Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what you

[Aviator]

This is our very very busy season in Afghanistan so I have not been able to come in and post much lately. Mission load is just too heavy for taking the time to do it. I did however think you might find this interesting.

False Stories Abound in Chaos of Iraq
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,127051,00.html?wh=wh

An excerpt...

"Yesterday’s lead news story from Iraq was on the accidental deaths of eighteen children in Ramadi from a bomb blast at a soccer field, which had supposedly been caused by the U.S. military. There was only one problem with the story: it was entirely wrong.

Although thirty-one people were injured in an American detonation of a truck bomb, and subsequently given medical care by U.S. doctors and nurses, nobody was killed in the blast. The destruction -- which had happened near, not on, the soccer field -- had caused a larger explosion than ordnance experts had anticipated, scattering debris in a massive blast wave, according to eyewitness reports from American military personnel.

In a press release, Marine spokesman Capt Paul Duncan demurred, calling the initial reports “erroneous.†In Baghdad, U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Mark Fox went further. “There was no blast [at the soccer field] and there were no eighteen children killed,†said Fox at a news briefing. The inaccuracy of the initial reports was covered in detail as a feature story in the Los Angeles Times."

At the bottom is a link to a thread thread discussing the story at the same military web site. You might find the point of view of the members interesting.



Aviator

 

[bamamule]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

this may be true
but i'm someone who lived through kennedy johnston nixon then watched carter give draft doggers a free ride
how many differnt countrys are we fighting aganst over there under the name of freedom
i say stop buying thier oil then they would wake up and smell the roses

wake up america

 

[Aviator]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

We may be fighting in several countries, but fighting the same enemy in all of them.

And not buying oil from there is a pipe dream. What you gonna run your truck on?

The point of the article is that a LOT of media flat out just get the story wrong, and usually on the side of making the US look bad. And the Public just accepts it as facts.

Aviator

 

[terryandrene]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Aviator:

Thanx, once again, for the news fron the front. That story was clarified in our news, but not on the front page as the original story, and not until the damage was done.

 

[Pilgrim]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Once again, there's no way to overstate the value of getting this kind of information straight from the source. Thanks for all your input, and be safe over there.

 

[Dog_House2691]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Thank you aviator for all you do for us in this Country of ours,despite what you hear from our so called Democrats that bash this effort for Political reasons.God Bless you and stay safe.

 

[tallcal101]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Regarding the news out of your part of the World,and what to believe and not believe,please fill me in on this bit of news circulating around our very biased liberal press(sic) about opium eradication in Afghanistan.
I believe your outfit is being paid to work on this little problem.It is being reported that this years crop is the largest crop in history,out doing last years crop,which was the biggest in history at that time.So,how many millions of taxpayers dollars are going down the Afghanistan toilet,enriching contractors,so that heroin can continue to pollute our way of life?
The stuff coming from Afghanistan(pure China white)is of such a high grade,and now in such quanity,that it is in our colleges and high schools.It is no longer a ghetto drug,it is a middle and upper class drug used by snorting teenagers.Needles not needed.Once again,because we blinked and left Afghaistan to the Taliban and company,they are now richer then ever,and a far greater danger because of their complete control of the opium trade.I would like to thank you and the contractor you work for(I'm sure fat and happy)but,ah,like what do you have to show for the effort?Just trying to keep this argument fair and balanced.
Don't get me wrong,it's not your fault,I'm sure your committed.But the boys in Washington really screwed the pooch,and now this little band aid called opium eradication is under funded and pretty much useless.Maybe you should come home and quit risking your life for this blood money effort with minimal results.If the US was serious about Afghaistan,they would have never left and wasted SO much treasure in Iraq,money that could have eradicated opium.Completly.This would have deprived the bad guys of their heroin profits.The opium crops are just one more measure of the utter and complete failure of this administration to fight the war on terrror in any meaningful way.Abuse of power under the Partiot Act?We were told it would not happen,yea,right.The FBI has apologized,as if that is any surprise.

