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80sU2isBest

Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
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Soem of you folks actually seem to think that the US military is actually trying to hurt Afghan civilians. In response, many like me have been stressing that the USA is taking careful measures to try to avoid hitting civilians. The following account tells about some of those measures.

WASHINGTON ? Across Afghanistan, Taliban troops are hearing a tune dedicated to them, and it's not a love song:


"Surrender now and we will give you a second chance. We will let you live."

That's the message the U.S. military is broadcasting throughout the battle-ravaged country as air strikes continue to pummel Taliban defenses and ground troops possibly prepare to escalate the war on terror.

"When you decide to surrender, approach United States forces with your hands in the air. Sling your weapon across your back, muzzle towards the ground. Remove your magazine and expel any rounds," says the message, transmitted by Air Force EC-130 "Commando Solo" aircraft flying over the country. "Doing this is your only chance of survival.

"You have guaranteed your own demise."

The message to the Taliban warns that by harboring bin Laden and his Al Qaeda terrorist network, "you have declared war on the United States."

"Our military is bigger, faster and stronger, with more modernized weapons and better-trained troops," it says.

"You will be attacked by land, sea, and air."

There are other broadcasts on the U.S. military's Top 10. One is dedicated to the non-Taliban Afghans, urging them not to help the Taliban and Usama bin Laden and to stay away from possible bombing targets.

"It is not you, the honorable people of Afghanistan, who are targeted, but those who would oppress you, seek to bend you to their own will and make you their slaves," the broadcast says.

The broadcast tells Afghans that the United States was the target of terrorist attacks Sept. 11, "leaving no choice but to seek justice for those horrible crimes," according to an English translation transcript released by the Pentagon.

"It will take the combined efforts of the international community and you to remove these evil people from Afghanistan," it says. "Take the following action: Do not give food, shelter, or any type of aid to the Taliban or Usama bin Laden. This will be a great help in the effort."

It also warns Afghans to "stay away from military installations, government buildings, terrorist camps, roads, factories or bridges."

"If you are near these places, then you must move away from them ... we do not wish to harm you," it says.

In addition to the several versions being broadcast, planes began dropping leaflets over sectors of Afghanistan on Sunday. One shows a Western soldier in camouflage and helmet shaking hands with a man in traditional Afghan dress in front of a mountain scene.

"The partnership of nations is here to assist the people of Afghanistan," the leaflet reads.

Another depicts a radio transmitting tower and sketches of radios and tells times and radio stations to tune to for "Information Radio."

The broadcasts started earlier, but leaflets telling people to listen were delayed because of windy conditions last week, a Pentagon official said.

The message to civilians says the United States does not want to "spill the blood of innocent people."

"We will hunt down and punish these terrorists," it says. "They will pay with their blood."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
 
So you think "Surrender now and we will give you a second chance" implies that the US forces are trying to avoid hitting civilians.

To me, it sounds like:

1.) Another not-so-effective way to press the Taliban to give up.

2.) A method to let the civilians know that there's no other way. They have to choose a side. Life vs Death.

Can't you see? It's the same kind of policy as the anthrax thing. IF it is done by them, the terrorists are saying "If you stop the bombings, we will let you live free of fear."
Blackmail.

Come on, they don't care about the civilians. Nobody really does. Neither the Taliban. They're actually happy about the civilian casualties, because they're using the Afghan victims as a propaganda against America.







------------------

Got to walk out of here, I can't take anymore
Gonna stand on that bridge, keep my eyes down below
Whatever may come and whatever may go
that river's flowing


"Don't Give Up", Peter Gabriel
 
If the U.S. didn't care about the Afgan civilians, they wouldn't be dropping food to the refugees. End of story.

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"I'm gonna start a day care!"-Bono
 
Originally posted by mikal:
If the U.S. didn't care about the Afgan civilians, they wouldn't be dropping food to the refugees. End of story.


If they did care, they wouldn't start dropping tons of bombs along with the food drops.
A New York Times editorial, not me, proclaimed that "Mr. Bush has wisely made providing humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people an integral part of American strategy."
In other words, if we have to do it, let's do it with style. Killing them softly...
That's only my opinion anyway.



------------------

Got to walk out of here, I can't take anymore
Gonna stand on that bridge, keep my eyes down below
Whatever may come and whatever may go
that river's flowing


"Don't Give Up", Peter Gabriel
 
Originally posted by Sledgehammer:
If they did care, they wouldn't start dropping tons of bombs along with the food drops.




They are dropping the bombs at carefully planned targets. They're not dropping them at residential areas(unfortunately, one missile strayed from its course).

I sure hope I'm right, just cause I'd like to believe that our government cares about their civilians.


------------------
"I'm gonna start a day care!"-Bono
 
Originally posted by Sledgehammer:
So you think "Surrender now and we will give you a second chance" implies that the US forces are trying to avoid hitting civilians.

To me, it sounds like:

1.) Another not-so-effective way to press the Taliban to give up.

2.) A method to let the civilians know that there's no other way. They have to choose a side. Life vs Death.

Can't you see? It's the same kind of policy as the anthrax thing. IF it is done by them, the terrorists are saying "If you stop the bombings, we will let you live free of fear."
Blackmail.

Come on, they don't care about the civilians. Nobody really does. Neither the Taliban. They're actually happy about the civilian casualties, because they're using the Afghan victims as a propaganda against America.
Sledgehammer, I'm curious if you actually read the entire article, because the only part you're talking about is the top part, which is their message to the Taliban Soldiers, which is actually still good - who else tells the opposition in a war how to surrender most effectively? Read the entire article and you will see that the US is also informing the civilains what type of places to stay away from. There is no reason for the US to do this if they don't care about the civilians. If we wanted to kill the civilians, we certainly wouldn't tell them what places to avoid. That's my entire point right there! Did the terrorists send the WTC workers a radio message telling them to avoid teh WTC that day? No. Did teh Japanese send a radio message telling the civilians to stay away from the hospitals because they would be bombing them that morning? And why not? 2 reasons (1) They wanted the element of surprise (2)They really didn't care if they did kill civilians...in fact, that was the goal of the WTC attacks.
 
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