Will it ever end?

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Odie
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Will it ever end?

Post by Odie »

Canada: 138 have perished since the war in Afghanistan.



yesterday: 5 killed at once.

Michelle Lang, a Calgary journalist who had just been there a week.







Calgary-based journalist among 5 killed in Afghanistan

Updated: Wed Dec. 30 2009 17:46:46



Four Canadian soldiers, and a Calgary-based reporter, were killed Wednesday in Kandahar city in Afghanistan.

Reporters at the base at Kandahar airfield have identified the journalist as 34-year-old Calgary Herald reporter Michelle Lang.

CTV News has learned the woman had been in Afghanistan for just over two weeks for an assignment for Canwest News Service. This was her first assignment in the country.

The incident occurred a few kilometres south of Kandahar City 4 p.m., as a result of an improvised explosive device attack on an armoured vehicle during a patrol.

"Yesterday, Canada lost five citizens," said Brig.-Gen. Daniel Menard, commander of coalition forces in Kandahar. "The soldiers were conducting a community security patrol in order to gather information on the pattern of life and maintain security in the area."

Menard said Lang was travelling with the troops to get an understanding of what Canada's soldiers are doing in Afghanistan.

The names of the soldiers have not been released as the Department of National Defence says next-of-kin are currently being notified.

To date, 138 Canadian soldiers have now been killed while serving in Canada's eight-year mission in Afghanistan. Lang becomes the first Canadian journalist killed in Afghanistan.

The woman's first article for the paper was published on Dec. 20th. Last year, the 34-year-old won a National Newspaper Award for her health care reporting.

Alberta's Health Minister Ron Liepert released a statement late Wednesday afternoon offering his condolences to Lang's loved ones.

"Michelle covered health issues with professionalism, accuracy and thoroughness. She was tenacious in her quest to inform Albertans, and for her diligence she was very well respected. I express my condolences to her family, friends and all who knew her. Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this very heartbreaking time."

According to the Calgary Herald, Lang was scheduled to return to Calgary on Jan. 22.

CTV News



R.IP. Michelle.:(

R.I.P. To all who have died. :(
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K.Snyder
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Post by K.Snyder »

Sort of like racing cars...

She knew the risks when she went over there...

I personally wouldn't travel within the neighboring countries of any war.
mikeinie
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Post by mikeinie »


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Odie
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Post by Odie »

K.Snyder;1277589 wrote: Sort of like racing cars...

She knew the risks when she went over there...

I personally wouldn't travel within the neighboring countries of any war.


She was told not to as they were going into dangerous territory's of battle, but she wanted a first hand story what it was all about.
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

mikeinie;1277591 wrote:



thank you Mike.:-4
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Jazzy
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Post by Jazzy »

Will it ever end Odie? I can't answer that but it's a very sad situation for all the troops over there and their families:

A tally by The Associated Press shows 304 American service members had died as of Dec. 30, up from 151 in 2008. The count does not include eight U.S. civilians killed by a suicide bomber on a base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday.

Also, the annual death toll of international troops, including U.S. forces, surpassed 500 for the first time in the war. The total this year was 502 compared with 286 in 2008, according to the AP count.

Among other forces, Britain took the worst blow in 2009 with 107 deaths and Canada lost 32, including four who died Wednesday when their vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb. Other countries in the international military operation lost a total of 59 service members.

Story Link: US troop deaths soared in Afghanistan in 2009 - Yahoo! News
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

Jazzy;1277681 wrote: Will it ever end Odie? I can't answer that but it's a very sad situation for all the troops over there and their families:

A tally by The Associated Press shows 304 American service members had died as of Dec. 30, up from 151 in 2008. The count does not include eight U.S. civilians killed by a suicide bomber on a base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday.

Also, the annual death toll of international troops, including U.S. forces, surpassed 500 for the first time in the war. The total this year was 502 compared with 286 in 2008, according to the AP count.

Among other forces, Britain took the worst blow in 2009 with 107 deaths and Canada lost 32, including four who died Wednesday when their vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb. Other countries in the international military operation lost a total of 59 service members.

Story Link: US troop deaths soared in Afghanistan in 2009 - Yahoo! News


I know Jazzy, no one can tell me if it will ever end.:-1



and Michelle was a journalist and so young...and we lost 4 soldiers that day, Minks will know Michelle as she also lives in Calgary.

- I am the first one to admit its all troops all over the world, and those are not including, nurses, doctors, help-aid, journalists, everyone who is involved.:(



It will be a tragic site to see 5 caskets on Trenton's (just two hours east of where I live) Ride for Heroes when they come home here. It starts in Trenton Ontario where they fly in from Alfganastan, as Trenton is our army base.....they travel along our 401 until the arrive in Toronto, where they drive downtown to the morgue.

everyone stands on all the bridges along the highway with Canadian flags and honors our solders.




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Odie
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Post by Odie »

Scrat;1277723 wrote: No, it will never end. There has been "terror" with us every since a caveman walked out of the cave to take a whiz one morning and looked across the valley to see 3 guys with spears looking back. This conflict will go on indefinitely, I see no end in sight.

Russia hammered the Chechens into the ground in 1999 for what they thought was the final time. They destroyed a major city and many other towns and villages in a matter of months. Many people died both innocent and otherwise.