 

[Aviator]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Well, this year we have already doubled what we cut the entire last season, and its only been a month. Numbers at the end of cutting season this year should be very very good. Considering we only got here last year one month before cutting season started, we did pretty good last year with setting camp up and getting organized. This year will be a lot better.

I little opium history from here. A lot of people are mis-informed about the Taliban and opium production here. The misconception is that during the Taliban rule poppy was not allowed to be grown. That is wrong. IN the late 90s, the Taliban cracked down on Opium when they were trying to be recognized as an actual government. The UN pressured them and made a list of reasons why they would not recognize them. Opium, civil rights (for women) and several other reasons were discussed. The Taliban discouraged production for a year or two after this in hopes of appeasing the UN. When it became apparent it would not work, they let farmers grow opium. In 99-01 production went way up.

Now, a lot of farmers know they will get their crops destroyed if they grow poppy, and would prefer to grow other crops. The problem is that the drug lords and Taliban are forcing them to grow poppy. The farmers are in a pretty bad spot. Most of the production is in the Helmand Vally just to the South of Kandahar. It centers on the city of Lasker Gah. This is the major Taliban Stronghold int he country. They slip in across the border from Pakistan in the Spring and cause trouble till winter. Last year ISAF forces killed 1000s of taliban down there. Its one of our hot spots.

Despite this, the guys on the ground are going full bore this year. Instead of cutting by hand this year they are tearing fields up using ATVs and other methods. I can talk about it too much due to operational security, but its working well. Also much less corruption int he leadership down there this year. that is helping a lot.

The Brits are in charge of the counter drug deal here in Afghanistan. They are doing a great job. When we are not cutting, we are taking down processing facilities and capturing smugglers moving the stuff from place to place. A lot of it has been taken off the streets and destroyed. I can't say a lot about most of it, once again due to security. The bad guys know who we are and are beginning to target us now. We are starting to hurt their pocketbooks.

Anyway, yes, despite what you hear, the program is going well. Also, this IS directly related to the War on Terror. The money these guys get form the drugs goes to buy a lot of equipment they use against us, and the ISAF forces.

As far as this heroin going to high schools in the US, thats another falsehood. the stuff produced here goes mainly to Asia, and Europe. The stuff in the US comes from Columbia and South America. I am sure a small amount of it from here makes its way into the US, but very very little compared to what comes in from other places. Thats just logistics. As someone in the expediting business I am sure you can understand that it is not cost effective to move something around the world, when you can get it from a lot closer.

And once again, we decreased forces here trying to make it more Multinational. Thats what ISAF is. We were under pressure by the "International Community" to allow more countries to participate. There are 2 seperate missions here now, GWOT run by the US, and ISAF run by everyone else. Main player in the Global War on Terror here are the US, Brits, Canadians, and Aussies. French, Dutch, Germans, and a whole list of other countries are ISAF. ISAF is not working so well. But they got what they wanted.

So, did you have any comments on the article I posted, or would you prefer to post a topic just discussing the Poppy deal in Afghanistan?

PS, I would do this for little or nothing. I love the job. I love the guys I work with. I did it for little or nothing for 20 years. I have stated before, people who are doing jobs like this for money do not last long.


Aviator

 

[tallcal101]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Excellent post Aviator.A few of your comments need to be correctd.First of all,China White does not come from Columbia or Mexicnly brown heroin comes from that part of the world.It is most often too dirty to shoot,so is nomally smoked or snorted.Only very strung out sickies shoot Mexian brown.China white comes from one place:Afgahn poppies.
The recent increase in China White(a 100% increase in 2 years)is a direct result of the wide open poppy growth under the Taliban.They are purposly directing the China White to the American market.It is proliferating the North American market in numbers never seen before.
The goal of the Taliban is to GET AMERICAN YOUTH STRUNG OUT.It's working.
Over dose deaths among American teenagers from snorting China White has tripled in the last 3 years.The Taliban are winning this war on our youth.The quantity of China White on the streets,along with the low,low price is spreading like wild fire.It is out of control.And it is not Columbian or Mexican brown.
I suggest you are being given the wrong information in order to keep your spirits up.But don't believe it,it's wrong.Dead wrong.
China White is here,and it's coming from there.

