“No officers were involved”. What a cowardly arse-coverer the army chief is. Don’t officers get involved in actual fighting these days? Leave it all to the rank and file do they?

As for Ad Man; he has been ham-fisted as usual. Not up to the job.

Who would risk his/her life for an appallingly unsympathetic PM, a gutless COA, and millions of Quislings who are safely screened from real life, virtue signalling about people and circumstances they know nothing about.

I would like to raise two points in support of our veterans.

The first is, that the leadership of the Armed Forces seem to be becoming political appointees more attuned to political correctness and towing the multicultural party line than real soldiers. One only has to remember a recent leader of the defence forces who when he retired, had a sex change operation and supposedly became a "woman." If ever Australia wanted to encourage our enemies it is with military leaders like that.

The second is, that it is the Australian Army that has taken almost all of the casualties since WW2 and it is at the end of the queue when it comes to funding. Australia's financial commitment to it's defence forces is woeful, and it is the Air Force and the Navy who get most of the money. One would presume that it would be the service which has done all the fighting and dying who would get the money, but that is not the case. And if this author is correct and our soldiers have been doing numerous "tours" of the combat area, then even a Green voter might be smart enough to figure out that the Australian Army is just too small.

Not just too small but badly equipped. When the first Gulf War erupted our Prime Minister at the time (John Howard) wanted to send an Australian contribution to help our allies liberate Kuwait. He must have been surprised when our military leaders told him that Australian Army eqquipent was so obsolete (especially our Leopard 1 tanks) that our army simply did not compare to even the Iraqi Army. Iraq and Australia had similar population numbers but Iraq had 50 divisions, half of them armoured or mechanised, while Australia had just one lousy infantry division.

It is therefore hardly surprising if our soldiers are getting burned out and committing suicide if we keep throwing them into battle with such miserable equipment. TE Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) one remarked that courage was like money in the bank. You can't keep drawing on it forever.

Such is the Veterans' and others response the Federal Government seems to have realised its gone too far on presumption of guilt and Trial By Media:

On Monday 30th December 2020, it was reported, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-30/defence-says-no-decision-yet-on-meritorious-citation-afghanistan/12935302

"Defence steps back from move to strip veterans of military decorations after war crimes inquiry"

In "Key points:

- General Campbell had said he would recommend meritorious unit citation be stripped from the [special operations task group (SOTG) which includes SAS]

- He has since faced public criticism from politicians and veterans about the move

- General Campbell said on Monday "no decisions" had yet been made on how to implement the Bereton report recommendations"

Pete, agree with your take, nothing to add other than what I said here yesterday.
Alan B.

A great deal is being made about alleged war crimes conducted by Australia’s SAS troops in Afghanistan, even the talk of prosecutions of individuals for war crimes.
This brings me back to the night of March 18, 2003. John Howard instructed his SAS to invade Western Iraq before war was declared, and covered it up to the Australian people. They used the cover of darkness to go on a “turkey shoot”, using night vision rifles and anti-tank guided missiles to slaughter and crush as many Iraqi soldiers and vehicles as they could, some say hundreds dead, in what could be a war crime under the Geneva Conventions as war did not begin until two days later.
Are we just going to remove one stain, Afghanistan, on our nation’s character without removing the other one, Iraq?
All of the events of that evil night are well documented by using a Google search. Yet, to this day, nothing has been done."
..................
If you would like more confirmation please see:
JOHN WINSTON HOWARD AND THE IRAQ WAR

1, Re "declaring war" Geneva etc:

Undeclared war, fighting against, what are after all Combatants, is considered more of a legal gray zone.

Given the:

"TROUBLES" in Northern Ireland

and

"EMERGENCY" in Malaya

2. SAS fighting in Afghanistan in late 2001 justified as Australia's ANZUS commitment is also a legal gray zone http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANZUS#2001_invasion_of_Afghanistan

Just wait till Australia has to go to war in defence of a Taiwan already invaded by China http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANZUS#Taiwan

There can be no doubt that the statements by the PM and General Campbell are prejudicial and this fact will, no doubt, feature in the trials of any soldiers.
Along with the media, this pair of clowns have probably made any fair trial impossible.

The folly of war. Why Australians were fighting in Afghanistan no one knows. Sorry for these old blokes who went off as a bit of tokenism to fight an unjust war in Vietnam for the Americans.

Well, I know, Paul1406.

The western world was stupid enough to embrace the idiotic ideology of "multiculturalism" which saw the importation of Islam into western nations. Islam is a terrorism endorsing religion started by a warlord to justify his imperial expansion. It is also a religion which treats females ands male chattels and encourages Muslim men to rape any female that does not follow the dictates of this male dominated religion. That means all western females. A lot of high minded western females with left wing humanitarian views have now ben exposed to Muslim men and they are starting to feel like Christian Scientists with appendicitis.

Not surprisingly, the West must now put up with terrorism in our own countries, while rape by Muslim men against western females is through the roof in every western nation stupid enough to import Muslim men.

If there were no Muslims in the western world there would be no terrorism in the western world and no need to go to war to prevent Muslim nations using their nations as bases for Muslim terrorists.

No Muslims equals no terrorism equals no war.

Simple, really.

On the other hand, from a professional soldiers perspective, the war in Afghanistan is a really good war. Real Allied professional soldiers, some of whom have not been in a decent scrap since the second world war have been able to test their training and their skills against a real contemptible enemy who is worth killing. Killing the worst kinds of Muslim extremists is something they are forbidden from doing in their own countries, although I am sure many of them regret that sad fact.

stupid enough to embrace the idiotic ideology of "multiculturalism"
LEGO,
That's about the gist of it !

Back on Point

is a timely article - Morrison is forcing General Campbell to backdown on the PLANNED removal

of the SAS Meritorious Unit Citation:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12-03/chief-defence-force-angus-campbell-war-crimes-statement/12938454 of 3 Dec 2020:

"This is a war General Angus Campbell cannot win. His humiliating surrender is inevitable.

The Chief of the Defence Force may have the best hi-tech weapons at his disposal, but they are impotent to the will of the Prime Minister.

Soon enough it will be Scott Morrison 1 — Angus Campbell 0.

The CDF's decision to accept Paul Brereton's recommendation to strip the Special Operations Task Group of a Meritorious Unit Citation following evidence of Afghanistan war crimes is in slow, ugly retreat.

And when this PM v Top Brass skirmish is at an end, a backdown compromise will emerge, but there will be a permanent scar.

General Campbell's authority will have been diminished by a PM who believes he has a better read the public mood, and the obvious tension between the men is over process and how justice is being delivered.

Reading the public mood is not what judges are generally focused on, and it's unlikely to have been a primary consideration for Justice Brereton, but politicians are driven by what voters think.

So did the Government agree with its Defence Chief prior to releasing the report that all recommendations made by Brereton would be accepted?

If so, the Prime Minister and Defence Minister have now hung their General out to dry...."

If so, the Prime Minister and Defence Minister have now hung their General out to dry...."
plantagenet,
Idealist Left Progressives are hanging Australia out to dry ! Where are they when the time is right to prevent problems ? I tell you where, they're in front of their computers looking for loopholes in Taxation & Govt grants !