John Kerry, when he was spokesperson for Vietnam Veterans against the War, asked a Senate Committee: “How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?” That question confronts us now, as we learn another New Zealand soldier has been killed in Afghanistan. I/S at NoRightTurn says it all on this waste of life.
Time to bring all Kiwi soldiers in Afghanistan home.
Guyon Espiner interviewed Imran Khan, whose party is poised for victory in the Pakistani elections next year. He had stark words on how the Pakistani allegiance with the US during the war in Afghanistan has fueled radicalism and resistance. His message to New Zealand is: your soldiers are only making things worse. Will John Key listen?
Ten years after the September 11th 2001 attacks, the world is sitting in a fragile state. The ‘War on Terror’ may have finally got its man but at what cost? The Middle East is more unstable than ever. Democratic revolts are succeeding in some places but brutal regimes are more powerful than ever elsewhere. And the US’s power has been broken.
This post by I/S at NoRightTurn will upset some but I think it makes an important point. It’s natural to soothe the pain of a death by labeling the cause heroic. The danger is that this understandable emotional reaction becomes hijacked to justify continuing an SAS deployment that is all about currying favour with the US and was never worth a soldier’s life in the first place.
See Small on Hager yesterday? He’s all like “of course I knew we’re working with US intelligence but I
didn’t tell you because, duh, it’s not important”. It was the same story with the Hollow Men and the secret tape revelations. Wonder what other “unimportant” stuff journos don’t tell us in the interests of maintaining access and being part of the elite.
With echoes of 2002, Nicky Hager has delivered a potentially explosive book in the run up to a general election.
A New Zealand SAS soldier has been killed in a suicide attack on the British Council Offices in Kabul. The reports confirm what has become apparent in recent months: the SAS aren’t training Afghanis, they’re leading the combat response to Taliban attacks in Kabul. Our sympathies with the soldier’s family. It’s past time they came home.
The bombing and shootings in Norway overshadowed Key’s meeting with Obama. But he was quick to exploit Norway’s tragedy for political gain saying: “I think what it shows is no country large or small is immune from risk [of ‘global’ terrorism] and that’s why New Zealand plays its part in Afghanistan.” Truth is, the attacker was a rightwing Norwegian.
[Update: more than 80 dead at the camp]
First, Key denies the SAS were in the Kabul hotel gunfight. Then, media reveals they were there and were injured. Key admits that but denies it was friendly fire. Now, media says SAS got an apology. Key ‘can’t rule out’ friendly fire and is launching an investigation. Goff says its time for the SAS to leave Afghanistan. He’s right.
PM John Key attacked journalist Jon Stephenson, calling him not credible over his claims on SAS links to the torture of prisoners in Afghanistan. Now Stephenson has replied to his critics, in detail.
The Nats are obviously worried about public reaction to the recent revelations on the role of the SAS in Afghanistan. And as is usually the case when they feel threatened by a story, the Nats are striking out, trying to discredit or intimidate the source.
Alan Grayson lost his congress seat in the last election after a concerted attack from the right.
His open letter on the death of Bin Laden shows why the US needs him back next time around.
The best US blog is eXiledonline. They’ve done huge work to expose the Tea Party and its shady backers. Their insight into the class issues underlying economic crisis both raw and diamond-sharp. And one of their writers, Gary Brecher aka the War Nerd, covers conflicts with eyes wide open. Here’s his take on Al Qaeda, coincidentally written last week:
3 News is reporting that “Osama Bin Laden is dead and the US is in possession of his body, according to reports from a senior US counter-terrorism official”.
The Guardian has obtained a mass of files relating to detainees at America’s infamous Guantánamo Bay. It’s an indictment of America. But because of our SAS involvement in Afghanistan, New Zealand doesn’t exactly come out smelling of roses either.
It seems to me that as the years roll on and there are fewer and fewer veterans of the World Wars left, our involvement in those wars is becoming glorified into the basis of a national myth: ‘our heroes’ noble sacrifice for us’, which is some distance from the reality . So I was pleasantly surprised by the documentary on TV1 on Friday night.
Today is the day that we remember our old soldiers. But perhaps it should also be a day when we consider our current soldiers, and how they are being used.
The Herald has summarised a report in the new Metro on the New Zealand SAS’s role in arresting Afghanis and handing them over for torture. Delivering prisoners for torture is as culpable an act as torture itself. It is a war crime. Everyone who wants our defence forces to be respected must demand it is purged of people who have committed these acts.
