It Seems So Easy

[thedrifter]

Marine Corps Gazette
November Editorial: It Seems So Easy

There is a refrain in one of Buddy Holly?s popular songs of the late 1950s, ?. . . it seems so easy?so doggone easy. . . .? While Buddy Holly was crooning about falling in love, that same refrain mirrors what has taken place in Iraq during the last 8 months. Marines have made it look easy, both during the combat phase and even the infamous Phase IV, where the rebuilding of Iraq is occurring.


Why does it ?seem so easy? for Marines? Because they plan for the unexpected. Because they train as teams and train to standards. Because they will always answer the bell.


There has been much ado in the media recently downplaying the quality and capabilities of the Iraqi Army arrayed against our forces. Such comparisons demean the painstaking efforts that went into the planning and execution of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. Our Nation?s Armed Forces in general, and the U.S. Marine Corps in particular, do not ever want to leave anything to chance. That?s why meticulous planning took place in California ahead of time, both on the joint and Service levels. And the detailed planning and rehearsals could be drilled down all the way to the rifle squad and fire team.


In their recently released book, The March Up: Taking Baghdad with the 1st Marine Division (see MCG, Sep03, p. 85), authors MajGen Ray L. Smith, USMC(Ret) and Bing West chronicle the painstaking efforts of a rifle squad in the 1st Bn, 7th Mar who had planned and rehearsed for 6 months to secure an oil pumping station at Az Zubayr before the Iraqis could destroy the station. The combination of detailed planning at all echelons and lightning speed ultimately doomed the enemy to failure.


In basketball, you can?t slam-dunk unless you can play above the rim. In Operation IRAQI FREEDOM our forces stayed above the rim throughout the first three phases of the operation. They made it seem so easy!


Then on 9 April we saw Marines pull down a statue of Saddam in downtown Baghdad. Enter Phase IV. And what was/is Phase IV? It is that part of the operation where we transition control of the country from the conquering military force to the Iraqi people themselves. But how do we turn it over? What is the military?s role in such an endeavor? The role is clearly to provide security and stability to the various regions of Iraq while the rebuilding of Iraq?s physical and political infrastructure takes place.


The security situation throughout Iraq has continued to be a mixed bag. The major media outlets are quick to report daily casualty figures in Iraq, seemingly measuring success or failure of the entire enterprise by these numbers alone. No Marine combat deaths occurred in Iraq over the past 4-plus months as of this writing. Why is that? Once again, it isn?t chance. The commanding general of 1st MarDiv kept eight battalions and divided the area of responsibility into eight sectors. Each sector had a lieutenant colonel as the senior officer of the particular assigned area. Using a combination of the commanding general?s philosophy of ?no better friend, no worse enemy,? these officers were enjoined to have their Marines and corpsmen visible, on the streets, working with Iraqi locals, helping restore infrastructure, providing sustenance and medical aid, and fostering a kindred spirit. All the while the word was out that any attempts at disrupting the Marines would end in sure and swift death.


It worked. Why did it work? Why did it seem so easy? Some attribute it to our heritage of working with and understanding small wars. Others hearken back to the combined action platoon programs in Vietnam. Still others talk about Gen Charles C. Krulak and his ?three block war? philosophy. I attribute it to savvy Marine commanders on the ground, understanding the dynamics of the situation and executing operations so brilliantly that they went virtually without notice. The end result was a passing of the baton to multinational forces.


In the highest circles of the DoD and the State Department you can almost hear the whispers, ?Where are the Marines? They make it seem so easy!?

http://www.mca-marines.org/Gazette/edt.html


Sempers,

Roger