Press Sides W/ Taliban

[drlogic]

POOR TALIBAN! TERRORISM AND KILLING THE INOCCENT IS OKAY, BUT NOT TAUNTING THE TALIBAN. SHAME ON YOU, MEAN OLE AMERICANS!!!

SHAME ON YOU TOM ALLARD FOR TRYING TO UNDERMINE THE WAR ON TERROR. YOU'RE SIDING W/ THE ENEMY FUCK FACE!!! COWARD! PUSSYBITCH! I THINK HE SHOULD NOT BE PROTECTED IN THAT REGION. IF THERE ARE SOLDIERS PROTECTING HIM, THEY SHOULD LEAVE HIM ON HIS OWN AND LET THE TALIBAN PROTECT HIM. CALL ME CRAZY??

Film rolls as troops burn dead

By Tom Allard

October 19, 2005

US soldiers in Afghanistan burnt the bodies of dead Taliban and taunted their opponents about the corpses, in an act deeply offensive to Muslims and in breach of the Geneva conventions.

An investigation by SBS's Dateline program, to be aired tonight, filmed the burning of the bodies.

It also filmed a US Army psychological operations unit broadcasting a message boasting of the burnt corpses into a village believed to be harbouring Taliban.

According to an SBS translation of the message, delivered in the local language, the soldiers accused Taliban fighters near Kandahar of being "cowardly dogs". "You allowed your fighters to be laid down facing west and burnt. You are too scared to retrieve their bodies. This just proves you are the lady boys we always believed you to be," the message reportedly said.

"You attack and run away like women. You call yourself Taliban but you are a disgrace to the Muslim religion, and you bring shame upon your family. Come and fight like men instead of the cowardly dogs you are."

AdvertisementAdvertisement

The burning of a body is a deep insult to Muslims. Islam requires burial within 24 hours.

Under the Geneva conventions the burial of war dead "should be honourable, and, if possible, according to the rites of the religion to which the deceased belonged".

US soldiers said they burnt the bodies for hygiene reasons but two reporters, Stephen Dupont and John Martinkus, said the explanation was unbelievable, given they were in an isolated area.

SBS said Australian special forces in Afghanistan were operating from the same base as the US soldiers involved in the incident, although no Australians took part in the action.

The incident is reminiscent of the psychological techniques used in Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

[kramadas]

Wrong is wrong. The ends never justify the means - soldiers taking matters into their own hands and breaking military rules are wrong. Doesn't matter whether you or I think its legit or not, laws are laws.

[kramadas]

(CNN) -- The American military and the Afghan government say they are investigating allegations that U.S. soldiers burned the bodies of killed Taliban fighters.

The U.S. military said Thursday it found the claims "repugnant" and would investigate an Australian television report in which they were first made.

A spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai added that his government had launched its own probe into the alleged desecration.

"We strongly condemn any disrespect to human bodies regardless of whether they are those of enemies or friends," spokesman Karim Rahimi told The Associated Press.

Australia's SBS television network broadcast footage Wednesday showing purported U.S. soldiers standing by the burning corpses of two suspected Taliban fighters with their bodies laid out facing Mecca.

The footage includes a propaganda message taunting Taliban fighters to retrieve their dead and fight. The footage was filmed in the hills outside the southern village of Gonbaz near the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar, AP said.

SBS said the footage was taken by freelance journalist Stephen Dupont, who told AP he was embedded with the 173rd Airborne Brigade of the U.S. Army earlier this month. Dupont said the burnings happened on October 1.

The U.S. military said the Army's Criminal Investigation Division was investigating what it called "alleged misconduct" by U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan that included "the burning of dead enemy combatant bodies under inappropriate circumstances."

In a statement issued Thursday from the Afghan capital Kabul, U.S. Maj. Gen. Jason Kamiya, Combined Joint Task Force-76 Commander, said: "This command takes all allegations of misconduct or inappropriate behavior seriously and has directed an investigation into circumstances surrounding this allegation.

