McGovern: Get Out of Afghanistan

[joeycola]

The old saying that wisdom comes with age fits here.



http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20091103_mcgovern_get_out_of_afghanistan/

McGovern: Get Out of Afghanistan


Posted on Nov 4, 2009
Truthdig

By Narda Zacchino

Editor’s note: A video excerpt of McGovern’s comments can be found below this article. Stay tuned for more coverage of the salon.

George McGovern has some advice for President Barack Obama: Get U.S. troops out of Afghanistan.

“I’m convinced that war is going to turn sour. I’m convinced we’re not going to prevail there,” McGovern, the 1972 Democratic presidential nominee, said Sunday at a Truthdig event in West Los Angeles.

The former U.S. senator from South Dakota noted that “some of the best reporters over there are telling us that the Taliban are getting stronger and we’re getting weaker in the minds of the people, and that you have a corrupt government involved in drugs, involved in just plain old-fashioned stealing and corruption. It’s a lousy government, and it’s very difficult, even for a great country like , to make them look good. So I think we have every reason to withdraw.”

McGovern’s comments came on the heels of a New York Times report that Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, on the CIA payroll for nearly eight years, is suspected by many top American officials of being involved in that country’s lucrative and illicit opium trade. President Karzai himself drew criticism after the United Nations declared one-third of his votes in his Aug. 20 re-election to be fraudulent, forcing a runoff with Dr. Abdullah Abdullah. Karzai’s rival eventually withdrew, saying the runoff would not be any less rigged. The vote was canceled and Karzai was officially declared the winner Monday.

[David Zephyr]

1. Thank you George McGovern.

Why are our soldiers dying to prop up Karzai and his brother?

[joeycola]

2. Afghan National Police penetrated by Taliban at 'every level'

this is related.

Forum Name Latest Breaking News
Topic subject Afghan National Police penetrated by Taliban at 'every level'
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4132323#4132323
4132323, Afghan National Police penetrated by Taliban at 'every level'
Posted by denem on Wed Nov-04-09 05:09 PM

Source: Telegraph UK

The Afghan National Police have been penetrated by the Taliban “at every level” with officers poorly trained, corrupt and some addicted to drugs, a former Army officer has said.

Capt Doug Beattie, who served two tours in Afghanistan working with the ANP, said many police officers are in the paid of insurgents and were more loyal to their tribes than the Afghan government.

British officers say that among low-ranking Afghan police, and particularly in more rural areas away from central control, there is widespread corruption and disloyalty.

Parts of the ANP play an active role in helping the Taliban and drug warlords get opium and heroin onto the international market. The police are poorly paid and educated, earning about $200 a month, so are vulnerable to corruption.

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/6502175/Afghan-National-Police-penetrated-by-Taliban-at-every-level.html


Peter Galbraith, a former deputy head of the United Nations mission in Afghanistan said "Normally the police get an eight-week training course. That is actually very short and there isn't a lot of vetting of police before they are hired. "

[David Zephyr]

4. Thank you for posting this, joeycola. What else is there to know?

Not one of our citizens should give one ounce of blood to prop up that shit over there.

[Kolesar]

3. Asked how he would get out of Afghanistan if he were president, McGovern said:

“I would say to the Afghan people that ‘we’ve been here for eight years, and we’ve come to the conclusion we can’t resolve your problems. You’ve got the Taliban, you may have al-Qaida, but—our soldiers have fought, died bravely—but it’s my conclusion, as president of the United States, that we can’t resolve the problems here. We’ll do what we can to help you, but we can’t do it with our military forces. As a matter of fact, while we’ve been here, the Taliban have grown stronger, and we don’t know where al-Qaida is—we think they’re in Pakistan—but having our troops in Afghanistan is not going to help that. So it’s our judgment that the best thing for us, and maybe for you, is for you to take over the handling of your own problems.”