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'We've Abandoned the People Who Helped Us': Vets Grapple with Emotions over the Fall of Afghanistan
Military.com ^ | 8/17/2021 | Patricia Kime

Posted on 08/22/2021 4:10:25 AM PDT by LibWhacker

Betrayal, frustration, anger, grief, numbness and concern for those left behind -- these are some of the emotions former service members say they are feeling as they watch images of their former enemies celebrating in Kabul and get desperate text messages from those left behind in Afghanistan.

"It's a disgrace that the U.S. has forsaken these bonds and abandoned our allies," said Peter Kiernan, a former Special Operations Command Marine who deployed to Herat in 2012. "We were trying to liberate these people and give them a better life. And that's the part that's so hard to grapple with here. We fought for this. And the Afghan soldiers that we served with were optimistic about the future of their country."

In Afghanistan, Kiernan led a team of interpreters and trained Afghan forces, working with them to clear areas of Taliban presence or to capture Taliban leaders.

The Afghans he met were committed to a better quality of life -- soldiers who were "super ideologically committed," civilians who were educating women, improving health care and cultivating community programs and services with support from micro-grant programs.

He remains especially concerned about an interpreter he's been trying to get out of the country for the past six years. The frustration over the bureaucratic delay of the Afghan's visa and desperate text message exchanges with his friends as the Taliban advanced in the past week have taken their toll.

For many veterans who lost comrades or were wounded with brain injuries, amputations or post-traumatic stress in Afghanistan, the Taliban's triumphant advance across the country has triggered emotions buried for years or still very raw.

(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: abandoned; afghanistan; members; service
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To: Travis McGee

I don’t give a ratsass about the article. All the men coming out of AFG are not rapist. Are you an American hood rat? Of course not.

There will be problems with some of these people. No doubt about it. The ones that helped us and risked their lives daily doing it should have been brought out.


21 posted on 08/22/2021 5:19:14 AM PDT by zek157
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To: LibWhacker

That is a real issue. It’s called the Afghan Personnel and Payroll System (APPS.).

I don’t know if the database is still operational to use it as it was built, but it has all the biometric data in it. Was used to get rid of ghost soldiers padding the payroll and basing service contracts on non existent people.


22 posted on 08/22/2021 5:24:40 AM PDT by zek157
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To: LibWhacker
I'm sorry about this but we were in THEIR country trying to help THEM, not the other way around.

We spent 90 billion dollars and 8000 American lives trying to give the Afghan people a shot at a better life.

There are probably a lot of deserving people who should be relocated.

Unfortunately, it's axiomatic that in that area of the world the deserving people get screwed and the worst and most corrupt get pushed to the front of the line.

This is exactly what we are seeing play out in Afghanistan.

The corrupt who ran the country into the ground are getting out while the guys on the ground who fought are getting killed

23 posted on 08/22/2021 5:29:05 AM PDT by rdcbn1
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To: zek157

“I don’t give a ratsass about the article.”

So, an opinion from willful ignorance.

I hope you remember this when the Afghan refugee rape wave hits the USA, as it did in Europe.

Your interpreters were about 0.01% of Afghan men, total outliers, learning English on their own, desiring to be Westernized.

[And they don’t dare go near a Taliban checkpoint, much less make a run for Kabul Alamo Airport, where access is 100% controlled by the Taliban.]

The real face of Afghan “refugees” is what the Europeans have seen, as delineated fact by fact in the article you refuse to read, in your obstinate ignorance.

Saying “I told you so” will be cold solace to the American girls who will suffer, as the European girls have.

But you refuse to read the article, so you don’t really care, do you?


24 posted on 08/22/2021 5:46:45 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: zek157

The Taliban how have the handheld systems, and they are using them to check the database to find “collaborators” at checkpoints and target them for execution.

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2021/08/taliban-captured-us-facial-recognition-and-eye-scan-database-reports-say/

The Taliban are not stupid. They have kept the system operational by threatening the former operators. It’s an ancient Islamic custom to do so. The Barbary Pirates kept European cannon gunners alive to train them in their use, etc. etc.

It’s much simpler in Afghanistan, with the Taliban forcing former A-stan govt employees to work for them, or face the consequences.

This is how they will be able to use our Black Hawks, while they are still operational: with a gun at the U.S. trained pilot’s head.

Since they will go down quickly for lack of maintenance, (contractors gone), they will probably be sold to our enemies for cash.


