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2007-12-12 Afghanistan
Brown says he will negotiate with Taliban to end war in Afghanistan
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Posted by GolfBravoUSMC 2007-12-12 04:36|| || Front Page|| [2 views ]  Top

#1 The more we fight these savages the more we emulate their camel-raiding, hit-and-run tactics instead of smashing them into the ground a la VDH Western Way of War. The difference is we do not share their war aims of rape, pillage and hostage taking so necessarily we come out the loser.
Posted by Excalibur 2007-12-12 10:32||   2007-12-12 10:32|| Front Page Top

#2 A certain amount of arrogance there. Britain hasn't had the right to negotiate anything in Afghanistan since 1948. Like much of the Brown government, this is delusional. If he persists, Karzai should tell him to FOAD or at least wait for a Democrat in the White House to spout such garbage.

If you don't want to shoulder your part of the load, go away, but don't try and complicate the lives of the people who are carrying the load.
Posted by RWV 2007-12-12 11:55||   2007-12-12 11:55|| Front Page Top

#3 Left them an escape route?

Note to GWB: Get the Brits out ASAP. At least while Chamberlain is in charge.
Posted by Mike N. 2007-12-12 12:36||   2007-12-12 12:36|| Front Page Top

#4 Yeah, just tell 'em to hand over Binny's corpse and we'll leave.
Posted by Abu Uluque6305 2007-12-12 12:37||   2007-12-12 12:37|| Front Page Top

#5 I mean, that is why we went there in the first place isn't it? To get Binny and Zawahiri and bring them to justice?

Of course, Brown is a fool if he thinks the Taleban will give up their comrades. In fact, it ought to be a felony to be that stupid. What, exactly, would be their incentive? They have safe haven in Touchistan from which they can send raiding parties to harass our guys with impunity (except for the boys in the raiding parties, that is).

Didn't Bush say something about how nations that harbored terrorists would be subject to attack from the US? So how come we don't attack Touchistan? How come we don't just blow Touchistan off the map? Then we could leave the savages in Afghanistan to their own devices which seems to me to be exactly what they deserve. Sometimes I think Bush is just as stupid as Brown.
Posted by Abu Uluque6305 2007-12-12 12:51||   2007-12-12 12:51|| Front Page Top

#6 So how come we don't attack Touchistan?

We can only Surge one country at a time, given U.S. and Allied troop levels, Abu Uluque6305. Give our guys a chance for a bit of rest and recovery before we send them out for the next one. It'll give the bullet manufacturers a chance to get a bit ahead, too, which could become useful, especially for the civilians back home who can't shoot their favourite bang-bangs for lack of that critical item.

Besides, if I had a vote, I'd rather go after Iran and then Saudi Arabia first. The Taliban are going to have to spend more of their manpower fighting the Puree Army in in the tribal provinces, so they'll keep.
Posted by trailing wife">trailing wife  2007-12-12 13:06||   2007-12-12 13:06|| Front Page Top

#7 Didn't Bush say something about how nations that harbored terrorists would be subject to attack from the US? So how come we don't attack Touchistan? How come we don't just blow Touchistan off the map? Then we could leave the savages in Afghanistan to their own devices which seems to me to be exactly what they deserve. Sometimes I think Bush is just as stupid as Brown.

Because Pakistan has nuclear weapons, and anyone pretending that we know where all of them are or can neutralize all of them is probably fooling themselves?
Posted by Abdominal Snowman 2007-12-12 13:10||   2007-12-12 13:10|| Front Page Top

#8 Gordon Brown has set out plans to secure the long-term stability of Afghanistan, while ruling out talks with the leadership of the Taliban insurgency.
In his long-awaited Commons statement on the Government's Afghan policy, the Prime Minister announced additional development aid, as well as more armoured vehicles and helicopters for British forces. He also backed efforts by Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, to win over former insurgents who were prepared to give up violence and accept the country's constitution.

However, Mr Brown - who visited Afghanistan on Monday - made it clear that the process did not extend to the senior Taliban leadership responsible for orchestrating the violence against the international forces in the country.
"We are winning the battle against the insurgency - isolating and eliminating the leadership of the Taliban, not negotiating with them," he said.
Senior Government sources acknowledged that the latest plan, which follows a five-month internal policy review, represented a "shift in emphasis" rather than fundamental change in direction.

