That was fast

Submitted by gjohnsit on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:01pm

The speed of the collapse of our puppet Afghan government surprises even me.

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(AP) — Afghanistan’s embattled president left the country Sunday, joining thousands of his fellow citizens and foreigners in a stampede fleeing the advancing Taliban and signaling the end of a 20-year Western experiment aimed at remaking the country.
...
The city was gripped by panic, with helicopters racing overhead throughout the day to evacuate personnel from the U.S. Embassy. Smoke rose near the compound as staff destroyed important documents, and the American flag was lowered. Several other Western missions also prepared to pull their people out.

Afghans fearing that the Taliban could reimpose the kind of brutal rule that all but eliminated women’s rights rushed to leave the country, lining up at cash machines to withdraw their life savings. The desperately poor — who had left homes in the countryside for the presumed safety of the capital — remained in parks and open spaces throughout the city.

Though the Taliban had promised a peaceful transition, the U.S. Embassy suspended operations and warned Americans late in the day to shelter in place and not try to get to the airport.
...
Still, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken rejected comparisons to the U.S. pullout from Vietnam, as many watched in disbelief at the sight of helicopters landing in the embassy compound to take diplomats to a new outpost at Kabul International Airport.

“This is manifestly not Saigon,” he said on ABC’s “This Week.”

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The Taliban did all of this in essentially 10 days.
Too late to halt the evacuation now.

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afghanistan
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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:12pm
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Damn right. It was one hell of a lot quicker.

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Submitted by edg on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:29pm
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@CB

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Submitted by The Liberal Moonbat on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:54pm
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@CB Vintage4Chan.jpg

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In the Land of the Blind, the One-Eyed Man is declared mentally ill for describing colors.

Yes Virginia, there is a Global Banking Conspiracy!

Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:06pm
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@The Liberal Moonbat  
Except that when it was the U.S. and its allies under G.H.W. Bush doing the victory dance, “our” side bombed, burned, and blew up all the retreating people caught in traffic, creating the “Highway of Death.”

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2016/05/the-highway-of-death.html

So, so far the Taliban is way more humane than the U.S. and Canadian forces were.

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Submitted by gjohnsit on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:40pm

an evil man dies

John Rizzo, a self-described “company man” who worked as a CIA lawyer for more than three decades, laying the legal groundwork for proxy wars, drone strikes and the “enhanced interrogation” program, in which terrorism suspects were tortured in secret prisons overseas, died Aug. 6 at his home in Washington. He was 73.
...
A five-year Senate investigation into the interrogation program concluded in 2014 that it was more brutal and less effective than the agency had let on, with one CIA interrogator quoted as saying that some prisoners “literally looked like a dog that had been kenneled.” Waterboarding left one detainee, known as Abu Zubaida, “completely unresponsive,” according to the Senate report, “with bubbles rising through his open, full mouth.”

Mr. Rizzo, like the CIA directors under whom he worked, argued that the program yielded crucial intelligence before it was discontinued in the mid-2000s. He visited secret CIA “black sites” such as the Salt Pit in Afghanistan, where detainees were interrogated, and came away satisfied that the operation was well run. Top CIA officials said he temporarily shut down the program in response to changes to the law.

I watched this video today.

But when you go there you will see this first.

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:52pm

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Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:53pm

or not covered as fully.

Taliban in Dostrum home

Political pundit and MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan said the footage served as a reminder that the “corrupt warlords we allied with in Afghanistan all these years have been pretty awful.”

Was Dostrum dumb enough to believe US military 'intelligence' that he had up to a year to load his loot on airplanes?

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:59pm

@Marie It is quite an eye opener as to the US enabled corruption.

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Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:07pm

@humphrey
media extensively covers the lush (or ostentatiously tacky) of a fleeing (or dead) US enemy dictator or legitimately elected head of state. And in those cases, all that wealth is rarely acquired by direct payments from the USA.

