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5 Days in August
Author: Raine    Date: 08/26/2021 13:05:21

That's all there are left in the 8th month of the year. The 31st day of the month is our deadline to be out of Afghanistan. Logistically, if we are to meet that deadline, we will have to be out, servicemembers and the like, before then.

The White House provided more stats on the extraction process occurring in Kabul.



That is a lot of people. I know I may sound like a broken record, but I (as of this morning) stand with Eric Boehlert about this mass evacuation.
“In fact, it didn’t take 2 weeks to evacuate 50,000. It took 10 days,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) tweeted in response to Ward. “Lots of work still to do, but it might be time for a bit of a reassessment by the media of this operation given the actual results.”

Don’t hold your breath waiting for journalists to acknowledge that their assessments of Kabul have been badly undercut by the stunning evacuation success.

For the first 10 days of the refugee crisis, the media obsessed over "optics" and how they were "disaster" for Biden. Suddenly though, the press shows little interest dwelling on the optics of successfully extricating nearly 100,000 people without a single U.S. casualty. Instead, the press remains married to its narrative. (snip)

Eventually addressing the historic evacuation campaign, the Times seemed to downplay the success, framing the airlift as a “public relations” tool being used by a White House “eager to shift the narrative.”

Buried in the article’s final paragraph was the revelation that during the collapse of Saigon in 1975, the U.S. evacuated just 7,000 people, as the South Vietnamese capitol famously fell. That’s telling because at the beginning of the Kabul story 13 days ago, news outlets were obsessed with making the historical connection with Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War. Turns out the U.S. has evacuated 100,000 more people from Kabul than the U.S. did in 1975. Suddenly, those Saigon comparisons don’t make sense.


I'm not jumping up and down with joy about this evacuation, but as of this morning, is has been successful. I mean, let me state this another way.

We LOST THE WAR. That so far no American has been killed is miraculous considering who defeated us. 5 days is an eternity right now and each hour passing this will probably get more fraught with danger.

Biden didn't lose this war. These guys did in December of 2001 at Tora Bora:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E9szBTmXEAItez-?format=png


A simple truth was stated in 2017 by a Taliban commander to a member of the Defense Dept. 'You have the watches. We have the time'

I pray 5 days will be enough.

&
Raine
 
 

27 comments (Latest Comment: 08/26/2021 22:24:51 by Raine)
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Comment by Scoopster on 08/26/2021 13:15:11
Mornin...

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 13:19:06
Good Morning!

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 13:39:02
putting a pin on today's blog:



Comment by BobR on 08/26/2021 13:44:04
Looking at that picture of the 3 "amigos", I have to wonder what Cheney is putting his hand over.

Comment by TriSec on 08/26/2021 13:45:34
Greetings, comrades. Some disjointed thoughts.

I'm struggling to find a historical comparison for what is going on in Afghanistan. Not so much losing the war; I wrote about that myself some weeks ago now. 100,000 people in ten days? Aviation-wise, that's 30 C-17s a day in and out of Kabul. Likely more than that; smaller planes are doing the work, too. About the only thing I can think of to compare is the Berlin Airlift. One website cites 1,500 flights a day in and out of Berlin at its peak.

I've read in places that a mere 1,500 American citizens remain in Afghanistan. Some won't make it out, if they're far from Kabul. Most of the relief effort has been focused on our allies and their families. Of course, I wonder how many of the 50 States will welcome them with open arms?

In cheerier news, it's "Hell Week" in Boston - all 50 colleges are moving in as we speak. The major ones have a vaccine mandate. Boston just re-instated an indoor mask mandate, and Charlie Baker just implemented a statewide school mask mandate, too. I wish Florida and Texas would pay attention. Honestly - would Massachusetts welcome Southern Health Refugees as easily as those states welcome Snowbirds?

And we were out and about in Providence and Newport, RI yesterday. I saw something I haven't seen in years. An actual Monarch Butterfly. I remember having milkweed and caterpillars all over the hill behind my house as a boy. I haven't seen any in literally decades now. And a metric fuckton of actual European Honeybees down there, too. I generally only see Carpenter Bees in Massachusetts now.






Comment by Scoopster on 08/26/2021 13:45:58
Twitter FINALLY added a report option for misinformation.

Comment by wickedpam on 08/26/2021 13:46:29
Morning

Heard Ben Sasse on MSNBC this morning just ranting and raving about how much of a failure this has been with no one correcting him as to what's already been accomplished. It was disgusting

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 13:53:50
F*ck


I was afraid of this as I wrote the blog.




Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 13:57:28
Quote by Raine:
F*ck


I was afraid of this as I wrote the blog.


CNN link.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 13:58:15
Quote by wickedpam:
Morning

Heard Ben Sasse on MSNBC this morning just ranting and raving about how much of a failure this has been with no one correcting him as to what's already been accomplished. It was disgusting
These people are the absolute worst.

They are rooting against America.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 14:31:13


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 15:07:54
A second Explosion

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby confirmed that two explosions took place outside Kabul’s airport on Thursday, part of a complex attack that came after repeated warnings of a threat by the United States and its allies.

According to Kirby, the first blast took place right outside the airport’s Abbey gate with the second at the nearby Baron hotel. Scattered gunshots were heard after the blasts.



Comment by livingonli on 08/26/2021 15:35:13
Will there ever be sanity again in this world?

Comment by BobR on 08/26/2021 15:42:35
Quote by livingonli:
Will there ever be sanity again in this world?

Was there ever sanity?

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:03:44
CBS reporting 10 marines were killed.


WTOP (local) reported it was 11 and either a navy or army Medic.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:07:02


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:09:41
Jesus.



Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:15:26
I;m listening to the pentagon briefing and the commander on the ground in Kabul is talking about very real and current threats -- including rocket attacks.


It sounds to me like it is ISIS that is trying to take the airport.
You sent
We're actually sharing this information with the damn Taliban so they can prevent these attacks. Holly shit.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:16:13
I should add that they think this information sharing may have prevented attacks.

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 19:17:26
This information is coming directly from US Central command.

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:33:39
"To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes America harm:

We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay."

POTUS, just now.

I have chills

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:35:57
Quote by Raine:
"To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes America harm:

We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay."

POTUS, just now.

I have chills
Not patriotic solely.

This is going to be a test for the Taliban who want a seat on the world stage. History will tell us how this happens in time.

I am shook.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:37:18
POTUS has said that if the military needs additional forces, he will grant it.

Biden is going after Isis-K.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:40:49
The enemy of my enemy and whatever. War has consequences. jesus god.

"No one trusts them, we're just counting on them to appreciate mutual self interest."

That's a paraphrase.

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:44:53
We have several days to get women's groups and NGOs out. according to Biden.

He is saying that the Taliban is cooperating. They are also not good guys, he says.

This is a very strange situation.


Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 21:51:59
POTUS just made Doocy look like a fool on national and international TV.

Comment by Raine on 08/26/2021 22:24:51
JFK



Fox News is the worst.