By Oliver North April 27, 2007
If Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is right, nearly 60 percent of Americans agree with him that the war in Iraq is already lost. And if he is correct in saying that losing the war will increase Democrat majorities in future elections, then it may be fair to conclude that Americans now love losers. I'm not buying any of it -- and neither are the troops who are fighting this war.
In the days since Reid announced "this war is lost," I have heard from dozens of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, Guardsmen and Marines that I have covered in eight trips to Iraq and two to Afghanistan for FOX News. Some of those who correspond with me are there now, others are home. Some are preparing to deploy again. None of them agree with Reid's assessment.
One e-mail from Ramadi, Iraq observed: "Good thing this guy Reid wasn't around in 1940 when Winston Churchill promised the people of Great Britain nothing but 'blood, toil, tears and sweat.'" Another, a Guardsman who recently returned from Mesopotamia with a Purple Heart, noted that Reid has become "Al Qaeda's most powerful ally." A Marine corporal I last saw along the banks of the Tigris River -- now a Mississippi State University student -- asked me, "Do those people who think we've lost this war have any idea what things will be like if we really do lose?" It's an important question that none of the potentates on the Potomac who just voted to withdraw U.S. troops appear willing to address.
According to military folklore, Napoleon kept a corporal at his side to ensure that the orders issued in battle were understandable by the troops who had to carry them out. Whether true or not, it's time for Reid and Nancy Pelosi to find such a corporal who will ask them such questions, for if the Democrats continue their current course, we may well lose this war -- and they will have embraced defeat and all that comes with it.What would losing the war in Iraq mean? It's a picture so dark and depressing that it makes the collapse in Vietnam, 32 years ago next week, look like a Sunday school picnic. The fall of Saigon was horrific for the people of Vietnam and their neighbors in Cambodia and Laos. More than 5 million became refugees and by the most conservative estimates at least a million others perished.
For most Americans, the consequences were minimal. The vast majority of the 2.8 million of us who had fought and bled there mourned the loss of 58,253 of our comrades, swallowed the bitterness of defeat and got on with our lives. Our nation spent a few hundred million tax dollars on refugee relief and resettlement, and tried to forget what people in Reid's party called "the long nightmare of Vietnam."
But classified U.S. intelligence assessments, military contingency plans and staff studies evaluating the consequences of a precipitous U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, coupled with the lack of funding for political reform measures, as contained in the legislation just passed by Reid's party, paint a far more dismal picture than anything that happened after Vietnam.
-- Within months, an immediate upsurge in vicious sectarian violence fomented by Iranian intervention on behalf of Shiite militias and Wahabbi-supported, Al Qaeda-affiliated terror groups. As U.S. forces retreat to a half-dozen staging areas for retrograde through Kuwait and Jordan, American casualties will dramatically increase as suicide bombers seek "martyrdom" in their victory.
-- Inside of 18 months, the fragile democratically elected government in Baghdad will collapse, precipitating a real sectarian civil war and the creation of Taliban-like "regional governments" that will impose brutal, misogynistic rule throughout the country. The ensuing flood of refuges into Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Turkey and Iran will overwhelm relief organizations, creating a humanitarian disaster making what's happening in Darfur pale by comparison.
-- The Kurds in northern Iraq are likely to declare an autonomous region that could well result in Turkish, Iranian and even Syrian military intervention.
-- In the course of withdrawing U.S. combat brigades and support units, billions of dollars in American military equipment and ordnance will have to be destroyed or left behind. More than $40 billion in reconstruction projects for schools, health-care facilities, sanitation, clean water, electrical distribution and agricultural development will be abandoned. Plans to exploit the new West Qurna oil field in southeastern Iraq will be forsaken.
-- The governments of Kuwait, Jordan, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, intimidated by Iranian boldness in acquiring nuclear weapons, will likely insist on the withdrawal of American military bases from their territories. Such a move will jeopardize U.S. naval operations in the Persian Gulf and logistics, intelligence collection and command and control facilities supporting operations in Afghanistan.
-- As Iraq becomes a battleground for the centuries-long Sunni-Shia conflict, radical Islamic terror organizations will use the territories they control to prepare and launch increasingly deadly terror attacks around the globe against U.S. citizens, businesses and interests.
Reid and his cohorts in Congress who believe "this war is lost" have acted to ensure that it will be. No one asked them: "If we lost, who won?" The answer should be obvious.
Reid has really hurt the democrats - he is going to end up having helped the Republicans in 2008; Mark my words. You heard it here first. --JZ
.......
