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Afghan fury as U.S. 'massacre' soldier escapes death penalty

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Bales’ lawyer John Browne said he hoped his client, who will be sentenced in August, could be out of jail after 10 years

Why? Why do you think he should ever be released?

Bales said he had no explanation for why he opened fire on the villagers using an M4 rifle and a 9mm pistol

I'm siding with the Afghan people on this. If he did this in the US (Texas), he would be put to death.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

It was cold blooded murder and a war crime. America has the death penalty and it should have been applied. Admitting guilt and 'saying sorry' should result in consideration of a reduced sentence not a guarantee of such.

This tarnishes the image of those American soldiers who do their duty without committing crimes.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

I agree with the family/afghans here. This murderer should be executed. I'd be furious, too.

Badly tarnishes the American military's/government's image worldwide.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

Bales’ lawyer John Browne said he hoped his client, who will be sentenced in August, could be out of jail after 10 years.

This is an amazing revelation. The man murders seventeen women and children in cold blood. (Twenty-two people were killed in all, and some wounded.) He actually goes out of his way to do it.

I guess it would be like Charles Manson's attorney expressing his hope that Manson would be free after a decade. Of course, when one kills off-color people as did Calley and this guy, going free is very conceivable. It's a heckuva message to send the victims' families -- emphasizing that their loved ones were of so little worth.

I predict, and I hope that I am wrong, that Bales will draw a life sentence with a possibility of parole, and that he will be a free man after serving time. I believe justice demands life without parole, and serious reparations to the families of the victims. Short of that, this would be an American travesty.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

After four tours of duty and numerous concussions, the reason Mr Bales does not know why he did it, or chose those people, is because there is no reason. His brain was (and probably remains) physically damaged, his soul is damaged, and then entire Afghan experience is not geared to helping him keep control.

Should he be killed/slaughtered/hung/gassed? Can't agree with the "life for a life" solution as it simply never ends. No. Life in prison will do it. And getting out of Afghanistan. Oh, and reducing our dependence on oil, the meta-reason for this entire mess.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

At the time of invasion the Taliban were hated for their arrogance and cruelty. Many viewed the US in a positive light for removing them. From that day onward however, the US has viewed Afghan lives as worth much less than western lives, focused only on military objectives and impersonal development projects employing American contractors. This is nothing new in terms of disregard for Afghan lives.

Just supposing Bush had said "our mission here is to make sure that every street orphan is house and fed and taught to read", and that tens of thousands of Afghan women had been hired to run houses to take of these children. Would it have made a difference? I don't know because it was never tried.

But I can guess that a large percentage of those several 100 thousand street orphans are now Taliban fighters, or soon will be.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

I am almost always against the death penalty. Without going into the rationale for my stance too deeply, I am against it because I think it degrades society and fuels a sort of blood lust among otherwise decent people -- nothing to do with religion.

Having said that, in very few cases I do think the death penalty is necessary, most particularly when putting a sociopathic murder to death could save lives. In this case, not giving this man the death penalty is fueling fury in Afghanistan, which will without a doubt culminate in more deaths of Americans, Afghans and troops of other nations serving there.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Americans considered other nations as nearly subhumans, useless worms. They show their true attitude to locals everywhere

Really? All Americans think this way? Here I was being all nice and respectful for the past 30 years.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

This and the Collateral Murder incident are WAR CRIMES.

That was a tragic accident, not a war crime. Wikileaks politicized it, editing the video to make it look way worse than it actually was. What actually happened:

Insurgents were meeting with reporters The reporters, idiotically, aimed they're camera at the attack helicopter from behind a building. From the helicopter's camera footage, this looked exactly like an insurgent aiming a rocket. Attack helicopter gunner was given permission to open fire, and the reporters were killed along with the insurgents.

It was in no way, shape, or form a war crime. Yet wikileaks edited the video to portray the accident in a more sinister light, and got you and many other people to buy it hook, line, and sinker. They edited out the radio chatter about armed insurgents being in the area. They edited out the part where the reporters aim their camera at the helicopter. Gee, I wonder why they would do that?

As for the incident that this article was talking about - yes, it was a war crime.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

I'm also glad that he was tried under the US military criminal system. It might not be the best but I'm sure we all agree it's better than a kangaroo system in a foreign country.

Superlib - the US military justice system is just as much a kangaroo court - they allowed an admitted war criminal and mass murderer to escape the death sentence which was clearly applicable in this case. They did the same with William Calley in the My Lai massacre in vietnam (he got 3 years in the brig then home detention.)

