On The Third Hand

Warblog Archives

Friday, 16 Nov 2001

Disillusioned Pakistani fighters abandon the fleeing Taliban

"It was shameful to us to see them run away from Kabul," said Syed Rais ul Hassan, a business executive who is a Pashtun like most of the Taliban. "Our way is to stay and fight."

Looks like we are winning on all fronts!

Thanks to the inimitable Instapundit for this one (via one of his readers).

United to use stun guns

"United Airlines will arm its cockpits with electronic tasers to help its pilots defend against any attempted hijacking."

Now... how about the passengers?

The Economist has issued a correction. The fun thing about a good piece of British irony is that it always leaves that tiny bit of doubt as to how serious they are. The Economist seems to have someone on staff who has studied the subject...

I loved the pictures of the United Front attacking Taleban tanks on horseback. Now I find the Special Forces have been in there too. Ok... it's that wargaming background, but I love a good charge on horseback. And it isn't as uneven as one might think. Horsemen are more vulnerable than tanks, but also have far greater mobility, especially in hilly terrain.

A lot of us are being reminded, and rightly so, that this war is not really about Afghanistan and the Taleban. We only went after the Taleban because they were in the way, and harboring terrorists. This is all true, but I think we should remember that this is also going to be a long-term war on terrorism, not just a hunt for El Qaida. There are some excellent reasons that our President must overcome his distaste for nation-building, and also do his best to see that the Afghans win the new "Great Game" which seems to be going on among interested parties. [Continue reading]

Sorry Instapundit, but it is all your fault. Ken Layne's cold, Joanne Jacobs' insomnia. As I mention on my about page, this blog is your fault too. So there!

They don't understand us, and they never will. Even we don't understand some of us.

Thursday, 15 Nov 2001

I've long been one of those with a fear of flying (I do it anyway, because my love of travel trumps my fear). The terrorist attack on September 11th did not affect my fears. The recent crash affected them. I will try to explain. If there are terrorists on the plane, I can do something about that. If it is an accident, I have no control. Got that?

The FAA needs to look seriously at its policies and 'soft' response to airlines who neglect maintenance. I'd much rather see better maintenance and upgrades on aircraft than see more people searching out nailclippers.

According to Hindustani times, the aid workers had to burn clothing, including burqas, in order to lead in the US helicopters.

An idea for RAWA: take note and hold burqa burnings!

Mullah Omar has evidently decided he is going to destroy America. In his interview with the BBC, he said: "You (the BBC) and American puppet radios have created concern. But the current situation in Afghanistan is related to a bigger cause - that is the destruction of America."

He then goes on to say that it isn't a matter of weapons and it will be done with God's help.

Dream on, Omar.

The UK has released even more proof on who is behind the attacks on September 11.

Seems the aid workers have been rescued. Now there's some good news. I'm waiting for the media to find a negative slant on this one.

Wednesday, 14 Nov 2001

The group of travel writers I hang around with are more likely to parody "the glorious snow-capped mountains of... " and "the pearl of...", but I like this article anyway .

Ken Layne is claiming that everything is the fault of Instapundit Glenn Reynolds. Glenn is threatening to visit Ken with "plague of hangnails". I have to note that this blog is all the Instapundit's fault. If I hadn't found his blog, and through him, a number of other good reads -- I would never have started blogging. I'll let you know if I suddenly get hangnails...

As the Taleban run away, concerns mount about the behavior of the United Front (which most media are incorrectly calling the Northern Alliance). It seems that they are killing members of the Taleban and El Queda, at least the ones the locals haven't lynched yet--note that they are also mostly killing the Arab and Pakistan members. Many pundits seem very worried about civil rights being violated.

I think the UF is actually being extremely careful. The commanders are trying to restrain the troops and the local civilians. Consider that many have lost relatives to massacres by the Taleban, and even the locals who have survived have suffered under Taleban rule. An urge for revenge is completely understandable, at least to me. If the Taleban had massacred my relatives or beat them for laughing or playing music, I seriously doubt I would have the self-control being shown by the United Front.

