What they said about Afghanistan...

various idiots | 3/28/03 | Professional

[Professional]

Houston Chronicle 10/08/2001

WASHINGTON -- Along with cruise missiles and bombs, U.S. forces dropped food and medicine Sunday across famine-stricken Afghanistan in the beginning stages of a larger humanitarian operation.

About 37,500 individual Humanitarian Daily Rations, or HDRs, were dropped by cargo planes across rugged areas of Afghanistan. Leaflets explaining the U.S. military action were being prepared to be dropped later.

The humanitarian aid is meant to underscore the Bush administration's message that the strikes are aimed at terrorists, not ordinary Afghans.

"To say that these attacks are in any way against Afghanistan or the Afghan people is flat wrong," said Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

[Professional]

Reuters 11/05/2001

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Afghanistan's ruling Taliban has called on the United Nations to give humanitarian help inside the country to Afghans fleeing U.S. air strikes.

But a U.N. spokeswoman said problems including harassment of its staff and lack of security were likely to hamper any assistance.

"We demand the U.N. to help the people of Afghanistan inside Afghan territory," Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, the Taliban ambassador to Pakistan, told a news conference in the Pakistani capital Islamabad on Monday. He pledged that the Taliban would cooperate with aid operations.

[Professional]

Independent UK 10/08/2001

Many arabs and Muslims reacted to the bombing with shock and outrage, and warned that it would lead to retaliation against America.

Shaaban, a taxi driver in Egypt, said: "What are the Americans thinking? The Afghans will hit back and strike the heart of America. This conflict will spread and engulf the whole world."

Asma, a 32-year-old housewife in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, said: "It is haram [forbidden] that the richest people in the world are killing the poorest people in the world.'

In the West Bank town of Ramallah, Hassan Youssef, of the Islamist militant group Hamas, said the US strikes were "pure terrorism''.

In Pakistan, the influential and Taliban-sympathetic Afghan Defence Council, made up of more than 30 religious and militant groups, called for a holy war.

One leader, Riaz Durana, said: "It is the duty of every Muslim to support their brothers in this critical hour. We will support the Taliban physically and morally against the aggression of America."

Munawar Hassan, deputy chief of Jamaat-e-Islami, Pakistan's most powerful religious political party, called the strikes "an attack against Islam". He believed there would be a "serious backlash" within Pakistan's armed forces against the President, General Pervez Musharraf.

The Pakistani government, the only administration to recognise the Taliban, said it hoped the strikes would avoid civilian casualties. Shamshad Ahmad, Pakistan's ambassador to the United Nations, said: "It remains our hope that United States and its Allies' actions remain clearly targeted ... and every care will be taken to minimise harm to the Afghan people who have already suffered the ravages of conflict for more than two decades.''

While many Arab governments were cautious in their reaction, Iraqcalled the strikes "treacherous aggression" by "enemy planes". President Saddam Hussein said the strikes would destabilise the world. "This style will only lead to more instability and lawlessness in the world. America might increase the use of force and include other countries," he said after convening an emergency meeting of his cabinet.

In Iran, a spokesman for the foreign ministry said: "These attacks, which have been launched regardless of the world public opinion, especially the Muslim nations, will damage the innocent and oppressed Afghans and are unacceptable."

[Professional]

Kyodo 10/10/2001

Afghan civilians in Vardak and Ghazni provinces close to Kabul have burned food packages air-dropped by the United States in protest against U.S. air strikes, according to reports from Afghanistan.

A source in Peshawar, western Pakistan, citing witness accounts from Afghanistan, said several hundred people in each of the two provinces gathered the packets of rice and fruit dropped by the U.S. military, piled them up outside their homes and torched them.

''No need for pity,'' some of them chanted.

''We will fight America to the end.''

On Tuesday, the Taliban's ambassador to Pakistan, Abdul Salem Zaeef, denounced the U.S. food drop policy, calling it ''an insult'' to the Afghan people.

[Professional]

Anyway, I could go on and on, but apparently nobody gives a shit.

[shattered]

Thank you for posting this look into our past..it puts things in perspective.

[Gumption]

but apparently nobody gives a shit.

Hey, watch your mouth. Besides, I give a shit.

[Keith]

WHat the Hell are you talking about?

The market was up 1000 point the previous week. Down 250 this week. That is a normal 25% retracement one would expect from a quick advance. I suggest you check your facts more closely, please, sir.

[Kay Soze]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/529915/posts

Former General Lebed Says No Chance for U.S. in Afghanistan
Russia Today (www.europeaninternet.com/russia) | Sept. 21, 2001 | dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH

VIENNA, Sep 21, 2001 -- (dpa) Russian ex-general Alexander Lebed says the United States will have no chance of success if it sends ground troops into Afghanistan.

In an interview with next Monday's magazine Format, published in advance on Thursday, he said: "No-one who tried to prevail militarily in this country was ever successful."

Afghanistan veteran and former presidential candidate Lebed said that the Americans would also not be able to find suspected terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden.

If the Americans were to march in, they would have to protect the civilian population.

>From his own experience, he said: "As soon as there were the first civilian dead, we all of a sudden had a huge number of enemies. And there were more and more of them, day by day."

"It seemed that the struggle was the only thing for which they lived. They only wanted one thing - revenge for the dead."

"One cannot defeat an opponent who is so determined", warned the ex-general.

In all, he gave the United States no chance at all in a military mission in Afghanistan.

"May God keep the West from the madness of attacking the peaceful, suffering population of Afghanistan. And God protect the West from believing an invasion of Afghanistan could succeed."

"They would suffer endless losses and ultimately not achieve anything other than to perish miserably in the drifting sands of the Afghan mountains."

"That's the truth about this country. I know that from my own experience. And anyone who has gone through the hell of Afghanistan will confirm it to you", said Lebed.

[Professional]

Rush Limbaugh is probably living pay check to pay check. I swear, whatever he says about the market, it goes the other way. Remember his ranting and raving back in the early Clinton years? Don't get me wrong, Rush is awesome, but he must be the worst investor.

[Professional]

Lebed failed diplomatically.

[KneelBeforeZod]

what facts am I missing? March 20: 8,286.60 Today's close: 8,145.77

[MeekOneGOP]

Yep. Thanks!

And let's not forget what Taliban Patty said too:

Uh...did I say something wrong?...

---

Doh !

Send Senator "Taliban Patty" Murray (D-Wa)
an e-mail asking her to resign her Senate position

Taliban Patty
A short audio excerpt of her comments

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/811813/posts?page=13#13

Murray to Press - "Patty Tired!"
AP - December 2002 - Dateline Seattle Zoo

An irate Patty Murray swung angrily from her tire here today, denouncing her critics' negative reviews of her remarks praising Osama bin Laden.

"Patty tired!" Day signed as the hirsute congressthing shrieked in rage and flung her feces at rapidly retreating critics. Murray, through her interpreter added "Apple not love tired Patty!"

Zoo officials were at a loss of explain her behavior.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks!

OFFICIAL BUMP(TOPIC)LIST

[Professional]

v

[jwalsh07]

Good idea bump.

[Dumb_Ox]

The numbers of US deployed and US casualties in Iraq are public knowledge. Why aren't US numbers in Afghanistan similarly public knowledge? I've done a few web searches, and I can't find a thing.