“We Support the troops” has been the mindless mantra since George Bush sent the first soldiers into Afghanistan more than four and half years ago. What a crock! This slogan is pasted on every other bumper strip in the country, displayed in windows all over town. And what does it mean? Not a damn thing! The United States is not at war! The United States Army is at war and for more than four years it has been led by the most incompetent, politically influenced leaders in our entire military history.
This is the most expensive war in history and what does the federal government do to support the troops? They cut taxes. The Bush administration puts out no-bid contracts to their close buddies and when the contractors fail to do the job, what does the government do? They pay them anyway, give them bonuses and offer them more contracts.
After four years of war none of the brilliant defense officials have figured an alternative to driving humvee reconnaissance vehicles down the “death” highways to be blown up by IEDs. The IEDs, the most primitive weapon since the invention of gunpowder have completely stymied our ordnance experts and they prove the classic definition of insanity, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
Our army men today are a breed apart from the traditional soldier. They don’t stand guard. They don’t do KP. They don’t clean their own quarters or wash their own clothes. The government hires civilans at $1,500 a week and up to perform these chores. And to induce these soldiers to reenlist they offer obscene bonuses ranging from $10,000 to $150,000. We don’t have soldiers, we have mercenaries. Despite all the money enticements, recruiting is running more than 16% behind the established goal. The army has lowered its standard for admission. An individual no longer has to be a high school graduate and he can even have a criminal record and be enlisted. One in ten American soldiers on active duty has a criminal record (hard time).
If we really wanted to support our troops. We would forget the flags and bumper stickiers and mount a concerted effort to force Congress to do its duty. Instead of giving in to the tyrant in the White House, the people should be storming the offices of the Senate and the House, demanding that they do their duty under the Constitution. We should be pounding on their doors, demonstrating in the streets, and inundating them with E-mails.
The Penatagon sends ill-trained and ill-equipped soldiers to Iraq and we accept that like dumb oxen. They put ridiculous “stop-loss” orders on soldiers who have completed their tours because the Defense Department can’t find and train enough replacements. We poke scorn at Cindy Sheehan, and call her crazy, when she asked the simple question, “For what noble cause was my son killed?” Instead we should be asking the same question. Loud and clear, over and over.
During the recent Democratic Presidential debate, someone asked the question, "Are these young soldiers dying in vain?" One or two of the pompous candidates opined, “No soldier who dies for his country, dies in vain." What a bunch of poppycock! Shades of the “Charge of the Light Brigade!” When soldiers die because their leaders can’t find their butts without a lesson plan those lives are indeed wasted, those men do die in vain.
Unless you are an immediate family member of a National Guard or Reserve soldier serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, you have not the faintest clue of the disruption, heartache and financial difficulties these families face daily. Loss of jobs, homes, family disruptions, even divorce. And trauma to the children that will last their entire lives.
This is how we "support the troops".
Monday, July 30, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Oath of Office
“I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. That will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that I take this obligation freely, without and mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter, so help me God.”
Every U. S. Senator take the above oath upon entering office. This his sole and solemn duty to the people of he United Stats. There is nothing else included. He has no requirement to follow the dictates of a political party and he has no duty, especially to express fealty to the President. His only sworn loyalty is to the law of the land, the Constitution of the United States.
When a senator, or any other elected official, supports a president who defies and thwarts the Constitution, that person has violated his oath of office. If his oath demands that he “support and defends the constitution, and he supports a chief executive who defies the constitution he has broken his oath. There is no higher crime than breaking a solemn oath.
The Neanderthal Republican senators, who persist in supporting the greatest scofflaw the history of the presidency, are no better than he and a distinct disservice to the country.When I was in the Army, each officer received an annual efficiency rating. When that time came for my officers, each was required to renew his oath of office (Identical to the one above) so he would realize where his duty and responsibilities lay.)
Perhaps some of our mossback senators should also be reminded to what they have sworn their allegiance, and the solemn oath they live under.
Every U. S. Senator take the above oath upon entering office. This his sole and solemn duty to the people of he United Stats. There is nothing else included. He has no requirement to follow the dictates of a political party and he has no duty, especially to express fealty to the President. His only sworn loyalty is to the law of the land, the Constitution of the United States.
When a senator, or any other elected official, supports a president who defies and thwarts the Constitution, that person has violated his oath of office. If his oath demands that he “support and defends the constitution, and he supports a chief executive who defies the constitution he has broken his oath. There is no higher crime than breaking a solemn oath.
The Neanderthal Republican senators, who persist in supporting the greatest scofflaw the history of the presidency, are no better than he and a distinct disservice to the country.When I was in the Army, each officer received an annual efficiency rating. When that time came for my officers, each was required to renew his oath of office (Identical to the one above) so he would realize where his duty and responsibilities lay.)
Perhaps some of our mossback senators should also be reminded to what they have sworn their allegiance, and the solemn oath they live under.
James Kelly, Rifleman - A Recollection
Jim Kelly was a rifleman. To be more precise, he was a sniper. As his Platoon Sergeant said, "Ol' Jim could hit a gnat in the ass at a thousand yards. Jim had been drafted out of the Cumberland Mountains of Eastern Kentucky. He said "he lived in a little holler, 'bout ten mahls fum Polk's Knob. Jim probably never would have succeeded as a peace-time soldier. Because he came from that Scotch-Irish heritage that has been derided as "Hill-Billy", where they had maintained many of the seventeenth century mores, Jim was grudgingly respectful of authority. But not overly awed by it. James Kelly knew his own worth as a man.
Because the only marketability of his culture was his ability to fire a rifle with unerring accuracy, Kelly was a natural from the very start to be initially, a first scout, and later the Company sniper. While the rest of the Company were enthused with their semi-automatic, eight-round Garand, or as it became known, "M-1" rifles, Jim Kelly took particular care of his "Star Gauge"*, caliber 30, bolt action Springfield, Model 1903 rifle. He treated it as diligently as if it was his first born child. With or without the telescope sight, Kelly was probably the best shot in the Division, if not the Army. As an enlisted man, I had been a fairly good rifle marksman. I was good enough to have been selected to go to the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio. Twice. Kelly made me look like Mr. Magoo.
Kelly was no more than an average soldier. He came from a culture where straight talk and a man's word are common currency. Where fools were not tolerated. When, as so often happens in large, expanding organizations (The U.S. Army increased in strength from 250,000 in 1938 to more than 10,000,000 by 1944.) it is not unusual for untrained or inept individuals to be placed in positions of authority. When Kelly would receive a particularly inane or stupid order, he would stop dead in his tracks, look directly at the non-com who uttered the instructions, and say, "Sarge, y'all cain't be serious, y'all joshin me, ain't ya?” Then he would sadly shake his head and mournfully go about doing as he was bidden. Not too many men can stand the glare of ridicule, implied or overt. Jim Kelly, intentionally or not, managed to avoid many stupid chores because of his attitude.
Except for his uncanny ability with a sniper rifle, Jim Kelly was not an outstanding soldier. He never went AWOL, was never drunk, disorderly or engaged in fights. He contracted no social disease or otherwise brought any discredit or dishonor to his unit. Even when it was possible, Kelly never applied for or went on pass. One of the Sergeants asked him, "How come?”
Kelly said, "Me and Betty Sue's engaged. Ahm savin' all ma money so we-all kin buy a piece of bottom-land, git married, start a farm and have some chillen what'll have more than Betty Sue and me growin' up had. When th' war is over, Polk's Nob'll be a diffrunt place."
One day, high in the hills of Northern Luzon, my Company was informed that General Krueger, Commanding General of the Sixth Army, was going to pay us a visit. There was little we could do to primp or prepare for his visit. My troops were in the mountains, all one-hundred and fifty men, spread out in key locations that stretched for more than a mile along the mountain crests. And we were a sorry looking lot to be seen by any visitor, especially a good officer like General Krueger. We had been in the field for more than two months, nearly all of it on the front line in contact with the enemy. We had not had a hot meal or a bath in all that time. Early in the afternoon, General Krueger arrived with three or four staff members and my battalion commander. After reporting to the General, Kreuger said to me, "Captain, I want to talk to a rifleman. I can talk to Officers anytime; I want to talk to someone who is actually fighting this war, to find out how the troops are handling things."
