irate marine's letter home

[TheGrunt]

Explain why you called George W. an extreme right winger yesterday?

 

Because he shows me to be a more 'pure' Republican with the political choices that he makes. For example, he is against abortion, and against stem cell research (funded by taxes, not so much the overall advancements it will offer us). These are just my personal views, but what other political views has Bush shown you that made you conclude he isn't so extreme in his Republican choices afterall?

[Bocephus]

So I didn't say that his entire unit felt the same way? I thought not. Thanks for that.

 

My fault...just the ones that hang with your son. All five of them. A great sampling of the pulse of the US military. Much clearer to me now. I think the retention rates and recruiting stats are a better indicator than the seven people we reference.

[Jimmy Neutron]

It's not that I am really "happy" with how the terrorists have forced us to partially "violate" personal freedoms, but I have no reason to be upset about it. The ONLY way my personal freedoms will be affected is if I were a terrorist. Otherwise, I really don't care who listens in on my phone calls because it really won't make a difference in my life what-so-ever. I have nothing to hide and nothing to fear from our government, it is only those that want to harm our way of life that should fear for their personal freedoms in this country.

 

 

The big, bad terrorists have forced us to do nothing. Our fear-mongoring leaders have decided to blatantly hack out inconvenient parts of the Constitution in the name of "protecting" us. HorseSega!.

 

Do you really think it is OK for the feds (or local PDs) to suspend habeas corpus? Illegal imprisonment is a bad thing last time I checked. We probably ought to have a mechanism in place to combat it.

 

Wasn't it refreshing to see the NO PD going house to house taking guns from people when they needed them most? Rather than helping people that were crying for help, they were taking guns from people trying to protect their homes. (Yeah, the Katrina aftermath is a little off topic, but I mention it because it's not just Bush and Washington trying to "protect" us.)

 

Read this. Make you feel good? Bush has been usupring power from the congress and setting a horrible precedent. I find the term "King George" a little less funny now days.

[TheGrunt]

So I didn't say that his entire unit felt the same way? I thought not. Thanks for that.

 

I don't think the current administration is made up of cowardly idiots, however, I do believe that President Bush made some major mistakes with his strategy for finishing the war in Iraq. The initial 6 months I was there in 2003 was a flawless display of what our military can do, which is why I question how the administration handled the aftermath -- it seems that somewhere from 2004 up to now they screwed up with the long term strategy. There are several theories as to why the administration stumbled with their long-term plan, but in my opinion it has to do with not directing our attention at Iran and other neighboring countries around Iraq.

 

BUT, I was watching the live news report this morning where (I forget his name at the moment) the four star US Army general was describing their new method for controlling local Iraqi violence in neighborhoods. It seems like a really good idea, and I hope it works. He did say it's going to take time, but that Iraq is still heading in the right direction -- unless we allow the Democrats to "surrender to the terrorists".

[Ursa Majoris]

My fault...just the ones that hang with your son. All five of them. A great sampling of the pulse of the US military. Much clearer to me now. I think the retention rates and recruiting stats are a better indicator than the seven people we reference.

 

Let's see if we can parse the sentence in question for you.

To a man, each of them has told me that many more of their comrades think likewise

This means that for each of the 5 referenced people, all said that "many more" of their peers think GWB is a craven idiot. Not none of members of the units, nor all of the members of the units, but some indeterminate number, as indicated by "many".

[dmarc117]

The big, bad terrorists have forced us to do nothing. Our fear-mongoring leaders have decided to blatantly hack out inconvenient parts of the Constitution in the name of "protecting" us. HorseSega!.

 

Do you really think it is OK for the feds (or local PDs) to suspend habeas corpus? Illegal imprisonment is a bad thing last time I checked. We probably ought to have a mechanism in place to combat it.

 

Wasn't it refreshing to see the NO PD going house to house taking guns from people when they needed them most? Rather than helping people that were crying for help, they were taking guns from people trying to protect their homes. (Yeah, the Katrina aftermath is a little off topic, but I mention it because it's not just Bush and Washington trying to "protect" us.)