The revolts around the Middle East are still heating up. The coalitions air strikes are dealing havoc to Gaddifi’s heavy weapons, giving the rebels a fighting chance. In Bahrain, the Shi’ites are brooding as the country remains under de facto Saudi occupation, Saleh looks gone in Yemen, while violence is escalating in Syria and Jordan.
US, UK and French forces have begun attacks on government targets in Libya. French planes flew reconnaissance yesterday and fired the first shots […]
The Arab League turned against Gaddifi this week, calling for a no-flight zone. But the UN Security Council voted it down. The US voted against that proposal but is now talking about possibly talking about air strikes. As the West dithers the moment, to borrow from the Bard, is now very now. The rebellion is being snuffed out. Update: UN authorises air power against Gaddifi.
Faced with the choice between short-term stability offered by a military strong-man or the long-term stability that would emerge from a democratic revolution, the West has long backed dictators in key resource supplying third-world nations. As the West backs away from saving the Libyan rebellion, it appears that little has changed.
Key has blamed a soldier being killed in Afghanistan for the limo affair. This is just an attempt by Key to protect himself from criticism by hiding behind a soldier’s death. This is just sickening. The very worst kind of politics from a man who can’t take responsibility for his actions and is happy to take advantage of others’ tragedy.
On Christmas Eve, our SAS soldiers in Afghanistan killed two security guards, wounded two others, and arrested 15. None of these people was involved in any terrorist activity. Did the SAS act negligently or was it an unfortunate accident? The Kabul Police want to investigate but, in Afghanistan, our troops are above the law.
It’s surreal to see people who cried that not going into Iraq has cost us a trade deal with the US, now saying that the Reconstruction Team Labour sent was to get access for our milk exports. The claim’s based on a US Embassy cable but that doesn’t make it gospel. In reality, the Right wanted us to fight in Iraq to get an FTA with the US.
Amongst other angry and aggressive rhetoric, American politicians have accused the leakers of the diplomatic cables of having “blood on their hands”. Will the leaked cables put lives at risk? Perhaps, but I believe that many more lives would be made safe if the actions and attitudes of our governments, and the “intelligence” that they work with, were more open to the people.
Wikileaks latest coup is the release of a database of more than 250,000 diplomatic cables between American embassies, up to and including the highest security level “Top Secret”. The cables provide a full, detailed and explicit account of many of America’s diplomatic secrets and the attitudes behind them. It is a good long look through a window in to the mind of a Superpower.
9/11 seems to have driven America crazy. Most Americans, I think, don’t realise how much their country has changed around them. But one very visible manifestation of the brave new world is getting right in the public’s faces, that is the new generation of airport security scanners. Dubbed “porno scanners” for the body images that they produce, they have finally provoked a reaction from the great American public.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in NZ for a three day visit. She will sign a declaration representing a formal recognition of the fact that a (post 1984 nuclear free) “thaw” in relationships has been complete since 2007. Under the convoluted diplomatic language, however, it seems that nothing much will be changing. But I’m sure Clinton’s visit is going to be a lovely photo-op.
The release of 400,000 classified documents on the Iraq war today highlights a much broader issue for New Zealand. As the world moves into uncertainty, some commentators call it a ‘new new world order’, New Zealand must establish itself definitively, cementing the values we wish to hold true for the coming century.
Barack Obama declared the U.S. combat mission in Iraq officially over on Tuesday but said he would not take a “victory lap”. No victory? That’s quite an understatement…
Defence Minister Wayne Mapp must be desperate for publicity. He’s attacked the latest version of the Medal of Honour game set in Afghanistan. According to Mr Mapp, Medal of Honour “undermines the values of our nation, and the dedicated service of our men and women in uniformâ€. Okaaay…….
The recent death in Afghanistan of Lieutenant Timothy O’Donnell was a tragedy for his family and a blow to his army colleagues. It […]
Wayne Mapp has confirmed that the SAS has been involved in handing prisoners over to the NDS – a Afghan government body that tortures prisoners. Mapp indicated he didn’t give a damn what happens to the prisoners, calling them an “Afghan responsibility”. Sorry, Mapp, but you’ve got to take responsibility. Handing someone over to people you can reasonably expect will torture them is illegal.
I regard the invasion of Iraq as one of the most shameful events in America’s history. The made up cover story about “weapons of mass destruction” was quickly shown to be a lie. It was always about the oil. And for too many of those on the ground it was always about lining their pockets with billions of dollars worth of slush money.
