Alcohol banned on Afghanistan base after troops party too hard

[alienlovechild 75]

General Stanley McChrystal tried to contact his subordinates after a Nato strike killed 125 civilians, but too many had been “partying it up” and could not be raised.

General McChrystal, head of International Forces in Afghanistan (Isaf), has since put a stop to drinking, admonishing staff for not having “their heads in the right place” on Friday morning a few hours after the attack, the Times reports.

The Isaf headquarters covers half a square mile but it has at least seven bars that serve tax-free beer and wine including a Tora Bora sports bar complete with flat-screen televisions and football memorabilia, the Gravel Pit, which has a snooker table, a German beer hall, the 37 Club and a Nordic Palace, the paper reports.

One insider said: “Thursday nights are the big party nights, because Friday’s a 'low-ops’ day. They even open a bar in the garden at headquarters. There’s a 'two can’ rule but people ignore it and hit it pretty hard.” A group of Macedonian guards were sent home this year because they were discovered drunk on duty, while protecting the back gate.

The problem became so acute that military police started breathalysing drivers and pedestrians around the base.

“General McChrystal is extremely focused on the mission and he feels that the folk who are here at the headquarters level need to be at the top of their game in terms of supporting the folks out in the field,” an Isaf spokesman said.

“The Kunduz incident provided an opportunity for him to articulate his concerns in this regard, but it was not the cause of the order nor is there any indication at this point that alcohol consumption was somehow a factor in the incident.” He added that the decision was driven partly by respect for Muslim culture.

Civilian staff have been advised to make arrangements to stay off camp if they have more than two beers in an evening, but soldiers stationed elsewhere will still be free to drink.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/...y-too-hard.html

[zqt3344 21]

And the point is?

General Stanley McChrystal tried to contact his subordinates after a Nato strike killed 125 civilians, but too many had been “partying it up” and could not be raised.

General McChrystal, head of International Forces in Afghanistan (Isaf), has since put a stop to drinking, admonishing staff for not having “their heads in the right place” on Friday morning a few hours after the attack, the Times reports.

The Isaf headquarters covers half a square mile but it has at least seven bars that serve tax-free beer and wine including a Tora Bora sports bar complete with flat-screen televisions and football memorabilia, the Gravel Pit, which has a snooker table, a German beer hall, the 37 Club and a Nordic Palace, the paper reports.

One insider said: “Thursday nights are the big party nights, because Friday’s a 'low-ops’ day. They even open a bar in the garden at headquarters. There’s a 'two can’ rule but people ignore it and hit it pretty hard.” A group of Macedonian guards were sent home this year because they were discovered drunk on duty, while protecting the back gate.

The problem became so acute that military police started breathalysing drivers and pedestrians around the base.

“General McChrystal is extremely focused on the mission and he feels that the folk who are here at the headquarters level need to be at the top of their game in terms of supporting the folks out in the field,” an Isaf spokesman said.

“The Kunduz incident provided an opportunity for him to articulate his concerns in this regard, but it was not the cause of the order nor is there any indication at this point that alcohol consumption was somehow a factor in the incident.” He added that the decision was driven partly by respect for Muslim culture.

Civilian staff have been advised to make arrangements to stay off camp if they have more than two beers in an evening, but soldiers stationed elsewhere will still be free to drink.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/...y-too-hard.html

[tmma 467]

General Order #1

...that's what we had when deployed.

[almaty 19]

i agree..the boys want a beer

[Ban Hammer 14,640]

General Order #1

...that's what we had when deployed.

[almaty 19]

of course, it is obeyed ..see us miltary history of the 20th centuey

[Nagishkaw 510]

0h my.

[alienlovechild 75]

It's not good thing when your subordinates are too drunk to respond. The is especially troubling after the air strike. The Taliban will claim ISAF forces are partying after the deaths of civilians or are drunkenly killing civilians.

General Stanley McChrystal tried to contact his subordinates after a Nato strike killed 125 civilians, but too many had been “partying it up” and could not be raised.

General McChrystal, head of International Forces in Afghanistan (Isaf), has since put a stop to drinking, admonishing staff for not having “their heads in the right place” on Friday morning a few hours after the attack, the Times reports