[EnergyUnlimited]

Well, they got what they deserved.
Alien invading force.

[Pretorian]

31 US troops die in Afghanistan; many from unit that killed bin Laden. 7 Afghan commandos are also killed; Chinook crash appears to be deadliest single incident in the decade-long war

+7 others, but nobody gives a shit about Afghans.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44043847/ns ... ?gt1=43001

There was also a dog. Anyway, it looks to me like the rest of the bin Laden kill team will have accidents on a one by one basis.

[Pretorian]

Well, they got what they deserved.
Alien invading force.

What about the dog?

[davep]

Well, they got what they deserved.
Alien invading force.

What about the dog?

Not the old 'following orders' excuse?

[PrestonSturges]

Cue the conspiracy theorists claiming Bin Laden isn't dead.

[Pretorian]

Cue the conspiracy theorists claiming Bin Laden isn't dead.

most likely this USA's collaborator died a very long time ago. If if you claim that less likely outcome is true, then I'd like to see a proof.

[Alan Cain]

Oh, dear. I think this is very sad; in my more paranoid moments (more all the time) I said to myself, "Self, whatcha wanna bet that seal team six is going to disappear soon?" and I replied, "Go get your Valium, idiot."

Now I have to change my internal dialog. That really is annoying. Want a Valium? I have a few left.

[Serial_Worrier]

Well, they got what they deserved.
Alien invading force.

That was uncalled for. Please apologize to the families.

[mattduke]

Notice that according to MSM headlines, the seal team six members died in a helicopter "crash", not that their helicopter was "shot down."

SEAL Team Six: Obama honors troops killed in helicopter crash
Helicopter Crash in Afghanistan Reportedly Kills Members of SEAL Team 6

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/08/06 ... pter-crash
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2 ... pter-crash

[Keith_McClary]

Well, they got what they deserved.

They don't worry about those quaint old Geneva Conventions.

[americandream]

Once upon a time we were all barbaric and fought over all manner of things. Hopefully, we progress and gradually improve our cumulative lot. After all, life is brief.

Afghanistan has been held back from any real progress towards a more civil society and has not essentially moved past the very first stirrings of the extremes that have bedevilled it from it's first encounter with Arab Islam. The '80's saw further injections of this Abrahamic primevalism when the region was used to fight an ideological war, with a fair injection of Koran irrationalism, subsidised graciously by the Saudis. This is a country in which former allies are now slogging it out for all manner of quite narrow reasons. The long term effects is that generations will continue to suffer under extremes of backwardness and poverty.

[mattduke]

America and Afghanistan are close to signing a strategic pact which would allow thousands of United States troops to remain in the country until at least 2024, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.

The longest war in American history.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... -2024.html

[Bill Hicks]

Well, we still have troops in Germany and Japan 66 years after the last shot was fired in WW2, and troops in Korea 58 years after that war ended.

So this is hardly surprising.

[Outcast_Searcher]

True. HOWEVER, we are bankrupt (the PTB just won't admit it).

So, I don't mind us doing this with a VOLUNTEER army -- but IF AND ONLY IF:

a). The country we are working with basically approves of our presence instead of hating us and wanting to kill any Americans they can.
b). The country we are in PAYS FOR IT. PAYS FOR EVERYTHING that is OUR cost. We send them a, say, monthly bill for "mercenary services". When the bill gets to some pre-agreed time overdue - we pack up and leave.


I can imagine the ground shaking from all the frantic GOP jumping up and down about this -- the same GOP that HATES government spending, programs, etc. BTW.

Since we ARE bankrupt -- this would let us maintain our global presence (which the GOP wants so badly) to some extent, yet not bankrupt us. (We'll do that job just fine with social programs anyway).

So, as a "broad brush" compromise principle -- why wouldn't this be a place to begin some serious negotiations toward a sustainable military policy?

...

(And by the way -- I DO realize you can't start this without meaningful warning / lead time. Say 5 years.)

And before the GOPers say "well, NATO, etc. can't afford it" -- neither can we! And do you really think France and Canada can, say, face down a Nuclear Iran without our help?

[Bill Hicks]

True. HOWEVER, we are bankrupt (the PTB just won't admit it).

So, I don't mind us doing this with a VOLUNTEER army -- but IF AND ONLY IF:

a). The country we are working with basically approves of our presence instead of hating us and wanting to kill any Americans they can.
b). The country we are in PAYS FOR IT. PAYS FOR EVERYTHING that is OUR cost. We send them a, say, monthly bill for "mercenary services". When the bill gets to some pre-agreed time overdue - we pack up and leave.

Problem is, most countries want our troops there BECAUSE of the financial benefits it brings. Germany and Japan, for example. The moment we started charging them, they'd kick our butts out so fast there would barely be time to load up the C-130s.

Not a bad idea, actually.

[Sixstrings]

You know what.. Her Majesty's old Empire ain't got nothin' on us..

When Uncle Sam moves in, he's there to stay.. FOREVER..

[Keith_McClary]

a). The country we are working with basically approves of our presence instead of hating us and wanting to kill any Americans they can.

You invaded these countries because they they fought back against your meddling in their part of the world. They are not likely to pay you to continue to attack them.

b). The country we are in PAYS FOR IT. PAYS FOR EVERYTHING that is OUR cost. We send them a, say, monthly bill for "mercenary services". When the bill gets to some pre-agreed time overdue - we pack up and leave.

Good luck with that in Afghanistan. I understand that most of their GNP comes from spending by the US occupiers (eg., Afghan "security" companies that pay off the Taliban to carry out their attacks in other parts of the country). Somebody said the war must go on because Afghanistan would go broke if it ended.

[Tanada]

You know what.. Her Majesty's old Empire ain't got nothin' on us..

When Uncle Sam moves in, he's there to stay.. FOREVER..

Funny thing is the British said the same thing, so did the Spanish before them and the Muslims before them and the Mongols before them and the Romans before them. Forever tends to be a brief time in the real world as Empires come and go.

[Cloud9]

Afghanistan is Hadrian’s Wall. We will retreat.

[Margarethe]

Excuse, can you please explain the context of Hadrian's wall? Thanks.