Posts
15 comments:
I think the only option we have in iraq is we have to loose either in fighting or leaving
no other solution
give iran nukes bush! they deserve it!!
First, thank you for having the courage to respond. I respect that.
So you are with the democrats all the way - you are seeking America's loss in this war. You would rather see Al Qaeda win. You think it would be a good thing to let the islamo fascist terrorists beat us - and to have us give up, surrender before the job is done.
What happened to you? How did you grow up to be such a loser? I'm not just calling you names. You are a loser, literally a victim waiting to happen.
How did you get to be such a mess? Seriously; I'm not trying to make you feel bad. I want to know how someone ends up with such a hopeless outlook when American is the biggest, the brightest, and the best?
How did you miss the fact that America is this world's ONLY hope for peace, through defense of liberty?
How did all of this get past you, Koko?
"you are seeking America's loss in this war. You would rather see Al Qaeda win"
i never said i wanted al queda to win there in afganistan im talking about iraq its a damn mass there!and yes maybe surrender is the only option like the french in vietnam. no one looks at the good John Murtha and Harry Reid do.
Thank you again -
You do not have a choice. Al Qaeda or the USA, that's all there is. Al Qaeda is all over the middle east, my friend - it is silly to assume they are only in Afghanistan.
Thanks for at least admitting that surrender is acceptable to you.
It absolutely is not for me; victory against islamo fascism and terrorism is the only option.
Victory. Or die.
Glad to see you doing your part in this war on terrorism. Having people like you support the mission by writing blogs, telling off people who disagree with your take and generally continue to disregard the realities by creating a black and white outlook on life.
I am glad that people such as myself who have been on the ground in Iraq -- two tours -- can offer you the ability to sound off from the safety of your room.
Sgt:
We are going to assume you are being truthful here for the sake of a reasonable and friendly dialog.
What is your problem? Every military person we have met, and we have met many, appreciates the fact that we all do our part.
It makes us wonder how someone could go overseas and fight for my freedom to express myself, and then come home and criticize us for doing just that...
Elaborate please.
no it isent you dont have to win evrey war you start if we did
heck wed still be in vietnam
Yes, we must win this war. It is NOT an option. Read the Lindsey Graham quote in a more recent post, and comment there please. I want to get your reaction to that.
I do not agree with your tactics or your love it or leave it stance. While I did fight over in Iraq and maybe in a small way it was for your freedom to express yourself -- even though I tend to think it was more for the Iraqis to have such freedom.
I will assume that you have met many returning members of the military and they thanked you just for the sake of friendly dialogue.
I too have met many of my brothers and sisters who do not hold similar views as yourself nor do they feel you are doing your part.
I am sure that a majority of my brothers and sisters who did not come back or those that were permenantly wounded would not be in full support of the sacrifices you have made for the cause.
Maybe that is because we felt more like political pawns to a series of failed policies. While those we served to protect sat at home and offered nothing besides empty slogans such as victory or die.
I have seen too many of my brothers and sisters wounded and killed. I can tell you that very few of those deaths were at the hands of al qaeda but by the renegade militas, gangsters and power hungry nationalists.
I am not a peacenik by any means nor am I moonbat that you lovingly call people. I do have, however, have the experience and the knowledge to recognize that this administration screwed up in a number of ways which did not end once our tours were over.
What else is there to elaborate?
Sgt: Appreciate the reply... my responses as follows -
I do not agree with your tactics or your love it or leave it stance. While I did fight over in Iraq and maybe in a small way it was for your freedom to express yourself -- even though I tend to think it was more for the Iraqis to have such freedom.
[Partially correct. If you fought there, you know that islamo fascism does not stop at Iraq. It is a world wide plan to exterminate people like me - so you bet I have a personal interest in how the war goes.]
I will assume that you have met many returning members of the military and they thanked you just for the sake of friendly dialogue.
[A ridiculous assumption. You know as well as I do - if you are in the military at all - that the military appreciate all of the support given to them by those of us in the States.]
I too have met many of my brothers and sisters who do not hold similar views as yourself nor do they feel you are doing your part.
[This is preposterous. One, you have no idea what I am doing, and I am doing a great deal. Two, you presume that the military is at odds with patriotic, conservative Americans - they are not at odds but in alignment with.]
I am sure that a majority of my brothers and sisters who did not come back or those that were permenantly wounded would not be in full support of the sacrifices you have made for the cause.
[What a prickly thing to say. You are sounding less like a member of our fine military and more like a hysterical moonbat.]