While most major media pundits are falling all over themselves trying to find the bad side of the collapse of the Taleban, my fellow bloggers are virtually dancing in the streets, as am I. I didn't do much blogging yesterday because I was too busy grinning my fool head off.

Glenn Reynolds posted a good comment on the media yesterday.

"Some years ago, in an interview in the Chicago Tribune , I compared the media to a hysterical child. To get the attention of a distant mother, the child gets louder. The mother responds by withdrawing, causing the child to get louder still. That seems to be the dynamic, with the media in the child role. But isn't it time for the child to grow up, get its own apartment, start dating, learn to cook . . . .?"

Joanne Jacobs has a nice little rant about the media, Bjorn Staerk has posted a lot of good links about the freeing of Kabul, and both he and Matt Welch have a few suggestions for the anti-war left. Meanwhile, Tony Adragna is doing a bit of "I told you so" on Quasipundit -- all of them posting some good reads while I was lazing off yesterday.

A lot of media and bloggers keep reminding us that the Taleban aren't our target, that our target is the terrorist organizations that have been using Afghanistan as a shield. But I think it's kind of nice when we get into a war for our own reasons, that just incidentally frees an oppressed people.

Fred Pruitt's new warblog, titled "Rantburg" has a great misquote up in the corner: "Cry Havoc, and let loose the Blogs of War!". I wish I'd thought of that one! He has posted a very interesting analysis of why the Taleban fell. I highly recommend this one, he knows his stuff.

Tuesday, 13 Nov 2001

Uh oh... we are winning. No one expected that quite so soon (except a few optimistic bloggers and a few Afghans). So, what happens now?

My prediction is that we are going to get some ground troops in there. UN peacekeepers would be best, but if they don't get their rears in gear, the Allies are going to have to put some people in, at least on a temporary basis. I suspect there may also be some of the Army Corps of Engineers involved as advisors. We are going to need to put some spin on all this, for propaganda purposes. I've got a few suggestions. [Continue reading]

It seems we are winning the war in Afghanistan. One would think the television media would be overjoyed. Just a few days ago they were worried about us being in a "quagmire". The armchair warriors were telling the military how the war should be run. They wanted some action. They got too much, it seems. So now they are urging caution, reporting on worries about the United Front (Northern Alliance), and explaining how much more difficult it will be to win the south of Afghanistan.

I give up.

Monday, 12 Nov 2001

No, this is not another post about the Florida recounts. My fellow bloggers have done a good job of covering that news, please go read them. What I'm talking about is a small cartoon character who was very well known back in WWII. He started as a British cartoon, usually with the words ''Wot no xxxx?", with xxxx being whatever was in short supply. The Americans became fond of the cartoon, and put him over the words "Kilroy was here".

Kilroy was a very good example of 'impromptu psyops'. The little cartoon, showing up in all sorts of strange places, had the dual benefit of increasing allied morale and making the enemy just a touch nervous. I'd love to see him make a comeback.

Chad, with his "Wot no..." would also be a useful little psywar tactic all by himself. He could, for instance, get himself a turban and say the Arabic equivalent of: "Wot no music?" Psywars can be fun.

          ? 
        (+ -)
-----ooO-(_)-Ooo----
Wot no dimples?

As both Tony Adragna and Glenn Reynolds commented, it seems that the people in the area of the crash headed for the scene. From the tv news reports, they brought along hoses and fire extinguishers, and some local nurses went to set up triage.

I've seen the same sort of thing again and again in the US. There are always those that panic and run, but most will go toward the scene of a tragedy and do their best to help. It's nice to see that reported, for a change. And it makes me damned proud to be American.

Flight 587 of American Airlines crashed on takeoff from JFK. All NY Airports (and La Guardia) are closed, as are city bridges and tunnels. There is No evidence one way or other of terrorrism, but there have been reports of an explosion, and of an engine falling off.

The American Airlines site has little information yet, but will be updated as they get more information.

My deepest sympathy to all involved.