MOAB Dropped in Afghanistan

[Ph64]

That damn IS must've been threatening the poppy fields... We can't let anything disrupt the heroin trade, how else could we supply our addict population?

[TheReal_ND]

It seems they found tunnels from what I've heard. The official statement checks out for this use but I have a hard time beleiving it was as effective as they think. Kind of WWI thinking all over again.

[Smitty-48]

The whole thing seems to be made to sound like "we're making progress", but progress towards what? Pacifying Afghanistan? I mean, get real, but on the other hand, better to drop the MOAB than to send US forces down those tunnels, because sending US forces down those tunnels ain't gonna pacify Afghanistan neither, so by all means, hang back and drop the bombs, until you finally decide to withdraw and cede it back to the Taliban, no sense charging into the breach in the meantime, MOAB FTW in that sense, no doubt.

[Martin Hash]

Smitty's like having an angel on your shoulder giving good advice.

[Smitty-48]

Funny thing is, since the Taliban are actually fighting ISIS, and ISIS is your new enemy, and the Taliban were never really after you in the first place, it would actually make sense for the US to make peace with the Taliban now, and then get them to fight ISIS for you.

[heydaralon]

Funny thing is, since the Taliban are actually fighting ISIS, and ISIS is your new enemy, and the Taliban were never really after you in the first place, it would actually make sense for the US to make peace with the Taliban now, and then get them to fight ISIS for you.

What is our timetable for Afghanistan withdrawal? I'm guessing we will keep Bagram and some of our other bases there for the forseeable future, but what is the purpose at this point of doing patrols or putting Americans in any kind of dangerous situation? You rarely hear about Afghanistan now and the public doesn't really have any interest anymore. Its been so long that people aren't even outraged we are there anymore. Its just boredom. We should drop that flaming bag of shit and call it a day. Yet another military adventure that our leaders and the general public learned nothing from.

[Smitty-48]

Afghanistan became an entrenched interest via the Humanitarian Pixie Dust, couldn't just go after AQ and then leave it at that, had to put a Nation Building boilerplate on it, and then it became a never ending story, at some point, you're going to have to give it back to the Taliban, at least the southern part that is, why not just give it back to them now, since they are fighting to defend it from ISIS?

The Taliban are not actually "transnational terrorists", they were never interested in attacking the United States, all they care about is Afghanistan, and if you didn't have the Nation Building mandate, which forces you to try and pacify the whole place and prop up a government in Kabul, then you could just let the Taliban have it.

If you have to try to control things, "fix Aghanistan so girls can go to school!", well then you're pretty much trapped there forever, but if you were being more pragmatic and self interested, as in just focusing on American security, then you could let the Taliban have it and just let them run it and defend it from ISIS as they do.

[heydaralon]

Afghanistan became an entrenched interest via the Humanitarian Pixie Dust, couldn't just go after AQ and then leave it at that, had to put a Nation Building boilerplate on it, and then it became a never ending story, at some point, you're going to have to give it back to the Taliban, at least the southern part that is, why not just give it back to them now, since they are fighting to defend it from ISIS?

The Taliban are not actually "transnational terrorists", they were never interested in attacking the United States, all they care about is Afghanistan, and if you didn't have the Nation Building mandate, which forces you to try and pacify the whole place and prop up a government in Kabul, then you could just let the Taliban have it.

If you have to try to control things, "fix Aghanistan so girls can go to school!", well then you're pretty much trapped there forever, but if you were being more pragmatic and self interested, as in just focusing on American security, then you could let the Taliban have it and just let them run it and defend it from ISIS as they do.

I always viewed them kind of like the VC or the Viet Minh. They are fucked up, but they are far more nationalistic and parochial in their concerns than Al Qaeda.

[TheReal_ND]

The taliban kept the dope off their streets and were no friends of wahabi Saudi dick suckers. They were completely uninvolved with 9/11.

We are still there.

[Smitty-48]

I wouldn't insult the Viet Minh by calling them Taliban like, the Vietnameme nationalists were far more civilized and noble, but in an operational sense, yes, the Taliban are focused on their immediate environs, they may be a threat to India and India's proxies in the region, but I don't beleive that they are out to attack the United States, so long as the Americans just stay out of their business, trying to run Pashtunistan from Kabul.