It’s Not About Israel, Stupid — It’s About Us
When is the last time any of the four candidates visited Walter Reed Medical Center in suburban Washington? If they did it in recent months, I haven’t seen any press coverage of it. We go. Barbara is involved in a Marine parents group that brings burritos, sweets, fresh fruit, and drinks on Sundays to the wounded and their families and helps family members cope with the medical bureaucracy and the many opportunities this area offers. I’m sorry to tell you that the intensive care unit is very active. There are lots of wounded warriors out there, flown in from Afghanistan, whence we are in full retreat.
Aside from the military, and military families, nobody seems to care. I quite understand why the Obama people want it to be that way — it’s not helpful to the reelection effort — but it’s not at all pleasant to try to understand why the Republicans and the journalists are complicit in the great silence that envelops the sacrifice of the best Americans of this generation. Yes, there have been stories about American soldiers assassinated by Afghans they were training, and every now and then we hear about the extraordinary level of mayhem in Iraq, but I search in vain for serious, sustained reports on what is going on, and why, and what it means. Andrew Malcolm is one of the very few who hears the silence.
What is going on?
We are in full retreat, and our enemies are blowing up our guys, and our would-be friends and allies. That’s inevitable, because our enemies want to win and our commander-in-chief wants to retreat. You don’t have to be a grand strategist to understand this. Our youngest child is a Marine lieutenant who recently returned, along with 1,500 of his comrades, from a forward operating base in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. During his eight-month deployment, there were no casualties. Not one, not even due to an accident. Much of his time was spent organizing the retreat, and today there are roughly 150 Marines where there used to be 1,500. And there are casualties, because the 150 Marines are under attack. The Taliban, who had learned that it’s not attractive to challenge a significant group of Marines, feel a lot better about attacking a significantly smaller number of them. And the locals, who had learned that it’s a very good thing to work with the Marine Corps, now see that the Marines are retreating and the Taliban are returning. The Taliban have a much easier time enlisting the locals’ support.
If you were an Afghan, you’d cooperate with your soon-to-be rulers, too, wouldn’t you?
And so violence mounts, and the ICU at Bethesda Naval fills up. Iraq provides the template: we left, the terrorists returned, and the morgues and hospitals fill up. The locals cooperate with the terrorists. The only “good news” is that the Iraqi casualties are Iraqis. There is similar “good news” from Syria: it’s Syrians that are being slaughtered, not Americans, and there are many, altogether too many, Americans who take comfort from that “good news,” and want to keep it that way. They don’t care very much about Syrians or Iraqis.
But they don’t care very much about Americans either. If they did, they’d be demanding that we take out all the American troops now, rather than diminishing their numbers slowly until the 2014 “final withdrawal” date our leaders have announced. They’d say what military moms and dads say: if we’re going to fight, so be it. But if we’re retreating, then why are you leaving — as at that FOB in Helmand — one-tenth of our guys to endure the inevitable slaughter our enemies are so eager to inflict on us? And they would point out, as the aforementioned Mr. Malcolm does, that “We’ve had 100,000 troops fighting and dying and bleeding in Afghanistan. About 2,000 Americans have perished there since 9/11….It took 108 months for those U.S. fatalities to reach 1,000. It’s taken only 27 months under Iraq-war opponent Obama to surpass 2,000 deaths.”
First, thank Gd for the safe return of Lt. Ledeen, USMC from deadly Helmand. You are too modest to note that you have another son and a daughter who are also veterans of our recent wars. Second, Gd bless you and Mrs. Ledeen for visiting our wounded troops. Too few Americans give a damn. There are honorable exceptions such as http://mainetroopgreeters.smugmug.com/ who have come out at all hours and all sorts of Bangor, Maine weather to greet troops (and the occasional civilian advisor) deploying via aircraft to or returning from OIF and OEF.
The under strength conditions in RC-S you are reporting remind me of RC-E in 2011 when President BHO decided not to support a troop surge in both critical Afghan fronts (RC-S and RC-E), left RC-E w/o reinforcement and actually began the w/draw during the 2011 summer fighting season. Is it any wonder that the Haqqani Network (based in Afghanistan in the Loya Paktia region of RC-E) has apparently roared back to life in the last few years?
Of course you bring it back to Iran. I’ve disagreed somewhat with your policy recommendations on Iran (no US bombing) but your longtime focus on the mullahs as our main enemy has been prescient. One hundred years from now if anyone is permitted to write the history of the early 21st century, you will have a place of honor as prophet who was an ignored.
I continue to be struck by the cowardice of most of our political/national security/academic and media classes on Iran, in contrast to the heroism of our troops in the field in OIF and OEF. They won all the battles and it is us who are giving up in the larger war. It brings to mind the title of the memoirs of brilliant German general, von Manstein, victor of many battles for Germany in WWII. He called his book, “Lost Victories” (I know v. Manstein was a disgusting suck-up to apologist for the Nazis, but that is besides this point).
thanks, MarcH. again, I do NOT want to bomb Iran. I want to help the iranian people overthrow the regime. On WWII, the Germans never had a chance. We just overwhelmed them, and they stupidly invaded the Soviet Union just in time for the winter. No cure for megalomaniacal stupidity, I’m happy to say…you’re right about the Haqqanis.
“I do NOT want to bomb Iran”
ML – Your record is very clear on that point. I respectfully disagree. I wish we had aggressively supported the Iranian opposition even as late as 2009. To our great shame and probably eventual great regret, we didn’t. I think the hour is now very late and pray for 30 days of precise but heavy B2 strikes, hopefully also directed against the mullah government and IRGC and combined w/aid to the opposition.
“the Germans never had a chance”.
W/all due respect, I am not so sure. For example Andrew Roberts recently made a strong case that it could have gone the other way (http://www.andrew-roberts.net/pages/books/the_storm_of_war.asp ).
Dr. Ledeen
You know better than anyone, it’s not about megalomania; it’s about power and which side will survive on the battle of life and death. In many years you’ve always said” it’s a war, which side will win and which side will go to hell”, so imagine would it be Israel?! Ha? Would be her to burn completely like a burning radioactive hell? Ha?! Or not? Did you see? It’s terrible, like a nightmare. Mullah’s are doing the correct process to approach their aim, they wish and will to strike all the cities of Israel, they have some warhead, but they are about five or three nukes, it’s not enough for a full attack and highly impressive Shiite war against Zionism, they want to make those nuke independently on their own. This nightmare will happen, how much to run away of that, it will come after Jews destiny faster, you know this, you are an expert in history stream, it will happen at last, definitely without any doubt. Just one way will remain, confrontation, as you always noted. Mullah’s never quit or surrounded, they sworn to harm Israel by anyhow they can, it’s better that it’ll be some radioactive burn, instead of little suicide bombing. That’ll give them some orgasmic pleasure! Whether themselves launching or those lunatic Arabs do it in their favor. It can vaporize a city like Tel Aviv completely to clouds flying to sky like a mushroom cloud smoke. Now results after the roadmap= 1-stay and fight a sort of confrontation or prevention entire Iranian military and atomic sites bombardment 2- stand aside, and look to future how Israel will lose her charming face by some atomic hellish burning! And after that a chain reaction of revenge will start… maybe Tehran targeted in response by Titans or Tritons!. You know, nearly it was happen by Saddam Hussein. But Khomeini heard about that and drank the Hemlock glass! You know doctor, in my view, prediction or anticipation is not more than feeling the future energetic waves, how much they’ll be more powerful, it made me piss on my pants more shockingly! Recently, for a while some nights I wake up of it nightmare so much terribly! I’m feeling its energy, it is coming. Where is almighty to help us? I don’t know.
Oh wow how much did Ledeen pay you to post this offering?
Since this POV reflects all my postings on security affairs at PJM, yours is a stupid question. But if you would like to hire me in an analyst role, my CONUS rate is an annualized salary of apx. USD 120,000 (but for you I’ll make it USD 150,000). I don’t think you can manage that on a barista salary.
