Afghan War ending, foretold by The Onion 10 years Ago [DT thread ruined by politics]

[Brothahorn 10087]

That's an odd standard for techinical proficiency. Stingers were a brilliant weapon because they could be deployed with common infantry. Their entire design is for simplicity of use and portability by foot. I could probably pick up a Stinger and figure out how to use it in under an hour. I'd be hopeless figuring out maintaining simple coms gear or how to maintain an armored vehicle.
The Afghans weren't building Stingers; they were using them as they were meant to be used. Your use of this example demonstrates just how out of your depth you're willing to go in desperate bids to claim victory in argument.
Not negged for lying. I won't neg for simple ignorance.

And if you need a 'door kicker' to watch your 'six', I used to be pretty good on Call of Duty.

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

27 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

So, how would you have solved that problem?  We didn't "abandon" most of this hardware -- it was the ANA's hardware that we gave to them to perform the mission we wanted them to perform (at which they failed miserably, and in record time).

So....

- when we saw the ANA starting to fold, go in there and blow up all their gear?

- kill all the ANA who know how to use the gear?

- say "nevermind, we're staying, and we're upping our troop strength" so the ANA doesn't fold?

 

Do tell.

@BabaYaga i got you, fam:

BIDEN LIED, TROOPS DIED.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33868]

40 minutes ago, pyrohornIII said:

I'd like to think we took some of that extra time to put in different control boards in a lot of that gear.   Everything works fine until they press the trigger, then the missile goes about 500 ft and then does a 180 and homes back to the launcher.   

[InkaUtexas 25901]

4 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Which is why the outcome was inevitable no matter how long we stayed. The Pakistanis offered support and a safe haven for the Taliban and we were too afraid to address the fact that they’re the real problem for precisely that reason. So we had to pretend that they’re our allies while they played both sides. And we knew it was happening.

And I don’t think we left anything of value behind or that, even we did, it’s something the Chinese don’t already know about (like the stealth helicopter that crashed during the raid on bin Laden’s compound). But, if there were anything of value and if the Chinese were interested, it would go through the Pakistanis. Right?

Maybe, maybe not. If the Taliban wanted some cash from China they would try and go direct. You are right, ISI already set up sanctuary for the Taliban and are now a bit irrelevant. 

[InkaUtexas 25901]

Does anyone here know the lead agency in San Antonio to assist with resettlement? My ex-interpreter lives there and wants to volunteer. I will as well with paperwork, etc. @Brisketexan also Austin if you hear of anything. 

Thanks, we, as a small group, are not done trying to help however we can. 

[bolverk 29659]

Photos of shit left behind at the airport that the Taliban likely won't be able to fly.

[Brisketexan 105094]

1 hour ago, InkaUtexas said:

Does anyone here know the lead agency in San Antonio to assist with resettlement? My ex-interpreter lives there and wants to volunteer. I will as well with paperwork, etc. @Brisketexan also Austin if you hear of anything. 

Thanks, we, as a small group, are not done trying to help however we can. 

Refugee Services of Texas should be the lead agency in both places.  They can be a bit of a headache to work with, but that's the nature of the beast.  They may also be able to put you in contact with smaller entities that work with them, like local churches.

[InkaUtexas 25901]

23 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Refugee Services of Texas should be the lead agency in both places.  They can be a bit of a headache to work with, but that's the nature of the beast.  They may also be able to put you in contact with smaller entities that work with them, like local churches.

I linked him up with a friend at catholic relief and he already called and set up an appointment. I interned with them in Austin and they have an active assistance group. 

Thanks. Should your church need anything ping me. 

[Willfully Horn 8006]

Here’s the link:

https://www.rstx.org/

[elfenix 34230]

On 8/30/2021 at 1:26 PM, 956 Worldwide said:

To come back to the topic instead of shitty right wing Twitter disinfo, here’s the infographic of what the Taliban captured. You can’t say that a lot of this stuff is captured U.S. equipment. Most of the fixed and rotary wing aircraft were not ours— they belonged to the ANA and we hoped they’d use it to fight the Taliban. So it wasn’t ours to remove or destroy. 
 

