Afghanistan War Exposed: An Imperial Conspiracy

[Saint]

An extraordinary speech by an Irish Member of the European Parliament.




People are dying by suicide across the country because of starvation. A harrowing read.

Like it or not, the ability of the west to support people in times of crisis is finite.

The west spent over $2 trillion USD plus lives and time trying to reform Afghanistan to a functioning state. This includes the cost of invasion, but it must if we accept that saving the people from the Taliban is a worthy goal (as this MEP is suggesting).

Why would the west pour more money into the warlords and theocratic idiots in Afghanistan rather than saving the Ukrainian people who are standing up and fighting for themselves.

Or the people of Mali fighting radical islamism? Or the people of Uganda fighting radical Christian cults? Or the people of Yemen standing between two externally-funded militias blowing the country up?

The West tried and failed in Afghanistan. If the Wahhabis who educate and fund the Taliban cared at all about Afghani people, they can put their petro-dollars towards it, the west is done with Afghanistan for a long time. (I'm guessing it'll be CHina's turn to try to invade in about a decade or two). The cycle's only been going a few thousand years.

 

[SSwans2011]

Sorry. WHO took Afghanistan back to the stone age?

The Taliban took Afghanistan back to the pre-stone age. They tore down historic relics, banned music, women's education and imposed a 7th century theocracy. The US invaded and spent $144bn on reconstruction (far more than they destroyed).

Who was bombing and thieving off the reconstruction? The Taliban. (and other Afghan Warlords)

Who stole the wealth of the nation? The Taliban (and other Afghan warlords)

Who enslaves women and children? The Taliban (and other Afghan warlords)

Who's in charge now and can't feed the country? The Taliban. (and other Afghan warlords)

It's the Taliban's stated goal to take the inhabitants back to the stone age, living with fu** all. It's insane to think the current state of shambles the country is in is anything to do with the US except that anyone with half a brain fled the country when they left and the remaining Afghans and their leadership can't even work out how to export the heroin any more.

It's funny I didn't hear about starvation during the US occupation, which also coincided with a free press.

Yeah sure, and the logical solution was to drop the most bombs of the entire war in the final years of the occupation, right?

Not defending the Taliban at all. You can simultaneously think that they are barbaric while also believing USA's occupation was also brutal and evil.

 

[Carringbush2010]

Yeah sure, and the logical solution was to drop the most bombs of the entire war in the final years of the occupation, right?

Not defending the Taliban at all. You can simultaneously think that they are barbaric while also believing USA's occupation was also brutal and evil.

Ok then, pretend for a moment that the US didn't occupy Afghanistan.

And now that the US no longer occupy Afghanistan then you're ok with Taliban rule I imagine.

Well a lot aren't and now there's a lot of hand wringing 'do something about the Taliban' (much like 'do sumthin about Vlad') but as soon as the US were to go back and try give those poor people a life without theocratic rule it's 'evil US bastards!'

 

[Seeds]

Given it seems that the plan even before Biden was to hand control back to the Taliban and fu** off anyway, why did the US drop so many bombs in the last few years of the occupation anyway? A special parting fu** you to the Afghan people...?

To stop the taliban. Ffs is this really hard to understand?

 

[Seeds]

Sorry. WHO took Afghanistan back to the stone age?

The Taliban took Afghanistan back to the pre-stone age. They tore down historic relics, banned music, women's education and imposed a 7th century theocracy. The US invaded and spent $144bn on reconstruction (far more than they destroyed).

Who was bombing and thieving off the reconstruction? The Taliban. (and other Afghan Warlords)

Who stole the wealth of the nation? The Taliban (and other Afghan warlords)

Who enslaves women and children? The Taliban (and other Afghan warlords)

Who's in charge now and can't feed the country? The Taliban. (and other Afghan warlords)

It's the Taliban's stated goal to take the inhabitants back to the stone age, living with fu** all. It's insane to think the current state of shambles the country is in is anything to do with the US except that anyone with half a brain fled the country when they left and the remaining Afghans and their leadership can't even work out how to export the heroin any more.

It's funny I didn't hear about starvation during the US occupation, which also coincided with a free press.

There are few posts that destroy an argument as well as this.

this post is a thing of beauty.