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Submitted by gjohnsit on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:15pm

@Marie
We knew exactly who we were getting into bed with.

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Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:33pm

@gjohnsit @gjohnsit
with war criminals since at least 1945. Although when they are no longer of use, the US is doesn't hesitate to throw them under the bus (or tanks).

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 3:54pm

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:08pm

Must be a slow day as this was his last tweet!

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:17pm

https://thehill.com/policy/defense/567952-pentagon-authorizes-sending-ad...

The Pentagon has reportedly authorized the deployment of 1,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, bringing the total number of troops on the ground to 6,000 as the Taliban continues its advances in the capital city of Kabul.

Reuters reported on Sunday that the additional troops will be drawn from the 82nd Airborne Division, which was already on standby.

The news of additional troops being sent to Afghanistan comes after President Biden announced on Saturday that the U.S. would send 1,000 more troops to Afghanistan to assist with evacuating U.S. personnel, and after the Pentagon revealed on Thursday that it was deploying 3,000 more troops to the country to help facilitate the withdrawal of embassy staff.

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Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:08pm

@humphrey @humphrey you're discussing this issue.

My question for the last few hours is why are we sending thousands of troops to Afghanistan Now??

"Helping with evacuation," is senseless to me. Flying in nearly Empty planes would be more helpful than sending in more people. Yes? no?

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NYCVG

Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:21pm

@NYCVG
than embassy staff?

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Submitted by QMS on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:30pm
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and his statement almost makes sense.
This is not Saigon.
Good geography there Blinkers.

Same shit, different location.
Let's talk about the failure of US foreign policy.
There are similarities for future historians to ponder.

Not now, though.
Another military failure for which there is no blame.
The ingrates who are left hanging in Kabul is no fault
of the current regime. Sloppy Joe.

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Submitted by Johnny Q on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 4:40pm

@QMS "Baghdad Blinken" but we'd be better off waiting until history repeats itself in actual Baghdad.

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They say that there's a broken light for every heart on Broadway
They say that life's a game and then they take the board away
They give you masks and costumes and an outline of the story
And leave you all to improvise their vicious cabaret-- A. Moore

Submitted by The Liberal Moonbat on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:16pm
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@Johnny Q Call him "Mister Saigon".

Can't wait for the French to start a jeer-campaign so that the world will still be calling Americans "surrender-monkeys" in 60 years.

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In the Land of the Blind, the One-Eyed Man is declared mentally ill for describing colors.

Yes Virginia, there is a Global Banking Conspiracy!

Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:11pm

"Second, prepare the helos. Saigon, 1975. Kabul, 2021. No. We will not change or learn. The current path yields billions of dollars for the Chosen and death to vast numbers of human fodder in countries we target and in our own country from neglect.

I had to smirk as I read the reports from Kabul. One said that Kabul will fall in 30 days and another said 90 days. I give it a week or two. Another American tragedy brought to you with our tax dollars and the corrupted assassin agencies which call themselves, hilariously, Intelligence Agencies."

So glad you posted this thread, gjohnsit. I thought we had a week. Writing or two was me being polite. 3 days!!!

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NYCVG

Submitted by gjohnsit on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 6:41pm

@NYCVG

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Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 7:25pm

@gjohnsit to be more wrong than Biden is here.

Unless, this always was the plan. Fakery until the final seconds.

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NYCVG

Submitted by ggersh on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 7:43pm
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@NYCVG https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4973535/user-clip-george-w-bush-april-17-...

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I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish

"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"

Heard from Margaret Kimberley

Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:57pm

@ggersh @ggersh Take the money and run.

Very apt quote. Biden is the fall guy.
His "America is Back" declaration is even more ridiculous now that it was when he said it.

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NYCVG

Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:13pm

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:58pm
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@humphrey

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Submitted by ggersh on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:21pm
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for those that lost their lives, limbs and minds!

https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/figures/2019/direct-war-death-toll-2...