The equipment that by far is most immediately dangerous in the hands of the Taliban and useful is the light arms, vehicles, and communications equipment. That’s the real treasure trove for their own use. Depending on the condition and availability of munitions, the artillery could be real shitty for them to have if some urban areas in the north decide to start fighting. 

 

so this chart probably isn't accurate, because (many, if not all of) the figures are just a total number of items transferred over 13 years from a GAO report, and not the current amount of stuff that was operating in country on some recent date.  shocker that a rupert murdoch media outlet would publish something misleading, i know. 

Quote

Between 2003 and 2016, the US unloaded a huge amount of military hardware on the Afghan forces it fought alongside: 358,530 rifles of different makes, more than 64,000 machine guns, 25,327 grenade launchers and 22,174 Humvees (all-terrain vehicles), according to the US Government Accountability Report.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-58356045

of course shit breaks, gets destroyed, gets moved out to get fixed, and some guys flew their planes out.  

so what's the actual figures?

Quote

Another official said that while there are no definitive numbers yet, the current intelligence assessment was that the Taliban are believed to control more than 2,000 armored vehicles, including U.S. Humvees, and up to 40 aircraft potentially including UH-60 Black Hawks, scout attack helicopters, and ScanEagle military drones.

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/planes-guns-night-vision-goggles-talibans-new-us-made-war-chest-2021-08-19/

and we broke a bunch of shit on the way out:

Quote

Before the wind up of operations, the US military disabled scores of aircraft and armored vehicles as well as a high-tech rocket defense system at the Kabul airport on Monday, a US general said.

https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-us-disables-70-mrap-armored-tactical-vehicles-27-humvees-before-leaving-kabul-airport-2908687

 

(and of course i'm just stealing shit from snopes: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/us-taliban-arsenal-military-equipment/ )

[RomaVicta 29905]

3 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Tell me more about Crotchtastic. 

It comes in a hollow cylinder for easy application. 

[Francisco 2.0 32389]

 

 

And here's the story:

 

Spoiler

The call to the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan came in Monday. On the line, two U.S. officials said, was Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) with an unusual and urgent request: He needed assistance in transporting a huge amount of cash into the country, saying he was going to neighboring Afghanistan to rescue five American citizens, a woman and her four children, stuck in the country. They planned to hire a helicopter for the effort.

Mullin told the embassy that he planned to fly from Tblisi, Georgia, into Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, in the next few hours and needed the top diplomat’s help, according to the two U.S. officials familiar with the incident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations about a sensitive matter.

The answer was no. Embassy officials told Mullin they could not assist him in skirting Tajikistan’s laws on cash limits on his way to visiting one of the most dangerous places on earth.

Mullin was outraged by the response, the officials said — threatening U.S. ambassador John Mark Pommersheim and embassy staff and demanding to know the name of staff members he was speaking with.

The episode marked Mullin’s second attempt to travel to Afghanistan in as many weeks for an unauthorized evacuation effort despite the perilous security environment. Last week, Mullin traveled to Greece and asked the Department of Defense for permission to visit Kabul. The Pentagon denied Mullin’s request, an administration official said.

Mullin’s behavior has alarmed top U.S. officials who say he has gone to extraordinary lengths to defy U.S. warnings. The attempt follows an unauthorized trip to Afghanistan by Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) last week, which Pentagon and State Department officials criticized as a public relations stunt that sapped government resources during a national-security crisis.

As of late Tuesday, U.S. officials said they were unsure of Mullin’s location. Mullin’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

“To say this is extremely dangerous is a massive understatement,” said a State Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive situation.

