What are we doing in Afghanistan?
I thought the plan was to help the "locals" earn a decent living growing food not drugs.
Time to bring "The Boys" home methinks
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6965672.stm
The United Nations says opium production in Afghanistan has "soared to frightening record levels" with an increase on last year of more than a third.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime report says the amount of opium produced has doubled in the last two years, and that Helmand province is now the biggest single drug producing area in the world - surpassing whole countries.
Despite billions of dollars of aid and tens of thousands of international troops, the 193,000 hectares of opium poppies grown in Afghanistan this year are now responsible for almost all the world's opiates, according to the UN report.
I'd rather see the 'boys' burning all the poppy crops instead of fighting the locals - a bit of local poverty should bring a reduction in the arms purchased to use against us and weaken the resolve of the locals to support them.
Again, It's really a toe-the-line or suffer the consequences attitude that is needed.
As I recall that is exactly what Tony Bliar said we would do ~ and which one of his clowns forecast we would be out again in months without a shot being fired?
If the might of the Russians couldn't tame the place what chance have 5000 Brits?
We have got to reassess our place in the world and where we are is not it.
