Dutch government collapses over Afganistan
February 20, 2010 - 12:17am
The Dutch government has collapsed over disagreements within the governing coalition on extending troop deployments in Afghanistan, media say.
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Excellent! Not quite as dramatic as the fall of the Soviet Union (the defeat in Afghanistan being one of the last straws), but a wonderful example for Canada to follow as well.
Netherlands, Canada, and all other aggressors, get out!
The Afghan people will win!
Excellent! Not quite as dramatic as the fall of the Soviet Union (the defeat in Afghanistan being one of the last straws), but a wonderful example for Canada to follow as well.
Netherlands, Canada, and all other aggressors, get out!
The Afghan people will win!
If you don't, Afghanistan will be YOUR graveyard!
This probably also reflects the threat the Dutch Labour Party(or PvdA) has felt on its left flank from the Socialist Party, a party that has taken a clear anti-militarist position on foreign policy and by so doing has cut heavily into Dutch Labour's vote. In the 2006 Dutch elections, the SP took 25 seats, only eight less than PvdA. Had PvdA stayed in the coalition and shared responsibility for an extension of the Dutch troop presence, it might well have fallen BEHIND the SP at the next elections, which were going to be held soon anyway.
This probably also reflects the threat the Dutch Labour Party(or PvdA) has felt on its left flank from the Socialist Party, a party that has taken a clear anti-militarist position on foreign policy and by so doing has cut heavily into Dutch Labour's vote. In the 2006 Dutch elections, the SP took 25 seats, only eight less than PvdA. Had PvdA stayed in the coalition and shared responsibility for an extension of the Dutch troop presence, it might well have fallen BEHIND the SP at the next elections, which were going to be held soon anyway.
That's right. Let's hope the election goes the way it should.
All it takes is for one NATO country to have the courage to disengage from Afghanistan. The rest will fall like dominoes.
This will make it harder for Harper to make his case for having some Canadian troops remain in Afghanistan beyond 2011.
Jack Layton and the NDP and peace groups and activists in Canada, take note!
most Canadians oppose the war.
i think even soldiers and their families can be included in that number, horribly conflicted and traumatized.
we have a rally today in support of military families at the Trenton base- it's a really odd thing to have been organized, given the angst in the community with four of its women assaulted and two dead.
i can only think of politicians or lobbyists having organized it, behind a few around the base.
so far Natynczyk and others have been rah-rahing for more assault in Afghanistan. It's sickening actually.
Nothing like those armchair warriors(or "The Members of the 101st Chairborne", as they're sometimes called here in the States.), always willing to sacrifice somebody ELSE'S life.
not sure who you're referring to
The sort of people who didn't serve in combat but who call for belicose and bloodsoaked foreign policy methods. You've got them in Canada, we have them here. The Tory tupes who want Canada to stay in Afghanistan forever fit the mold, and are the analogues to the U.S. Republican politicians who avoided Vietnam and demanded war after war once THEY were too old to fight in them.
Not you, if you'd somehow got THAT idea. The prowar types.
This is indeed great news. Come on Canada be next, and help put a stop to this war madness. How the capitalist system could survive without a war economy is beyond me, and that's why both war and capitalism have to be opposed at the same time.
Nothing like those armchair warriors(or "The Members of the 101st Chairborne", as they're sometimes called here in the States.), always willing to sacrifice somebody ELSE'S life.
HA! Yes we have our vicious toadies in Ottawa. And they would gladly volunteer thousands of Canadian lives to whatever war of aggression Warshington gives them marching orders for. I'm actually surprised that Canadians have refused to give either one of Canada's two war parties the phony majority they've been desperate for over the last five years.
Trouble in Paradise?
Nato reassures Afghans after Dutch government collapse
Nato has assured Afghans they can rely on its support despite the uncertain future of Dutch troops there following the collapse of their government.
It came after the two largest parties failed to agree over a Nato request to extend the tour of the almost 2,000-strong Dutch contingent past August.
A Nato spokesman said it would provide support to Afghans whatever happened.
Earlier, the governor of Uruzgan said peace and reconstruction efforts would suffer a setback if the Dutch left.
Asadullah Hamdam told the BBC they were playing a vital role building roads, training the Afghan police and providing security for civilians.
"If they withdraw and leave these projects incomplete, then they will leave a big vacuum," he added.
The uncertainty comes as Nato, US and Afghan forces are engaged in a large military offensive against the Taliban in neighbouring Helmand
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8526436.stm
I haven't heard any exit strategy from the south lately-I thought they had a pre-set date, that the Afghan government wants them out by sometime next year- so those 2,000 men building this and than-call the bin Laden's they have the biggest construction company in the Middle East, They could probably handle it no?