Maybe that is because we felt more like political pawns to a series of failed policies. While those we served to protect sat at home and offered nothing besides empty slogans such as victory or die.
[This is pure crappola. A few might feel as you do, but the vast majority of our military believe in the effort and those who are state side are eager to return and get the job done. The yearn to be cut loose from the shackles of stupid rules involving 'engagement' and to just kick ass, as do the American people.]
I have seen too many of my brothers and sisters wounded and killed. I can tell you that very few of those deaths were at the hands of al qaeda but by the renegade militas, gangsters and power hungry nationalists.
[You have seen a miraculously low number of your 'brothers and sisters' killed. If you were in the military you'd know that. You'd also end up pooping your pants if you fought in WWII, where we lost thousands in one day many times. So your perspective is highly questionable at best.]
I am not a peacenik by any means nor am I moonbat that you lovingly call people.
[You sound like it, you do.]
I do have, however, have the experience and the knowledge to recognize that this administration screwed up in a number of ways which did not end once our tours were over.
[Give me two specifics.]
What else is there to elaborate?
[You can or not, your choice. Thanks for taking the time.]
[Partially correct. If you fought there, you know that islamo fascism does not stop at Iraq. It is a world wide plan to exterminate people like me - so you bet I have a personal interest in how the war goes.]
My comment that you are responding to does not discuss islamo fascism but I am talking about your particular tactics and the love it or leave it stance. You do have a vested interest in the war much like the rest of the world, that is not the question or even the issue.
[A ridiculous assumption. You know as well as I do - if you are in the military at all - that the military appreciate all of the support given to them by those of us in the States.]
You are making a ridiculous assumption that everybody in the military appreciates what you are doing. I, for one, do not. I know others that feel this way too.
[This is preposterous. One, you have no idea what I am doing, and I am doing a great deal. Two, you presume that the military is at odds with patriotic, conservative Americans - they are not at odds but in alignment with.]
What are you doing? I have read your blogs on and off again for a few years and have not seen anything but slogans and rhetoric. If you are doing something, then what is it?
You are making the assumption that all of the members of the military are aligned with patriotic conservative Americans. This would be wrong. You should know this as well as I do. Read what I wrote and you will see that I was not saying all or even half, but some of the members of the military I met did not agree with you.
[What a prickly thing to say. You are sounding less like a member of our fine military and more like a hysterical moonbat.]
And now it starts. I have read your comments for a few years and can recognize when you feel that you can offer nothing but insults.
I served for 8 years in the Marines with two tours of Iraq. I have shrapnel in my left shoulder and leg. I have had my boots on the ground in Iraq and have seen things that would make your skin crawl. Sometimes I swear I can still smell rotting corpses or burnt flesh. And you have the gall to question my military background with your standard moonbat attack?
I will stand by my statement that you find so prickly that those who have lost their lives or are crippled do not see what you have done as sacrifice.
[This is pure crappola. A few might feel as you do, but the vast majority of our military believe in the effort and those who are state side are eager to return and get the job done. The yearn to be cut loose from the shackles of stupid rules involving 'engagement' and to just kick ass, as do the American people.]
If you are going to answer my comments, please at least address them instead of saying "crappola" and then go off on a rant that has nothing to do with the comment.
I can tell you that a vast majority of those do not want to go back except to be with their brothers and sisters. I can tell you that a majority wants to get the job done so they can go home. The effort becomes secondary when you are too busy fighting the war.
The other part about the shackles and whatnot is meaningless since we went in to this war without a real direction, without real goals.
[You have seen a miraculously low number of your 'brothers and sisters' killed. If you were in the military you'd know that. You'd also end up pooping your pants if you fought in WWII, where we lost thousands in one day many times. So your perspective is highly questionable at best.]
Excuse me? Have you ever held an 19 year old kid in your arms as he was giving his last breath? I have. Have you ever been standing around in nearly absolute quiet when all of a sudden there is a flash of light with blood and body parts flying around? I have. Have you seen kids playing football one day and then sent home after losing a leg? I have. Do not try to dress me down like a no-nothing civilian.
The statistics of how many have been killed is meaningless when it is the people you know being sent home in a body bag. It is meaningless when it is the people you know who have lost limbs or will never fully recover from their wounds.
My comment was not how many we have lost but it was this "I have seen too many of my brothers and sisters wounded and killed. I can tell you that very few of those deaths were at the hands of al qaeda but by the renegade militas, gangsters and power hungry nationalists."