The best link I could find is this one which is meh at best

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I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish

"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"

Heard from Margaret Kimberley

Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:45pm
CB's picture

Afghani soldiers fall to the Taliban in less than a week.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gr4flcOF_sc]
“It’s not a question of whether they have the capacity. They have the capacity. They have the forces. They have the equipment. The question is, will they do it?” - “It is not inevitable. The likelihood that there’s going to be a Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely.” - Joe Biden, Commander In Chief.

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 5:50pm

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Submitted by Battle of Blair... on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 6:21pm

If you have to invoke the word Saigon, it's Saigon. 100%, pure, unadulterated Saigon.

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 6:23pm
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Traffic gridlock

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Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 7:23pm

@CB those people feel.

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NYCVG

Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:06pm

@NYCVG

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Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:14pm
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@NYCVG  
shown enough restraint and self-discipline to NOT burn those people to a crisp, creating a “Highway of Death.”

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2016/05/the-highway-of-death.html

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Submitted by Linda Wood on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 6:54pm

has great essays and comments in the last 2 days about this crisis or catharsis, depending on how it shocks you. But the best references were to quotes of Zbigniew Brzezinski bragging about our building the terrorist forces BEFORE the Soviets entered the war, direct evidence WE built the forces that enslaved women, and especially this report by Pepe Escobar about the Taliban leadership meeting with Chinese and Russian decision-makers.

The Taliban go to Tianjin - Asia Times

https://asiatimes.com/2021/07/the-taliban-go-to-tianjin/

China and Russia will be key to solving an ancient geopolitical riddle: how to pacify the 'graveyard of empires'

By PEPE ESCOBARJULY 29, 2021

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:21pm
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What a slap in the face for the US. Maybe Blinken and Biden can blame the Russians?

Russia says no plan to evacuate Kabul embassy
Updated: 12 hours ago

Russia does not plan to evacuate its embassy in Kabul as Taliban fighters reached the outskirts of the Afghan capital in their blistering military takeover of the country, foreign ministry official Zamir Kabulov told Russian agencies Sunday.

"No evacuation is planned," Kabulov said, adding that he was "in direct contact" with Moscow's ambassador in Kabul and that Russian embassy employees continued to work "calmly".

According to the RIA Novosti agency, Kabulov also said that Russia was among a number of countries to receive assurances from the Taliban that their embassies would be safe.

"We received these guarantees a while ago. It was not only about Russia," RIA Novosti quoted Kabulov as saying.

The United States and other countries rushed to evacuate their citizens from the capital as Taliban fighters stood on the outskirts of Kabul on Sunday.

The Taliban is on the brink of a complete military takeover of Afghanistan.

The militant group's spokesman said the fighters had been ordered not to enter the city.

Kabul residents reported seeing insurgents peacefully enter some of Kabul's outer suburbs.

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Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:23pm

Taliban spokesman says Afghan War is over, militants convinced 'foreign forces won't repeat failed experience in Afghanistan.

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Though Kabul was seemingly taken bloodlessly, following the abrupt departure of President Ashraf Ghani, reports of executions and violent payback against those loyal to Ghani’s government shadowed the Taliban’s lightning march on the capital. To these concerns, the Taliban spokesman said that his group would offer amnesty to former government loyalists, and would safeguard foreign embassies and diplomatic missions to Afghanistan.
...

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Submitted by Shahryar on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:30pm
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That's a lot of time to do good things. I'm gonna guess we weren't interested in helping the Afghan people.

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:44pm
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@Shahryar
we were pillaging the country while enriching the military-industrial complex.

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:44pm

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Submitted by Marie on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:13pm

@humphrey
the Trump media frenzy that began with his ride down his escalator in June 2015.

Trump didn't have the cajones to say that it was time to get out of there. Republicans would have backed him and Democrats would have been left in a box defending another of Bush's foreign adventures. Ford (another accidental President) didn't get much blame for the US final exit in Vietnam.

