Afghan Offensive

More than 15000 British, American and Afghan troops have launched a major offensive against the Taliban. 4000 of these troops are British supported by Canadians, Danes and Estonians. More than 4000 US Marines 1,500 Afghan Soldiers and 300 US soldiers moved in by helicopter under cover of darkness.
Fierce Fighting has been reported.

I understand that they have emptied wards at Selly Oak hospital in readiness. I have nothing against that as our lads need and deserve the best medical treatment that is available.

What I do object to is our lying government when handing part of Selly Oak over to the forces in another cash saving exercise that was done to save the expense of funding and building a separate hospital for our armed forces. They expressly promised that this sort of thing would never happen and that it would make no difference to civilian patients at all. Now we read of hundreds of patients being shipped out to already over stretched hospitals in the area.

Phil

Phil
I wonder if Selly Oak is going to be able to cope anyway. God forbid this war gets worse. But we already know there is a major offensive underway right now. As the injury's of our service personnel are unfortunately as bad as they could be.
This inevitably means that a lot of them are long term patients. That means Selly Oak could be outgrown. A terrible thought but that's the way things are looking. I wonder what if any the contigency plans are. SB

SB

The only contingency plan I would have is to get our people out of there PDQ and let them get on with it. As far as I am concerned it is none of our business. I don't remember any Afghanistan terrorist coming to England and blowing anywhere up before we stuck our noses in to their business.

Phil

Phil I talk to a lot of people as I move around and everyone agrees with you almost to the letter. This is another politicians war, all they are after is the Glory of saving the world. Who is going to save us from them.

SB

The trouble is politicians are never going to listen to us. After all we only put them where they are, keep them there, pay their wages give them an expense fund to rob and listen to their lies every day.

Phil

Unfortunately there is no opposition as I see things.
Labour and Tory are like two Tory parties neither of which has a trustable, governable leader and the Glibdems make a lot of noise and have got as much chance of running this country as Screaming Lord Such had.
We have a serious Financial situation.
We have a serious Immigration problem.
A lot of people don't even realise we are at war. Even when some of the people who are against us, walk amomgst us.
But as long as their human rights are protected that's ok.
Greece is now in deep financial bother, I suppose we'll bail them out next.
But are we giving up. Of course we are.

Where has all the hope gone? In the sixties they told us it was the age of Aquarius the dawn of a bright new begining. I thought there was hope for the world. I even began to believe Macmillan when he had said earlier that "we had never had it so good"

But here we are 50 years later clinging on to the rim of the plughole.

Phil

Phil, when Super Mac told us we had never had it so good, he was probably right.

We should not be there, we should get out now, no one has ever won a war in Afghanistan, not even the russians, let's get out and leave the b******s to it ,like Phil says it's f8888K ALL TO DO WITH US, RANT OVER.

John

Most eloquently phrased, and exactly what I meant. I can no longer watch the almost daily pictures of our young people being carried off that plane in coffins. I just hope that when all this is over, that before it is all forgotten that somebody in power remembers to honour the town of Wootton Bassett for the respect they have shown for our fallen.

Phil

I totally agree with you both, and yes the town of Wooton Basset deserve to be honoured for their great conduct on these sad events. I only sincerely hope that these occasions don't get to be a tourist attraction. SB