Afghanistan

[anotheoldgit]

Heard a defence expert pontificating about NATO's position in Afghanistan on TV this morning.

He was asked if our troops were out in Afghanistan originally to stop the trade in drugs, by destroying the opium poppy fields, why have we not done this?

His answer was that we are trying to win the hearts of the farmers who grow these poppies, and if we destroyed the poppies then not only would the farmers support the Taliban, but they would also lose their livelihood.

So it's just a waste of time being out there then? At the moment the poppies are being harvested, sent over the border into Pakistan for cousin Iman to process into heroin, so when British cousin Muhammad pays his regular visits to see him he can take a little back home to the UK, to sell to all the crack-heads we have here.

This expert also said that it is of little use trying to persuade uncle Abdul to grow other crops because it would take too long to start up a profitable business on the world market. Well that's ok then, carry on as normal.

And before anyone says we are out there to get rid of the Taliban, for every one we get rid of there are another dozen to take their place.

[jno]

I think you've made cousin Muhammad up. The drugs need to be imported in greater volume than the occasional pocketful will allow. (Even assuming the customs people hadn't thought of this ingenious dodge already.)

[stokemaveric]

tut tut aog are you calling muslims drug dealers?

[MustafaTickl]

In common with many people you can only see the trivia and totally miss the point of what is happening in the world. The militant part of Islam gave notice via the Twin Towers and its other carryings on that it was squared up for a fight with the West. It dreams of doing better than its past when it got as far as taking Vienna. The Americans and ourselves decided that the fighting would be anywhere but on our land. I was a young man at the outbreak of WW2 and can tell you from experience that it is absolutely awful if all out fighting breaks out on your homeland. And so it is for the moment, the fighting is elsewhere. But I rather fear that the big struggle has yet to start, and we can only hope that our people have by then sufficiently weakened them so that they do not get in.

[Gromit]

And I thought we were fighting the War on Terror. I am gullible sometimes.

Incidently, there is a shortage of opiates and the NHS pays an absolute fortune for them. We could buy direct from the Afghan farmer, save a load of dosh, concentrate on Johnny Taliban, win hearts and minds, restrict the supply to crackheads and get home in time to watch iBlue Peter.

[lovejoy]

No stokemaverick tens of millions of people in Pakistan and Afghanistan are growing poppies because they want to flood the western world with bunches of pretty flowers

[stokemaveric]

errrrr lovejoy are you being sarcastic?????

[lovejoy]

No stokemaverick, where do you think the billions of poppies grown in pakistan and afganistan go? do you think they are used for decorative purposes at weddings in the western world or is it possible they are used to poison our children with heroin

[wired]

It has been suggested by some of our military leaders that we buy the the opium, this country is short of drugs for hospital use, thus keeping the farmers employed with a permanent buyer on hand. It sounds as though that would solve a lot of problems but bringing logic into the equation is qite scarry.

[kempie]

The stated intent of military operations in Afghanistan, initiated 7th October 2001 and code named Operation Enduring Freedom, was to remove the Taliban from power because of the Taliban's refusal to hand over Osama bin Laden for his involvement in the September 11 attacks, and disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a terrorist base of operations. Nothing at all to do with opium - regime change is the name of the game.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library /news/2001/10/mil-011007-usia01.htm

The Taliban had actually banned opium poppy cultivation and received a $48million payment from George W Bush's Government in July 2001 for their efforts in reducing 99.86% of the production.

http://opioids.com/afghanistan/index.html

Removal of the Taliban opened the floodgates of poppy cultivation.

http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/context.jsp ?item=a112101opiumboom&scale=1

[stokemaveric]

lovejoy im perfectly well aware what the poppies of afghanistan are used for nowhere in any of my posts have i questioned that fact.i dont like your sarcastic comments towards me or is your judgement clouded by the fact that you maybe under the influence of some mind hallucinating drug because you clearly have not read ANY of my comments properly.

[maxximus]

although not in agreement with the stated intent of military operations in afghanistan. (another topic entirely) just a follow up to kempie's excellent post. http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context =va&aid=3294 and most recently, just a coincidence. http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0, ,2112348,00.html

[lovejoy]

No stove I'm not under any hallucinating drug I am outraged at the the filth from the middle east poison our children with

[stokemaveric]

im in total agreement with you lovejoy and i have never condoned the use of ANY KIND OF DRUGS and i am also well aware of the origin,distrubution and effects drugs have on our society.

[whippetycros]

Don't you think this is a bit of.....
what goes around comes around...
visit the sins of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation.....
or even further.
Punishment for when we used to go to war with China when they would not allow us to enslave them to Opium to enhance our trade?
Naughty naughty drug growers and dealers.

[Gromit]

Lovejoy,

Would you care to re-arrange to following into some form of comprehensible sentence:

I am outraged at the the filth from the middle east poison our children with

You are not by any chance partaking of any of the mind altering substances yourself are you?

[jno]

most of what our children take seems to be ingested voluntarily, perhaps in imitation of the alcohol their parents use to make themselves insensible. The Afghans are just supplying a market economy, which is the sort of thing the Americans actually want them to do. Unfortunately they don't have a lot of other crops to do it with; fortunately the western appetite for poppies is insatiable.

http://search.ft.com/ftArticle?sortBy=gadatear ticle&queryText=afghan+poppies&y=2&aje=true&x= 14&id=070530000306

[NJOK]

"At the moment the poppies are being harvested, sent over the border into Pakistan for cousin Iman to process into heroin, so when British cousin Muhammad pays his regular visits to see him he can take a little back home to the UK, to sell to all the crack-heads we have here."

As with all debates about drugs, it carries more weight if you understand your terms.

Crack-heads are so-called because they take crack cocaine, the vast majority of which originates in Bolivia or Columbia.

Crack isn't an opiate and doesn't come from poppy fields in Afghanistan or anywhere else.

You're thinking of 'smack-heads'.

[anotheoldgit]

Sorry about the mistake NJOK seems obvious that you know more when it comes to drugs terminology than I. Proves that you can't put an young head on old shoulders when it comes to street cred terminology. (hope I got that right man)