The priority of US Military justice is to avoid embarrassing the USA instead of dispensing justice. The US military and its courts protect their own. Disgusting.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Sensato.....I am with you on this one. I also am for the most part against executing convicted murders, however in this case this soldiers actions dictate to me at least that he should be put to death for his heinous crimes.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Trying your own war criminals

I see the problem here.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Firstly they were never going to execute him. They protect their own (to a point) and a US soldier hasn't been executed for war crimes since I think WWII or Korea. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets out after 15 or 20 years to be honest.

Me, personally I don't support the death penalty. It satisfies the need for revenge over justice. If you want someone to 'pay' for their crimes and reflect on them, then long prison terms or life terms are good enough.

Unfortunately what the angry Afghans want is revenge, which because of Koranic and Biblical law, many people mistake for 'justice'.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

yabits: "I believe justice demands life without parole"

Is this justice for taxpayers who have to pay for his food, clothing, housing, medical care, entertainment, etc., for the rest of his life?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I can't help thinking that if Bales killed 16 Americans, he wouldn't get off so lightly.

There is hypocrisy on both sides.

When there is a terrorist attack, there are many people who rush to explain how someone could kill innocents, trying to apply some kind of logic to the situation or doing a back door justification (I don't support this, but...). Had an Afghan soldier killed 16 innocent Americans the talk of the actual murders would be, in a lot of ways, pushed to the fringe in favor of the geopolitical debate. That is not happening here.

Look at the Boston bombings and the killing in London. The governments said two things when they made statements: this is horrible and don't let this represent Islam. It is now standard practice to mix outrage with a strong message about how to react to it. In cases like Bales, there is little to no double message. Look at the comments above. The same people who rush in to defend Islam are often the same people making generalizations about the military and all Americans when the tables are turned.

There are even people who claim to be against the death penalty saying they are having a hard time sticking to their principles with a few saying they want to waive their position just for this one event.

You can also compare this thread with the one a few weeks ago talking about a Taliban suicide bomber taking out 10 children. The post count? 3. The "outrage" isn't comparable at all, and again, it's coming from the people who claim to be standing up when innocents are killed. Their reaction shouldn't be so wildly different if they are guided by principles as they claim.

So yes, there is hypocrisy on both sides.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

bass4funk - the majority of respondents on this thread condemn the lack of principled action by the US military court that tried this war criminal. The US military has the death penalty and it was applicable in this case. The principled American response would have been death penalty justice.

This isnt an attack on America. I dont speak for all people but the majority of non-americans I know look to america as the bastion of universal values of equality and democracy; without america promoting these values the world would be a worse place. This belief still stands, despite the hypocrisy seen with Bales. Many of us are just disappointed that America didnt practice what it preaches.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

If they have the death penalty on the books then he should be sentenced to death. This would go some way to satisfying the relatives. The question of commuting that sentence could have been considered at a later time.

If they did not consider this handling of the scenario, I wonder why not? Sounds bungled to me.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

It's treated differently because the lives that were lost were not American lives, and so not as valuable. Rest assured there will likely be unexpected consequences, blowback as commonly referred.

1 ( +5 / -4 )

It's not surprising. When was the last time the military put someone to death? Why did they strike a plea deal on an open and shut case anyway?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

sigh...and people say "they" hate us for our freedoms

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Unless you have been in war you don't know the effects it has on every one who must endure it...my time was Nam and to this day it was and continues to be a dreadful experience...this guy went over the edge and should have been rotated out but was not...killing and seeing your buddies killed has an unexplainable effect on the mind.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Unfortunately I smell another revengeful terrorist attack coming sometime to a city near you (in America). This is dangerous stuff! They already mentioned they would seek revenge. We need to take this serious. Sad, so sad that 16 innocent people were killed by this man, but I too agree that he should not be given the death penalty, but certainly should not be given parole. He really needs to remain in prison for life. He created a very serious and dangerous international incident. Stay safe everyone and peace to all.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

If he murdered 17 americans in home town america depending on the state he would be executed so same should apply here, he is a cold blooded killer and has no right to continue to breath.

No wonder many people and nations have disdain for the US. Often they do nothing good to even try to sway opinions of those who find them distasteful.

Make an example of this heartless killer.

