administration opted for the much more glamorous (and contentious) invasion and occupation of Iraq. That means that for six years, the war in Afghanistan was defunded, ignored, had troops and aid diverted, left our allies both coalition and regional completely unsupported, and basically turned an already fucked situation into even more of a steaming pile. Perhaps you've forgotten and forgiven this; it certainly looks that way to me.

Now the change? Well, here's Obama. he's already tossed a pair of dumbassed "me first" generals out of the effort. he is giving the situation the funding and manpower it needs to undo the harm caused by the neglect of Saint Bush the Forgiven. He realizes, unlike some of his constituents, that dumping Afghanistan and letting it rot will not fly. That doing so at this point will make things much, much worse. Compared to Saint Bush the Forgiven going "fuck it, this is hard, i wanna kill Saddam!" it's a pretty big change. And a pretty good one, too.

If you want to hate the war, go right ahead. If you think it could go in a better direction, that's great, so do I. if you want to think we can be out by noon tomorrow, well, self-delusion is a human right. But don't be a fucking liar and claim that the situation is Obama's fault. It's Bush's fault, no matter how much you want to whitewash that. He invaded, then he abandoned, and did so for six times as long as Obama's been trying to turn it around.

[cpwm17]

7. It's Obama's War Now

President Obama has claimed the war by expanding the war.

There is nothing to win there, but a lot to lose. We can fight Afghanistan's religious fundamentalists forever but will still achieve nothing positive - it's guaranteed.

They will continue to fight us as long as we stay there. We are the foreigners and have no right to be there.

[Chulanowa]

10. Unfortunately we are there

And despite some goofy fantasies and wishful thinking from some quarters, once your nation engages in a war, it's nearly impossible to "just leave."

Obama didn't so much "expand" the war as restore it; remember, Saint Bush the Forgiven had let the war languish and fester by shrinking it in the middle of operations. We could have been out of Afghanistan by 2005, except for that.

So Obama is faced with the task of not only fixing his predecessor's fuckups, but also getting the situation to a point where we CAN removes ourselves, and, hopefully, leave Afghanistan in a better position at the same time. He could use a little help in this.

[kysrsoze]

2. Didn't we learn a god-damned thing when they embarrassed Russia?

Nothing to gain there and lots to lose. And we will lose, just give it time. More like Vietnam every day. And to top it all off, it makes us no safer. Obama et al are a bunch of pansies for signing onto this steaming P.O.S. occupation.

[sabrina 1]

5. Robert Greenwals spent time on the ground in

Afghanistan and published his videos online for free to help the Obama administration understand from the pov of the actual people of Afghanistan how bad it is and how the presence of the U.S. there has only made things worse.

His website has the videos and they are heart-breaking. We never should have been there. I believe we did owe the people there some kind of help being that we used their country as a chess-board during the secret war in the eighties. But NOT an invasion.

Clinton was being pushed to invade the country by the neocon war criminals but resisted them. Now, so much damage has been done, most importantly to the people there, it's hard to know what to do. But one thins is clear, continuing the slaughter is not only not the answer, it is criminal.

If they haven't already, the Obama administration might want to take a look at Robert Greenwald's work and listen to the Democratic voices in Afghanistan, something we never seem to do. There are ways to find a better way than increasing the brutality these people have already endured, for far too long. I was hoping, and so were they, and so was Robert Greenwald, that a new administration would start looking at those alternatives. Instead, we are killing even more innocent people and increasing the awful suffering of those who are left to mourn them.

[truedelphi]

13. Yes, Greenwald has a POV that Obama

Should consider.

Or Rahm. Or whoever it is that runs the WH.

[freethinker2]

8. No way to win.

Look people, we have no chance to win even if our troops are there 100 years. We aren't fighting a war on terror like its reported to be. We are fighting a religious ideology! That kind of war in in the mind of the people. The only way to win is if they give that ideology up for ours, and thats not going to happen!
So bring our troops home, bring them home NOW!

[sulphurdunn]

9. If you want to know

why we're in Afghanistan and Iraq consider the geopolitics of the region while you ponder a map of South Asia. Don't forget to contemplate China, India and Pakistan as well as Saudi Arabia, Israel, Palestine, natural resources, nuclear weapons and the Persian Gulf states. You may logically conclude that threats from international terrorism are not just an acceptable risk but also a perfect excuse for the perpetuation of our our military presence in the regions. The only remaining question might be to ask who pays and who profits?

[freethinker2]

11. The only remaining question might be to ask who pays and who profits?

To me the only question is "Is it worth it?"

[sulphurdunn]

12. That depends entirely on who pays

and who profits. I would posit that this war is not worth it to the people who foot the bill and shed the blood. The same cannot be said for the share holders of the war machine that wages it.