"This command does not condone the mistreatment of enemy combatants or the desecration of their religious and cultural beliefs," he said.

"This alleged action is repugnant to our common values, is contrary to our command's approved tactical operating procedures, and is not sanctioned by this command.

"Our efforts to thoroughly investigate this allegation are a reflection of our commitment to the government of Afghanistan and the Afghan people."

If the allegations are substantiated, Kamiya said, "the appropriate course of action ... and corrective action will be taken."

U.S. Central Command also issued a release, saying that "recent media reports" showed U.S. soldiers "involved in an incident involving the desecration of the bodies of deceased enemy combatants.

"Under no circumstances does U.S. Central Command condone the desecration, abuse or inappropriate treatment of enemy combatants," the release said.

The U.S. military operation in Afghanistan started a month after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. It ousted the Taliban government that harbored the al Qaeda terror network responsible for those attacks.

Fighting in the country has persisted, particularly along and near the Afghan-Pakistani border, where remnants of the Taliban have endured over the years.

[drlogic]

Wrong is wrong...I agree.

Given that this is what the soldiers are being "accused" of, I'll bite my tongue on this.

It's just amazing to see the where the critics love to foucs attn. on. If I landed here from another planet, I'd have to assume the press was pro-terrorist and anti-America. I'd have to assume America was the enemy and our soldiers were evil.

That's hardley the case but it's the impression that's given. Just thinking aloud. Just reminds me of how some people just don't get it. Micro-managing war is a recipe for failure. Again, right is right and wrong is wrong and we'll have to see how this story plays out. 2 dead Taliban corps burned and the remaining terrorist hiding in the town are taunted by the troops to come out and fight.

My gut reaction is,,,"OKAY?? SO??? Track the fuckers down, coax them out of their caves and kill 'em!" But I guess that's just not fair in the eyes of the critics. To them, that's just wrong........I call it WAR!

[igloo]

Wrong is wrong. The ends never justify the means - soldiers taking matters into their own hands and breaking military rules are wrong. Doesn't matter whether you or I think its legit or not, laws are laws.

I agree that wrong is wrong........I guess it would be nice if our enemy abided by the same rules of war, had military laws, adhered to the laws of humanity, respected human rights, etc, etc, etc.......it would also be nice if the media recognized that, and did not elevate every mistake or transgression on our end as some type of moral equivalency,

Yes, it IS what separates us from them, and we should subscribe and adhere to a higher standard.....it is what makes us better than them....it is also our greatest obstacle to winning as well, which when you are in a war, kinda have to do......they turn our greatest strengths and exploit them into weakness, aided by the useful idiots in the media...........this is a war that is unlike one we have ever fought, against an enemy that has no boundaries.......there will be more outrage over this incident than the repulsive acts of the other side that is INTEGRAL to their war strategy......

I tell you this, we would have never have won WWII under the same type of scrutiny

[kramadas]

true, didn't say I agree with them. Especially since they were dead anyway. If they were alive, yeah, I'd all be for blood, but they were dead.

Guess thats the war of the 21st century - its a war about fighting as much as a cultural sensitivity and/or a moral war. Winning WWII under this scrutiny would be up in the air but then that was a much different era where the two sides were equally matched militarily. Trust me, if the Taliban had the power of Hitler's armies, and it was REALLY our asses on the line (not some remote terrorist threat), I'm sure the media won't be reporting stuff like this. Hell, even if they did, no-one would care. But the power dynamics are quite different here.

Having said that though - I'm sure there are real atrocities being committed by both sides that go unreported.

[kramadas]

there will be more outrage over this incident than the repulsive acts of the other side that is INTEGRAL to their war strategy......

I tell you this, we would have never have won WWII under the same type of scrutiny

yeah, but pretty much everyone is against those strategies (and the Taliban) anyway, so outrage against it is just wasted emotion. Do you know what I mean? In this particular incidence since it was the Taliban who were targeted I really don't give a shit...its only when innocents are being tortured that it gets to me.

