- US Army Declaration of Duty II by Lt Col Daniel L.Davis
A unclassified 86 pages study “US Army Declaration of Duty II): Senior Military Leaders’ Loss of Integrity Wounds Afghan War Effort” by Lt Col Daniel L.Davis, pub on 6 Feb, 2012 consists of three sections. In the first section the writer has demonstrated how numerous military senior leaders have used omission and outright deception in order to prevent the American public from knowing the truth in regards to the genuine conditions on the ground in Afghanistan. The second section will help the reader gain a better understanding of how the situation described in Section I came to be. Section III has covered a broad range of negative consequences that USA has paid and will continue to pay until changes are made. USA lost credibility with allies and friends in the region; it lost almost all credibility among even the Afghan population and individual government officials; and its word has no value among its enemies. Last section consists of recommendations to address the deficiencies.
- The main points of study are as under:-
a. There are three key factors which must go our (USA)way in order to succeed in this war: 1. We must militarily degrade the insurgency to a sufficiently low level of capability that will enable the Afghan security forces to handle them alone; 2. The ANSF must concurrently be trained to a sufficiently high level they are able to handle the weakened insurgency; and 3. The GoIRA must be minimally corrupt and sufficiently able to govern, providing a viable economy, secure environment, and a fair judiciary.
b. According to iCasualties.org, U.S. casualties from January to September 2010 were 4,155 killed and wounded, while the same period in 2011 saw 4,662 U.S. troops killed or wounded; an increase of over 500.
c. Are the American people content to allow selected individuals, for reasons important to them, to decide when they are told the truth and when they are given fiction?
d. Despite overwhelming physical evidence of our failure to succeed on the military front, senior US and ISAF leaders inexplicably continue a steady stream of press releases and public statements that imply the exact opposite. Far from positively influencing the target audiences in the region, our words and actions unequivocally work to our disadvantage, as it causes both our friends and foes to question what we say.
- In comparison of January-September 2009 when General McChrystal suggested we were in real peril to January-September 2011, here are the key measurements:
2009 2011 % Change
Overall acts of Violence in Afghanistan: 15,219 27,740 + 82%
Total Number IEDs (found + exploded): 5,184 11,074 +113%
US Casualties (killed and wounded) 1,764 4,662 +164%
- He concludes by writing “When one further factors in the fact that the loss of so much American blood did not bring about any observable progress in reducing Afghan Government corruption, achieved only marginal degradation of the Taliban and no more than sporadic improvement in the capability of the Afghan Security Forces, the gulf between what our senior leaders say and the truth of the situation on the ground in Afghanistan becomes very difficult to explain.
It’s time to accede to reality and call things what they are.”
http://therearenosunglasses.wordpress.com/2012/02/12/dereliction-of-duty-ii/
US Army Colonel:
Feb 6, 2012 17:33 Moscow Time
It was easy for the American military to lock up private Manning punishing him for leaking embarrassing facts of wrongdoing in the US Army. Now the Pentagon is faced with a more difficult challenge.
Colonel Daniel L. Davis who serves in the US Army since 1985 and has spent two years in Afghanistan, launched a unique one-man campaign, accusing senior military leaders of inability to conduct a successful operation and, what is even more important, of constantly lying about results of the war. His article titled “Truth, Lies and Afghanistan: How Military Leaders Have Let Us Down,” published online on Sunday by The Armed Forces Journal followed numerous reports and interviews, which puts US military in an extremely uncomfortable position. Davis, a senior officer and a war veteran could hardly be silenced as easing as Manning. At the same time his campaign vividly demonstrates that reports of progress from US military leaders are nothing but a pack of blatant lies.
