This is a good article. It points out how the only rationale being given for being in Afghanistan is to "stay the course".
Since when did "staying the course" constitute a good reason for sending Australians to a foreign country to kill its citizens?
To those who so vehemently disagree, maybe you can enlighten us with a good justification for Australians killing Afghans.
Spindoc states "One of the great tragedies of modern times and one of the greatest evils perpetrated upon the peoples of the underdeveloped nations, is the notion that their pain, suffering and poverty is a direct result of the policies, oppression, domination and power of the developed world."
When that pain and suffering comes in the form of bombs dropped by Australian aircraft or bullets shot by Australian soldiers, then it would be pretty reasonable for people to blame Australia for that pain and suffering.
It would also be unsurprising for people to place some blame on the west when we give such unflinching support to the various various tyrants around the globe who torment their own people.
I can tell you that if there were Afghan troops on the streets of Perth and Afghan planes dropping bombs on our homes, I would be doing everything in my power to drive them out. Would that make me a terrorist?

Rhys,

<< When that pain and suffering comes in the form of bombs dropped by Australian aircraft or bullets shot by Australian soldiers, then it would be pretty reasonable for people to blame Australia for that pain and suffering.>>

Perhaps you would like to share your sentiments with Australian troops on the front line. Might I suggest you omit your name and address?

Like I said.

<< Unfortunately for the “great causes”, the international activism industry is, at every level, miserably inept, emotionally dysfunctional, ill informed, manipulated and totally irrelevant, other than to the immense damage they inflict upon perfectly valid public concerns.>>

I have long thought that Edward I was far too soft on the “war mongering savages” from the Welsh Marches. Not surprising that they have been the front line of the British Army for 300 years.

Bruce Haigh's piece, as usual, is puerile and staggeringly ignorant.

He says " The Taliban is a complex alliance of competing forces held together to rid themselves of a common enemy."

No Bruce. The Taliban have been around since well before 9/11 and the subsequent war in Afghanistan. They originally formed to combat the corruption and warlordism that is endemic in Afghan society, uniting under a common extremist religous philsophy. They are NOT a resistance movement at all. They are not held together to rid themselves of a common enenmy. They are held together by their fundamentalist religous beliefs and their commitment to its politial implementation.

Bruce indulges himself with speculation about the reasons behind the shooting of Lance Corporal Jones in Afghanistan without any evidence.
Then, with incisive logic, he tells us that heliopters don't crash by accident.

Good one Bruce. Firstly, helicopters obviously do crash by accident, like cars, planes, boats and most other moving things. Secondly, and funnily enough, investigations into crashes generally take time. Crazy I know. Is it possible that defence is waiting to find out how exactly the aircraf crashed before they start laying blame and making decisions? I know this would be hard for Bruce to undertand, since it obviously isn't how he does things.

Haigh tells us we're being lied to, but provides no evidence to suggest that this is the case. He can't even manage an hypothesis to explain WHY defence would be lying to the public about the deaths of these men.

The real mindless (and heartless) mantra is the attempts by the fringe left to score political points on the back of the deaths of our service people.

Thanks PaulL

For balance, at least one of us needs to push the American (um Molan?) line or all we Australian "Leftists" would become bored thinking for ourselves and for our diggers.

I wouldn't play your US version of Australia's patriotism card mate - its not convincing.

Pete

Enigmatic President Obama ( Dec.2009 ) unequivocally declared 30,000 troops would be added to Afghanistan for 6 months, and ALL US troops withdrawn by 2014.

In light of his announcement, has anything changed ?

Meanwhile, at a cost of $ 1.2 B each, notorious ( human rights violations ) Bagram & Kandaha AFB, are being enlarged to house the greatest Military War machine, History has ever known. Bigger then Ben Hur & Diego Garcia ! Presently 150,000 troops from 48 Nations are involved in NATO - ISAF contingent. Embedded, are 182,000 ANA servicemen & 118,000 Afghan National Policemen.
Even Blind Freddy, can see they are there for the long haul !

Presiding General Patraeus is ramping up operations, even as CIA Director Leon Panetta relieves his command. Ten years, 2 Presidents and 8 Generals later, the Afghan War costing $ 1 B a week, with civilian deaths exacerbating at an alarming rate ( Afghan War Diary Leak ) the coalition of the willing, is looking decidedly more like the killing fields of Pol Pot's Kampuchea ?

The grim reality - this interminable, asymptomatic and unwinnable War, is replicating what History has decreed, the " grave-yard of Empires " ( Alexander, Mongol, British, Soviets etc ) But then, with the burgeoning National debt of $ 14.7 trillion, and Moody's threat of downgrading it's precarious credit rating, why lose sleep over a lost cause and trifling War. Indeed.

The cynical training of the ANA ( Afghan National Army ) has been an unmitigated disaster. 300,000 strong, only 1:5 are literate.

cont..

Systemic corruption, desertions, drugs,bribery, tribal pay-backs etc totally undermines any credibility as a viable alternative. The ADF are fully committed to the Mentoring Programme, which so far,has cost military lives, among the 20 ISAF, committed to the scheme. Paradoxically, Karzai's own personal body-guard are all ( Blackwater Inc ) Foreigners. Afghanis follow simple axiomatic truths and values : Family, tribe, culture and Country.

Say's a lot about the occupation ?

OECD rates Afghanistan as one of the poorest. 91st in the World. GDP: $ 29.8 B. Per Capita $ 1000. 36% are unemployed and suffer chronic impoverishment. It is dependent on $ 5 B Foreign Aid, Petroleum, Gas etc and the insidious Opium Trade. 3.3 million Afghani's produce over $ 2.7 B worth of Opium, which kills and maims 100,000 world-wide. Particularly vulnerable are the Russians, who share border townships. Putin claims it's become an epidemic - like vodka !

Finally, in the modicum of hindsight, our 1550 servicemen are highly unlikely to be recalled in the short term. Defense Minister Smith, made it quite clear in this morning's ABC announcement.