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Should we stop burning the poppy fields in Afganistan

Should we stop burning the poppy fields


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mikhail

blond bombshell
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Can we at least do this how can we expect to achieve results when we are burning away their economy.
 
Can we at least do this how can we expect to achieve results when we are burning away their economy.

But isn't their economy then based on the illegal drug trade? I mean we can argue whether or not we should do it. Burning their crops definitely makes things harder on us and makes things well more unfriendly. But at the same accord....what they're doing is engaging in illegal drug trade. So it's not like we're burning corn or wheat.
 
But isn't their economy then based on the illegal drug trade? I mean we can argue whether or not we should do it. Burning their crops definitely makes things harder on us and makes things well more unfriendly. But at the same accord....what they're doing is engaging in illegal drug trade. So it's not like we're burning corn or wheat.

No we can use them to treat drug addicts if we buy them.
 
No we can use them to treat drug addicts if we buy them.

Yeah, but we can't buy the whole crop. And besides maybe us buying to make other drugs to ween people off harder drugs...they're still in the illegal drug trade. It's not like they're doing good things with their poppy crop.
 
Yeah, but we can't buy the whole crop. And besides maybe us buying to make other drugs to ween people off harder drugs...they're still in the illegal drug trade. It's not like they're doing good things with their poppy crop.

No Morphine is used as a painkiller in all western hospitals.
 
Since when

Looks like late June...

From the Associated Press:

U.S. won't burn poppy fields in Afghanistan
New strategy will promote planting alternative crops
By NICOLE WINFIELD, Associated Press
Posted: Sunday, June 28, 2009

TRIESTE, Italy - The U.S. is shifting its strategy against Afghanistan's drug trade, phasing out funding for opium eradication while boosting efforts to fight trafficking and promote alternative crops, the U.S. envoy for Afghanistan said Saturday.

The aim of the new policy: to deprive the Taliban of the tens of millions of dollars in drug revenue that is fueling its insurgency.

The U.S. envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, said poppy eradication - for years a cornerstone of U.S. and U.N. drug trafficking efforts in the country - was not working and was only driving Afghan farmers into the hands of the Taliban.

"Eradication is a waste of money," Holbrooke said on the sidelines of a Group of Eight foreign ministers' meeting on Afghanistan, during which he briefed regional representatives on the new policy.
 
Looks like late June...

From the Associated Press:

Yea but that is crap they are not going to be able to do that over a short period of time its no replacement economically.
 
Yea but that is crap they are not going to be able to do that over a short period of time its no replacement economically.

So it looks like you should kill the thread b/c your question has been answered
 
As long as the Taliban are buying weapons with the proceeds from Opium sales, the poppies must be destroyed.

No drugs = no drug money = no weapons for terrorists.
 
As long as the Taliban are buying weapons with the proceeds from Opium sales, the poppies must be destroyed.

No drugs = no drug money = no weapons for terrorists.

That's naive. They will get weapons anyway. Burning the poppies just pisses the locals off and they won't help us...a far greater threat than the Taliban having more AKs.
 
According to Bill Hillar, retired Colonel of the U.S. Army Special Forces, claimed that the US was actually escorting some poppy shipments out of Afghanistan and often looked the other way even as far back as 2004.
 
According to Bill Hillar, retired Colonel of the U.S. Army Special Forces, claimed that the US was actually escorting some poppy shipments out of Afghanistan and often looked the other way even as far back as 2004.

Good. Poppy farmers + happy = Good for U.S.
 
As long as the Taliban are buying weapons with the proceeds from Opium sales, the poppies must be destroyed.

No drugs = no drug money = no weapons for terrorists.

Except you ignore the large financing they get from the Gulf and from within Pakistan.

If burning the opium causes the populace to support the insurgents, we should stop burning the opium. No insurgency can survive without the support of the locals. Pissing off the locals to the point where they actively work against us is not the road to success.
 
Except you ignore the large financing they get from the Gulf and from within Pakistan.

If burning the opium causes the populace to support the insurgents, we should stop burning the opium. No insurgency can survive without the support of the locals. Pissing off the locals to the point where they actively work against us is not the road to success.

