Fallen Marine's father wants change in Afghanistan - Doesn't want to worry about killing civilians

[NNN0LHI]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_FALLEN_MARINES_FATHER?SITE=ILKAN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Oct 13, 4:04 PM EDT

NEW PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- It was the last way John Bernard would have wanted his voice to gain prominence in the national debate over the war in Afghanistan. The retired Marine had been writing to lawmakers for weeks complaining of the new rules of engagement he believed put U.S. troops at unacceptable risk in the insurgency-wracked country. He got little response.

Then Bernard's only son, 21-year-old Lance Cpl. Joshua Bernard - a Marine like his dad - was killed in an insurgent ambush in Afghanistan's volatile Helmand province, the latest victim of a surge in U.S. combat deaths. snip

Bernard's criticism is aimed at new rules of engagement imposed by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the senior American commander in Afghanistan, five weeks before Joshua Bernard was killed. They limit the use of airstrikes and require troops to break off combat when civilians are present, even if it means letting the enemy escape. They also call for greater cooperation with the Afghan National Army.

Under those rules, John Bernard said, Marines and soldiers are being denied artillery and air support for fear of killing civilians, and the Taliban is using that to its tactical advantage. In a letter to his congressman and Maine's U.S. senators, Bernard condemned "the insanity of the current situation and the suicidal position this administration has placed these warriors in." snip

Before Joshua died, his father lived quietly as a professional carpenter and church volunteer.

[JDPriestly]

1. Obama needs to make a clear statement about our goals in Afghanistan.

Are we there to destroy the Taliban or are we there to build support for democracy? We may not be able to achieve both goals a the same time. The soldiers on the ground need to have a clear view of our objectives. Obama needs to speak to them not necessarily in person but through whatever means personally about what their job is in Afthanistan at this time. That is something Obama should be able to do well.

[w4rma]

2. That father is ignorant and an idiot as far as military tactics go. (nt)

[atreides1]

3. I read this story

I feel sorry that he lost his son, but he's calling for the open commission of war crimes by US military personnel.

[thunder rising]

4. The tactic he's referring to is call "baiting them out" undersized outposts are used as bait

Vietnam ... all over again.

Who is questioning the officers in charge of the deployment strategy? How the fuck the insurgents get close enough to use RPGs and small arms? I am up to my eyeballs in DoD contractor advertisements of there super duper ectoplasmic sensing devices ... what I guess somebody forgot the batteries?


The next question that is high on my list, where those soldiers doped up?

The military seems to suggest that the Taliban is now equal in tactics and equipment to the US ... that's a fucking joke.

What happened in those foxholes seems to be as secret as the Tillman findings.