Posted on 09/02/2022 9:04:13 AM PDT by whyilovetexas111
Abbey Gate, the main entrance for the NATO base at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA), was an entrance of sharp turns and checkpoints to prevent a vehicle from ramming through the checkpoint at high speed. My team and I trained security forces at HKIA for Abbey Gate’s biggest and most dangerous vulnerability in December 2020: an improvised explosive device (IED).
The 11 nations that occupied the base had never worked together in this way, and what I observed as the immediate barrier to the exercise, besides the language barrier, was pride. My first job was to break down that barrier. Humility and an unwavering sense of purpose drove us toward success in the face of logistical and cultural differences. Later, as the wheels withdrew into the belly of the plane, I watched the mountains grow smaller with a sense of relief and pride.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Never should’ve went in the first place. Whole thing is a waste.
Our military performed superbly in Afghanistan.
No one will ever know how many terrorists were eliminated, but it’s a safe bet the terrorists were slaughtered wholesale, saving many, many innocent lives.
No Afghanistan vet should give a moment’s thought as to the courage and devotion demonstrated there, notwithstanding the way it was ended by the repulsive, evil piece of filth currently occupying the White House.
It wasn’t worth it. I wasted my 20s and 30s in that country.
I was lucky. I didn’t waste my life there. Some of my buddies didn’t fare so well.
The Deep State destroyed the best we had for two generations. They’re trying to do it to a third now.
> Never should’ve went in the first place. Whole thing is a waste. <
Yep. MacArthur was right. Never get involved in a land war in Asia. Bomb the crap out of every suspected ISIS base. Then bomb them again. None of this nation-building nonsense.
And that’s why I take exception to the title of the article. Yes, Biden blundered the withdrawal completely. But George W. Bush owns our overall failure there. Just as LBJ owns Vietnam.
I agree. That war should have taken two weeks. Bomb anything that moves and leave.
The solution on 9/12 was NOT to invade Afghanistan and Iraq, spend $5 Trillion, create the Patriot Act and secret FISA courts that would be used to spy on Americans and turn the FBI into America’s KGB.
The answer was simple - manage America’s borders, and keep anyone from the mid-east or North Africa out until they are fully vetted. THAT was the solution to terrorism.
But then again, as we should all realize by now, it was not about “fighting terrorism.”
The first month was worth it when we broke things and sent the Taliban running with the warning not to do it again. Message received. Everything after that when we decided they were civilized and worthy of rebuilding was a complete waste.
Of course it wasn’t! Only an idiot could fail to see the thing was a botch-up from the start. Thanks W
Of course it wasn’t! Only an idiot could fail to see the thing was a botch-up from the start. Thanks W
The permanent government for an array of reasons from sheer constipated bureaucratism (When Rumsfeld pointedly asked CENTCOM how long they estimated to get operations started in Afghanistan (they kept evading firm estimates and kept blabbing about ‘various contingencies) he was told six months with a support force of 100K across Pakistan from Karachi to the Kyber Pass to support 50K+ US forces in country so the in country base could be ‘grown and matured’.), venality on a grand scale, desire of the military establishment for a top heavy ‘forever war’ operational model so many generals could rotate through for promotions and many colonels could become generals, DC State and Defense bureaucracies say good career opportunities without leaving the Beltway, etc. In other words by the time (-11 came around the US had a seriously compromised political, military and foreign policy establishment.
The American version of Sudan Mahdist fiasco of 1883-85 only replayed as a farce.
I was a shambles as soon as we abandoned the Northern Alliance and under the influence of Zalmay Khalilzad reinstalled the Pashtuns in power under Hamid Karzai.
The best solution would have been to blow up the Salang Tunnel, divide the country along the summit of the mountains, give the southeast half to Pakistan, and associate the northwest half with Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, etc.
The end result was guaranteed the instant the first American boot hit the ground, preparing to “liberate” Kuwait. Only jingoists and politicians were stupid enough to believe any other result was possible.
To all who served and fought over there, there are those of us who will not denigrate your service.
I won’t, and I associate with people who won’t. People can have whatever opinion they want about what you did, how you served with everything associated with it, and they will.
But when your country asked you to go, you went. You served superbly, even if the overall goals were poorly thought out, muddled or misdirected by politicians or self-serving flag officers who were simply ideological tools of others, and there are always those.
You worked hard, served hard, performed well, and if you are reading this you didn’t sacrifice your life as many did, but far more of you sacrificed your blood, your health, your youth, your time, your relationships, and your marriages to do what we as a country asked you to do.
Do not focus on those who belittle what you did. Never let do that. Be proud of what you did. Never, ever apologize to anyone for it. You have a lot to be proud of.
Too many Americans stayed silent when our Vietnam Veterans came home, and allowed other people to insult them and humiliate them. Those people didn’t just insult the mission, they insulted our veterans as well, painting them in our culture as mentally ill misfits who we should be ashamed of. We won’t let that happen again, because it is a lie.
And there are many who feel exactly as I do.
So, stand tall. When we see you, we will shake your hand and say a sincere thanks for your service and your hard work. If you ever apply for a job with me, I am going to give you preferential consideration for that job, given the work you did over there. If I see you and your family in a restaurant, I will anonymously buy your meal, not only because I want you to live your life in privacy, but I want you to know we care. If I meet you in a bar (and you enjoy a drink) you won’t pay, ever, not because you cannot afford it, but because there are simply not enough ways to be able to adequately thank you.
There are a lot of people who think we should have never set foot there, and they are probably right. But that should not and will not an issue with you, and unless you solicit that opinion from me and those like me, I will keep it to myself.
The only thing you will hear from me is: “Well done and welcome home. Thank you.”
Yes. See my post above. YOU are one of the people I associate with.
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