“No one expects our leaders to always have a successful plan. But we do expect — and the men who do the living, fighting and dying deserve — to have our leaders tell us the truth about what’s going on, – says Colonel Davis in his article published in the nation’s oldest independent periodical on military affairs. Besides this material, Davis managed to write two reports, one of which is classified, speak with a New York Times reporter and brief several members of Congress. All of his efforts are dedicated to the one goal – to prove that claims of the US military leaders about progress are false and few of the troops dislocated in Afghanistan believe them. According to Davis, the situation in Afghanistan is completely catastrophic. The American troops report cowardice, unprofessionalism and double-dealing of the local security forces, while civilians believe that the same security forces have unofficial pacts with Taliban fighters. It harshly contradicts a picture drawn by the military leaders, who promise an early withdrawal from the troubled region.
Colonel Davis seems to be a person whose view on the situation can be trusted. “I spent last year in Afghanistan, visiting and talking with U.S. troops and their Afghan partners. My duties with the Army’s Rapid Equipping Force took me into every significant area where our soldiers engage the enemy,” – writes Davis. According to the Colonel, his rich experience made him doubt the reports from the US military leaders, assuring that the operation was on its way to success. Davis argues that most of the troops don’t believe the words of their senior commanders, including David H. Petraeus – the former commander of International Security Assistance Force and the current Director of Central Intelligence Agency whose last year’s testimony before the Senate said that the Taliban’s leaders had been “arrested in much of the country”.
While a spokeswoman for Mr. Petraeus, Jennifer Youngblood of the C.I.A., says the agency director “has demonstrated that he speaks truth in each of his leadership positions over the past several years”, the development of the situation has already proved that Petraeus’s testimony is wrong. As the recently leaked classified military reports have revealed, the Taliban, backed by Pakistan, is getting ready to retake control over Afghanistan using the wide support from the Afghan civilians.
While numerous reports back the position of Colonel Davis, there are no reasons not to believe his words. “I’m going to get nuked,” said Davis last month. The only reason, he still didn’t face the reaction from the military is the fact he managed to get the support from several Congressmen.
But even their interference might me insufficient to stop the Army elite from persecuting Davis. It’s impossible to deny that the Colonel’s campaign turned out to be a serious blow for the White House and Pentagon with their plans of early withdrawal from Afghanistan. In the situation described by Davis, the withdrawal will lead to absolutely disastrous consequences. US relations with its former ally – Pakistan, are broken, Taliban is gaining power in Afghanistan and the local security forces are unable to confront the extremists without the US troops’ support. Despite the optimistic reports of Pentagon, Afghanistan may turn into a hive of international terrorism any day after the withdrawal.
Also Read
Is West Taking us back to Cave?
Extracts from article
The historians write about the barbaric emperors who fought the wars to kill and maximize slaves. The old saying every thing is allowed in war was rationalized and as the civilization developed Human Rights , ethics , rule of law and morality prevailed. The developed world came up with rules for every game including war and the rights for prisoners. Most of this was refined and formalized by the culture of democracy. It was believed that in the unipolar world headed by the biggest democracy of the world, such practices will thrive and the man will leave the law of caves far behind. The improvement in technology, science and awareness benefited humans during bipolar era. We saw laws coming up to stand for humanity and values. However post bipolar world suddenly finds itself fighting to find escape routes by few to again maximize slave industry. The American statue of liberty became irrelevant in the new world order and the first target are Americans who are undergoing perceived fear of unknown and being forced to give up their rights and liberty… A 46-page report by the GAO the non-partisan investigative arm of Congress warned in Feb , 2009 that thousands of US weapons, including assault rifles and grenade launchers, may be in Taliban or Al-Qaeda hands in Afghanistan because of lax controls.Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman confirmed the Pentagon had already taken action on the report’s recommendations for tracking of serial numbers and physical inventories of weapons given by both the United States and allies. The chairman of the House subcommittee on national security and foreign affairs, John Tierney, asked “What if we had to tell families not only why we are in Afghanistan, but why their son or daughter died at the hands of an insurgent using a weapon purchased by US taxpayers.
The Report of Aug 2011 by “The Bureau of Investigative Journalism” claims that after every four days there is one US drone strike. US drone attacks killed 775 civilians including 168 children.
Read Complete and watch eye opener video how Americans suffer due to its own policies:
http://www.opinion-maker.org/2011/09/is-west-taking-us-back-to-cave/
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