local history channel to run four programs on gulf war

[Hawk]

from the Jerusalem post

History Channel revisits first Gulf War

BEN JACOBSON Jan. 15, 2004

It's hard to believe that the first Gulf War took place exactly 13 years ago, but it has indeed been that long.
To help commemorate this anniversary, the local History Channel will be airing four related programs this weekend: Operation Desert Storm, One On One With David Frost: General H. Norman Schwartzkopf, Schwartzkopf Vs. Saddam, and One On One With David Frost: George Bush: A President's Story.
With the events of the most recent Gulf War still fresh in our minds - the battle to take Baghdad took place just a few months ago, Saddam Hussein was captured just last month, and rarely does a day pass without a news story from the region - watching the History Channel's retrospective is an interesting exercise in juxtaposing today's headlines with the recent history that fashioned them - an experience offered far too rarely to today's media consumers.
One On One With David Frost: George Bush: A President's Story, to be screened on Friday at 5:10 p.m., is especially poignant in this context.
A great deal of Bush senior's legacy surrounds his decision to limit Operation Desert Storm to the liberation of Kuwait, instead of taking over Iraq and bringing about a regime change there, as his son has done.
In his conversations with skilled British interviewer Frost, Bush defends this policy, pointing to reluctance among Americans to act as occupiers, and telling us that he wanted to keep his coalition as broad as possible. The extent to which these two considerations still apply in the post-September 11 world is debatable, but it is interesting to consider that they are the main criticisms cited by Bush Jr.'s critics.
In General Norman Schwartzkopf interviews with Frost (One-on-One with David Frost: General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Friday, 4:20 p.m.), the ins and outs of the first Gulf War are also discussed, with the Schwartzkopf recounting the tactical and political considerations, events leading up to the war, and the decision to stop advancing at the Kuwait-Iraq border.
As in the documentary on Bush, there is also a focus on Schwartzkopf's upbringing and early career.
While the interview format of Frost's programs may seem a bit heavy, the corresponding documentaries - Operation Desert Storm (Friday 7:15 p.m.) and Schwarzkopf vs. Saddam (Friday 4:20 p.m.) - focus on the facts on the ground as revealed (and, in some cases, not revealed) in the news media back in January 1991.
In footage held back from broadcasts at the time of shooting (just weeks after the end of Operation Desert Storm), Bush tells the camera that deciding the fate of hundreds of thousands of 17- and 18-year-old Americans was among the most difficult parts of his job, and a tear trickles down his Texan cheek.
Does "Dubya" feel as deeply when thinking along these lines? We may not know for another 13 years.

[David]

Originally posted by Hawk In General Norman Schwartzkopf interviews with Frost (One-on-One with David Frost: General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Friday, 4:20 p.m.), the ins and outs of the first Gulf War are also discussed, with the Schwartzkopf recounting the tactical and political considerations, events leading up to the war, and the decision to stop advancing at the Kuwait-Iraq border.

I do not know who he is referring to as stopped at the Kuwait-Iraq border, maybe the Marines. My unit was at least 344 kilometers into Iraq when we stopped, poised to take out Baghdad. The Turkish forces on the other side of Baghdad had the same intentions.

What amazes me is how little people stateside actually know 13 years later about what happened in the Gulf War and how little has actually been released to the public.

[Margaret Diann]

I for one, plan to watch it! Thanks for sharing, Hawk!

I would also like to see the movie 'Thanks of a Grateful Nation' be done in DVD & available for people to rent or purchase.

and

Did you know that CDC has an obligation to our nation to test our people?
....most especially Gulf War Syndrome vets for these?