With Taliban looking on approvingly, these tearful children in Afghanistan swear that they will now be suicide bombers after losing people they love in the only thing that more war funding gets you: More war. Film-maker Robert Greenwald ("Iraq for Sale") urges us to keep calling the swing Democrats in the War Supplemental up for a vote, as we are now just three short of sending it back to the drawing board, for an exit strategy and a renewed focus on civilian aide rather than bombs for Afghans...
No one deserves this, and yes the Taliban plays it to its advantage. That's why they look so happy in this video. Greenwald points out, more bombs are not going to address 40% unemployment, and a rampant picking-through-garbage-for-food scale of poverty. U.S. Generals and command staff in Afghanistan are desperate for more jobs on the ground, to keep young men paid and tired and not fighting for the Taliban's $8 a day, since they are the ones who have to ride out in helicopters and apologize for the bombs falling in the wrong place.
They feel terrible, the pilots feel terrible, the soldiers on the ground feel terrible. But the Taliban has a bullet-proof strategy. Create more and more kids like this, swearing vengeance, and their little insurgency takes off nicely. Pretty soon the Taliban won't even have to pay most of the kids to fight, like they do now. They'll do it for free. From a paid insurgency we are obliging the Taliban in helping to create their dream: a generation of true haters, who will kill any Americans they see. They will be taught who pays for these bombs.
The Taliban wants desperately for people to hate Americans, because people already hate the Taliban, what with the cutting off of hands and all that Afghans well remember. Why do we have to make their job so easy?
Where is Obama on this? I daresay if he tacked on an exit strategy without being forced to he would be savaged from the right for surrendering. It's up to us. I recall an idealistic presidential candidate telling us to stand up for our convictions. I daresay, even if it costs him more time on the War Supp Bill and another vote, he would be proud of us.
Here are the key hold-outs. It's easier than ever to call them, HERE, with this automated dialer and quick script. It dials the swing votes in random order so even if you only get through a few, it is very effective. VOTE NO ON THE WAR SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL. EXIT STRATEGY AND CIVILIAN AID.
Peace.
Leaning No:
1. Steve Cohen
2. Keith Ellison*
3. Chakah Fattah
4. Mike Honda
5. Doris Matsui*
6. Ed Markey*
7. Jim McDermott*
8. Gwen Moore
9. Jared Polis*
- Jan Schakowsky*
- Jackie Speier
- Mike Thompson*
- John Tierney
- Mel Watt*
- Anthony Weiner
Undecided:
1. Andre Carson
2. Donna Christenson
3. Jim Cooper
4. Danny Davis
5. Bill Delahunt
6. Al Green
7. Phil Hare
8. Maurice Hinchey
9. Paul Hodes
- Carolyn Maloney
- Jim Moran
- Grace Napolitano
- Donald Payne
- Charles Rangel
- Laura Richardson
- Linda Sanchez
- Bobby Scott
- John Tanner
- Ed Towns
- Peter Welchs