Graeme Smith of the Globe and Mail put together an audio/slide show that is a must-see for Canadians. When we talk of Canadian and Coalition troops being our heroes; and the best that our countries have to offer… this is the reason why: CLICK (crossposted @ Celestial Junk
Ht: Burton Front
Wow! That is certainly not the kind of journalism we are used to seeing from the MSM. Although Graeme Smith might not be popular with his editors I applaud him for putting a real face to this action in Afganistan. People often forget that it wasn’t until Pearson that Canadian soldiers turned into UN nannies, sticking themselves between warring factions. Canadian soldiers have been known as a force to be recconed with time and time again. And they are once again.
Way to go, Graeme!
Language is important, instructive, promotes balanced education. Is “kiss my ass” appropriate headline or even how we would encourage Canadian youth to discourse with one another on a regular basis?
Parents and teachers responsible for youth socialization formation in pre-school, elementary and secondary years. Language is important. Crass presentation should not be our example at any time.
Sorry about the BSc thing on my handle. left over from another thread. Me bad.
Served with the Canadian Armed Forces, proud of them then and proud of them now.
How hot is it under those uniforms?
We’ve just had it too good, with Nanny State taking care of our every need, to grasp how important it is to have Canadian troops over in the ME.
To the people who think it’s time for the Canadian military to get out of Afghanistan: 1) What would happen to the Afghanis if we bring our troops home, and 2) what about our security here at home?
Do you think that no presence in Af’stan is the answer to the terrorists who want to wipe all of us Western non-Muslims out? What parallel Utopian universe are you living in? No war in Afghanistan, no Canadian presence in Af’stan = world peace, or at least peace here in Canada?
Think again.
CNN reports within last hour, Afghanistan’s Karzai is critical of allies killing not only civilians, but Taliban as well. Thought I was hearing things. Time to think.
Canadiana
Now you are beginning to have an inkling of what we are up against over there. It gets worse.
Canadianna: As in all things, consider context, which in this case means taking Karzai’s entire statement as a whole… if you can find it, and always considering the filter of the MSM, whether they paraphrase Jack Layton, or you, or Steve. The CNN take is a stretch, at the most, when taken with other things Karzai said at that press conference.
Here are some headlines:
– Karzai Slams Coalition
– Karzai Urges Expansion of War on Terror
– Karzai criticises foreign tactics
– Karzai says al-Qaida Deputy ‘Enemy of Afghans’
– Karzai urges war on militants beyond Afghan border
Other things he is purported to have said at the press conference are:
“We must engage strategically in disarming terrorism by stopping their sources of supply of money, training, equipment and motivation,”
“He (al-Zawahri) is first the enemy of the Afghan people, and then the enemy of the rest of the world,” Karzai said. “He killed Afghans for years – thousands – and then he went to America and destroyed the twin towers.”
“We are concerned about the increase of attacks in our country… Some of the reasons are the internal weakness of administration in our country, but most of the factors are foreign factors, terrorism and organized attacks.”
Remember during the last Canadian federal election, that the MSM stated that Stephen Harper implied that Conservatives were so extreme that they needed the Supreme Court and Senate to hold them in check… yet, in context, he said and implied no such thing.
So, let’s not get our shorts in a knot until Karzai establishes a consistant pattern saying the same thing.
Debris trail: My shorts are never in a knot, but if you’re looking for same suggest you look at military/industrial/corporate consortium and the calculators in their pockets (possibly substitutes for their failing male organs) with hot fingers ready, willing and able to add up the war machinery profits to tune of $15 billion.
But, on the lighter side of S–t…..
Propaganda of six decades ago is not working this time round.
Here’s a question, why are U.S. forces helmets not bullet proof? Love to hear your answer, debris trail on the schrapnel trail?
Um, no military in the world has a helmet that’s completely bullet proof.
US forces helmets are made of Kevlar same as the vests. It’s as bullet proof as you can get without weighing so much you couldn’t wear the thing.
The problem they have always had is to get them to wear the dam things.
In the first place how do you arrive at 15 billion in profit? We just bought paper airplanes? As for calculators in their hot little hands I hardly think so. It’s a nice order but it aint gonna make or break Boeings year. Or anyone elses for that matter.
