WhatFinger


With a tragedy of such an epic size as this, it is a given that massive amounts of disinformation, misinformation, and erroneous opinions will abound

The Tragedy in Afghanistan Revisited



"Corporate criminals -- playing with tanks" Michael Been ("The Call") "The Walls Came Down" In my previous article on the recent tragedy in Afghanistan, I did not mean to suggest that I feel no sorrow. I do indeed grieve, but any tears evaporate as they form; burned away by a fierce light -- call it righteousness -- that transmutes my grief into an implacable sense of purpose. Those are not mere words -- that's truly how it is for me. Link

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This article will be less of a "shoot from the hip" reaction, and more of a reasoned response than my last article that dealt with this subject. First off, I have some words of advice to the DC pundits and politicos who have been blabbing about what should unquestionably be military secrets: Shut the # up! Link The lives of US warriors are at stake here. Afghanistan is not some Tonka Toy playground set up to enable clueless corporate criminals to play soldier, or a place where liberal buffoons can experiment with eco-engineering and winning hearts and minds -- at least it should not be such. Link What is the US doing in Afghanistan? Essentially we are screwing up -- big time. In any sane world we would have pulled our troops out of there years ago, or re-thought and re-worked US strategy. What moron(s) thought that colonizing a country surrounded on all sides by territories friendly to hostiles would be a swell idea? "I've got an idea! Let's get the US bogged down in an unwinnable conflict where the enemy can retreat into surrounding areas in Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Iran. We can protect Afghanistan's multi-billion dollar opium trade while we are at it, so that millions can be funneled to fund insurgents, corrupt the government, and turn friendlies!" Link Who came up with such an insane and unworkable scenario? Does no one in the US military recall "reverse strategic planning?" Gen. Paul Vallely recently described "reverse planning" as the concept that "prior to anything being written, an end-state must be identified." That is, before we invaded Afghanistan we should have had a feasible end-game in mind, and an honorable exit strategy. Link Where are they? Did they ever exist? All I have seen is a US military increasingly hobbled by ludicrous ROE, mired in an untenable situation that is costing us dearly. Only the "merchants of death" and their multi-billion dollar industry seem to be winners. Link Lest someone get the wrong idea, let me restate the following from a previous article of mine: "I honor all of our service men and women. I especially honor those who have sacrificed physically, or mentally/emotionally (or spiritually) on behalf of our country. And most of all, I honor those who 'gave the last full measure,' and died in the service of the United States. I am proud of them, and grateful for their sacrifice. May God bless them all, and their families." Link The following, from the same article, also bears repeating: "I'm from the Vietnam era, so I've long ago had to make peace with the idea that brave and patriotic men and women can be misused, mislead, and misdirected, for less than noble reasons. Those who fought in Vietnam were not allowed to win that war -- for political reasons -- but that in no way takes away from their honor. I feel the same way about those who have fought and/or died in Afghanistan. Their honor is intact -- win or 'lose,' that is a given." I concur with Gen. Valley's opinion that "Between the years of 2001 through early 2003, the war in Afghanistan was won by the United States." That is the point where we should have either (1) continued with our successful "lily pad" strategy (small mobile bases), or (2) withdrawn from Afghanistan altogether. Instead, we set ourselves up like bowling pins, in large immobile bases, and went about the business of trying to colonize and democratize a barbaric, tar-baby backwater, surrounded on all sides by safe havens for the enemy. Unbelievable. Be that as it may, what about the tragedy/debacle that occurred in Afghanistan on August 6? With a tragedy of such an epic size as this, it is a given that massive amounts of disinformation, misinformation, and erroneous opinions will abound. Some of the articles that I have read are purposeful attempts to mislead and misdirect, while some are done with the most honest and patriotic of intentions. Some are excellent; some are awful; some are a mixture of both. Link So what is my take on things; what do I know? I know that the CIA and other covert intelligence agencies sometimes work at cross-purposes with each other, and SPECOPS. I know that Pakistan's Intelligence service (ISI) cannot be trusted. I know that traitors are embedded in the US military. I know that the Obama Administration is committed to the UN, Agenda 21, socialism, and "social justice," at the expense of liberty, free enterprise, and the United States of America. Link Link Link I know that Keynesian economics is a Byzantine tangle of garbage. I know that corporate and banking criminals have been stealing astronomical amounts of money from "we the people" -- aided and abetted by political elites from both parties. I know that "we the people" have been, and are being, royally screwed. I know that the elites are planning on a one-world-government, with themselves at the helm. Link I know that we have a POTUS who in all probability is not even a US citizen; he is most certainly not a Natural Born citizen -- as required by the US Constitution. I know that the main stream media, Congress, SCOTUS, and numerous individuals and agencies are complicit in the cover-up. I know that the Cloward-Piven strategy is alive and well -- and working. I know that the US Constitution is ignored, dismissed, and perverted at every turn. I know that our government representatives and our military have not been honoring their oaths to defend the US Constitution. I know that the US economy is being purposefully driven onto the rocks. Link Link Link These things, and many others, I know to be true. The particulars of Saturday's tragedy in Afghanistan I will leave to the boots on the ground to investigate -- as I am sure they will. If there is any trace-back of foul play, then I have full faith that the SOCOM fraternity will act accordingly. Laus Deo.


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Jim ONeill -- Bio and Archives

Born June 4, 1951 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Served in the U.S. Navy from 1970-1974 in both UDT-21 (Underwater Demolition Team) and SEAL Team Two.  Worked as a commercial diver in the waters off of Scotland, India, and the United States.  Worked overseas in the Merchant Marines.  While attending the University of South Florida as a journalism student in 1998 was presented with the “Carol Burnett/University of Hawaii AEJMC Research in Journalism Ethics Award,” 1st place undergraduate division.  (The annual contest was set up by Carol Burnett with money she won from successfully suing a national newspaper for libel).  Awarded US Army, US Navy, South African, and Russian jump wings.  Graduate of NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School, 1970).  Member of Mensa, China Post #1, and lifetime member of the NRA and UDT/SEAL Association.


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