$1 TRILLION worth of US failures in Afghanistan:
DOD report tears into ‘mind-boggling’
mistakes from Bush to Biden, the US funneling money into corruption and advisors
using 'American TV shows' for inspiration
Daily Mail (UK),
by
Morgan Phillips
Original Article
Posted By: Imright,
8/17/2021 5:58:41 PM
A damning new government watchdog report on Afghanistan reconstruction revealed on Tuesday the 'many failures' of the last 20 years in the nation. The report, which relied on 13 years of oversight work, more than 760 interviews and thousands of government documents, analyzed the progress of the last two decades, which it deemed 'elusive' and sustainability of that progress, 'dubious.' The report noted that the US has now spent $837 billion on warfighting and $145 billion trying to rebuild Afghanistan, during which 2,443 American troops and 66,000 Afghan troops were killed.
Reply 1 - Posted by:
Laotzu 8/17/2021 6:25:53 PM (No. 882954)
Government is feckless. That's not news. That's fact. That's why its supposed to be limited.
12 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
MickTurn 8/17/2021 6:31:46 PM (No. 882963)
Oh, you left out a bunch of stuff.
Oh, really? Like what, for instance?
First of all, you have to grease the local politicians...for the sudden zoning problems that always come up.
Then there's the kickbacks to the carpenters, the mud brick layers, the straw cutters etc.
And if you plan on using any cement in this building...I'm sure the teamsters would like to have a little chat with you, and that'll cost you.
Don't forget a little something for the building inspectors.
There’re the long-term costs, such as waste disposal (bodies). I don't know if you're familiar with who runs that business...but I assure you it's not the boy scouts.
Then there are the Local Drug Lords, they want to be 'greased' (MONEY don'tcha know) They can't grow their Poppy's on just dirt alone.
Then there are the Mosque's, they want their cut...to buy more, ahem, religious items...
Don't forget the Politicians back home, they need to be 'GREASED'...they usually work for a 15% cut but since you're throwing around Billion$ they will have to have a minimum of 25%.
So if you add all that up and don't forget the slush funds for the contractors, their bosses like a hefty cut as well.
Well there you have it, the best Corruption Money can BUY!
14 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
Dodge Boy 8/17/2021 6:33:11 PM (No. 882967)
Would be interesting to see how much money was spent under each president and congress. And who controlled congress as the money was appropriated. And who the senate and house majority leaders were. And who's state benefitted the most from the government goodies and contracts.
10 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
Flyball Dogs 8/17/2021 6:33:29 PM (No. 882968)
I’ll admit to being complicit in this failure.
I grew up in the South in the Sixties and viewed the anti war demonstrations from an insular viewpoint.
Later, when international events transpired and I questioned the Government’s decisions, the questions were fleeting; I didn’t allow them to grow because “the government is right.” (In my defense, this was all before the Swamp was exposed for its fetid and putrid self).
Even as an adult, when both Shrubs went to war, I was on board and kept my doubts to myself.
NEVER AGAIN.
15 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
KTWO 8/17/2021 6:34:31 PM (No. 882970)
Doh!! Great timing on releasing the report.
But it easy to be cynical. And the report may actually be well prepared and have some future value.
7 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
volksford 8/17/2021 6:40:28 PM (No. 882980)
I know exactly how you feel # 4 , but don't be so hard on yourself , I was just thinking today about the saying ""with age comes wisdom ".
12 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
Heil Liberals 8/17/2021 6:42:06 PM (No. 882981)
Well, it’s official now. Another paid government stooge has determined that after 20 years, the frog did slowly die when the cold water was brought to boil.
People should be locked up forever, but it won’t happen. If there is a sudden fall off in military recruitment, then don’t be surprised. Who wants to be associated with the leadership of losers. There is enough blame to go around, but what has happened this time after all the “lessons learned” shows that nothing changes except the names and faces.
13 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
stablemoney 8/17/2021 6:50:35 PM (No. 882995)
20 years to issue a report sounds about right for the government's rate for a week's work.
10 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
Rumblehog 8/17/2021 7:03:22 PM (No. 883016)
That money went right back into the pockets of politicians and their corrupt spouses' companies. Evidence is all over about the massive corruption that happens in such "rebuilding" efforts.
12 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
Jerseyden 8/17/2021 7:10:57 PM (No. 883022)
Why would anyone believe in a dod report. They are just as corrupt as the rest of them.
7 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Bur Oak 8/17/2021 7:22:24 PM (No. 883034)
The headline sounds like another government I'm familiar with.
4 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
Birddog 8/17/2021 8:40:28 PM (No. 883100)
"Coincidence"...an in depth DoD report, with a task force of hundreds, thousands of pages of study, thousands of interviews, NEVER before mentioned to congress, the media(in a govt that cannot keep ANYTHING secret), not mentioned by any DoD member during hundreds of hours of Congressional interviews/questioning, never mentioned n ANY of the annual budget debates, not even in sub-committees, not in any of the elections/debates, not even in the primaries..."suddenly" gets released directly to the Public, the day after Biden was flushed from his bunk(er) while the greatest debacle in international History is unfolding in Kabul.
5 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
Birddog 8/17/2021 8:45:10 PM (No. 883106)
PS: This breakdown of "Wasteful spending" on myriad social and Govt programs being totally ineffective and often counter productive? "Might" just apply to Bi-Dems Trillion$ stimulus and Progress proposals...being attempted here at home.
3 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
DVC 8/17/2021 9:03:49 PM (No. 883121)
To hell with all that. My nephew was one of the Americans who died there. THAT can never be forgiven. The evil people in DC can never 'fix' that, or come anywhere near answering for it.
13 people like this.
I had the opportunity to spend some time with an auditor from the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) who had done a 1-year rotation in Afghanistan ~2010. Told me that we were getting maybe 10 cents of return on every dollar spent there. Everything from entire truckloads of the hottest commodity in theater - bottled water - disappearing out the gates to workers from an Indian company awarded the contract to maintain the motor pools sleeping around the shops all day long while tools continually disappeared. I believe it was Rumsfeld's idea that a war could be fought cheaper if we contracted out all of the support services.
6 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
bighambone 8/17/2021 10:38:53 PM (No. 883230)
Somebody has got all that money!
3 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 8/17/2021 10:40:40 PM (No. 883232)
I was at one time in favor of both wars against Iraq. I think that the first one was necessary. Saddam had seized Kuwait and its massive oil fields and was looking for more conquests. It’s the reason the Saudis let the coalition of infidel countries operate bases in Saudi. I have come to look on the 2nd as unnecessary. This was Bush’s hubris. They thought that they could nation build and the Iraqis (and the Afghans) would hail us as heroes. Wrong...they are murderous seventh century barbarians and Moon God religious nutters. Leave them alone until they commit another heinous terrorist act and they most certainly will try. Then you take out the sponsoring country or organization with nukes. They can smell the fear and incompetence of the current administration and will take advantage at the first opportunity.
6 people like this.
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