Please

The NLF launched a wave of attacks on the morning of 31 January in the I and II Corps Tactical Zones of South Vietnam. This early attack did not, however, cause undue alarm or lead to widespread defensive measures. When the main NLF operation began the next morning, the offensive was countrywide in scope and well coordinated, with more than 80,000 communist troops striking more than 100 towns and cities, including 36 of 44 provincial capitals, five of the six autonomous cities, 72 of 245 district towns, and the southern capital.[10] The offensive was the largest military operation yet conducted by either side up to that point in the war.

This was much more like the “Blue House Raid” in Korea that happened at the same time.

On January 19, 1968, an armed North Korean guerrilla unit under the Revolutionary Party for Reunification attempted to assassinate Park and nearly succeeded. They were spotted by four South Korean civilians out cutting wood. After spending several hours trying to indoctrinate the civilians about the benefits of communism, the guerrillas let the civilians free with a stern warning not to notify the police. However, the civilians informed the police that very night.

The guerrillas entered Seoul in two- and three-man cells on January 20 and noticed the increased security measures that had been implemented throughout the city. Realising their original plan had little chance of success, the team leader improvised a new plan. Changing into ROK Army uniforms of the local 26th Infantry Division, complete with the correct unit insignia, which they had brought with them, they formed up and prepared to march the last mile to the Blue House, posing as ROK Army soldiers returning from a counter guerrilla patrol. The unit marched toward the Blue House, passing several National Police and ROK Army units en route. Approximately 800 meters from the Blue House, a police contingent finally halted the unit and began to question them. The nervous North Koreans fumbled their replies, and when one suspicious policeman drew his pistol, a commando shot him. A melee then ensued in which two infiltrators died. The rest of the North Koreans scattered and began racing for the DMZ.

For the next several days, South Korean and American soldiers and police cooperated in a massive manhunt. Three infiltrators were pursued and killed in the Seoul area, while 25 others were eventually hunted down and killed in various firefights, with one infiltrator being captured. Only two of the thirty-one North Koreans could not be accounted for. During the course of this assassination attempt, South Korean casualties totaled sixty-eight killed and sixty-six wounded—mainly army and police but also about two dozen civilians. Three Americans also died and three were wounded in attempts to block the escaping infiltrators.[5] Of thirty North-Korean commandos, all but Kim Shin-Jo were killed.

Three days later, January 23, the USS Pueblo was captured by North Korea.

Thanks for your reporting on all this David.

Ditto

The big difference. No one in Afghanistan was pretending that we were winning and Kabul was safe.

We have no equivalent of William Westmoreland in Afghanistan. Even Petraeus has not risen to that pinnacle of cluelessness.

For the rest, see Raven’s comment above.

Tet is the Vietnamese lunar new year, coincident with the Chinese new year. It’s in early spring and one of the main features of Tet are new blossoms, for good luck and wealth in the new year.

Tet is the most significant date on the vietnamese calendar. It’s a week long national holiday. To launch a military offensive on Tet is almost unthinkable.

It would be similar to launching an offensive on thanksgiving in the US, or Christmas in the UK.

In my home, Tet is much more than a word, or a date. Launching a similar offensive in Afghanistan would happen in Ramadan, a holy month, and also unthinkable.

If you want to take away any positives, it would be the fact that the security forces didn’t turn tail and run.

Nuf said.

I often have to explain to people that Vietnam is a country and not a war.

Rachel’s covering it right now.

Like Eid would be in Afghanistan?

The taliban insurgency reaction sounds vaguely like the republican reaction in the halls of Congress following the election of our current president.

Some U.S. military sniper rifle scopes have biblical passages printed on them next to the model number, by the mfgr.

To launch a military offensive on Tet is almost unthinkable.

It wasn’t unthinkable to the NVA and VC.

Very well I must say.

sick!!

In and Out Burger has them on their cups and wrappers!

In-N-Out prints discreet references to Bible verses on their paper utensils. The print is small and out of the way, and only contains the book, chapter and verse numbers, not the actual text of the passages. The practice began in the 1980s during Rich Snyder’s presidency,[34] a reflection of the beliefs held by the Snyder family:

Here’s the reason the US is fighting the Taliban. It had the audacity to cut off our mob’s primary source of income.

http://www.opioids.com/afghanistan/index.html

The mob makes dough off of shortages.