Dear MarcH, yes, indeed thanks G-d for the safe return of Lt. Ledeen. And thanks G-d that Great country still has an noble and honorable sons who fiercely defend its Greatness, such as Dr. Ledeen’s family. “Yeah, these Cubs are from those Lions!!!”
Dr. Ledeen is in OUR SIGHT more than a prophet. He is struggling hard for a great and sacred thing called (FREEDOM. Whatever the means are, but the end desired is noble. The history of Dr. Ledeen in the eyes of those who adore (LIFE & FREEDOM) is a Great, and this thing SHOULD NOT BE NEGLECTED by history!!!
As for morons as the naive analyst (haha). I would like to tell them an great Italian proverb, says (the mother of idiots is always pregnant) and unfortunately today “therein lies the BIG PROBLEM!!!?”
yes she is … thank you … cheers
It is my understanding the ROE are the biggest problem. DaOne is causing injuries, and death due to them.
Syria stated if Americans entered their civil war with boots on the ground, there would be war outside of Syria. Are the Hizboallah sleeper terror cells waiting to cause hate, and murder inside these United States?
As to your question re sleeper cells – yes, indeed. Please see my blog commentary. And, you can take it to the bank -http://adinakutnicki.com/2012/07/19/northeast-intelligence-network-digs-deeper-deeper-and-do-americans-know-who-their-neighbors-are-the-jihadists-next-door-compounds-galore-hezbollah-cells-too-commentary-by-adina-k-136/
And, it is important to note that the Islamist-in-Chief is incapable of being the Commander-in-Chief. Therefore, soldiers are getting blown to bits under his watch as he turns tail!
Read – http://adinakutnicki.com/2012/08/09/the-anti-american-commander-in-chief-tasks-his-military-brass-to-do-what-pouring-fuel-onto-a-combustible-flame-law-of-intended-consequences-commentary-by-adina-kutnicki/
IMHO the biggest problem is, as Ledeen makes a career of pointing out, that we don’t see Iraq, Afghanistan, Gaza, Lebanon, etc. as unified fronts in a war against Khomenist Iran, but instead as separate “small wars”. With respect to Afghanistan, the current commander, Gen. Allen identifies insurgent safe havens in adjacent countries (Pakistan and Iran) and corruption (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/mar/22/allen-corruption-safe-havens-block-afghan-success/).
We were able to make some progress in Iraq against corruption in 2007/08 when the perception among the locals was that we were “the Strongest Tribe” and would be in the country for many years. I can’t entirely blame an Afghan for not wanting to give up a patronage network which is the guarantee for the survival of him and his clan when we give every impression that we are pulling out ASAP.
I don’t agree that ROE are a problem in Afghanistan nor were they in Iraq (although they can be extremely frustrating for conventional units). This is because the vast majority of operations there are not conventional fighting where, for example, we are taking persistent heavy fire from a mosque but can’t do anything about it. Of course the insurgents do take advantage of our ROE, but local success in both wars depended on cooperation and intelligence from the locals and that is not secured by relatively indiscriminate heavy firepower. Of course killing of insurgent key players is crucial but that was mostly done by SoF (according to the newspapers) and can depend to a great extent on intelligence from locals.
I’m not defending how our campaigns in these countries have played out, just giving my opinion that the biggest problem is the safe havens (and the accompanying image of American impotence) that the INS enjoyed in adjacent states (Iran, Syria, Pakistan).
The enemy just planted an IED, and is walking away. They can not be shot, because they are walking away. The enemy laid down their weapon, and is walking away. They can not be shot, because they laid down their weapon. The enemy fired on American forces from a building. The enemy can not be destroyed by HE as there maybe civilians in that building. These are three examples in Afganistan.
In Iraq, why were Americans going house to house? Urban warfare is a waste. What should have happen, is three days for everyone to come through check points, then level the area with the enemy inside. But, I guess it is better to risk American lives by going house to house. They might like us more.
The ROE as a Platoon Sgt. appear FUBAR to me. Perhaps, we should ask the families of the dead, and wounded from Iraq, and Afganistan how they feel ROE should be.
Leatherneck – I’m familiar w/the ROE and have worked at platoon and company level as an advisor. I am not saying they are even close to perfect. I would also say the job we expect conventional infantry to do in Iraq and Afghanistan is tremendously difficult and not what they were trained for.
My point is that to get the intelligence to accurately locate and target key insurgent leaders by/SoF and to ultimately re-align bring tribes and sub-tribes away from the insurgency it is necessary to genuinely convince them that you are formidable and competent. Hosing down impoverished 15 y.o.’s who you suspect of emplacing IEDs (and if they did they may well have been trying to earn the money for their families to eat and/or their families may have been threatened) is counter-productive. Afghanistan has a very large supply of impoverished 15 yo’s.
If it is not clear from my posts on this and other threads I think we royally screwed up Iraq and Afghanistan, but it wasn’t because of bad ROEs.
That’s an interesting development. I don’t recall too many tales of sweating the socio-economic status of potential enemy combatants during the Vietnam era.
“I don’t recall too many tales of sweating the socio-economic status of potential enemy combatants during the Vietnam era”
I’m sure that is correct, although there were other ROE issues during Vietnam (such as during bombing of North). Nevertheless, the issue is not PC or not PC, but what works.
The Soviet tactic of hosing down everything in sight and leaving large areas waste lands did not seem to be too successful.
On the other hand, perhaps both the USSR and US campaigns ultimately failed due to inability to tackle cross-border sanctuaries.
It is about Israel,that’s where America’s final descent began to speed up.
I’m a Christian,American, USAF vet, 72′-76′. In March in 96′ I was in Jerusalem on a tour with my Church from the Orlando Florida area and was awakened in my Ariel Hotel room by a bomb blast on a Jerusalem bus not far away on Jaffa street and Sari Yisrael. I’d been to Israel a few times before and decided to break away from the cocooned group and find out what happened on my own.
What I saw I will never forget but what I saw my government do to Israel I fight against it every day of my life now.
We restrained Israel from defeating these cowardly murderers of women and children and rewarded these vile hate filled Muslims as US policy against Israel.
Not long after this I KNEW God would repay the U.S. in kind and send American’s into the bowels of that same Islamic world to die and it’s only going to get much worse for us because of our evil and stupidity of rewarding the Palestinian’s who worship death and name their streets after their suicide bomber children of women and children.
It’s happened just as I saw back then,we are sowing what we have been reaping and it is all about Israel.
‘but I search in vain for serious, sustained reports on what is going on’
A decaying collapsing empire does not like to be reminded.
This latest policy failure where lives and wealth were squandered for nothing but the arrogance and stupidity of nefarious politicians makes them ashamed to show their faces before these sacrificed for nothing honorable men.
I like your comment- b/c I have been saying, yelling, shrinking since 9-11 is that USA is Israel now. And what I see is that the majority of America is holding their fingers in their ears singing la la la so they cannot, will not hear me- and the same voted for the Muslim lover and his Iran raised momma figure.
we are doomed to repeat b/c our people do not know history and have decided to re-write is as they wish it was
Sirhan Sirhan what year was that? hostage crisis, bombs at Towers 1983- never ending JIHAD
I have a big problem with attacking Iran! No,i have 2 big problems! First i have 5 sons of age.Second, Carter and hugobama have tried their best to prove how weak we are. We are the problem! Do we back Israel,not at all but we do our best to restrain them. And insult them. Want our scorn, then become a Democracy in the middle east. Most everyone voting for the o is voting for a government paycheck or a skin color! Where was the wonderful o when the students in Iran were being gunned down in full view on every media? MUMBLING!
i don’t want to attack Iran. I want to support the millions of iranians who want to bring down the regime. gotta keep saying it, sorry.
Dont be sorry i agree !
As a person with intimate familiarity of the military, and after living in the ME for a few years, I wholeheartedly agree. As long as there are people who are willing and can disrupt the regime from within, we should support them. A few million dollars worth of support in money, training and resources would go a lot further than the equivalent costs of putting bombs on target.