I should have known better. If the General had said "soldier" or "Infantryman" it would not have occurred to me. But the word "Rifleman" triggered but one name. I said, "General, all of our riflemen are up on the hills and I can't afford to pull any of them off the line in daylight for an interview.” Krueger replied, "Well, Captain, if the rifleman can't come to the General, I guess the General will have to come to the rifleman. Lead on!" The staff officers, in their starched and neatly pressed uniforms, looked uncomfortable, downright uneasy. My Battalion Commander looked at me venomously. None of these fine gentlemen had spent much time within earshot of the sound of guns. As we climbed the relatively steep slope of the mountainside, I noticed that the General and I were the only ones not sweating. I, because I was dehydrated, the General because he was probably in great shape. I didn't know if the sweat appearing on the other's uniforms was from uncommon exertion or from fright, and didn't give a damn.
As we neared the top of the hill, I said to the General, "Sir, from here on it's bellies and elbows". He motioned to the others to stay where they were (he got no argument from them), and we crawled the remaining few yards to the foxhole of PFC James Kelly. As usual, Kelly was massaging his beloved "Star Gauge" Springfield and looked only mildly inquisitive when I said to the General, "Sir, this is PFC Kelly."
General Krueger squinted into the hot sun at this disheveled soldier with his scraggly beard, his filthy uniform and his spotless rifle. He said, "Soldier, what's your job?"
Kelly replied, "Sir, ahm a rahflman, a sniper. When them Japs pops up theyer haids, ah Kill 'em. Then, looking the General straight in the eye, he said, "Genrul - What's yours?"
We could hear gasps from the group down the hill, but the General, with a small smile, said, "Kelly I command the Sixth Army."
Kelly looked the General over and said, "Genrul, I s'pect that'a a pritty import'nt job. Do y'all think y'could hep us get some hot food 'n some clean clothes? We's so dirty now, 'n so short of water, ah just scrapes the dirt off." More startled gasps from the hillside. Krueger turned to me and said, Captain, when was the last time your company has had a change of clothes and a hot meal?"
"Six weeks, Sir. I have ignored the order to shave every day. Water is so short up here, if we shaved every day, the men would all be dehydrated and wouldn't be worth much as soldiers. Besides complaining, I haven't been able to do much about clean clothes and good food."
Krueger turned back to Kelly. He said, "Thank you Private Kelly, you seem to be one of the few men in this Theater of Operations who has his priorities straight." To me, he said, "Let's get out of here Captain, before we draw more fire while we are ‘inspiring the troops’." As he left, I thought, "There is one senior officer who has his priorities straight.”
We scrambled down to the Company Command Post, a hole in the side of a hill, and General Krueger said, "Thank you Captain, for a very informative visit", and he strode off with his entourage. At 1700, the Battalion Commander personally delivered our first hot meal in six weeks. At 2000, dusk, we were relieved by a full Battalion, about 1500 men, and went back to the beach for a bath, clean clothes and a few days of relaxation. Our esteemed Battalion Commander tried to take credit for the sudden improvement in the quality of our lives, but every GI in the Company knew that PFC, James Kelly was the true hero.
The war dragged on. The same routine was repeated over and over -- long periods of mind-numbing boredom, brutally punctuated by short periods of horrifying terror. And Jim Kelly continued to be the finest rifleman in the Army. One night, during a particularly vicious Banzai attack, Kelly was bayoneted in the leg before he could dispose of this "Celestial Son of Heaven" and send him to his ancestors. Kelly told no one about his wound. He dusted some sulfa powder on it and wrapped the wound with the compress packet from his First Aid pouch. It was several days until his Platoon Sergeant noticed the rip in his trouser leg and the surrounding dried blood. When he questioned him about it, Kelly said "I didn't want to tell ennybody 'cause the sumbitch never should've got that close!" He was actually worried that his reputation as a rifleman might be impugned!
Eventually the war ended. We immediately sailed for Japan as part of the Occupation. Nothing had changed for Kelly. Every month, he sent most of his pay to a joint account back in Kentucky that he and Betty Sue had maintained since he was drafted. With the exuberance of young men finally relieved of the strain of combat, our troops were cavorting around town, having the time of their lives. "Wine, Women and Song" were the watchwords of the day, with particular emphasis on "Wine and Women." But not PFC James Kelly. He would not consort with the "enemy" or spend his money in any idle pursuits that would take away from his nest-egg.
We had been in Japan about one month when a distraught looking Kelly entered the Orderly Room. In a mournful voice, he said. "Top, I need a pass." We could have dated time with that request. Since Kelly joined the Company, we had had three different First Sergeants, and none of them had ever had a request from Jim Kelly for a pass, not even for a few hours. So the First Sergeant said, "What's up, Jim? Do you finally want to celebrate the end of the war? Kelly dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out a wrinkled sheet of lined note paper. With a resigned shrug of his shoulders, he handed the paper to the First Sergeant. The salutation alone was warning enough, "Dere Mister Kelley. I am writing this here note to tell you all thet our ingagemint is off. I bin luckee enuf to find a fine defense worker who wants to marry me, now. I rilly don't want to wait no longer and the money you give me during the war will help us a lot to get a start with married life. Thank you and good by, your ex-friend, Betty Sue."
The First Sergeant said, "I suppose you're going to go out and get drunk?"
Kelly repleid, "Your f---ing A, Sarge. Ahm about to get as drunk as a f---iing skonk!" Kelly got his pass and we thought no more about it. He was neither the first nor the last soldier to get a "Dear John" letter. Around midnight, we heard a commotion at the front gate. That of itself was not unusual with soldiers returning after a night on the town. It was usually the youngsters we had received as replacements before we came to Japan. They had never been in combat.
We paid little attention because the guards on the gate were all from the Company and, as there were no high crimes involved, we would not have to be writing reports to any higher authority.
As the First Sergeant said, "Who won the goddam war anyway? A short time later we heard a rumbling noise as if some one was rolling something down the cobble-stoned street. There was a short pause, sounds of someone grunting and groaning and suddenly, the door to the Company Orderly Room flew open. There stood James Kelly, "dronk as a skonk', and laying at his feet was a keg of beer.
The First Sergeant tried to ease him out of the Orderly Room and back to his bunk. Kelly would have none of that nonsense. He slurred that he wanted his 'friends, the Company Commander and the First Sergeant, to have a beer with him. The First Sergeant told him that was not a very good idea. Kelly insisted. The First Sergeant said it wouldn't work. The beer was all roiled up from being rolled a couple of hundred feet down a cobblestone street, it wasn't cold and besides, we didn't have a bung starter. Before anyone could react, Kelly lurched across the room and lifted the fire-axe from its rack. He drove the point of the fire-axe into the bung. His aim was as good with a fire-axe as it was with a rifle. He hit the bung dead center. Beer spewed everywhere, all over Kelly, the First Sergeant, the Orderly Room and, try as I might, all over me. Kelly just stood there with a drunken, sloppy grin on his face and said, "Enny-buddy got a canteen cup?
We had been through a lot together, Kelly and the members of the Company who had been together since Camp Forrest days. The war was over. We were all going home. This was no time to stand on protocol. Somebody produced the canteen cups and, with a few more of the old-timers who popped in when they heard the commotion, we all had a beer with: Private First Class James Kelly, Rifleman.
*"Star Gauge" refers to the policy of checking the gauge of every thousandth rifle as it left the assembly line. After corrections were made to insure the accuracy of the rifling, the next rifle milled was marked with a 'Star", and much prized by marksmen.
George M. Lindsay
Formerly, Commanding Officer
Co. "L" 136th Infantry
PFC James Kelly's unit in WW II
Because the only marketability of his culture was his ability to fire a rifle with unerring accuracy, Kelly was a natural from the very start to be initially, a first scout, and later the Company sniper. While the rest of the Company were enthused with their semi-automatic, eight-round Garand, or as it became known, "M-1" rifles, Jim Kelly took particular care of his "Star Gauge"*, caliber 30, bolt action Springfield, Model 1903 rifle. He treated it as diligently as if it was his first born child. With or without the telescope sight, Kelly was probably the best shot in the Division, if not the Army. As an enlisted man, I had been a fairly good rifle marksman. I was good enough to have been selected to go to the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio. Twice. Kelly made me look like Mr. Magoo.
Kelly was no more than an average soldier. He came from a culture where straight talk and a man's word are common currency. Where fools were not tolerated. When, as so often happens in large, expanding organizations (The U.S. Army increased in strength from 250,000 in 1938 to more than 10,000,000 by 1944.) it is not unusual for untrained or inept individuals to be placed in positions of authority. When Kelly would receive a particularly inane or stupid order, he would stop dead in his tracks, look directly at the non-com who uttered the instructions, and say, "Sarge, y'all cain't be serious, y'all joshin me, ain't ya?” Then he would sadly shake his head and mournfully go about doing as he was bidden. Not too many men can stand the glare of ridicule, implied or overt. Jim Kelly, intentionally or not, managed to avoid many stupid chores because of his attitude.
Except for his uncanny ability with a sniper rifle, Jim Kelly was not an outstanding soldier. He never went AWOL, was never drunk, disorderly or engaged in fights. He contracted no social disease or otherwise brought any discredit or dishonor to his unit. Even when it was possible, Kelly never applied for or went on pass. One of the Sergeants asked him, "How come?”
Kelly said, "Me and Betty Sue's engaged. Ahm savin' all ma money so we-all kin buy a piece of bottom-land, git married, start a farm and have some chillen what'll have more than Betty Sue and me growin' up had. When th' war is over, Polk's Nob'll be a diffrunt place."
One day, high in the hills of Northern Luzon, my Company was informed that General Krueger, Commanding General of the Sixth Army, was going to pay us a visit. There was little we could do to primp or prepare for his visit. My troops were in the mountains, all one-hundred and fifty men, spread out in key locations that stretched for more than a mile along the mountain crests. And we were a sorry looking lot to be seen by any visitor, especially a good officer like General Krueger. We had been in the field for more than two months, nearly all of it on the front line in contact with the enemy. We had not had a hot meal or a bath in all that time. Early in the afternoon, General Krueger arrived with three or four staff members and my battalion commander. After reporting to the General, Kreuger said to me, "Captain, I want to talk to a rifleman. I can talk to Officers anytime; I want to talk to someone who is actually fighting this war, to find out how the troops are handling things."
I should have known better. If the General had said "soldier" or "Infantryman" it would not have occurred to me. But the word "Rifleman" triggered but one name. I said, "General, all of our riflemen are up on the hills and I can't afford to pull any of them off the line in daylight for an interview.” Krueger replied, "Well, Captain, if the rifleman can't come to the General, I guess the General will have to come to the rifleman. Lead on!" The staff officers, in their starched and neatly pressed uniforms, looked uncomfortable, downright uneasy. My Battalion Commander looked at me venomously. None of these fine gentlemen had spent much time within earshot of the sound of guns. As we climbed the relatively steep slope of the mountainside, I noticed that the General and I were the only ones not sweating. I, because I was dehydrated, the General because he was probably in great shape. I didn't know if the sweat appearing on the other's uniforms was from uncommon exertion or from fright, and didn't give a damn.
As we neared the top of the hill, I said to the General, "Sir, from here on it's bellies and elbows". He motioned to the others to stay where they were (he got no argument from them), and we crawled the remaining few yards to the foxhole of PFC James Kelly. As usual, Kelly was massaging his beloved "Star Gauge" Springfield and looked only mildly inquisitive when I said to the General, "Sir, this is PFC Kelly."
General Krueger squinted into the hot sun at this disheveled soldier with his scraggly beard, his filthy uniform and his spotless rifle. He said, "Soldier, what's your job?"
Kelly replied, "Sir, ahm a rahflman, a sniper. When them Japs pops up theyer haids, ah Kill 'em. Then, looking the General straight in the eye, he said, "Genrul - What's yours?"
We could hear gasps from the group down the hill, but the General, with a small smile, said, "Kelly I command the Sixth Army."
Kelly looked the General over and said, "Genrul, I s'pect that'a a pritty import'nt job. Do y'all think y'could hep us get some hot food 'n some clean clothes? We's so dirty now, 'n so short of water, ah just scrapes the dirt off." More startled gasps from the hillside. Krueger turned to me and said, Captain, when was the last time your company has had a change of clothes and a hot meal?"
"Six weeks, Sir. I have ignored the order to shave every day. Water is so short up here, if we shaved every day, the men would all be dehydrated and wouldn't be worth much as soldiers. Besides complaining, I haven't been able to do much about clean clothes and good food."
Krueger turned back to Kelly. He said, "Thank you Private Kelly, you seem to be one of the few men in this Theater of Operations who has his priorities straight." To me, he said, "Let's get out of here Captain, before we draw more fire while we are ‘inspiring the troops’." As he left, I thought, "There is one senior officer who has his priorities straight.”
We scrambled down to the Company Command Post, a hole in the side of a hill, and General Krueger said, "Thank you Captain, for a very informative visit", and he strode off with his entourage. At 1700, the Battalion Commander personally delivered our first hot meal in six weeks. At 2000, dusk, we were relieved by a full Battalion, about 1500 men, and went back to the beach for a bath, clean clothes and a few days of relaxation. Our esteemed Battalion Commander tried to take credit for the sudden improvement in the quality of our lives, but every GI in the Company knew that PFC, James Kelly was the true hero.
The war dragged on. The same routine was repeated over and over -- long periods of mind-numbing boredom, brutally punctuated by short periods of horrifying terror. And Jim Kelly continued to be the finest rifleman in the Army. One night, during a particularly vicious Banzai attack, Kelly was bayoneted in the leg before he could dispose of this "Celestial Son of Heaven" and send him to his ancestors. Kelly told no one about his wound. He dusted some sulfa powder on it and wrapped the wound with the compress packet from his First Aid pouch. It was several days until his Platoon Sergeant noticed the rip in his trouser leg and the surrounding dried blood. When he questioned him about it, Kelly said "I didn't want to tell ennybody 'cause the sumbitch never should've got that close!" He was actually worried that his reputation as a rifleman might be impugned!
Eventually the war ended. We immediately sailed for Japan as part of the Occupation. Nothing had changed for Kelly. Every month, he sent most of his pay to a joint account back in Kentucky that he and Betty Sue had maintained since he was drafted. With the exuberance of young men finally relieved of the strain of combat, our troops were cavorting around town, having the time of their lives. "Wine, Women and Song" were the watchwords of the day, with particular emphasis on "Wine and Women." But not PFC James Kelly. He would not consort with the "enemy" or spend his money in any idle pursuits that would take away from his nest-egg.
We had been in Japan about one month when a distraught looking Kelly entered the Orderly Room. In a mournful voice, he said. "Top, I need a pass." We could have dated time with that request. Since Kelly joined the Company, we had had three different First Sergeants, and none of them had ever had a request from Jim Kelly for a pass, not even for a few hours. So the First Sergeant said, "What's up, Jim? Do you finally want to celebrate the end of the war? Kelly dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out a wrinkled sheet of lined note paper. With a resigned shrug of his shoulders, he handed the paper to the First Sergeant. The salutation alone was warning enough, "Dere Mister Kelley. I am writing this here note to tell you all thet our ingagemint is off. I bin luckee enuf to find a fine defense worker who wants to marry me, now. I rilly don't want to wait no longer and the money you give me during the war will help us a lot to get a start with married life. Thank you and good by, your ex-friend, Betty Sue."
The First Sergeant said, "I suppose you're going to go out and get drunk?"
Kelly repleid, "Your f---ing A, Sarge. Ahm about to get as drunk as a f---iing skonk!" Kelly got his pass and we thought no more about it. He was neither the first nor the last soldier to get a "Dear John" letter. Around midnight, we heard a commotion at the front gate. That of itself was not unusual with soldiers returning after a night on the town. It was usually the youngsters we had received as replacements before we came to Japan. They had never been in combat.
We paid little attention because the guards on the gate were all from the Company and, as there were no high crimes involved, we would not have to be writing reports to any higher authority.
As the First Sergeant said, "Who won the goddam war anyway? A short time later we heard a rumbling noise as if some one was rolling something down the cobble-stoned street. There was a short pause, sounds of someone grunting and groaning and suddenly, the door to the Company Orderly Room flew open. There stood James Kelly, "dronk as a skonk', and laying at his feet was a keg of beer.
The First Sergeant tried to ease him out of the Orderly Room and back to his bunk. Kelly would have none of that nonsense. He slurred that he wanted his 'friends, the Company Commander and the First Sergeant, to have a beer with him. The First Sergeant told him that was not a very good idea. Kelly insisted. The First Sergeant said it wouldn't work. The beer was all roiled up from being rolled a couple of hundred feet down a cobblestone street, it wasn't cold and besides, we didn't have a bung starter. Before anyone could react, Kelly lurched across the room and lifted the fire-axe from its rack. He drove the point of the fire-axe into the bung. His aim was as good with a fire-axe as it was with a rifle. He hit the bung dead center. Beer spewed everywhere, all over Kelly, the First Sergeant, the Orderly Room and, try as I might, all over me. Kelly just stood there with a drunken, sloppy grin on his face and said, "Enny-buddy got a canteen cup?
We had been through a lot together, Kelly and the members of the Company who had been together since Camp Forrest days. The war was over. We were all going home. This was no time to stand on protocol. Somebody produced the canteen cups and, with a few more of the old-timers who popped in when they heard the commotion, we all had a beer with: Private First Class James Kelly, Rifleman.
*"Star Gauge" refers to the policy of checking the gauge of every thousandth rifle as it left the assembly line. After corrections were made to insure the accuracy of the rifling, the next rifle milled was marked with a 'Star", and much prized by marksmen.
George M. Lindsay
Formerly, Commanding Officer
Co. "L" 136th Infantry
PFC James Kelly's unit in WW II
Monday, July 23, 2007
Talk Show Hosts
Sadly, most Americans get their information of current events and political happenings from radio and television talk show hosts - entertainers, not journalists by any stretch of the imagination. The stations from which they broadcast are owned by multi-national corporations, which is a factor in the content of their broadcasts, but it’s not the only one.
The overwhelming majority of talk show hosts are conservatives - from slightly right wing to “frothing at the mouth” fanatics. There is practically no progressive representation on the airwaves. The hosts tend to broad brush everything - all Democrats are unpatriotic wimps who hate George Bush and the United States in that order, anyone who wants to bring our troops home from Iraq is bordering on treason. They bash anyone who's thinking is the least bit progressive, and ignore the sorry history of the past six years of the Bush administration. We will find no talk show host mentioning the disgusting trail of lies and fabrications from Bush, Cheney, Rice, et al. They never discuss the manufactured case for going to war with Iraq presented by Colin Powell before the U.N., or discuss the fact that the administration has shut down any scientific inquiry of 9/11.
None of these administration mouthpieces discuss the fact that we had Osama Bin Laden in our grasp at Bora Bora and turned him over to his own supporters to guard. They never comment on our association with Karzai of Afghanistan and Mushsarraf of Pakistan who are giving aid and comfort to the Taliban while posing as our allies, or that the Taliban were once our allies. They whine that the mainstream media (but they ARE the mainstream media!) never gives credit to the good work our troops are doing in rebuilding the infrastructure, electric grids, schools and hospitals. They never mention that, as fast as we rebuild, the militants loot or destroy the sites. No mention is made of the devil’s contract with the multinational oil companies who get seventy percent of the oil produced - and Iraq gets only thirty percent of it’s own oil. Nor the fact that oil production is still below the level it maintained when Sadaam was in power.
Unless we tune in to BBC, it is impossible to get straight, unbiased news from television or radio. The news rendered by the smug, self promoting CNN is at times as biased as some of the right wing talk show nuts. The recent tête-à-tête between CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Michael Moore is a case in point. Gupta made the statement that Moore had “fudged” some facts. After an hour of obfuscating argument, Gupta could not cite one fact that Moore had fudged. But the claim was successfully emitted through the airwaves, to the pleasure of the pharmaceutical sponsors.
That old faker, Paul Harvey, with his patent medicine news is almost as bad. He never misses a chance to praise the wisdom and courage of the President and deride the Democrats as “weaklings” if they don’t want more and more young men killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The daily crimes of the Bush administration are never mentioned.
H. L. Mencken said, "No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public." The popularity of Michael Savage's xenophobic, homophobic hate speech, Sean Hannity's schoolyard bullying, or Rush Limbaugh's incendiary yarns, half-truths, and personal attacks, supports Menken's view.
These fakers spout their lies and distortions. But worse than that, far worse is fact that millions of Americans listen to and believe the detritus. And consumers of these programs never hear a contrary view, and are too inert, too lazy, to check the accuracy of this spurious “news” then, God help us, this is the “information” they carry into the voting booth. And we wonder why we have such a sorry group of elected officials.
The overwhelming majority of talk show hosts are conservatives - from slightly right wing to “frothing at the mouth” fanatics. There is practically no progressive representation on the airwaves. The hosts tend to broad brush everything - all Democrats are unpatriotic wimps who hate George Bush and the United States in that order, anyone who wants to bring our troops home from Iraq is bordering on treason. They bash anyone who's thinking is the least bit progressive, and ignore the sorry history of the past six years of the Bush administration. We will find no talk show host mentioning the disgusting trail of lies and fabrications from Bush, Cheney, Rice, et al. They never discuss the manufactured case for going to war with Iraq presented by Colin Powell before the U.N., or discuss the fact that the administration has shut down any scientific inquiry of 9/11.
None of these administration mouthpieces discuss the fact that we had Osama Bin Laden in our grasp at Bora Bora and turned him over to his own supporters to guard. They never comment on our association with Karzai of Afghanistan and Mushsarraf of Pakistan who are giving aid and comfort to the Taliban while posing as our allies, or that the Taliban were once our allies. They whine that the mainstream media (but they ARE the mainstream media!) never gives credit to the good work our troops are doing in rebuilding the infrastructure, electric grids, schools and hospitals. They never mention that, as fast as we rebuild, the militants loot or destroy the sites. No mention is made of the devil’s contract with the multinational oil companies who get seventy percent of the oil produced - and Iraq gets only thirty percent of it’s own oil. Nor the fact that oil production is still below the level it maintained when Sadaam was in power.
Unless we tune in to BBC, it is impossible to get straight, unbiased news from television or radio. The news rendered by the smug, self promoting CNN is at times as biased as some of the right wing talk show nuts. The recent tête-à-tête between CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Michael Moore is a case in point. Gupta made the statement that Moore had “fudged” some facts. After an hour of obfuscating argument, Gupta could not cite one fact that Moore had fudged. But the claim was successfully emitted through the airwaves, to the pleasure of the pharmaceutical sponsors.
That old faker, Paul Harvey, with his patent medicine news is almost as bad. He never misses a chance to praise the wisdom and courage of the President and deride the Democrats as “weaklings” if they don’t want more and more young men killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The daily crimes of the Bush administration are never mentioned.
H. L. Mencken said, "No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public." The popularity of Michael Savage's xenophobic, homophobic hate speech, Sean Hannity's schoolyard bullying, or Rush Limbaugh's incendiary yarns, half-truths, and personal attacks, supports Menken's view.
These fakers spout their lies and distortions. But worse than that, far worse is fact that millions of Americans listen to and believe the detritus. And consumers of these programs never hear a contrary view, and are too inert, too lazy, to check the accuracy of this spurious “news” then, God help us, this is the “information” they carry into the voting booth. And we wonder why we have such a sorry group of elected officials.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
The “All Volunteer” Army
Since 1974, for thirty-three years we have had the highly touted, “All Volunteer Army”. Perhaps it is time to take a look at it history and performance. During the First Gulf War the Army performed superbly. The Joint Chiefs of Staff, all members with combat experience, planned for an efficient assault and conclusion of the war. In the field, the Army was led by competent Generals who fought an efficient war with a minimum of American combat and enemy civilian casualties. The “All Volunteer Army” looked like the force of the future.
Then came the Iraq war. This war was planned in entirety by PNAC, individual zealot ideologues without one day of combat service to their credit. These individuals had conceived a new “Shock and Awe” warfare that coupled state-of-the-art technology, weapons that would be lighter and more flexible. There was one flaw. Their plans had no exit strategy, no “Plan B”. After the initial successful lightning strike our forces were stymied. In their rush to reach Bagdad and depose Saddam Hussein, the bypassed every Iraqi ammunition and weapons depot and left them open for marauders to loot.
In their great wisdom, the PNAC leasers appointed Paul Bremer, a career diplomat with no military experience to be in charge. One of his first moves was to disband both the national army and the national police force thus creating about a million unemployed, armed, angry men. Looters stripped irreplaceable objects of antiquity from the museums, most of them never to be recovered, or destroyed beyond hope of restoration. What had been a relatively tight-knit country under the iron hand of Hussein, more modern than most of its Arab neighbors, quickly devolved into a series of tribal forces with centuries old scores to settle. No central government, armed brigands roaming the countryside and no definable military targets for our “professional army” to engage. To further muddle the situation, the people in charge at Bremer’s headquarters had been selected solely on their allegiance to PNAC and the Republican Party. No foreign Affairs or diplomatic experience was deemed important.
As the situation became more muddled, with no clear-cut objectives, terrorists flooded into Iraq to exploit the situation. There were no terrorist organizations in Iraq when the war began, but there are plenty now. The “All Volunteer” army was now faced with a new challenge. Despite the recommendations of combat-wise generals, the Army had decided to go “light”, and they soon found themselves both outnumbered and out-fought. Enter a new element, the not so “All Volunteer” National Guard.
No matter what anyone claims, National Guardsmen are not professional soldiers nor are they really “All Volunteer”. Their function is primarily home defense. That would be somewhat difficult to accomplish when most of their personnel and equipment are in Iraq or Afghanistan. Witness the debacle after Hurricane Katrina when the Louisiana National Guard could not perform its sworn duty because of the absence of men and equipment. As the strain on the Army continues, with some soldiers performing as many as four of more tours in Iraq, the Army is being strained to the breaking point.
The Defense Department has just announced a new policy. Air Force and Naval personnel are now being assigned to ground combat missions in Iraq. They have been trained for this duty. They are getting “refresher” courses of one or two weeks, but that doesn’t even qualify them for their new MOS’s (Military Occupational Specialty).
What began as a well trained all volunteer army has now devolved into a messy combination of individuals performing tasks for which they have not been trained in a combat situation with no defined objective.
The “All Professional Army” is no more. What we have now is a “coalition of the unwilling and untrained”. What was once a sensible and workable idea for the defense of a nation has been destroyed by a group of dilettante zealots to fit their preconceived ideas. The next time, it might be a good idea to let trained soldiers organize the army.
Our Founding Fathers were adamantly against a standing army. Granted, much has changed during the past 230 years. Our two oceans no longer provide protection in an age of weapons that can strike across the globe in a matter of minutes, but that doesn't mean that the United States needs 700 to 1000 permanent military posts around the globe. Despite the PNAC, we are not the world’s policeman. The foreign policy of the Bush administration, since its inception, has managed to alienate every other country on the globe except Great Britain, and with the departure of Tony Blair, they may be next. We have not always been admired, but in the past, the United States was almost universally respected, even during the cold war with the Soviet Union. Now we are viewed, universally, with contempt.
Then came the Iraq war. This war was planned in entirety by PNAC, individual zealot ideologues without one day of combat service to their credit. These individuals had conceived a new “Shock and Awe” warfare that coupled state-of-the-art technology, weapons that would be lighter and more flexible. There was one flaw. Their plans had no exit strategy, no “Plan B”. After the initial successful lightning strike our forces were stymied. In their rush to reach Bagdad and depose Saddam Hussein, the bypassed every Iraqi ammunition and weapons depot and left them open for marauders to loot.
In their great wisdom, the PNAC leasers appointed Paul Bremer, a career diplomat with no military experience to be in charge. One of his first moves was to disband both the national army and the national police force thus creating about a million unemployed, armed, angry men. Looters stripped irreplaceable objects of antiquity from the museums, most of them never to be recovered, or destroyed beyond hope of restoration. What had been a relatively tight-knit country under the iron hand of Hussein, more modern than most of its Arab neighbors, quickly devolved into a series of tribal forces with centuries old scores to settle. No central government, armed brigands roaming the countryside and no definable military targets for our “professional army” to engage. To further muddle the situation, the people in charge at Bremer’s headquarters had been selected solely on their allegiance to PNAC and the Republican Party. No foreign Affairs or diplomatic experience was deemed important.
As the situation became more muddled, with no clear-cut objectives, terrorists flooded into Iraq to exploit the situation. There were no terrorist organizations in Iraq when the war began, but there are plenty now. The “All Volunteer” army was now faced with a new challenge. Despite the recommendations of combat-wise generals, the Army had decided to go “light”, and they soon found themselves both outnumbered and out-fought. Enter a new element, the not so “All Volunteer” National Guard.
No matter what anyone claims, National Guardsmen are not professional soldiers nor are they really “All Volunteer”. Their function is primarily home defense. That would be somewhat difficult to accomplish when most of their personnel and equipment are in Iraq or Afghanistan. Witness the debacle after Hurricane Katrina when the Louisiana National Guard could not perform its sworn duty because of the absence of men and equipment. As the strain on the Army continues, with some soldiers performing as many as four of more tours in Iraq, the Army is being strained to the breaking point.
The Defense Department has just announced a new policy. Air Force and Naval personnel are now being assigned to ground combat missions in Iraq. They have been trained for this duty. They are getting “refresher” courses of one or two weeks, but that doesn’t even qualify them for their new MOS’s (Military Occupational Specialty).
What began as a well trained all volunteer army has now devolved into a messy combination of individuals performing tasks for which they have not been trained in a combat situation with no defined objective.
The “All Professional Army” is no more. What we have now is a “coalition of the unwilling and untrained”. What was once a sensible and workable idea for the defense of a nation has been destroyed by a group of dilettante zealots to fit their preconceived ideas. The next time, it might be a good idea to let trained soldiers organize the army.
Our Founding Fathers were adamantly against a standing army. Granted, much has changed during the past 230 years. Our two oceans no longer provide protection in an age of weapons that can strike across the globe in a matter of minutes, but that doesn't mean that the United States needs 700 to 1000 permanent military posts around the globe. Despite the PNAC, we are not the world’s policeman. The foreign policy of the Bush administration, since its inception, has managed to alienate every other country on the globe except Great Britain, and with the departure of Tony Blair, they may be next. We have not always been admired, but in the past, the United States was almost universally respected, even during the cold war with the Soviet Union. Now we are viewed, universally, with contempt.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Unconventional Warfare
The United States Army is superbly equipped, trained, and organized to fight a conventional land war, anywhere. But based on its experience since 2003 in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is neither, equipped, trained, nor organized to engage in the type of unconventional warfare it has been faced with in the present conflict.
This is not a new problem. Caesar was surprised when Hannibal took the elephants over the Alps. This is the essence of unconventional warfare: keep the enemy off balance at all times. Conventional forces, particularly line commanders, have always had difficulty adapting to unorthodox concepts. From Roger’s Rangers to Carlson’s Raiders commanders were very reluctant to allow the “sneaky pete” activities required by covert operations.
In the recent debacle in Lebanon, when Israelis tried to take on Hezbollah with armor and airpower they got a bloody nose for their trouble. This was all the more disturbing because the Israeli army has some of the best and most experienced unconventional warfare units extant.
U.S. Rangers and Special Forces units are regularly used as Infantry line outfits. They are wasted in being so employed. In the first place, they have none of the support units normally assigned to Infantry, especially Artillery and heavy weapons. And the Army is wasting valuable talent by employing these specialized warriors as riflemen. At the beginning of the war, some hope was generated when it was announced that all Special Forces would be under a single umbrella organization. Whatever happened to that idea, no one knows.
To effectively organize and use unconventional forces, the Army should search for a leader like “Wild Bill Donovan”. The officers from the Command and General Staff Colleges and the War College are so steeped in the “correct solutions” they are incapable of using any ingenuity. It will take an innovator (some might say wildcat) willing to break moss-backed tradition to effectively counter the terrorists in unconventional warfare.
This is not a new problem. Caesar was surprised when Hannibal took the elephants over the Alps. This is the essence of unconventional warfare: keep the enemy off balance at all times. Conventional forces, particularly line commanders, have always had difficulty adapting to unorthodox concepts. From Roger’s Rangers to Carlson’s Raiders commanders were very reluctant to allow the “sneaky pete” activities required by covert operations.
In the recent debacle in Lebanon, when Israelis tried to take on Hezbollah with armor and airpower they got a bloody nose for their trouble. This was all the more disturbing because the Israeli army has some of the best and most experienced unconventional warfare units extant.
U.S. Rangers and Special Forces units are regularly used as Infantry line outfits. They are wasted in being so employed. In the first place, they have none of the support units normally assigned to Infantry, especially Artillery and heavy weapons. And the Army is wasting valuable talent by employing these specialized warriors as riflemen. At the beginning of the war, some hope was generated when it was announced that all Special Forces would be under a single umbrella organization. Whatever happened to that idea, no one knows.
To effectively organize and use unconventional forces, the Army should search for a leader like “Wild Bill Donovan”. The officers from the Command and General Staff Colleges and the War College are so steeped in the “correct solutions” they are incapable of using any ingenuity. It will take an innovator (some might say wildcat) willing to break moss-backed tradition to effectively counter the terrorists in unconventional warfare.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Iraq Does Not Exist
As a nation, Iraq doesn’t exist. No one identifies himself as an Iraqi. They are Sunnis, Shiites, Kurds or whatever tribal name they identify with. At its height of power, Great Britain sliced up the Middle East from the ancient countries to suit their power needs with little regard to the ethnic populations involved. Strong rulers kept Iraq together through fear, assassinations and mass imprisonment. A minority ethnic group, the Sunnis, kept the Shiites and Kurds in check by force. When the Bush administration decided, as part of the Plan For a New American Century, to bring “Democracy’ to Iraq, they did so while completely ignoring the long political and ethnic history of the area. Or, if they did considered the cultural situation, they did nothing to deal with it. When one Bush Cabinet member mentioned a potential problem between Shiites and Sunnis, Bush is reported to have replied, “I thought they were all Muslims.”
Under Sadaam Hussein, although the vast majority of Iraq citizens were Muslims, Iraq was not an Islamic state. Hussein wanted no part of the power of the medieval Imams and Ayatollahs. Most citizens were Muslims and generally observed Muslim customs and traditions. In rural Iraq more of the old customs and traditions, often tribal rather than Islamic, were still observed, but in the urban areas many of the old customs were ignored - liquor was available, women were educated, and were freer with regard to dress and conduct.
Despite the large number of Iraqi-American citizens in the United States, it is obvious that the movers and shakers who planned this war did not deem it important enough to confer with them on how to win the cooperation of the Iraqi people after the fall of Hussein. In their hubris, they apparently assumed that the natives would all be so grateful that they would immediately adopt American customs. Cheney maintained that the Iraqis would “greet us with flowers”, as liberators, and Wolfowitz opined that other countries would be eager to join us after Hussein fell.
In their folly, the neo-cons enlisted the aid of Iraqi "Refugees" most of whom had been living outside of Iraq since Sadaam came to power, and all of whom had a personal axe to grind. The Chalabi experience is a case in point.
The neo-cons who planned (or didn’t plan) and are (mis)managing the Iraqi war are all ideologues. The plan for the war was originally hatched at the Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey. Of all the U.S. institutions, none is more conservative than this school. (Consider, for example, that the black scarf worn by American sailors is in mourning for Admiral Nelson, the BRITISH naval hero.)
Ideologues consider themselves a superior lot. Proud to be "thinkers", they have no respect whatever for the mere “doers”, and consider senior military officers with years of experience “the hewers of wood and the carriers of water.” Witness, for example, the case of General Eric Shinseki. There has probably never been a more qualified Army Chief of Staff. A graduate of the Military Academy, he held command positions at every level from platoon leader to Chief of Staff of the Army. Two tours in Vietnam, two Purple Heart medals, three Bronze Stars – he is a soldier thoroughly acquainted with ground combat. When asked his opinion prior to our invasion of Iraq, he replied, “We will need a minimum of 300,000 troops.” General Shinseki was summarily asked to retire.
The great tragedy of this war is that ideologues - thesebrainy people with grandiloquent ideas and no practical experience -have been allowed to conduct the war effort. Now that the war has reduced itself to chaos, most of the ideologues have disappeared. Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, the foremost neo-con hawks, are gone. There never was a “Plan B”, so the men and women of the U.S. Army are now left to flounder in this chaotic mess from which there is no feasible exit.
The sorriest part of this sad tale is we have not learned a thing. After four years of war, Humvee reconnaissance vehicles, tricked out as combat vehicles, still travel the “IED” highway to be blown to bits every day while state-of-art Stryker vehicles are stored in Kuwait.
Here’s the situation in a snapshot : A National Guard Sergeant is now suing the Army to protest an assignment for a fifth tour in Iraq. This war has now lasted longer than WW II. Then we conquered Europe and Asia - and this Army can’t get out of Bagdad.
Under Sadaam Hussein, although the vast majority of Iraq citizens were Muslims, Iraq was not an Islamic state. Hussein wanted no part of the power of the medieval Imams and Ayatollahs. Most citizens were Muslims and generally observed Muslim customs and traditions. In rural Iraq more of the old customs and traditions, often tribal rather than Islamic, were still observed, but in the urban areas many of the old customs were ignored - liquor was available, women were educated, and were freer with regard to dress and conduct.
Despite the large number of Iraqi-American citizens in the United States, it is obvious that the movers and shakers who planned this war did not deem it important enough to confer with them on how to win the cooperation of the Iraqi people after the fall of Hussein. In their hubris, they apparently assumed that the natives would all be so grateful that they would immediately adopt American customs. Cheney maintained that the Iraqis would “greet us with flowers”, as liberators, and Wolfowitz opined that other countries would be eager to join us after Hussein fell.
In their folly, the neo-cons enlisted the aid of Iraqi "Refugees" most of whom had been living outside of Iraq since Sadaam came to power, and all of whom had a personal axe to grind. The Chalabi experience is a case in point.
The neo-cons who planned (or didn’t plan) and are (mis)managing the Iraqi war are all ideologues. The plan for the war was originally hatched at the Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey. Of all the U.S. institutions, none is more conservative than this school. (Consider, for example, that the black scarf worn by American sailors is in mourning for Admiral Nelson, the BRITISH naval hero.)
Ideologues consider themselves a superior lot. Proud to be "thinkers", they have no respect whatever for the mere “doers”, and consider senior military officers with years of experience “the hewers of wood and the carriers of water.” Witness, for example, the case of General Eric Shinseki. There has probably never been a more qualified Army Chief of Staff. A graduate of the Military Academy, he held command positions at every level from platoon leader to Chief of Staff of the Army. Two tours in Vietnam, two Purple Heart medals, three Bronze Stars – he is a soldier thoroughly acquainted with ground combat. When asked his opinion prior to our invasion of Iraq, he replied, “We will need a minimum of 300,000 troops.” General Shinseki was summarily asked to retire.
The great tragedy of this war is that ideologues - thesebrainy people with grandiloquent ideas and no practical experience -have been allowed to conduct the war effort. Now that the war has reduced itself to chaos, most of the ideologues have disappeared. Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz, the foremost neo-con hawks, are gone. There never was a “Plan B”, so the men and women of the U.S. Army are now left to flounder in this chaotic mess from which there is no feasible exit.
The sorriest part of this sad tale is we have not learned a thing. After four years of war, Humvee reconnaissance vehicles, tricked out as combat vehicles, still travel the “IED” highway to be blown to bits every day while state-of-art Stryker vehicles are stored in Kuwait.
Here’s the situation in a snapshot : A National Guard Sergeant is now suing the Army to protest an assignment for a fifth tour in Iraq. This war has now lasted longer than WW II. Then we conquered Europe and Asia - and this Army can’t get out of Bagdad.
Monday, July 16, 2007
“Let the Generals Decide”
The current mantra of the Bush administration is, “Politicians should not be allowed to micro-manage the war. The Generals should decide.” What a revealing declaration.
Since the very start of the conflict, no, even before, the neo-con idealogues in the administration have directed this war. Not a single person of this group has served a day in combat. By the administration’s reasoning, politicians, several of whom have had distinguished military careers, should have no say, but bureaucrats who have been elected to no office can make policy and control the conduct of the war.
Bush says, “Let the Generals decide.” Yet when General Shinsecki, the highly competent Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, mildly suggested we would need a minimum of 300,000 troops to invade Iraq, he was summarily fired. When General Zinni, a Marine commander, complained about Bremer’s interference in the attack on Fallujah, he was history. The generals who disagree with the bureaucrats get fired. The generals who become the lapdogs of the administration become the leaders of the war. It defies imagination how General Peter Pace was allowed to serve his full term as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. The one General who was patently unfit to conduct the war was left in control for two full years.
The new hero is General David Petreaus. He no doubt is a good officer and a fine leader but he is no better than the rest of the politically damaged officers who have forgotten that the oath they took upon entering the military service was to the Constitution of the United States, and not any political leader. While General Petraeus is leading his men in a circular firing squad, Al-Quaida becomes stronger and bolder and even the Green Zone is no longer safe. He sends cheerful reports of progress while at the same time the parliament of Iraq leaves for a two month vacation and the Prime Minister announces that the coalition forces can leave at any time.
General Petraeus faces an impossible situation. He is paying a dear price for the fact that we never had enough boots on the ground, and the “surge” will have a very limited effect. As the fatigue sets in on our forces in Iraq, General Petraeus may be the one left holding the bag for the breakdown of the U.S. Army. In the present situation, we should not expect the much-awaited September report of the General to contain any suggestions except for more of the same. And the name of this otherwise fine officer will live in infamy, while the politicians live in fantasy.
Since the very start of the conflict, no, even before, the neo-con idealogues in the administration have directed this war. Not a single person of this group has served a day in combat. By the administration’s reasoning, politicians, several of whom have had distinguished military careers, should have no say, but bureaucrats who have been elected to no office can make policy and control the conduct of the war.
Bush says, “Let the Generals decide.” Yet when General Shinsecki, the highly competent Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, mildly suggested we would need a minimum of 300,000 troops to invade Iraq, he was summarily fired. When General Zinni, a Marine commander, complained about Bremer’s interference in the attack on Fallujah, he was history. The generals who disagree with the bureaucrats get fired. The generals who become the lapdogs of the administration become the leaders of the war. It defies imagination how General Peter Pace was allowed to serve his full term as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. The one General who was patently unfit to conduct the war was left in control for two full years.
The new hero is General David Petreaus. He no doubt is a good officer and a fine leader but he is no better than the rest of the politically damaged officers who have forgotten that the oath they took upon entering the military service was to the Constitution of the United States, and not any political leader. While General Petraeus is leading his men in a circular firing squad, Al-Quaida becomes stronger and bolder and even the Green Zone is no longer safe. He sends cheerful reports of progress while at the same time the parliament of Iraq leaves for a two month vacation and the Prime Minister announces that the coalition forces can leave at any time.
General Petraeus faces an impossible situation. He is paying a dear price for the fact that we never had enough boots on the ground, and the “surge” will have a very limited effect. As the fatigue sets in on our forces in Iraq, General Petraeus may be the one left holding the bag for the breakdown of the U.S. Army. In the present situation, we should not expect the much-awaited September report of the General to contain any suggestions except for more of the same. And the name of this otherwise fine officer will live in infamy, while the politicians live in fantasy.
Fixing Iraq
Understanding how to fix the mess in Iraq is simple. Actually doing it - considering the logistics and political factors - is very difficult, and will never be accomplished under the present administration.
First step: Clean out the Pentagon. Get rid of every neo-con PNAC incumbent. These are all ideologues, individuals who can blow up the world on paper but could not fire a cap pistol.
Next, fire all the politically connected Generals. This is not the Third Reich. Officers swear their loyalty to the Constitution, not to the temporary occupant of the White House. Those officers who have risen in rank due to their personal loyalty to President Bush and the Neo-cons are not fit to command a sandbox - and they have proven it.
Consider the recently retired flag officers such as Shinsecki, Casey and Zinni. Recall the best and brightest generals colonels who have not been tainted by the subversive politics of the current command structure.
Identify the best E-8 and E-9 NCOs . These individuals are the heart of the Army. Spell out the mission and the objective - they will get the message to the troops.
Set reasonable short-term objectives and missions. “Bringing democracy to the people of Iraq” is an absolutely meaningless phrase unless some actual progress can be gained by defeating the terrorists.
Move all conventional troops out of Iraq. They are like elephants trying to fight a fly. Station them in neighboring areas on standby.
Put a senior unconventional warfare officer in charge. Use Special Forces, Ranger, Seals and Marine Raider units as they are meant to be used. Organize them in their normal small group, mobile configuration. Take the fight to the terrorists on our terms, not theirs. Use night raids and ambushes, every unconventional method at our disposal and harass the terrorists continuously.
Go light. Stay mobile. Everyone goes on MREs, three days ration as a combat load. Big rucksacks slow down troops and weaken them in the desert heat. They are sitting duck targets.
Appoint a panel of retired military experts from all branches to thoroughly research the infiltration of non-military religious fundamentalists into the faculties of each military academy. Young cadets are already poisoned by these bible-banging bigots. The academies are now graduating junior officer whose loyalty is to their stone-age religion rather than to the Constitution of the United States. This is of the greatest priority. If the trend is not stopped, and reversed, we will have an armed force no better than some Sunni militia. The future health, well-being, efficiency and loyalty of our Academy graduates, and the military service as a whole, depends on it.
This is what must be done, but it will never happen in this administration. To fix Iraq: regime change begins at home.
The National Guard - Failure of the Governors
The Administration and the media tell us that the National Guard is broken. Two-thirds of its brigades are not fit for combat and its equipment is broken or left behind in Iraq. The National Guard is each state’s first line of defense for homeland security. Is the National Guard better deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan where they are subject to attacks from all sides than at home performing their proper homeland security duties? The aftermath of hurricane Katrina demonstrates that deploying the National Guard in Iraq has spread America's citizen-soldiers too thin and endangered the nation by leaving us unprepared to react to disaster or emergency at home.
The vaunted “All Professional Army” cannot muster sufficient manpower to function independently. We do not have sufficient ground force to fight effectively in Iraq. But the neo-con leaders, with no understanding of combat needs, believed that “going light” would give us the speed and mobility to literally “blitzkrieg” the opposition. They were wrong.
In five years of combat we are still traveling “Death Highway” with utility vehicles tricked out in slap-dash armor and wonder why our road casualties are so high. Apparently these generals never learned the classic definition of insanity, “Doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results.”
The trail of broken bodies, broken minds and broken homes - and a total lack of support once they are discharged - is a sorry "thank you" from the United States government to its National Guard members, who should never have been sent to Iraq at all. It is the responsibility of the Governors of each state to demand better treatment - or better, insist on bringing them home.
The members of the National Guard are not professional soldiers. They are community oriented citizen soldiers, whose relationships to their community, their workplace, and their families are damaged by repeated tours of duty. Many professional Guardsmen have suffered severe financial and career losses due to repeated tours in Iraq. Some have lost their homes, their jobs, and their families due to the stress of excessive or prolonged tours of active duty.
The vaunted “All Professional Army” cannot muster sufficient manpower to function independently. We do not have sufficient ground force to fight effectively in Iraq. But the neo-con leaders, with no understanding of combat needs, believed that “going light” would give us the speed and mobility to literally “blitzkrieg” the opposition. They were wrong.
In five years of combat we are still traveling “Death Highway” with utility vehicles tricked out in slap-dash armor and wonder why our road casualties are so high. Apparently these generals never learned the classic definition of insanity, “Doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results.”
The trail of broken bodies, broken minds and broken homes - and a total lack of support once they are discharged - is a sorry "thank you" from the United States government to its National Guard members, who should never have been sent to Iraq at all. It is the responsibility of the Governors of each state to demand better treatment - or better, insist on bringing them home.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Principles of War
Since prehistoric times, when wars were fought with sharpened sticks , until the present day when the tools of war have become so destructive that they threaten the very existence of the human race, success in wars has been achieved by observing a set of rules, codified as The Principles of War.
In the Fifth Century B. C. Sun Tzu, a Chinese General and philosopher set down these principles in his book “The Art of War”.
General Carl von Clausewitz, a Prussian officer, modified the Principles before he left for Russia to help fight against Napoleon, as did Baron von Steuben, when he became responsible for training the Continental Army at Valley forge. But the basic principles have endured. Until now.
The individuals responsible for the war in Iraq have managed to ignore, skew, or violate all nine Principles of War.
These Principles are simple statements that any soldier should understand:
1. OBJECTIVE: Define a decisive and attainable goal for each military
operation. The vague in insincere goal “to bring democracy to the people of Iraq” does not meet that requirement.
2. OFFENSIVE: Seize, retain and exploit the initiative. Despite the recommendations of all the experienced Generals, the Army and Marines have been denied enough troop strength to do this.
3. MASS: Apply sufficient force to achieve the objective. Here, too, our current strategy of limiting boots on the ground prevents our forces from completing the objective.
4. ECONOMY OF FORCE: Focus the right amount of force on the key objective without wasting force on secondary objectives. We have never been able to identify any key objectives. We are fighting this war reactively.
5. MANEUVER: Place the enemy in a position of disadvantage through flexible application of combat power. After more than three years of combat our forces are still road-bound in reconnaissance Humvees that were never intended for combat. Our soldiers are heavily laden pack mules. They couldn’t maneuver if they had to.
6. UNITY OF COMMAND: For every objective, there must be a unified effort, and one person responsible for the command decision. Never before have the U.S. combat forces been so micro-managed by so many incompetent “decision makers".
7. SECURITY: Never allow the enemy to acquire an unexpected advantage. From American mass media to Al-Jeezera, our operations are an open book. We telegraph everything we attempt to do in a politicized war.
8.: SURPRISE: Strike the enemy at a time, place, or manner for which he is unprepared. The enemy forces can teach us a lesson here. They continually hit us where we are unprepared. Our own operations are too clumsy to surprise anyone.
9. SIMPLICITY: Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and clear, concise orders. Has anyone ever listened to the Commander-in Chief, the Secretary of Defense, or the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when they discuss operations? Hah!
In the Fifth Century B. C. Sun Tzu, a Chinese General and philosopher set down these principles in his book “The Art of War”.
General Carl von Clausewitz, a Prussian officer, modified the Principles before he left for Russia to help fight against Napoleon, as did Baron von Steuben, when he became responsible for training the Continental Army at Valley forge. But the basic principles have endured. Until now.
The individuals responsible for the war in Iraq have managed to ignore, skew, or violate all nine Principles of War.
These Principles are simple statements that any soldier should understand:
1. OBJECTIVE: Define a decisive and attainable goal for each military
operation. The vague in insincere goal “to bring democracy to the people of Iraq” does not meet that requirement.
2. OFFENSIVE: Seize, retain and exploit the initiative. Despite the recommendations of all the experienced Generals, the Army and Marines have been denied enough troop strength to do this.
3. MASS: Apply sufficient force to achieve the objective. Here, too, our current strategy of limiting boots on the ground prevents our forces from completing the objective.
4. ECONOMY OF FORCE: Focus the right amount of force on the key objective without wasting force on secondary objectives. We have never been able to identify any key objectives. We are fighting this war reactively.
5. MANEUVER: Place the enemy in a position of disadvantage through flexible application of combat power. After more than three years of combat our forces are still road-bound in reconnaissance Humvees that were never intended for combat. Our soldiers are heavily laden pack mules. They couldn’t maneuver if they had to.
6. UNITY OF COMMAND: For every objective, there must be a unified effort, and one person responsible for the command decision. Never before have the U.S. combat forces been so micro-managed by so many incompetent “decision makers".
7. SECURITY: Never allow the enemy to acquire an unexpected advantage. From American mass media to Al-Jeezera, our operations are an open book. We telegraph everything we attempt to do in a politicized war.
8.: SURPRISE: Strike the enemy at a time, place, or manner for which he is unprepared. The enemy forces can teach us a lesson here. They continually hit us where we are unprepared. Our own operations are too clumsy to surprise anyone.
9. SIMPLICITY: Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and clear, concise orders. Has anyone ever listened to the Commander-in Chief, the Secretary of Defense, or the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when they discuss operations? Hah!
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
War in Iraq
“War at best is barbaric. Its glory is all moonshine.
It is only those who have never fired a shot nor heard the
shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry for blood,
more vengeance, more desolation, War is Hell.”
General William Tecumseh Sherman
It is only those who have never fired a shot nor heard the
shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry for blood,
more vengeance, more desolation, War is Hell.”
General William Tecumseh Sherman
The purpose of this blog is to attempt to share my thoughts on the fog of government spin that emanates from Washington in the current administration, particularly as it pertains to warfare.
I am a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel, qualified Airborne, Ranger and Special Forces. In addition I am a qualified Nuclear Weapons Employment officer with extensive experience as an Inspector General at Corps and Army Level. My opinions are derived from many years of observation of the conduct of soldiers in uniform, on and off the field of battle.
We are now engaged in a non-directional war in which all the Principles of War have been defied, ignored or twisted. The policies for the U.S. Army have been developed, without exception, by neo-con ideologues with no combat experience. No General Officer, even those relieved for failure to accomplish their mission, have been disciplined. (With the exception of the hapless N.G. Brigadier who had administrative control at Abu Ghraib).
The classic definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result. But how else do we describe five years of running inefficiently armored Humvees down miles of open highways planted with IEDs? The American soldier deserves better than that.
It is claimed that the current U. S. Army is the most proficient, best trained, and best equipped military force of all time. And they are all professionals. If we accept this statement, and on the face of it there is no reason why we should not, then it must follow logically, based on the results of the past five years, that it is also led by the most inept, inefficient, criminally negligent leaders in the history of American warfare. As an old soldier, I have always held that the individual American soldier is, by and large, a model for human behavior. The sacrifice of liberty, freedom of speech, obedience to authority, and determination to accomplish the mission have always set the American soldier apart, Regular or draftee. The gallantry and heroism of ordinary young soldiers in the heat of battle boggles the mind. The self-sacrifice of one person for the good of the unit is legendary. As Admiral Nimitz said of Iwo Jima, “Uncommon valor was a common virtue”. The same is true, on a smaller scale, in nearly every combat engagement by U.S. troops, to a point that we come to expect it and take it for granted. This is neither the time nor place to relate individual instances, but they are myriad.
Every war is different. But in some sense, every war is the same. Opposing forces, bent on forcing their will on the enemy, attack and kill or wound each other. Sometimes the mission is geographic or political, “take the high ground”, in others, punitive - break the will of the enemy by killing as many as possible, and usually it is a combination of both. In former wars, men suffering body wounds were left to die on the battlefield. Amputees were sometimes saved if the evacuation time was short enough. Today, air-evac has revolutionized battlefield wounded recovery. The ratio of dead to recoverable wounded has changed exponentially. But many of these seriously wounded men, even if they are evacuate and survive, are severely disabled. Few are fit to return to combat duty.
Despite all the theoretical plans from neo-con thinkers, “boots on the ground” is still the most vital concept of all. We can destroy enemy strongholds with air, naval and artillery assaults. But troops, in sufficient numbers are required to complete the mission.
coming next: Principles of War
Sunday, July 1, 2007
G. Maxim's Maxims
We are compiling a list of TOGB's famous sayings. Click on the comments button to add yours.
WORDS OF WISDOM AND ENCOURAGEMENT:
Measure twice, cut once.
Non illegitimus carborundum (Don't let the bastards grind you down.)
OUTRAGEOUS SIMILES AND COLORFUL INSULTS:
His father and mother had never been formally introduced.
Happy as a cow peeing on a flat rock.
MILITARY
A circular firing squad.
WORDS OF WISDOM AND ENCOURAGEMENT:
Measure twice, cut once.
Non illegitimus carborundum (Don't let the bastards grind you down.)
OUTRAGEOUS SIMILES AND COLORFUL INSULTS:
His father and mother had never been formally introduced.
Happy as a cow peeing on a flat rock.
MILITARY
A circular firing squad.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)