Should our troops continue to show restrain?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailyexpre...roops-held-their-fire

Yet another example of our troops fighting this war with their hands tied behind their backs.

"Even the photo proves it". :-)

[Gromit]

The Afghan people and the Taleban are not the same thing. It is like saying the IRA are from the UK, so AOG must be treated like he is a member of the IRA.

The soldiers in the news story deserve our praise for not endangering innocent civilians.

If we become as barbarous as as our enemy, there is nothing really to fight for. We want to show by example that we are better than the Taleban. Killing an innocent child by mistake is not the way to go about that.

[R1Geezer]

Yes, I'm forced to concur with Gromit on this. I think/hope that mostly we are the good guys in this and this is the sort of thing that underlines that. As much as I'd like to sh00t the J'arthurs, if I give it some rational thought I can see why we don't.

[Quinlad]

I agree, R1.

We could go beserk and trounce the lot of them, but you'd hope the British army is better than that.

[rov1200]

The fact that the Taliban are just Afghans with a different perspective. They have relatives who live amongst the general population so by placing IEDs in the locality make sure only the troops get blown up by telling them to avoid certain areas. In this they are complicit because they could notify the Army where the bombs are hidden. BUT THEY DON'T. They are not hostages.

As an example when a bank of robbers raid a bank and one of them shoots the cashier dead they are all done for the murder as accomplices.

The adult Afghan civilians are accomplices are they should all be equally guilty.

[daffy654]

Would you prefer they had just returned fire AOG? What if innocent bystanders had been killed or injured? You seem to think that they would be fair game as well just in case they grow up to become insurgents. The majority of ordinary Afghan people are law-abiding and peaceful people.

[123everton]

Rov, Gromit (or someone) posted statistics showing Afghan casualties from I.E.Ds that make a mockery of your claim.
To elaborate the point in a manner you may find closer to your own views an old Russian woman was interviewed about life in WW2 in occupied territories she said "the Germans would come and demand food, the partisans would come and demand food, who do you love?
The man with the gun."
Our soldiers performed brilliantly, the witnesses to the event will know now who is doing the killing.

[Gromit]

You seem to be a slow learner rov, so here are the some reports of the many Afghans killed by IEDs that show the lack of substance to your argument.

September 30, 2009
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A roadside bomb killed 30 people in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, officials said. More than 1,500 civilians have been killed by violence in Afghanistan so far this year, the United Nations said last week.

23rd September 2009
Kabul, Sep 23 (DPA) Twelve Afghan civilians including women and children were killed in two separate roadside bomb explosions in the south and southwestern regions, officials said Wednesday.

12th October 2009
Five civilians were killed Sunday in a roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan’s southern province of Zabul, an official said.

7th August 2009
Separate roadside bombings in volatile Helmand province today killed at least 26 people, including 21 members of a wedding party and five police officers, Afghan officials said.

25th March 2009
One roadside bomb killed 10 civilians Wednesday in a van along a route used by foreign troops in eastern Afghanistan

May 2008
A roadside bomb blast in south-western Afghanistan killed eight civilians,

Links to these news reports can be found here:

http://www.google.co....Search&meta=&aq=f&oq=

[anotheoldgit]

Once again the likes of Gromit and co. can't get their argument over without first trying to belittling their opponents, but this is nothing new the "Nasty Left" use this ploy over and over again.

I refer in this instance to Gromit recommending that I should be treated like a member of the IRA., and suggesting that rov is a slow learner.

There is just no need for it, it is a pity that he and others can't enter into debate without first being nasty..

Why do they do it, when they pretend that they are the caring, goodwill to all men guys?

[Gromit]

AOG

I have not recommended you should be treated like the IRA.

I said to treat all Afghans as terrorists because some of them are Taleban, is like saying all UK residents (such as AOG) are terrorists because of the IRA.

Which means it is nonsense. Your statement Afghan people and my statement about you are both nonsense.

Sorry if that was too complicated for you to understand.

Rov keeps insisting that the Afghan population does not get killed by IEDs. They do and I keep supplying the same links to show many do. But he keeps repeating the lie, so I can only sumise that he is a slow learner (or he chooses to ignore evidence that disagrees with his idea that all Afghans are in league with al qaeda).

[anotheoldgit]

Gromit
///But he keeps repeating the lie, so I can only sumise that he is a slow learner ///

A person who misspells surmise, should not call anyone a slow learner.

/// Which means it is nonsense. Your statement Afghan people and my statement about you are both nonsense.////

Once again I suppose you mean "Your statement ABOUT Afghan people".

But apart from that small detail, I agree your statement about me is nonsense, but what statement have I suppose to have made regarding the Afghan people?

[Quinlad]

AOG,

You have a nifty technique of either ignoring or pretending to miss the point when you're stumped by it.

Very often it arises when someone uses an anology. Do you understand analogies?

[Gromit]

Apologies AOG

I mixed you up with someone else who comes on here who says our troops have their hands behind their backs because they have to be careful not to kill innocent civilians, and he also insinuates that the civilians are in league with our enemy because they dress the same.

Happy to put the record straight.