I love all your articles. Personally, I want to help all the Iranians striving for freedom, but I also want to kill all the Iranians preventing them. Bomb the hell out of them and apologize for the mistakes. The people in Afghanistan understand one thing(as do all Muslims), the guy who will kill you is much more important than the guy who won’t kill you- kill them until they understand how important you are or get the hell out of there.
I respect that position, but am curious what aggressive actions you’d like the US to take to achieve such ends.
Harry, i have said dozens of times, for years, that we should support revolutionary forces–and there are lots of them–in Iran. Just as we did in the Soviet bloc.
Dr. Ledeen,
For clarity’s sake; It is understood that you advocate efforts to support the Iranian opposition. What is your position on Afghanistan? Do you advocate immediate evacuation? Or do you believe that there is something to be gained there, if we make a stronger commitment, or employ different tactics?
The news media gleefully keeps a running body count of those KIAs when there is an evil republican president, but what they don’t report are the numbers of wounded. There are something like twenty times more maimed and wounded, some 40,000 wounded, missing limbs, head injuries, and barely a mention.
It’s why you never want to go to war, you try to avoid it when possible, when when you have no other choice, you go in it TO WIN IT! or stay home. Anti war protesters in the street are giving aid and comfort the the enemy and should be locked up with that enemy until hostilities are concluded. Yet politicians are more afraid of the anti-war protesters and the news media than they are afraid of enemies of the nation.
Yet politicians are more afraid of the anti-war protesters and the news media than they are afraid of enemies of the nation.
And thus become enemies of the nation. IMHO.
Either fight to win or don’t fight.
The way to win a war is to make the other side want to stop fighting. Having ROE’s that put our troops at a disadvantage is not fighting to win. It’s fighting to lose. The way to win is with overwhelming force and violence. Winning hearts and minds of people that prefer to live under sharia is not how you win a war.
That’s how we won WWI & II, that’s how we won in Granada, that’s how we won the first Iraq war (although we didn’t finish it as many of us thought we should do). Trying to win hearts and minds, and passifying the media is how we lost Vietnam, created a 60 year tie in Korea, how we ended up scurrying out of Lebanon (after the loss of a barracks full of marines) and ended up with what we have going in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Fight to win or don’t fight.
My daughter recently returned from Afghanistan, and what she had to say changed my perspective slightly. I fully agree with you — get our people out now! My daughter has lost friends over there — people who should not have died. Most recently a dog handler that she knew at Camp Pendleton and his dog were casualties. She is furious at the lethal policies that are needlessly killing young men and women.
If we were over there to win, I could support the war with enthusiasm, but we aren’t. We’re there now just to get killed.
Get our troops out of there. Immediately.
For someone who wants to completely disarm and transform the USA, enabling the systematic elimination of its warrior class by setting them up for slaughter like fish in a barrel is simply all in a day’s work.
“We hear that there are tumults and riots in Rome, and that voices are raised concerning the army and the quality of our soldiers. Make haste to reassure us that you love and support us as we love and support you, but if we find that we have left our bones to bleach in these sands in vain, then beware the fury of the legions.”
I think if my child were killed by an afghan “ally’ — and only because our “strategists” are intent on pretending we can train them to become allies — I would be tempted to blow something up here. For these children to be killed for no purpose other than to make incumbent presidents, generals, bureaucrats, et al look competent is a sin. One day, a president and a military will have to face the people and either announce that we are compelled to fight a very big war or face the people and announce we have lost a very big war.
‘One day, a president and a military will have to face the people’
Why do you think DHS,SSA,NWS,etc. are buying up all the hollow point ammo,they have to face us with something more convincing than their B.S.
There was a huge internet buzz during the Clinton administration when HHS was training and arming agents for CCW. There was a lot of speculation on why, but the buzz was eventually drowned out by OKC, Waco, and the sex scandals.
I can’t say I’m ashamed of it, but I’m not proud of it either. My Army infantryman son was coming to the end of his contract in the summer of ’08 and we talked a good bit about re-upping or getting out. He’d done a turn somewhere out of Kandahar and lost some buddies to IEDs but felt pretty good, too good, I thought, about their ability to handle Haji in any real fight. He’d also done a turn in Kosovo. He wasn’t unhappy with Army life and actually seemed to enjoy being in the war zones. He is one of those guys that could stay in twenty years and at best come out a Specialist; he’d go downrange get commendations and promotions, come back to Germany, get in a bar fight, and get busted back to nothing. But, he seemed content with it. I encouraged him not to re-up. I told him that as an experienced infantryman, he carried a SAW, he’d soon be back in Afghanistan or in Iraq and with the likelihood of a Democrat becoming President, he’d have no bullets in his SAW and a JAG on his shoulder. Hate to have been so right. He hasn’t adapted to civilian life particularly well, but I’m afraid he’d be dead if he’d stayed in.
4 years as an 11B with a combat tour in ‘stan is enough honor for anyone. Gd bless him.
If your son needs to dial down the bar time a bit you may wish to remind him of the Army cadence: “the moral of the story is clear, instead of bourbon, stick to beer (http://www.military-quotes.com/forum/prettiest-girl-t4200.html )”;-)
Until a few years down the road you figure out that most of beer is water, water = latrine trips, so for more popskull with fewer interrupting latrine trips, stick to bourbon… I prefer the cheap stuff as my liver doesn’t care how much I spent.
What, this isn’t Vodkapundit’s blog? My bad 
They wouldn’t have LET him stay in for 20 years as only an E-4. You get bounced out after 10 if you don’t make and keep E-5.
Glad he made it!!!
Dear Art, as an ex-0311 in the Marines, please tell your son that while he was in it was good to be the best he could be. It kept him alive. Now, the best that he can do is to raise the glass one more time and salute missing friends and then go home. I believe that to a man they would tell him that he’s paid a price for all of us and it’s time to start living for himself. Looking back forty years on those few days (13 months), who would have thought that I still look up when I hear a low flying helicopter. Not so much nowadays as the newer helicopters have a different sound. But even so, when I do hear a UH-1 (Huey), I still remember. Vividly. Tell him to raise his glass one more time in salute. And go home.
Semper Fi brother.
This is simply the single best article I’ve – ever – read about our West/Central Asian involvement.
Our Obama “administration” in Washington is a travesty. The absolute nadir of “government”.
thanks. most grateful, charlie.
+1 thanks mr ledeen for speaking truth
One of these days, a whole bunch of our young people are going to pay a big price for the foolishness of the last 4 years.
I wish that the 65 million people who voted for him had a disproportionate number of their young in the military. Alas, it probably goes the other way.
Bitter? Me bitter?
Yep.
“And the locals, who had learned that it’s a very good thing to work with the Marine Corps, now see that the Marines are retreating and the Taliban are returning. The Taliban have a much easier time enlisting the locals’ support.”
Or, here’s a thought. How come the locals don’t fight the Taliban on their own? How come they either don’t join the Afghan Army (what a joke), or take matters into their own hands and fight the Taliban? This is what I’ll never understand about the Afghan people. They obviously know what the Taliban are all about. They obviously know what psychotic maniacs they are and what they are capable of doing. And they also know what life would be like under a government run by the Taliban. And yet they never fight to defeat the Taliban. If they hated them so much, we would have won the war of “hearts and minds” years ago. We would have had an Afghan Army that was dedicated to the extermination of the Taliban and we would have had a civilian population that would have embraced the Americans and would have spied and informed on the Taliban, allowing us to destroy them.
But no. All we get is whining and wimpering from the Afghans. They expect us to do all the heavy lifting and all of the fighting and just hand them a free and stable country. Well, newsflash to all Afghans, the price of freedom is high and you have to earn it in order to keep it. You have to fight for it, nurture it, and protect it. And, most of all, you have to be willing to fight for something bigger than yourself, for the concept of a united country that rejects tyranny and dictatorships.
