"Hi Winston, how do you feel about the
Bowe Bergdahl trade?"
On June 30, 2009, the day Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl walked into captivity, American forces in Afghanistan had not allowed a single service member to fall into enemy hands.
Since July 1, 2009, the U.S. has not had a second prisoner of war in that country — a remarkable record, given it is America’s longest war against foes who seek hostages.
The war has lasted more than 12 years, replete with hundreds of close-in firefights, Taliban ambushes, surprise raids on isolated outposts and a smattering of helicopter crashes. Nearly 850,000 U.S. service members have deployed to the land of the Taliban and al Qaeda, a mountainous forbidden place where the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks were conceived and planned.
The Bergdahl release May 31 in exchange for five senior Taliban leaders highlights something not often talked about: For all of the setbacks in the long Afghanistan campaign, captured Americans have not been one of them. That is not to say the Taliban do not seek U.S. POWs for propaganda and, as seen in the Bergdahl swap, bargaining chips to free imprisoned comrades.
“The United States military has been a high-value target since the war began, and the Taliban has not been able to get their hands on our people for pretty basic reasons,” said retired Army Gen. John M. Keane, who has advised commanders in the Afghanistan War.
Those reasons include: use of overwhelming force, quick-reaction rescue teams, sophisticated intelligence and old-fashioned heroism.
Also, the Taliban lack sophisticated anti-aircraft systems. Vietnam War POWs faced far superior Soviet-designed air defenses. The North Vietnamese were able to capture U.S. ground combatants, albeit with a much larger and organized land force, compared with the Taliban.
Still, the Afghan enemy, despite overrunning some posts and pinning down Americans, has not scored a capture in battle.
And then, the president of the united states, took it upon .... HIMSELF ..... had the bold faced audacity to barter with the enemy and trade this ................. person ................... for FIVE of the enemy. We have heard very little of this incident, recently, "gag order being followed" by all. Heard in the white house .... "daddy, why did you do that?" ....... "because, honey, I am the president, I can do no wrong, and aint nobudy gonna say nuthing to me bout nuthin."
