Soldiers will die in Training mission so the CCPA says why bother?

In a shocking partisan development the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Rideau Institute says soldiers are likely to be killed or injured attempting a task that will ultimately fail.

Its good to know that as soldiers our lives are expendable and that in the end the missions we try to accomplish will eventually lead to failure.

One has to remember that when it comes to training the Afghan Army and the police we are trying to teach someone to be a helicopter repairman that reads at a grade 3 level.  Does this mean we simply don't bother teaching him or do we help them even if it costs lives and even if its costs our own lives.

HERAT, Afghanistan (10 September) – After 14 weeks of training, 450 policemen graduated from Adraskan’s NATO Training Centre. The course comprised elements of Law, Shooting, Topography, Anti-riot and Check-point techniques, Counter-IED, Driving and Combat skills. Isafmedia photo.

Canada's plan to extend the Afghanistan mission by three years in a training support role carries high risks and a low chance of success, says a report released Monday.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced last November that Canadian Forces would act in a safer non-combat training role until 2014.

But the report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Rideau Institute says soldiers are likely to be killed or injured attempting a task that will ultimately fail.

According to analysts Michael Byers and Stewart Webb, military training always poses risks, and the Taliban have increasingly targeted training facilities while infiltrating the Afghan army and police.

The report cites dozens of incidents in which personnel with the NATO International Security Assistance Force have been attacked and killed by infiltrators among the Afghan army and police.

In the past six months:

The report says that widespread illiteracy and high desertion rates among Afghan soldiers and police and worsening security in the country as a whole doom the effort to failure.

Even if training efforts succeed to some extent, the eventual implosion of "the increasingly corrupt and ineffective Karzai government" leaves open the question of what sort of regime those soldiers and police would serve, the report says.

"Although they won't admit it, most Western governments have already given up on the country," said the report's co-author Byers. "The training mission is clearly an exit strategy that will cost more Canadians their lives."

The decision to extend the Afghan mission beyond 2011 was made without a debate in Parliament, with the consent of the Liberal Opposition. Harper argued that for an extension of the mission in a non-combat role, no parliamentary vote was needed.

"When we're talking simply about technical or training missions, I think that is something the executive can do on its own," Harper said.

Inside the wire:
Captain Paul Comeau, a member of the 2 Nova Scotia Highlanders 2NSH(CB), keeps an eye on recruit soldiers from the Afghan National Army (ANA) as they execute practical weapons training at the Afghan National Training Center in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Photo: Sgt John Clevett, Formation Imaging Services Halifax

Canadian trainers will stay "inside the wire," at their bases, Harper said, but the report suggests that the need to provide training in the field and security for the bases will inevitably result in "mission creep" and the need to engage in combat with insurgents.

The report contends that attempts to train the Afghan army and police to take over security are a facade designed to ease an exit "with honour."

"Which raises the question," the report says. "Why should Canada's soldiers suffer more casualties in an extended 'training' mission, if the decision to abandon Afghanistan to its fate has already been made?"

The report's authors fear public discussion about the Afghan mission has been sidelined by the election.

"Canadians need to be made aware of the risks of this mission," Webb said.

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives describes itself as an independent, non-partisan research institute concerned with issues of social, economic and environmental justice."




Historically this is something they have been saying for a while.   When Canada deployed its troops to Kanadhar for the second time in 2005 PM Martin and the government was saying the exact same thing.


"CTV.ca News Staff

Date: Sat. Jul. 30 2005 8:14 AM ET

Prime Minister Paul Martin responded to criticism Friday that sending troops to Afghanistan will endanger Canada, saying fighting terrorism is the government's responsibility.  He made his comments during a trip to Timmins, Ont., and also said fighting terrorism was the right thing to do.  His comments follow reports that a jihadist website mentioned Canada's mission to Afghanistan, alerting al Qaeda fighters to their presence.

Canada is helping Afghanistan by sending 250 troops to the violent Kandahar region, as part of a provincial reconstruction team to help bring stability to the area. They will encourage diplomacy and development, and also provide security for communities trying to rebuild.

Some troops will be arriving today, but the majority touched down Thursday.

The soldiers will get two days of rest before they accompany U.S. forces, who recently had four soldiers killed in a suicide bomb attack.

The Taliban's influence is especially strong in Kandahar, where troops continue to fight with insurgents.

Gen. Rick Hillier said last week that Canadian troops will likely encounter Taliban fighters and their al Qaeda allies.  Joint Task Force 2 -- Canada's secretive, elite special forces unit -- has been deployed for combat operations there.

The majority of Canadian soldiers are from Edmonton.

Most of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group is made up of soldiers from Edmonton Garrison's 1 Combat Engineer Regiment, 3 Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry and 1 Service Battalion, reports The Canadian Press.  Critics of the mission say it will raise Canada's profile as a potential target for terrorists.

Eric Margolis, a seasoned war correspondent and author of a book on conflict in Afghanistan, War at the Top of the World, believes the mission could increase chances of a terrorist attack on Canadian soil.

He also believes Canadians might be unprepared for the possibility of troops suffering casualties.

