Some 82nd Airborne NCO's Critique Iraq War in the NY Times
The NY Times today published this op-ed piece, apparently written by seven junior Army NCO's in the 82nd Airborne Division who are completing a fifteen-month tour of duty in Iraq. Since the piece was posted in the NYT, your assumption that it is not full of sunshine and hope would be correct.
The piece is well written and flows nicely, which leads me to believe that it was authored by only one of the men, then signed by all seven as a gesture of agreement. I have nothing but respect for these young men, finishing fifteen months in a hot, angry and dangerous Hell, and for all of the men and women who have served - or will serve - alongside them. I'm sure some of them, if not all, are on repeat tours of Iraq and may have been to Afghanistan, as well.
I wouldn't say that the piece seems defeatist but these men certainly sound tired and frustrated. I really can't say that I blame them.
However, I don't think that their views necessarily represent the so-called "big picture" in Iraq. Rather, having served as a small unit leader in the 82nd myself, I can tell you that what might be happening in one squad, company, or battalion or in one sector, town, or city, might not always be so in another. But these men had boots on the ground and their opinion, in my view, must be respected and analyzed the same way that every operation is debriefed and critiqued after its conclusion.
I don't think it should ever be considered a bad thing to get honest and open input from your small-unit leaders, the very men who actually do the fighting and carry out orders that are being written by people who have never stood in a uniform.
I say good on ya, whether I like what you have to say or not.
The most compelling paragraph:
In short, we operate in a bewildering context of determined enemies and questionable allies, one where the balance of forces on the ground remains entirely unclear. (In the course of writing this article, this fact became all too clear: one of us, Staff Sergeant Murphy, an Army Ranger and reconnaissance team leader, was shot in the head during a “time-sensitive target acquisition mission” on Aug. 12; he is expected to survive and is being flown to a military hospital in the United States.) While we have the will and the resources to fight in this context, we are effectively hamstrung because realities on the ground require measures we will always refuse — namely, the widespread use of lethal and brutal force.
These men clearly do not trust the Iraqi military, police or government and who can blame them? It seems to me that every Iraqi at every level is simply concerned with self-preservation and not with the notion of creating a better existence for the Iraqi people and country as a whole. We cannot wage war with allies who are actively killing our soldiers, or supporting others who do so, either willingly or no.
Can we win in Iraq? Certainly. We could pull our people out, take off all ROE's and bomb the place forward into the Stone Age. But Americans don't fight like that, nor should we. If we have learned anything, and I'm not sure that we have, it's that these people - friend and enemy, alike - think differently than we do. We cannot force freedom upon them, nor can we force them to adopt our ways and beliefs. They have to want it and be willing to fight for it, or the whole thing is pointless.
I don't know what the answer is, but this letter seems to illustrate the point that things will really go to Hell if we pull out prematurely. The criminals, terrorists, armed tribes and even the Iranians will move in and turn the place into a bloodbath, killing, raping and looting everything in sight.
I just don't know how we can allow that to happen.
So let's learn what we can from this treatise and commend these brave men for a job well done. We're proud of all of you.
Both Grim and Uncle Jimbo at BLACKFIVE break it down, with the help of some excellent comments. Give them a read.
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