Afghanistan « Scott's DiaTribes

The courts hand Harper and the Cons another defeat.

Posted by Scott Tribe on April 29, 2009, at 9:55 am |

The Conservatives haven’t had much luck in the court system of late, and that pattern has continued (read more) [...]

Bev Oda channels Sarah Palin

Posted by Scott Tribe on March 4, 2009, at 7:21 pm |

Canada has our very own version of Sarah Palin in the Conservative government, and her name is Bev Oda (more). [...]

Tuesday Afternoon Random Musings

Posted by Scott Tribe on March 3, 2009, at 3:18 pm |

Here are some Tuesday afternoon random thoughts on a variety of topics I’ve seen today. Put together, a few short random thoughts equals a nice-sized blogpost. (Read More) [...]

Cost of Afghanistan mission: approximately 18.1 billion$. Ouch.

Posted by Scott Tribe on October 9, 2008, at 12:01 pm |

That’s what the Parliamentary Budget Officer said the Afghanistan Mission will end up costing Canadians by the time it ends in 2011 – presuming of course that Stephen Harper keeps to his word that this is the definite end of the mission. The thing is, 18.1 billion might not be the final tally:

But after poring over the books of federal departments, even Page had to couch his findings and admit that the real cost could be much higher…The report serves up more bad news for the federal Conservatives, who have already come under criticism for their secrecy and lack of disclosure surrounding many aspects of the mission. Page, [...]

Report: US wishes to have sole command of NATO in Afghanistan?

Posted by Scott Tribe on September 19, 2008, at 10:47 am |

This story caught my attention. A report in the England-based newspaper The Independent from yesterday claims that the US is seeking sole control of the NATO Afghanistan mission against the Taliban:

The Bush administration is pushing for sweeping changes to the military command structure in Afghanistan, so that the head of international forces would report directly to US Central Command instead of Nato…The Independent has learnt that the proposal to streamline the complex chain of command, enabling US General David McKiernan to be answerable to superiors at Centcom in Tampa, Florida, rather than Nato, is before Robert Gates, the American Defence Secretary…Any move to make the Afghan war an [...]

Friday snippets: Conservative “cut and run”, copyright stuff and Conservative war room hijinks.

Posted by Scott Tribe on September 12, 2008, at 10:16 am |

- Does everyone remember the Conservatives more or less accusing Dion and the Liberals of aiding and abetting the Taliban for being insistent on a firm pullout date for Afghanistan? (A little link for you if you don’t). Now that Harper has come around to agree with Dion and the Liberals position on Afghanistan, I’m waiting to see if all those Conservative bloggers who took up the cries of their Conservative politicians and said the Liberals were “cutting and running” will now issue the same condemnation of Harper. Send them in to me if you find any criticisms of their beloved strong leader. It appears even some Conservative strategists [...]

Take care of your own house first.

Posted by Scott Tribe on June 17, 2008, at 10:42 am |

Some bluster from Afghan President Karzai:

Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday said his country has the right to send troops into Pakistan to fight Taliban insurgents who launch cross-border attacks. Speaking at a news conference in the Afghan capital, Kabul, Karzai threatened to send the troops after Pakistan-based Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud, who vowed in May to send fighters into Afghanistan to wage war on foreign troops.

Tough talk, but considering the Afghan Army currently can’t even stop prison breaks by the Taliban in their own country, I think that Karzai should be worrying about his own country first, rather then threatening to invade someone else’s country.

[...]

Does John Manley have buyer’s remorse?

Posted by Scott Tribe on April 7, 2008, at 9:50 am |

I’m referring to whether Mr. Manley might now regret accepting Harper’s request to do a “non-partisan” panel report on Afghanistan.� My asking that question stems from reading in� Haroon Siddiqui’s Sunday column in the Star where he refers to the Afghanistan mission still being as clear as mud. Look what Mr. Manley has had to say recently about the Conservatives efforts to implement his report:

Amid all the Tory self-congratulation, there’s nary a mention of the civilian measures called for by both the John Manley panel and the House of Commons resolution extending the mission to 2011. Whatever happened to the idea of Harper heading an interdepartmental group to [...]

Afghani detainee transfers resumed – will lawsuit restart?

Posted by Scott Tribe on February 29, 2008, at 8:30 am |

I don’t doubt this might slip under the radar a bit today with the Chuck Cadman bribery affair ongoing, but I noticed that in a short blurb this morning the Canadian military has announced it has re-started transfers of Afghani detainees to the Afghanistan government, because they claim things have improved:

The military says since the transfers stopped, one senior Afghan official has been fired and millions of dollars worth of improvements have been made to detention facilities.

Wow, one whole firing and some equipment ugrades at Afghani prisons. Colour me skeptical that those reasons listed have somehow dramatically improved the situation. Here’s the other kicker: the military [...]

Harper leans toward Dion’s and Liberal position on Afghanistan

Posted by Scott Tribe on February 12, 2008, at 3:27 pm |

Well, this is noteworthy and dare I say it, encouraging, from a Prime Minister who hasn’t exactly been known to be the master of compromise:

Mr. Harper said his government will seriously consider the Liberal proposals, which include an end to combat operations in 2009 and full troop withdrawal from Kandahar in February 2011. Mr. Harper said the Liberal commitment to a continued military presence in the country post-2009 is �really very close to the government’s position� and he raised the possibility the Conservatives would introduce a new motion on the matter

Knb said over at her blog it will be interesting to see how the Cons. and [...]

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The courts hand Harper and the Cons another defeat.

Bev Oda channels Sarah Palin

Tuesday Afternoon Random Musings

Cost of Afghanistan mission: approximately 18.1 billion$. Ouch.

Report: US wishes to have sole command of NATO in Afghanistan?

Friday snippets: Conservative “cut and run”, copyright stuff and Conservative war room hijinks.

Take care of your own house first.

Does John Manley have buyer’s remorse?

Afghani detainee transfers resumed – will lawsuit restart?

Harper leans toward Dion’s and Liberal position on Afghanistan

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