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November 1, 2011 |
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Photo by Thomas Terrio |
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Time to bring the troops home |
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By Thomas Terrio |
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Afterthoughts |
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In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men the great difficulty lies in this: You must first enable the government to control the governed, and in the next place, oblige it to control itself. |
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My people love me, all. Muammar al-Gaddafi |
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After 12 American soldiers and one Canadian advisor die along with several civilians in a suicide bomb attack this past week-end in Kabul, Afghanistan, one begs the question: When will our politicians finally get the message, people are tired of fighting a war they cannot win at the expense of the nation’s economy, increased national debt, and immense loss of life. The way the present day leadership situation looks, the West may never get out of Afghanistan with either foreign aid or military advisors. Both Canadian and American governments need to fulfill their obligations to the voting public who want nothing more to do with Afghanistan. In my view, Afghanistan is nothing more than a blood sucking money pit in the sand. It is a country that will revert to its previous state with the inevitable return of the Taliban soon after the majority ISAF and NATO troops leave in 2014. The facts speak for themselves; after ten years of fighting a war of insurgency, the Western powers do not have, and never once had, full control of the country; and Pakistan is a serious part of the problem, due to insurgents finding safe haven in the South West Autonomous Territories assisted by the Pakistani Secret Service, the ISI. In a recent television interview, propped-up Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said if war happens between the United States and Pakistan, Afghanistan would fight on the side of Pakistan saying, "If a war ever breaks (out) between Pakistan and America, we will side (with) Pakistan," according to the transcript. "Afghanistan would stand with you. Afghanistan is your brother." Let me make this clear right now, whether President Karzai or anyone else knows it. The five eyes: Canada, Britain, Australia, Israel and the U.S. are already at war, be it undeclared with Pakistan. Since President Barack Obama was elected, almost immediately, President Obama increased drone attacks and surveillance within the borders of both Pakistan and Yemen, which ended in the deaths of the infamous Usama bin Laden and Anwar Awlaki, a radical U.S.-born cleric and prominent voice for Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. What George W. Bush was unable to accomplish in eight years as president, because he refused to challenge Pakistan more openly, Obama did in two years. Even by name, the re-building of Afghanistan has proven to be a mockery to taxpayers in the West since its inception. After all, how can one re-build what was never built to begin with? Politicians argue the world is a much smaller place now and what happens in countries like Afghanistan, if not checked, will affect us here in main street Western countries. I completely disagree. In my opinion, countries like Canada and the U.S. can and should, through the management of immigration, border security services, and pressure with foreign aid, stop acts of terrorism before it reaches the doorstep. As uncertainty deepens in the global economic crisis, Canada and the U.S. should simply be concerned with their own economies and welfare without engaging in long-term foreign adventures, which in the end do nothing to benefit taxpayers other than entities like the Pentagon and corporations like Halliburton. These wars including the prolonged stay in Afghanistan have Middle East oil written all over them. Let’s not be fools here, there is enough crude oil in Canada the U.S. and Mexico to make North America very independent of OPEC. The war in Afghanistan along with its Iraqi adventure has added dearly to the national debt of the U.S. and its allies, with the number of dead rising on a regular basis. When will we learn we cannot force another nation or people to accept our Western culture or values? The recent events in Libya with Western nations exerting NATO air power to force Muammar al-Gaddafi from his dictatorship after forty two years, is one more example of a United Nations decision that will end in another disaster for the Western taxpayer, who’s already in debt for trillions, with the U.S. on the brink of a Second American Revolution and Greece on the verge of default. In my view, the intervention in Libya had nothing to do with protecting civilians, it was simply about regime change. Damn Libyan oil, the new leadership may be more of a demon then the devil that was. It’s time to bring the troops home, all of them, without leaving one military advisor behind. Enough lives have been lost, enough families destroyed, enough money has been spent, and enough misery has been had. Where is the leadership? Where is the one true leader of the free world who will challenge the direction of the West and finally bring an end to this madness labelled “The War on Terror,” where?
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In a global financial crisis Canada and U.S. must focus on their own welfare |
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Edition no. 84 Nov. 1, 2011 |
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Edition no. 84 November 1, 2011 |
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Page design by Thomas Terrio www.viewfromthewest.ca ©2011 All rights reserved |
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View from the West |
