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Pakistani Taliban Shoots 14 Year Old Activist

solletica said:
However, the Taliban is also good at humiliating Western militaries. They are tactically superior to any military force on the planet. Time for the rest of the world to wake up and formulate better strategies.
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I think kill ratios dispute that, plus their having to stay in hiding. They aren't a military force. Its be like saying the mafia is the best military force in the world because it still exists.
 
straykatz said:
Didn't America only get involved after the attack on Pearl Harbor. So it was in defense and retaliation of an attack on American soil not because of the loss of life overseas at the hands of Nazis....correct?
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Yes, and the result of that delay was a world war. I suppose you are are claiming world wars are the best way to go?
 
joko104 said:
Yes, and the result of that delay was a world war. I suppose you are are claiming world wars are the best way to go?
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No I did not say that...did you see me claim a world war is better?
 
Grant said:
Easier said than done. We tried that against the Nazis, Fascists and Communists and finally there had to be a confrontation or millions more would have died.
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If they were rounding up people, taking them to the gas chambers, or forcing them into concentration camps, I might reconsider, but this isn't the case. There is a deeply entrenched cultural problem in that part of the world. The more we try to intervene, the worse they seem to get. It would be helpful if the general populations of these countries would make a united stand against their radicals, but that isn't likely to happen, except maybe to pay lip service to it, then when we come in and start taking names, and kicking ass, they will turn on us. Not all of them, of course, but that is what I would generally expect.
 
joko104 said:
I think kill ratios dispute that
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You do realize the kill ratio is

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed

not

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed + collateral damage (innocent civilians) killed by US forces

--
Redo your figures and see what you come up with
 
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the_recruit said:
As far as I'm concerned, people with your attitude are enablers of the Taliban and the backwards ass barbaric atrocities they commit. I refuse to accept the position of standing by while brave men and women like Malala Yousufzai languish under oppression and tyranny simply because they lack the means to free themselves from their bonds.

Don't tell me we have more pressing problems at home. The problems we face as Americans are not comparable to those faced by oppressed groups like women under the Taliban and other fundamentalist societies. I know that's not a popular position for Americans to hear, but it's true.

Picture edited

Yes, it's graphic. I don't care. People need to see such photographs. There's a growing epidemic of young Afghan women trapped in a world of unimaginable abuse who attempt suicide by self immolation. Google it. I can't imagine what kind of person says they can't spare any taxpayer money to help individuals facing such a hopeless plight.
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The problem is that taxpayer money is being spent to fund an incompetent military--the US military. After more than 10 years of war, the Taliban are still operating, even though the Taliban have only 1/1000000th the budget of the Pentagon.

Furthermore, the troops in Afghanistan are not there to help teenage girls get an education, even if that happens more as a side-effect of their presence and even if they're told that's what their purpose is.

The primary objective of uncle sammy in Afghanistan is to control enough of the country to allow US firms to mine Afghanistan for natural resources.

I would prefer my money be spent on a competent military force whose primary purpose is destroying extremist misogynistic factions and can get the job done efficiently .
 
solletica said:
You do realize the kill ratio is

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed

not

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed + collateral damage (innocent civilians) killed by US forces

--
Redo your figures and see what you come up with
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That's why the Taliban is so "tactically superior". They aren't shy about hiding behind a civilian population. They don't care how many innocents die, don't even care if they die themselves, so long as they are all martyrs for Allah.
 
Dittohead not! said:
That's why the Taliban is so "tactically superior". They aren't shy about hiding behind a civilian population. They don't care how many innocents die, don't even care if they die themselves, so long as they are all martyrs for Allah.
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The collateral damage inflicted by the Taliban is 1000x less than what's been inflicted by US airstrikes.
 
solletica said:
The problem is that taxpayer money is being spent to fund an incompetent military--the US military. After more than 10 years of war, the Taliban are still operating, even though the Taliban have only 1/1000000th the budget of the Pentagon.
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That is not because of an incompetent military, but because of incompetent American leadership (both parties), who thinks we can fight a war, which is not really a war, but is more appropriate for covert ops. Our mililtary is excellent if given the job of executing a real war, but we seem have confused the job of the military with that of the Red Cross with arms.
 
Dittohead not! said:
Really?

Does that include the suicide bombers?
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Yes. Amazing how a homespun IED strapped to a body doesn't have the killing power of 2000 lb. JDAM dropped due to an "intelligence failure."
 