Show some back bone

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Oh well, he'll be out in 10 years and next time he'll be killing Americans. Then we'll see if he gets the death penalty, shall we?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The military is just as responsible for this mans actions. When troops are depleted, there is no other option than to continue to recycle these valiant soldiers back to the theater of combat. When we start having more casualties due to PTSD than we have killed by enemy fire its time to take action. If you look at the number of deployments since Obama has taken office and the number of military actions taken in other countries, its no wonder that the small all volunteer military is still standing. We hear all about the rich and the privileged but the absence of a military draft in the U.S. that means that all do not share in the danger and is another great privileged injustice.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Bass4funk,

I could turn the question your way too.

What has the U.S.A. done for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan?

Killed hundreds of thousands, many of them non combatants.

Turned a blind eye to those US soldiers, like Bales in this story who killed, tortured and intimidated in cold blood.

Ruined whole areas of cities, destroying buildings and infrastructure.

Pushed the reputation of the U.S.A. down to a level (in Arab eyes) of Nazi Germany.

Started wars based on complete lies.

Put hundreds of thousands of its people in danger, many of whom killed or seriously injured, mentally and physically, all for no result and for no reason in the first place.

This is what I mean by insanity.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

bass4funk,

Saddam Hussein was Iraq, not Afghanistan.

Or are they all the same to you?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Saddam was in Iraq, yes, that was the war Bush waged in removing that nut from power. But you liberals keep screaming it was illegal and so now Obama comes in and relocates the troops to Afghanistan

You make it sound as if there were no troops in Afghanistan before President Obama "came in" and relocated them there.

And, yes, when the United States steps up in front of the world showing maps of Iraq, pinpointing where WMD are located...folks like Rumsfeld saying "We know where they are.." and it turns out to be a total lie, I believe anyone with any amount of ethics would question the legality of invading an entire country over it. Many recall how Bush promised the American people that he'd put the military action against Iraq up to a UN vote -- as he did for Afghanistan. That was a lie too. A very costly one.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Death penalty opponents must be pleased.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Question:

In court at Joint Base "Fort" Lewis-McChord south of Seattle, Bales said he had no explanation for why he opened fire on the villagers using an M4 rifle and a 9mm pistol.

Explanation:

Prosecutors had earlier said Bales had been drinking whisky with colleagues before the massacre and watching the movie “Man on Fire”, starring Denzel Washington as a former assassin on a revenge mission.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

America's protectionism towards it's own war criminals at it's best.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I'm against the death penalty and I hope that others who claimed to be in the past won't throw it aside just because they hate soldiers. It's no different than saying you support the death penalty against black people only or any other group of people.

I'm also glad to see that no one is trying to explain away this man's actions like we often see with terrorists. I thought for sure someone would come on here and say, "I don't support his actions, but....: Especially with the radical left. I thought for sure they would blame his actions on something other than himself.

In addition, it's obvious this was the action of one man and cannot in any way be cast as an opinion over all of the peace loving armed forces. The government in Afghanistan should be sending out messages saying the same and warning people against overreacting. They need to send a clear message that this was one man and action taken against other soldiers is petty racism.

I'm also glad that he was tried under the US military criminal system. It might not be the best but I'm sure we all agree it's better than a kangaroo system in a foreign country. My personal concept of justice doesn't change based on lines on a map and I'm nor afraid to say that.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

@Sensato

In this case, not giving this man the death penalty is fueling fury in Afghanistan, which will without a doubt culminate in more deaths of Americans, Afghans and troops of other nations serving there.

Basing a nation's justice system on public opinion in another nation isn't the way to go.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Horrible crime....

But those with a blood lust for killing another human too make amends, should probably examine their own 'Humanity'.

Americans, should adopt villages and towns in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, etc. Maybe and end to all of this bad blood and horror can be found this way... helping the unjustly afflicted.

Before we hang a soldier sent to do corporate bidding, we should hang Bush, Wolfolwitz, Cheney, Rice, etc..

There is a reason 9/11 happened ... and most Americans just don't get it. I wonder how many more lives will be effected by this decision. The blood lust will continue.. revenge is savage and ugly. Those who perpetrate it, even uglier.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Didn't an American politician once say that one American life is worth 10,000 other lives (non-American)? Imagine if this soldier were a Chechan living in the US and only SUSPECTED of wrong-doing! He'd be gunned down by the FBI in minutes! It's because he's American, and the victims Afghans, and that's all there is to it.

I don't think life without parole will be a picnic by any means, and the guy's going to suffer for the rest of his pathetic existence, and hopefully a whole, whole lot, but I can understand the rage about the outcome. Despite my being against the death penalty, it's simply astounding that in a country that espouses it a person can get away with murdering 16 innocent people.