 

Read this. Make you feel good? Bush has been usupring power from the congress and setting a horrible precedent. I find the term "King George" a little less funny now days.

 

 

 

I also think they're a bunch of f-ups and there is a lesson to be learned. If you go through life testing the limits of what you can get away with, you're more likely than others to end up on the wrong end of a sh**ty deal.

^now who just said this^.....it does go with the terrorists as well.

 

and for fear mongering....this global warming hype is grandioso!!

Edited April 26, 2007 by dmarc117

[Ursa Majoris]

I don't think the current administration is made up of cowardly idiots, however, I do believe that President Bush made some major mistakes with his strategy for finishing the war in Iraq. The initial 6 months I was there in 2003 was a flawless display of what our military can do, which is why I question how the administration handled the aftermath -- it seems that somewhere from 2004 up to now they screwed up with the long term strategy.

The war itself was extremely well executed. It is what well trained and led armies do - fight and win territory, defeating uniformed enemies.

There are several theories as to why the administration stumbled with their long-term plan, but in my opinion it has to do with not directing our attention at Iran and other neighboring countries around Iraq.

 

IMO, it has more to do with the expectation that the Iraqis would greet the invaders as liberators rather than conquerors to be resisted, plus the complete failure to acknowledge the history of the region plus the disregard of the schism between Sunni and Shia, plus the failure to realize that Saddam, like Tito in Yugoslavia before him, was the only thing holding it together.

BUT, I was watching the live news report this morning where (I forget his name at the moment) the four star US Army general was describing their new method for controlling local Iraqi violence in neighborhoods. It seems like a really good idea, and I hope it works.

 

As do we all. My last inbound phone call from Iraq (early this morning) told me the jury's still out as far as the military goes because they are concerned that the terrorists will be back in numbers when the weather gets really hot to take advantage of fatigued troops. However, everything I've read - in the liberal media, BTW - indicates this is the best strategy so far. Certainly Anbar is currently quieter than it was.

Edited April 26, 2007 by Ursa Majoris

[TheGrunt]

IMO, it has more to do with the expectation that the Iraqis would greet the invaders as liberators rather than conquerors to be resisted, plus the complete failure to acknowledge the history of the region plus the disregard of the schism between Sunni and Shia, plus the failure to realize that Saddam, like Tito in Yugoslavia before him, was the only thing holding it together.

As do we all. My last inbound phone call from Iraq (early this morning) told me the jury's still out as far as the military goes because they are concerned that the terrorists will be back in numbers when the weather gets really hot to take advantage of fatigued troops. However, everything I've read - in the liberal media, BTW - indicates this is the best strategy so far. Certainly Anbar is currently quieter than it was.

 

I definitely agree with your added emphasis in opinion for other faulty expectations that were made by our administration. There were many assumptions made prior to the war that turned out to be poor judgement.

 

Ursa, you are an intelligent man, and just like you I really do hope this new strategy works out. Glad we can agree on something here....

[detlef]

I'm still learning.

 

Very, very slowly it would appear.

[TheGrunt]

Very, very slowly it would appear.

 

I'm just waiting for you to catch up.

[detlef]

^now who just said this^.....it does go with the terrorists as well.

 

 

dmarcymarc, no matter how many times you asks us to do so, you are not going to get us to apologize to Saddam for wrongly accusing him of having WMDs. Sorry dude, we're just not going to go there.

[The Irish Doggy]

Here you go liar. I dug it up for you. In your own words. Idiot.

You know nothing, you worthless piece of crap. My son is in the Marines, his best buddy is in the Marines, one of their buddies is in the Air Force, yet another two buddies are in the Army. To a man, each of them thinks this administration is made up of idiot cowards. To a man, each of them has told me that many more of their comrades think likewise.

 

You are a fool, an armchair warrior knowing nothing and spouting worthless trash.