This also looks to be a step in the right direction. Now they just have to get the shooters as well.

"Pakistani police have arrested a number of suspects in the case of a 14-year-old girl shot and wounded by the Taliban for promoting education for girls and criticizing the fundamentalist Islamic movement, officials said Friday. The Taliban spokesman, Sirajuddin Ahmad, said her family had been warned three times — the most recent warning coming last week — before the decision was made to execute her. Ahmad said the local Taliban leader Maulana Fazlullah and his deputies selected three attackers, including two trained sharpshooters, who carefully studied the girl's route home from school. All this for a 14 year old student...


Pakistani police make arrests in case of Taliban shooting of 14-year-old education activist | Fox News
 
lizzie said:
That is not because of an incompetent military, but because of incompetent American leadership (both parties), who thinks we can fight a war, which is not really a war, but is more appropriate for covert ops. Our mililtary is excellent if given the job of executing a real war, but we seem have confused the job of the military with that of the Red Cross with arms.
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The CINC and SECDEF are part of the military.
 
Patrickt said:
Update: The taliban is threatening to kill the girl if she survives.

"KARACHI, Pakistan — The Taliban is threatening to kill a 14-year-old Pakistani girl whom it shot for helping other girls go to school — if she survives a wounding that has made her a hero to many Pakistanis."
Taliban unrepentant after attack on Pakistani teen, vow to kill her - The Washington Post

You have to love the apologists who support these thugs.
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Either you support Obama or you support the Taliban. What's it gonna be?

False dichotomies are so much fun :)
 
lizzie said:
Spare me the drama. This **** has been happening around the world for thousands of years. Yes, it's horrific. Yes, it's ugly. The problem is that we can't fix it, no matter how much we hate it, or how much money we throw at it.
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It doesn't matter how long it's been going on. It was wrong then and it's wrong now. Look, I get it. You're perfectly content to let it continue. But, luckily for you, not everybody shares your apologist and defeatist attitude. Luckily, there are strong courageous men and women (today and throughout history) such as Malala who are not content to sit by and passively let such atrocities continue.

As I've already said, as far as I'm concerned your attitude is part of the problem. It's because of your kind of tolerance that such acts have been able persist throughout history in the first place.


lizzie said:
One of the reasons for the rise in militant Islamism is because of our holier-than-thous attitude that our way is the only way, and we know better than they, about what is best for them.
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Multiculturalist bull****. Not all cultures are equal. Some cultures are better than others. So, yes I believe western culture IS better than backwards ass fundamentalism. Freedom of speech IS better. Women's rights ARE better.

lizzie said:
Prior to our getting intrenched in ME affairs, and trying to wield influence by buying them off, there were more signs of progress in their cultures, than we have seen since the 70's, at which time they appear to have started moving in a reverse direction.
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No. Afghanistan went to **** as a result of the socialist coup in 78 and the subsequent invasion of the Soviet Union. Then, after the Soviet Union withdrew and collapsed, the United States lost interest and turned its back on Afghanistan in the early 90s. It was during this lull in Western influence that the Taliban were able to muscle into power along with the terrible fundamentalism to which you refer.

So, you're wrong. It was precisely because we left Afghanistan that things got really bad for the Afghans, not the other way around.
 
Dittohead not! said:
Excellent. The Taliban have gone too far this time, and incurred the wrath of at lest the Pakistanis. Maybe the Afgans will follow suit and start to root this evil from their society as well.

But, throwing acid in the faces of little girls who dared to go to school didn't seem to be enough, nor was burning donated children's coats in the face of an Afgan winter. Maybe the third time will be the charm.
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As I've already pointed out, throwing out an oppressive government is not a simple matter of sufficient willpower of the people. There are many more variables involved than that.

The Taliban are not very popular among Afghans actually. It's not like they were elected. They gained control through military force in the Afghan civil war and military force is how they maintained power.

