Article

2007-07-11 India-Pakistan

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Fred 2007-07-11 00:00|| || Front Page|| [5 views ] Top
File under: Taliban

#1 "I'd hardly call it a "triumph" when you first let a situation grow, then get out of hand because you're too timid to act."

So our victory over the Taliban in Afghanistan was not a triumph? Hmmm? A triumph is a triumph, even if it comes later than it should have.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2007-07-11 10:54|| 2007-07-11 10:54|| Front Page Top

#2 LH, you and Fred are in violent agreement.

We'd all prefer to stop terrorism early, and the Clinton administration should have seen the signs regarding Binnie and the Taliban. Alas, they missed (as did most of the rest of us), and so we had to use artillery (and B-52s). It was still a triumph, but we all wish it had been done on 9/10.

Ditto the Red Mosque: Fred's right; should have been handled long before artillery was required. At the same time, Ghazi's now cavorting with Himmler, so it's a triumph.

Just not a smart one.

Posted by Steve White">Steve White 2007-07-11 11:20|| 2007-07-11 11:20|| Front Page Top

#3 I agree with Steve.

One quibble though - It wasnt only Clinton - I dont seem to recall anyone in the US doing anything about the Taliban in that forgotten period between January 2001, and September 10th. 2001.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2007-07-11 12:57|| 2007-07-11 12:57|| Front Page Top

#4 But I think the main point holds - it was a very professional op (Im talking Islamabad now) in which they killed or captured plenty of baddies, took few casualties, managed to get the women and kiddies out alive, and managed to substantially keep the building in tact (smirk if you must, but thats a hearts and minds benefit)

I presume this was an "elite" commando unit that went in. For a change a 3rd world "elite" unit actually acted kind of elite. So from a purely MILITARY POV, this was a triumph.

Was it a strategic triumph for Perv? Well thats a bigger question. I think we should not forget the range of constraints Perv is acting under, including probably at least some continued sympathy from some quarters of the military for the ISI, the presence of Hamid Gul as a shadow President should an alliance of the MMA and the anti-Western factions of the military (much more likely than a pure MMA-Taliban win) ever take power, the relatively modest numbers and internal division of the secularist, educated elite in Pakistan, etc, etc.

You can say that shows how wacky Pakistan is. Very well. But that wacky country is the one that Perv rules, not Britain or New Zealand or even Tunisia or Indonesia. To paraphrase a certain ex-cabinet member, you rule the country you've got.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2007-07-11 13:05|| 2007-07-11 13:05|| Front Page Top

#5 LH,
Not that it concerns me a whole lot, but we don't know that they got more than a few women and children out of the mosque unharmed. It could be worse than Beslan and we wouldn't know, becuase one thing Pak authorities did do professionally was manage media access. So far.

Posted by Glenmore">Glenmore 2007-07-11 20:27|| 2007-07-11 20:27|| Front Page Top

23:50 Shusonter Grundy3567
23:35 Bad Left Eye
23:34 3dc
23:32 Shusonter Grundy3567
23:29 Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo)
23:16 Zenster
23:09 Zenster
23:02 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:55 JosephMendiola
22:52 Zenster
22:49 Zenster
22:48 JAB
22:46 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:43 Zenster
22:37 Barbara Skolaut
22:35 Barbara Skolaut
22:34 jds
22:30 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:27 gorb
22:26 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:26 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:26 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:26 Snorong Bonaparte3451
22:26 Snorong Bonaparte3451