Exactly jeff. There’s no such thing as a “bullet proof” helmet. Bullet resistant certainly, as in it’ll slow the bullet down enough so it might not come out the other side of your head. They’re only designed to deflect glancing blows. Not only does jeff make a good point that a truly “bullet proof” helmet would be too heavy to wear with current technology, but no matter what, a direct hit from a bullet would snap your neck if it actually did stop the bullet. It’s physics. The energy expended is too much. Now the new US helmets that are replacing the K-Pot are lighter, more comfortable, and give better protection(‘course I only wore mine on jumps, but whatever) than the old ones, and are clearly a step up. It’s just getting them out to everyone that’s the problem. And as a side note, the Interceptor Body Armor WILL stop a bullet or grenade fragment, trust me.
If Cher can come up with ‘bullet-proof materiele’, then DND, etc. surely can.
Ten, twenty years of war economy and $15 billion will look like peanuts.
Don’t blame me, I don’t know where your cut is…
Jumpn & Jeff, Debris…
Forgot to add, of course you don’t want your cut. You’re patriots, but for what? And Debris trail, you were over reading at Celestial Junk. Gosh we were on the lighter side…
You made the list…but it was a very short list.
It is not just what Karzai is saying it is also what he is doing.
His chief justice of the supreme court Shinwari. He used to run a Muslim religious school in Pakistan, where the Taliban were fostered. He is also head of the Council of Clerics, which Karzai looks to for approval. Karzai in turn, finances the Council of Clerics. Shinwari, the chief justice, has said he rarely listens to the other judges and often intervenes in their cases.
The Clerics by the way, often call for the ousting of American forces from Afghanistan.
So you see how incestuous this is. These guys are all connected, Karzai is part of a ruling Oligarchy which has connections to the Taliban.
They will take American money with one hand and work for their ouster with the other. It won’t change, no matter how badly you want it to.
Foreign occupiers have a long and bloody history in Afghanistan and they all came with boy scout good intentions. The truth is they don’t want you there, not the men, maybe some of the women, but not enough of them to make it work. I am not being a pessimist,or a downer or any other negative expletive you want to use. That is just the way it is. It is Afghan reality. It is the Afghan past, present and future.
“it wasn’t until Pearson that Canadian soldiers turned into UN nannies”
Even so, Canadian soldiers performed brilliantly then, as they are now, and as they always have. Remember, not all missions since Korea have been peacekeeping, and even the ones that were took their toll.
Debris Trail:
Yes, we’ll certainly look for ‘consistency’ in future from Mr. Karzai. Consistant should be spelled consistent, okay. But what part of his displeasure at our troops killing the Taliban don’t you understand.
Perhaps some confusion exists as the fumes of the proliferating poppy fields waft effortlessly right under some noses. I’m sure I don’t know.
We’ve all been had for years now and “they is” talking some ten, twenty more. People are buying this hook, line and sinker.
Ann
You people who support the troops just don’t get it. Everybody supports the troops, that is why I keep saying they are too precious to waste.
The troops sent in to Afghanistan and Iraq are doomed to fail because of poor, inconsistent, even stupid civilian leadership. The soldiers I am certain are brilliant but if it is a Charge of the Light Brigade situation it is a waste of human life. Soldiers have to trust that when they are sent somewhere the peope doing the sending know what they are doing. There is no evidence of that. It has been a long time since we first went in and the evidence of progress is miniscule. The Taliban are about as strong as they were 5 years ago. The Afghans are fed up waiting for the improvements promised 5 years ago. The good guys and bad guys are so intermingled that collateral damage is inevitable. So is the bad press and the new talking points for the Taliban recruiters. It is a vicious downward spiral.
steve d.
“That is just the way it is. It is Afghan reality. It is the Afghan past, present and future.”
And Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Yemen, the palestinians-not-living in Jordan, Jordan, Egypt, Morrocco, Libya, Tunisia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Sudan, Somalia, Turkey, Malaysia, Kuwait, Qatar, and most other countries in Africa and the middle east…….past, present and future……
I love liberal thinkers………….*cough*
Canadiana,
Do some research first. Cher didn’t come up with “bullet proof materiele” as you call it. She is advocating a set of pad inserts for the Marine Corps helmets only. The US Army’s new helmets already contain these pad inserts, and as I’ve already said, they are more protective. As a matter of fact, the pads don’t add any “bullet proofing” anyway. They are advocating these pads because they make the helmet fit closer to the head, thus stopping the helmet from rattling around during a blast, and also keeping as much of the force of the blast wave from getting inside the helmet and hitting the brain. The helmet is no more “bullet proof” than it ever was. I wore the new helmet(again, only on jumps) yes it’s comfortable. But there’s no helmet in the world capable of stopping a 7.62 mm round. It’s impossible. It would be too heavy to move in. And even if it did, again, the force would snap your neck. The Marine Corps doesn’t have the new helmets yet because, being the second smallest service, they don’t get as big a chunk of the budget. Simple as that.