"You cannot go into a war and expect you're not going to get shot at. It's foolish and it's illusory to do so, so Canadians have to be prepared," he told CTV.ca on Saturday.

"If they want to send troops to go and kill Afghans, Afghans are going to come and kill Canadians."

DO17 Found off the UK coast and may be raised.

German Word War 2 Dornier 17 found of the UK

LONDON (Reuters) - A rare World War Two German bomber, shot down over the English Channel in 1940 and hidden for years byshifting sands at the bottom of the sea, is so well preserved a British museum wants to raise it.

The Dornier 17 -- thought to be world's last known example -- was hit as it took part in the Battle of Britain.

It ditched in the sea just off the Kent coast, southeast England, in an area known as the Goodwin Sands.

The plane came to rest upside-down in 50 feet of water and has become partially visible from time to time as the sands retreated before being buried again.

Now a high-tech sonar survey undertaken by the Port of London Authority (PLA) has revealed the aircraft to be in a startling state of preservation.

Ian Thirsk, from the RAF Museum at Hendon in London, told the BBC he was "incredulous" when he first heard of its existence and potential preservation.

"This aircraft is a unique aeroplane and it's linked to an iconic event in British history, so its importance cannot be over-emphasized, nationally and internationally," he said.

Do 17 dropping its bomb load 

"It's one of the most significant aeronautical finds of the century."

Known as "the flying pencil," the Dornier 17 was designed as a passenger plane in 1934 and was later converted for military use as a fast bomber, difficult to hit and theoretically able to outpace enemy fighter aircraft.

In all, some 1,700 were produced but they struggled in the war with a limited range and bomb load capability and many were scrapped afterwards.

Striking high-resolution images appear to show that the Goodwin Sands plane suffered only minor damage, to its forward cockpit and observation windows, on impact.

"The bomb bay doors were open, suggesting the crew jettisoned their cargo," said PLA spokesman Martin Garside.

Two of the crew members died on impact, while two others, including the pilot, were taken prisoner and survived the war.

"The fact that it was almost entirely made of aluminum and produced in one piece may have contributed to its preservation," Garside told Reuters.

The plane is still vulnerable to the area's notorious shifting sand has become the target of recreational divers hoping to salvage souvenirs.

The RAF museum has launched an appeal to raise funds for the lifting operation.

(Editing by Steve Addison)

Drone kills two in Friendly Fire incident

This is another case where situational awareness especially on the battlefield is so important.  We have drone operators that are outside the area of operations and in some cases outside the theatre of operations.

They can not properly assess if a convoy of truck is a wedding party or a Taliban group.   If we are to train the Afghan Army to take over and for the locals to respect the efforts of the ANA and the foreign armies we must not use Drones or even airstrikes till the very last minute.   Boots on the ground able to halt a convoy and ask some simple questions will give legitimacy to the operations in Afghanistan.

Friend or foe?

"A drone missile strike killed a US Marine and a Navy corpsman last week by mistake, in what appeared to be the first instance US troops had been killed in a "friendly fire" incident involving an unmanned aircraft, defense officials have said.

The military has launched a probe into the incident, which appeared to stem from confusion on the battlefield in the southern province of Helmand, US officials told AFP.

Fighter jets and combat helicopters are usually called in to provideclose air support for coalition troops pinned down by insurgent fire, while drones tend to be used for manhunts targeting Talibanfigures.

The strike claimed the lives of Navy Seaman Benjamin Rast, 23, of Niles, Michigan, and Staff Sergeant Jeremy Smith, 26, of Arlington, Texas, officials said.

NBC News, which first reported the incident, said that the two service members were part of a unit ordered in to reinforce Marines coming under heavy fire from insurgents outside Sangin, the scene of fierce fighting for years.

The Marines near Sangin, watching a video feed from the armedPredator drone overhead, saw infrared images moving towards them and may have concluded those "hot spots" were insurgents instead of fellow Marines, NBC reported.

The investigation into last week's incident follows a detailed account in the Los Angeles Times of a February drone strike that went terribly wrong.

In the February strike, US operators of a robotic plane and special operations forces mistakenly thought a convoy of Afghan civilians in vehicles was a Taliban unit moving in.

The strike near a village in Oruzgan province killed 15-16 men, one woman and three children, the US military says, while Afghans believe 23 people died, including two children.

Drone 'friendly fire' kills two US troops - Yahoo! News

Spring is finally here....

Soldier: Stop complaining

This is a letter to the editors of the Dispatch (Davidson County's News Source)


Soldier: Stop complaining

Published: Monday, April 11, 2011 at 4:12 p.m. 

Editor: I am but a lowly member of your armed forces writing to give a quick thanks to the folks who regularly write letters to your paper. Without the weekend philosopher, economist, theologian, eschatologist, apologist, unemployed, wealthy and offensively ignorant writers having letters published weekly, I might not see how similar those launching rockets at me weekly are to those taking my country for granted daily.

Don’t misinterpret my words as calling you my enemy, friends. However, if you were my enemy, I hope you know that you would be loved by me as a friend. I would serve you at my restaurant. I would welcome you to the building where I worship my God. I would give you the things you need, though car payments fail to fall under the category of “need” in my book.

