WTF, we're pulling out of Afghanistan too?

[NightWatcher]

Link to tweet

He's melting down and trashing the entire Middle East


ALL FOR PUTIN

[shanny]

1. We've been there for 15 years...and we lost.

Why would we stay?

Even broken clocks...

[uppityperson]

3. Long enough to spawn a new generation who hates Americans rather than appreciate us for helping

build schools and hospitals.

[at140]

29. British tried it for decades, Russians tried it as well

They all failed badly in Afghanistan. Why any one thought United States would win in Afghanistan?
The broken clock analogy works perfectly here.

[uppityperson]

38. They both tried to conquer it, as did the usa. Helping build schools and hospitals, engaging the

Afghanis in a positive manner, untried, though the Taliban increased their ranks with free schooling for boys. Extremist schools, but still schools.

What the USA was doing didn't help in any positive manner because they were trying to conquer.

[melman]

6. 17

[shanny]

40. my bad

either way, an effing lifetime.

[gratuitous]

11. A withdrawal is long overdue

But I don't trust this incompetent, a man who could fuck up a two car funeral procession, to do it properly. A lot of people are going to get killed that would have otherwise lived, and nobody in the U.S. is going to care very much until the survivors of the coming carnage visit a little righteous retribution on our county. And we'll wonder why they're so angry with us and hate us so much. We'll decide that it's because of our freedom.

[realmirage]

18. You don't seem to understand what's going on there

Watchline Frontline’s two specials on ISIS and our wars in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan and you’ll see very quickly why this is a really terrible idea. Mark my word we’ll be forced to go back there when it starts to go to shit again and it will just drag this out even longer

[shanny]

41. You have no idea what I do or do not understand.

On the other hand you don't seem to understand that even the people in charge of this misbegotten endeavor know it is un-winnable.

[maxsolomon]

2. Sorry, non-Pashtun. You're fucked.

Sorry, women of Afghanistan. Sorry, musicians of Afghanistan. Sorry, antiquities. Back to the middle ages. Well, further back than that, actually.

We should never have gone in.

[at140]

31. "We should never have gone in." correct you are Sahib!

No one has conquered Afghanistan. It is a desolate mountainous land of tribes who are living in 7th century mindset and gave sanctuary to Osama Bin Laden. Not ready for democracy.

[maxsolomon]

46. or we should have gone in

and grabbed OBL ourselves instead of contracting it out to some lazy paramilitaries.

[at140]

48. OBL was living in Pakistan

For many years. He escaped from Afghanistan quickly when US military arrived. While Pakistan gave him a nice big house to live in proximity of their military academy, we kept giving Pakistan Billions every year in military aid.

[superpatriotman]

4. Martial law will require many army men

When he is finally indicted and convicted.

[Dave Starsky]

5. The Graveyard of Empires

That's what Afghanistan was called before George Bush decided to wage a campaign there. That's what it will be called ever hence.

[at140]

32. George Bush was the biggest disaster in American foreign policy

JMHO.

[Martin Eden]

42. Agree

Dim Son caused more damage than Hair Twitler has so far.

[former9thward]

7. If you want more Americans to die in Afghanistan go there.

Have fun in an unwinnable war. We should have been out 16 years ago.

[NightWatcher]

9. He's not responsibly getting out. He's clearing out for putin to have reign over the Middle East

He's doing Putin's bidding on the global stage without listening to anyone on this side of the Atlantic

[bluestarone]

10. YOU are soo RIGHT!!!!

[ProudLib72]

14. I just said that in another post

He and MSB are buddies. They are getting Rump to vacate the Middle East so the two of them can rule it together (until Putin tires of MSB).

[former9thward]

15. First check your map.

Afghanistan is not in the Mideast. I know, I was there in 2002. Second the military will NEVER have a plan to "responsibly" get out. NEVER. And neither will anyone in Congress. Check their records for the last 17 years we have been there. The military promotes by command time in war. That is how you get ahead in the officer ranks. They must always have a war going somewhere.

[realmirage]

19. First, check all the facts

It’s not physically in the traditional Middle East but it’s in what has been called the “Greater Middle East” and is certainly in the Middle East in the political sense.

