I’m taking a huge risk writing this blog. Why? Because the entire landscape of what I’m writing about could change before I even get to my last sentence. That’s the world we are in today.
Yesterday, was a horrific day for our country. We had more servicemen killed in Afghanistan in one day than we have in over a year. It’s a tragedy that I truly can’t comprehend. I don’t have a family member in Afghanistan wearing a flag on their uniform. I do know people that do. Let me tell you about the heartbreaking events that unfolded yesterday.
It was announced that Marines were killed. How many? Well, that depended on when you got your news. It started at 3 and is now at 13. Will there be more? Yes, undoubtedly there will be. But, here’s the thing… those numbers are people. They are sons, daughters, husbands, and wives. They are gone from this Earth and the families of those people are getting knocks on their doors today. Remember the scene from “Saving Private Ryan” when the mother crumples to her knees as she saw the official military car arrive at her door? That happened yesterday for some people. It’s the real life agony for families in this country who have loved ones in the military.
Yesterday, I was texting with a friend who’s son is in the Army. A graduate of West Point. He is NOT in Afghanistan…. but his friends and classmates are. Do you know what they were doing? They were searching videos from news sites looking desperately for a glimpse of their friend in the crowd. They were watching frame by frame to somehow find reassurance that Nikki and Raymond were not among the casualties. Now…. multiply that by thousands because that’s how many other families and friends were doing the same thing!
I can’t imagine it. I can’t allow my brain to even comprehend the sheer terror of waiting to see who those numbers belonged to.
Here’s my honest truth about the events that have unfolded over the past 2 weeks. I’m appalled. Did we need to leave Afghanistan? Yes, we absolutely did. We should have left a decade or more ago but we didn’t. The wartime landscape is like no other in the world. Ask Russia. It’s a desolate God foresaken country of death, rubble, war, fighting, and horror. Our mission (the one we originally went there for) ended within months of arrival, but we stayed. We tried to turn a country into something it never wanted to be. We failed miserably.
Who is to blame? Well, take your pick. Presidents, Generals, the Pentagon, the CIA, the politicians, the defense contractors… this list goes on and on. The blame is widespread and there’s plenty to go around for every human that ever made a decision in favor of our continued presence there.
Yesterday, this may shock many of you, but I spent time watching and reading what is “the other side” of my political view. Yes, we can be brutally honest that there are sides. That’s what this country has become. We are no longer united as one and after we fix this colossal disaster we are in… we may need to rethink the first word in our country’s name. We aren’t united. We aren’t united about a damn thing anymore. Pick your topic…. immigration, COVID, taxes, or wars. Two sides. On all of them.
Politicians sling the word “Bi-partisanship” like a frisbee. There is none of that. Ever. It’s a massive negotiation of what will you give ME if I give YOU? They aren’t in it for the greater good of all. They are in it for the greater good of their political career. Full Stop. If you ever and I mean EVER… cheer any legislation coming out of that building with the Rotunda because both sides “agreed”, you are an idiot. They agreed to something that personally benefits THEM or their Constituents. There is no more… for the greater good of the country. That could cost them votes. That could effect their re-election.
It’s disgusting. It’s a travesty. And… it’s reality.
What I read yesterday was a mind blowing eye popping account of the events. The main issue was… we shouldn’t be there. We needed to leave. Deaths were inevitable.
Yeah… blow that out of your hairy- legged corn pop. Of course we needed to leave. But.. how we did it? What an unmitigated disaster! They planned for EVERY contingency? Bullshit! Because they didn’t plan for some sandal wearing warriors to overrun the entire country in 11 days! That’s a Big-Ass hole in their plan if you ask me!
And for those people that said… Americans were told to leave. They knew we were leaving, they shoulda left. Might I remind you that the President of this country repeatedly said, we would leave in an orderly, safe manner that would NOT result in the country turning into Saigon or being handed over to the Taliban. So… what…the… average ordinary Americans should have had a greater grasp on reality than the man receiving intelligence reports daily from people on the ground there?? !! SHUT UP with your nonsense!
Now…. they are spinning the… “We will get every American out that wants to get out”. Okay… let’s break that one down. The Taliban and ISIS want Americans dead. So you are telling me that “Ralph” wants to stay put. Enjoy the fall season in Afghanistan? Maybe do a bit more sightseeing before he hops on that Delta Airlines flight out of there. Complete utter bullshit! They want out! They want their families out. And how did our US Government respond to that?
That sent out a tweet telling them to stay put. Don’t come to the airport. And… .when we give you the signal to come, we can’t guarantee you’ll make it alive. You are on your own. Americans are terrified. Our Afghan allies that helped us for 20 years are scared to death. The Taliban is going door to door looking for them. You think they are doing that so they can give them some snacks and a lift to the North Gate of the airport??!!
And then… just to make matters worse for those people that are hiding in closets over there. This sharp as a tack administration gave the Taliban a list of names of people that we want to get out. What in the absolute ever loving hell? It’s a kill list. It’s murder.
Then… I read about how this was all Donald Trump’s fault. He negotiated with the Taliban. He demanded the release of 5,000 Taliban fighters as a good will gesture. Yeah.. here’s the thing about that. Those 5,000 were gonna walk when we left anyway. Do you think the Afghans were going to keep those cell doors locked? Hell no. They dropped their weapons (that WE paid for) faster than a hot potato when the sandal wearing terrorists showed up in town.
And… all of that…. every last bit of it could have been un-done by Biden. He undid everything else. No pipeline, no wall, no evictions… if he could un-do all of that, he could have changed the date, put in a plan, coordinated our departure any way he wanted, but he didn’t. And the buck stops with him and solely him. The Commander and Chief. That’s the job dude. Command!
Here’s the worst part about the past 2 weeks aside from the horrific loss of life. China is watching. Iran is watching. ISIS is watching. Taiwan, Hong Kong and Israel are in the gun sights of all of them now. Why? Because they saw this shitshow and they know the guy in charge doesn’t have the ability, the desire, or the backbone to stand up to them. We ran away from sandal wearing gun toting midwits and we left billions of dollars in military equipment and thousands of Americans to be used as hostages or beheading propaganda clips.
It’s absolutely 100% horrific! The Taliban now has more Black Hawk helicopters than 100 + countries in the world. They have ammunition, guns, and …. uniforms. So, when we retaliate or when we face these evil souls again… there will be 2 sides in the fight, but how will we know who is on which side?
If you want to make this a political game and continue with the Bush, Obama, Trump blame game….. have at it. I studied Civics though. I know how our government and military leadership work. And, the guy in the White House is in charge. Not the golfer at Mar-a-Lago, or the party thrower in Martha’s Vineyard, or the painter in Crawford, TX. The man in charge failed us all!
Good Day! Wash your hands & QUIT TOUCHING YOUR FACE!!!!
The DoubleMdaily Blog 