 

Go to hell.

 

 

 

So I didn't say that his entire unit felt the same way? I thought not. Thanks for that.

 

 

 

OMG. You are so pwned.

[Pope Flick]

Ok goof...I did not lie...maybe embellished a little.

 

 

 

 

[Yukon Cornelius]

So I didn't say that his entire unit felt the same way? I thought not. Thanks for that.

 

 

 

OMG. You are so pwned.

 

dammitt u win

[H8tank]

Bear fatty's anecdotal song does not jive with the mindset of the average GI.

[evil_gop_liars]

Bear fatty's anecdotal song does not jive with the mindset of the average GI.

 

 

 

Of course....but he knows best. The five morons that associate with his son are all in the same boat. Maybe they are nephews of Cindy Sheehan.

 

 

 

 

US officer condemns Iraq strategy

A senior serving US army officer has launched a scathing attack on the US military leadership in Iraq.

 

Lieutenant Colonel Paul Yingling said US generals had failed to prepare their troops properly and had misled Congress about the resources needed for the war.

 

Writing in the Armed Forces Journal, he said the US had repeated the mistakes of Vietnam and so faced defeat in Iraq.

 

Such criticism from a serving officer is rare, analysts say, although several retired generals have spoken out.

 

Lt Col Yingling's remarks come a day after the top US commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, described the situation in Iraq as "exceedingly complex and very tough".

 

Acknowledging that the US effort "clearly is going to require an enormous commitment over time", he asked Congress to give the new "surge" strategy, of pouring more troops into Baghdad, time to take effect.

 

Congress, meanwhile, passed a war funding bill setting a timetable for the withdrawal of US combat troops from Iraq, despite the threat of a veto by President George W Bush.

 

'Diminishing hope'

 

Lt Col Yingling, who is deputy commander of the 3rd Armoured Cavalry Regiment and has served two tours in Iraq, said the military leadership had entirely failed to grasp what would be needed for success in Iraq.

 

 

"For reasons that are not yet clear, America's general officer corps underestimated the strength of the enemy, overestimated the capabilities of Iraq's government and security forces, and failed to provide Congress with an accurate assessment of the security conditions in Iraq," he wrote.

 

The generals had gone into Iraq in 2003 with too few soldiers and no coherent plan for post-war stabilisation, having spent a decade "preparing to fight the wrong war", he said.

 

"The intellectual and moral failures common to America's general officer corps in Vietnam and Iraq constitute a crisis in American generalship."

 

Lt Col Yingling has not singled out any individual for criticism but has urged Congress to take a greater role in monitoring officers' performance and holding them accountable.

 

He said the US military had done too little to prepare for the kind of intense insurgencies they had encountered in Iraq and Afghanistan, and had then tackled them in the wrong way.

 

"Given the lack of troop strength, not even the most brilliant general could have devised the ways necessary to stabilise post-Saddam Iraq," he wrote.

 

"In 2007, Iraq's grave and deteriorating condition offers diminishing hope for an American victory and portends risk of an even wider and more destructive regional war."

 

US military spokesman Lt Col Christopher Garver in Iraq told the Associated Press news agency that Lt Col Yingling had written expressing "his personal opinions".

 

"We of Multinational Force Iraq are focused on executing the mission at hand," he said.

[evil_gop_liars]

Bear fatty's anecdotal song does not jive with the mindset of the average GI.

 

 

 

Of course....but he knows best. The five morons that associate with his son are all in the same boat. Maybe they are nephews of Cindy Sheehan.

 

 

 

 

[Furd]

The whole thing about these "what one average soldier in Iraq thinks" letters/opinions is that for every one supporting the war, you can find one condemeing the war. Which type is more representative of the average soldiers' beliefs? Who is more willing to speak out - a soldier who supports the war or a soldier who doesn't? Who really knows?

 

Seems to me that its like trying to evaluate the forest by looking at a tree.