Poking wasps nests with chopsticks seems to be the motive behind much of US foreign policy. The cesspool that is Afghanistan needs only a couple of gentle stirs to spray its fetid lunacy and violence on everything and everyone. Case in point, burning paper turns the people bug-frack crazy:
Continue readingTag: afghanistan
The Disaffected Lib: How Screwed Up Is Afghanistan? Look at Their Schoolbooks.
The Afghans have figured out a way to produce a history textbook that everyone can accept. Make sure it stops at 1973. Afghanistan’s newly approved history textbook is free of the last four decades of the country’s history. No Soviet invasion, no Mujaheddin, no Taliban, no American invasion, all the
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Obama, the Drones, and Canada’s Secret War
The other day Obama, in his favourite role as Commander in Chief of The Great War on Terror, claimed that his Darth Vader fleet of deadly drones was on a “tight leash.” Mr. Obama, in an unusually candid public discussion of the Central Intelligence Agency’s covert program, said the drone
Continue readingExcited Delirium: The Unspoken Holocaust
American wars have resulted in the deaths of millions of civilians. Why are we not hearing more about this?
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Afghanistan Down. Iran Next?
Some time in the next two years the United States will pack up its guns and leave Afghanistan. Like Vietnam, and to some extent Iraq, it will be able to boast that its military was never defeated in battle. Like Vietnam and even more like Iraq, the United States will
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: U.S. to Wrap Up Afghan Combat Mission in 2013
By mid-2013 Afghan security or, arguably its civil war, will again be the responsibility of Afghans. U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has announced that he hopes America’s combat mission will wrap up by then as his country’s forces prepare for departure in 2014. Coming in the immediate wake of a
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Americans Foresee Return of Taliban Rule
When the West stops playing whack-a-mole in Afghanistan, the Talibs, with the backing of Pakistan, are poised to return to power. That is the conclusion of a secret US military report, The State of the Taliban, 2012, that has been leaked to the BBC and The Times. Islamabad is supposedly
Continue readingRedBedHead: Republican Contest: Battle Of The Scumbags
Where do they dig up these cretins? I mean, is it really possible that in the 21st century these guys can be the front runners of one of America’s two mainstream parties to be the next president? Seriously? On the bright side, I can’t see how the Republicans can possibly
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Why No One Ever Wins in Afghanistan
Afghanistan defines the notion of “wheels spinning within wheels.” It is the very home of policy chaos where virtually every action invites blowback of one or more kinds, usually unforeseen. This brief paragraph from Asia Times aptly captures this quagmire factory: “The [current] war in Afghanistan involves Pakistan against India,
Continue reading"Have a great day, buddy". Video of US soldiers urinating on Afghan corpses rocks the US. Right wing shrugs shoulders.
A video recently released showing US soldiers pissing on three dead Afghans has provoked outrage from all quarters. Except one – the right (emphasis mine). Not everyone, however, was saddened by the events. Anti-Muslim activist Pam Geller wrote in favor of the incident. “I love these Marines,” she said, adding, “Perhaps this
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: And, Speaking of Afghanistan
The War Without End drags on laboriously. The past few months saw a curious optimism about a political settlement between Kabul and the Taliban. That might have been premature. A new American intelligence (I know, I know) assessment concludes the Taliban still pursue their goal of reclaiming power and restoring
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: My Canada Does Not Include Militarizing Canada Day
I have a great deal of respect for Canadian Forces personnel. I have generally disagreed with virtually every one of their foreign deployments in my lifetime, but that is a criticism I make of our political leaders who order our forces to go here and there. I support our troops
Continue readingThings Are Good: A Charity That to Improves Afghanistan Using Skincare
A bizarre title that’s for sure and it’s by no means an exaggeration. ARGHAND is working in Afghanistan and employing locals to produce skincare products that are all-natural and are composed of plants only found in the country. ARGHAND, the only all-natural, sustainable skincare line from Afghanistan, was founded by
Continue readingLeDaro: US/NATO Attack Kills 24 Pakistani Soldiers
It’s a very scary incident, which makes America’s already strained relations with Pakistan even worse. Some Pakistanis are talking about retaliation, I hope there is none. Pakistan is a nuclear power and if those nukes get into the wrong hands, God help us. It would be a very dangerous situation.
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Lessons from Uzbekistan
The Central Asian states such as Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan often don’t get too much attention in the west. However, the region is both important from a geostrategic perspective as well as having its tumultuous recent history providing many important insights for western policy in Asia and many other regions. Previously, I looked
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Lessons from Kyrgyzstan
A year before the Arab Spring, Kyrgyzstan experienced a populist uprising of its own complete with violent conflict, from both the state and between ethnicities, and resulted in a change of governance. The lessons that can be drawn from the recent history in Kyrgyzstan are useful in putting some of the Arab
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Unseen wounds are no less real
Two new studies of Canadian soldiers who served in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2008 shows the prevalence of psychological casualties in modern combat operations. The Globe and Mail reported that: In one study of 792 frontline soldiers who fought in Afghanistan in 2007, some 20 per cent suffered from posttraumatic
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: The myopic terrorism lens
One of the main failures of western understanding of the Middle East and South Asia, and the subsequent failures of actions taken by the west in these regions, stems from viewing these regions through the lens of terrorism. This terrorism-centric view…
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: He Said What?
Poor Hamid Karzai. The old bugger has to run the assassins’ gauntlet until 2014 when he can step down and di di mau his sorry ass and his loot the hell out of Afghanistan. In the meantime he’ll need plenty of protection, as much as he…
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: The Price of Western Media Complicity – War in Iraq and Afghanistan
Media Lens does fantastic, if grim work, in describing the system we live in. We are insulated from other narratives other ideas, other peoples sufferings. How can a public become informed with no other sources to cross reference? You cannot triangulate with only one point. Media Lens, Al-Jazeera and other alternative news sources provide […]
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