OK, I can't even write straight anymore - back to studying for my exam.\

[drlogic]

I agree that wrong is wrong........I guess it would be nice if our enemy abided by the same rules of war, had military laws, adhered to the laws of humanity, respected human rights, etc, etc, etc.......it would also be nice if the media recognized that, and did not elevate every mistake or transgression on our end as some type of moral equivalency,

Yes, it IS what separates us from them, and we should subscribe and adhere to a higher standard.....it is what makes us better than them....it is also our greatest obstacle to winning as well, which when you are in a war, kinda have to do......they turn our greatest strengths and exploit them into weakness, aided by the useful idiots in the media...........this is a war that is unlike one we have ever fought, against an enemy that has no boundaries.......there will be more outrage over this incident than the repulsive acts of the other side that is INTEGRAL to their war strategy......

I tell you this, we would have never have won WWII under the same type of scrutiny

EXACTLY!

Sadly though, the critics and media don't want us to win. They are America-haters and have a vested interest in America NOT succeeding. The fail to see the bigger picture and how they will be directly affected if their wishes come true. They are short sighted and clueless as to how democracy and caplitalism work. They don't understand the threat terrorism poses! They just don't get it! They are walking/talking enigmas!

They are pro-abortion, but anti-death penalty?

They are against drilling for oil and building new refineries while complaining about high gas prices?

and so on,,and so on and so on..............

Personally, I kinda blame today's republicans for "playing nice" w/ liberals. Liberals only see it as a weakness and just attack more. Just like leaving Iraq would be seen as a weakness only increasing terrorism.

These type of people get on their soap boxes claiming to speak for the people when in reality, it's ALL ABOUT THEM and making themselves feel better.

What they don't get is that if we keep fighting this war by the rules the critics keep demanding, it will only lead to death on a scale much greater than they're capable of accepting.

If the critics succeed, the day will come when we will have no choice but to DETER futer attacks via dropping the bomb! THE BIG BOMB! How many inoccent will die then? We dropped them on Japan and it worked. I'm sure it will work again. It's just that these critics JUST DON'T GET IT! They don't bring solutions they only COMPOUND THE PROBLEM and PROLONG THE SUFFERING as a result of their short sighted, misguided ideologically driven psycho-babble.

They better pray we're successful now!

[igloo]

true, didn't say I agree with them. Especially since they were dead anyway. If they were alive, yeah, I'd all be for blood, but they were dead.

Guess thats the war of the 21st century - its a war about fighting as much as a cultural sensitivity and/or a moral war. Winning WWII under this scrutiny would be up in the air but then that was a much different era where the two sides were equally matched militarily. Trust me, if the Taliban had the power of Hitler's armies, and it was REALLY our asses on the line (not some remote terrorist threat), I'm sure the media won't be reporting stuff like this. Hell, even if they did, no-one would care. But the power dynamics are quite different here.

Having said that though - I'm sure there are real atrocities being committed by both sides that go unreported.

We would have never have won WWII under teh same scrutiny....the measures that the U.S. govt took back then in the name of "time of war" were unreal compared to today......today, there is mass hysteria and UNDERMINING at unacceptable levels for anything and everything.......

Again, some of the thigs that makes our country and way of life great are also the very things that put us at a HUGE disadvantage against a shadow enemy with no boundaries, standing armies, respects for anything etc......they do everything in their power to commit atrocities and kill innocents so they get media coverage, and destroy the will and resolve of our people.....we do everything in our power to avoid those things, and are held to a standard that is impossible to achieve, and every mistake is disproportinately presented, over and over and over and over.......

And when I talk about the enemy, I am not talking about the Taliban, or even Al Qaeda, but the shadowy world of intertwined Muslim terrorist groups, Arab intelligence services, radical mosques, and hateful ideology ....so, to compare the Taliban against Hitler is useless.....but to compare todays threat and real enemy to Hitler is the same...the threat is the same, how they fight is different.......we saw first hand the power of a some "remote terrorist threat' on 9/11.........imagine if they had nukes on board...it many ways, the threat today is greater......at least Hitler had a standing army to fight toe to toe, which made people "understand" and grasp it was a war....

