Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen 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 soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt 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."
Move comes days after authorities ordered women to cover their faces in public.
Taliban authorities in
Afghanistan have asked television broadcasters to ensure that female
presenters on local stations cover their faces when on air, an official
said on Thursday.
The move comes days after authorities ordered
women to cover their faces in public, a return to a policy of the
Talibanās past hardline rule and an escalation of restrictions that are
causing anger at home and abroad.
āYesterday we met with media officials... they accepted our advice
very happily,ā Akif Mahajar, spokesman for the Talibanās ministry of
vice and virtue, told Reuters, adding this move would be received well
by Afghans.
While he framed the move as āadviceā, Mahajar added:
āThe last date for face covering for TV presenters is May 21,ā referring
to when compliance with the new requirement should begin.
He did not respond to a query on what the consequences would be of not following the advice. Most
Afghan women wear a headscarf for religious reasons, but many in urban
areas such as Kabul do not cover their faces. During the Talibanās last
rule from 1996 to 2001, it was obligatory for women to wear the
all-encompassing blue burqa.
Mahajar said female presenters could wear a medical face mask, as has been widely used during the Covid-19 pandemic.