RR
The capitalist counter revolution in the Soviet Union was a set back for workers all over the globe, the capitalist triumphalist s would never been so brazen Had the USSR not been pushed over the edge. Capitalism has had the Asian crisis the Mexican crisis ice-land Japan, how many in South America, In the USA Britain Canada and they are raiding the treasury in the same type of gangster capitalism that we saw in the former USSR. The financial lawlessness is astounding to say the least! The situation in the states is not going to stand neither are the republicans or democrats for that matter unless Obama gets universal health care and a jobs program-wheelbarrows full of money being shoveled into the coffers of the richest interests in the nation while half of Americans are on some kind of assistance is not going to fly down there. Wall Street has grown even more brazen while not making up for one bit of damage that they have done and continue to do. Pillagers All! It wont' be supernatural apocalypse but real social forces clashing as conditions for the working class continue to deteriorate. And I think the sooner we get started the better.
RR
Yes it is indeed high time. Here, there and everywhere...
You know it is pretty damn offensive that they keep declaring training police forces and all that other "training" yapping, making it seem as if Afghans can't learn policing after 9 years of training....
How stupid do they think we and Afghans are?
Good thing the Olympics are on eh!
Hardly anyone knows....
The Olympics are on?
LOL Ken, the vast majority of Canadians are hooked onto it 24/7....if you think they in the majority even heard that the Dutch government fell you can bet they did not hear it was over Afghanistan.
Ok, it was either open a new thread, or make a banner headline:
Netherlands is pulling out of Afghanistan!
Ok, he said "probably", but still:
The 1,600 Dutch soldiers in Afghanistan will probably leave this year, Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said Sunday.
The governing Dutch coalition collapsed Saturday over disputes about the date for the withdrawal of the soldiers.
NATO has asked the Netherlands to extend its commitment for a year past the August withdrawal date, but most of the 150 members of the legislature oppose keeping the troops in Afghanistan.
Balkenende announced that Labor was leaving the coalition he heads after a marathon cabinet meeting that ended early Saturday.
Labor wants the Dutch soldiers in Uruzgan province to leave in August, but Balkenende's Christian Democratic Alliance disagreed.
Source.
Interesting contrast with the NDP, which you'll recall dropped any conditions about Afghanistan as part of the coalition accord in December 2008.
Then again, the NDP isn't facing serious competition for the "left" vote in the same way the VpdA is from the Socialists. So Layton and Co. probably had a "they've got nowhere else to go" mindset about Canadian antiwar types.
"Balkenende's Christian Democratic Alliance"
And there ya go, good old blood thirsty Christians.....
Or, as the early 20th Century hymn parody put it:
Onward, Christian soldiers! Rip and tear and smite!
Let the gentle Jesus bless your dynamite.
Splinter skulls with shrapnel, fertilize the sod;
Folks who do not speak your tongue deserve the curse of God.
Smash the doors of every home, pretty maidens seize;
Use your might and sacred right to treat them as you please.
Onward, Christian soldiers! Eat and drink your fill;
Rob with bloody fingers, Christ okays the bill,
Steal the farmers' savings, take their grain and meat;
Even though the children starve, the Saviour's bums must eat,
Burn the peasants' cottages, orphans leave bereft;
In Jehovah's holy name, wreak ruin right and left.
Onward, Christian soldiers! Drench the land with gore;
Mercy is a weakness all the gods abhor.
Bayonet the babies, jab the mothers, too;
Hoist the cross of Calvary to hallow all you do.
File your bullets' noses flat, poison every well;
God decrees your enemies must all go plumb to hell.
Onward, Christian soldiers! Blight all that you meet;
Trample human freedom under pious feet.
Praise the Lord whose dollar sign dupes his favored race!
Make the foreign trash respect your bullion brand of grace.
Trust in mock salvation, serve as tyrant's tools;
History will say of you: "That pack of G.. D.. fools"
(written by John F. Kendrick of the IWW)
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,679490,00.html
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/02/23/gates-european-aversion-to-war-a-dang...
http://original.antiwar.com/pfaff/2010/02/23/us-allies-in-europe-begin-t...
Anti-Muslim, [pro-war], pro-Israel candidate seen likely to gain big:
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/02/23/netherlands-sets-june-9-for-election-...
Color me confused...I see a couple of posts that appear to be christian bashing...is this appropriate on Babble? I thought that "excluding language" was a no-no and I would think this type of typecasting could offend progressive people of faith.
