What and whom our troops died (or were maimed) for in Afghanistan — Thomas Knapp's perspective

15 August 2021

I addressed the malevolence-fostering mediocrity . . .

. . . of American leadership, yesterday.

Today, we'll take up the fact that the same Leadership's sponsored manipulation of tactics and public opinion have put more American lives in danger in Kabul.

That so, by nonsensically — or connivingly — leaving embassy (and other) people behind, during the initial troop withdrawal.

The Vietnam War's excoriating lesson in this regard obviously meant nothing to our be-starred Imperial Stooges.

So, what's the lesson to be learned now?

Thomas Knapp dissected the pertinent circumstances this way:

The US occupation’s puppet president, Ashraf Ghani, blames his government’s debacle in progress on the “abrupt” withdrawal of US forces.

Apparently 20 years of the US doing his heavy lifting – contributing not just troops but money, training, and support for his own army – followed by 15 months’ notice of withdrawal, then a three-month extension of the withdrawal deadline, just didn’t give him time to prepare.

American hawks aren’t complaining about the “abruptness” of the withdrawal timeline. They’re appalled that the US would ever, under any circumstances, consider withdrawing at all.

The fiction they’d have us subscribe to is that until and unless Afghanistan becomes a western-style “liberal democracy,” withdrawing means that the 2,500 Americans killed there will have “died for nothing.”

Not true. Those men and women did die for something – something the hawks would rather not talk about.

They died to keep the hawks’ campaign coffers (and, via insider stock trading and revolving-door job opportunities, personal bank accounts) full of money from US “defense” contractors.

On the one hand, we have . . .

. . . the nation's self-involved American military leadership.

On the other, a series of Presidents and Congresses who have happily fed American troops — as well as hundreds of thousands (to millions) of self-protecting foreign nationals — to the American Can't-Win Slaughter Machine.

All those scheming groups knowing full well, deep down, that the only victors in such situations are themselves and Military Industrial Complex.

The moral? — Who and what did your kids die or get maimed for?

Fat Cats and their propaganda lies.

'Malevolent' is the appropriate word:

If, after the horrors of this week in Afghanistan, the 4-Starry-eyed generals responsible for this 20-year March of Folly are not held accountable, there will be still worse to come.

None were held accountable for the disasters of Vietnam or Iraq, and now the allegedly smart 4-Star Generals and Admirals are . . . preparing for war with China and Russia.

Earlier this year [Admiral Charles A.] Richard [head of US Strategic Command] wrote that the US must shift from a principal assumption that nuclear weapons’ use is nearly impossible to "nuclear employment is a very real possibility."

[See what I wrote about that Sun Tzu-defying, imbecilic announcement, here.]

And retired Adm. James Stavridis, former commander of NATO, is already talking about war with China "perhaps ten years from now."

Accountability and effective civilian control of such general officers can prevent the next March of Folly.

The problem is that civilian control already exists. Civilian leadership is fully puppetized by the Military Industrial Complex.

Exerting ownership of the Imperial American State is exactly why Corporatism and its slack-jawed, drooling cronies:

buy Congress and the Presidency

fund elections

populate the Judiciary

pay for incessant propaganda

and

surreptitiously sponsor the maggot-like Deep State.

These are the people who own our All-Volunteer Military's lives.

If you are not angry — you are either deluded, vacuously not paying attention, or one of 'them'.

PeteFree.com

What and whom our troops died (or were maimed) for in Afghanistan — Thomas Knapp's perspective