WH to announce 10,000+ troops to Afghanistan

[sabra]

Source: MSNBC

From NBC’s Jim Miklaszewski and Courtney Kube
The White House is expected to announce the deployment of more than 10,000 additional U.S. forces to Afghanistan "within the hour," according to Pentagon officials. The Pentagon will follow with details on numbers and identification of troops to be deployed.

The troop deployment to Afghanistan will be announced as a "remissioning," meaning many, if not most, of the forces were already scheduled to deploy to Iraq but will now be diverted to Afghanistan.

That will reportedly include two Marine combat battalions and one Army combat brigade. According to one Pentagon official, because this "remissioning" will, in fact, redirect troops from Iraq to Afghanistan, it will be politically characterized as a "drawdown" of U.S. military forces in Iraq, permitting the White House to claim in this one announcement that President Obama is making good on two campaign promises -- withdrawing forces from Iraq and sending additional forces to Afghanistan.

If he hasn't already, Defense Secretary Gates is expected to sign the deployment order today to send the more than 10,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers to Afghanistan in the spring.

Read more: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/02/17/1799010.aspx

[mdmc]

1. usa!

USA!

[saigon68]

33. Make the place into a Mecca of Equality and Democracy

Equal rights for all

[conturnedpro09]

34. Self-delete!

Accidentally double-posted! My bad.

[conturnedpro09]

35. Yes we can!!!

I remain very hopeful about our prospects for victory in Afghanistan: Victory over the true terrorists behind the 9/11 attacks. Victory over a fundamentalist tyranny. Victory for basic human rights and freedoms.

This is a progressive war. And victory in Afghanistan will be a victory for progressivism worldwide.

People need to stop comparing ourselves to Russia. We're America! And we finally have a competent commander in chief. Have some faith!

[mdmc]

39. lol

USA! USA!

[leftstreet]

40. America, Fuck Yeah!

:rofl:

[Purveyor]

2. We don't have enough troops to make Aghanistan 'winnable'. What a waste. Just ask the Russians. nt

[SnoopDog]

3. What has the country of Afghanistan done against America?

Did they invade America or something?

Why are we there at all?

[Mist]

5. Unlike Iraq, there is a connection with Al-Qaida and Afghanistan. nt

[SnoopDog]

7. Maybe so however...

Al Qaida represents a terrorist organization - no army, navy, airplanes, tanks, uniforms... So why are they fought with our military?

If they think bin Laden is there and 'trained' them there and was responsible for 911... why are we not invading Saudi Arabia where most of the
911 conspirators were from?

These kind of wars need to be fought with Intelligence and small strike forces - not with American GIs.

[glinda]

8. If so then they need to go in and totally destroy ALL the poppies. ALL. And then help the

farmers and Country plant food and other more productive things. The poppies fuel the problem by supplying $$$$$$$$$ for war.

[Mnemosyne]

11. And poppies were nearly eradicated before we went in there.

Now they are top producers again.

:crazy:

:hi:

[TheWatcher]

20. Now ask yourself this question.

Why is that?

I don't think many Americans, if they allowed themselves to know, would be comfortable with the answer.

[Mnemosyne]

32. Poppies = CIA = Poppy! Always.

I'm afraid most Americans really don't want to know. :(

[shadowknows69]

13. Yeah, not enough of one to stay and destroy their country for 7 years

It's the same game as in Iraq. All our presence does is recruit more hatred toward us.

[dipsydoodle]

25. Yes indeed

and the attack by the USA , which Clinton ordered 1998 , is considered by some to be the primary motive for the blowback you call 9/11. The Taliban were sheltering a small group known as Al-Qaida.
http://www.cnn.com/US/9808/20/us.strikes.01/
Keep up the good work - fucktards :sarcasm:

[Bragi]

41. Actually there USED TO BE a connection

AQ and Osama left Afghanistan 8 years ago. The only interest AQ now has in the country is that it's a good place to fight Americans.

[Bragi]

42. Mistake! Mistake! (All lights blinking) /NT

[AndyA]

4. George Bush's nedless war. The gift that keeps on giving.

I hope the American people the opportunity to return the favor, and lock the SOB up after he's charged and convicted.

[Thothmes]

37. It is now President Barack Obama's needless war.

[RufusEarl]

6. This is a mistake, IMHO.........

Peace!

[dcindian]

9. I wonder how much the current unemployment numbers have to do with all the war news.

Including the lack of pull out of Iraq.