The remaining U.S. troops in Afghanistan left on Monday, bringing an end to America’s longest war. The U.S. military helped evacuate more than 120,000 people, including U.S. citizens, allies and at-risk Afghans. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that fewer than 200 American citizens remain in Afghanistan. The department suspended embassy operations and relocated its mission to Qatar, where diplomats are trying to find ways for the remaining Americans and at-risk Afghans in the country to leave.

The State Department reissued a Level 4 travel advisory for the country on Monday urging Americans not to travel there “due to civil unrest, armed conflict, crime, terrorism, kidnapping, and COVID-19.”

The State Department declined to comment on Mullin’s travel or interactions with the embassy. The White House declined to comment on Mullin but referred to press secretary Jen Psaki’s comments from last week urging Americans not to travel to Afghanistan.

Mullin, 44, grew up in Stilwell, Okla., where he was a standout wrestler and earned a scholarship to Missouri Valley College. Injuries derailed his athletic career, and at age 20, he took over his father’s plumbing business. He was also briefly a professional mixed martial arts fighter, and after being elected to Congress in 2012, he became known on the Hill for leading intense workout classes. A member of the conservative Republican Study Committee, Mullin voted against the certification of the 2020 election results.

Unlike Moulton and Meijer, Mullin did not serve in the U.S. military. He has been an outspoken critic of the Biden administration’s exit from Afghanistan.

“This is a sad day for our country,” Mullin said in a statement Monday night. “Americans have been stranded in Afghanistan by the Biden Administration and are now left to defend themselves from terrorists overrunning the country. One motto of our military is ‘leave no man behind.’ But today, that’s exactly what President Biden did.”

Mullin’s repeated attempts to enter Afghanistan follow multiple efforts by the Biden administration to dissuade members of Congress from traveling to the country after Moulton and Meijer’s unauthorized trip last week. The two members, who arranged for their own transportation into the country, said they wanted to provide oversight on the evacuation efforts at the airport. They eventually left on a flight used for evacuating Americans and Afghans.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has issued several warnings against lawmakers trying to travel there.

“We don’t want anybody to think that this was a good idea and that they should try to follow suit,” she said last week.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) concurred: “I don’t think it’s smart for others to go,” he said last week. “You’re putting yourself — not just yourself, but you’re putting Americans — in harm’s way, if the military has to protect you, which they will do.”

On Tuesday, McCarthy went silent and walked away after being asked if he had spoken to Mullin or if he knew where the Oklahoman was. 

 

 

Edited September 1, 2021 by Francisco 2.0

[bolverk 29659]

Markwayne

His parents thought they were being clever not saddling their son with the ignominy of being another "middle name Wayne" idiot. Guess they were wrong. 

[Bullneck 19078]

8 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

The 100,000 they got out weren't going to be gotten out based on the troop pullout in all likelihood. They had so much blow back the had to organize the airlift after the fact.

And you know this how?

[elfenix 34230]

1 minute ago, Bullneck said:

And you know this how?

because a democrat was in charge.

[staboner 4969]

2 hours ago, bolverk said:

Photos of shit left behind at the airport that the Taliban likely won't be able to fly.

[Js1 85310]

7 minutes ago, Bullneck said:

And you know this how?

Because the infectious disease experts are currently moonlighting as foreign policy experts and hurricane forecasters 

[Satchel 6938]

56 minutes ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

 

And here's the story:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

The call to the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan came in Monday. On the line, two U.S. officials said, was Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) with an unusual and urgent request: He needed assistance in transporting a huge amount of cash into the country, saying he was going to neighboring Afghanistan to rescue five American citizens, a woman and her four children, stuck in the country. They planned to hire a helicopter for the effort.

Mullin told the embassy that he planned to fly from Tblisi, Georgia, into Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, in the next few hours and needed the top diplomat’s help, according to the two U.S. officials familiar with the incident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations about a sensitive matter.

The answer was no. Embassy officials told Mullin they could not assist him in skirting Tajikistan’s laws on cash limits on his way to visiting one of the most dangerous places on earth.

Mullin was outraged by the response, the officials said — threatening U.S. ambassador John Mark Pommersheim and embassy staff and demanding to know the name of staff members he was speaking with.

The episode marked Mullin’s second attempt to travel to Afghanistan in as many weeks for an unauthorized evacuation effort despite the perilous security environment. Last week, Mullin traveled to Greece and asked the Department of Defense for permission to visit Kabul. The Pentagon denied Mullin’s request, an administration official said.

Mullin’s behavior has alarmed top U.S. officials who say he has gone to extraordinary lengths to defy U.S. warnings. The attempt follows an unauthorized trip to Afghanistan by Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) last week, which Pentagon and State Department officials criticized as a public relations stunt that sapped government resources during a national-security crisis.

As of late Tuesday, U.S. officials said they were unsure of Mullin’s location. Mullin’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

“To say this is extremely dangerous is a massive understatement,” said a State Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive situation.

The remaining U.S. troops in Afghanistan left on Monday, bringing an end to America’s longest war. The U.S. military helped evacuate more than 120,000 people, including U.S. citizens, allies and at-risk Afghans. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that fewer than 200 American citizens remain in Afghanistan. The department suspended embassy operations and relocated its mission to Qatar, where diplomats are trying to find ways for the remaining Americans and at-risk Afghans in the country to leave.

The State Department reissued a Level 4 travel advisory for the country on Monday urging Americans not to travel there “due to civil unrest, armed conflict, crime, terrorism, kidnapping, and COVID-19.”

The State Department declined to comment on Mullin’s travel or interactions with the embassy. The White House declined to comment on Mullin but referred to press secretary Jen Psaki’s comments from last week urging Americans not to travel to Afghanistan.

Mullin, 44, grew up in Stilwell, Okla., where he was a standout wrestler and earned a scholarship to Missouri Valley College. Injuries derailed his athletic career, and at age 20, he took over his father’s plumbing business. He was also briefly a professional mixed martial arts fighter, and after being elected to Congress in 2012, he became known on the Hill for leading intense workout classes. A member of the conservative Republican Study Committee, Mullin voted against the certification of the 2020 election results.

Unlike Moulton and Meijer, Mullin did not serve in the U.S. military. He has been an outspoken critic of the Biden administration’s exit from Afghanistan.

“This is a sad day for our country,” Mullin said in a statement Monday night. “Americans have been stranded in Afghanistan by the Biden Administration and are now left to defend themselves from terrorists overrunning the country. One motto of our military is ‘leave no man behind.’ But today, that’s exactly what President Biden did.”

Mullin’s repeated attempts to enter Afghanistan follow multiple efforts by the Biden administration to dissuade members of Congress from traveling to the country after Moulton and Meijer’s unauthorized trip last week. The two members, who arranged for their own transportation into the country, said they wanted to provide oversight on the evacuation efforts at the airport. They eventually left on a flight used for evacuating Americans and Afghans.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has issued several warnings against lawmakers trying to travel there.

“We don’t want anybody to think that this was a good idea and that they should try to follow suit,” she said last week.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) concurred: “I don’t think it’s smart for others to go,” he said last week. “You’re putting yourself — not just yourself, but you’re putting Americans — in harm’s way, if the military has to protect you, which they will do.”

On Tuesday, McCarthy went silent and walked away after being asked if he had spoken to Mullin or if he knew where the Oklahoman was. 

 

 

This is the same guy who famously said this:

“This country isn’t ran by just one individual it’s ran by four branches, but three branches that are in control of this…”

[Guest Lobo]

13 minutes ago, Js1 said:

Because the infectious disease experts are currently moonlighting as foreign policy experts and hurricane forecasters 

There's an Analrapist joke in here somewhere.  

"Now Michael, why would I, the world's first Epidemiologist-Diplomatic-Meteorologist, or EpiDicMete, get involved in this overseas debacle?  Well, I guess I just blue myself.  

