RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany, Feb. 9, 2007
Pentagon To Extend Troops In Afghanistan
Largest Number Of Troops Since War Began, 26,000, To Remain Until At Least Spring Of 2008
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U.S. soldiers patrol in a humvee in front of the former Afghan King Darul Aman's palace, destroyed during the civil war, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2007. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
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The move comes as U.S. and allied commanders anticipate a renewed offensive this spring by the Taliban, and as they seek additional reinforcements from NATO countries. The effort to bolster forces there so far has brought only limited success, with a few nations promising handfuls of additional troops and equipment.
The extension of the U.S. buildup means American troop levels in Afghanistan, which increased this month to about 26,000 — the highest of the war — will remain roughly the same until at least spring 2008. Until now, a level of 22,000 to 23,000 had prevailed through much of last year.
The decision, expected to be announced in Washington as early as next week, entails sending an Army combat brigade to replace the 3rd Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division when it leaves this spring.
Without replacing that brigade, the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan would have receded to the lower level. That is because the U.S. has had extra troops in the country since earlier this month, when a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division arrived.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been announced, declined to identify the replacement brigade. There are about 3,500 soldiers in a brigade.
The move comes as the United States is also adding 21,500 troops to its forces in Iraq, which totaled around 130,000 before that buildup started.
While President Bush's troop increase in Iraq has aroused widespread public and congressional opposition, there has been little dissent over efforts to intensify U.S. operations in Afghanistan. Both conflicts, however, are continuing to put severe strains on a military that is constantly scrambling to find fresh troops and equipment to send to the war zones.
The increase in the U.S. force in Afghanistan comes as NATO's new top commander, Gen. John Craddock, is seeking 1,500 to 2,000 extra combat troops for the campaign, plus about 800 more from the British.
Decisions about adjusting U.S. troop levels next year will depend in part on whether the United States' NATO partners send all the combat and support forces they have promised.
About 15,000 of the American troops in Afghanistan are serving in the NATO-led force, which now totals about 36,000. The other 12,000 are special operations forces or are training Afghan troops.
The 3rd Brigade originally was to go home this month, as it turned over command to the brigade of the 82nd Airborne, but the Pentagon announced in January that it instead will be kept in place four extra months.
Until now, it was not clear whether the Pentagon would replace the 3rd Brigade when it went home.
The senior official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision to extend the buildup has not been announced, said the unit that replaces the 3rd Brigade in late spring will remain for a year.
Thus the number of brigades in Afghanistan, which increased from one to two this month with the 82nd Airborne's arrival, will remain at that level until the spring of 2008 and possibly beyond, he said.
© MMVII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Is there any limit?
"Do not fight for a dying regime. It is not worth your life."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxKpeKQA6B4
I think you bought this one for yourself. Could people become fed up with this?
The Demoncratic Party that allowed all of this to go on for so long is moving back into power. It should have been stopped in the 90's, but those in Power didnt have the courage to stand up and do the right thing.
I think the most memorable thing that comes to mind is the girl from Afghanistan, down on her knee's in the Soccer stadium, and the gun to her head, then the shot goes off, and her brains go flying. The film was far enough away to keep the graphics blurred, but that one thing was so evil. She was convicted and executed by a fly by night muslim court acting under Sharia of adultery, even though she had actually been raped. Other women recieved the same punishment for prostitution, some for simple things like teaching female children to read.
The morality of Afghanistan and Iraq stands out and shines brighter than anything else these wars have brought to us, yet, not one new agency, nor most outspoken "ra-raa" Anti War Chauvanistic American traitors has the intelligence, or courage, to stand behind what we sent out sons to do. We didnt need weapons of mass destruction, the screams of human sufferage, and human dignity, demanded that we go.
The truth may forever be glossed over with political fighting and biased reporting, but I know it was the right thing to do, and I support what we did 100%.
The reason we still speak English, live in a free country and have free speech is that no one was around like you and your kind on December 7th 1941. Otherwise we would either be speaking Japanese or German.
America haters were not tolerated by my country, even if they were born here. With that in mind I would encourage you to leave my country if you don%u2019t like it here. Go somewhere where you and those like you all stop and get on there knees and face Mecca 5 times a day.
Iran and Bin Laden declared war on us years before President Bush took office. We fight there so we don%u2019t have to fight here. Simply put, that protection extends to you and those like you. We are at war you moran.