[former9thward]

21. Thanks for missing the main point.

[realmirage]

22. Thanks for ignoring all the facts

to look superior

[former9thward]

23. When are you signing up to go?

[realmirage]

24. You want to change subjects, start a new thread

[triron]

30. Good one.

[realmirage]

33. I'll address your main point

I have no doubt that there is financial incentive for certain people in these wars, but the experts who are not in the military - journalists, government officials, independent analysts, etc have explained why these wars are a necessary evil. It sort of does boil down to “if we don’t fight them there we’ll fight them here.

If Afghanistan is not ready to run itself without our help, we’ll have what happened when we pulled out of Iraq too soon in 2011- the rise of ISIS again and if they manage to get control of the government they’ll have access to vast resources and you could then expect terrorism in the U.S. and Europe. To prevent that we’d have to go back to Afghanistan and start at a place much further back then where we currently are and thus have to stay even longer.

No one here likes war. But sometimes there are only shitty options and shittier options.

[former9thward]

43. If Afganistan is "not ready to run itself without our help" it never will be.

We have been there since the 1980s in one form or another. We have spent hundreds of billions of dollars. Thousands of Americans have given their lives. The present Afghan government does not even control the capital, Kabul. We can handle any reinsurance of enemy organizations with air power.

[realmirage]

49. So your plan

would be to just bomb things and hope ISIS doesn’t increase. Iraq was much more in control in 2011 and look how that turned out. I don’t want to be there either but I don’t see another way and the experts I’ve heard say the same. Have you seen the 2 frontline specials on ISIS? They were very informative on what is really going on. I learned more from that than I have anywhere else.

[bahrbearian]

37. Its Bizarro world, DU is now pro War.

Pro Empire

[uppityperson]

39. Pro nation building in the right way, not conquering by war. Imo.

[former9thward]

44. We have no right to "nation build in the right way"

It is THEIR country not OURS.

[uppityperson]

45. I guess you missed my reply upthread.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=11573895

Help the right way for them, go in asking what do you need (and not just the war lords) and how can we help, not conquer.

[former9thward]

47. And they will tell you and have told us

"We do not need your help, please leave now, your presence is just making things worse."

[lpbk2713]

8. Many will suffer the same fate as the Montagnards in Viet Nam.

Anyone who helped Americans will suffer for it.

Trump is scum on two feet.

[Old Vet]

12. And they suffered terribly..............

[former9thward]

27. Should we have stayed in Vietnam to prevent that?

How long?

[former9thward]

26. How long do we stay?

[octoberlib]

13. Russia supports the Taliban so Trump wants to give them free reign.

[smirkymonkey]

16. This is not how you do it.

He is mad.

[NightWatcher]

17. He's flaming out, pulling a "Walt Starr" if you will.

He's given up on subtlety and is handing the keys to the world to Putin and his pals, daring anyone to kick him out of office right fucking now.

[smirkymonkey]

20. I am just worried about how far he is going to take this.

He's lost it completely. I would not put anything past him at this point.

[NightWatcher]

28. He'll go as far as he can and unfortunately there are no repukes who will stop him

They need to be removed as well for shirking their duty.

[Demovictory9]

25. No thought put.into decisions, just emotion

[Karadeniz]

34. Allies

No one likes war, no one sane. Right now there are also tend of thousands of other nationalities there with us. I despise trumps handling of things. I doubt he's talked to one of them. Did you read Mattis ' letter? He makes it clear that one thing he and Trump were not aligned on was cultivating and respecting allies. Nicolle Wallace showed a list of things Trump has done that benefit Russia. Wish I coy written it down.

[TeamPooka]

35. so desperate to get Mueller out of the headlines

[KWR65]

36. Good. Bring the troops home.

[rogue emissary]

50. Every day he proves Hillary was right about him.

"a man that can be baited with a tweet" or "Putin Puppet"

Since A few hours before the White House contacted the Pentagon inquiring about plans to leave Afghanistan.

Putin in his end of year speech said the U.S. should also withdraw from Afghanistan.