The Conflict in Afghanistan

[Bjornebye]

Grim

 

 

 

 

[Captain Turdseye]

Afghani hipsters in that article. 
 

[Bjornebye]

8 minutes ago, Captain Turdseye said:

Afghani hipsters in that article. 
 

Thats Skids and his posse down the Helmand Bold St

[Rico1304]

Rounding up kids over 12 to fuck.  Should count themselves lucky hey Gnasher?  

[Baltar]

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force? They are capturing cities at will. I don't believe this would be possible without local co-operation, the Taliban must still be popular with large sections of the population. The national government has more men, better weaponry, air support, resources etc. so how the hell are they getting their arses handed to them by this ragtag group of militants?

[Lee909]

1 minute ago, Baltar said:

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force? They are capturing cities at will. I don't believe this would be possible without local co-operation, the Taliban must still be popular with large sections of the population. The national government has more men, better weaponry, air support, resources etc. so how the hell are they getting their arses handed to them by this ragtag group of militants?

 

The same way as the British army in the 1800s,the Soviets in the 80s got their arses handed to them. 

[Bjornebye]

1 minute ago, Baltar said:

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force? They are capturing cities at will. I don't believe this would be possible without local co-operation, the Taliban must still be popular with large sections of the population. The national government has more men, better weaponry, air support, resources etc. so how the hell are they getting their arses handed to them by this ragtag group of militants?

Guerilla warfare mate. These Taliban have been fighting war like that for years and years. 

[VladimirIlyich]

1 hour ago, Bjornebye said:

Guerilla warfare mate. These Taliban have been fighting war like that for years and years. 

And funded by the same warlords the Yanks are paying off. You'd almost think the good guys of the US didn't give a shit about the citizens of Afghanistan.

[Section_31]

3 hours ago, Baltar said:

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force? They are capturing cities at will. I don't believe this would be possible without local co-operation, the Taliban must still be popular with large sections of the population. The national government has more men, better weaponry, air support, resources etc. so how the hell are they getting their arses handed to them by this ragtag group of militants?

Reminds me of the scene in godfather 2 where Michael sees that Cuban resistance fighter blow himself up and kill a soldier and tells the others that he thinks they'll win, because the soldiers are paid to fight and the rebels aren't.

 

The Taliban are fighting for - as far as they're concerned - a way of life and for God, the local forces tasked with stopping them have probably just spotted a yank recruitment poster and figured it was better than digging  ditches for a living. When the shit hits the fan it's back to bed for a Pot Noodle and a wank, and why not?

[Arniepie]

4 hours ago, Baltar said:

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force? They are capturing cities at will. I don't believe this would be possible without local co-operation, the Taliban must still be popular with large sections of the population. The national government has more men, better weaponry, air support, resources etc. so how the hell are they getting their arses handed to them by this ragtag group of militants?

I was thinking that.They must have a degree of support. 

There was an Afghan on the radio before talking about the courts ,and he was saying the system before was almost universally corrupt. 

 

[johnsusername]

4 hours ago, Lee909 said:

 

The same way as the British army in the 1800s,the Soviets in the 80s got their arses handed to them. 

I think you'll find the war documentary Rambo III proves that the Soviets were beaten by lone, US Army Special Forces veteran John Rambo.

[DalyanPete]

7 hours ago, Section_31 said:

When the shit hits the fan it's back to bed for a Pot Noodle and a wank, and why not?

Perfect summation, applies to many walks of life.

[Anubis]

12 hours ago, Baltar said:

I can't understand how the Taliban are still such a force?

They never really went away. They keep slipping across the border with Pakistan, where they seem to have a lot of support on the border villages, and also tacit support from some elements of the Pakistani security services. 

[JagSquared]

The funding question would be really interesting, we know there were elements of the Pakistani military funding them historically and I think some Arab countries were also involved but to take and hold the country is expensive so they must be getting their cash somehow. I’m sure there are educated guesses that can be taken but it’s crazy that more isn’t done to trace and stop their funding sources.

[Section_31]

3 minutes ago, JagSquared said:

The funding question would be really interesting, we know there were elements of the Pakistani military funding them historically and I think some Arab countries were also involved but to take and hold the country is expensive so they must be getting their cash somehow. I’m sure there are educated guesses that can be taken but it’s crazy that more isn’t done to trace and stop their funding sources.

 

They're the world's biggest smack dealers aren't they? Or at least they were.

