Taliban members who agree to stop fighting are being paid 100 pounds per month as part of an effort to reduce attacks against NATO troops in Afghanistan, a British newspaper reported.

The Sunday Telegraph said the program, supervised by a British major general, was open to any Taliban fighters, even if they had committed atrocities such as beheadings and hanging of women.

Something stupid like 10 million GBP of tax payers money has been put towards this.

What will they think of next?

makes sense in some ways… a lot of these people are opium farmers, we took away their crop and told punsihed them for doing what, for them is normal and the only way to feed their families. Simple greed is probably the easiest way to overcome the taliban!

So this goverment can find money for this while making cut backs after cut backs for us . 👿

Sounds a cheap way to end a war that costs billions. Give people a reason not to fight rather than a reason to fight.

So this goverment can find money for this while making cut backs after cut backs for us .

Exactly my thoughts

Something stupid like 10 million GBP of tax payers money has been put towards this.

Sounds like a tiny amount compared to the amount spent on the actual fighting stuff, which costs many, many times more.

What Afghanistan needs is for it’s people to be able to benefit from the nations undoubted tremendous natural resources, not greedy foreign powers coming in trying to steal it from under them under some bullshit pretext of ‘establishing peace’…

I know, easier said than done. Can’t see how imposing a form of military rule and stealing the nation’s resources from it’s people is ever going to bring about peace though, tbh.

If the invading forces were actually helping the people of Afghanistan to set up and run their own industries, thus ensuring decent income, then that would be ok. But they’re not, are they? They’re acting as security guards making it safe for the big mining and production companies to come and exploit the land and it’s treasures.

Hmm, now where have we seen that before…?

So this goverment can find money for this while making cut backs after cut backs for us

What gives you the idea that our wonderful government actually cares about we, the people?

Sorry I got that wrong

Over the next four years, the Prime Minister has pledged to give £710 million to Afghanistan alone. That could mean up to £70 million of British money going to the very people we are fighting.

Quite a substantial amount more than 10 million.

The Department for International Development spent £102 million on aid to Afghanistan in the last financial year, but this will rise to £178 million this year. Of these totals, 16 per cent goes to Helmand province, where British troops operate.

A total of £35 billion has been given to Afghanistan by the international community since 2001.

A total of £35 billion has been given to Afghanistan by the international community since 2001.

mostly in the form of violent and brutal occupation

mostly in the form of violent and brutal occupation

In aid apparently

So this goverment can find money for this while making cut backs after cut backs for us .

Well if you’d rather they spent the money on paying our young men and women to go out and do it by force (and die/injure/traumatise themselves in the process)…

In aid apparently

Can we assume your source is the Daily Mail?

EDIT, don’t worry, I’ve found it: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2025437/70m-British-aid-paid-Taliban-Cash-wasted-bribes-protection-money.html

Certainly not the worst idea. A great number of Taliban fighters are just locals with no options, future or opportunities. Mercenaries really, not idealists or extremists. If it works (less dead peoples on both sides) then its money well spent.

Can we assume your source is the Daily Mail?

Yeah and the Telegraph, but its in all the papers.

Pay people to not work is a tried and tested british formula 🙂

So this goverment can find money for this while making cut backs after cut backs for us .

Or pay those poor public servants big pensions…

There are only about 600 actual Taliban in the whole region, the majority of fighters are locals who are coerced, forced or paid to fight against ISAF. If we can make it more attractive for them to work for us instead of the Taliban then thats their supply of fighters cut off.

One of the more lucrative local crops (therefore an alternative to growing heroin) is apparently pomegranate. So go and buy more bottles of Pom if you want to stop our taxes being used for the same end.
I can see a nice advertising campaign there 😉

Oh and think of the taxes saved on the results of heroin addiction – treatment/jail/crime/methadone etc. I suspect someone’s done their sums on this one…