The WWII comment is not worthy of mentioning for a few reasons. One, I was not truly discussing the number of deaths in any comparison. Two, I at no time acted as a coward in a fire fight or after being attacked but I can tell you that in nearly every Marine's mind, running away is present. And three, you have no ground to stand by saying I would crap my pants in WWII when you have not even spent one day on the ground during a war. You do not know what it is like to have the thought of death in your mind every waking second. You do not know what it is like to feel hot metal enter your body from an IED.
Until you get some real time experience, you do not have an ounce of credibility to dress me down.
[You sound like it, you do.]
Until you have walked in my boots, you have no right at all to say that I am a moonbat or a peacenik. I am for ending this war in the best possible circumstances with my brothers and sisters coming home alive and well. If that makes me a peacenik or a moonbat, then you are a fool.
[Give me two specifics.]
First example. Not adjusting to the changing tides of fighting. This administration stood back and ignored the insurrection for the better part of four years while allowing the militias, warlords and gangsters to continue to gather power.
Two, empty promises of material and equipment. The HUMVEE I was in did not have the proper armor that was REQ'D for over a year.
Three, while some of you complained that the scandals involving torture was media made or overblown, we felt the effects of those scandals more than you could ever know. We had crosshairs on us from almost any direction due to those policies.
Four, tour extensions and lack of proper down time have made life difficult.
Five, proper funding for the VA. Walter Reed was just the tip of the iceberg as far as the treatment facilities after coming home.
Those are five examples.
My comment that you are responding to does not discuss islamo fascism but I am talking about your particular tactics and the love it or leave it stance. You do have a vested interest in the war much like the rest of the world, that is not the question or even the issue.
[We do not believe in a love it or leave it philosophy. We don't know where you got that.]
You are making a ridiculous assumption that everybody in the military appreciates what you are doing. I, for one, do not. I know others that feel this way too.
[Me personally? This is not about one person. We do not believe that most in the military are aware of Jimmy Z's EXTRA! But we do know that most in the military appreciate people like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingram, Dr. Laura - and while we aren't on the same plane, we certainly are doing the same type of thing. You are in the minority in this attitude, friend.]
What are you doing? I have read your blogs on and off again for a few years and have not seen anything but slogans and rhetoric. If you are doing something, then what is it?
[This is totally in accurate. We have posted on all kinds of topics and posted all kinds of facts and truth and information that support our position. We are not screwing around. On the topics we post about, we are right. Always have been.]
You are making the assumption that all of the members of the military are aligned with patriotic conservative Americans. This would be wrong. You should know this as well as I do. Read what I wrote and you will see that I was not saying all or even half, but some of the members of the military I met did not agree with you.
[It is a fact that most in the military are aligned with patriotic conservatives, vote for Republicans, and are disgusted by liberal politicians who are invested in America failing and losing, like Harry Reid. Most is not just 51% either. Most is the VAST majority.]
And now it starts. I have read your comments for a few years and can recognize when you feel that you can offer nothing but insults.
[We do not need to insult. If you see this as an insult, that is your problem.]
I served for 8 years in the Marines with two tours of Iraq. I have shrapnel in my left shoulder and leg. I have had my boots on the ground in Iraq and have seen things that would make your skin crawl. Sometimes I swear I can still smell rotting corpses or burnt flesh. And you have the gall to question my military background with your standard moonbat attack?
[We read your words and they sound moonbatty. Again, it makes you sound questionable not because you are personally questionable, but because you are in such a minority in the military, you are an anomally.]
I will stand by my statement that you find so prickly that those who have lost their lives or are crippled do not see what you have done as sacrifice.
[We write and publish a blog in support of our troops and the mission at hand, in part. We also publish the blog for our own selfish pleasure, on a myriad of topics. We also publish it for fun. The blog is not a sacrifice - We have not used that word. You have. We expect we are appreciated, but not honored, because we aren't making the sacrifice so many of our brave fighting men have.]
If you are going to answer my comments, please at least address them instead of saying "crappola" and then go off on a rant that has nothing to do with the comment.
[The crappola paragraph had everything to do with your comment. The point was, and is, that America's citizens and her military wish to kick ass and win. If the war were being won, and many terrorists and islamo fascists were dying, America would support this war and the president without hesitation. The fact that we are fighting a leftist style, politically correct war is frustrating the military and the American people.]
I can tell you that a vast majority of those do not want to go back except to be with their brothers and sisters. I can tell you that a majority wants to get the job done so they can go home. The effort becomes secondary when you are too busy fighting the war.