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:43pm
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@Marie
He tried but ultimately failed. The "blob" was too strong.

The Deep State Thwarted Trump’s Afghanistan Withdrawal
May 20, 2021

Donald Trump wanted to bring American troops home, but Washington’s perpetual war lobby dug deep to defeat him, and us.

To his credit, President Joe Biden decided to pull American troops out of Afghanistan by September. However, they aren’t out yet. And President Donald Trump’s struggle against his own staff and the military brass demonstrates the power of Washington, D.C.’s war lobby. If there is conflict anywhere in the world, the latter wants America in it.

Indeed, Trump’s presidency highlighted the breadth and depth of what is commonly called the deep state. He stood almost alone within the Beltway in seeking to end what he knew was a foolish military enterprise. And not just in Afghanistan.

However, he proved unable to halt even one “endless war.” When he conducted a Pentagon purge in his administration’s waning days, outsiders feared a coup attempt. But Trump was merely attempting to fulfill his long-held objective of bringing American troops home. According to Jonathan Swan and Zachary Basu of Axios, “For all the feverish media speculation about the president’s secret agenda at the Pentagon, the ultimate goal was simple: Steamroll the generals and extract America from its foreign engagements, leaving behind a done deal that could not be easily reversed by the next administration.”
...
However, becoming president didn’t mean that Trump actually made policy. Wrote Swan and Basu: “Once in office, though, Trump’s ambitions to withdraw from Afghanistan and other countries were subdued, slow-rolled, and detoured by military leaders.” Almost everyone else in Washington seemed determined to fight not just one but several “endless wars” and do so, well, endlessly. Members of the blob, as the permanent foreign policy establishment has been called, appeared to want U.S. troops stationed in every nation on earth.
...
The Trump experience offers a warning to any future president who challenges Washington’s permanent war culture and its enablers.

The president controls only one aspect of his presidency: his staff. He doesn’t choose legislators, journalists, bureaucrats, or lobbyists. Nor does he select foreign leaders and events. Unfortunately, Trump didn’t understand the importance of choosing his people carefully.

Swan and Basu noted that “Trump would grow more and more frustrated. He had become convinced that the Pentagon was working against him, boxing him into staying in countries that he broadly viewed as terrorist-filled gas stations in a desert.” And Trump was right. The Defense Department’s objective evidently was to never leave any spot on earth where U.S. military forces range. This official obstruction was especially effective because of his neglect, however. Swan and Basu explained, “He would rant about ‘deep state’ subversion, but those talking him out of his instincts were mostly people that he himself had appointed.” He gave away authority over his own presidency.
...

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Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:08pm

@Marie @Marie .and CB about enriching himself.

He could not understand that there is a portion of our society that focuses on enriching themselves Plus one select group of wealthy Americans. He had no chance of defeating or influencing the MIC.

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Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:29pm
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@NYCVG  
FTFY (for mimi: “fixed that for you”).

Barack Obama, of the nine-figure Netflix deal, the gold-plated 44x60 birthday bash, the beachfront spreads in Hawaii and on Martha’s Vineyard, and the $65 million book advance?

Trump was already rich and all the business ventures associated with him have actually suffered and lost value since he went into politics and half the country declared themselves his implacable enemy.

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Submitted by NYCVG on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 8:57am

@lotlizard His party with the guest list revised to include only the richest and most famous proved that.

of course, it was obvious long before.

but not my point.

Trump could not see beyond himself and you can say the same thing about Obama.

Neither understood that the country modus operandi was the continuing enrichment of an entire class. The Military Industrial Complex.

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Submitted by Marie on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 1:13pm

@NYCVG

His party with the guest list revised to include only the richest and most famous proved that.

Because except for a handful, the 400+ guest list is classified information. If O had nothing to hide, the guest list would have been published.