25 posted on 08/22/2021 5:52:41 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: Travis McGee

exactly
muslims DO NOT assimilate


26 posted on 08/22/2021 6:08:19 AM PDT by SisterK (Maranatha)
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To: zek157

they should be taken to other muslim countries

all cultures are not equal


27 posted on 08/22/2021 6:10:39 AM PDT by SisterK (Maranatha)
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To: LibWhacker

We did the same to Vietnam. There was a treaty in place that provided continuing support for SVietnam military. It would have ensured that the success of Tet offensive would continue and they’d hold NVietnam at bay. Sorta like Korea.

But, there was an election. The hippies came into power in Congress and they cut the funding — letting SVietnam get overrun. This led to the domino effect, remember that? Millions were murdered, especially those (e.g., teachers)that supported the US and could have supported a growing society in that region.

The US does this sort of thing. We make agreements and then walk away.


28 posted on 08/22/2021 7:41:58 AM PDT by bobbo666 (Baizuo, WuhanFlu)
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To: Travis McGee
I read the article. While I've been aware of the muslim attacks and rapes in Europe for some time, I didn't know the majority was by Afghans.

Are we sure they have the biometric equipment to screen those the Taliban lets through? If so, yes, we are being played.

29 posted on 08/22/2021 7:54:03 AM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. 8/15/2021 - Afganiscrap falls.)
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To: Travis McGee

The .01% that helped us is the entire set of people that I care about.


30 posted on 08/22/2021 8:00:51 AM PDT by zek157
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To: zek157

The media will convince everyone that everybody in Afghanistan was an “interpreter”. Ok, so they can’t speak English, but hey.


31 posted on 08/22/2021 8:01:29 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: LibWhacker

So far, we have abandoned American citizens which is the number 1 priority.


32 posted on 08/22/2021 8:02:56 AM PDT by dforest (huh)
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To: dfwgator

I’m a little sensitive about these comments as I helped manage over 200 interpreters for the command I was attached to and knew several very well.

We know who they are. And have all their biometric data to prove it. Unfortunately so do the taliban,


33 posted on 08/22/2021 8:40:48 AM PDT by zek157
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To: zek157
We know who they are. And have all their biometric data to prove it. Unfortunately so do the taliban,

And no question Trump would have gotten them out, and would have kept everyone else out of the country. But the Rats have no interest in that, they want as many to come here as possible and complete the transformation of this country.

34 posted on 08/22/2021 8:42:47 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: LibWhacker

Helped us? What about US helping them fix their damn country? Shouldn’t the Afghani’s be doing that instead of running away from it?


35 posted on 08/22/2021 9:42:42 AM PDT by jmacusa (America. Founded by geniuses . Now governed by idiots.)
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To: LibWhacker
Our troops and Afghan allies were used like throwaway pawns in a chess game. Disgusting. Good luck, America! Don’t go crying to real patriots when you can’t recruit good men in the future.

Miley and Austin think 'the elites' will give up their children to protect the country. They're wrong. They won't.

Worst case: Commies trying to destabilize our country want a military filled with illegals willing to trade out 'service' for citizenship. People willing to turn their guns on American citizens or welcome the Chinese.,

36 posted on 08/22/2021 9:59:23 AM PDT by GOPJ (Iran, China, North Korea and Pakistan are reverse engineering captured AMERICAN weapons as we type.)
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To: zek157

I agree, and unfortunately, tragically, due to the entire cluster foxtrot un-assing of A-stan, they won’t get out. They will be picked up and killed by the Taliban.


37 posted on 08/22/2021 10:36:55 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: A Navy Vet

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2021/08/taliban-captured-us-facial-recognition-and-eye-scan-database-reports-say/


38 posted on 08/22/2021 10:37:51 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: LibWhacker

I also remember some trusted Afghans turning on us and killing our men over there. Now, with all of the chaos, it is very disturbing that we are being primed to embrace tens of thousands of Afghans to “save” them. Are we going to save the right ones?


39 posted on 08/22/2021 11:05:41 AM PDT by PghBaldy (12/14 - 930am -rampage begins... 12/15 - 1030am - Obama's advance team scouts photo-op locations.)
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To: Travis McGee

Thank you. Not good!


40 posted on 08/22/2021 11:51:58 AM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. 8/15/2021 - Afganiscrap falls.)
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