This week was the seventieth anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War. It's a time to remember all those who fought, died and sacrificed for Britain. But it's a time, too, to remember the lessons.
Some of those lessons apply in Afghanistan today. We're fighting a ferocious war and after eight years there still seems to be no end in sight. Our troops lack vital equipment, especially helicopters. Many people want Ministers to explain more clearly what our troops are fighting for. And that anxiety is now really affecting the Government, with the resignation of an aide to the Defence Secretary. It's clear we cannot go on as we are.
We need to make it clear to the British people why we're in Afghanistan. It's simple - to stop terrorism here in Britain. We must help the Afghans to stop their country from once again hosting the world's most dangerous terrorists. So we need to train and equip the Afghan army to root out terrorists, and to support them until they can do this for themselves.
We must make sure our soldiers have the tools they need - more counter-IED capability, more helicopters, more surveillance drones, more heavily armoured vehicles, and more transport aircraft. We must support their families here in Britain, and give every assistance to the injured.
And to do all these things we need one thing more than anything else - leadership. That's something that's been desperately lacking. We've had four defence secretaries in as many years; the last one was part-time and the current one ranks 21st out of 23 in the Cabinet. That's not a great starting point when we're fighting a conflict thousands of miles away. This is a new kind of war, it's a necessary war, and we need strong leadership and relentless focus to explain that to people in Britain.
The lessons of 1939 show that Britain can turn things around in war. Six years of effort later, we won the war. I'm confident we can see success in Afghanistan. I've been out there and seen what a tremendous job our servicemen and women do. It's time they got the right kind of support from the Government at home.
Comment on David's message on The Blue Blog

Rais Kikwete azindua Mazoezi ya Kijeshi
ya Nchi za Afrika Mashariki..
Baadhi ya makamanda waandamizi wa majeshi ya nchi za Afrika Mashariki wakiomwonesha Amiri jeshi mkuu Rais Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete uwanja na maeneo ya Mazoezi ya pamoja kutoka katika kilima cha Nodosoito huko monduli mkoani Arusha leo asubuhi.Picha na Freddy Maro/ Ikulu

Mkuu wa Majeshi Jenerali Davis Mwamunyange akimwonyesha Amiri Jeshi mkuu Rais Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete maeneo ya makao makuu ambapo Mazoezi ya pamoja ya kijeshi ya nchi za Afrika Mashariki yanafanyika wakati Rais alipofungua rasmi mazoezi hayo huko Monduli,Mkoani Arusha leo.Kulia ni Kamanda wa Kamandi ya majeshi ya nchi Kavu Meja jenerali Winjoynes Kisamba

Rais Jakaya Kikwete akipeperusha bendera ya Umoja wa jumuiya ya Afrika mashariki kuashiria kuzindua rasmi mazoezi ya pamoja ya kijeshi ya nchi za jumiya hiyo huko Monduli,Mkoani Arusha leo asubuhi.

Hi

At the beginning of August, President Obama wrote to the OFA community to challenge us to work hard, break through the noise and give the American people a voice in the fight for health insurance reform.It wasn't easy: With Congress back home, special interests and partisan attack groups went into overdrive spreading lies, and the media seemed to broadcast any story of conflict or division they could find.But you accepted the President's challenge -- and delivered.See it for yourself: Check out the latest photos and stories from around the country.
Our strategy for the month was simple: engage the millions of individuals who know we need change to fight the lies and tell the truth, build support for reform, and ensure that support is highly visible while members of Congress are home gauging public opinion. We continued our methodical, battle-tested approach of volunteers reaching out online and offline in every part of the country. We offered the facts, answered questions and engaged those who were ready to get involved.And the results were extraordinary. OFA supporters like you came together in an unprecedented way over the past four weeks -- and it couldn't have happened without the individual volunteers who make it all possible:
Folks like Rebecca E. in Santa Fe, New Mexico, who voted for the first time last year -- and collected more than 1,800 health care declarations this summer. Across the country, we've collected more than 1 million signatures in support of the President's core principles for health insurance reform.
Supporters like Nita L. in Longmont, Colorado, who organized hundreds of supporters in her town to come with her to talk with their member of Congress about how much this fight means to them. They were among the more than 70,000 folks who showed up at 350 town halls -- where supporters of reform at times outnumbered opponents by 10-1 -- and volunteers who made 65,000 trips to local congressional offices.
It's the people who made more than 100,000 calls to Congress to thank representatives fighting for change -- like Nancy T. in Hendersonville, North Carolina, who hosted a health care phone booth because, after her heart transplant, she knows that no American should have to choose between financial ruin and getting the care they need.
It's the 1,500 supporters who filled a local recreation center in Kansas City, Missouri, at a town hall meeting with Senator Claire McCaskill, and the 2,500 people who jammed the streets to hear from Senator Sherrod Brown in Ohio -- just two of the more than 4,000 events where folks gathered to show their support across all 50 states in August.All of these signatures, calls, office drop-bys, conversations, gatherings, and town hall meetings, all of the late nights, homemade signs, long hours in the sun, and tireless volunteers who make it happen -- totaling more than 1.5 million people who've taken part in this campaign for real reform -- it all adds up to one incredible movement for change.Check out the latest photos and stories from the field to see this movement in action:http://my.barackobama.com/page/m2/55c13d5d/6c7ff0e4/da43cb17/11885a76/3352857873/VEsF/As Congress returns to D.C. and we roll up our sleeves for the final push toward reform, we know the hardest work may yet lie ahead. The special interests and those in Congress who have pledged to oppose the President no matter what will stoop even lower in the weeks ahead.But you should never doubt that we face the coming challenges together, as part of something far larger than any of us alone -- and far stronger than the old broken politics that have preserved the status quo for long enough.Our strategy is working. We are going to win this thing. Americans will finally get the health insurance reform we all need.Thank you for making it possible,MitchMitch StewartDirectorOrganizing for America


Mshikaji bwana Musa akiwa majuu

Kanda bongo man in Reading