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Submitted by CB on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 5:42pm
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@NYCVG
It is now the Military-Industrial-Military-Congressional-Media Class

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 8:54pm

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Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:06pm
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by the U.S. in Afghanistan. China saw the writing on the wall.

China Preparing to Recognize Taliban if Kabul Falls: Sources

The move comes at the expense of the U.S., which has held up the Taliban’s international legitimacy as its remaining source of leverage while the militant group storms across Afghanistan.

China is prepared to recognize the Taliban as the legitimate ruler of Afghanistan if it succeeds in toppling the Western-backed government in Kabul, U.S. News has learned, a prospect that undercuts the Biden administration's remaining source of leverage over the insurgent network as it continues its startling campaign to regain control.

Beijing has publicly pressured the Taliban to continue working toward a peace agreement with President Ashraf Ghani's government – an outcome China appears to genuinely prefer and one the U.S. has pressed with growing urgency. However, new Chinese military and intelligence assessments of the realities on the ground in Afghanistan have prompted leaders in the Chinese Communist Party to prepare to formalize their relationship with the insurgent network, according to multiple U.S. and foreign intelligence sources familiar with the Chinese assessments.
...
At stake for Beijing are agreements it has already secured from the Taliban not to harbor inside Afghanistan any Islamic extremists with designs to wage insurgencies in parts of western China, notably the restive Xinjiang province – a promise that far exceeds anything the U.S. has been able to extract with regard to the persistent threats of al-Qaida operatives partnered with the Taliban.
...
What is clear from China's latest moves, however, is that the shifting U.S. goals for Afghanistan have not succeeded.

Adds Sun, "Fundamentally, what's implied is that the recognition of the legitimacy of the Taliban equates to the total failure of the 20 years of war by the U.S. in Afghanistan."

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Submitted by Raggedy Ann on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 9:58pm
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a laughing stock. Tails tucked between our legs, we flee. Turn out the lights, the party's over in Afghanistan.

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:05pm

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Submitted by NYCVG on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:10pm

@humphrey @humphrey Dan Rather states the obvious.

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Submitted by Marie on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 12:39pm

@NYCVG
too bad Rather tossed away his reputation on a report on GWB that lacked solid verification and/or documentation and accepted what was likely a forgery.

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Submitted by humphrey on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:29pm

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Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:56pm
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@humphrey  
https://caitlinjohnstone.com/2021/08/15/stop-believing-us-military-invas...

(Edited to fix Caity’s name, which I initially misspelled)

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Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:52pm
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was making deals with the Taliban, but this just shows how hypocritical congress is. Depends on what team has the football I guess.

Biden recently bombed a hospital that killed lots of civilians including a woman who had just given birth. But sure they blame others for what they themselves do.

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There were problems with running a campaign of Joy while committing a genocide? Who could have guessed?

Harris is unburdened of speaking going forward.

Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:37pm
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@snoopydawg  
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=obama+doctors+borders+kunduz+hospital

Pepperidge Farm remembers.

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Submitted by on the cusp on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 12:00am

@lotlizard Obama's apology was both eloquent and sincere. (gag)
He was just all that. (actual puke) Remember? He bragged about being good at killing some folks, and about drilling and producing more oil that anybody evah.
I suspect you are, like me, pissed you didn't get the 60th b'day invite, but I completely understand my lowly position, but you just haven't had that personal reckoning. (bowl eruption)
Uh...later....

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Submitted by CB on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:57pm
CB's picture

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQhRsR7UdWw]

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Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 11:53pm
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Just a slight adjustment after seeing what’s happening on the ground…

Smile

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There were problems with running a campaign of Joy while committing a genocide? Who could have guessed?

Harris is unburdened of speaking going forward.

Submitted by CB on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 12:28am
CB's picture

@snoopydawg
give amnesty if the Afghan army put down their weapons. But, if the US is going to continue to bomb them they may start to kill any Afghani military AND their families in retribution. This would turn the country into a bloodbath.