Re: "The truth may forever be glossed over with political fighting and biased reporting, but I know it was the right thing to do, and I support what we did 100%."
Then the pointless deaths of a half-million+, and the misery of millions more, are on your hands.
You would have made an exemplary Nazi.
Re: "With that in mind I would encourage you to leave my country if you don%u2019t like it here."
It is not your place to decide who is, and is not welcome here. It is obvious to most that the fascistic boot-lickers and bloodthirsty eunuchs are the ones whose welcome is running out.
Where will you run to?
Re: "We fight there so we don%u2019t have to fight here."
Why are all of the bloodthirsty cowards so afraid of fighting "them" "here", yet so willing to sacrifice innocent people "there"?
What a disgraceful bunch!
"Then the pointless deaths of a half-million+, and the misery of millions more, are on your hands.
You would have made an exemplary Nazi. "
While you sit there playing couch potatoe, if Saddam was still in power, he probably would have killed another half million humans by now.
Dont you think 2 million was enough?
Its ignorance to uphold my thinking as Nazi, the ignorance of a fool indeed.
The reason corrupt politicians can successfully loot treasuries and commit all manner of crimes, including war crimes, is because morons like you are so willing repeat the party line any time you get the chance.
Given your extreme gullibility and naivety, it is highly unlikely you are a veteran of the Vietnam fiasco.
Perhaps you are a veterinarian in Vietnam.
If George Bush had been president in 1941, the US would have invaded Argentina. The GOP has done nothing for which US taxpayers or voters should be thankful or respectful.
The GOP is a greater menace than al qaida.
Posted by vietvet681 at 06:27 PM : Feb 09, 2007
Obviously, you have set yourself up as head of The State Department and have decided that only those who agree with you are not "America haters" and should be allowed to remain in the country.
Anyone who holds a differing opinion is an enemy of the state and should be banished.
Stalin and Hitler preached the same philosophy in their time..
Who the hell are you to make such decisions and demands? This country is no more yours than it is anyone else's.
"It is not your place to decide who is, and is not welcome here. It is obvious to most that the fascistic boot-lickers and bloodthirsty eunuchs are the ones whose welcome is running out.
Where will you run to? "
So that means you are probably going to stand by while all the Churches are forcibly turned to Mosques, and America is under Sharia before you take notice that somethings wrong?
Of course we need to go there and fight, only cowards would wait until the fight is in our homeland. Freedom is a precious gift, given by the blood of people you never met, and it will never be kept by people like you whose fear overcomes your desire to be free. Clinton was a coward, and the entire demoncrapy party that supported him were cowards, because they went 8 years playing like nothing was going on, while the enemies of freedom thrived. Out tax dollars went to help them, thanks alot DNC, its something we can expect of your supporters now.
Posted by pwrslm at 06:59 PM : Feb 09, 2007
Are you a comedy writer? Maybe working on a new sitcom?
If as a country we had to DRAFT people in order to fight this war on terror.......then the
American public would be in the streets like Vietnam.......but Iraq is nothing like Vietnam in any way..... So I guess I'm trying to say thank God for our young men and woman fighting in this war against terror.....
Well suckers and snooks are born every minute... their being over there in Iraq- a country that had NOTHING to do with 9/11 or WMD, who actually kept alquaida in CHECK is doing nothing to protect us from terrorists- there willBE another 9/11 and it will come BECAUSE of this invasion creating so many more enemies.
Joining does not mean they all expected to GO over to Iraq, most probably thought it would be over in weeks and they'd never even go over. PLENTY joined just for the benefits, while others werelied to and hoodwinked like the rest of us.
only 28% polled support Bush's tirade over there, the larger MAJORITY DO NOT, the Nov elections clearly said NO MORE, bring the troops HOME.
Your a moron. Did you know the highest re-enlistment rates are coming from the units with multiple deployments to Iraq? All of the new enlistees are under no illususions that they are going into combat. Unlike the Liberal world you and your cronies live in. Stop impuning our military Liberal. They are better than you.
Your scripts sound like someone who is miss interpeting the Bible.Just what the world needs another religious fanatic.
"Iraq-a country that had NOTHING to do with 9/11 or WMD"
It's just like Palestinians are the people who had nothing to do with the actions of HITLER but their land was occupied instead of GERMANY and they were killed for the crimes comited by NAZIs.
