Does Anyone Have A Clue?

As the Obamacare debacle continues, so does the one in Afghanistan.  Unless you've been living in a cave, lucky you, you know that President Karzai is dragging his feet over signing an agreement that will protect our soldiers from Afghan prosecution should we leave a contingent behind and they run afoul of Afghan law.

In return, of course, we give more than we get.  They want to tie our hands even more than they already have thus making it easier for our soldiers to err.  As usual it's a bad deal at best.

In our infinite wisdom, however, we've decided to give the Afghan security forces much needed helicopters.  Note I said give.  At a time when our country could sorely use the revenue from selling them, but then the Afghans have privatized the aid we've given them so they have no money.  Perhaps that's not all bad.  At least our people will build them.  What?  No?  We're buying them from the Russians?  We're buying Russian helicopters to give to the Afghans because they are superior to ours.

Well, open the door and come right in.  Those helicopters are going to have to be maintained.  That means Russians will send their techs giving them a new foothold in the country.  What are we thinking?  We know Russia is trying to get a strangle hold on the Mideast.  They already have it in Syria.  We know they are friends with Iran and now they will have carte blanche in Afghanistan.

And speaking of Iran, Karzai has agreed on a "cooperation pact" with them. It is to entail long term political security, economic and cultural cooperation and regional peace security.  Who better than the Russian backed Iranians?

Our Secretary of Defense tried to allay fears by promising to beef up security measures in non-complicit nations and it was of course considered a threat. A state of mistrust promulgated by Israel, Iran's arch enemy.

Let's ice the cake.  It has also been reported that prosecutions for crimes against women has slowed to a crawl, not that it ever really got going.

Dogwalk's solution?  Pull all our military out!  Let the Russians sell their copters directly to Karzai.  If he can't afford them perhaps Iran will lend him the money since they are doing better now that their sanctions have been eased.

Of course, now that Mr. Putin has dissolved state media in Russia it may take some time for how this all works out to reach us.  Not that it matters.  The President wants no part of it because a speech to a captive audience can't fix it.

That's the way things are now.  I understand that.  But please, Mr. President, do the right thing and bring all our personnel home.  If you don't they'll be sitting ducks.  I'm willing to wager the boys from Duck Dynasty would even give you some tips on how to call them home.  It makes no less sense than any other part of our foreign policy!

Karzai - Neither The Man Nor His Country Deserve Our Support

It never ceases to amaze me how many things we just don't seem to get.  For instance, before Kerry, having women serving as National Security Advisors and Secretaries of State.

If in a perverse sort of way it was intended to rub their chauvinistic noses in it, it hasn't worked. Hillary accomplished absolutely nothing.  Nor did her female predecessors. So why are we now sending Susan Rice to Afghanistan to try to get Karzai to sign the agreement allowing our troops to remain after 2014.  Even the loyal jirga know they are needed to buck up their own troops, but no, Karzai has never felt beholden to the country who has made him a rich man and kept him in power.  Susan Rice isn't going to change that.

Why be so hard on the country?  Karzai will soon be out of office.  Because they are once more thumbing their collective noses at us by planning to reintroduce stoning as a punishment for adultery. That's for married adulterers.  The unmarried will only need to endure 100 lashes.  So much for human and women's rights.

This is who they are as a people.  A deeply ingrained lack of respect for women.  Just like Iran who holds a deeply ingrained disrespect for America.  Yet we continue to fall prey to their insidious schemes.  It's what happens when you have amateurs running your government.

What can Susan Rice possibly do to get Karzai to give up his obstinance?  Are any more American deaths warranted for these people.  Were the ones that have come before?  I think not.

What a way to spend Thanksgiving.  Trying to buck up the morale of the troops who remain and garner respect from a host who hates them and those who sent them.

We have a lot to be thankful for in this country but having leaders who sense of appeasement outweighs their sense of patriotism is not one of them.