 

[vandecamp]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

War On Drugs- A winning battle. Farmers in Columbia asked to not grow coca, opium and marijuana, grow coffee instead. THAT's the ticket. Mexican military and police units guarding airstrips for aircraft loading to enter the US. Armed units of mules hauling backpacks of coke with security escorts wearing full web gear, M4 carbines or AK47's walking past National Guard units on the border who have orders not to engage. I first saw evidence of US complicity firsthand with proprietary cargo aircraft dropping ammo and medical supplies in Honduras in the mid-80's and flying back with coke. Not spec, matter of fact. War On Drugs? A sad, miserable joke on the American taxpayer.

 

[Aviator]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

>Excellent post Aviator.A few of your comments need to be
>correctd.

OK, which ones?

First of all,China White does not come from
>Columbia or Mexicnly brown heroin comes from that part of
>the world.It is most often too dirty to shoot,so is nomally
>smoked or snorted.Only very strung out sickies shoot Mexian
>brown.China white comes from one place:Afgahn poppies.

OK, but I never mentioned anything about types of heroin.

>The recent increase in China White(a 100% increase in 2
>years)is a direct result of the wide open poppy growth under
>the Taliban.They are purposly directing the China White to
>the American market.It is proliferating the North American
>market in numbers never seen before.

OK, well your 100% increase is actually a very small percentage. It rose from somewhere around 8% to about 14%. I never said none of the stuff from Afghanistan was coming to the US. Actually in my above post I said "I am sure a small amount of it from here makes its way into the US, but very very little compared to what comes in from other places." And that IS correct. 14% of 100% IS very little. Again I do not see the mistakes you speak of.

>The goal of the Taliban is to GET AMERICAN YOUTH STRUNG
>OUT.It's working.
>Over dose deaths among American teenagers from snorting
>China White has tripled in the last 3 years.The Taliban are
>winning this war on our youth.The quantity of China White on
>the streets,along with the low,low price is spreading like
>wild fire.It is out of control.And it is not Columbian or
>Mexican brown.

Not sure if that is out of control or not. Personally, I think that meth is out of control. But thats just my opinion. Still not seeing anyplace I made any mistakes in my argument.

>I suggest you are being given the wrong information in order
>to keep your spirits up.But don't believe it,it's wrong.Dead
>wrong.

We are not given any statistics regarding usage in the US. Only what we are cutting here. And I can see that for myself every day. Any other information I research myself, from several sources.

>China White is here,and it's coming from there.

Once again, I never stated that there was NO Afghan heroin in the US. I guess I am really not sure what in my post you are referring to that "needs corrected". Actually, I don't see anything that needs corrected. Can you please point it out to me?.


Aviator

 

[vandecamp]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

Heroin is a moot point, tweak is the problem in this country. I'm glad you feel like you're doing some thing, want to impress me? Get your azz back home and start burning down some meth labs. Crystal Meth, Glass, Tweak. Get that S##T out of my country. THAT is what's ripping my community apart. Shutup, Heroin is not THE problem. Number 1 producer of problem drugs in the Asian hemisphere? North Korea! Drug? MethAmphetamine. Ecstasy--2nd problem drug from N.Korea. World's biggest producer of both.

 

[tallcal101]

RE: Belive none of what you read, and 1/2 of what

All drugs are a menace to our society.Crack and meth do lead the pack.I'm just pointing out that the Taliban are producing poppy in record numbers,and it is contibuting to their treasure,which results in their ability to wage war on us.There should be more then a tiny drop of tax dollars in the form of "contractors"eating up most of the $$$ to end this two pronged scourage.