The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Tuesday, March 30, 2010

War News for Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Three Turkish soldiers killed in mine blast in southeast:

Afghan Leader Is Seen to Flout Influence of U.S.:

Iraqi Ex-Premier Looks to Past in Fighting Critics:


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: Two civilians were wounded on Monday in a sticky bomb explosion in western Baghdad, a police source said. “The bomb, stuck to a civilian vehicle, went off near the Red Crescent hospital in al-Mansour neighborhood, western Baghdad, injuring two civilians” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: A bomb attached to a car killed a Finance Ministry employee in the Doura district of southern Baghdad, police said.A bomb attached to a car killed a Finance Ministry employee in the Doura district of southern Baghdad, police said.


Kirkuk:
#1: Police forces have safely dismantled a rocket in Kirkuk, a local security source said on Tuesday. “During a late hour on Monday (March 29) evening, an emergency police force found a rocket inside a plastic tube and connected to a timer in al-Baath neighborhood, downtown Mosul,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “Police patrols and bomb squad personnel soon arrived at the scene and defused the rocket,” the source noted, adding that no casualties were reported.

#2: Police found a body of a civilian riddled with bullets in southern Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Five civilians have been killed in western Afghanistan after their van hit a bomb planted in the road. Police spokesman Raouf Ahmadi says the vehicle was traveling outside the main western city of Herat early Tuesday. Ahmadi says two other passengers were wounded. He says the explosion occurred in Adraskan district. He did not say how many people were in the vehicle or give any more information about the dead.

#2: Pakistani fighter jets bombed several militant hide-outs near the Afghan border Tuesday, killing at least 30 suspected insurgents, an official said. The assault took place in Orakzai, a tribal region where many Pakistani Taliban fighters are believed to have fled to escape an army offensive further south. The military launched another operation in Orakzai last week, and nearly 150 alleged militants and five soldiers have died in gunbattles and airstrikes so far. Local government official Sami Ullah said Tuesday that the troops were not facing much resistance. "The security forces are using jets and ground forces to target militant positions," Ullah said, detailing the latest casualties.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Get out of there shes gonna blow!!!

Britney Spears - 3 [Music Video]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKYj5cXVXU4&feature=player_embedded

Anonymous said...

Russian/American toads predicted L'Aquila earthquake ‎ - 3 hours ago

By Lester Haines • Get more from this author A UK biologist has presented evidence that common toads can predict imminent earthquakes after a colony she was ...
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