When Foreign Policy Is Foreign To The Policy Makers

It seems to me we still have no foreign policy.  While the Syrians have handed over their list of chemical weapons sites I can't help but wonder what's next.  Why is Iran all of a sudden getting so chummy by hinting they might talk and offering to moderate a peace process in Syria.  Russia seems to be coordinating all this nicey, nicey stuff and I don't trust it one bit.  I hope our government doesn't either.

This is so unlike our adversaries I wonder if they've come up with some new type of weapon or strategy of which we have no idea.  Therefore making nice about the current situation will have no lasting consequence. If we have a foreign policy we'd have a contingency.  Just in case. Do we?  I doubt it.

If indeed we don't it may be better for those who are warring. We've done Afghanistan no favors by decimating their country, losing the battle with the Taliban and pulling out before business is finished.

I've taken outgoing President Karzi to task multiple times for his corruption and complaints about the truths of war - that innocents get killed.  On the other hand, his frustration is understandable because in many ways we're leaving his country more vulnerable than it was before we went looking for bin Laden and ended up trying to appease the Taliban and the war lords.

They, the Taliban, have become far more aggressive as we've begun pulling our troops.  Though coalition forces are still suffering casualties, the percentage is far lesser than those being suffered by the still under trained Afghan army and police forces. Those casualties are three times higher than they were in 2010 and 2011.

Karzai reads those casualty reports but does not release them for concerns about morale. He mourns the fact they are all Afghans and he sees it getting worse, not better.

You see, as we leave we are also pulling our assets.  No more state of the art field hospitals.   No more med evac choppers.  Yet the enemy hasn't any fewer roadside bombs or ied's with which to attack.  And attack they do, under trained soldiers who are now deserting rather than facing what to them seems certain death.

Unintended consequences?  Not really.  Just a lack of sound policy and no forethought nor will to remedy it.

The lesson learned for this country, and I thing we've learned it even if the government hasn't.  Don't get into a war unless and until you know what you're doing and why. We're not the only ones who are hurt by cavalier decisions.

Mr. Hagel Meet Mr. Karzai

Our new Secretary of Defense certainly got a warm reception on his surprise visit to Kabul. Two suicide bombers blew up 19 people.  What's a celebration without some fireworks?

Mr. Karzai has long been a blustering irritant but now he's turning into a full fledged clown.  Soon no one will pay any attention to his outbursts. One can hope. Except for his people and ours just before those bombs go off.

The Taliban has taken credit for the pyrotechnics.  Those jokers.  After all they have been in negotiation for months with Karzai as to how he's going to end his presidency.  At least that's what we've been told.

But wait!  Seems not to be so!  It seems they are now in collusion with us! Because they want us to stay where we will continue to kill them and protect the women and children as best we can and pour money into that bottomless pit of a country.

I get dizzy trying to keep things straight.  My mind cries for an explanation as to why we'd want to stay in that God forsaken place.  Our generals have already stated we've gotten darn little for the money we've poured in - other than the gracious and continuing commentary of how grateful they are from Karzai.

Let's see, one more time, we put him in office.  We helped him throw a second election.  We've enriched he and his family.  We've kept the Taliban at bay.  Really, we have.

What have we gotten?  Thousands of dead men and women, hundreds of thousands injured and billions of tax payer dollars lost.

So why would be want to collude with the Taliban or anyone else for the privilege of staying?  Granted some of our government officials are on a permanent ego trip, but even they can't find a positive here.  They have no educational system for our students to take advantage of.  They have no national security.  They have no industry.  The majority of their population lives so far below our poverty level no one in their right mind would want to join them. Heck, they don't even have indoor plumbing!

'Tis a puzzlement.  We've gotten the message Karzai wants us out.  We're doing the best we can to accommodate him without everything we have accomplished, no matter how minuscule, being ripe for reversal.

He wants charge of the prisoners we still hold.  To let them go free.  As George Bush might have said, "Come an' git 'em!" Never fear, they'll get them soon enough unless we export them to the U.S. for trials in our courts.  We wouldn't do that would we?

