I Didn’t Join to be Sacrificed

U.S. Troops in Afghanistan Fed Up With Obama Rules of Engagement

CHRISTIAN NEWS SERVICE, Feb. 18, 2014, In the light of Afghanistan releasing 65 alleged Taliban fighters from Bagram prison, Billy and Karen Vaughn, parents of fallen Navy SEAL Aaron Carson Vaughn (SEAL Team VI), who was killed in Extortion 17, are bringing more information to the light regarding the treachery of the Obama administration in Afghanistan.

Billy & Karen Vaughn

In their recent op-ed piece featured on Brietbart.com, “US soldiers in Afghanistan are now forced to fight a two-fronted war. Before each deployment, these soldiers understand fully that day after day they will do battle against relentless terrorists with shifting loyalties and unspeakable hatred. But what none of them could have foreseen was the killing field that would open from their rear…the Continental United States.”

Our government’s incessant tightening of already restrictive ROE (Rules of Engagement), compounded by the failed COIN (Counterinsurgency) strategy—also known as “winning hearts and minds,” has made an otherwise primitive enemy formidable.

In a delicate discussion with an Army Ranger who recently left the military, we heard the following:

“I had to get out. I have a family who needs me. I didn’t join to be sacrificed. I joined to fight.”

This decision came shortly after he lost a close friend to the ROE. He went on to explain that the Taliban had attempted an ambush on his friend’s squad, but quickly realized they were in a battle they couldn’t win and began retreating. While chasing them, the US soldiers were ordered not to engage due to the slight chance the Taliban had laid down their arms as they ran through some type of shack. While arguing with leadership at the JOC (Joint Operations Center) his friend was shot and killed.

In the first seven plus years of war in Afghanistan (October, 2001 — December, 2008) we lost 630 US soldiers. In early 2009, Obama’s administration authorized the implementation of the COIN strategy. Over the next five years, the US death toll skyrocket to 2,292.

Seventy-three percent of all US deaths in Afghanistan have taken place since 2009.

In the first seven plus years of war in Afghanistan, 2,638 US soldiers were wounded in action. In the next forty-five months (2009 — 2012) an additional 15,036 suffered the same fate.

Liars figure, but figures don’t lie.

The Vaughn’s and numerous Gold Star Parents around the country are counting on you, the American patriot, for a response. We must defend our defenders. There is honor in sacrifice, and it should not be made in vain.