[JagSquared]

14 minutes ago, Section_31 said:

 

They're the world's biggest smack dealers aren't they? Or at least they were.

That’s a good point but (perhaps I’m being naive) but shouldn’t it be easy to target the poppy fields? Of course things like corruption will get in the way but a massive field should be easy to spot no?

 

I just think if they are serious about stopping them, cutting off their supply of cash should be high on the agenda.

[Strontium]

7 hours ago, JagSquared said:

The funding question would be really interesting, we know there were elements of the Pakistani military funding them historically and I think some Arab countries were also involved but to take and hold the country is expensive so they must be getting their cash somehow. I’m sure there are educated guesses that can be taken but it’s crazy that more isn’t done to trace and stop their funding sources.

 

China is not-so-secretly supporting the Taliban.

[JagSquared]

29 minutes ago, Strontium Dog™ said:

 

China is not-so-secretly supporting the Taliban.

Really? Not read much about that, what’s their game plan?
 

considering how they are treating their own Muslim populations it doesn’t seem very smart to create a fundamentalist state on their door step as a safe haven that will foster more strife in Central Asia. 

[Bruce Spanner]

8 hours ago, JagSquared said:

The funding question would be really interesting, we know there were elements of the Pakistani military funding them historically and I think some Arab countries were also involved but to take and hold the country is expensive so they must be getting their cash somehow. I’m sure there are educated guesses that can be taken but it’s crazy that more isn’t done to trace and stop their funding sources.

Militant/political Islam and its proponents - Iran/Qatar/Syria and various others - are funding them as they’re all ideologically entwined, it’s a proxy war always has been which is what makes America pulling out all the more surprising.

 

China, as Stronts mentions above, just dropped 84b in to Afghanistan to disrupt the nation, I’m sure you’ll find Russia somewhere involved.

 

If you stop thinking about Afghanistan as a functioning country and more in large tribal areas controlled by historical figureheads rather than a small liberal/business elite that ‘The West’ see as representative of the county then you can see why they have it so easy.

 

The tribes unite under the Taliban as they’ll agree to as it’s in their best interests to.

 

The small liberal/business elite have no real sway and were always doomed to fail as once tribal loyalties come in to play influential people are more likely to go with the tribal structure and not a pseudo government that goes against historical traditions and is openly corrupted and nepotistic, which further antagonises the tribal structures.

 

Theres a brilliant article on the Atlantic about it, I’ll try and dig it out for you.

 

Edit: Here you go…

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theatlantic.com/amp/article/253755/

[Nelly-Szoboszlai]

We're sending in an additional 600 troops to help speed up the evacuation of UK nationals (diplomats, soldiers etc) and up to 4000 entitled Afghan personnel, mainly those who've worked alongside the British in the country. 

 

The UK embassy is also set to be relocated from the outskirts of the "green zone" to a more secure and central location In Kabul. 

[Section_31]

1 minute ago, Nelly-Torres said:

We're sending in an additional 600 troops to help speed up the evacuation of UK nationals (diplomats, soldiers etc) and up to 4000 entitled Afghan personnel, mainly those who've worked alongside the British in the country. 

 

The UK embassy is also set to be relocated from the outskirts of the "green zone" to a more secure and central location In Kabul. 

Love the idea of sending soldiers to evacuate soldiers. Who are they the Everton regiment?

[Redder Lurtz]

6 minutes ago, Section_31 said:

Love the idea of sending soldiers to evacuate soldiers. Who are they the Everton regiment?

You don't have to be evacuated to be evacuated but they are evacuated. 

[Moctezuma]

Good to see that the endless human lives sacrificed, along with mountains of money spent were all worth it.

 

Maybe backing a bunch of corrupt kleptocrats who deposited a significant chunk of the money they were given by the west in Dubai and London instead of services for the population wasn't such a good idea.

 

Still at least it was a great money spinning endeavour for all the military contractors and suppliers alongside the people paid to write 'think pieces' on the importance of international intervention and the spread of democracy in the furthest reaches of the empire.

[Moctezuma]

My Mum was fairly gleeful a few years after the start of the war, as a physiotherapist who worked with amputees they hadn't seen that kind of investment in prosthetics and best practice for a considerable period. A sort of grim silver lining I suppose.

[Chairman Meow]

10 hours ago, Section_31 said:

Love the idea of sending soldiers to evacuate soldiers. Who are they the Everton regiment?

You evacuate a country. You don't evacuate soldiers.