I know.  I'm droning on and on.  Hey.  Speaking of drones...

Pure Evil

The world has gone mad, completely mad and both Christians and Israel are sitting in the cross hairs of the manifestation of hatred and evil beyond belief.

I could not believe this headline when I read it, Arab Spring Run Amok: 'Brotherhood' Starts Crucifixions.  Crucifixions?  Are you kidding? No. According to WND radical Muslims have begun crucifying those opposed to Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi. Naked.  On trees in front of the presidential palace.

I could not believe what I was seeing so I searched about a bit and found other articles reporting the same news. Apparently the victims can be anyone with extra brutality reserved for Christians.

Well, here we go again.  Savagery in the name of religion.  It seems it's not only a normal part of Islamic doctrine but obligatory according to the Quran.  Therefore the Muslim brotherhood is obliged to include it in their legal code in order to comply with Shariah.

We've long known the Muslims are bound to wage war against Christians who in many instances are synonymous with the west.  Us.  Are we not a 'Christian' nation?

Israel is in trouble because they thwarted an attack by Hamas trying to cross into Gaza.  Morsi used this as an excuse to purge the top ranks of the military, those who were fighting to preserve some degree of sanity.

We sit here taking no stand on the slaughter that continues in Syria.  We have taken a back seat to the entire theater of war that has been going on in the middle east for years, giving thumbs up to dictators who we declare redeemable but who never are.  Mubarak.  Ghadafi.  Al Assad.  Karzi.  Now Morsi.  We only give the thumbs down when it's apparent they can't extract themselves from the destruction they reigned down upon themselves.  Why is this?

I know the country is tired of war.  We get into them for all the wrong reasons and stay out of them for the same. Our foreign policy is floundering if indeed we have any.  Leading from behind is not a policy.  Or is it?  That makes it even worse.

Morsi is instituting a reign of terror to consolidate his power.  He will be attending a summit in Iran this month.  That does not bode well. He has an invitation to visit the White House in September.  They will try to convince us he is a moderate.  One more monster we wanted to see in power.

All I can do is ask why?  What are we thinking?  Al Assad is slaughtering his own people by the tens of thousands.  Morsi is having his opposition crucified.  This is pure evil.  Period. Yet we neither hear it, see it nor speak it.

We give Israel the cold shoulder, leaving them to fend for themselves.  We welcome these governments with open arms.  Something is drastically wrong.  We are the west.  We are mostly Christian.  We are targeted. Don't ever think we're not.  Just look at the number of our soldiers being murdered by the Afghans who we're training and providing with the very weapons they use.

Somehow, in the grand scheme of things, I could care less what Mitt Romney paid in taxes the last ten years or whether or not he releases that information.  You want something taxing to worry about?  Consider the future as the countries of the middle east fall like dominoes to the Islamic radicals.  Consider too, these monsters are beginning to be put into office by their own people.

What will we be putting into office?  Better yet, what have we put into office?

Karzai Has A Point

Now there's thought I never thought I'd have!  After listening to the stories on the news at noon about the numbers of children being tortured, yes, tortured, and killed in Syria, it brought to mind Karzai and his demands.

Once again Karzai has taken coalition forces to task for attacks on civilian enclaves.  It seems to be a weekly occurrence.  He complains so often I have to think there is something to it.  We attack and kill a targeted terrorist. Hopefully. Unfortunately the strike usually includes women and children.  Karzai complains.  We apologize.  And do it all over again.  What a way to fight a war.

I've been of the mind that war is war and there will be civilian casualties.  It's the nature of the beast.  But break down the word civilian and the whole scenario changes.  Women and children, non combatant men, the elderly.  The latest, last week, was 18. Many women.  Many children.