Do we have such people living in Afghanistan? Not by a long shot. If we did, the Taliban would have had no volunteers and their supplies and cooperation from the local population would have dried up months ago. But all we get are a collection of pathetic little tribes and warlords fighting for their own small section of turf in a land that will forever be trapped in the Thirteenth century.
It was always a crime the way the war in Afghanistan was fought, both under Bush and Obama. Bush never put the resources needed into winning the fight, and Obama couldn’t wait to get out of there. The only reason why Obama sent any troops into Afghanistan was because he was trapped by his own words, pandering to his base by admonishing Bush by calling Afghanistan the “right” or “good” war while slamming the war in Iraq. It’s hard to run away from Afghanistan when you’ve spent most of your political life saying we should win there. Which is what makes Obama’s retreat from that country even more hateful and despicable. He obviously never meant what he said and only said it to get votes, which makes him a worthless liar and a person who was willing the risk American military lives to promote his own political career. What do you call scum like that?
If Bush wanted to win the war in Afghanistan, he would have declared war in 2001 and sent in a million troops to totally pacify the country. And he should have made it clear that the Afghans would either unconditionally surrender or be killed. Unconditional surrender was what we should have demanded back in 2001 and the world would have eagerly supported us. And we should NOT have gotten involved in Iraq until the war in Afghanistan was won.
That’s how you win wars, by treating a war like a war, and not like some sort of United Nations humanitarian mission. You kill the enemy, you seize and hold the land, and you keep up the pressure until the other side gives up. And you make it clear to the Afghans that you don’t care if you have to incinerate the whole country in order to win. We did exactly that to Japan during World War II and Japan, after we incinerated two cities with atom bombs, got the message and gave up. We were NOT trying to win “hearts and minds,” we were not fighting to give women the right to vote or to abolish sharia law, and we were not in the business of negotiating terms of surrender with the enemy. And failure was NOT an option. THAT is how you win a war.
What we have in Afghanistan is a Vietnam of our own making, what you get when you try to fight a politically correct war rather than a military one. It’s about time we just leave and stop sustaining any more losses. The Taliban will take over once we clear out, so we may as well just get it over with and go. That worthless “country” isn’t worth the life of one more American soldier. And with the way the war was fought, it never was.
Isn’t that what happened in Vietnam? Of course right now we do not have a Republican as President that had to take over but instead we have a Democrat and you hear no casualty reports, no Code Pink, no nothing at all. I hop Romney win and then goes in and cleans house in Afghanistan or leaves it in ruins and then when what dust is left settles then promptly takes our troops out and says this is how a real Commander in Chief does things!
we were not fighting to give women the right to vote or to abolish sharia law,
But MacArthur did mandate that the new Japanese constitution would not treat the emperor as a diety and the constitution would not be based on shintoism. Shintoism is what gave the emperor his authority over the people and it’s what made them fanatically willing to die for him.
In Afghanistan and Iraq, we let them base their new constitutions on sharia. Sharia by the way it treats women and non muslims is incompatible with democracy. By letting them base the constitution on sharia, the whole “bringing democracy and freedom to the hearts and minds of the people” was doomed from the get go.
That’s a mistake MacArthur didn’t make in Japan.
What has concerned me about the draw downs is that it won’t be long before the troops end up trapped in their bases because they don’t have enough strength patrol their local areas or man the perimeters. The troops are nearly at that level now because Obama has been replacing US soldiers with Afghans at the base gates. The more the troops are bunkered up, the closer the Taliban will close in. Eventually they’ll get up the nerve to start making stronger attacks. We’ve already seen that they can close the passes into Pakistan, a country not particularly friendly toward us. The same applies to the troops left in Iraq. The only thing saving them right now is there are still enough numbers and drones.
ROE are a problem as they usually are. The ROE are written by generals and politicians far away from the front to cover their political careers. Dead soldiers tend to be ignored by the media, at least under Obama, but dead “civilians?” they’d be all over that like vultures, well maybe not under Obama.
But yes, we are in retreat. This often happens under Democrats where they weaken the country so severely that nations which would otherwise be cowed get ideas and eventually go to war. They’ll bleat about peace and staying out of it, but the US always gets dragged in and we take a heavy beating because the troops are poorly trained and equipped. The other situation has affected both parties: getting us involved in “little wars” and trying to fight it on the cheap, then the wars turn out to be big ones. Korea, Vietnam, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan. If those have been taken seriously from the beginning, things might have turned out differently, but the “It’ll be over by Christmas” and “do it on the cheap” snares got them.
The problem is the Moslem mind set. It only took a handle full of box cutters to bring down the twin towers and kill 3000 people. As a people and as a nation we really hurt over the death of those people. On the other hand, fly an F-16 over an area and drop a 2000 lb. bomb and if its a densely populated area you’ll only kill a hundred or so. With all our technology, our money, our know how, at best we kill a hand full compared to what was done in 9-11. Kill those people and the Moslems rejoice because they are martyrs. The only thing they respect is if they are told, “behave or you will not have a future….collectively”. Then they understand. Anything else is a sign of weakness and is to be exploited.
Andy Gump, I don’t believe in “the Muslim mind set.” I do believe in what that great thinker, Laurent Murawiec, called “The Mind of Jihad.” You would greatly enjoy his book with that title…try it. It gets inside that Jihadi/Leftist alliance thing. I have a few remarks about it in the latest online issue of “Foreign Affairs.”
Can you post a link to that article? I can’t seem to find it.
Maybe one should read this MEMRI dispatch
Responding to the violence in Syria, he recently penned an article titled “The Crimes Of The Regime And Of The Opposition,” which was posted on the liberal Arabic-language website Elaph
So maybe “mindset” is correct although not quite so PC.
In the matter of “green on blue” attacks, yes they are real (a colleague of mine was killed in RC-N in one).
But, it should also be noted that many Afghans (and Iraqis) have risked everything to support us and have often paid the price. There were Afghan security and military officials and community leaders who stuck their necks out in early 2011 on our behalf because they didn’t parse President BHO’s statements like a Harvard lawyer and recognize that he was going to pull the rug out from under them.
I have spent time receiving hospitality and chai from ANP commanders w/me, a translator and a pistol surrounded by several dozen Afghan local police recruits. On other occasions I went on joint missions w/Afghan prosecutors and security officials who I trusted to remote and dangerous locations and felt comfortable enough sharing a room w/them. One does what the mission calls for. For every green on blue attack there are green on green attacks. Despite everything, we beat back the insurgency in 2011. By late 2011 betrayal and suicide bombs were mostly the only effective weapons they had left. Of course since we are in full retreat from the ME that is all now a moot point.
i agree, MarcH. We won in Iraq and we won in several areas of Afghanistan. Some years ago I wrote a book called “Freedom Betrayed,” about how we won the Cold War, inspired a global democratic revolution…and walked away. And here we go again. Democracies’ weak point is foreign policy. Just ask Tocqueville.
Dear Michael, and you (Americans) along with a few of your allies liberated Europeans from the most evil regime in human history (the European’s Nazi)…there is NO real freedom on the face of the earth without the help of Americans!!!
Have it on my shelf … also Machiavelli and Tocqueville. IMHO, they were some of the best of the Ledeen opus and plan to give them to my kids when they are taking the relevant college undergrad course in a few years, Gd willing. Looking forward to the Naples book someday … hope you have a chapter each on cuisine and organized crime.
thanks so much. the Naples book of course has a full chapter on organized crime, and several sections on food, including mozzarella (where did the buffaloes come from?), pizza, etc.
“several sections on food, including mozzarella (where did the buffaloes come from?), pizza, etc” … can smell it already and will gain 5 lbs reading it …
MICHAEL: First, may God bless you and your brave son. And I mean that.
