POW Bowe Bergdahl back for the release of 5 Taliban leaders

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/05/what-the-u-s-gave-up-to-get-sgt-bowe-bergdahl-back/

The last American POW taken by the Taliban has been released. Bow Bergdahl was captured 5 years ago. He was released in exchange for 5 mid to senior level Taliban leaders.

Some feel this is horrible that American soldiers if not journalists will be taken to be used as bartering chips.

I feel that I can defend this event. 1 POW may have been killed or tortured to death and never found. He was taken when he left a base on Taliban home turf. However, the 5 Taliban leaders... were taken from their home turf and they can be taken again. America has an army, they have a faction.

While it does risk future lives of soldiers retrieving these 5 back, they can be taken back. Chances are the US has all of the intelligence that can be gathered from them. They might not be relevant or useful to the Taliban anymore or seen as no longer to be trusted, 'what did you tell them about us?'

I'm happy Bowe is back, even if it is questionable how he was taken after leaving his base, potentially being AWOL.

What are your thoughts on the subject? 1 lower level for 5 leaders? Is it an important message for troops, that an army does not forget about its prisoners? Is it a bad precedence that a low level guy can be traded?

geo said:

Some feel this is horrible that American soldiers if not journalists will be taken to be used as bartering chips.

So I assume these people would have preferred the Taliban to have just killed him instead? Okay.

That is the price you pay for waging war, starting war, or participating in one.

5 Taliban? That's nothing compared to what Israel would exchange for a captured soldier. They would release dozens of Palestinian agitators just for one man. Besides, the Taliban grow like weeds over there, all the "leaders" who originally plotted against the US in the first days of the invasion are dead, captured, or fled to Pakistan.

TheCupboard said:

5 Taliban? That's nothing compared to what Israel would exchange for a captured soldier. They would release dozens of Palestinian agitators just for one man. Besides, the Taliban grow like weeds over there, all the "leaders" who originally plotted against the US in the first days of the invasion are dead, captured, or fled to Pakistan.

Agitators? Different than leaders, but yeah hate will always rise for one reason or another.

What really sucks is Afghanistan, for once in centuries, has a chance to raise the quality of life for it's people to that of neighboring countries. They struck a deal with China for exclusive copper rights. Afghanistan has one of the largest deposits of copper and steel on this planet. Turds like the Taliban will continue to digress the country back to the stone age. Sadly India just recently withdrew from it's planned steel mining operation due to concerns of rising extremism.

Technician said:

Sadly India just recently withdrew from it's planned steel mining operation due to concerns of rising extremism.

Either that or someone broke the news that you don't mine steel. They'll be back when they change the wording to reflect an iron mining operation.

BaronOfStuff said:

Either that or someone broke the news that you don't mine steel. They'll be back when they change the wording to reflect an iron mining operation.

Ancient aliens forged all the steel and buried it there long ago.

One of my friends that is former army said the 5 Taliban that were released probably were poisoned and they'll die in 2 months and no one will know it.

Its great that he returned to his family alive. But why the hell would he leave his base, unarmed?! Even if he was armed, he wouldn't stand a chance by himself.

Kontra Kommando said:

Its great that he returned to his family alive. But why the hell would he leave his base, unarmed?! Even if he was armed, he wouldn't stand a chance by himself.

Some are saying he was AWOL, but yeah why would you leave in a hostile territory? Go to a bar? Pick up a woman that ultimately is wearing far too much. Maybe he was stealing gold or just went off for a moment alone? No idea. In time he still might have to answer for the AWOL.