[pjt7]

10. Afghan is where Empires

go, to slowly blead to death

Ex. Russia

[Wizard777]

12. Note to OBL: Bad boy! Bad boy! Whatcha gonna do? Watcha gonna do when they come for you?

Obama man give you no break. The soldier man give you no break. You'll regret all the lives you take. Yeah! Yeah! Bad boy! Bad boy! Whatcha gonna do? Watcha gonna when they come for you?

[bird gerhl]

14. You see, we have to keep attacking innocent bystanders

until there are no more innocent bystanders.

[ConcernedCanuk]

15. If OBL and any of the perpetrators of 9/11 are still alive they are laughing their butts off

.
.
.

AND

are we even sure that OSAMA was behind 9/11?

I don't see any court cases going on . .

USA military has bombed the shit out of the Middle East for the last two decades

and they are losing to barefoot soldiers with AK47's

something is wrong . . .

GO HOME USA -

take care of your poor and homeless and those dying in disasters like Katrina . . .

sheesh

[jzodda]

16. I agree with this however, without allies its useless

Afghanistan is far larger than Iraq, far more fractured even before the Russians invaded and has terrain that's any army's worst nightmare. We need to do something there but not alone. If NATO is unwilling to fully support this it would be better to leave and make a deal with the Taliban. For us to do this ourselves we may need hundreds of thousands of men and decades. Plus with the militants finding safe haven in Pakistan even then all the men sent there may be coming home in a bodybag. In Nam one of the biggest problems we had was Cambodia- a haven for the Viet Cong. Here Pakistan is starting to look like Cambodia.

It's a mess and just throwing more troops by ourselves at the problem is a bad idea. We need troops, allies, a solution from Pakistan, and functioning Afghan government, and lots of money to help build up the country and give people an alternative to poppy. Its a daunting task.

[dipsydoodle]

17. Obama 'to increase Afghan troops'

Source: BBC News

President Barack Obama is expected to announce on Tuesday the deployment of an extra 12,000 US troops to Afghanistan, US defence officials say.

The troops could be sent before warmer weather brings an expected increase in fighting, the officials said.

US commanders in Afghanistan have requested an increase of 30,000 troops.

The US already has about 14,000 troops serving with a Nato-led mission. There are also 19,000 US troops under sole US command fighting Taleban insurgents.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7895951.stm

---

Cannon fodder - keep up the good work :sarcasm:

[Oregone]

18. Wooohooo to escalation!

This time, all the fatherless children in a war torn nation will grow up and become saints.

[spanone]

19. from one clusterfuck to another

[Mari333]

22. yep. nt

[Alhena]

21. He said he would do it during the campaign- don't bash a guy for doing what he said he would do

[Mari333]

23. He works for me

so I will tell him I disagree and disagreed during his campaign. Its not bashing, its calling out a mistake. hugs.

[jkappy]

27. And its HIS dirty war now--a nice distraction on hand should

his local policies fail or if economy sinks further.

[Mari333]

24. more suicides, more dead children, more of the clusterf*ck

and dont forget the cost. might as well bankrupt the USA completely with its endless bullshit wars.

[lynne]

26. AP is reporting it as 17,000 troops -

- 8,000 Marines followed by 9,000 Army. Sigh . . .

[humbled_opinion]

28. Why can't we just end this...

Real people are dying on both sides of this conflict. It solves nothing.

The Russians fought their version of vietnam in the hills of Tora Bora.

No more meat for the Grinder. No more money down the rat hole of failed Bush policies including the failed Bush wars.

President Obama I thought you of all people would rationalize this.

17K more troops is not the way forward in the failure that is Afghanistan.

Let Bush have his failed legacy and failed wars you don't need to taint yourself in those fetid pools.

Its time for a new Hope, its time for Real Change, Its Obama time.

[StarryNite]

29. F#cking swell!

[StarryNite]

30. Hey! Somebody gave me a heart!

Cool! And thanks! :hi: At least I had something nice happen to me today! :loveya:

[ProgressIn2008]

31. Hooray to war and death. This link says 17,000

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090217/D96DJ2V80.html

[progressoid]

36. My nephew will be among them. Not good.

:scared:

[yellowwood]

38. Poppies

I don't agree with the last stanza of this poem by John McCraem so I cut it, but the first two stanzas are right on.
In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
...............................
...............................

WWI was futile, too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkcZGzvPlSc