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An Afghan Hail Mary

By Larry Johnson on May 12, 2009 at 11:25 AM in AfPak Border, Afghanistan, Current Affairs, Pakistan

(Bumped up from Monday night.)

So, what does Barack Obama do with the military commander running the show on the ground in Afghanistan who asks for 30,000 troops but is only provided 21,000 (courtesy of Barack of course)? You fire his ass and replace him with a hard charging officer with extensive experience in military special operations.

Stanley McChrystal was named today by Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, as the Commander, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan (USFOR-A). So what does this mean?

Stan McChrystal is an excellent tactical commander. He is not a desk jockey keen on sitting back at headquarters and politicking for a better job. But in terms of a strategic visionary, he’s not very good. He has no more clue about what to do in Afghanistan than McKiernan, the General he has replaced.

I heard some news report claiming McChrystal is an “expert in counter insurgency.” That is a load of horseshit. I had a conversation in Iraq (I was on the ground with the force commanded by McChrystal) and asked one of the troopers about the counter insurgency effort. During this period the level of attacks against American forces was spiraling ever higher. The troop looked at me and simply stated, “We don’t do counter insurgency, we do counter terrorism.”

And he was right. The forces under McChrystal’s command have NONE, ZERO experience with counter insurgency ops. That requires building links to local forces, employing local personnel in your operations, and supplementing military ops with civil affair ops. Counter terrorism is more raw–find the bad guys and kill them.

If we look to what happened in Iraq for guidance we will see that the worm turned when we really did focus on counter insurgency ops backed by money to pay tribal leaders to keep their teenage and young adult males gainfully employed in activities that did not entail building and planting roadside bombs.

I am sure General McChrystal will work hard. But he does not know Afghanistan and certainly has limited experience with counter insurgency ops. I am not sure that General David Petraeus, a West Point classmate of Mcchrystal, is thrilled with this. Will be interesting to watch.

ConfusedAmerican

The other day when Glen said something to the affect that Obama must sit home at nights just dreaming of ways he can turn another American screw. Glen was talking about Obama cutting the budget on Port security and Border Fencing — I really enjoyed his coment
Tricia Spiegel

This is downright scary. Larry, who should be put in charge?
Mandelay

Wow! What a wartime/peacetime/anytime leader that Barack Obama is — and he even wears a tux and does comedy. What a guy! For the first time in my adult life, I feel like I should be proud of something.
http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

It’s never about what’s best for America with Barack. It’s only about what will get him in the media to look like he’s in control.

I shake my head in disgust.

That was my question, also.

Who should be in charge? If not Afghanistan, then in charge of Barack?

With each new problem or US military death because of boneheaded moves by this administration, America should take note.
wac for hillary

Larry, what do you know about LTG Rodriguez, who Gates picked for a newly created deputy commander position?
r2d2

Nobody has the guts to tell our dear leader that there’s no way to win in Afghanistan. There never was, and there never will be. Bush policies which Obama continues have been a failure, and now we see how those policies have expanded the war into Pakistan. This is not going to be a good year for Afghanistan or Iraq. The problem with paying tribute to any lord, is that tributes are supposed to increase over time. The tribal leaders will not be satisfied with less money, regardless of our economic situation.
TeakwoodKite

I wish Lieutenant General Stanley McChrystal all the success in implementing the strategy that is required of him.

LJ, is this a reflection of how BO thought Mckern was “cool” and the civilian (BO)leaderships thinks there more bad guys to kill than opportunities to mount a counter-insurgency effort?

Is this to be a Democratic version of the Rumsfield screwdriver?

Have you seen much mention any “joint” co-ordination of Pakistani, Afghani and the US? visa v IFOR and State?
jwrjr

The Afghans kicked the Russians out. What could possibly make Ozero think that he can do better (other than arrogance)?
I’m a Linda too

Just friggin’ dandy. That also means we can expect more of their raids and bombings.

Obviously just more window dressing because the Afghans are pissed off, protesting and calling for “death to America”.

And can you blame them when we’ve been killing so many innocent people, women and children.

upwards of 147 for last week alone.

And look at this poor little girl.

Afghans riot over air-strike atrocity
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/afghans-riot-over-airstrike-atrocity-1681070.html
I’m a Linda too

And I’m sure they, along with Europe, is saying, “if this is change, keep the change”

Obama tosses folks under the buss as his collateral damage too much and too frequently.

Doesn’t it suck having an inexperienced wannabe as presidenot?
http://ezinearticles.com/?Three-Basic-Parenting-Styles&id=744499 Northwest rain

BO is too lazy to read history (perhaps someone can read and write a one page summary in large type — “winning” in Afghanistan won’t happen).

bush was/is a parasite the rich kid who traded on his last name all the way to the white house. 0zero is using the color of his skin (ignoring the fact that he is also WHITE) and he too is a lazy parasite.
pcmoore28

Are innocent civilians collateral damage to Obama? It seems that our policies in the Middle East have not changed and all the talk about change is just that….cheap talk not backed up with meaningful action.

Bush is quiet but why should he say anything? The democrats are in a quagmire of their own making, he is enjoying sitting back and watching it and the cherry on top is Obama continuing the policies in the Iraq/Afghanistan that he so criticized during the campaign…
VinceP

I don’t like us being in landlocked Afghanistan with Pakistan rapidly destabilizing.

Other than some unacceptable things which would be atrocities I have no answer what to do.
tango

I heard that LTG Rodriguez was Gates personal assistant and supposedly is another “expert” with his special forces background. I guess Gates must like him a lot to give him such a new job. Apparently per some analyst on MSNBC this a.m. (Gene Robinson I think, yah I know, some expert)McKiernan is considered “old school” and out of touch with todays needs while both McChrystal and Rodriguez are new school better to react on their feet in a quick and changing environment.
MrMike

Who was it said,”Afghanistan is where empires go to die“?
Ellen D

Yes, President Celebrity must be irritated this morning at Donald Trump and Miss California taking his airtime.
I’m a Linda too

And Chris Hedges has a new article out today.

Becoming What We Seek to Destroy

Posted on May 10, 2009
By Chris Hedges

The bodies of dozens, perhaps well over a hundred, women, children and men, their corpses blown into bits of human flesh by iron fragmentation bombs dropped by U.S. warplanes in a village in the western province of Farah, illustrates the futility of the Afghan war. We are not delivering democracy or liberation or development. We are delivering massive, sophisticated forms of industrial slaughter. And because we have employed the blunt and horrible instrument of war in a land we know little about and are incapable of reading, we embody the barbarism we claim to be seeking to defeat.

We are morally no different from the psychopaths within the Taliban, who Afghans remember we empowered, funded and armed during the 10-year war with the Soviet Union. Acid thrown into a girl’s face or beheadings? Death delivered from the air or fields of shiny cluster bombs? This is the language of war. It is what we speak. It is what those we fight speak.

Afghan survivors carted some two dozen corpses from their villages to the provincial capital in trucks this week to publicly denounce the carnage. Some 2,000 angry Afghans in the streets of the capital chanted “Death to America!” But the grief, fear and finally rage of the bereaved do not touch those who use high-minded virtues to justify slaughter. The death of innocents, they assure us, is the tragic cost of war. It is regrettable, but it happens. It is the price that must be paid. And so, guided by a president who once again has no experience of war and defers to the bull-necked generals and militarists whose careers, power and profits depend on expanded war, we are transformed into monsters.

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090511_becoming_what_we_seek_to_destroy/

INDEED!

But, sadly, as we’ve learned from over the pond, the body count from Tuesdays’ bombing on innocent Afghans is up to 147, including children and women.

OH! And of course, many more injured.
I’m a Linda too

apparently so.
http://! stodgie

afghanistan will be barack’s iraq. enough said. ask russia about afghanistan. heck, ask england! we can’t win. after enough are dead even the obama worship brigade will see it. of course many more will have died just like in iraq. barack, you don’t have a clue. and sticking your nose in the air won’t help either.
JozefAL

You dare suggest that the US Army is somehow inferior to the Russians? You sicken me.

Seriously, though, Dubya and his handler cronies seemed to think we could polish off the Taliban, capture Osama, and set up a working democracy in Afghanistan in just a matter of months with a minimum of troops, and a shitload of people actually believed that nonsense. Even worse, most of the people who bought into Dubay’s bullshit honestly believed that we could then take on the job of invading Iraq and capturing Saddam.
And you actually have the nerve to think Obama is arrogant? Well, just as long as you realize that Obama’s no less arrogant (or conceited) than Dubya.
JozefAL

Sorry, there was supposed to a

SNARK OFF

between the two paragraphs. (I made the mistake of formatting it wrong.)
I’m a Linda too

I’ve already heard Iran is Obama’s Iraq and then Pakistan is Obama’s Iraq.

Looks like Obama’s just going to be the worst imaginable of our history yet. WHO KNEW!
http://! stodgie

geez linda, it is just plain depressing isn’t it?
http://patriotparty1 Carmen

So let me see if I understand this. We will no longer scan containers for nukes coming in on ships. We will not close the borders, and we will give citizenship, welfare, health care, social security, and civil rights to just who the Hell ever wanders in here. But our soldiers fighting a WAR that the Presidents sent them too will go to prison for killing people.
And this man is a legitimate American. Yea, right!
NomNomNom

I don’t believe for a second that the government ever thought either of Iraq or Afghanistan was winnable in a military sense, only winnable in a “defense” contractor sense. Now there, their strategy ($) is working!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JE48XHKG64
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6-fWrJQ2bk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YENbElb5-xY

Here is Bush 1 promoting the UN, Al Gore saying we should destroy Saddam Hussein, & Dick Cheney describing why invading Iraq would be a disaster.

:Twilight Zone Music:

They are all in this sh#t together.
Animal Control

The historian of Alexander the Great?
I’m a Linda too

Yes, it is.
shadow

And we’re gonna release Gitmo detainees into America and give them welfare. And this guy is keeping us safe?
J_Gocht

It was Rudyard, MrMike…

When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier.” … Kipling

BTW: “Civilian casualties due to an over reliance on air power is a direct result of not having enough boots on the ground…” … “…and lack of an efficient counter insurgency plan and popular countryside infrastructure.
http://! stodgie

shadow, that thought makes me shudder!
http://noquarter foxyladi14

I DID.
http://noquarter foxyladi14

we should just get the flock out of there.as the old rooster said,itis going to be a downpour..
I’m a Linda too

Yes, I think we ALL (here) feared that.
http://despair.com/changewinds.html Smilin’ Jim

Are you having a senior moment, Johnson? This guy’s rap sheet shows him not in Iraq but at Bragg between 2003 and 2008 and in Afghanistan before that. Have the nefarious military constructed a chronosynclastic infundibulator where they can station personnel in two places at once? Hellofa idea, solves the manpower problem and save them a small fortune in reenlistment bonuses.

Now what you should have said: They got rid of a straight leg man and replaced him with a snake-eater. Good move if you are going to ditch a Westmoreland war and are going to concentrate on a rural affairs strategy ala Rufus Phillips.

If they had done that after the first coup my life would have been simpler…… and we’d have 50,000 more taxpayers.
http://despair.com/changewinds.html Smilin’ Jim

OK, I’ll cut you some slack. He did spend time enough in Iraq with JSOC to claim the al-Zarqawi hit. And if that was a JSOC cadre you talked to, their mission was counter-terror.