US Embassy in Afghanistan tells staff to destroy sensitive materials
...
The Afghan Air Force has significantly increased the number of airstrikes it is carrying out against the Taliban, according to the diplomatic source, concentrating those strikes on the southern part of the country.

In the past 72 hours, the Afghan Ministry of Defense claims on Twitter it killed approximately 1,000 Taliban militants in districts throughout the country, including the south.

"They have an air force - a capable air force - which, oh by the way, is flying more airstrikes than we are every day," Pentagon spokesperson Kirby said at a press briefing Friday. "They have the material - the physical, tangible advantages [over the Taliban]. It's time now to use those advantages."
...

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Submitted by NYCVG on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 9:04am

@snoopydawg after the fact.

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NYCVG

Submitted by humphrey on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 12:18am

It didn't take long for the Twittersphere to respond.

Worth a chuckle.

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Submitted by snoopydawg on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 12:49am
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@humphrey

The memes that people are going to come up with are endless. Biden is apparently at camp David and you can just imagine the howls that would be howling if Trump stayed at Mar McGoo while Afghanistan was falling. Biden’s statement on the situation is that he will address the country in a few days. Umm I think he’s statement on how the situation cannot be compared to Vietnam said it all…

Republicans are ticked about how bad it is but Trump basically tied Biden’s hands unless he called it off, but then the troops would have paid the price. That he bombed them recently was ballsy, IMO.
Now the joint chiefs are bloviating about how much of a threat Afghanistan is towards us again. Funny I don’t remember them attacking us.

Hey anyone remember the videos of the terrorist's training camps when they showed men on monkey bars? lol seriously did anyone fall for that?

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There were problems with running a campaign of Joy while committing a genocide? Who could have guessed?

Harris is unburdened of speaking going forward.

Submitted by usefewersyllables on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 8:56am
usefewersyllables's picture

@snoopydawg

that all those monkey-bar barriers they just put up around the capital and the white house aren't going to work?

They are *way* ahead of us. "Mr. President! We cannot afford a monkey-bar gap!"...

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Twice bitten, permanently shy.

Submitted by mimi on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 2:44am
mimi's picture

coming here late, I am glad that it ends. Though I don't believe it. It will be just relocated to another place.

Hope you all are not suffering. Rumbling along is all right now.

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https://www.euronews.com/live

Submitted by lotlizard on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 3:25am
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https://www.macrumors.com/2006/11/22/palm-ceo-on-apple-iphone-threat/

“We've learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent Afghani regime,” he said. “Sharia-law guys are not going to just figure this out. They're not going to just walk in.”

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Submitted by lotlizard on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 9:37am
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https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/us-afghanistan-war-resounding-succ...

Twenty years after the events of 9/11 and the US invasion of Afghanistan, the US is in a much stronger military position globally than it has ever been. That this military power lacks moral authority is entirely irrelevant; it is mirrored by Israel’s land theft in Palestine, the Saudi-Emirati invasion of Yemen, the Turkish military incursions into Syria, and Russia’s ever-bolder presence in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Arab world.

Over the last 20 years, the Afghanistan war has been a key strategic success for the US in this larger theatre of operations. They now know the terrain far better than they ever did, and are poised to counter the Russian and Chinese spheres of influence.

There is nothing sillier than the cliched assumption of Afghanistan as the “graveyard of empires”. The US empire did not die in Afghanistan, nor did Russian imperial designs before it. Quite the contrary: both the US and Russia are robust military and imperial machines at work from Central Asia to the Indian Ocean and beyond. Their only real rival is China.

After 20 long years, $2 trillion in military spending, and thousands of American and Afghan lives, the US saw its arms industry enriched, its newest weaponry tested, and its military officers rising through the ranks. They learned from the Taliban the means and ways of fighting guerrilla warfare. Russia recently offered the US the use of Russian military bases in Central Asia for “information gathering” from Afghanistan. What sort of a “graveyard” of empires is this?

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