While the top Taliban leadership is thought to comprise around a dozen senior figures, the Afghan government has been concentrating its efforts on persuading middle-level commanders to break away from the insurgency with their followers. So far, 5,000 fighters are said to have laid down their arms.

"This is not a question of negotiating with the Taliban. It is a question of splitting the Taliban," one Government source said.

"This is an Afghan-led effort that has been going on for some time, directly co-ordinated by president Karzai. We are looking to support that effort, not set up some British initiative."


I think he's talking about splitting off the local Afghan Taliban cannon fodder from the Pakistani Taliban holy men.
Posted by Steve 2007-12-12 15:11||   2007-12-12 15:11|| Front Page Top

#9 Steve, even if he is... It's stupid. You simply don't announce that kind of stuff, you do it. Else it is just a talk that does more harm than good.

I think Brown does like listening to himself.

Posted by twobyfour 2007-12-12 16:18||   2007-12-12 16:18|| Front Page Top

#10 "I think Brown does like listening to himself."

Don't they all, 2x4.

Sigh.
Posted by Barbara Skolaut">Barbara Skolaut  2007-12-12 16:47|| http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/]">[http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/]  2007-12-12 16:47|| Front Page Top

#11 Right, Snowman. I understand that the Pak nukes are a problem. I'm just afraid that sooner or later we're gonna have to deal with them anyway. Besides, would they try to nuke us if our troops went into Waziristan? Because we're gonna be fartin' around in Afghanistan forever if we don't go to the source of the problem.
Posted by Abu Uluque6305 2007-12-12 17:24||   2007-12-12 17:24|| Front Page Top

#12 "These demands are not open to negotiation or discussion. The Taliban must act, and act immediately. They will hand over the terrorists, or they will share in their fate."
That's what Bush said in September of 2001.
The Taliban didn't comply.
There really is no alternative to wiping out the Taliban in retaliation for 9/11.
Or do we want the world to understand that an attack on the West, a mass-fatality attack on the continental US is anything but a suicidal move?
Posted by Lemuel Whase9714 2007-12-12 17:46||   2007-12-12 17:46|| Front Page Top

#13 Odd, but it appears that this article is a tad 'unavailable' (for whatever reason.)

Interesting "tank" weigh in on (a-hem)
New British Policy
Posted by MB 2007-12-12 20:04||   2007-12-12 20:04|| Front Page Top

#14 Wonder if it was forced down, rather than edited? It is down in many other publications...

Are they afraid of offending US...haha
Posted by MB 2007-12-12 20:07||   2007-12-12 20:07|| Front Page Top

#15 The Afghanistanians have been at this haggling game for centuries. It covers horses, camels, goats, grain, women, prisoners, soldiers, you name it---they traded it. In Konduz in 2001 they had 5,000 Taliban, hangers on, and ISI officers surrounded and ready to turn into beefsteak tartar with B-52s orbiting above, and a deal was made. In other instances, we defeated or rather neutralized some forces by buying off the warlords.

Another deal was made the other day at Musa Qala in northern Helmand province. What we need is total destruction of the Taliban force in Musa Qala, followed by total destruction by air of their base across the border, i/a/w the statement of President Bush quoted earlier in comment #12.

We are not solving anything by playing by their rules. The paradigm must be changed. We must control the battle space. And we must bring it all back home to al Q. We are putting a topical ointment on the sore of the disease and we are not attacking the disease. We have neither the manpower nor the treasure to continue this way.

G-d Love a Duck! Read Sun Tzu and get some smarts.
Posted by Alaska Paul">Alaska Paul  2007-12-12 21:32||   2007-12-12 21:32|| Front Page Top

#16 Brown says he will negotiate withSurrender to the Taliban to end war in Afghanistan

There, fixed it.
Posted by Old Patriot">Old Patriot  2007-12-12 23:03|| http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]">[http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]  2007-12-12 23:03|| Front Page Top

23:56 Helmuth, Speaking for Cromong3228
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23:50 JosephMendiola
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23:43 twobyfour
23:35 Cromert
23:23 trailing wife
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23:09 JosephMendiola
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23:03 Old Patriot
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