What have they gained? There is a kind of peace in Chechneya and the region now, the places are largely rebuilt and people are outwardly living peaceful productive lives. If you look closer shots still ring out in the night, people still disappear, soldiers and police die at checkpoints on occasion. A bomb went off and derailed a train going from Moscow to St Pete killing 25 people.

People will continue to die no matter what. I think this lies in the choices we make.




Your right on in everything you speak of Scrat, especially it lies in the choices we make, but those choices are of Obama, and unfortunately it involves a lot of counties, and today I am tired of helping him out.:-5

Bush asked Canada to help out, damn our government for saying yes.:mad:



days like today I no longer feel as they are my neighours.:thinking:
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minks
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Post by minks »

Yes it is another sad loss.
�You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.�

― Mae West
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

minks;1277727 wrote: Yes it is another sad loss.




did you ever watch Michelle Minks?
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FUBAR
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Post by FUBAR »

Unfortunately I don't think a pull out will solve anything now. All the bombs going off there will be used all over the world if the soldiers pull out. Just about any withdraw will be seen as surrender and the terrorists will claim victory and eventually will come wherever we live and set them off there. So the choice now is I think bombs there or bombs down your street because the bombers won't go away without the military to shoot at they'll be more encouraged to carry on but in the west....:(
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

FUBAR;1277767 wrote: Unfortunately I don't think a pull out will solve anything now. All the bombs going off there will be used all over the world if the soldiers pull out. Just about any withdraw will be seen as surrender and the terrorists will claim victory and eventually will come wherever we live and set them off there. So the choice now is I think bombs there or bombs down your street because the bombers won't go away without the military to shoot at they'll be more encouraged to carry on but in the west....:(


I know FUBAR, I know......just a sad and maddening time for me.:-5
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K.Snyder
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Post by K.Snyder »

FUBAR;1277767 wrote: Unfortunately I don't think a pull out will solve anything now. All the bombs going off there will be used all over the world if the soldiers pull out. Just about any withdraw will be seen as surrender and the terrorists will claim victory and eventually will come wherever we live and set them off there. So the choice now is I think bombs there or bombs down your street because the bombers won't go away without the military to shoot at they'll be more encouraged to carry on but in the west....:(


The US is a military power that no country in the world would wish to Tango with so this notion that we as a country should worry about a bunch of dirty footed "terrorists" running around with dirt laden weapons insults my person to no end!

Firstly, September 11 2001 wasn't, in the slightest, an extremely rare occurrence with the only exception being that the capitalistic nature of this country is entirely to blame for those attacks and should be held wholeheartedly responsible! It was the damn airports that failed to keep the air above the US safe and was the countries damn fault for being lazy enough to ensure it happened! Please, I have better things to do with my time for anyone that wishes to bring about the phrase "conspiracy theory" in this thread, PLEASE!

There's absolutely nothing good going to come from Iraq at this moment in time and the longer any force stays in Iraq the more these "terrorists" are going to gain the same sentiment from a pool of otherwise unwilling "candidates"!

Me? I think I'd rather live in Denmark to be honest with you! Sure their income tax might be "the highest in the world" but that's only if people are ignorant enough to think health, education, and the country paying for the livelihood of those unfortunate enough to become unemployed for up to 4 years is a horrible travesty! BLAH! :yh_sick!

Denmark is more "free" than the US has ever been!
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

As I watched 5 caskets coming off a Hercules transport plane, then onto our Highway of Heroes, Highway 401, tears rolled down my face.:-1



They travel on highway 401 from Trenton, Ontario to downtown Toronto to the Coroner's office.



YouTube - Highway of Heroes - January 3, 2010 - Grenville Street, Downtown Toronto, Coroner's Office #2
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recovering conservative
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Post by recovering conservative »

K.Snyder;1280538 wrote: The US is a military power that no country in the world would wish to Tango with so this notion that we as a country should worry about a bunch of dirty footed "terrorists" running around with dirt laden weapons insults my person to no end!
I'm old enough to remember when FUBAR's point that: 'we need to fight them over there so we don't have to fight them here' was the excuse for why 500,000 U.S. soldiers were in Vietnam back in the late 60's, and over 50,000 ended up dead before they finally pulled the troops out and a few years later - cut the financial bleeding of propping up a corrupt, isolated and unpopular South Vietnamese government.......notice anything similar with the new wars?

Firstly, September 11 2001 wasn't, in the slightest, an extremely rare occurrence with the only exception being that the capitalistic nature of this country is entirely to blame for those attacks and should be held wholeheartedly responsible! It was the damn airports that failed to keep the air above the US safe and was the countries damn fault for being lazy enough to ensure it happened! Please, I have better things to do with my time for anyone that wishes to bring about the phrase "conspiracy theory" in this thread, PLEASE!


I don't think it's possible to break it all down and determine how much of the motivation of 9/11 was fueled by resentment against U.S. bases in the Middle East, and propping up tinpot dictators that keep the oil flowing - or how much comes from a cultural resentment of being overtaken by Western infidels and having the last caliphate collapse in on itself. But, Bin Laden was on the radar screen....and the Bush Admin. was asleep at the switch, ignoring the warnings from the CIA and FBI.
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