[Probably true in part. But the men that I have had access to, and the men who have called in to Rush or Sean have said that they want to go back because they believe in the job and they want to finish it.]
The other part about the shackles and whatnot is meaningless since we went in to this war without a real direction, without real goals.
[More preposterousness! Of course the goals and direction were specific. You dismiss all of the good things that were sought and that have been accomplished. Why would you do that?]
Excuse me? Have you ever held an 19 year old kid in your arms as he was giving his last breath? I have. Have you ever been standing around in nearly absolute quiet when all of a sudden there is a flash of light with blood and body parts flying around? I have. Have you seen kids playing football one day and then sent home after losing a leg? I have. Do not try to dress me down like a no-nothing civilian.
[That's KNOW-nothing, and all of a sudden your cover is blown. These are all horrors, but most of the military - perhaps not you - but most of the military sees the big picture. People who have understood the big picture know that we are fortunate to have lost relatively few.]
The statistics of how many have been killed is meaningless when it is the people you know being sent home in a body bag. It is meaningless when it is the people you know who have lost limbs or will never fully recover from their wounds.
[Statistics and dry numbers are what the left has concentrated on. Since you see the war from a leftist's viewpoint, you have to understand why the numbers are an issue to be delt with.]
My comment was not how many we have lost but it was this "I have seen too many of my brothers and sisters wounded and killed. I can tell you that very few of those deaths were at the hands of al qaeda but by the renegade militas, gangsters and power hungry nationalists."
[All terrorists, with a singular goal: Islamo fascism.]
The WWII comment is not worthy of mentioning for a few reasons. One, I was not truly discussing the number of deaths in any comparison. Two, I at no time acted as a coward in a fire fight or after being attacked but I can tell you that in nearly every Marine's mind, running away is present.
[Not true. We know this for a fact, and you are wrong. Perhaps in YOUR mind, but you know only your mind.]
And three, you have no ground to stand by saying I would crap my pants in WWII when you have not even spent one day on the ground during a war.
[Yes we do. You have posted all of this regret and consternation over this war, but the losses of WWII were much worse and much more horrific.]
You do not know what it is like to have the thought of death in your mind every waking second. You do not know what it is like to feel hot metal enter your body from an IED.
[Fortunately, no.]
Until you get some real time experience, you do not have an ounce of credibility to dress me down.
[This is a tired moonbat/leftist argument that only the military can argue pro or con war and voice support or disdain for war. This is false. I can illustrate why. I don't have to know what being addicted is like to know that addiction to heroin is bad. I do not have to walk in your boots to support this war effectively.]
Until you have walked in my boots, you have no right at all to say that I am a moonbat or a peacenik.
[Sure I do. I have a right to say any damn thing I please.]
I am for ending this war in the best possible circumstances with my brothers and sisters coming home alive and well. If that makes me a peacenik or a moonbat, then you are a fool.
[Unfortunately, the military's job is not to come home safe and well. The military's job is to win the war, put their lives on the line and die for freedom and liberty, if necessary. Keeping the military safe during wartime is not the goal, as nasty as that sounds. The vast majority of the military know this. The military is a volunteer military. Everyone knows going in that the country may ask them to die for liberty.]
First example. Not adjusting to the changing tides of fighting. This administration stood back and ignored the insurrection for the better part of four years while allowing the militias, warlords and gangsters to continue to gather power.
[It takes time to adjust to an enemy like this, an enemy that does not fight war to the tune of the Geneva Convention.]
Two, empty promises of material and equipment. The HUMVEE I was in did not have the proper armor that was REQ'D for over a year.
[What a coincedence - the big leftist mantra, entirely and completely overblown by our leftist media, happened to you. Look, you had what you had. I know some troops that were working and fighting with the same equipment, and they were not complaining - they were doing what had to be done.]
Three, while some of you complained that the scandals involving torture was media made or overblown, we felt the effects of those scandals more than you could ever know. We had crosshairs on us from almost any direction due to those policies.
[You know better. You were in the crosshairs because you are Americans and the islamo fascists do not need to know about "torture" to hate you. They hated you from the get go. YOU KNOW THIS.]
Four, tour extensions and lack of proper down time have made life difficult.
[Moonbat leftists are to blame here. Clinton took apart the military here at home, and leftists in Congress are slow to fund the war effort.]
Five, proper funding for the VA. Walter Reed was just the tip of the iceberg as far as the treatment facilities after coming home.