The problem today is most do not believe we are truly at WAR......a completely different kind but war it is.....everyday, in countless countries.....unfortunately, most see this through the narrow prism of Iraq (and the endless doom and gloom fed by the media).......and believe me, I blame the Bush administration for doing a horrific job of articulating the true nature of what we are up against (they dumbed it down for the AMerican people instead of challenging the American people to understand the task at hand)...last week, Bush gave his first speech that I thought (and many pundits who get it) finally spelled out the "war on terror"....

I believe our asses are on the line...big time....not just the U.S., but Western civilization.....the threat is very real, and will be for decades and decades....the bigger question is do we the capacity to grasp the threat, do our leaders have the will to fight this war to win, and do the AMerican people and Western civilization have the resolve to see this through......because those aligned against us are counting that the will and resolve is not there, and time is on their side...

[drlogic]

We would have never have won WWII under teh same scrutiny....the measures that the U.S. govt took back then in the name of "time of war" were unreal compared to today......today, there is mass hysteria and UNDERMINING at unacceptable levels for anything and everything.......

Again, some of the thigs that makes our country and way of life great are also the very things that put us at a HUGE disadvantage against a shadow enemy with no boundaries, standing armies, respects for anything etc......they do everything in their power to commit atrocities and kill innocents so they get media coverage, and destroy the will and resolve of our people.....we do everything in our power to avoid those things, and are held to a standard that is impossible to achieve, and every mistake is disproportinately presented, over and over and over and over.......

And when I talk about the enemy, I am not talking about the Taliban, or even Al Qaeda, but the shadowy world of intertwined Muslim terrorist groups, Arab intelligence services, radical mosques, and hateful ideology ....so, to compare the Taliban against Hitler is useless.....but to compare todays threat and real enemy to Hitler is the same...the threat is the same, how they fight is different.......we saw first hand the power of a some "remote terrorist threat' on 9/11.........imagine if they had nukes on board...it many ways, the threat today is greater......at least Hitler had a standing army to fight toe to toe, which made people "understand" and grasp it was a war....

The problem today is most do not believe we are truly at WAR......a completely different kind but war it is.....everyday, in countless countries.....unfortunately, most see this through the narrow prism of Iraq (and the endless doom and gloom fed by the media).......and believe me, I blame the Bush administration for doing a horrific job of articulating the true nature of what we are up against (they dumbed it down for the AMerican people instead of challenging the American people to understand the task at hand)...last week, Bush gave his first speech that I thought (and many pundits who get it) finally spelled out the "war on terror"....

I believe our asses are on the line...big time....not just the U.S., but Western civilization.....the threat is very real, and will be for decades and decades....the bigger question is do we the capacity to grasp the threat, do our leaders have the will to fight this war to win, and do the AMerican people and Western civilization have the resolve to see this through......because those aligned against us are counting that the will and resolve is not there, and time is on their side...

Ain't dat da' troof!

Well put!

It's definitely time to stand up and be counted! The fence sitters who just wait for any bit of bad news to start bitching again are also part of the problem. I agree on the speech given by Bush last week! Long overdue! In the meantime, it allowed a lot of the critics to marinate in half truths and propaganda to the point that they actually believe the what they say/write as being undeniable truth. It didn't have to happen that way. Another price being paid for "being nice"(aka-new tone). If the Ameircan people kept electing republicans over and over again, then damn it give the people what they want. They want Republicans to be conservative and not be shy about it. YOU WON! AMERICA REJECTED LIBERALISM AND CHOSE CONSERVATISM! START ACTING LIKE IT! TAKE NO PRISONERS! SHOVE THE CONSERVATIVE AGENDA RIGHT DOWN THE LIBERALS THROATS! If the script were flipped, do you have any doubt that liberal would not be shoving liberalism down conservatives throats? Think about it?

Anyway, good post Igloo!