I can't figure out why everyone is smiling...

[Contrary1]

Will Karzai be making another trip to the US in order to comfort the families of those that are killed fighting?

Afghan leader greets Americans getting ready to fight in his country

[The Wielding Truth]

1. They were charmed. He was charming. That's it. He has an

impossible job to do. He has to hold together a country that has been torn apart for generations.

[tekisui]

2. He is a corrupt thug.

In spite of his charm.

[The Wielding Truth]

7. Maybe, but I think he loves his country and needs our help.

[MadHound]

9. Needs our help for what? Further enriching himself and his friends?

To kill more of his enemies for him?

We need to get out of Afghanistan now and stop pouring money and lives down a rathole. We can't win this war, at least not militarily, so we might as well pack it in and save ourselves the cost.

[The Wielding Truth]

10. I believe,probably naively, that Karzi must be given the strength

to unite his country. If we don't support him, the many tribal gangs will disassemble the semblance of government and the terrorist and manic religious stronghold will dominate. Then the world will know and have to fight a greater threat.It must be worth the effort because the seed bed of Taliban and Alkaida must be rooted out.Opium,however, may be the economic evil that always curtails the peace.

[MadHound]

11. The tribal warlords will disassemble the government as soon as we leave,

No matter when we leave. That is because they regard whatever government and political infrastructure we set up to be illegitimate and will do away with it when we're gone So we should stay there forever, a perpetual occupation? I think not. All we're doing by staying there is running up the body count.

As far as Al Qaeda goes, they are mobile. There are, according to best estimates, one hundred or less in the region. But they have spread out all over the globe, especially in places like Yemen or Saudi Arabia. Should we invade those countries as well? What about Sudan and Somolia?

In regards to the Taliban, hell, Karzi is threatening to join the Taliban. Our so called ally, Pakistan, is run by the Taliban.

And opium, well yes, it is the well spring of a lot of problems, but we're not going to curtail it, no matter what brave words we say. You need to read Alfred McCoy's "The Politics of Herion", it will explain a lot of our recent actions over the past fifty, sixty years.

[sabrina 1]

13. We're not trying to curtail the opium trade. It was pretty much

gone under the Taliban.

[The Wielding Truth]

14. I have heard that the Join the Taliban threat was a misunderstanding.

Nonetheless, everything you have said may be true, but once we first bombed Afghanistan in 2001 we had committed our karma and our souls to repair the harm we have done. I am totally against the drone targeted attack and I would love us to leave now,but if we leave now and the Taliban resume control we will have created a bigger stronger monster. It's a deadly and morally perplexing dilemma. I see your point of view, but I cannot see a withdraw today.

[MadHound]

15. This is the kind of thinking that kept us in Vietnam for far too long

How in the hell can you repair the harm when you are killing people and bombing the crap out of the countryside on a daily basis?

And as I said, whenever we leave, be it today or in ten years, the local political structure will tear down what they consider to be American and illegit and set up their own political structure instead. We can't prevent that from happening, nor should we try. We need to get it through our hubris inflated head that not every country or culture wants democracy in their country, hell, it was a close run thing for us to get it back in the day when we revolted.

Meanwhile, unless we want to bomb Pakistan to oblivion, we can't get rid of the Taliban. The best thing to do is pull out, stop the bleeding and offer whatever NGO and humanitarian assistance we have and that the local population will accept. Anything else means that all we're doing is continuing the killing for no good reason.

[G_j]

12. loved it enough to steal the election, I suppose. nt

[lib2DaBone]

3. "Be The First One On Your Block..To Have Your Son Come Home In A Box"

Come on mothers throughout the land,
Pack your boys off to Afghanistan,
Come on fathers, and don't hesitate
To send your sons off before it's too late.
And you can be the first ones in your block
To have your boy come home in a box.


Come on Wall Street, don't be slow,
Why man, this is war au-go-go
There's plenty good money to be made
By supplying the Army with the tools of its trade,
But just hope and pray that if they drop the bomb,
They drop it on the Taliban.

[kenny blankenship]

4. So your husband is fighting in my country yes? Oh it's your son

I am so surprised to hear you say this. I could not believe looking at you that you were old enough to have son of age to carry big guns and wear uniform of Army. Tell me nice lady who looks too young to have Army son, do you worry about your boy? You think about him always so far from home and feel sad - yes? Tell me now, do you get high? The Party? It's nice to party when you're feeling sad and worry. It's not good to worry too much. You must be happy. Life is to be happy. I have powders to make you happy and forget worry. Here take this, it's my gift to you. You are nice lady. Take. Have you heard ever of heroin? Don't believe things they say. It will make you happy like your son is home with you, not dead. I have more when you want it. Tell your friends to come see Hamid.

[RagAss]

5. The nail has been hit on its head.

[ChoppinBroccoli]

6. They Think They're Meeting Ben Kingsley

[The Wielding Truth]

8. Hahaha.That's great.