Not quite as provocative as having them on weapons of the military that occupies Islamic countries.

I would suggest that this is a pretty small issue in a rather large cluster fuck. Afghans are probably much more concerned about what comes out of the weapon than what is printed on the scope. . .but that’s just me.

There’s some symbolic meaning to these Taliban attacks, but I don’t think they’re anywhere near what the Tet Offensive meant. As Raven, TarheelDem, and Synoia have pointed out, there were lots of differences. To me, the scale is the big one. The Viet Cong risked much of their assets in the TO. The Taliban risked a few people, some explosives, and some vehicles. There’s also a considerable difference between attacking a place in force and sneaking a few people in over time to attack a few things. Logistically, it is nowhere near as big a trick for people who know the ground to smuggle a small number of people and a few weapons into a major city.

So, very different. The Taliban may have ended any chance of a negotiated settlement for now. That’s a big deal if it’s true. It would suggest they think they can gain the upper hand. But I doubt it’s going to have much effect on American public opinion.

Man, has it been 42 years tomorrow since the Blue House Raid? I remember those couple of days like it was yesterday!

I didn’t know we were allowed to discuss only big matters.

Actually much has been written that the NVA/North Vietnamese leadership used the Viet Cong as shock troops to get them out of the way of their eventual goal of taking the entire country. The VC were local and not always in line with the big plan.

Honey, you just discuss whatever you want to and so will I.

Sure sugar.

I remember something about that. I suppose that in the Kabul raid, it would be like the Taliban getting Al Qaeda to conduct the raid.

nite nite

Never thought of that, good analogy.

*g*

Tet was a motherfucker.

Captured VC gave up NVA stuff with little prodding.

But I doubt it’s going to have much effect on American public opinion.

You’re right. What moves American Opinion is “death of our own.” And even then, there’s a subtext in the media that I haven’t seen called out. What I mean is this:

When we keep seeing that a gazillion Muslims (Evil!) are killed, but only thousands of Our Own, that doesn’t seem a bad deal for our Kick Ass Volunteer Army, does it? We Deal Death Better Than They Do.

This Team Sport of Death just makes me ill. I have too many kin in this “game” and I am sure some will die, and some will be harmed physically and some will be harmed mentally/psychically beyond repair.

And I can’t answer the question “For what?”

Time flies even when you’re not having fun, doncha know?

I was in Korea then. We had no idea what was happenin, we moved off the compound, left a couple of people with thermite’s to blow the secure stuff and set up in the freezin ass cold. We swept the mountains looking for the one’s that survived and headed back north through our AO. Sure as hell not Tet but for a dumbass 18 year old it was intense.

Yea, I’m furloughed tomorrow so I can stay up till 10:30, I forgot!

I sent a link to Caturday to my niece who midwived the delivery of my cat (in a figurative, not literal, way). She loved it. I asked her to register & type in her role in the story, but she didn’t. She wanted to adopt the cat, but lives in a tiny walkup with her husband so it is out of the question. But she wants frequent reports, so Caturday will be purrfect.

Tet got the US out of Vietnam. The Taliban only wishes for that kind of result.

Nixon’s never around when you need him.

It will be easy to find lots of others to kick around.
No?

We don’t seem to have trouble finding kickees.

Source: ABC News

Pentagon Supplier for Rifle Sights Says It Has ‘Always’ Added New Testament References

Coded references to New Testament Bible passages about Jesus Christ are inscribed on high-powered rifle sights provided to the United States military by a Michigan company, an ABC News investigation has found.

The sights are used by U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and in the training of Iraqi and Afghan soldiers. The maker of the sights, Trijicon, has a $660 million multi-year contract to provide up to 800,000 sights to the Marine Corps, and additional contracts to provide sights to the U.S. Army.

U.S. military rules specifically prohibit the proselytizing of any religion in Iraq or Afghanistan and were drawn up in order to prevent criticism that the U.S. was embarked on a religious “Crusade” in its war against al Qaeda and Iraqi insurgents.