Edited September 1, 2021 by Lobo

[Aqua Buddha 14588]

1 hour ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

 

And here's the story:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

The call to the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan came in Monday. On the line, two U.S. officials said, was Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) with an unusual and urgent request: He needed assistance in transporting a huge amount of cash into the country, saying he was going to neighboring Afghanistan to rescue five American citizens, a woman and her four children, stuck in the country. They planned to hire a helicopter for the effort.

Mullin told the embassy that he planned to fly from Tblisi, Georgia, into Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, in the next few hours and needed the top diplomat’s help, according to the two U.S. officials familiar with the incident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations about a sensitive matter.

The answer was no. Embassy officials told Mullin they could not assist him in skirting Tajikistan’s laws on cash limits on his way to visiting one of the most dangerous places on earth.

Mullin was outraged by the response, the officials said — threatening U.S. ambassador John Mark Pommersheim and embassy staff and demanding to know the name of staff members he was speaking with.

The episode marked Mullin’s second attempt to travel to Afghanistan in as many weeks for an unauthorized evacuation effort despite the perilous security environment. Last week, Mullin traveled to Greece and asked the Department of Defense for permission to visit Kabul. The Pentagon denied Mullin’s request, an administration official said.

Mullin’s behavior has alarmed top U.S. officials who say he has gone to extraordinary lengths to defy U.S. warnings. The attempt follows an unauthorized trip to Afghanistan by Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) last week, which Pentagon and State Department officials criticized as a public relations stunt that sapped government resources during a national-security crisis.

As of late Tuesday, U.S. officials said they were unsure of Mullin’s location. Mullin’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

“To say this is extremely dangerous is a massive understatement,” said a State Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive situation.

The remaining U.S. troops in Afghanistan left on Monday, bringing an end to America’s longest war. The U.S. military helped evacuate more than 120,000 people, including U.S. citizens, allies and at-risk Afghans. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday that fewer than 200 American citizens remain in Afghanistan. The department suspended embassy operations and relocated its mission to Qatar, where diplomats are trying to find ways for the remaining Americans and at-risk Afghans in the country to leave.

The State Department reissued a Level 4 travel advisory for the country on Monday urging Americans not to travel there “due to civil unrest, armed conflict, crime, terrorism, kidnapping, and COVID-19.”

The State Department declined to comment on Mullin’s travel or interactions with the embassy. The White House declined to comment on Mullin but referred to press secretary Jen Psaki’s comments from last week urging Americans not to travel to Afghanistan.

Mullin, 44, grew up in Stilwell, Okla., where he was a standout wrestler and earned a scholarship to Missouri Valley College. Injuries derailed his athletic career, and at age 20, he took over his father’s plumbing business. He was also briefly a professional mixed martial arts fighter, and after being elected to Congress in 2012, he became known on the Hill for leading intense workout classes. A member of the conservative Republican Study Committee, Mullin voted against the certification of the 2020 election results.

Unlike Moulton and Meijer, Mullin did not serve in the U.S. military. He has been an outspoken critic of the Biden administration’s exit from Afghanistan.

“This is a sad day for our country,” Mullin said in a statement Monday night. “Americans have been stranded in Afghanistan by the Biden Administration and are now left to defend themselves from terrorists overrunning the country. One motto of our military is ‘leave no man behind.’ But today, that’s exactly what President Biden did.”

Mullin’s repeated attempts to enter Afghanistan follow multiple efforts by the Biden administration to dissuade members of Congress from traveling to the country after Moulton and Meijer’s unauthorized trip last week. The two members, who arranged for their own transportation into the country, said they wanted to provide oversight on the evacuation efforts at the airport. They eventually left on a flight used for evacuating Americans and Afghans.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has issued several warnings against lawmakers trying to travel there.

“We don’t want anybody to think that this was a good idea and that they should try to follow suit,” she said last week.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) concurred: “I don’t think it’s smart for others to go,” he said last week. “You’re putting yourself — not just yourself, but you’re putting Americans — in harm’s way, if the military has to protect you, which they will do.”

