# No talk about Trump's bungled adventure in Yemen? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 3, 2017, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896 "2017-02-03T12:42:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Blinkyandpinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ad7895/32.png) [@Blinkyandpinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blinkyandpinky)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/101 "2017-02-05T02:23:35Z")
> [@Evan\_Drake](#): > > **[Obama Killed a 16-Year-Old American in Yemen. Trump Just Killed His 8-Year-Old Sister.](https://theintercept.com/2017/01/30/obama-killed-a-16-year-old-american-in-yemen-trump-just-killed-his-8-year-old-sister/)** 30 Jan 2017 I already pointed that out earlier in my post, how the 16 year old was killed by Obama, and now the 8 year old sister was killed by Trump, both children of the traitor and terrorist. And liberals of course only show outrage now that is has to do with Trump. Pretty hilarious, if you ask me. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/102 "2017-02-05T02:46:38Z")
> [@Blinkyandpinky](#): > > I already pointed that out earlier in my post, how the 16 year old was killed by Obama, and now the 8 year old sister was killed by Trump, both children of the traitor and terrorist. > > And liberals of course only show outrage now that is has to do with Trump. Pretty hilarious, if you ask me. Actually, many liberals/progressives have been bitching about the drone strikes under Obama. [Here’s a thread from 2013](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=684876) on this board, for example, from a poster with similar impressions as you that the left wing hasn’t addressed this issue, and with posters responding that it is, indeed, an issue. In my experience, that’s one of the issues the progressives were particularly unhappy with under Obama. I mean, for Christ sake, here’s [Rachel Maddow](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fiqs3VLonbM) expressing her problems with it. It wasn’t exactly ignored by the progressives. The more run-of-the-mill centrist Democrats were not particularly vocal about this issue. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/103 "2017-02-05T02:47:02Z")
[QUOTE=Glenn Greenwald] _Perhaps most tragic of all is that — just as was true in Iraq — al Qaeda had very little presence in Yemen before the Obama administration began bombing and droning it and killing civilians, thus driving people into the arms of the militant group. As the late, young Yemeni writer Ibrahim Mothana told Congress in 2013:_ [/quote] > [@Evan\_Drake](#): > > Trumpo will do just fine in this tradition. Somehow I do not think that article was about praising Trump, in reality is criticizes both Obama and Trump and I think I have been critical of the drone strikes in the past. The point from Greenwald is still standing. This is not good at all and Trump is continuing with that policy and making it worse. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/104 "2017-02-05T02:57:42Z")
> [@Blinkyandpinky](#): > > Terrorists have no minimum age limit, and everybody from the age of 1 day old and up from terrorist regions of the world should be vetted and examined extra carefully. > > Terrorists will use anything, including babies and one terrorist mother even attempted to use a baby bottle filled with liquid explosives a while back, in the UK I believe. > > There is no limit as to how low the uncivilized terrorists will stoop, and there is no limit to their depravity. Hi! Off-topic, but relevant: How did you hear about this message board? I’m sure that you posted somewhere before this so… where was that? I’m just curious because I’d really like to see where you are getting your facts and this level of indoctrination from. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Evan\_Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b487fb/32.png) [@Evan\_Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evan_Drake)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/105 "2017-02-05T03:13:57Z")
Those babies… Be very careful how you approach them, citizen. One minute they are gurgling innocently and blowing dribble, and you start to underestimate them. That is when they _pounce_. Interrogate them pitilessly; examine their diapers for weapons; don’t turn your back for a second. ---
**Author:** ![MacCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maccat/32/216_2.png) [@MacCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacCat)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/106 "2017-02-05T04:11:34Z")
> [@Evan\_Drake](#): > > Those babies… Be very careful how you approach them, citizen. One minute they are gurgling innocently and blowing dribble, and you start to underestimate them. That is when they _pounce_. > Interrogate them pitilessly; examine their diapers for weapons; don’t turn your back for a second. Just keeping another campaign promise… > [@](#): > > Originally spouted by Le Mal Orange > You have to take out their families… ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/107 "2017-02-06T07:43:43Z")