And please... don't try suggesting they were not innocent.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Why keep troops in Afghanistan still? The "Mayor of Kabul" is just that. Most of the country is a sort of Wilderland. I wish I could have visited this country in more peaceful times and know the culture better...sad now.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

yabits,

Devaluation of human life

Yes, indeed.

It's the same old story.

It's not really devaluation of human life, but devaluation of certain races of human life.

"We guys over here are humans, but those guys over there are less than human and therefore expendable."

Where have we heard that line, all through history?

I can't help thinking that if Bales killed 16 Americans, he wouldn't get off so lightly. Killing 16 Afghan villagers in cold blood is apparently no big deal.

Oh, well, he did say he was sorry.

I suppose that makes it OK.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Browne announced last week that he had reached an agreement with the military to "take the death penalty off the table" if Bales would plead guilty, and said the soldier was sorry.

This was a big mistake. The military should never have agreed to the plea deal.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The military should never have agreed to the plea deal.

Yes.

How about if they offered the same deal to Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

the majority of respondents on this thread condemn the lack of principled action by the US military court that tried this war criminal. The US military has the death penalty and it was applicable in this case. The principled American response would have been death penalty justice.

I understand, but that is NOT for us to decide, the military system spared this man's life and that's their final decision, whether you and I accept it or not is totally irrelevant. At least he will face life without the possibility of parole. So justice is done, maybe the verdict is NOT what makes you feel good, but for me (personally, I am against the death penalty usually) I think it's better to suffer for the rest of your life living than to have a revenge (legalized) killing. But that is my opinion.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

bass4funk,

Except that it isn't/wasn't a war, was it?

Who was the enemy?

Bin Laden?

Fingers were pointed, but there was no trial, so, basically we don't know.

Al Quaeda?

Hardly, it's not a group.

"The Taliban?"

"Terrorism?"

Terrorism isn't people, terrorism is a WAY of fighting. A very dirty way, admittedly, but it's just ONE technique used in war. It couldn't be an enemy.

WHO was the enemy?

You have to have an enemy to have a war.

Bass4funk, I wish I had your blind faith. I'm very sorry, but I don't.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Given them a fighting chance to have a decent government?

At some point you have to take your "toys" and go home. We (the US) are not wanted in Afghanistan by most.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I didn't think the U.S.A. could sink much lower, but it has.

The lives of these people are expendable?

Is that what they think?

This and the Collateral Murder incident are WAR CRIMES.

-1 ( +5 / -6 )

What on Earth were the U.S.A. doing in Afghanistan anyway?

Spending tens of thousands of wasted hours searching caves in mountains for "terrorist strongholds" that didn't exist and hunting for Bin Laden, who was either already dead from kidney failure or living in Pakistan, depending on which rumour you believe.

This is all getting just a bit too insane.

-1 ( +4 / -5 )

Deplore,

You know what?

I don't believe you.

Collateral murder was not faked, nor was it an isolated case.

This soldier, Robert Bales doing a Rambo on sleeping villagers was not faked either.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

As a professional soldier with more than a few tours of duty under his belt is it any wonder that he killed 16 people including children?

Soldiers are taught to kill-pure and simple..........

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

mtwildman has my mind gone around the bend or or are you justifiying what that useless waste of oxygen did?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

These killings and the decision as to how to treat them, like the violence perpetrated by all cultures with a war-mentality, are all part of an overall pattern. A simple Kentucky farmer and writer, Wendell Berry, penned the following:

"On the day of the bombing in Boston, The New York Times printed an op-ed piece by a human being who has been imprisoned in Guatanamo for more than eleven years, uncharged and, of course, untried. The occurrence of thee two events on the same day was a coincidence, but that does not mean they are unrelated.

"What connects them is our devaluation, and when convenient our disvaluation, of human life as well as earthly life of which human life is a dependent part. This cheapening of life, and the violence that inevitably accompanies it, is surely the dominant theme of our time. The ease and quickness with which we resort to violence would be astounding if it were not conventional....

"What I am less and less in sympathy with is the rhetoric and the tone of official indignation [regarding the Boston bombing]. Public officials cry out for justice against the perpetrators. I too wish them caught and punished. But I am unwilling to have my wish spoken for me in a tone of surprised and outraged innocence. The event in Boston is not unique or "rare" or surprising or in any way. new. It is only another transaction in the commerce of violence: the unending, the not foreseeably endable, exchange of an eye for an eye, with customary justifications on every side, in which we fully participate; and beyond that, our willingness to to destroy anything, any place, or anybody standing between us and whatever we are "manifestly destined" to have."

