December, 02 2009, 12:49pm EDT
Kucinich: Afghans Want to be Saved from Us, Not by Us
Following
a speech on the Floor of the House of Representative, Congressman
Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today made the following statement:
WASHINGTON
Following
a speech on the Floor of the House of Representative, Congressman
Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today made the following statement:
"Why
are we still in Afghanistan? Al-Qaeda has been routed. Our occupation
fuels a Taliban insurgency. The more troops we send, the more
resistance we meet. If we want to be truly secure, we need to redefine
national security to include financial security. Yet America has record
debt, skyrocketing unemployment, huge trade deficits, record business
failures and foreclosures.
are we still in Afghanistan? Al-Qaeda has been routed. Our occupation
fuels a Taliban insurgency. The more troops we send, the more
resistance we meet. If we want to be truly secure, we need to redefine
national security to include financial security. Yet America has record
debt, skyrocketing unemployment, huge trade deficits, record business
failures and foreclosures.
"The
people of Afghanistan don't want to be saved by us. They want to be
saved from us. Our presence and our Predator drones kill countless
innocents, creating more US enemies and destabilizing Pakistan. The
US-created Karzai government is hopelessly corrupt and despised by the
Afghan people. Our solution: Provide him with a high-level US minder
which will make him even less legitimate. Another strategy: Buy or
rent "friends" among would-be insurgents and give them guns and cash.
But when the money runs out they shoot at U.S. soldiers. We've played
all sides in Afghanistan and all the sides want us out. They do not
want our presence, our control, our troops, our drones, our way of
life. We are fighting the wrong war, in the wrong place at the wrong
time. What part of "get out" do we not understand?
people of Afghanistan don't want to be saved by us. They want to be
saved from us. Our presence and our Predator drones kill countless
innocents, creating more US enemies and destabilizing Pakistan. The
US-created Karzai government is hopelessly corrupt and despised by the
Afghan people. Our solution: Provide him with a high-level US minder
which will make him even less legitimate. Another strategy: Buy or
rent "friends" among would-be insurgents and give them guns and cash.
But when the money runs out they shoot at U.S. soldiers. We've played
all sides in Afghanistan and all the sides want us out. They do not
want our presence, our control, our troops, our drones, our way of
life. We are fighting the wrong war, in the wrong place at the wrong
time. What part of "get out" do we not understand?
Dennis Kucinich is an American politician. A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1997 to 2013, he was also a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States in 2004 and 2008.
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