A defence lawyer and a right of appeal? You don’t bloody well say? I wonder how people who aren’t journalists with a bunch of international new organisations in their corner fare?
Fuck 'em all. And I extend this offer to anyone inclined to whine on about how this isn’t really because of ‘Islam’ but due to some unspecified ‘cultural’ shit.
If it walks, talks and explodes in a crowded marketplace like a duck - it’s a friggin’ duck.
Seriously - why are our soldiers fighting and dying?
Let’s replace them all with Predator drones and a cavalier disregard for ‘collateral damage.’
You obviously have some objective in mind. Could you explain what it is and why you think this approach will be effective? Otherwise I’d be inclined to think you’ve just discovered the world is an ugly and difficult place and you’re masturbating over some faraway notions of it.
I no longer give a fuck about Afghanistan or the well-being of Afghans or any other denizens of backward bloody countries where British soldiers are getting killed on a weekly basis just so the can continue behaving like barbarians fresh from the Dark Ages. Execution for downloading a document on women’s rights? Give us all a bloody break.
However I am concerned with stopping Al-Q getting a safe haven again, which will require force.
And it will be a lot easier to prevent AQ/Taliban from getting said foothold if the populace, y’know, would like us there. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and Afganistan is a lot better than it used to be. But we can’t go into Pakistan, so right now we’re somewhat limited in our options.
How about, “We shed blood for these savages because they aren’t all savages?”
Works for me.
People who are capable of yielding to pressure and publicly changing their minds are, IMHO, not savages.
And denizens of a theocracy who are capable of yielding to international pressure from denizens of other mutually exclusive belief systems, and publicly changing their minds on a subject of great theological import to them and to their constituency, are also, IMHO, not savages.
Why dp you think Afghanistan is friendly to the West?
At various times the British, the US (because the Russians had invaded) and the US again (because Bush wanted to pretend he was doing something about Bin Laden) have all invaded / sponsored bloody conflicts.
Because you elected Bush.
See also ‘Iraq WMDs’.
Scene: An Afghan town.
One local leader is pleading for calm, stopping heroin production and making peace with neighbours.
The local Al-Qaeda man says the Americans are bloodthirsty killers and they need to be taught a lesson.
During the debate a Predator drone wipes out the local School.
The locals lynch the leader and sign up to kill Americans.
We went into Afghanistan primarily to break up Al Qaeda. If we gave a fuck about the Afghans’ freedom, we would’ve done it without being provoked. And we remain there to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a failed state. Now, I will certainly agree that we haven’t exactly executed brilliantly over there, and Iraq is surely a distraction. But, in the end, Afghanistan is a sovereign country and they get to run things, internally, the way they want. It is in our interest to keep al Qaeda out of there, even if they turn into a theocratic state with no respect for human rights. There are other ways to address that than us just picking up and leaving.
From the tone of the post, I assumed Tagos was a right-wing fundamentalist from the US.
After all, he wants to use the Predator to kill civilians- and it is a US missile…
I love wars that stretch on for so long that everyone’s forgotten why they were waged. 60 years ago the OP would be all “Why are we fighting in France? All it’s doing is making the Germans bomb us!”
I’m confused by the OP’s logic. As near as I can tell, it runs something like this:
The Afghani government was going to kill an Afghani man because of something he downloaded off the internet. Therefore, we should indiscriminatly kill Afghanis, because they’re all savages who don’t deserve to live. Including, presumably, the one originally sentenced to death.
It seems to me that the OP is outraged at the Afghani government for treating Afghans exactly the way he wants them to be treated. Which leaves me a little confused as to why he’s so angry.
Then like it or lump it, I’m inclined to lump you with tagos–as a savage and a piece of shit.
Signed, Sophistry and Illusion
(one of the Dopers who has actually spent years living and working with Muslims and finds them, shockingly, to be human beings who don’t deserve to be indiscriminately slaughtered)
