Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Jihad Watch : President Biden has done something good: he’s pulling the American
forces out of Afghanistan. After 20 years of war, with 2,500 Americans
dead and 25,000 wounded, and the U.S. having spent more than a trillion
dollars on this fiasco, all American forces will be out of Afghanistan
by August 31. A report on the withdrawal’s effect on Afghanistan’s
neighbors is here: “Taliban resurgence raises terrorism fears from
Moscow to Beijing,” by Eltaf Najafizada, Faseeh Mangi and Sudhi Ranjan
Sen, Bloomberg, July 9, 2021:
The Taliban’s lightning-fast advance to control
more territory in Afghanistan is raising alarms from Russia to China, as
U.S. President Joe Biden’s move to withdraw troops disrupts a balance
of power in South Asia that has held steady for about two decades.
At least 1,000 Afghan troops this week retreated into Tajikistan,
prompting the country to mobilize an extra 20,000 soldiers to guard its
frontier. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s sought out assurances from
the Taliban that it will respect the borders of Central Asian states
that once were part of the Soviet Union, while neighboring Pakistan has
said it won’t open its borders to refugees.
