Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop

I believe too many soldiers are dying in post war Iraq. Why don't we set up secured posts and send the Iraqis out to do their own post war dirty work?

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop Our military leadership has every possible resource and motivation ever known, and is using every bit of it to protect and support our troops, including themselves, in Iraq.

The only failure of any protection is purely domestic American politics. Nothing else. Our troops are still dying and at risk in Iraq because U.S. government leadership has not achieved IT'S own objectives, whatever those may be. Our people have no business being there at all. The dictator is overthrown, the oil can flow and there is no way our troops will ever be able to keep the factions from killing one another whether we are there militarily or not. The least that should happen immediately is for our government to ask and accept the willingness of NATO and U.N. forces to get in there and help out.

I find it interesting that there is no uproar from the NRA to ensure the right of Iraqis to keep and bear arms over there, since what our government says Iraq needs is an American-style democracy.

If our troops left Iraq tomorrow, the citizens of that nation would find a way to clean up the mess on their own, a lot of American lives and treasury would be saved, and we could get on with more important matters.
Bluehawk

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop

Just like Viet Nam. You guys will pull our asses out and get no credit. There is no sense in war. You are pawns. This is a time for peace. You have your yin and yan. pick a side. I think yin. There is no smoking gun. Have we been misled again??????????????????????????????/

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop

They have a negative learning curve.

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop

This administration has 'moved on', just like with Afganistan....Those brave men and women need our support and loyality, but most of all, they need us to voice to our leaders, that it is time to get them out and let the UN take over!

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop I believe the Japanese samurai might have characterized what is happening to our troops in the middle-east as being "death by a thousand cuts". The longer our people are exposed to the sword, the more likely will be death. For this reason we, finally, withdrew from Vietnam more than 30 years ago...almost 60,000 American dead, and millions more of Vietnamese. Today, Vietnam is a unified Communist nation. There was no "Domino Effect".

While governments diddle around creating a type of democracy and economy to their liking in Iraq (and elsewhere), our military is expected to donate their lives.

Bravely, honorably, faithfully they will.

To what end.

Bluehawk

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop Is it really the military leadership that is in question, or is it the civilian leadership that is the problem?
I think there is not enough unity of command between State and Defense.
They both have their own thoughts and reasons for handling Iraq.
I think there should only be one chef in this kitchen.
In my opinion, it should have stayed DOD until the infrastruture was back up to an acceptable level, then handed over to State for the diplomatic side of this.
As for the commanders on the ground, I don't think that they are the issue.

Re: Has military leadership done enough to protect our troop

I'm probably wrong about this comment, but I was sort of thinking things should be the OTHER way around these days in Iraq. What I mean to say is, it seems that now that the war itself is basically over, then the DOD should get the heck out of there and let the State Department handle these political negotiations going on every day. I just don't see much reason for anything else unless DOD would want to put in a whole bunch MORE troops to cover every street corner...and get things to a point where our people have enough cover, not keep getting picked off one at a time like they are. Our people have done an incredible job there, all of them. I really believe that our military has been sucked in to serving as police while, as you point out, DOD and State are matching wits behind the scenes...just like Vietnam?