Obama “turns out I’m really good at killing people”

Discussion in 'Free Speech Alley' started by CajunlostinCali, Feb 17, 2014.

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  1. CajunlostinCali

    CajunlostinCali Booger Eatin Moron

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    CajunlostinCali, Feb 17, 2014
    #1
  2. MLUTiger

    MLUTiger Secular Humanist

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    If he had a "-R" after his name, Republicans would petition him to be King of America after a statement like that...
     
    MLUTiger, Feb 17, 2014
    #2
    LSUMASTERMIND likes this.
  3. kluke

    kluke Founding Member

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    I'm frequently critical of Obama for errors of judgement and performance in other threads. And in the past I've stated my concerns about the collateral damage from some of these drone strikes, and I still have those concerns. And I generally don't like Presidents to be involved in planning military strikes, including here.

    But I give President Obama credit. He made a decision, stuck with it over the long term, and makes himself totally responsible for the outcome. I don't agree with parts of the structure and execution of the drone program. But I can back the President because on this I believe he's putting everything else aside including his personal feelings and the politics of the situation and acting on what he thinks is the right thing for the country. That's Presidential.
     
    kluke, Feb 17, 2014
    #3
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  4. red55

    red55 curmudgeon Staff Member

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    I really have no collateral damage issue with drone strikes. There has never been a war without collateral damage but compared to the 200 German and Japanese cities that were firebombed in WWII and the cluster bombs and napalm used in Vietnam, these targeted strikes are surgical. That doesn't mean no collateral damage. But if you start a shooting war with the United States of America there are consequences. Global reach for one thing, you can't run away. Long memory, a high capacity for violence, and a reputation for ruthless retaliation add to the issues that terrorists must take on when attempting war against the US.

    But the bottom line for me concerning collateral damage is that when you make war upon the USA and then choose to hide among your wives and children, you have knowingly sacrificed their safety.

    I have no problem with the Commander in Chief commanding the armed forces either. The consequences of poor decisions will lie on him alone. Obama is not involved in selecting individual targets like Lyndon Johnson did, the NSA and CIA are doing that. But it's the Commander that must make prudent authorizations. I think Obama has done so.
     
    red55, Feb 18, 2014
    #4
  5. Cajun Sensation

    Cajun Sensation I'm kind of a big deal Staff Member

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    This pisses off the far-left furiously. That's about it.

    edit: the far-left and foreigners. I just read some of the comments at the end of that article.
     
    Cajun Sensation, Feb 18, 2014
    #5
  6. LSUMASTERMIND

    LSUMASTERMIND Founding Member

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    I dont give a shit about collateral damage, do you think these people care about that when they are blowing themselves up in markets where women and children are shopping. They are being hypocritical.
     
    LSUMASTERMIND, Feb 18, 2014
    #6
    tigerchick46, GregLSU and LSUTiga like this.
  7. LSUpride123

    LSUpride123 PureBlood

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    LSUpride123, Feb 18, 2014
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  8. mancha

    mancha Alabama morghulis

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    Lo the unlucky sumbitch that pulls the wrong SIM card from the raffle hijab.
     
    mancha, Feb 18, 2014
    #8
  9. kluke

    kluke Founding Member

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    There are two types of collateral damage. The collateral damage who are the family and friends of the targets; and the collateral damage to the people that are innocent bystanders not involved in terrorists activities at all. The first group the terrorists presumably care about; the second group they not only don't about they consider it a win for them when we kill the innocents. It helps them.

    This is not like WWII in both execution and expectation. Blowing up half a city to get to one factory was tough but it was the way things were done in WWII. Now we have set the expectation of surgical precision as a standard process. People take it a little more personal when you blow up their kid by mistake.
     
    kluke, Feb 18, 2014
    #9
  10. red55

    red55 curmudgeon Staff Member

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    Do you think they took it less personal in WWII? Understand that the precision bombing effort was to destroy factories and infrastructure and many bombs missed, that was collateral damage on an industrial scale. But the firebombing and nuclear bombing of entire cities was strategic warfare by killing the people that made the enemy war economy work. Civilians were targets. Total War is like that. These brushfire wars don't require that kind of commitment, but the stakes were raised greatly on 9/11/2001 and they raised them.

    War is Hell. If we let fear of collateral damage prevent us from acting, we have lost.
     
    red55, Feb 18, 2014
    #10
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