SECOND: why isn’t Romney screaming at the top of his lungs that Obama blew a wonderful opportunity to vocalize his support for the Iranian uprising a few years back? It took Obama 10 days, if I recall correctly, to publicly discuss the topic, and all he said was something along the lines of “we’re monitoring the situation”. No words of support, no pledge of prayers, nada. The simple verbal support of the most powerful man in the world would have done wonders for the morale of the brave Iranian student protestors. What a wasted opportunity!
CONVERSELY: Obama had much to say publicly about the lawful ousting of that tyrant-wanna-be Manuel Zelaya. You remember Zelaya, right? The former president of Honduras who openly proclaimed his Marxist beliefs and tried to run for President of Honduras a third time, despite a constitutional term-limit on such a run? The Honduran supreme court came down hard on Zelaya and he was expelled from Honduras. Remember how Obama went bonkers, demanding a return of Zelaya to Honduras and threatening sanctions over the “illegal ousting”? Did that single episode not clearly show Obama’s true stripes? Why is the Republican establishment avoiding ALL talk on this most telling event?
you talking about those wonderful Bushies?
having spent some time in Latin America, in particular Nicaragua and Guatemala, and knowing VERY well a number of people in both nations, I was particularly interested and encouraged when the Zelaya story first broke.. FINALLY, a Latin nation standing on the rule of LAW (what a concept? Had Nicaragu done that, they’d not now be under the boot of Ortega for a THIRD term….). I thhought “the nation of Hunduras has a chance, if their government will stand for the rule of law, rather than power or favouritism”.
I also took VERY serious note when our pretender in chief took the side of the ousted law breaking power-grabbing marxist and threatened sanctions against the lawfully constitutied and FUNCTIONAL democracy in Honduras. It gave me a depth of insight into our kinyun’s mindset and values that has proven quite accurate in the days since. May there be few more to follow. He tipped his hand with that one move.
yes, tionico, the Honduran story is very important. the administration put the country at odds with our own announced principles. the first of many anti-american acts…
The legality of kicking Zelaya out was questionable, but the need to kick him out was not. What they have left is not much, but it is better than what Zelaya would have produced. Viva Honduras!
Michael,
It is heartning and equally humbling to read the deep expressions Americans are sharing on your blog.
Being somewhat familiar with the human dynamics you eloquantly express on this site, I too believe-No, I know-that the savages in Tehran must be dispatched to The Mahdi’s Well.
Americans are the best. Have been. Are. And, will continue to show the world our inate values, despite the best efforts of the Obama Administration and it’s minions.
Americans were snookered by the leftist media into wishfully thinking a Alinskyite (i.e. communist) would be a better direction to tact. Time to find our backbones and get control.
Regards.
Sean
Good article Mr. Ledeen!
I disagree about the bombing.
I’m not talking about carpet bombing Tehran, I’m talking about knocking down the ADS and turning Iran into a no fly zone. Then we negotiate. If the negotiating aren’t going well, we destroy the power grid. Can’t build nukes with no electricity. If that doesn’t do it, we blow up all their bridges. No bridges means no food goes into the cities. If that doesn’t get them to take us serious we start going after the Mullahs. Drive them into their bomb shelters and blow the doors.
Send two aircraft carriers. That is almost as much air power as the entire Israeli airforce. Way more then Iran has.
Throw in the cruise missiles in a CVBG and it is MORE firepower the the IAF can bring to bare.
Mr. Ledeen, bomb the barracks where the Mullahs thugs live and the training camps for the Quds force and your protesters will have a better time of it. Without outside involvement, Iran would turn into a bigger, bloodier Syria.
Assad will win unless the USA or NATO acts against him. He will keep killing until ALL his enemies or anyone he thinks is an enemy is dead. Assad will not quit, he will not run away. He will either kill all his enemies or they will kill him. His enemies do not have the military firepower to kill him. So they have to try assassination. They came close but close doesn’t count.
Egypt will be worse.
Iran will watch what happens in Syria and Egypt and choose to not revolt.
You left out Putin and the Chinese who drew the line at Libya and the hard reality that the Destroyer/Checkers player Obama broke the Bank, KAPUT !
Wake up folks,your hubris is a lot of hot air.
stay tuned, russia’s next on my list…
We agree Russia…Russia seems to be saying Russia is afraid the seventh century Ottomans are coming back (instead of the Mahdi) and may physically block the Bosporus…Russia is more than happy for Syria and Kurdistan and Turkey to have a nice long war (and sell lots of weapons…you know exactly like the current wars in Iraq and Afghan) that results in Turkey back to secular…before it is to late.
As has been clear since 1979: the USA executive branch intends to continue doing everything possible to insure that the dictators in Iran, that parade as religious, stay in power at all cost…until or unless a suitable substitute can be found; apparently the US is not convinced yet that Egypt will be able to replace Iran as a guarantor of worldwide market conditions that are consistent with the sole executive branch goal: “a nice long lasting war and sell lots of weapons”: (c me 1991)
The current civil war in the US (you know the one no one told you about so it cannot be true) is going public soon after the election, regardless of who wins. OK I’ll explain it to ya…
The USA has two different Constitutions (same text) that mean radically different things to different people: mainly the Democrats version of the Constitution and the Republican version of the Constitution.; radically different views of the same text…”a nation divided…”; now you understand the John Roberts charade on health care: John Roberts was desperately trying to keep the charade of the single Constitution alive as long as possible…best analogy is the communist charade in Russia thru 1991; there was in reality a weapons manufacturer that overthrew the government in Russia by the 1920s; they promised communism but delivered slavery of a military industrial complex…
Yes; the USA acts like the USA is being blackmailed by Iran/Saudi &/or others to deliver a certain amount of American human sacrifices to the Islime/Jihad G-d or…else…and that is a better explanation of what we have been doing in Iraq/Afghan than you have heard up till now. I did not say that is what we are doing there (thou it may be) I say that is what we act like we are doing there…as well as having a nice long lasting war and sell lots of weapons, which is definitely the primary goal of our current policy.
A Capitalist free market society works and creates vast wealth. One man one vote allows the masses to vote to: take your money and wreck free markets; the Constitution has to be repaired to a single version in plain English…Everyone who can pass a standardized test with a score of 80 or higher on the content and meaning of the new “unified” Constitution should have the right to vote…except people on welfare/food stamps/housing subsidies…they can only be expected to vote for more tax payer handouts?…If you do not know what is in the Constitution, you have no way of knowing what to vote for…
I wonder if China will loan us the money to keep this sinking ship afloat?
America’s finished, In deciding to carve up tiny,tiny Israel as a sacrifice to the Islamic hordes both parties signed the death warrant for the nation.
The failed,cursed 2 state solution against Israel in the platform of both parties has brought an irrevocable curse on this Sodomland nation.
We are in the process of being cut into pieces,militarily,economically,drought,hurricanes,fires,coming civil war,plagues,famine,destruction,etc.
a nation divided…
And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
Israel listened to the US and got Hamastan,Gaza,undefeated Hezbollah,Lebanon, the Islamic Republic of Egypt with Tanks and missiles facing Israel,and a well trained Palestinian killer of Jews army in Judea and Samaria.
ISN’T IT TIME FOR ISRAEL TO WAKE UP AND DUMP THEIR WORTHLESS IDOL?
An EMP weapon at just the right altitude to cover Iran would be the best choice IMHO. No direct loss of life for the Israel haters to gnash their teeth over yet it would shut down work on essential components, as well as the rest of the country – which could give the people of Iran the opportunity to rise up against the ruling theocracy.
Excellent Blog. As an American-Syrian, I always doubted how evil the Iranian regime was as compared to the Assad of Syria; but after learning that Iran dispatched their IRGC snipers and Quds Brigades terrorists to target our women and children, I can only imagine what US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan must have endured at the hands of these killers. Iran, like Syria, is run by barbaric Neanderthals and the Obama Administration will be remembered for throwing lifelines to these imaginary statesmen (So far no action against Assad and no action against Iran in June of 2009) to give them more chances to terrorize Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and any US ally. It’s not just about retreating, it’s also about inviting more terror in the future. Any other US President would have acted on Syria and Iran without any US bootprint or taxpayer’s money. That’s the tragedy of the Obama timeline.