On Tuesday, McCarthy went silent and walked away after being asked if he had spoken to Mullin or if he knew where the Oklahoman was. 

 

 

They'll hold him for ransom, Biden will say "we don't negotiate with terrorists" and they'll behead him on live TV.

[mchookem 16327]

Just now, Aqua Buddha said:

They'll hold him for ransom, Biden will say "we don't negotiate with terrorists" and they'll behead him on live TV.

 

[Sawbonz 27546]

4 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

We trained them how to use missiles years back and they learned and operated them perfectly.  Now they have their own training with their own ANA people. 

So?

[Sawbonz 27546]

1 hour ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

Georgia, into Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, in the next few hours and needed the top diplomat’s help

He should have called these guys 

 

[BabaYaga 15290]

16 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

- when we saw the ANA starting to fold, go in there and blow up all their gear?

 

Yes - much of the sensitive gear - like the Javelin missiles for example and drones, were not in the field.

 

16 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

- say "nevermind, we're staying, and we're upping our troop strength" so the ANA doesn't fold?

 

We did up our troop strength.  WTF?

[BabaYaga 15290]

12 hours ago, Sawbonz said:

So?

That's fine.  You don't care.  Many people do.  

['stache 21802]

13 hours ago, Satchel said:

This is the same guy who famously said this:

“This country isn’t ran by just one individual it’s ran by four branches, but three branches that are in control of this…”

He also claims to be Cherokee (has a card, but who doesn't in Oklahoma?) and referred to the Trail of Tears as a "voluntary relocation" or some shit like that, likely referring to the fact that the Cherokee chief at the time signed the removal treaty, ignoring literally all surrounding context.

[Loch Ness Monster 3533]

Will wait and see what the next dumb war Americans get us into.

War is macho and all. Anyone that doesn't want to sacrifice 18 year old lives and countless lives overseas is apparently a coward.

Just gotta make sure we gather the equipment back after we fuck up a random country. The equipment is what's important.

[Mole 4330]

I’ve been thinking about Biden’s speech yesterday and the human cost of the war. We are rightfully mourning and honoring the 13 who died in the terrorist attack, but more veterans than that will die today due to suicide; same with tomorrow and the next day.

If we want to be pro-military, how about real concrete steps to deal with this ongoing suffering and death? It’s cool if you can do 22 push-ups to honor them, but that doesn’t really ease anyone’s suffering. It takes real action. I’d like to see real action to redirect resources to those who have borne the brunt of this war. That seems like the minimum a country should offer — not just flag waving and empty hero worship.

['stache 21802]

7 minutes ago, Mole said:

I’ve been thinking about Biden’s speech yesterday and the human cost of the war. We are rightfully mourning and honoring the 13 who died in the terrorist attack, but more veterans than that will die today due to suicide; same with tomorrow and the next day.

If we want to be pro-military, how about real concrete steps to deal with this ongoing suffering and death? It’s cool if you can do 22 push-ups to honor them, but that doesn’t really ease anyone’s suffering. It takes real action. I’d like to see real action to redirect resources to those who have borne the brunt of this war. That seems like the minimum a country should offer — not just flag waving and empty hero worship.

It's like abortion. They love the babies until they're actually born and heaven forbid need some government assistance to grow up safe and healthy. They all love thanking soldiers for their service and giving them free beers and stuff, but as soon as their enlistment ends and they need mental health or financial support, they are welfare queens that need to just lift themselves up by their bootstraps. Same song, different verse.

[Zeus 6018]

This is not that relevant and old but wasn't ISIS whooped by the Syrian rebel moderates we dropped $500M on?

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/general-austin-us-trained-syrian-rebels-fighting-isis/story?id=33802596

Quote

General Lloyd Austin, the commander of U.S. Central Command leading the war on ISIS, told Congress today that only "four or five" of the first 54 U.S. trained moderate Syrian fighters remain in the fight against ISIS.

