We believe in democracy and have complained of lies in the media, it is hardly appropriate we propagate any lies or deceptions to the American people. Censorship is a form of deception. It is like putting blinders on the public. It is unethical. The American people have a right to know what their military is sacrificing.
I believe in the wars in Pakistan and Afghanistan. I hate the killing more than anyone. But, to allow international criminals access to two countries and one with nuclear potential is unrealistic. If soldiers are to be spared this fate, which they should be, that means there will be more civilian deaths due to more aggressive weapons. The entire war in Afghanistan doesn't make sense to me. Either there is a war to fight and we protect our military from harm or there isn't. This 'mess' of protecting civilians as if they are immune from the battlefield is hideous. If they choose up sides and decide it is more beneficial from a 'warlord' perspective to join the Taliban than they made their choice. The people of Afghanistan either move out of the way of 'shortening and capturing' the battlefield or they don't. But, that is just my opinion.
If the war in Afghanistan is proceeding so poorly, the military needs to weigh the stakes against the outcome. If the American people are going to be disgusted with the photos being published, there needs to be a strategy to success in Afghanistan that will deliver the same outcome.
I don't see a whole lot different between this photo and the flag drapped coffins coming into Dover. One leads to the other.
There were many more issues with Vietnam. The Nixon administration invoked a draft of 19 year olds with a lottery and demonstrators were being killed on college campuses. The dynamics of opposition were different. Today, there were significant deaths for Italy and in that the Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi called for the withdrawal of their forces. He is also involved in a tough election in Italy as well and it serves his purpose to ask for withdrawal even though it may not occur.
The war in Afghanistan has been allowed to deteriorate by the past administration and deteriorate it has. It is my opinion, it is by far the most dangerous place in the world today and if left to the devices of the Taliban any abandonment by all military forces will result in the return of power to them and a return to neglect of the world only to repeat what has occurred before.
Afghanistan is a disaster area. It is where the Taliban and international terrorists have taken haven from the attacks by The West to end their capacity to strive to destroy civilization as it exists in any country and not just the USA and Europe. As far as I am concerned, there was such gross neglect by the Bush/Cheney administration Afghanistan is a global emergency.
It is not another Vietnam that if left alone will heal its ills. Vietnam had no designs on killing innocent people in far away countries, nor achieving domination of global culture. Afghanistan is different. The consequences are higher.The Geneva Conventions exist. Yes, they do. But, nowhere in those accords does it state civilized nations have to sacrifice their military or accept defeat for the sake of civilians in a country that has been allowed to become the enemy to the world. Charlie Wilson's War didn't fail because the USA did not send money for infrastructure improvements. Charlie's war was a defeat because he facilitated 'the base' of al Qaeda, while Russia signed onto the Geneva Convention of War. Why do I believe diplomacy with Russia to achieve the same outcomes while limiting the spread of international terrorists would have been a far better idea?
USA militaries are not supposed to have decade long wars and sustained body counts. It is supposed to end the dangers to the country and civilization and pay reparations afterward. If the war is wearing on American's patience AND their treasury that is all part of the battlefield picture. I suggest Secretary Gates, the Joint Chiefs and their generals start assessing the battlefield as it is, not as a politician would want it to be. 
In this photo taken Friday, Aug. 14, 2009, Lance Cpl. Joshua Bernard is tended to by fellow U.S. Marines after being hit by a rocket propelled grenade during a firefight against the Taliban in the village of Dahaneh in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Bernard was transported by helicopter to Camp Leatherneck where he later died of his wounds. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