Dear Mr. Ghadry, thank you very much for your great efforts in the service of FREEDOM in the Middle East..You are a unique man, may G-d bless you and bless your efforts!
Yes, in fact both the Evil regimes pose the greatest threat not only to the USA and to its own people but to International Security in general, which is why both MUST BE CRUSHED BY all possible means!!! Not to forget the Puritanical Wahhabi Saudi as well!?
In reality,Mr. Obama administration, or as it were (the administration of the humiliating defeat makers) it is the most sympathetic administration with Pro-Evil anti-America regimes after Mr. Carter’s administration!?
Islam is just flat incompatible with not-Islam. They’ve demonstrated this over the last 1400 years. At some point it’s going to be either not-Islam, or Islam…
And the Persians/Iranians have been a thorn in the side of everyone around them since before the Spartans.
Once again, I hit Preview before Submit Comment and my comment never showed up. But when I went to repost it, I got a message saying I already posted it.
Harumph!
Let’s face it. Libs won’t get it until some muslims set off a nuclear bomb in a big city. Then, they’ll only get it for a few days. After that, it will be right back to being ignorant and wrong about the true nature of evil in the world.
They don’t believe evil exists even when it smacks them upside the head with a 2×4. You have to believe that evil exists in order to fight it. For libs it’s not evil, it’s “evil”. I truly believe that the American body count will have to be absolutely horrific (as in WMD) before the libs join the fight for America and her freedoms.
No Mark,
re; any terrorist act inc. nuking a city
They will not get it even then.
1. They will blame us – for inciting the violence.
2. They will blame us – for not printing more money for 3d world dictators.
3. They will blame us – for supporting any level of security or defense.
4. They will blame us – for not being good dhimmis and kafirs.
5. They will blame us – for wanting a war, being racists, and for being bigots and for existing.
6. They will blame us – for setting off the weapon as a “false flag” operation.
I am sure I could go on… but I assure you the only innocent party the Left will identify are the ones with bloody hands.
At some point, the Chinese will invade on Japanese island too many, and or one Fillipino Island too many and we will be in a real war.
At that point we may wonder why we squandered so much time on the third rate powers in the middle east.
Just imagine the American response to something like Iran in the midst of World War II. Even with WWII technology the Mullahs would not even know what had hit them.
Because we would have had the time or resources to fool around with them to the extent we are now.
would not have had the time or resources to fool around with them.
We are being played as pawns in a proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The U.S. State department is in way over its head and has been since Nixon gave Kingdom of Saudi Arabia control of US dollar through Saudi Petro- Dollar System. It has been a straight line decline for U.S. economy, foreign policy and security ever since Nixon’s fateful day in 1971.
When someone is brave enough to stand up to Saudi influence we will regain control of our Nation. Until then we will continue to suffer economically while Saudi’s keep building their Wahhabi Schools in the USA, their sole intent the overthrow of western system replaced with Sharia law.
Afghanistan;
The invasion of Iraq was ridiculous, they were counterweight to Iran and kept them in check, we unleashed spread of Iranian influence which now threatens ME stability. Daddy Bush knew this and refused the neocon’s and PNAC war bunnies during desert storm. He didn’t touch Iraq because it served a purpose. George W. Bush didn’t understand and was not strong enough to refuse them. We uncorked Iran and they are free to spread their influence over the ME.
Saudi Arabia cannot have this so the USA will sacrifice soldiers to prevent it. I don’t see Saudi lives or blood at risk to maintain Iran, it is USA forced to maintain presence in ME to counterbalance Iran.
The USA has been making mistake after mistake in the ME for the last 60 years, for some reason no one in US government reads history of Islam, history of Persia, or understands end game Saudi Arabia has in mind. They are all tied together.
We are facilitating Saudi intentions to manage the world with Sharia law, and using limbs and lives American Soldiers to accomplish it. Saudi Arabia is the protagonist in the ME, and has been long before USA became a Nation. They pull the strings, the USA dances and bows and even extends the courtesy of funding Sharia policies through Petro dollar system.
Disgusting.
The right word to define the Obama administration of the retreat from Afghanistan is ” plain treason”.Treason of the US trops left as sitting ducks for the Taliban, treason of the War goals that were set by Bush-Rumsfeld, treason of the US taxpayers who are invited to pour one billion US $ to grease the pockets of the Karzai family .I see the US as a country which has totally lost its mind, lost his sight, lost his goal.And that apply also towards Iran, which is gently treated when it butchers its democratic opposition ( 2009 the green movement )and when it slowly and surely builts its nuclear weapon.And that apply too for Pakistan A ” staunch US ally ” which provided a posh villa for Bin Laden 400 meters away from its military academy.So the Obama adminstration has passed by a long distance the situation of a body which does not know who are the friends and who are the ennmeies.Now it’s enough to connect the dots of the BHO misbehaviour all over the Mideast to reach a logical conclusion which is treason.I want to be even clearer: BHO is a Marxist-Muslim MOLE.
God bless you and your family for your dedication. And, thanks again for a proper assessment of the situation we all are facing.
If any are interested: check out the Kandahar Journal. Mr. Johnson will be on his third mission this week. nationalpost.com/kandaharjournal
(Finally getting into Virgil’s Golden Egg…so far so good; hard cover to).
Question for Michael Ledeen-
If it gets to the point where the only choice left for Israel is either be attacked by an Iranian nuke or use an Israeli nuke against Iran what is your choice?
Menahem, let me state clearly that BHO is a Muslim mole working exclusively for the Saudis.BHO will never attack Iran, on the contrary he will let Iran get the nuclear toy and will turn a blind eye until Israel is attacked by an Iranian nuke, then Israel badly wounded will be left with the only choice of massive nuclear attack on Iran. Result :Israel almost dead-Iran totally devastated-Saudi Arabia safe and left alone as the dominant power in the MidEast.The one and only way for Israel to escape this death trap set on by BHO’s passivity is to preempt Iran now with a massive attack including nuclear arsenal.But I doubt Bibi-Barak playing hardball, they don’t want to play the villain’s role, they prefer to suffer a miilion or two casualties.They are wasting their time by trying to corner and coerce BHO into action against Iran, and BHO as a clever sunni-muslim mole is not buying the Bibi-Barak ploy.In the meantime Iran is speeding up the nukes to realize their goal – stated clear and loud many times To wipe Israel out of the map.Iran does not care about the price tag they will pay , to suffer as shiites martyrs in order to kill jews is their wet dream.
philippe, wouldn’t the saudis be delighted if Israel destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities? that’s what i read all over the place, anyway…
I’ll take a shot at that. Sure, the Saudis would be delighted if Iran was de-nuked. But if Israel and Iran went down in MAD…. well….. ’nuff said.
Mr Ledeen ;yes the Saudis would be happy to see the nuclear plans of Iran derailed and diplomatically and militarily it would be much better for the house of Saud if that job was done by the USA than by Israel.But Obama who wants to eat his cake (being reelected- so no intervention ) and to keep it too ( keep distance from Israel ) is willingly opening the time and space window for Iran aggression.
So when you try to sort out the naked truth, the gordian knot ; it’s Obama passivity which endangers Israel and helps Iran, and in addition endangers Saudi arabia.My doomsday scenario is the logical conclusion of Obama dual and conflicting goals
it isn’t my choice, it’s the israelis’ choice, based on what they think they know. i won’t know that. i have said that if an israeli prime minister comes to believe that there is very limited time before Iran is fully ready to launch nuclear weapons against Israel, I have no doubt that the PM would have to act.
A non-answer.
