According to the report, nearly every company listed in the report is
associated with senior Afghan officials, including President Hamid Karzai, the
minister of defense, a provincial governor and a senior Afghan army
official.
Youssef provides one example from the report. "One of those companies, Host Nation Trucking, transports about 70 percent of all goods to U.S. troops stationed at 200 bases and combat outposts throughout Afghanistan, running 6,000 to 8,000 delivery missions a month. The $2.16 billion contract called on HNT truckers to provide their own security, but didn't call for any oversight into how HNT and other companies did that. The investigation found that HNT has contracted with seven other companies to carry the cargo, but only one of those actually owns trucks. The others hire local Afghans, whose trucks sometimes bear the U.S. flag. The truckers pay as much as $1,500 a truck to 'nearly every Afghan governor, police chief and local military unit whose territory the company passed,' en route to a U.S. base, according to the 79-page report."
Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., chairman of the House subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs,said he was unable to determine how much was spent on such payments, but he said it could reach millions a week.
More and more one might be willing to accept the corporal's suggestion mentioned above. More and more one might be willing to accept McGovern's assertion mentioned above.
Then it happened. In a Rolling Stone article written by Michael Hastings,
McChrystal and his aides managed to disparage President Obama, Vice-President
Biden, special envoy Richard Holbrooke, the U.S. ambassador to Kabul, Karl
Eikenberry, and National Security Advisor James Jones. Obviously, the
handwriting was on the wall. On Wednesday, June 23rd, Obama accepted
McChrystal's resignation. On that date, the undaunted Gen. Petraeus may have
fainted again. After accepting McChrystal's resignation, Obama appointed
Petraeus as commander in Afghanistan. Thus, Petraeus will be wearing two hats,
CentCom and commander, Afghan NATO forces. The latter could well be an albatross
that could weigh down and drown a good soldier's career. Presidents expect
results from military commanders, and defeat is not welcomed on an officer's
resume, but many wonder what the hell is Petraeus supposed to
do?
I truly wish this was not the case. Following a defeat in Vietnam, dubious results in Iraq, the last thing America needs is still another military defeat. However, realism raises its ugly head. Tragedy is the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact
Sadly, due to the decisions of a President in our recent past followed by the decisions of our current President, the United States is no longer a triumphant sole superpower any more. Indeed, President Bush was reviled by citizens of our allies as the No. 1 Terrorist. Engelhardt concludes, "Its global power is visibly waning, its ability to win wars distinctly in question, its economic viability open to doubt. It has been transformed from a can-do into a can't-do nation, a fact only highlighted by the ongoing BP catastrophe and 'rescue' in the Gulf of Mexico. Its airports are less shiny and more Third World-like every year."
This is of enormous concern. Our infrastructure is crumbling beneath our eyes. Many of our bridges, highways, dams, levees, sewer and water systems, etc. have exceeded or soon will exceed their life expectancies, and there is no money on the local, state, and federal level to deal with the problem. There is little money for our future generations, our children, and our children's children as cuts to education have reached Draconian levels and they will be saddled with a National Debt that is off the scale. There is only money for war in a losing cause in a country most Americans cannot find on a map and could care less about as domestic problems overwhelm them.
Kudos to the Military/Industrial Complex and self-serving politicians who have exceeded far beyond Eisenhower's fears. In November the American people will speak.
Youssef provides one example from the report. "One of those companies, Host Nation Trucking, transports about 70 percent of all goods to U.S. troops stationed at 200 bases and combat outposts throughout Afghanistan, running 6,000 to 8,000 delivery missions a month. The $2.16 billion contract called on HNT truckers to provide their own security, but didn't call for any oversight into how HNT and other companies did that. The investigation found that HNT has contracted with seven other companies to carry the cargo, but only one of those actually owns trucks. The others hire local Afghans, whose trucks sometimes bear the U.S. flag. The truckers pay as much as $1,500 a truck to 'nearly every Afghan governor, police chief and local military unit whose territory the company passed,' en route to a U.S. base, according to the 79-page report."
Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., chairman of the House subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs,said he was unable to determine how much was spent on such payments, but he said it could reach millions a week.
More and more one might be willing to accept the corporal's suggestion mentioned above. More and more one might be willing to accept McGovern's assertion mentioned above.
I truly wish this was not the case. Following a defeat in Vietnam, dubious results in Iraq, the last thing America needs is still another military defeat. However, realism raises its ugly head. Tragedy is the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact
Sadly, due to the decisions of a President in our recent past followed by the decisions of our current President, the United States is no longer a triumphant sole superpower any more. Indeed, President Bush was reviled by citizens of our allies as the No. 1 Terrorist. Engelhardt concludes, "Its global power is visibly waning, its ability to win wars distinctly in question, its economic viability open to doubt. It has been transformed from a can-do into a can't-do nation, a fact only highlighted by the ongoing BP catastrophe and 'rescue' in the Gulf of Mexico. Its airports are less shiny and more Third World-like every year."
This is of enormous concern. Our infrastructure is crumbling beneath our eyes. Many of our bridges, highways, dams, levees, sewer and water systems, etc. have exceeded or soon will exceed their life expectancies, and there is no money on the local, state, and federal level to deal with the problem. There is little money for our future generations, our children, and our children's children as cuts to education have reached Draconian levels and they will be saddled with a National Debt that is off the scale. There is only money for war in a losing cause in a country most Americans cannot find on a map and could care less about as domestic problems overwhelm them.
Kudos to the Military/Industrial Complex and self-serving politicians who have exceeded far beyond Eisenhower's fears. In November the American people will speak.
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