Quote:
Originally Posted by Flames Fan, Ph.D.
I agree. And from that example, people such as myself think that the responsibility put on that soldier is enormous to the extent where he's given an impossible mission. How can anyone even reasonably sit there stationary on a turret watching cars with civilians drive around while he tries to figure out which one is harboring the "terrorist." It follows that *if* we're going to put an almost insurmountable burden on our soldiers, then the cause for which they are there has to be extremely clear. Furthermore, the desired outcome has to be well articulated and of the utmost importance.
For myself, I'm unclear on the exact cause, and given the actions that the "strategy" is asking of these soldiers, it's not clear to me that the most reasonable outcome is worth the risk. These documents simply help me to form a thought process, to the best of my ability*.
* Inherent in this is that I do *not* think the release of these old items puts the current soldiers in any more risk than they're currently in.
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I can think of one justifiable cause for worry. That it will inform the Taliban of proper tactical procedure in certain situations.
For example, my cousin told me that the Taliban discovered that wounded children receive priority care from ISAF soldiers. Often my cousin's platoon would encounter Taliban, fight them off, and then move into a nearby village to meet with local elders etc... Upon retreating, the Taliban would pass through the village and shoot to wound several children forcing the ISAF to call in medevac helicopters to bring them to ISAF hospitals. The Taliban would then shoot at the helicopters.
In a sense, we agree. We are in a new war, a terrifying war with an enemy with few bounds on his morality and the absolute desire to beat us.