The violence perpetrated by Bales, and the way our system has handled it, are certainly as American as apple pie. The message sent to the world is that we (Americans) will kill you, torture you (or have you tortured), imprison you without charge or trial, force-feed you if you try to starve yourself, and otherwise control your very existence if you should ever react with hostility to our superior beneficence.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

"What has the USA done for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan?"

Given them a fighting chance to have a decent government?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

@bertie

I could turn the question your way too.

Right back at you.

What has the U.S.A. done for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan?

http://www.khaama.com/nato-notes-extraordinary-achievements-in-afghanistan-1552

http://foris.fao.org/static/edoc/Afghanistan_edoc_final_en.pdf#search='afghanistan+achievements'

I could go on and on.

Killed hundreds of thousands, many of them non combatants.

Very Sad, but that's war. Tell of a ANY war in the history of mankind where innocent women and children were not killed indiscriminately?

Turned a blind eye to those US soldiers, like Bales in this story who killed, tortured and intimidated in cold blood.

The Taliban killing, mutilating women, throwing acid in their faces, cutting off noses, public beatings, honor killings, rapes chopping off peoples heads murdering little girls because they want to go to school and get educated and that's just to THEIR OWN people. I'm not even talking about allied forces. Where's your outrage on that???

Ruined whole areas of cities, destroying buildings and infrastructure.

Because often the men try to hide among civilians, hide and dress like women to hide from allied soldiers, use their own family as human shields, remember OBL, how he hurled his wife at one of the special forces, what kind of man does something like that. So the allied soldiers should just be sitting ducks and not breach walls and just allow the enemy to sneak up on them and do a surprise attack. But funny, how the media leaves out when the soldiers have to do that, they mostly pay the family in ca$$h for the destruction, so most of them are compensated. My cousin has been operating in Afghanistan for the last 5 years and is stationed there. A lot of the great humanitarian help that they provide for the people rarely gets noticed.

Pushed the reputation of the U.S.A. down to a level (in Arab eyes) of Nazi Germany.

Nazi Germany? So the US built concentration camps and is systematically trying to euthanize and destroy the Afghanis because they are Muslim?? What the heck are you reading or getting your news sources from? And don't quote the Arabs, it doesn't matter what we do. We could leave the middle east completely, never return and step foot on Arab land and they still would hate us. You can go back to ancient Europe, the fighting and the vitriol between Christians and Muslims were and have been like this since early time, don't make it as if the Muslims JUST started hating America. And even IF that were the case, Why do these radicals go crazy throughout Europe? The soldier that was murdered in the middle of the street in England, that was America's fault?? Please!

Started wars based on complete lies.

Not direct lies, false intel, the same intel that the French, British, the US, Russian, Germans, the Polish, the Italians, the Turks and the Spanish that thought and shared the same intel thinking that the information was sound. So if you want to blame someone, blame all those countries, Yes, America went into Afghanistan, but the intel was from various international organizations.

Put hundreds of thousands of its people in danger, many of whom killed or seriously injured, mentally and physically, all for no result and for no reason in the first place.

What about the allied soldiers that were killed, crippled and murdered? Where's your outrage, after all, they are humans too, right?

This is what I mean by insanity.

Insanity is: when you see things from a slanted and skewed perspective and want to see things in a narrow-viewed prism.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

"At some point you have to take your "toys" and go home."

I hear Obama is finally going to have us out of there in another year and a half, five and a half years after he took office.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

What do those poor Afghan people expected from Americans? Americans considered other nations as nearly subhumans, useless worms. They show their true attitude to locals everywhere.

-2 ( +4 / -6 )

some07791,

The priority of US Military justice is to avoid embarrassing the USA instead of dispensing justice. The US military and its courts protect their own.

Exactly.

You would think the "Land of the Free" would have a little more cohones, wouldn't you?

But they don't.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

@bertie

What on Earth were the U.S.A. doing in Afghanistan anyway?

Blame Obama, he said, we need to concentrate all of our forces there. That's where the real enemy is Afghanistan.

Spending tens of thousands of wasted hours searching caves in mountains for "terrorist strongholds" that didn't exist and hunting for Bin Laden, who was either already dead from kidney failure or living in Pakistan, depending on which rumour you believe.

That's the result when you go to war, but we killed OBL, so I think it was worth the effort.

This is all getting just a bit too insane.

Hearing liberals whine about this constantly, most definitely.