I don't like Mr. Karzai.  I don't believe he's an honest partner in our war against Islamic extremists and he's greedy.  On the other hand, he's tired of seeing innocent people, his people, slaughtered in the quest for often just a single individual.  So he wants all bombing of Afghan cities, towns and villages banned.  Even if coalition forces are under attack.  I see where he's coming from.  When they are shooting at us, we're all the enemy.  When we shoot at them, only scant intelligence tells us at whom we're shooting.  Sometimes the targeted person is present and sometimes not but people always get killed and it's obviously not necessarily the target.

Another argument for capturing the enemy rather than merely blowing them away.  Intelligence.  Of course a boots on the ground shooting war puts our troops in harms way and is far more difficult than using drones and other means of air attack.  It would be a good time to re-evaluate the war wouldn't it?  Are our troops and their women and children, any of their civilians, worth the end?  What is the end?  As of now it won't be victory, merely withdrawal.  If I had the money to bet, I'd bet the Taliban and al Qaeda will be out in full force before our dust has settled.

From Where Have All the Flowers Gone there's a telling verse.  "Where have all the soldiers gone?  Gone to graveyards, every one."  That's bad enough.  At least spare the children!  But then in war civilians get killed.  And that is another of the myriad of reasons I hate war.

Hillary And Hamid - Here They go Again

Why, oh why, do they bother? Karzai is in this country to make nice and Hillary is patting him on the head and telling him being a bad boy doesn't mean she doesn't love him. Boy, I'm getting tired of the charade.

In fact, The Wall Street Journal tells us, these differences only showcase the strength of the relationship. Heck, he's even going to Arlington to pay his respects. You might think all is well when Karzai says, "Afghanistan is known around the world for being a country that remembers a friend - and for long." I never knew Afghanistan was known for that. It's barely even known as a country! I also question the sincerity. They may indeed remember a friend, but are we one?

On the very same day, we get to see a report issued by the International Crisis Group that spells out the escalating corruption and ethnic rivalries within the Afghan military. You know, the guys that are supposed to be training to protect their own country so we can leave.

To make matters worse NATO is proposing a Courageous Restraint Award for those who show restraint when civilians may be present. Imagine how popular that one will be when awarded posthumously!

It's no wonder our allies are taking a good hard look at us and deciding to cool the relationship. Troop levels are being reduced; there isn't much stomach for this war even though all our allies suffer the same threats of terrorism. Many have suffered far worse than threats yet they have little stomach for this war.

Is it possible they have a better way of dealing with it? Is it possible for this administration to realize that it's strategy isn't working and that listening to advice from others might be prudent?

Nah. Not this administration.

Foreign Policy By Appeasement And Spin

To say that this administration has a complex foreign policy would be an understatement. After months of complaining that voter fraud tainted the recent Afghanistan election, it seems now we're acquiescing to Karzai's "poor me" stance. Hillary Clinton even went so far as to call him a reliable partner !
I wonder if Ahmadinejad does too since his visit! This man who threatens to join the Taliban, whose brother is one of the major drug lords in the country and whose cabinet is chock full of corruption! So now we're going to play warm and fuzzy with this 'strong and vital American ally' because his feelings have been hurt. We're to express sympathy for the pressure he feels as commander in chief of a warring nation!

Well, he wanted the job! He threw the election once and was well on his way to a second time when his opponent withdrew. What's the adage about not standing the heat?? Heck, he wasn't even in the kitchen!

As all of this is carefully placed in the sound bite archives, Hillary comes back on stage to tell us we need fear that al Qaeda is obtaining nuclear weapons material. That's a little different than Iran seeking the big bomb. Which, by the way, we have yet to stop. You see, al Qaeda isn't even a country! Their figure head of a leader supposedly lives in a cave and their weapon of choice seems to be explosives strapped to one's body and detonated, or not, at the appropriate time!

For the sake of argument, however, let's say they get what they need for a bomb. And learn how to build it, enrich the fuel rods and explode it. Where will all this take place? My guess is they will choose a country that the U.S. has pledged no retaliation against other than with conventional weapons. I would. Heck conventional weapons haven't put them out of business yet as they blend into the populations of where ever they choose to be!

