41–50 of 90 posts
https://youtu.be/f37xrmiqmnU?t=132
There are videos of Taliban rolling through cities in American humvees:
Its a matter of time before they take Kabul.
$2.2trillion gifted to the Military Industrial Complex.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Step in and do what? Occupy the country indefinitely? How many decades will it take for Afghanistan to stop being Afghanistan?
Why not? Americans haven't been engaged in ground combat operations for years now outside of special forces. They were just providing the weapons, logistics, training, and air power to contain the Taliban. That seems reasonably sustainable. Make it into South Korea with airstrikes.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Step in and do what? Occupy the country indefinitely? How many decades will it take for Afghanistan to stop being Afghanistan?
Why not? Americans haven't been engaged in ground combat operations for years now outside of special forces. They were just providing the weapons, logistics, training, and air power to contain the Taliban. That seems reasonably sustainable. Make it into South Korea with airstrikes.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
You realize that the Afghan people by and large do not want Taliban rule, right? Very few want to be ruled by a violent, oppressive theocracy. Personally I would like the US to leave Afghanistan as well, but I have sympathy for the people who may have to suffer Taliban rule. Ideally the international or at least regional community would step in.
Maybe they should try putting up a fight, then.
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Afghanistan is about the same size as Texas, permanent occupation is technically manageable. However, it would bring hate upon the US. It’s also a proxy-war with Russia, who might be funding the opposite side, so the costs to colonization are not just occupation, but hedging the spendings of all other countries who don’t want USA to occupy the zone. So, impossible if we don’t get others on board, among Arab countries…
Many already (and will always) hate the US, and the US has the GDP to outlast declining Russia. If anything, this is a test bed for remote force projection. If Afghans want US protection that doesn’t require boots on the ground, that seems reasonable considering capabilities already available. “Peace through superior firepower.”
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I agree, my brother! The idea that these Muslims could govern themselves leaves me in tears of laughter and what they really need to sort them out is an American colonial presence. This failed 20 year US strategy can only work out great in the long term for the people of Afghanistan! ... and without the dripping sarcasm, in all seriousness, the US has been destabilising the Middle East for decades and will happily ov…
85% of Afghans have “no sympathy for the Taliban”, never mind support them. Not really a strong mandate, democratic or otherwise: https://asiafoundation.org/publication/afghanistan-in-2019-a...
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Is it possible that it’s just a proxy war? I imagine for 1 rouble invested by Russia arming the Talibans, it costs $10 to the West if we want to do something? It’s really a question, I’m not knowledgeable.
Seems likely to me. It's what I'd do if I were Russia. It's not like we don't have a history of proxy war there, or something.
The only reason I can see for Russia to support the Taliban is pure spite or profit from selling arms. But the new-Taliban is mainly equipped with captured or bought ANA weaponry.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree, my brother! The idea that these Muslims could govern themselves leaves me in tears of laughter and what they really need to sort them out is an American colonial presence. This failed 20 year US strategy can only work out great in the long term for the people of Afghanistan! ... and without the dripping sarcasm, in all seriousness, the US has been destabilising the Middle East for decades and will happily ov…
85% of Afghans have “no sympathy for the Taliban”, never mind support them. Not really a strong mandate, democratic or otherwise: https://asiafoundation.org/publication/afghanistan-in-2019-a...
"The Asia Foundation (TAF), a Central Intelligence Agency proprietary, was established in 1954 to undertake cultural and educational activities on behalf of the United States Government in ways not open to official U.S. agencies."[17]
The Asia Foundation is an outgrowth of the Committee for a Free Asia, which was founded by the U.S. government in 1951.[18] CIA funding and support of the Committee for a Free Asia and the Asia Foundation were assigned the CIA code name "Project DTPILLAR".[19]
In 1954, the Committee for a Free Asia was renamed the Asia Foundation (TAF) and incorporated in California[20] as a private, nominally non-governmental organization devoted to promoting democracy, rule of law, and market-based development in post-war Asia.
In the 1950s, the Asia Foundation “clandestinely supported anti-Communist motion picture industry personnel, ranging from producers, directors, and technicians to critics, writers, and general intellectuals in many parts of Asia.”[21]
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The Taliban regime is going to be hostile to women. It'll be a return to violence, executions, and feudalism. Yet I see a lot of liberals that have no problem with a Taliban takeover and would rather see a US withdrawal. I'm a liberal person, but I think Taliban takeover is a horrific outcome. What's the argument / angle here? Furthermore, it seems to open the geopolitical sphere for China to step into the vacuum. It…