Ok. That's a good point.

You're probably correct.

I just like the idea of denying the Taliban funds and weapons.

:cool:
 
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As long as the Taliban are buying weapons with the proceeds from Opium sales, the poppies must be destroyed.

No drugs = no drug money = no weapons for terrorists.

U guys like zombies. Propaganda from your media flooded everywhere. Terrorists... What kind of moron need to be to be unable to understand some simple things? They live at their own land. And when enemy is invaded at their homeland they start to fight for FREEDOM. Just imagine what would you do if for example Chinese or Russians invaded at your homeland? Kill your nations and bombed buildings? Terrorists... You guys true zombie.

I’ll give u some info. Since Afghanistan invasion its drug production were increased at 44 times! It’s not Taliban have money from drug selling, all money goes to NATO and USA. Drugs under control of NATO growth and produced in Afghan, after that it goes by military airplanes on Kosovo airbase, and there it given to albanian gangsters for sell by little parties to all over the Europe.
 
U guys like zombies. Propaganda from your media flooded everywhere. Terrorists... What kind of moron need to be to be unable to understand some simple things? They live at their own land. And when enemy is invaded at their homeland they start to fight for FREEDOM. Just imagine what would you do if for example Chinese or Russians invaded at your homeland? Kill your nations and bombed buildings? Terrorists... You guys true zombie.

I’ll give u some info. Since Afghanistan invasion its drug production were increased at 44 times! It’s not Taliban have money from drug selling, all money goes to NATO and USA. Drugs under control of NATO growth and produced in Afghan, after that it goes by military airplanes on Kosovo airbase, and there it given to albanian gangsters for sell by little parties to all over the Europe.

"U" is not a word.
 
Scorched earth tactics may work well against invading armies with poor logisitcal support, but it doesn't work well against insurgencies. Guerilla warfare is all about getting the people on your side. Military actions are not ends unto themselves. Illegal or not, the poppy fields are the mainstay of the Afghan economy. Getting rid of them (which the military cannot do) or trying to simply deprives many people of a better quality of life, sending them into the arms of the enemy.
 
Re: Should we stop burning the poppy fields in Afghanistan

Other.
We have no business in Iraq or Afghanistan other than searching for bin Laden and this thugs.
We have absolutely no business with their poppy fields.
What is the matter with us ?
 
Funny - when it comes to the drug-wars that are immediately south of us, we do nothing on their side of the fence, and many question why we've done nothing and bark up the tree of "war on drugs" and "my daddy loved crack more than he loved me, now I'm a psycho."

But when it comes to us interceding into a drug-trade that's stationed on the other side of the world, we are quick and apt to intervene and try to stop it somehow, and some question why we're doing it and if we should stop.

Interesting.

So the real question is - shouldn't we be intervening equally in Columbia and Mexico?

I guess one view is certain - people don't mind what we do as long as it's not in our backyard, however vast the expanse of our back yard is.
 
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Burning their fields are a huge joke. For one, we were suppose to be over there fighting terrorists - not destroying nature like we often do at home. Afghanistan's police force can take care of this if they think it is a problem. After all, it would make good training exercise and some effort on their part, right?

More importantly, we seem to have trouble ridding our own soil from "drugs," so why expand our failed operations to other countries. :doh
 
Burning their fields are a huge joke. For one, we were suppose to be over there fighting terrorists - not destroying nature like we often do at home. Afghanistan's police force can take care of this if they think it is a problem. After all, it would make good training exercise and some effort on their part, right?

More importantly, we seem to have trouble ridding our own soil from "drugs," so why expand our failed operations to other countries. :doh


Three quarters of the world's opium comes from Afghanistan's poppy fields. Burning those fields may help in slowing down the flow of opium to the world.

While burning those fields may piss off the Afghans but it prevents the flow of drugs. I do not especially like the idea of taking the away the livelihood of Afghan citizens; however, if doing so stems the flow of opium to the world while preventing the taliban from reaping profits with which to purchase arms ... well ... maybe it has more positives than negatives.
 
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