Free Republic

Grief and politics don't mix. When raw, aching grief and the dirtiest kind of politics meet, a hot volcano of pain and outrage erupts that is unstoppable. But it is necessary. It is the only way things might ever be clean again. I am thinking of recent casket transfer ceremonies that have taken place at Dover Air Force Base, where senior administration officials have used the solemn occasions -- Benghazi, the shoot-down of Extortion 17 -- less to comfort grieving families than to lay blame; to establish a narrative; to lie. Think of Sean Smith's mother. Think of Tyrone Woods'...

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, April 8, 2009 – More than 5,000 residents of Afghanistan’s Panjshir province gathered March 30 to celebrate the groundbreaking for a road some say will make the area the best in the country for travel. Air Force Lt. Col. Mark E. Stratton, Panjshir Provincial Reconstruction Team commander, speaks to a crowd of more than 5,000 people who attended the groundbreaking ceremony in the Safied Shahir village of Panjshir’s Khenj district for a road to Badakshan province, March 30, 2009. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The $28 million project, funded by the provincial...

WASHINGTON, March 1, 2006 – The democratic process taking hold in Afghanistan is an inspiration to the cause of freedom, President Bush said in the country's capital, Kabul, today. "I hope the people of Afghanistan understand that as democracy takes hold, you're inspiring others," Bush said while visiting Afghanistan for the first time. "And that inspiration will cause others to demand their freedom." Bush said he was "enthralled" to see the progress being made in Afghanistan. As evidence of this progress, he pointed to the growth of an entrepreneurial spirit enabling Afghans to realize their dreams, to young girls going...

11/16/2005 - KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFPN) -- Before U.S. forces return the airport terminal and tower here to Afghan control, combat communicators first installed more than a mile of copper and fiber cable. Airmen from the 451st Air Expeditionary Group communications flight here stepped up to install the critical communications cables when an engineering and installation team could not meet a short suspense. The flight took the challenge head-on and rerouted more than 6,000 feet of communication lines to ensure connectivity was not lost during the changeover. The project involved running the wiring through conduit and burying it in trenches....

Afghanistan's female singers silenced again January 16 2004 at 01:40PM Kabul - They were on air but now they've been silenced. After breaking a decade-long ban and airing images of a woman singing on Afghanistan's state-run television earlier in the week, Kabul TV has decided to stop showing female singers for the time being. The decision to stop showing images of women singing follows strong protests from the Afghan Supreme Court, which favours the imposition of Islamic sharia laws in the war-torn country.The court is dominated by the conservative former mujahedin or anti-Soviet fighters. "No official decision has been taken....

Afghanistan's legendary gold finally surfaces August 29 2003 at 02:45PM Kabul - Afghanistan's legendary 2 000-year-old Tillya Tepe Bactrian gold hoard is safe and sound after lying hidden in a bank vault for the past 14 years, President Hamid Karzai said on Friday. The priceless collection of gold ornaments dating back about 2 000 years was safely stored in a presidential palace vault throughout the civil war and Taliban regime. "Fortunately the gold exists. We opened one box and saw the gold," Karzai told reporters minutes after the vault was opened on Friday morning for the first time in more...