If my question is inappropriate, please delete.
As a progressive person of faith, Thomas, I'm mainly bored by most of the Christian-bashing, a lot of which is overgeneral and ill-informed, although I think the IWW song is actually kinda witty. I don't get offended often, I guess because I know I'm part of a dominant culture and we have more to apologize for than to complain about in this country.
I only get offended when, eg, an organization like KAIROS is running into pretty clearly sectarian attacks from people with power or with easy access to power. Then I get angry, although more in political than in faith terms.
ETA: I agree with you, though -- there are strong traditions in Canada and elsewhere of Christian socialism, and it seems particularly silly to speak of bloodthirsty Christians in the country of Tommy Douglas.
Oh.......so we are now denying the "Christian" aspect of this war against Islam, and in context of my comment, that the Christian democrats of the Netherlands want to stay and occupy and oppress Afghans.
LMASO.......
I consider myself a Christian, more or less(although I'm not much of a churchgoer these days)and the IWW satire to me is a fine comic example of calling out "Christian" political and religious leaders on their hypocrisy(and especially worthy of being sung again in a world where the present-day U.S. military has a heavy evangelical "Christian" presence(which has led, among other things, to harassment of athiest or agnostic service members or those of other faith traditions in addition to abominations such as the inclusion or Biblical quotations on military rifle sights and in correspondence from the Secretary of Defense.
No offense to other progressive Christians was intended, and I'm sorry that I seem to have caused it.
That said, I don't apologize for the meaning of the song itself. I agree with the intent of the song's writer.
Wonderful news. And Canada's phony-minority government has collapsed over Afghanistan, too. Let's hope it's the beginning of a trend.
I trust no religious person of any faith or denomination who try to tell me they know the mind of god. If there is a god it is unknowable and IMO it certainly did not give anyone any specific parcel of land.
I like christians who try to live their lives in a belief that their god is the prince of peace. I generally like anyone who sincerely believes in peace and not violence. IMO if you justify war you do not believe in peace. I admire christians like Woodsworth who could stand tall for peace in the face of overwhelming support for war.
Gain for anti-Islam party in Dutch poll
The Netherlands' anti-Islamic MP Geert Wilders appeared on course for major gains in a general election yesterday, more than doubling his party's seats in the Dutch parliament and overtaking the incumbent ruling Christian Democrats, according to exit polls last night.
Wilders' Freedom party looked to have taken third place in a close-fought election which in the end was tied between rightwing free-market liberals and the centre-left Labour Party, according to the projections.
Wilders, campaigning for a halt to Muslim immigration andmosque-building, and to a tax on Islamic head gear, increased his party's seats from 9 to 23, according to exit polls. The result is far better than predicted, but left Wilders trailing behind the rightwing liberal VVD party and the centre-left Labour Party who were said to take 31 seats each. Wilders is due in court later this year to face charges of inciting racism,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/10/netherlands-election-coaliti...
With a real electoral system, Dutch politicos can't avoid transparency and accountability to the public on such matters, like our stooges here have done so well long time and hiding behind bullshit democracy.
Sadly, the Socialist Party took significant losses(going from 25 seats down to 15) the Labour Party lost one, and the Green Left only gained three, so there are no prospects for a left-of-center government.
The best that could be hoped for would be a centrist-antiracist broad coalition comprising the left, Democrats66, and the remnant of the Christian Democrats, leaving the hardline freemarket Liberals and Geert Wilders' racist party as the opposition.
The War in Afghanistan is all about Control for Profit. It has nothing to do with Religion, some would like you to think so, but strictly Unfettered Capitalism. The United Nations building is in New York as it gives the US home court advantage, in fact the land was donated by the Rockefellers as I have been informed.
The Afghanies have as best as I recall have never invaded any other country, nor have they threatened to kill People of other countries that have not invaded them.
Thus this War, as are all Wars, are strictly for profit. This includes WW2
Lately I heard someone who came out in the Open and said one has the right to advance War for Econimic Protectionism. Funny I thought no one was supposed to admit to such an Evil
Many Nations are involved in the invasion of Afghanistan, with the exception of England and the US, all the others are involved due to being pushed into getting involved. Thats the way it looks to me from where I sit.
Harper has invested billions of our money in Afghanistan dam building and Karzi's brother has a security firm that fires on Canadian troops trying to protect it so that the Afghans get the contract. They have learned their lessons on capitalist democracies well and were taught by the best-hailiberton, blackwater..what fine examples of corporate rule. Good work fella's.
RR