 

[Saint]

Yeah sure, and the logical solution was to drop the most bombs of the entire war in the final years of the occupation, right?

Not defending the Taliban at all. You can simultaneously think that they are barbaric while also believing USA's occupation was also brutal and evil.

All war is barbaric. But the Taliban was waging a war to take back the country before the US left, they were fighting early to make sure the other warlords didn't take over the country instead of them. So the US bombed them to try to halt their advance.

Meanwhile, things seem to be going swimmingly between the Taliban and ISIS:

Death toll in Afghan mosque bombing rises to 33, Taliban say

A Taliban official says a bombing at a mosque and religious school in northern Afghanistan has killed at least 33 people, including students of a religious school

abcnews.go.com

 

[SSwans2011]

All war is barbaric. But the Taliban was waging a war to take back the country before the US left, they were fighting early to make sure the other warlords didn't take over the country instead of them. So the US bombed them to try to halt their advance.

Meanwhile, things seem to be going swimmingly between the Taliban and ISIS:

Death toll in Afghan mosque bombing rises to 33, Taliban say

A Taliban official says a bombing at a mosque and religious school in northern Afghanistan has killed at least 33 people, including students of a religious school

abcnews.go.com

They bombed them to halt their advance when the war effort had clearly been failing for well over a decade, and increased the bombing in 2019 despite dropping the most bombs of the entire conflict in 2018 and not making any progress. Which is exactly my point. They have known for a long time that the war effort was failing. They knew this before they ramped up the bombing and they knew this after they first increased the bombing, and decided to increase it anyhow. Pretty indefensible, regardless if how awful the Taliban are, no?

 

[Saint]

They bombed them to halt their advance when the war effort had clearly been failing for well over a decade, and increased the bombing in 2019 despite dropping the most bombs of the entire conflict in 2018 and not making any progress. Which is exactly my point. They have known for a long time that the war effort was failing. They knew this before they ramped up the bombing and they knew this after they first increased the bombing, and decided to increase it anyhow. Pretty indefensible, regardless if how awful the Taliban are, no?

It was in defence of the Afghan Govt. To try to prevent what is happening now.

It was not a fait accompli that the Taliban would overrun the whole country, until Trump made a deal with the Taliban which handed them the country, which was in late 2019.

Until then, the Taliban were still the enemy. (They're still the enemy now).

 

[SSwans2011]

It was in defence of the Afghan Govt. To try to prevent what is happening now.

It was not a fait accompli that the Taliban would overrun the whole country, until Trump made a deal with the Taliban which handed them the country, which was in late 2019.

Until then, the Taliban were still the enemy. (They're still the enemy now).

Fair enough, but what was the alternative? Continue spending a shitload of money and continue dropping shitloads of bombs despite the fact that not only was there no progress being made, they were also losing territory.

I get the argument against reparations given there's no reason for confidence that it would end up in the hands of those that actually need it. But what would continuing the occupation actually have achieved?

 

[Saint]

Fair enough, but what was the alternative? Continue spending a shitload of money and continue dropping shitloads of bombs despite the fact that not only was there no progress being made, they were also losing territory.

I get the argument against reparations given there's no reason for confidence that it would end up in the hands of those that actually need it. But what would continuing the occupation actually have achieved?

The bombs were being dropped because they'd withdrawn so many troops who were holding that territory and the Afghan army couldn't hold the Taliban back without air-cover.

They weren't dropping bombs on civilian areas or targets. That was the Taliban. That's how they take territory. They terrorise the populace and bomb mosques until those being bombed submit. Also, the latest Taliban invasion forces were mostly foreigners.

It was the right move to withdraw, it was the wrong move to make a deal with the Taliban over the withdrawal which allowed the Taliban a more easy path to recapturing swathes of territory as long as they let the US withdraw without losses. The deal sacrificed the future of Afghanistan (and thousands of deaths at the hands of the Taliban) to perhaps save a few dozen US military lives.

Trump surrendered.

 

[spinynorman]

Insights into the collective punishment underway in Afghanistan.

"If there was a war going on, it would be a war crime under the Geneva Conventions."