So far, $42 million has been spent to develop the $500 million program which began training in April.

Afghanistan is the same thing, it's a giant con job wrapped in a military operation. For 18 months not a single soldier even died in Afghanistan prior to the abrupt pull out. 

If you want to have a giggle read their lessons learned reports

https://www.sigar.mil/lessonslearned/lessonslearnedreports/index.aspx?SSR=11&SubSSR=60&WP=Lessons Learned Reports

I posted this in the DT thread too, but this guy going though all the Afghan Reports is just insane how much money got laundered 

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1204166495074304000.html

 

[Zeus 6018]

21 minutes ago, 'stache said:

It's like abortion. They love the babies until they're actually born and heaven forbid need some government assistance to grow up safe and healthy. They all love thanking soldiers for their service and giving them free beers and stuff, but as soon as their enlistment ends and they need mental health or financial support, they are welfare queens that need to just lift themselves up by their bootstraps. Same song, different verse.

Like fixing the VA with the MISSION act?

https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=5464#:~:text=WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of,19% increase since January 2017.&text=The monthly average of Veteran,for the month of May.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/2-5-million-veterans-know-president-trump-gave-them-real-permanent-health-care-choice

Quote

Some of those who did get care on the outside were unpleasantly surprised when they were billed directly for that care. But not too many even got that far. After 11 months, VA approved just 283,500 appointments for private care, and only half of those appointments took place within that period.

In contrast, under the MISSION Act, the VA has now referred 2.5 million veterans to private facilities in its first 16 months of implementation — that’s 40% of the veterans who routinely get care at the VA each year. Under the new law, they can now get community care under this permanent option, not just when they live too far away, but whenever it’s in their medical interest to do so.

My father in law got slammed pretty good by grenades twice in Desert Storm, he's on 100% disability. He's a HUGE anti-Trumper, but he admits the VA sucked shit before and it's much better now.

As much as the idea of the military being heroes sounds great, they are just out there following orders. Unfortunately those giving the orders aren't heroes. They are scumbags. Part of the reason I do not support the military as a whole is that they are not defending America. They also did not take care of my HS friends too well after their tours, two guys I played ball with committed suicide after coming back from Afghanistan. SSRIs. 

[DDD Dad 14332]

1 hour ago, BabaYaga said:

We did up our troop strength.  WTF?

No we didn't.  Not until after the ANA had been overrun, and even then we only bumped up from about 1K to 5K troops, and they were there to get the Embassy staff to the airport and hold the airport.

Quote

Initially 1,000 troops were in place to aid with the withdrawal, and administration officials quickly judged that total to be insufficient. An additional contingent of Marines arrived in Kabul as part of a 3,000-troop force intended to secure an airlift of U.S. Embassy personnel and Afghan allies as Taliban insurgents approached the outskirts of the capital. The additional 1,000 troops approved Saturday appeared to bring the total to 5,000.

Babayaga's posts are based on lies.

Edited September 1, 2021 by DDD Dad

[BabaYaga 15290]

1 hour ago, DDD Dad said:

Not until after the ANA had been overrun, and even then we only bumped up from about 1K to 5K troops, and they were there to get the Embassy staff to the airport and hold the airport.

So we bumped out troop strength.  Like I said.  

[DDD Dad 14332]

1 minute ago, BabaYaga said:

So we bumped out troop strength.  Like I said.  

AFTER ANA FOLDED.

Fuck off, troll.

[Sawbonz 27546]

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

That's fine.  You don't care.  Many people do.  

Why don’t you try to explain to me why I should care?

[BabaYaga 15290]

Just now, DDD Dad said:

AFTER ANA FOLDED.

Fuck off, troll.

So you're saying we bumped our troop strength.  Thanks for making my point for me.  Always a pleasure

[DDD Dad 14332]

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

Yes - much of the sensitive gear - like the Javelin missiles for example and drones, were not in the field.