No blame for the on-scene commanders? Communication intercepts told them they had lost the element of surprise. You’re supposed a plan B that may include aborting the mission. Happened all the time throughout my deployments to the desert. Weather, breakdowns, botched intel; you go home and learn from it. Warning - my opinion. There may have been some external pressure to continue the mission is spite of it’s discovery. I base that on my experience with these troops. Normally it’s Practice, practice, practice the mission. The public see too many movies and TV shows where Arnold/Sylvester/etc… just drop from the sky and cut loose. Doesn’t happen in real missions. The Spec Ops guys have tons of confidence but they are smart too. The overly macho guys tend to get weeded out. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/108 "2017-02-06T16:05:21Z")
And that external pressure would have come from where? ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2017, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/109 "2017-02-09T11:26:11Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Beyond all this, where is the proof that this was actually bungled or unsuccessful, other than a sailor getting killed? > > One soldier getting killed in the course of a raid doesn’t even come close to the standard for bungling. It’s an occupational hazard when your job is to go in and kill people as well as effectively steal intelligence information. > > It happens, even on the most successful and well-planned missions. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s older brother was the only Israeli killed on the legendary Entebbe raid- would you call that a failure? Plenty of other successful commando raids have had casualties as well. > [@octopus](#): > > So what? People die in war. It’s dangerous. > > I’m trying to imagine how it would have been possible to win WWI, WWII, etc with the know it all arm chair generals of today second guessing every move. > [@Quartz](#): > > So people died during the raid? So what? The distinction between civilian and non-civilian doesn’t really apply out there. It would have been nice if the US had achieved the raid without friendly casualties, but it happens. > > The most important take-away for those who would harm American interests is that Trump is not afraid to act. Yeah, people - so what if an American serviceman died. _ **What difference does it make?** _ ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/110 "2017-02-10T02:35:46Z")
[Trump launched Yemen raid after being told Obama wouldn’t have been ‘bold enough,’ report says](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/trump-launched-yemen-raid-told-obama-wouldn-article-1.2966736?cid=bitly) > [@](#): > > President Trump was convinced to launch a “botched” counterterrorism raid in Yemen after being told that the Obama administration would have never attempted one, according to a report. > > Planning for the mission — which resulted in the death of Navy SEAL William Owens — stretched from last year, but was approved by Trump as his first major military operation. > > Defense Secretary James Mattis and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Joseph Dunford told the President that capturing the raid’s intended target would be a “game changer,” an anonymous official told NBC News. > > Trump’s military advisers added that the previous leadership would not have been “bold enough” to launch it, the network said. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/111 "2017-02-10T02:48:31Z")
Huh. If this tactic works reliably on President Trump, I wonder if somebody can manage to tell him that Obama was just too spineless to institute universal single-payer healthcare coverage. Hell, I bet Obama would be magnanimous enough to have that conversation himself. _“Oh sure, Mr. President, I knew that single-payer would be a much better deal in the long run, but I couldn’t do it. Just didn’t have the guts to take charge and make it happen. Sure would have boosted my inauguration crowd size if I had, though.”_ ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/112 "2017-02-10T09:51:22Z")
It’s good to know US policy is being decided by Needles from _Back to the Future_. “What are ya - _chicken_?” ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2017, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/113 "2017-03-01T16:33:06Z")
[Father of SEAL killed in botched Yemen raid denounces the president](http://www.salon.com/2017/02/27/father-of-seal-killed-in-botched-yemen-raid-denounces-the-president/) > [@](#): > > Owens said he did not want President Trump to deflect an investigation under the guise of respecting son’s sacrifice. “Don’t hide behind my son’s death to prevent an investigation. I want an investigation. … The government owes my son an investigation.” [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Fy6j09e0668/maxresdefault.jpg "Michael Moore: We Are Witnessing New Chapter In George Orwell’s 1984 | Hardball | MSNBC") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy6j09e0668&t=2m30s) Decision over dinner. And tweeted about other stuff during the raid. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2017, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/114 "2017-03-01T16:36:50Z")
> [@BigAppleBucky](#): > > [Father of SEAL killed in botched Yemen raid denounces the president](http://www.salon.com/2017/02/27/father-of-seal-killed-in-botched-yemen-raid-denounces-the-president/) But Trump didn’t do anything wrong! [It was the generals’ fault! They made him do it!](http://www.militarytimes.com/articles/trump-blames-generals-seal-death) ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2017, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/115 "2017-03-01T16:59:01Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Yeah, people - so what if an American serviceman died. _ **What difference does it make?** _ That is the risk they take when they sign up. People do die in combat, you know. ---