Are you having problems finding employment? Many are; just keep searching and be willing to perform any legal task within your true physical and mental abilities to gain earned income. You will feel better about yourself, I assure you. For those blessed with a wealth of income, don’t wait for your government to take your earnings from you. Help out those you can. At least you will be deciding where your money goes.

Perhaps, though I know this is difficult for most, take accountability for your actions. If you feel like you gave an idiot power over you, then give someone else that power. Even better, realize what power you have with any combination of those legs, those arms and that mind. Vote for a lawmaker and realize the people are the power.

An imbalanced engine will not operate efficiently or very long before needing to be overhauled. Oftentimes it will overheat leading to its demise. Trust me, being the owner of a 1974 VW bus, I know.

It seems cliche, but people need to be working together as much as they need to just be working. Behaving like an idiot will do no good for yourself or your country. I love my America, and I love her potential. However, the underwhelming pride and attention you give to the men and women I see loaded on aircraft in flag-draped boxes every other day can be seen in your work ethic, your hatred for one another and your inability to recognize how beautiful every day is.

Please, for the sake of me, many others like me and yourselves, stop complaining. Stop hating. Start working. Most importantly, start loving one another. Perhaps turn off your television today and begin by telling those closest to you how much you love them. Movement sometimes requires a subtle start.

Movements require many collective subtle starts.

With love to America and her people.

Michael Scoggin

Kandahar, Afghanistan

Southmont

Armadillo - Documentary Trailer - POV 2011 | PBS

Success of Embeded Journalism the film Armadillo

Armadillo directed by Janus Metz Photo: c.Everett Collection / Rex Features

By David Gritten

It’s a rare film that can inspire a furious nationwide debate in its country of origin, as well as widespread public hand-wringing about the loss of core national values. Yet that has been the achievement of Armadillo, a war documentary about a platoon of young Danish soldiers serving in the Helmand province of Afghanistan, where they are pitted against the Taliban.

Director Janus Metz, who with his cinematographer Lars Skree was embedded with the platoon over a six-month stretch at Armadillo, their front line base camp, wanted to make a film about the brutalising effects of war.

“You’re battling with keeping your own sense of civilised behaviour but succumbing to barbaric acts,” he says of the soldiers.

“That’s always the [danger] in a war zone. We were trying to get close to a study of how they would react to this situation. We didn’t know what the result was going to be: would they emerge as heroes or villains?”

The outcome could hardly have been more sensational. Towards the end of Metz’s time with the soldiers, they found themselves caught in a firefight with the Taliban, and killed some of them, who were lying in a ditch. What exactly happened is never made clear, but the film suggests that some of the dead Taliban may have been trying to surrender or were already wounded – which would mean the Danes broke the rules of engagement.When Armadillo received its world premiere last May in Cannes (where it won the Grand Prix in Critics’ Week), it caused such controversy back in Denmark that it was rushed into immediate release. The presumed brutality of the soldiers shocked the Danish people, many of whom felt their role in Afghanistan was essentially peacekeeping.

The most influential opinion was expressed by one of Denmark’s best-known authors, the novelist and political columnist Carsten Jensen, who said: “The Danish self-image was smashed in Armadillo. After [this film] it will not be possible to talk about Afghanistan in the same way as before. Nor will it be possible to look at us Danes in the same way. It is an earthquake in the nation’s self-understanding.”

None of this hurt Armadillo’s prospects, of course; on the weekend of its release it topped Denmark’s box-office charts, outstripping Hollywood films such as Robin Hood, Prince of Persia and How to Train Your Dragon.

So all-encompassing was this controversy that the Danish military ordered an inquiry into the events depicted in Armadillo. “They were exonerated,” Metz says. “It was all a bit of theatre, really. The military had to be seen to do something. Those guys would have needed to testify that they did liquidate those people who were trying to crawl away or trying to surrender. There was only a slim chance of that.”

That Armadillo turned out to be such a compelling story should not obscure the fact that it’s also a remarkable piece of film-making.

One of its most remarkable qualities – which it shares with recent American documentary Restrepo, also set in Afghanistan – is that its embedded film-makers are in the heart of the action.

“We were there for three and a half months on our trip,” Metz says. “But we travelled back and forth between Afghanistan and Denmark. That was deliberate. We needed to get a clear perspective.

“Yet we were embedded because we needed to understand what these soldiers were going through. We bonded with them. There was trust between us. At the same time we were separate, too. We slept in a tent, while they were in barracks.”

Armadillo also includes visual images that scorch themselves on the memory, notably a wounded Danish soldier who sits awaiting treatment. His eyes stare uncomprehendingly; he looks awfully young. It’s a jarring contrast to the macho antics and banter in base camp.

As a result of the success of Armadillo, his first full-length film, Metz finds himself in demand. He has been in the United States, searching around for his next film idea.

“I don’t regard myself only as a documentary maker,” he says. “I’ve been looking at fictional stories, too. But I feel very connected to reality. I’m like an anthropologist! So I’ll make more documentaries, I’m sure.”

• Armadillo is out now