They weren’t born to walk on water
They weren’t born to sack and slaughter
But on their soul, they weren’t born
To stoop and knuckle under
They can again learn to steal some thunder
They can again learn to work some wonder
And when the gauntlet’s down,
It’s time to rise and climb the sky
And soon the moon will smoulder
And the winds will drive
Yes, Israel grows older but it’s soul remains alive
All those tremulous stars still glitter
They will survive
Let their hearts grow colder and as bitter as a falcon in the dive
There was a dream, a dying ember
There was a dream, they may not yet remember
But they will resurrect that dream
Though rivers stream and hills grow steeper
For in the Middle East where life gets cheaper
Oh, here in this Hell the blood runs deeper
And when the final duel is near
They will lift their spear and fly
Piercing into the sky and higher
And the strong will thrive
Yes, the weak will cower while the fittest will survive
If they wait for the darkest hour
Till they spring alive
Then with claws of molten fire, they will devour like a falcon in the dive!
” i have said that if an israeli prime minister comes to believe that there is very limited time before Iran is fully ready to launch nuclear weapons against Israel, I have no doubt that the PM would have to act.’
They can not possibly gauge things this precisely.
they will gauge it as best they can, and act accordingly, Feral. that’s their job.
Sampson option invoked early.
I did not open the link about alleged Iranian/IRI involvement in 911. These things have been claimed before, specifically claims regarding OBL’s family taking refuge in Tehran (if that is in your link). Although apparently the regime did give refuge to one or two of his children, this proves nothing…
Regarding your optimism about Iran and about revolutions being products of hope, it is nice that you feel that way. Your emotional involvement with the people of Iran is obvious and has been. What is troubling is the segue to an ideological, stubborn opposition to militarily dealing with the overwhelming threat that Iranian nukes ‘provide’ to the region, to Israel and to the US. While your statements that the nutters in Tehran are really more focused on the US than Israel are true, they don’t change the fact that Khamenei and friends would be delighted to nuke us first.
I have zero faith in your policy pronouncements on this issue. Israel will take care of itself..
You write that you did not open the link about the involvement of Iran in 911. That is a shame as a court found that Iran was in fact involved, deeply involved. So it is no longer correct to use the term “alleged” when referring to that involvement in 9/11.
Also you write that “Israel will take care of itself”. Is that hope on your part that it will or hope that we won’t help? Israel has made it very clear to all that it shouldn’t have to take care of Iran all by itself as Iran is a threat to the whole world. Do you want Israel to take care of the whole world too?
Maybe off-topic but I have become fascinated by how much the clash between Europe and Islam is in popular culture but seemingly suppressed. Don Quixote is very much about Spain and its ongoing war against Islam (not so much in plot but in its prevalence in the character’s environment).
With Fire and Sword (a polish novel) is about the alliance between the cossacks and khans against the Polish nobility. The Islamic khans main interest in fighting is for slaves and plunder and the cossacks have to give up some of their own people when there are not enough victories to provide them as spoils.
Robert E Howard’s historical fiction (including the famous Red Sonya) is about the crusader period and also its aftermath.
The war with Islam figures deep into European history and it seems that since Europe learned quite early to fear Islam it grants it a status it does not give to non-muslim non-europeans. Knowing how powerful Islam once was, how close it became to being absolutely dominant and that rather than being the historical victims of imperialism they were early and competent practitioners would allow for more reasoned arguments. Of course knowledge of real history is the better place to start but we do know that history is now being doctored into a convenient Leftist narrative which does not want anyone to remember that Islam has been on the move for centuries.
Michael, I think the reason very few people care about what is happening to our soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, etc. in our warzones is that we have an all volunteer force now. Most people consider our brave men and women as mercenaries, sad to say. If we had a draft and people would have to consider what our foreign policies might do to their sons and daughters, they would care more.
Secondly, there would be more Americans with military experience in our population. They would know, for example, that the just recently overruled decision to disarm our soldiers in Afghan “rear areas” was just a criminal order by the perfumed princes of the Pentagon. Shame on our Joint Chiefs of Staff, they bear the guilt of at least a dozen of our soldiers shot by “Afghans”.
I spent a year in Vietnam as an American advisor to the Vietnamese, and I was never without my pistol and rifle.
I‘m fairly certain you are mistaken.
Different FOBs and COPs had different policies but I don’t know of any FOB/COP where troops were permanently disarmed (not just for a short Presidential visit) and there was certainly no permanent policy to disarm troops across Afghanistan. As you can see from the photo (you have to scroll through) of troops at Thanksgiving 2011 at Bagram Air Base (http://blog.chron.com/newswatch/2011/11/photos-thanksgiving-in-houston-and-beyond/#1896-42) they are carrying sidearms in the DFAC (chow hall) with their food plates. If you know Afghanistan you know that Bagram was/is the ultimate “inside-the-wire” rear area for Afghanistan.
My comments above are all based on OS. If you have a reliable link that indicates all troops in Afghanistan in the “rear (FOBs, COPs and big bases)” please share it.
Here you go: http://www.presstv.ir/usdetail/256926.html
The article is poorly written but what it depicts is that although some bases previously did not permit weapons to have a magazine in the well, now they do. Prior to this order troops on such bases still carried their weapons but they were unloaded and were required to keep the magazine nearby. This requirement gave rise to a small industry which produced butt-stock magazine pouches for weapons (http://www.tacticalassaultgearstore.com/m4buttstockmagpouch.aspx ). At other bases magazines were loaded into the well of the weapons.
To conclude, as I indicated above, the policy was never that troops were disarmed (not permitted to carry weapons) but that at some places the weapons were required to be unloaded with magazines nearby.
Anyone who has served during the last several years in Iraq or Afghanistan knows that the troops are not give the luxury of sauntering around w/o weapons, again, see the picture of armed troops at Thansgiving dinner at Bagram AB.
MarcH, not to argue or start a point-counterpoint, but this recent article from the Stars and Stripes shows sort of the idiotic and politically correct attitude of our Pentagon Princes. From reading some of your earlier posts, I think you may agree with me. Gen. Allen blames some of the shootings of Afghans and NATO troops by other Afghans on being out of sorts by their Ramadan fasting. Hard to believe, but here it is: http://www.stripes.com/news/army/allen-blames-some-insider-attacks-on-stress-of-ramadan-fasting-1.186734
He also talks about the leadership of a US battalion commander who gave his Afghan counterpart a “Hug”. God Help Us.
I liked your article and will check out your books. However, I’m a little bothered by your antipathy to “bombing” and your advocacy of revolution in Iran as expressed in some of the comments.
If your antipathy to bombing Iran applies to the Israelis as well as the Americans, I would say that it is a little too convenient to be dispensing advice from a safe distance of about 5700 miles.
Is it morally courageous for us to be telling the Israelis how they should deal with Iran? What seems morally appropriate and militarily efficacious may vary by spatial and temporal proximity to the threat.
Also, I’m interested in knowing how you see an overthrow of the Iranian regime occurring. Do you see it occurring without violence? Without bombing? Without mass casualties?
Without direct intervention of some sort by the U.S., revolution in Iran is unlikely to occur. At a minimum, the Iranian revolutionaries would need massive armaments from the United States.
I’d love for democratic and secular parties to overthrow the mullahs, but that is unlikely to happen before the mullahs get the bomb. In the meantime, I’m in favor of doing what we need to do to keep Israel and the United States safe from nuclear terrorism.
thank you don jaime, for such a thoughtful comment. i am not an israeli, and would not presume to tell them what to do. i am trying to convince my own political leaders to do the smart thing, which is to support democratic revolution in Iran. i don’t presume to know if such a revolution would be totally non violent, or how long it would take to carry it out. but we need to remind ourselves that hardly anyone this side of Pope John Paul II thought it possible to bring down the Soviet Empire in our lifetimes, and without great violence. Well, we were wrong, happiily…
Yes, without great violence, but the USA applied sanctions with a vengeance, which unfortunately the current administration is not doing.
If anything it has done everything to ease the way for Iranian hedgemony.