**Author:** ![SingleMalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/singlemalt/32/3961_2.png) [@SingleMalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SingleMalt)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/116 "2017-03-01T17:26:45Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > That is the risk they take when they sign up. People do die in combat, you know. I’m sure they do. But we, as the American people, expect the Generals and the Commander-in-Chief to not spend our sons’ and daughters’ lives cavalierly, as if they were blocking extras in a Michael Bay movie, with an ill-informed decision made between appetizers and the salad. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2017, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/117 "2017-03-01T17:32:57Z")
> [@SingleMalt](#): > > [W]e, as the American people, expect the Generals and the Commander-in-Chief to not spend our sons’ and daughters’ lives cavalierly, as if they were blocking extras in a Michael Bay movie, with an ill-informed decision made between appetizers and the salad. But that’s what the Soviets did in WWII… And they WON! And since 45 is smitten with Russia… ---
**Author:** ![snoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@snoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoe)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2017, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/118 "2017-03-02T04:11:08Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by Gyrate > Yeah, people - so what if an American serviceman died. **What difference does it make**? > [@Quartz](#): > > That is the risk they take when they sign up. People do die in combat, you know. We all miss a joke now and then. I’m guessing Gyrate was, in the bolded sentence, referencing a rhetorical question posed by HR Clinton during one of the Benghazi hearings: > [@](#): > > “Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night and decided they’d go kill some Americans,” Clinton said. “What difference – at this point, _what difference does it make_?” See [this](http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2013/may/08/context-hillary-clintons-what-difference-does-it-m/) for more details and context. So I think Gyrate was riffing off Republican criticisms of Clinton in response to Republican (or Republican-curious, in the case of some posters here) defenses of Trump. Myself, I don’t think this kind of “[whataboutism](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism)” is, overall, politically helpful for a party that is not catering to a bunch of dum-dums. But it still feels good to point out the hypocrisy. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2017, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/119 "2017-03-02T10:48:09Z")
> [@SingleMalt](#): > > I’m sure they do. But we, as the American people, expect the Generals and the Commander-in-Chief to not spend our sons’ and daughters’ lives cavalierly Only one American died. One. If you’re unwilling to accept even one casualty then America should break out the nukes and disband the ground forces. > [@snoe](#): > > We all miss a joke now and then. I’m guessing Gyrate was, in the bolded sentence, referencing a rhetorical question posed by HR Clinton during one of the Benghazi hearings: See [this](http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2013/may/08/context-hillary-clintons-what-difference-does-it-m/) for more details and context. Yup. Guess I got whooshed. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2017, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896/120 "2017-03-02T11:07:42Z")
> [@snoe](#): > > We all miss a joke now and then. I’m guessing Gyrate was, in the bolded sentence, referencing a rhetorical question posed by HR Clinton during one of the Benghazi hearings: See [this](http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2013/may/08/context-hillary-clintons-what-difference-does-it-m/) for more details and context. > > So I think Gyrate was riffing off Republican criticisms of Clinton in response to Republican (or Republican-curious, in the case of some posters here) defenses of Trump. Myself, I don’t think this kind of “[whataboutism](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism)” is, overall, politically helpful for a party that is not catering to a bunch of dum-dums. > > But it still feels good to point out the hypocrisy. Indeed. Four Americans died in the Benghazi attacks and the Republicans and their supporters used this to launch years of investigations and endless hysterical allegations about how Obama and Clinton were directly or indirectly responsible. The outrage over the (admittedly tragic) deaths was stirred up over and over to pretend that Obama and Clinton had a cavalier disregard for American lives. They even extracted the phrase “What difference does it make?” from its original context in order to pretend that it meant the exact opposite of what it had meant. And yet here we have an ill-considered operation which Trump was directly responsible for greenlighting resulting in American deaths, and certain people are all “Meh - shit happens”. Yes, servicemen (and innocent bystanders) die in military operations all the time, but the difference in attitude is exceedingly noteworthy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-talk-about-trumps-bungled-adventure-in-yemen/778896.md?page=7)