 

[madmug]

The bombs were being dropped because they'd withdrawn so many troops who were holding that territory and the Afghan army couldn't hold the Taliban back without air-cover.

They weren't dropping bombs on civilian areas or targets. That was the Taliban. That's how they take territory. They terrorise the populace and bomb mosques until those being bombed submit. Also, the latest Taliban invasion forces were mostly foreigners.

It was the right move to withdraw, it was the wrong move to make a deal with the Taliban over the withdrawal which allowed the Taliban a more easy path to recapturing swathes of territory as long as they let the US withdraw without losses. The deal sacrificed the future of Afghanistan (and thousands of deaths at the hands of the Taliban) to perhaps save a few dozen US military lives.

Trump surrendered.

Conservatives are never wrong, Its always someone else's fault.

Like blaming non-existent bone spurs, never Trumps fault he couldn't fight in Vietnam.

 

[Power Raid]

Women now banned from university

We should be offering Afghan women PR status and access to Oz universities. The best way to help a nation is to help their women.

By having educated and empowered women, the men have work harder to be of value

 

[fs88]

It's never this easy but I wish the world would allow repressed women and children like this a safe and quick way to leave that god forsaken sh*thole of a country.

Only then will the Taliban realise that following a dumb book which is 5,000 years old and not up to date with modern standards isn't all that flash.

 

[Taylor]

It's never this easy but I wish the world would allow repressed women and children like this a safe and quick way to leave that god forsaken sh*thole of a country.

Only then will the Taliban realise that following a dumb book which is 5,000 years old and not up to date with modern standards isn't all that flash.

Funnily enough the religion involved is the youngest of the Abrahamaic faiths and the most senior is only about 4000 years old.

I agree that Afghan women should be welcomed to enrich their minds and selves here but I'd worry that offering that will make life even worse there as figuring out that a generation of young men without women around will mean a lot of men without a wife let alone wives and men without the control of a managing wife turn from the greatest resource of a nation into the greatest threat.

 

[Kwality]

Brilliant report. I went into this expecting a heap of information I was already aware of, but this is a deeply informative, disturbing, and interesting summary of the conflict. Summarily, successive United States governments have made it part of their strategy to mislead the public into believing they are making progress in the war when they're actually losing territory to the Taliban and their intention is to actually stay there indefinitely.

Unfortunately, it's hard to see anything changing, because both sides of US politics don't want it to. Independent media is the only platform that exists to bring awareness to it. Very sad.

Russia went down the same path.

 

[Carringbush2010]

Funnily enough the religion involved is the youngest of the Abrahamaic faiths and the most senior is only about 4000 years old.

I agree that Afghan women should be welcomed to enrich their minds and selves here but I'd worry that offering that will make life even worse there as figuring out that a generation of young men without women around will mean a lot of men without a wife let alone wives and men without the control of a managing wife turn from the greatest resource of a nation into the greatest threat.

Well they'd soon figure it out, don't be neanderthal theocrats and you can have your wife back.

 

[Power Raid]

Well they'd soon figure it out, don't be neanderthal theocrats and you can have your wife back.

Let’s see how important their god is…..when their faced with being forty year old virgins

Whilst the women become international citizens, wealthy, empowered and valued

 

[DaTBird187]

Let’s see how important their god is…..when their faced with being forty year old virgins

Whilst the women become international citizens, wealthy, empowered and valued

Something like this I'd hazard a guess.

 

[Carringbush2010]

Let’s see how important their god is…..when their faced with being forty year old virgins

Whilst the women become international citizens, wealthy, empowered and valued

I so love this,

A bit cynical of me but I'd so love for the Taliban to have their way just for their model to fail and sh*t to fly back in their faces.

 

[Taylor]

There is already a culture where young boys are molested. They already control their women, they just won't let them leave.

Merry Christmas

 

[kranky al]

There is already a culture where young boys are molested. They already control their women, they just won't let them leave.

Merry Christmas

The taliban are pieces of scomo but in fairness they outlawed bacha bazi.

 

[Sqotty from office works]

Let’s see how important their god is…..when their faced with being forty year old virgins

Whilst the women become international citizens, wealthy, empowered and valued

Like what the Afghanistan government has done to end unemployment.
Great fiscal management