Right, Left and Centre, in war they all lie and lie and lie again!

By "they", in my title above, I don't just mean the politicians, I also include the 'Top Brass' who are supposed to have the care and welfare of their warriors in their hearts.  Yes, in mitigation they can plead that they are honour bound to execute the orders of their political masters but surely there comes a time in all long-running campaigns which are evidently failing in their purposes and resulting in the needless slaughter of their troops, for them to stand tall and tell truth to power.

I raise this subject because of the release yesterday of US government documents showing that the US army command hierarchy lied through their teeth during the Afghanistan campaign at the behest of their political masters.  No doubt they were well rewarded with promotions and medals for their deceit and their abandonment of the soldiers for whom they were responsible.  No surprise, really, given they had done exactly the same during the Vietnam campaign.

My only question is how do they manage to shave every morning given the necessity of looking at their faces in a mirror?

 

 

Comments

[Bob]

Most people have a limitless ability for self-deception.

[JK]

Anyone paying attention already knew it.

[JK]

https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Lost-Generals-Afghanistan/dp/0544370481?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-ffnt-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=0544370481

https://www.amazon.com/We-Meant-Well-American-Project/dp/0805096817

[Doctor Weasel]

I recommend this blog post by a US naval officer deeply involved in Afghanistan for years.
http://cdrsalamander.blogspot.com/2019/12/shaping-blame-in-afghanistan.html
The specifics in the article are all about 2011 & later, but the general comments impugn the whole effort from 2001 onward. Blogger CDR Salamander says he never saw all the lying when he was involved, up through 2009, including in-country as well as at a NATO headquarters and at US Central Command. Lying, if any, would have been on Obama's watch, by the generals Obama picked. If they know the boss wants happy talk, the boss will get happy talk, even if he has to fire all the non-happy-talkers.

[Bob]

The summaries for JK's books sound exactly like the summaries of books about the Vietnam war. Trying to pretend the dishonesty started with Obama is absurd. Try to remember Dick Cheney's and other neocons' shenanigans with the intel that led to the wars, especially in the case of Iraq.

[JK]

So who Bob is laying whatever blame there is solely on Obama?

I read Commander Salamander's piece when it first posted Doctor Weasel. However (and it's extremely rare that I do so) agree with Bob that, rather than 'Operation Afghanistan' being the purely punitive military action it should have been it morphed as soon as Bremer arrived on-scene.

Hardly any fault of the lower ranking troopers I'd though agree.

[Bob]

JK, asked and answered, thank you.