Comments on: Kandahar: we didn’t know what we were getting into

By: the realist

the realist — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 17:59:23 +0000

If we didn't know what we were getting into we should have. Our problem is that our governments (liberal and conservative) have listened to so called experts (Manley, Alexander etc) who have no idea what the hell they are talking about. Meanwhile those who do know a thing or two about the Indu Kush (Margolis etc) and who can at least speak Pashtun are ignored.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:29:58 +0000

What bullchit. Cripes, the soviets spent 20 years in that dump. And Hillier thought he would clean up with a few fwench 'peace keepers' and a tea party with Adrienne Clarkson?

If Rick Hillier were a general and not a liberal fart catcher, he might have seen what was coming.

By: Dot

Dot — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:29:37 +0000

Ha! oops. Never thought to check there.

By: Kenneth

Kenneth — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 04:39:52 +0000

Psiclone is just joking. He is really quite a funny guy. His movie references are especially hilarious. He has to joke, we can't handle the truth.

By: sea_n_mountains

sea_n_mountains — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:18:53 +0000

jack nails it. your post is rubbish. anyone who downplays the seriousness of "possible human rights violations by canadains and so much other crapola" makes me ashamed to be canadian.

By: SisyphusThis

SisyphusThis — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 00:44:59 +0000

Lonely at times.

But confused by the Urban Dictionary.

By: Dot

Dot — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 00:25:33 +0000

How is Duggery?

By: danby

danby — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 00:05:59 +0000

“Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”

Mark Twain

By: SisyphusThis

SisyphusThis — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:49:05 +0000

Thanks. That's an explanation that works.

Although the l'il guy that lives in the back of my skull wonders if the "component of the
US-led Operation Enduring Freedom" might have had an influence. But that's just him.

By: Dot

Dot — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:32:00 +0000

Accoding to Lewis McKenzie in the G&M op-ed today:

Unchallenged statements have made the headlines in the popular press. “Nearly 600 detainees may have been turned over to Afghan security forces.” This fact, which should be a source of pride, is described as “six times as many detainees” as the British handed over in the same period.

There is a pretty good reason for the big difference. The British weren't in Taliban-dominated southern Afghanistan during a good deal of that same period. Parliamentary debate in Britain and the Netherlands delayed the troops' arrival by several months.

The tardy arrival of British and Dutch contingents also delayed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization headquarters, dictating that the Canadian battle group operate for the first half of 2006 as a component of the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom.

Also contributing to the difference in the numbers of prisoners handed over, and contrary to many recent erroneous opinions on the subject, Helmand province was relatively quiet when the British contingent arrived. Meanwhile, the Canadian battle group had been fighting battles with the Taliban in Kandahar for more than four months, taking a lot of prisoners.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/a-be...

By: Andre

Andre — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:27:58 +0000

That is a good question. I'm no expert but my instincts tell me such a policy would be drafted pretty high on the command chain.

It also occurred to me that that no one asked Roméo Dallaire's input on this.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:47:03 +0000

"t seems so easy of late for the arm chair quarterbacks to click away on web forums"

Oh, the irony.

Too bad MacLean's doesn't delete psiclone's inappropriate comments, like The Globe does.

By: SisyphusThis

SisyphusThis — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:40:21 +0000

BS ! If there has been any denigration of the soldiers on the ground I've missed it.

But I do have one question which I had hoped to see asked today. I may have missed
it ( Real Madrid was playing CL ).
That is …. Canadians turned over multiples of "detainees" compared to the Brits and Dutch,
who were also engaged in areas of active combat in southern Afghanistan.
I don't know enough to compare the levels of combat but Canadians turned over 5-6 times
as many detainees as the Brits/Dutch.
Soldiers on the ground don't just decide to do this by themselves. I'm assuming they were
following some policy or protocol. It would be good to know if or how that differed from what
the Brits/Dutch were following … in terms of who got to be dropped off to the tender mercies
of our Afghani friends.

By: Jack Mitchell

Jack Mitchell — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:35:15 +0000

What rubbish. As though the Government of Canada can't do two things at one time (fight the Battle of Panjwaii and figure out what to do with detainees). Just because something involves the CF doesn't mean that the elected Government has a blank cheque to mismanage however it sees fit. It's disgusting that you should try and cover up something as mucky as Paul Martin's and Stephen Harper's incompetence with something as fine as our soldiers' bravery.

By: psiclone

psiclone — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:56:24 +0000

It seems so easy of late for the arm chair quarterbacks to click away on web forums complaining about possible human rights violations by canadains and so much other crapola that is front page and center of late – real easy folks kina like exactly what ol Nicholson was talking about when he described the wall and who had the good fortune of having to guard it. Some of the stuff I have sen posted makes me ashamed to be canadian right now and to think our men and women in the forces may see it posted. Quite Frankly there are a whole bunch of people high and low that ought to be ashamed of themselves and I am not talking about detainees.