To surge or not to surge, to criticise or pacify, to fear acquisition of nuclear material by those who are capable of using it or those who are not. Talk about a spin zone. I wager even Bill O'Reilly has trouble keeping up!

The Enemy Within

If anyone still thinks the war against al Qaeda and the Taliban is winnable, think again. At least that part of it being fought within the borders of Afghanistan.

President Hamid Karzai seems to be making a career of bashing the West in it's efforts to save his sorry excuse of an administration. He's at it again, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal, with a threat that is particularly mind boggling. First he's running around telling the tribal leaders of Kandahar, where a major offensive is planned, that there won't be an operation unless they are happy about it. Happy about it? Kandahar is the birthplace and spiritual center of the Taliban! They're going to welcome a full fledged offensive with open arms?

Then there is the usual whining about the number of civilian deaths and the outrage he feels about the West objecting to his attempt to take over the elections commission. What a sweetheart of a guy. And to think he had an opponent we could have backed that would actually have supported us! Oh well, it's the Obama way to back the wrong party. It's happening here. It happened in Iran. It happened in Honduras. Is there a pattern forming?

This is all pretty much business as usual for Karzai. He must realize his rantings are beginning to be greeted with a, "ho hum, there he goes again" attitude. He's added a new wrinkle. He's said if the efforts by the West to "undermine" him aren't stopped "he, himself, would be compelled to join the other side", the Taliban, if his Parliament didn't back his actions.

You know, Obama wants to cut our nuclear arms supply to reach his goal of a nuclear free world. Never mind the rush to have nucs is escalating like topsy in the Middle East, beginning with Iran. Never-the-less, here's another politically incorrect Dogwalk solution. Drop the surplus Obama thinks he has on Afghanistan and put the whole bloody region out of it's - and our - misery!

It makes no less sense than the rest of his foreign policy. If you can call it that.

Can A War Be Won By Appeasement?

While we await tomorrow's latest act of political theater, we should not forget about the rest of the world. Like Afghanistan.

President Obama started what is becoming a trend in the way we address the rest of the world. Other than showing how dysfunctional we are for all to see, we also are making a habit of apologizing.

It has long been the habit of Afghanistan's President Karzai to wag his finger under our nose and scold us for incurring civilian casualties. He seems to be taking great glee in this even though he knows full well there are two facts about war that will never change. People die. Civilians die.

We are now in the midst of a surge to take Marjah, a longtime Taliban Stronghold, where they use civilians as cover. We all know this. It has been going on since day one. Yet he goes before his Parliament waving a picture of a dead young child with his usual tsk, tsk. What happens? General McCrystal goes on Afghan TV and apologizes. What a way to fight a war.

The rules of engagement have changed to the point of making us far less effective than we could be. If an enemy combatant takes out three men then drops his rifle we cannot fire at him. We cannot call in air strikes until there is confirmation of a legitimate threat and collateral damage can be minimized. It is insanity.

We are propping up Karzai's government for some unclear reason. He literally has no army so why are we afraid of him? We allowed him to take office after a badly flawed election on the promise that he would clean up corruption. Why would we ever believe that he actually would?

He is throwing it in our face yet again. A commission was set up after the runoff election which put Karzai back in office to prevent another 1 million vote fraud. Three foreign members were appointed by the UN. Karzai has now signed a decree allowing himself the sole power in appointing commission members, relegating the UN experts to the sidelines.

He has also delayed anti-graft legislation which was to be completed by the end of February.

We can try to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people all we want. We may actually succeed here and there, but to what end? To provide them with a functioning, democratic government out from under the thumb of the Taliban but under the thumb of Karzai and his thugs? Some choice. I would guess the people will side with whichever entity is most likely to just leave them alone.

As we keep the Taliban at bay Karzai has the time to strengthen his hold. When we leave, just as in Iraq, everything will be up for grabs. Some choice. Taliban rule or a dictatorship under Karzai.