This is a symptom of PSYCHOSIS known as "CHRISTIANITY" in which actions have no value.
A new born child incapable of comiting adultery,unjust killing,rape,etc is born in sins he or she has never comited,is even incapable of making intentions about those sins or even thinking about those sins or understanding what is a sin and what is not a sin.
Sins comited by ADAM and EVE,Sinners are those innnocent children who can't even think about those sins and price is paid by a third party named JESUS.
After looking at this NON-SENSE that sins comited by somebody,sinners are somebody else and price is paid by totally some body else,you don't have to be a ROCKET SCIENTIST to figure out that CHRISTIANITY is PSYCHOSIS and CHRISTIANS are PSYCHOTICS.
Anybody wants to see this PSYCHOSIS in reality can look at the actions of BUSH.
OSAMA BEEN-FORGOTTEN was in TORA BORA and BUSH was planning to attack Iraq which had nothing to do with 9/11.
Bush and Christians like him need Rehab.
Posted by newster1 at 09:29 PM : Feb 09, 2007
That 28% figure is a recent one. In March, 2003, the numbers were reversesed and Bush/Cheney/Rice had 72% BUYING his boondoggle instead of being opposed to it.
I remember distinctly as I was in the 28% saying it was lunacy.
Posted by patriotic9 at 11:13 PM : Feb 09, 2007
Being an atheist, I would be the last one to defend religious zealotry. But to be fair, Christian dogma does not hold children guilty of their "sin of birth" until what they call the "age of accountability".
Sure it's a ruse, otherwise there would be no need to buy the Kool-aid.
I highly appreciate you taking out the concept of "ORIGINAL SIN"from Christianity.Only an Atheist could do that.If a Christian did that,he wouldn't be a Christian anymore.
One of the seven core Army values I had learned in my Military career is "SELFLESS SERVICE".If I become selfish today and care only about myself,it'd not be a problem at all for me to have Kool_aid and let the enitre humanity suffer by the hand of PSYCHOSIS called Christianity.
Enough is enough.We've lost thousands of our citizens on 9/11 and I don't want to see million more to die in the next terrorist attack.
We can convince an African American Christian man dying in New Orleans after Katrina that he deserves to die because of not getting support from the govt on time as he is born in a GOD-NEGLECTED BLACK RACE not chosen by GOD whereas a NON AMERICAN EUROPEAN INVADER in Palestine deserves more then $3 Billion a year from our tax money because of being born in a RACE CHOSEN by GOD.Unfortunately,we can't convince those Arabs who give us Oil in cheaper prices that why should we take OIL in cheaper prices from them and in return support their those enemies who were brought into Palestine from different European countries to occupy the land of those Palestinians who had nothing to do with the actions of HITLER.
While I personally subscribe to science, not dogma, I still respect the rights of the believers to subscribe to what they wish.
What I do not condone is religious zealotry such as shaping our foreign or deomstic policies on a basis of dogma.
Religion is a spiritual relationship with a deity, not a basis for government policy.
Founded in 1953 by Isaiah L. "Si" Kenen, AIPAC's original name was the American Zionist Committee for Public Affairs. According to UCLA political science professor and author, Steven Spiegel, "the tension between the Eisenhower administration and Israeli supporters was so acute that there were rumors (unfounded as it turned out) that the administration would investigate the American Zionist Council. Therefore, an independent lobbying committee was formed, which years later was renamed [AIPAC]." [SPIEGEL, p. 52].[citation needed] Today, AIPAC has over 100,000 members.[1]
Activities and stated goals
AIPAC's stated purpose is to lobby the Congress of the United States on issues and legislation "to ensure that the U.S.-Israel relationship is strong so that both countries can work together" to meet the challenges of "stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, fighting terrorism and achieving peace".[2] It regularly meets with members of Congress and holds events where it can share its views. It also provides analysis of the voting records of U.S. federal representatives and senators with regard to how they voted on legislation related to Israel. The New York Times described AIPAC on July 6, 1987 as "a major force in shaping United States policy in the Middle East."
Write your congressman and let them know how you feel! firststatehttp://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
It matters not that our leaders are criminals, they are our criminals and we will lie, cheat, steal and kill right along with them. truth is relative. This is the new America.
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by feelfree1
February 10, 2007 6:55 PM EST
- WogerWabbit,
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See all 32 CommentsVery well stated.