US Military Command Responsible For Deaths Of US Soldiers?

A retired Air Force Captain relates how she watched US soldiers die as she was denied permission to engage Taliban terrorists.

A decorated retired Air Force officer who witnessed one of the most deadly attacks on Navy SEALs in U.S. history is breaking her silence, saying the government covered up evidence detailing that the 2011 downing of a Chinook helicopter gunship that killed 38 fighters in Afghanistan could have been prevented had it not been for restrictions to the military's rules of engagement that were changed under the Obama administration.

The article lists some of the ROE that get American soldiers killed.

• No night or surprise searches
• Villagers warned prior to searches
• U.S. units on searches
• U.S. soldiers may not fire at the enemy unless the enemy is preparing to fire first
• Afghan National Army or Afghan National Police must accompany
• U.S. forces cannot engage the enemy if civilians are present
• Troops can fire at an insurgent if they catch them placing an IED, but not if they’re walking away from placing an IED.
• Only engage an enemy fighter if you see a weapon, and they’ve fired first

Trump simply has to make this nonsense disappear. Nothing will return these brave men and women to their loved ones; the military's leadership should be held accountable for this.

Apparently Obama has removed many good fighting generals and replaced them with ass kissers. I desperately hope I am wrong on this account as my daughter joined the National Guard's, 20th Group SF and has already been asked if she is willing to be deployed (again).

More.

Dinner With The Afghan Ambassador

A reporter for the Independent Journal Review was invited to participate in a dinner given by Afghanistan's Ambassador to the US, Dr. Hamdullah Mohib. This was a Gold Star dinner for the wives of US servicemen who were KIA in Afghanistan.

Over the course of the evening, Dr. Mohib led a vibrant, gracious conversation about the struggles of his home country and displayed deep appreciation to the family members of the Americans lost on its soil.

Dr. Mohib was asked to give his opinion on the differences between President Trump and the previous administration. His response stunned his audience.

The Obama administration was the most academic administration we have ever had to deal with but the Trump administration has been the most thoughtful and intelligent.

Trump continually asked “How can you win? What does Afghanistan need to win?” in reference to our fight with terrorism. Trump wants to win. Sincerely. All the Obama administration wanted to do was not lose.

The Obama administration was hesitant with us. The enemy could sense that. When the Obama administration announced its plans to pull troops out of the region, they announced the exact date they would do it. All our enemies had to do was wait ...

The Ambassador was optimistic in his appraisal of his country's future with American assistance under the leadership of President Trump.

This is good, for the future of Afghanistan.

Of course the Ambassador is not about to say that he thinks Trump is an idiot. He wouldn't do that to the previous administration even if he thought so. But his remarks are somewhat revealing.

Band Of Brothers - A French Perspective

We may take for granted the prowess of the American soldier, but our allies don't.

What follows is an account from a French ISAF soldier that was stationed with American Warfighters in Afghanistan sometime in the past 4 years. This was copied and translated from an editorial French newspaper.

A NOS FRERES D’ARMES AMERICAINS

"We have shared our daily life with two US units for quite a while - they are the first and fourth companies of a prestigious infantry battalion whose name I will withhold for the sake of military secrecy. To the common man it is a unit just like any other. But we live with them and got to know them, and we henceforth know that we have the honor to live with one of the most renowned units of the US Army - one that the movies brought to the public as series showing "ordinary soldiers thrust into extraordinary events". Who are they, those soldiers from abroad, how is their daily life, and what support do they bring to the men of our OMLT every day? Few of them belong to the Easy Company, the one the TV series focuses on. This one nowadays is named Echo Company, and it has become the support company.

[...] Heavily built, fed at the earliest age with Gatorade, proteins and creatine - they are all heads and shoulders taller than us and their muscles remind us of Rambo. Our frames are amusingly skinny to them - we are wimps, even the strongest of us - and because of that they often mistake us for Afghans

[...]And they are impressive warriors! We have not come across bad ones, as strange at it may seem to you when you know how critical French people can be. Even if some of them are a bit on the heavy side, all of them provide us everyday with lessons in infantry know-how. Beyond the wearing of a combat kit that never seem to discomfort them (helmet strap, helmet, combat goggles, rifles etc.) the long hours of watch at the outpost never seem to annoy them in the slightest. On the one square meter wooden tower above the perimeter wall they stand the five consecutive hours in full battle rattle and night vision goggles on top, their sight unmoving in the directions of likely danger. No distractions, no pauses, they are like statues nights and days...

[...]And combat? If you have seen Rambo you have seen it all - always coming to the rescue when one of our teams gets in trouble, and always in the shortest delay. That is one of their tricks: they switch from T-shirt and sandals to combat ready in three minutes. Arriving in contact with the enemy, the way they fight is simple and disconcerting: they just charge! They disembark and assault in stride, they bomb first and ask questions later - which cuts any pussyfooting short.

The full editorial here.

H/T the Jawa Report

Jim Foley Should Be Remembered

From Powerline:

When it comes to combating ISIS, the Obama administration has precious few successes to talk about. So today it touted a failure:

U.S. Special Operations forces staged an unsuccessful operation this summer to rescue photojournalist James Foley and other Americans being held in Syria by Islamic State militants, according to senior Obama administration officials.

The attempt, involving several dozen U.S. commandos, one of whom was injured in a fierce firefight with the militants, was the first known U.S. ground operation in Syria since the country’s descent into civil war. It came after at least six European hostages freed by the militants last spring had been debriefed by U.S. intelligence.

This information comes right after the beheading of ISIS hostage Jim Foley. Obviously, Team Obama wants to show the American public that it did what it could to save Foley, and it should be commended for the attempt.

But the end results were the same as President Carter's effort to rescue the Iran embassy hostages. The world would be a better place if Mr. Foley was rescued.

The following video clip is an example of the fine work that Jim Foley accomplished and the dangers he faced while embedded with US troops.  Jim Foley filmed an ambush of a 101st Airborne patrol in 2010. The son of some friends of ours was a sergeant on one of the MRAP's that came under attack. The turret gunner received a head wound (concussion as the bullet entered the helmet and bounced along his skull) but miraculously returned to combat duties a few days later. He was in theater only two days when this happened. Another GI wasn't as fortunate...

Our friends' son appears at the 3:07 mark.

Jim Foley, rest in peace while your Commander-in-Chief looks for his balls.

UPDATE:
While Obama was looking for his balls, he accidently got his thumb stuck up his ass.
From the Washington Free Beacon:

And let me give you a little secret here: The reason that raid into Syria failed to get Foley and those guys was because the president drug his feet. He waited too long, the intel got stale, and by the time we actually gave the “go” word it failed because we just didn’t react quick enough.

RIP Gen. Harold Greene

US Army Major General Maj. Gen. Harold Greene was murdered yesterday by an Afghan soldier who allegedly passed a rigorous seven step vetting process. The soldier used a machine gun to kill Gen. Greene and wound fifteen other coalition soldiers.



The assassin was killed by other soldiers.

More here.

The Hornet's Nest

There is a movie coming out this Spring about the war in Afghanistan.
There are no actors, only soldiers.
It's the real deal.