'War sucks' says Afghanistan vet

The Georgia Straight profiles a brave soul who has left the war behind and come north of the 49th:

The 20-year-old California native has such a strong sentiment because he’s seen war firsthand. He fought with the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division in Afghanistan for 15 months. His unit operated in the provinces of Paktika, Paktya, and Khost, which are north of Kandahar, where Canadian forces are locked in combat with Afghan insurgents.

“What I saw in Afghanistan led me to believe that the motives that were put forward to us by the U.S. government and the U.S. army were a total farce,” Tindungan told the Georgia Straight. “They said we were there to bring democracy to the people. They said we were there to rout terrorism and to prevent terrorism. While I was there, I noticed that we’re pissing off more people than we were winning hearts and minds.”

According to him, Canadian troops aren’t doing any differently. “They’re doing the same exact shit that we were doing in our area of operations,” Tindungan said. “I’ve always thought of Canadians…as UN peacekeeper kind of guys.” (link)