The fact that the Taliban are ultimately just a Pakistan proxy doesn't make it any easier either.
 
solletica said:
The problem is that taxpayer money is being spent to fund an incompetent military--the US military. After more than 10 years of war, the Taliban are still operating, even though the Taliban have only 1/1000000th the budget of the Pentagon.
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:roll:
We steamrolled the Taliban in record time, i'm talking Usain Bolt time. Their sphere of control is a tiny fraction of what it was prior to our invasion. The Taliban only persist because the ISI is playing a double game. The Taliban are and have always been a Pakistan proxy. They retreat across the Durrand line where we are unable to engage with ground troops (well. let me correct that - where we RARELY engage with ground troops ;)). Surely, you're not suggesting we invade Pakistan?


solletica said:
Furthermore, the troops in Afghanistan are not there to help teenage girls get an education, even if that happens more as a side-effect of their presence and even if they're told that's what their purpose is.

The primary objective of uncle sammy in Afghanistan is to control enough of the country to allow US firms to mine Afghanistan for natural resources.
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You've been watching Avatar too much.

solletica said:
I would prefer my money be spent on a competent military force whose primary purpose is destroying extremist misogynistic factions and can get the job done efficiently .
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You know, you might actually be able to ruffle some feathers with these military insults if you didn't make it look like you're trying so hard.
 
solletica said:
You do realize the kill ratio is

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed

not

US soldiers killed:Taliban fighters killed + collateral damage (innocent civilians) killed by US forces

--
Redo your figures and see what you come up with
Click to expand...

You clearly don't know what you're talking about.

About 75,000 Taliban were killed in our invasion. About 3000 US soldiers have been killed.

About 20,000 Afghan civilians have been killed. About 75-80% percent of those were killed by anti-government forces.
 
the_recruit said:
:roll:
We steamrolled the Taliban in record time,
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If the US military steamrolled the Taliban, then why are they still operating and still able to carry out attacks.

The term "steamrolling" means destroying someone or something for good :rolleyes:
 
solletica said:
If the US military steamrolled the Taliban, then why are they still there--operating and still able to carry out attacks.

The term "steamrolling" means destroying someone or something for good :rolleyes:
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I explained it to you in the following sentences. I know you might have a short attention span, but try really hard and keep reading my post.
 
the_recruit said:
You clearly don't know what you're talking about.

About 75,000 Taliban were killed in our invasion.
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There's no way to verify how many Taliban fighters were killed because Taliban fighters look the same as any other Pashtun civilian and hence also have the same DNA lineage. And as if it isn't already obvious, they also don't wear uniforms clearly identifying themselves as Taliban.

The fact that the US government claims that 75K fighters were killed is nonsense, since it's theoretically impossible to count.

It's more likely the case that the 75k figure includes non-Taliban Afghans who just happened to be around the area where US airstrikes took place and where no one leaked the actual details of the airstrike (Bradley Manning-style) for us to actually verify whether the US government was telling the truth.

the_recruit said:
About 3000 US soldiers have been killed.
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That's the only thing that can be theoretically verified.
 
the_recruit said:
I explained it to you in the following sentences. I know you might have a short attention span, but try really hard and keep reading my post.
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I know--you said the Taliban cheated .

Next time maybe the US military should provide the Taliban with a rules and regulations book that establishes what it's allowed to do to win ?! :lol:

FYI, the US has already compromised Pakistan's sovereignty several times with its drone strikes there, and is still doing it.
 
solletica said:
There's no way to verify how many Taliban fighters were killed because Taliban fighters look the same as any other Pashtun civilian and hence also have the same DNA lineage. And as if it isn't already obvious, they also don't wear uniforms clearly identifying themselves as Taliban.

The fact that the US government claims that 75K fighters were killed is nonsense, since it's theoretically impossible to count.

It's more likely the case that the 75k figure includes non-Taliban Afghans who just happened to be around the area where US airstrikes took place and where no one leaked the actual details of the airstrike (Bradley Manning-style) for us to actually verify whether the US government was telling the truth.



That's the only thing that can be theoretically verified.
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Oh, my bad. I was taking you serious for a bit there. I didn't realize you were going all conspiracy theorist in here.
 
solletica said:
I know--you said the Taliban cheated .

Next time maybe the US military should provide the Taliban with a rules and regulations book that establishes what it's allowed to do to win ?! :lol:
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Of course not. That would be silly. Expecting such a backwards ass group to respect international law and humane rules of engagement is silly. You still haven't answered my question. Should we invade Pakistan to finish off the Taliban?

solletica said:
FYI, the US has already compromised Pakistan's sovereignty several times with its drone strikes there, and is still doing it.
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Hence, my specification of "ground forces".
 
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