Will we ever "cowboy up" and do what needs to be done and let the chips fall where they may? We have to stop worrying about what rogue governments think about how we conduct a war. Or we shouldn't fight them.

I Have To Agree With Cheney!

I watched Obama sign into law a sweeping reform of our veterans' health care programs. I applaud that along with all the work that went in to making it possible.

On the flip side, if we'd stop wars we could get control of the need and therefore the cost. Oh well, it was a thought. It doesn't seem to be in the human gene pool. Humans solve their differences with war. Period.

So. If we're going to wage war, let's commit the troops necessary to win it. That means developing a strategy and sticking with it. One can make adjustments within a strategy I should think.

That's why I agree with former Vice President Cheney's rather terse admonition of the President. We have troops in Afghanistan waiting for help and clarification of their mission. Reports of injuries and casualties come out on a daily basis. Adding to the costs for the Veterans Administration! The war isn't put on hold just because Washington isn't sure which direction to go. It would be nice. Okay, everyone go home for the Holidays while we decide what to do and we'll send the appropriate number back.

The excuse that we don't know how the new election will play out doesn't seem to me to be a valid excuse. Karzai is likely to win and we already know what we're dealing with, with him. He's corrupt up to the tip of his Karakul hat! Re-election will only validate it in his mind. Should Abdullah Abdullah pull an upset we may find a more accommodating leader, but the war will continue.

Is our mission not different than theirs? We want to secure Afghanistan from again becoming the training headquarters for al Qaeda. That means picking them off as they try to exit Pakistan. One way or another. It really has nothing to do with who runs Afghanistan because they have nothing to give to our fight.

Then there is the problem if al Qaeda decides to stay put in Pakistan. What then? The Pakistan army is busy fighting the Taliban. Oops. Time for a new strategy. Put the war on hold while we decide what to do. Don't worry about those left holding the fort who still get picked off on a daily basis. We'll figure it out in time.

It is said "War is Hell". How true. And you know who makes it so? The leaders who wage it. Not the men and women asked to fight it. There seems to be something terribly wrong with this picture.

What Do We Do In Afghanistan Now?

It is getting more and more difficult to find news to comment on with the all Obama all the time syndrome that the media seems determined to perpetuate. When I do, however, it's likely to be a doozie!

Such is the case today when I found that Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, running for re-election, has chosen a warlord to be the senior of his two running mates.

Do you see a pattern here? When Lebanon had free elections they chose Hezbollah. The Palestinians chose Hamas. After a few tries we settled with Iraq's choice of al-Maliki. Do you get the idea that maybe the people of those countries, such as they are, don't give a care as to who we think they should elect?

According to The National Post there are a lot of very upset people over this choice. One could hope Karzai's theory is to "keep your friends close and your enemies closer" but I fear it's more an indicator of who really runs Afghanistan.

I decided to see what I could find about Mohammed Qasim Fahim and came across a website tiltled Warlords of Afghanistan . It was not a comfortable read.

As a general reference it tells us of an Afghan saying, "What you do to your enemies today, you will do to your friends tomorrow." That's not a pleasant insight to their character!

It goes on to tell us Fahim is an "awkward looking and personally unlikeable man with a temper problem. At present he is a threat to the U.S. plan for Afghanistan."

Karzai is weak and holds sway over little more than Kabul yet often scolds us for the manner in which we are helping him in his fight against the Taliban. Though Fahim was Karzai's defense minister, there is little trust between the men. That the U.S. backed Karzai over Fahim for the presidency in 2002 doesn't help.

This is one of those "I don't envy Hillary" moments I have quite often. It's also a "does Obama have clue what he's doing here" moment!

We know Karzai wants to be re-elected. If he is, what plans might Fahim have for him? These two are strange, but expedient, bedfellows. The larger problem is that we're in bed with them. This is truly the stuff of nightmares!