[Irrelevant - the problems at Reed have been ongoing before and since - this is not acceptable but it's not relevant to the war in Iraq.]
Sgt. jd is a fraud and a liar.
he is quite clearly a left wing moonbat plant.
among his numerous laughable claims is this one;
I have seen too many of my brothers and sisters wounded and killed. I can tell you that very few of those deaths were at the hands of al qaeda but by the renegade militas, gangsters and power hungry nationalists.
Almost all of the so-called insurgents are Al-Queda from other countries. in fact, there really isn't an insurgency going on at all.
and of course the Iraq invasion was justified and of course we are winning....only a slobbering lunatic would claim otherwise.
[We do not believe in a love it or leave it philosophy. We don't know where you got that.]
It is your overall attitude and how it comes across.
[Me personally? This is not about one person. We do not believe that most in the military are aware of Jimmy Z's EXTRA! But we do know that most in the military appreciate people like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingram, Dr. Laura - and while we aren't on the same plane, we certainly are doing the same type of thing. You are in the minority in this attitude, friend.]
There is a difference between you and those mentioned. Those people have actually done something whether it is a visit or putting together drives to send items to the troops. You said that you were doing a great deal and that I did not know what you were doing. Throwing yourself on a bandwagon with the actions of others isn't doing anything but acting as if you are doing something. Words are not actions.
[It is a fact that most in the military are aligned with patriotic conservatives, vote for Republicans, and are disgusted by liberal politicians who are invested in America failing and losing, like Harry Reid. Most is not just 51% either. Most is the VAST majority.]
It is a fact that a vast majority are aligned with patriotic conservatives and vote Republican? I would say a majority of those in the military voting but not a vast majority of all military.
[We do not need to insult. If you see this as an insult, that is your problem.]
Calling me a hysterial moonbat isn't an insult, right? If you are going to insult me, at least back it up like a man instead of backing down.
[The crappola paragraph had everything to do with your comment. The point was, and is, that America's citizens and her military wish to kick ass and win. If the war were being won, and many terrorists and islamo fascists were dying, America would support this war and the president without hesitation. The fact that we are fighting a leftist style, politically correct war is frustrating the military and the American people.]
I would agree to that point minus the "leftist style" comment since we were under the direction of a Republican President and Congress. That is one of my main problems with those who say they support the war and troops but don't see that the problems arose because this President and his staff didn't fight a war with a post invasion strategy in mind.
[More preposterousness! Of course the goals and direction were specific. You dismiss all of the good things that were sought and that have been accomplished. Why would you do that?]
Do not put words in my mouth. I never any such thing. My experience is post invasion in which were not given specific goals and direction besides the stay the course. We reported daily that the shit was going to hit the fan and according to what my CO told me, this was passed up the chain. We still did nothing to curtail the growing strength of militias, warlords and gangsters. You might not believe that or try to place blame on the other party, but the facts are the facts.
[That's KNOW-nothing, and all of a sudden your cover is blown. These are all horrors, but most of the military - perhaps not you - but most of the military sees the big picture. People who have understood the big picture know that we are fortunate to have lost relatively few.]
You are correct, it is know-nothing. I made a typo such as you have on a number of words. I understand the big picture and I have lived it first hand. I also know that the relatively few remark is worthless when it effects you. Crime rate around the country is down but would that make a difference if you were robbed? Answer that honestly.
[Statistics and dry numbers are what the left has concentrated on. Since you see the war from a leftist's viewpoint, you have to understand why the numbers are an issue to be delt with.]
I don't see this war from a leftist viewpoint. I have come to my opinions from my time on the ground and what I have seen. You are the one throwing out statistics to make your case which doesn't work for me.
[All terrorists, with a singular goal: Islamo fascism.]
It is sad that you see this way especially since you are wrong. You can make the claim they are all islamo fascists but their goals are very different. When we met al qaeda, they would fight to the bitter end and then some. You would have to put an extra round in their bodies to make sure they were dead. The militias are different since they will run in a real fire fight.
The gangsters and warlords are completely different since they are controlling the other aspects of Iraq. Collecting protection money from businesses, selling themselves as body guards or just stealing and reselling contraband.
[Not true. We know this for a fact, and you are wrong. Perhaps in YOUR mind, but you know only your mind.]
You are lying. I have never known a Marine who hasn't been scared at the start of a fight or even when you know there is danger near by. You don't know this as a fact nor do you have any idea of knowing it.