 

We did up our troop strength.  WTF?

 

21 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

So we bumped out troop strength.  Like I said.  

 

17 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

So you're saying we bumped our troop strength.  Thanks for making my point for me.  Always a pleasure

You're so full of shit.  Your initial premise was that we had upped troop strength to prevent the Taliban from capturing our (and the ANA's) equipment.  However, that clearly didn't happen because we had a whopping 1,000 troops (all in Kabul managing the withdrawal of Afghans and US citizens) until late July.  It was only after the ANA folded that we added an additional 3,000 troops (again, not to secure equipment or stage an active defense against the Taliban approaching and surrounding Kabul), and then just two weeks ago an additional 1,000 troops to help complete the evacuation of over 100,000 civilians from Kabul.

It's a shame that you can't be crowd sourced. 

[HenryJames 66041]

 

[elfenix 34230]

2 hours ago, Zeus said:

For 18 months not a single soldier even died in Afghanistan prior to the abrupt pull out. 

gosh i wonder what might have happened 18 months ago, in or about february of 2020, that might have caused that to happen?!?  guess we'll never know!

['stache 21802]

3 hours ago, Loch Ness Monster said:

Will wait and see what the next dumb war Americans get us into.

 

Only three more months 'til the War on Christmas!

[Satchel 6938]

When one looks past the trees, one sees that the 20 year war in Afghanistan is over. We’re done. This is what history will note and long remember.

[Buzzrock 14917]

37 minutes ago, Satchel said:

When one looks past the trees, one sees that the 20 year war in Afghanistan is over. We’re done. This is what history will note and long remember.

Just like 'Nam. Kumbaya...

[GW Hayduke 1953]

3 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

So you're saying we bumped our troop strength.  Thanks for making my point for me.  Always a pleasure

You may be the most dishonest poster on this site.  I had thought your main issue was that you were captured by right wing propaganda, but it is becoming clear that you are simply a morally flawed individual.  If your problem was just propaganda, there are solutions.  I don't know of a solution for a fixing dishonesty.  

[Longhorn_Fan68 33868]

ToTaL cAtAsTrOpHe!!!! Hurr durr!!

 

[Willfully Horn 8006]

1 hour ago, Satchel said:

When one looks past the trees, one sees that the 20 year war in Afghanistan is over. We’re done. This is what history will note and long remember.

Airlifting over a hundred thousand people will be remembered, too.

[Satchel 6938]

12 minutes ago, Willfully Horn said:

Airlifting over a hundred thousand people will be remembered, too.

Hopefully.

[BabaYaga 15290]

17 hours ago, GW Hayduke said:

You may be the most dishonest poster on this site.  I had thought your main issue was that you were captured by right wing propaganda, but it is becoming clear that you are simply a morally flawed individual.  If your problem was just propaganda, there are solutions.  I don't know of a solution for a fixing dishonesty.  

LOL.  Dishonesty is deflecting away from the fact that YES, we did increase troop strength.  WHY we did it fucking obvious.  Changing situations on the ground.  Which is ALWAYS why troop numbers change - either up or down. 

As it relates to the initial childish question of "what do you want us to do.......send in more troops?  The answer is yes, send in more fucking troops, as we did to control the ever-changing dynamic on the ground.  Fucking clown show.

[DDD Dad 14332]

LOL.  Dishonesty is deflecting away from the fact that YES, we did increase troop strength.  WHY we did it fucking obvious.  Changing situations on the ground.  Which is ALWAYS why troop numbers change - either up or down. 
As it relates to the initial childish question of "what do you want us to do.......send in more troops?  The answer is yes, send in more fucking troops, as we did to control the ever-changing dynamic on the ground.  Fucking clown show.

Live look in at Babayaga:

[Willfully Horn 8006]

[LongestHorn 759]

New side hustle.  Abortion coyote to Mexico, then turn them in when they get back.....double dip.