Comments on: Armed forces: Tories and Labour have failed http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/ Liberal Democrat MP for North East Fife Tue, 18 Jan 2011 22:32:33 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Michael Dawes http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/comment-page-1/#comment-7286 Michael Dawes Sun, 29 Apr 2007 16:37:48 +0000 http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/#comment-7286 Ming your efforts in this area are admirable but I would suggest a long way down the list of issues to address with the armes forces. I have only recently left teh forces and what is really of concern is the high operational tempo, deployments of personnel for 10 months in a year period is not sustainable no matter how good the accom- you are going to lose people! I would suggest you look at the resources of our armed forces (diminished) and the tasks we are asked to do (expanding) and ask decide wether we increase defence spending, drive up recruitment and improve equitment to meet theses challenges our reduce our responsibilities worldwide to reflect our diminised capability. (I am not just talking Iraq/Afgan in defence you must think bigger picture) Also ask yourself why you have a defence spokesman who is a member of Greenpeace- if you do not see why this is an issue i would suggest this is one of the reasons why Lib Dems are not a credible alternative to govern, you are not credible. How can a defence sec of state support an organisation which operates at near illegal levels on the high seas? the majority of voters (and defence chiefs) will not take that lightly. yours aye Mike Ming

your efforts in this area are admirable but I would suggest a long way down the list of issues to address with the armes forces.
I have only recently left teh forces and what is really of concern is the high operational tempo, deployments of personnel for 10 months in a year period is not sustainable no matter how good the accom- you are going to lose people! I would suggest you look at the resources of our armed forces (diminished) and the tasks we are asked to do (expanding) and ask decide wether we increase defence spending, drive up recruitment and improve equitment to meet theses challenges our reduce our responsibilities worldwide to reflect our diminised capability. (I am not just talking Iraq/Afgan in defence you must think bigger picture)

Also ask yourself why you have a defence spokesman who is a member of Greenpeace- if you do not see why this is an issue i would suggest this is one of the reasons why Lib Dems are not a credible alternative to govern, you are not credible. How can a defence sec of state support an organisation which operates at near illegal levels on the high seas? the majority of voters (and defence chiefs) will not take that lightly.

yours aye

Mike

]]> By: Terence McCarthy http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/comment-page-1/#comment-4852 Terence McCarthy Thu, 08 Mar 2007 22:31:11 +0000 http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/#comment-4852 Can someone please tell me what military service Ming Campbell has? Can someone please tell me what military service Ming Campbell has?

]]> By: Steve in London http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/comment-page-1/#comment-3793 Steve in London Thu, 15 Feb 2007 23:03:57 +0000 http://www.mingcampbell.org.uk/2007/02/05/conservative-and-labour-governments-have-failed-our-armed-forces/#comment-3793 This report is the most comprehensive (and devastating) account of the travesty in Afghanistan which passes for part of 'the war on terror'. As can be clearly seen, from the eye-witness accounts alone, this is a war of terror. The indiscriminate nature of the 'counterinsurgency' measures has been clear for some time to anyone who looks beyond the official spin. Bombings of villages which kill 'terrorists' or ' dozens of Taliban' are often massacres of villagers who may or may not include some Taliban. If you follow objective reports and sources (Xinua is one of the few) or local accounts, which are rare, it is clear that the same cavalier approach is adopted to 'collateral' damage as that in Iraq. The Americans are particularly guilty, but RAF aircraft have also bombed civilians in Afghanistan and examples abound but are rarely, for reasons of terrain and personal danger, followed up by the western press. The practice of 'spray and pray', a disgusting US military term for shooting at anyone and everyone in the vicinity of a bomb attack, is as live in Afghanistan as it is in Fallujah, Najaf, Samarra and Baghdad. The occupation is the reason for the resistance of the Taliban now and as the NATO forces escalate their violence against the population so the population will increase its support for the Taliban. This has all been said before, but never in as detailed and illustrative fashion as in this report. Pass it on. www.senliscouncil.net This report is the most comprehensive (and devastating) account of the travesty in Afghanistan which passes for part of ‘the war on terror’. As can be clearly seen, from the eye-witness accounts alone, this is a war of terror. The indiscriminate nature of the ‘counterinsurgency’ measures has been clear for some time to anyone who looks beyond the official spin. Bombings of villages which kill ‘terrorists’ or ‘ dozens of Taliban’ are often massacres of villagers who may or may not include some Taliban. If you follow objective reports and sources (Xinua is one of the few) or local accounts, which are rare, it is clear that the same cavalier approach is adopted to ‘collateral’ damage as that in Iraq. The Americans are particularly guilty, but RAF aircraft have also bombed civilians in Afghanistan and examples abound but are rarely, for reasons of terrain and personal danger, followed up by the western press. The practice of ‘spray and pray’, a disgusting US military term for shooting at anyone and everyone in the vicinity of a bomb attack, is as live in Afghanistan as it is in Fallujah, Najaf, Samarra and Baghdad. The occupation is the reason for the resistance of the Taliban now and as the NATO forces escalate their violence against the population so the population will increase its support for the Taliban. This has all been said before, but never in as detailed and illustrative fashion as in this report. Pass it on.

http://www.senliscouncil.net

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