[Yes we do. You have posted all of this regret and consternation over this war, but the losses of WWII were much worse and much more horrific.]
Regret and consternation? No. I have seen the face of war and I have lived through hell. At no time did I back down. I don't deny that the losses in WWII were much worse but that still does not mean it lessens the pain of those of us who are or were over there. Can you not understand that?
[This is a tired moonbat/leftist argument that only the military can argue pro or con war and voice support or disdain for war. This is false. I can illustrate why. I don't have to know what being addicted is like to know that addiction to heroin is bad. I do not have to walk in your boots to support this war effectively.]
I did not say that you had to be in the military to voice an opinion on the war. I said, that until you have spent some real time in combat, do not dare question my manhood.
It is easy for you to make comments of supporting the war from home, but less so if you had actual experience. Trust me when I say that I would not wish the memories I have on anyone.
[Sure I do. I have a right to say any damn thing I please.]
Just as I have the right call you out. You seem to think that by calling people names means that you are making a point but you are really showing that you do not have a clue. If you think that I am a moonbat or a peacenik, then you must be a pussy.
[Unfortunately, the military's job is not to come home safe and well. The military's job is to win the war, put their lives on the line and die for freedom and liberty, if necessary. Keeping the military safe during wartime is not the goal, as nasty as that sounds. The vast majority of the military know this. The military is a volunteer military. Everyone knows going in that the country may ask them to die for liberty.]
My wishing for my brothers and sisters to come home safely isn't going against what the military stands for. While we signed up for service and knew that we could be called in at any time, it still doesn't mean that all we want to do is fight. We have families, friends and loved ones that we leave. Our ultimate goal is to come home safely.
[It takes time to adjust to an enemy like this, an enemy that does not fight war to the tune of the Geneva Convention.]
I agree that it takes time but the warnings and the requests for new strategy seemed to be ignored. I did a tour, came home and went back with the same strategy in place. Our enemy was adapting while we were virtually standing still.
[What a coincedence - the big leftist mantra, entirely and completely overblown by our leftist media, happened to you. Look, you had what you had. I know some troops that were working and fighting with the same equipment, and they were not complaining - they were doing what had to be done.]
You are totally clueless. To say that these troops you know did not complain must make them a minority. If you had served, you would know that we complained about everything. Yes, the armor in the HUMVEES were an issue and if you really had a clue you would know that a vast majority -- not 51% -- of HUMVEES in action did not have the proper armor. So me relating my experience of lack of armor is quite common.
We know that we go in with what we have but that still does not matter when we have weapons and equipment that has not been replaced after they were out of commission. Or we are given promises of new materials that never show up. You say you support the troops, then you would not be ignoring that we need new and better equipment. Calling it overblown is simply idiotic.
[You know better. You were in the crosshairs because you are Americans and the islamo fascists do not need to know about "torture" to hate you. They hated you from the get go. YOU KNOW THIS.]
Maybe I didn't explain myself in that example. After the news of the torture and so on, the people who were nice or acting like they respected us no longer acted that way. We gained new people to worry about.
[Moonbat leftists are to blame here. Clinton took apart the military here at home, and leftists in Congress are slow to fund the war effort.]
Blame. Blame. Blame. You seem to have this problem in blaming Clinton and the democrats at the drop of a hat but refuse to see that not all of the problems were caused by them. I am fairly apolitical but I call bullshit when I see it. The continal blame the other side is meaningless when you are the one being used as a pawn.
[Irrelevant - the problems at Reed have been ongoing before and since - this is not acceptable but it's not relevant to the war in Iraq.]
It is relevant whether it was happening before. We come home as the warriors that you say you support to conditions that were not up to par. The problem with Walter Reed is that it is run by bureaucrats, and bureaucrats are incapable of running anything efficiently.
Ok, this will be it - I'll close with a few final comments here but we're starting to go 'round in circles; there's little need for more.
* * *
[We do not believe in a love it or leave it philosophy. We don't know where you got that.]
It is your overall attitude and how it comes across.
[[That's what you say, yet the general attitude is no more than "we are right about this." We are certain that the confidence can be annoying to those on the left, but it is confidence that comes simply from being right.]]
[...But we do know that most in the military appreciate people like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingram, Dr. Laura - and while we aren't on the same plane, we certainly are doing the same type of thing. You are in the minority in this attitude, friend.]
There is a difference between you and those mentioned. Those people have actually done something whether it is a visit or putting together drives to send items to the troops.
[[And this comment of yours illustrates beautifully all you do NOT know about what we have done, and continue to do, to support the military we appreciate. You assume much, and you know so little.]]