You would think the "Land of the Free" would have a little more cohones, wouldn't you?

But they don't.

We do, may not be to what you personally might think, but we don't need to prove ourselves, it's not a popularity contest.

I can't help thinking that if Bales killed 16 Americans, he wouldn't get off so lightly. Killing 16 Afghan villagers in cold blood is apparently no big deal.

Oh, well, he did say he was sorry.

I suppose that makes it OK.

You are such a crack up, you act like as if you really deeply care about these people, let me ask, what have you done to contribute to the plight of the Afghan people? How many times do you go and visit or give money to them. What solutions do you have of fixing that country, instead of just complaining about the US all the time. You Don't speak for America, you can't say we don't care about the Afghans, that is so insulting, do you actually know all the positive things that the soldiers are doing? Probably not. You are so focused on the negative stories, that's all you focus on....ALWAYS!

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

@bertie

Except that it isn't/wasn't a war, was it?

Yes, it was a war. Flushing out Al Qaida, the Taliban and other radical Islamists that are trying to kill us.

Who was the enemy?

Radical Islam

Bin Laden?

The worst one and you see the result of what can happen when you screw with the US thinking that after bombing the Kenyan embassy, the USS Cole, the Twin Towers not once, but twice, we would sit in a corner and call it a day? Even he knew the countdown on his life had from that point, just started.

Fingers were pointed, but there was no trial, so, basically we don't know.

They are terrorists, we KNEW through intel international collaboration, following up on leads, enhanced interrogations and water boarding people like Khalid Sheik Muhammad They are enemy combatants, they are not civilians and are not subject to receiving a trail. No country, flag, uniform, banner. Yes, we know.

Al Quaeda?

Yes!

Hardly, it's not a group.

There are many groups. What are you talking about. Here is just a small sample.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_terrorist_groups_are_there_in_the_world

Don't know what you are talking about again, but I think you are totally oblivious to what's out there when it comes to Al Qaeda.

"The Taliban?"

Yes, them too.

"Terrorism?"

Of course, without a doubt. That is the main driving force in what we are fighting in its purest form of evil.

Terrorism isn't people, terrorism is a WAY of fighting. A very dirty way, admittedly, but it's just ONE technique used in war. It couldn't be an enemy.

But when people use it as a reason to attack other people, innocent people by means of mass destruction through violence, physical and emotional, then by definition, the person used the technique of terror to inflict bodily harm, then by extension that individual is a Terrorist and is justly an enemy and a legitimate target.

WHO was the enemy?

Radical Islam

You have to have an enemy to have a war.

Well, Saddam was one, Gadaffi another and don't forget OBL. On a smaller scale of people that brought the fight on our shores making the war domestic: the Underwear bomber, the Fort Hood shooter, the Boston bombers. People that that come to my country and go nuts like that will be dealt with in the worst possible way. So yes, we are at war with radical Islam.

I wish I had your blind faith. I'm very sorry, but I don't.

It's ok, as long as my people do, then that's all that matters.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

@bertie

Saddam Hussein was Iraq, not Afghanistan.

Saddam was in Iraq, yes, that was the war Bush waged in removing that nut from power. But you liberals keep screaming it was illegal and so now Obama comes in and relocates the troops to Afghanistan, because that's where the real enemy is as he says and it seems like the drone program is working for Obama.

Or are they all the same to you?

Two different countries, two different terrorist groups that are fundamentally and virtually almost mirror each other. So by definition, they are to me, almost the same.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

@yabits

No, of course there were troops in Iraq before Afghanistan and I still think getting rid of that maniac was the best thing for the Kurds the Shiites and for the US. But Obama was so bent on putting our troops where he stated the real problem is and to focus on finding OBL. I was all for it, but now all of a sudden we have to stand by Obama for the war in Afghanistan, that is what liberals want, but you are an evil person if you supported Bush going into Iraq. You guys know full well if Bush were still President going into Afghanistan hunting OBL, you guys would still moan and yell to the ceiling tops, he's a war monger, but Obama is a peace maker. He stepped up the Drone program. If he is a peace maker, I hate to see what's he like as war monger.

I was making a quick point. As fas as the WMD debacle debate is concerned, I'm not going to go there with you. Bush is not President, Obama is, when there is a thread about that, we can go at it.

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Bales like the US government has no idea why he is in Afghanistan. Maybe, it is to allow the Afghans,under the liberal eye of the US military,to flood the US with cheap opium?

Therefore, a pertinent question to ask, might be, just what was Bales smoking?

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