You people that think it’s a simple matter of making all these “bullet proof” things have obviously never had to walk around in them. The sheer weight of making something completely bullet proof would cause the soldier to be unable to move, putting him in even more danger. Hell, the combined weight of the helmet, IBA with inserts, LCE or chest rig, ammo water etc. is already a good 60+ pounds. Add in a weapon that can weigh anywhere from 7.5 to 20 pounds, an ALICE pack that will have 100+ pounds in it routinely, and possibly an AT-4, Javelin etc. and soldiers are already carrying as much as 200+ pounds. And you want to add more weight? The soldiers are better protected now than any point in history, and to act like they aren’t, and that people are profitting off it, is ridiculous, and shows a pretty clear disconnect with the realities of combat.
anselm
Afghanistan is different. Read up on it. Typical conservative too lazy to do any reading. Just do the lemming thing. If the leader says jump you jump. If the leader says its a good thing, well then, he said it, so it must be true.
Canadiana: What on earth are you talking about?
“And Debris trail, you were over reading at Celestial Junk. Gosh we were on the lighter side…”
Debris Trail:
Your quote:
“Marijuana party: Let’s smoke this s–t.”
No wonder you don’t know what I’m talking about. Figures. You can neither read, nor spell.
Here you go read this for some credible fact-based s–t:
Corporate Media and Advocacy Journalism (article)
by Norman Solomon
Psst: It’s an article so it should appeal to your attention span
by Norman Solomon
I think alot of the posts are missing the point. Hello??? This story is about the troops and the job that they were sent to do. Is it important? My god, take a look at what these people are fighting over. That was a reality check. If we enjoy the freedoms that we take for granted, never stand up when things are really bad…..How long will it take before they bring the fight to our back door??? Remember when you sit back and say nothing…….I must say that was a very moving report. Sending good wishes to our troops.
Canadiana: Any more of that smarmy crap of yours, and you will be deleted. The regulars of this blog appreciate our troops, and that is what this thread is (was) about. A lot of us are from the forces, or have family in the forces, or are supporters who believe, as our forces do, in what they are doing.
This is your only warning.
Steve d. and company
Have you ever heard of Benedict Arnold? do you remember his justification for becoming a turn coat? It was because He felt the rebels couldn’t beat the Red Coats.
During WWII many, many people said that victory was unattainable.
I have a cousin in Afghanistan; his opinions are polar opposite to yours.
Strangely, I would say that most soldiers opinions are polar opposites of steve d et al. Strange, I wonder why? Oh right, because they’re actually there, or have been there. Odd how actually having some knowledge and experience in a certain topic gives you a different perspective, isn’t it?
Cudos to Bravo company, the rest of the troops and Graeme for this Snapshot of what I view as a typical occurance in Afganistan.
I am sick, to death of reports of Canadian deaths but no mention of successful missions or battles. When was the last time that anyone heard that troops went on a patrol, subdued rebels and returned with no injuries. I have yet to hear of a successful mission. I only hear of casualties. What happened in the three or four days between the casualties. I can bet that the troops were not sitting around playing rummy.
There are multiple patrol and missions between the casualties and we hear nothing of the successes, only of the casualtis. Even then, the report never sheds light on the casualties inflicted upon the enemy. All we hear is things like, “three Canadian troops injured in battle.” We don’t hear that they cleared out a taliban stronghold and only incured three injuries.
Trevor
How can you report anything positive sitting in a Hotel room 600 miles away from the action sipping scotch and watching CNN.
No snow yet?
Was looking at all the snow just north of there from the satilite images.
Whens spring time over there? LOL
Nice pics from the front.
my best friend’s eldest son is in Kandahar now, since about last september as I recollect.
I will repeat it here: if anything untoward should happen to him, there will be an unearthly unholy and lasting retribution on the heads of those responsible, and that covers a lot of ground.
p.s. does ‘trolling’ include initiating personal attacks? ie interjecting points and issues having NOTHING to do with the thread, blog, or anything remotely connected to socio- political- economic events and policies, but which are related solely and exclusively to some attribute of the target?
Forgive my paranoia, but … is it wise to discuss the efficacy or vulnerability of soldiers’ equipment in an open forum such as this?
Or have I watched too many movies set during WWII, where admonitions such as “Loose lips sink ships” are often seen?
“less said, best said” is usually true, but in this case, not to worry. Combatants on both sides are acutely aware of the limitations of their gear. Its just something you figure out real quick when you do it for real…