You said that you were doing a great deal and that I did not know what you were doing. Throwing yourself on a bandwagon with the actions of others isn't doing anything but acting as if you are doing something. Words are not actions.
[[I'm not a great radio host, true, but to the extent of where I can be involved, I am involved. Your assumptions about me are personal and not your business, at all, but you make it a big part of what you post here. You're getting off the topic. Fact: I am involved, greatly, and it is not even the point. My viewpoint on the war is NOT made more relevant by what I do in working with the military.]]
[It is a fact that most in the military are aligned with patriotic conservatives, vote for Republicans, and are disgusted by liberal politicians who are invested in America failing and losing... ]
It is a fact that a vast majority are aligned with patriotic conservatives and vote Republican? I would say a majority of those in the military voting but not a vast majority of all military.
[[You'd be wrong.]]
[We do not need to insult. If you see this as an insult, that is your problem.]
Calling me a hysterial moonbat isn't an insult, right? If you are going to insult me, at least back it up like a man instead of backing down.
[[No, it's an observation.]]
[That's KNOW-nothing, and all of a sudden your cover is blown. These are all horrors, but most of the military - perhaps not you - but most of the military sees the big picture. People who have understood the big picture know that we are fortunate to have lost relatively few.]
You are correct, it is know-nothing. I made a typo such as you have on a number of words.
[[You do that one often. *L*]]
I understand the big picture and I have lived it first hand. I also know that the relatively few remark is worthless when it effects you. Crime rate around the country is down but would that make a difference if you were robbed? Answer that honestly.
[[Of course not, but at the same time, crime will never be foiled 100% of the time.]]
[Statistics and dry numbers are what the left has concentrated on. Since you see the war from a leftist's viewpoint, you have to understand why the numbers are an issue to be delt with.]
I don't see this war from a leftist viewpoint. I have come to my opinions from my time on the ground and what I have seen. You are the one throwing out statistics to make your case which doesn't work for me.
[[It ought to - Perspective is vital to understanding.]]
[All terrorists, with a singular goal: Islamo fascism.]
It is sad that you see this way especially since you are wrong. You can make the claim they are all islamo fascists but their goals are very different.
[[It IS islamo fascism whether you think so or not.]]
[Not true. We know this for a fact, and you are wrong. Perhaps in YOUR mind, but you know only your mind.]
You are lying. I have never known a Marine who hasn't been scared at the start of a fight or even when you know there is danger near by.
[[Not what you said. You said 'in nearly every Marine's mind, running away is present.' I doubt that.]]
I said, that until you have spent some real time in combat, do not dare question my manhood.
[[We question that you are who you say you are. Your manhood we are not interested in.]]
...If you think that I am a moonbat or a peacenik, then you must be a pussy.
[[But I can point to a lot of moonbatty tendencies in your words. As far as being a pussy, that's another assumption you've made and you'd be incorrect.]]
[Unfortunately, the military's job is not to come home safe and well. The military's job is to win the war, put their lives on the line and die for freedom and liberty, if necessary. Keeping the military safe during wartime is not the goal, as nasty as that sounds. The vast majority of the military know this. The military is a volunteer military. Everyone knows going in that the country may ask them to die for liberty.]
My wishing for my brothers and sisters to come home safely isn't going against what the military stands for. While we signed up for service and knew that we could be called in at any time, it still doesn't mean that all we want to do is fight. We have families, friends and loved ones that we leave. Our ultimate goal is to come home safely.
[[AFTER the job is done, as most any Marine will tell you.]]
Maybe I didn't explain myself in that example. After the news of the torture and so on, the people who were nice or acting like they respected us no longer acted that way. We gained new people to worry about.
[[Blame your leftwing media for that, then. I personally appreciate the 'waterboarding' or whatever that led to information to protect Americans.]]
Blame. Blame. Blame. You seem to have this problem in blaming Clinton and the democrats at the drop of a hat but refuse to see that not all of the problems were caused by them.
[[Most of the world's ills are caused by people who think like Clinton democrats.]]
I am fairly apolitical but I call bullshit when I see it.
[[Your apolitical stance has led to writing long posts about politics?]]
The continal blame the other side is meaningless when you are the one being used as a pawn.
[[No, when someone is to blame, it's right to point out their errors. The left will point and blame people who are NOT responsible, like Ray Nagin did - when it was his stupidity that led to big problems in New Orleans.]]
Thanks.
Post a Comment