I have been noticing postings on social media that are reporting all of the military equipment the Department of Defense has left in Afghanistan that is now in the possession of the Taliban. One posting claimed over 23,000 Humvees, 600 something M1117 Guardian Armored Security Vehicles, 155 plus M1224 MaxxPro MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicles, nearly 50,000 other assorted vehicles to include trucks and SUVs, over 100 helicopters, and dozens of fixed wing aircraft. There is a video that has been posted that appears to show the Taliban attempting to operate a Black Hawk helicopter.
The pundits will bloviate endlessly about how badly the strategy and tactics for evacuation were conducted. The planning appears to have been nonexistent. It seems everyone in the country knows the situation at this point. By now, you have heard the claim by Democrat party members of Congress, “The U.S. has armed the previous Afghan government, 300,000 soldiers and all of the equipment that goes with it. We have been doing that for the last 20 years. With the collapse and total disappearance of the Ghani government, that equipment fell into the hands of the Taliban and they now have it. Indeed, it is American equipment, but it was the property of the Afghan government.” I am more curious as to how the U.S. Department of Defense intends to utilize all that equipment now in the hands of the Taliban from this time forward. However, I do not expect congressional hearings on the subject to be open to the general public.
For many years there has been a company, OnStar Corporation, a subsidiary of General Motors that provides subscription-based communications, in-vehicle security, emergency services, hands-free calling, turn-by-turn navigation, and remote diagnostics systems throughout the United States, Canada, China, Mexico, Europe, Brazil, and Argentina. (From Wikipedia) Ford has a system called “911 Assist.” The OnStar website states:
- Safety: Help in a crash or emergency — in or out of any vehicle.
- Security: Assistance locating and recovering stolen vehicles.
- First Responders: OnStar Works with public safety professionals helping to build stronger, safer communities.
In all likelihood the GM and Ford systems can do a lot more than what they publicly state. Understanding this, it is reasonable to assume that the U.S. Department of Defense would incorporate a system that is far more advanced in all of its mechanical equipment, even in those which they turn over to foreign governments. The United States Congress should find out if such a system exists and if it is present in that hardware now being operated by the Taliban. If such a system is not in use (even worse, if nonexistent), the U.S. Department of Defense has failed our nation way beyond our wildest concerns.