One of the citations on the gun sights, 2COR4:6, is an apparent reference to Second Corinthians 4:6 of the New Testament, which reads: “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

Other references include citations from the books of Revelation, Matthew and John dealing with Jesus as “the light of the world.” John 8:12, referred to on the gun sights as JN8:12, reads, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/us-military-weapons-inscr…

watertiger is upstairs!
Late Night: If Wishes Were Ponies, Then Bushies Would Ride

I’ve been through a Korean winter. You have my sympathies.

David, in answer to your question, if that’s what it was, no.

That’s something that is rather like Vietnam – it’s become about keeping score. There’s not much of a way to measure progress, it’s not like we’re taking back territory from the Germans, nor are they taking it from us. So we end up counting bodies.

I think there are a lot of differences between the two situations, but the core similarites; the bullshit, the denial of reality, the nonsense about bringing “freedom and democracy” to both places…those are two peas in pod.

Also, the notion that we can “win” in Afghanistan is the same kind of fantasy that was promulgated in Vietnam.

Lots fewer casualties (so far) but also astronomically expensive, especially since we’ve “learned” that if you can’t beat them, then buy them. Of course, once you get on that tiger, getting off can be a problem, since it’s unlikely that they will stay bought.

that last might prove as much a problem for the other side.

The thought occurred to me that possibly some of the hard core (i.e., suiciders) might be trying to put the kibosh on a plan to deal with the Taliban peacefully.

Looks like we’ll need a few million more troops in Afghanistan to “secure the peace.” Time to grow up and stop letting the Neocons and their generals prod you into disaster, President Obama.

Tet was a military failure, but it gave a huge boost to the American anti-war movement. I don’t see much similarity here.

Mirror Tet? By 1968 the American people were told of a light at the end of the tunnel – and promised by Westmoreland that the end was near and victory was at hand. Tet merely disproved him and LBJ – though they certainly knew the truth and decided instead to lie to the American people. Walter Cronkite – of course, would tell America the truth, giveing the right-wing an opportunity to let their vaunted military off the hook for years and years and years of failure – not in body counts or civilian deaths or massive destruction or cultural murder – in that we were VERY successful, but we failed to ever win hearts and minds, and for that the right blamed the media and the peace movement – they do to this very DAY – John McCain said as much during the election. So for the tiny Taliban offensive to match the massive NVA offensive during Tet we’d need a few things in place:

years of massive death and destruction
maasive American causalities
an angry and growing anti-war movement
a media willing to tell the truth…
a government and Pentagon freeding us daily bullshit regarding the victory that’s right around the corner.

Now answer your own question…

One week ago:

“Gen. Stanley McChrystal believes the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan has already blunted the Taliban’s momentum and the tide is turning against the Taliban.

In an exclusive interview with ABC’s ‘World News’ anchor Diane Sawyer, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said he believes he is making good on his promise of a ‘quantum shift’ on the battlefield.”

The facade of “Thank you for your service to our country.” is beginning to crack and disintegrate. The former soldiers who have been given command positions over the discourse of the antiwar messages are beginning to stink from fear. Who me? A baby killer? A war criminal? Only a public in full denial of the murders involved in war would agree to having war makers speak for the antiwar folks. Once public opinion calls murder for what it is, watch out.

It is very very much like Tet. The Tet Offensive also failed…militarily. Not a single Tet battle was actually won by the NVs but Tet was still a win for the North psychologically and as propaganda.

The current dustup in Afghanistan is similar. The military, the mouthpieces in the US government speaking for NObama can and will tout how the offensive “failed” just as they tried during the Vietnam war but it is not true. It is barely of note that the attacks were, ultimately, defeated. What matters is that they were able to pull it off (and will continue to be able to do similar in the future). This demonstrates, like Tet did, that the US and the puppet government in Afghanistan is NOT in control there and no number of troops can change that.

It is the same as Tet and the US military and the US civilian government STILL can’t understand or accept the lesson of Tet even today. They are bound to repeat the Vietnam failure all over again as a result.