“but we need to remind ourselves that hardly anyone this side of Pope John Paul II thought it possible to bring down the Soviet Empire in our lifetimes”
Sorry, but that is what the entire cold war was about. Kennan and containment;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Containment
Truman was a coward and anything that looked brave but had little risk was right up his alley. State liked it also, since it gave them precedence over DoD.
In ’46, the Soviets rigged elections in Eastern Europe to allow them to absorb surrounding nations. Truman the coward was afraid of Uncle Joe and the Red Army. The US Army wasn’t.
6 weeks to Moscow. The USA had the logistics to do that, which the Germans or Napoleon didn’t. Or if that didn’t work, we nuke Moscow. Remember, the Soviets didn’t steal the bomb until ’48.
Truman had a 2 year window in which to tell Stalin get out of Eastern Europe or Moscow does the glowing crater thingie. He just didn’t have the ‘nads for that.
So Kennan worked out containment, which was the theory that Communism and Socialism are flawed ideas and if kept from expanding would destroy themselves.
So the collapse of the Soviet Union was predicted in the late 40′s, over 40 years before it happened. Not just predicted but encouraged.
Just like today with the Arab spring proving Bush’s idea that humans prefer freedom and if you remove the dictator, the people will find freedom. The issue now is removing the dictators, tyrants, despots. I’m of the ‘hunt them down and kill them with smart bombs’ school of thought. I see no point in putting American soldiers where the enemy can get at them. It’s the 21st century and humans must cut loose the idea that there is honor in war. There isn’t any and the best way to conduct warfare is to kill your enemy before they even know you are there. There are no IED’s at 20,000 feet. SAM’s can be tricked, avoided or destroyed. American airpower is so far ahead of the rest of the world that they can’t catch up unless we allow them. It is trendy to worry about China. How many Chinese astronauts have walked on the moon?
We have another window of opportunity. A chance to free over 1 billion people from a malignant Theocracy. All we need now is a POTUS with the brains to see it and the will to seize it.
President Obama is a fool about waging war. War is not a game with a stated end, like baseball or football. You cannot, and do not, announce a time for ending a war and withdrawing troops, as Obama has about the war in Afghanistan. Did the Allies announce to Hitler’s Germany that it would end the war and withdraw troops as a given time?!
The only dated withdrawal I can support is the withdrawal of Obama as President come the next election.
The low troop levels and understaffed bases are not the fault of Obama. they are the fault of the General in charge. But, the Generals are playing politics with soldiers lives.
Bring the troops home. There is no support for this war. I certainly don’t care about it, I just don’t want our troops dying for nothing. It is immoral.
I see Obama, as doing the best he can, to end the war, but the bloodthirsty strategists are too strong for him to take on. Not his fault. The stategists (not neo-cons, they are in BOTH parties) want a long, long war, but they don’t want a victory in Afghanistan, because that would upset the Chinese. So there you have it. Immoral. One would think, with Vietnam as an example, (successful, but at too much a cost) that people would see through this phony war, but we have too many gung-ho, stupid, voulunteers to stop the fun.
…”we have too many gung-ho, stupid, voulunteers (sic) to stop the fun.”
Really, who would that be? As I prep for deployment, I don’t feel particularly happy at this point. You seem to forget that the military in the USA is led by civilians; the President, SECDEF, and secretaries of the respective services are put in place to keep it that way. Civilians control the budget, manpower and resources, too. The military is just an arm of constitutional government, led by the Republic’s leaders (oops, almost choked).
If you are accusing a few careerist Generals, you might have a small point. However, if BHO actually had a pair, he could make it happen; he is their LEADER, their BOSS and has the power to fire and hire Flag Officers at will. After all, in this country the military doesn’t start or even continue a war, the government does. Isn’t BHO supposed to be the leader of this government?
“I see Obama, as doing the best he can, to end the war, but the bloodthirsty strategists are too strong for him to take on. Not his fault.”
Then your vision is absolutely atrocious. Obama is not a potted plant. Even I don’t have that low an opinion of him. In fact, Obama does pretty damn well whatever he pleases as though he were a king without a constitution and without a congress. Obama didn’t ‘just’ keep to Bush’s troop levels in Afcrapistan, he more than doubled them. With that and his anti-American ROE (he is the CIC after all) he has gotten twice as many American troops killed for nothing as Bush did even though he has had only half the time.
As naive as Bush was, and may still be, about Islam, he obviously cared, and cares, for the troops. Obama doesn’t give a rat’s arse about them. Obama said that “Afghanistan” is the “good war” and rather than admit he was wrong he just sends even more American troops to the deaths and he doesn’t give a damn.
As I’ve said before, the Islamist regime in Iran hates Israel mainly because it considers Israel as little America and hates America because America is the leader of the free world and the world and the only force out there who’d challenge Islamist and communist totalitarian regimes. Also one main reason the mullahs are excessively anti-Israel is because it’s the most attractive cause to the Arab Islamist terrorists they try to cooperate with or recruit from. Tell the Arab Islamists you hate Israel and want to destroy it and they love you. So, those who blame US-Israel relations or even Israel’s own actions for Islamist hatred toward the west, are clueless. Those Islamists do not want Israel to exist and with or without US support for Israel, they’ll always hate America as their MAIN enemy global enemy, their goal of destruction of Israel is only a stage toward destruction of western civilization. With the rise of Muslim Brotherhood and alliance of communist dictatorships in S. America and elsewhere with the Islamist regime in Iran, I think if America fail to help the pro-American secular forces in Iran and ME, we’d witness far worse threats than 9/11 in the future. It’s a growing cancer and if continues growing, may grow out of control or at least become a growing challenge to American interest hear at home and abroad.
Iran hates us because of 1953 and our CIA (Look it up, youtube preferably).
We currently have 45 bases surrounding Iran, they can’t produce their own gasoline, much less enriched uranium. Israel has 300 nukes, and has asked for us to leave them alone. Iran has no long range weapons.
The greatest % of all political military donations go to a guy that supports us leaving the undeclared “war”. Military suicides are up drastically in the past 10 years…
We created Al Qaeda (however you want to spell it) in Afghanistan fighting the Russians (ever see Charlie Wilson’s war), fought them in Iraq, now fight alongside supporting them in Syria. Nice…
That is all.
“Iran” does not hate us; most Iranians are pro-American. The hatred comes from a small sliver of fanatics at the top, and their hatred of us has nothing to do with 1953 (Khamenei is not an admirer of Mossadeqh). It has to do with religious messianism…
I had the pleasure of meeting and befriending a number of Iranians in the US from the late 70′s through the early 90′s, all obviously wealthy upper class, more secular than Moslem, rich by even our standards. Nice people. The adults were liberal but politically savvy enough to know who to bribe to get their exit visas. The younger ones were as dumb and reckless as any American kids. But what struck me most was their matter-of-fact concession to the takeover of their country by the mullahs and their thugs. They still had their wealth, so no big deal. As long as they still had a; mother, brother, or cousin back in Iran they understood they would be staying enthusiastically “neutral” on the whole Ayatollah thing. In them I glimpsed the MO of the American bourgiosie (sp?) liberals. Left to their devices, I could envision an America with its own brand of Ayatollahs giving a long leash to their useful idiots while keeping their boots on the necks of the rest of us.
Nate:
Even if you were right about Iranians “hating” the U.S. over events in 1953, does this really justify their policies?
The current regime overthrew the Shah we installed. Wasn’t that “revenge” enough? They’ve been in power now far longer than was the case for the Shah.
Using your logic, I suppose we should also “deserve” nuclear-backed terrorism and genocidal hostility from Chile Approx. 20 years AFTER we overthrew Mossadeqh, we overthrew Allende there and installed Pinchet, who, like the Shah, imprisoned/tortured/murdered thousands of opponents. But the democratic government of Chile today is happy to sell us as much wine and salmon as they can, and buy our fighter jets. We get along swimmingly now.
Where to you get your information about what Iran has or does not have? The Irnian Revolutionary Guards website? There is no question but that they are trying to build nukes precisely because their conventional military and the economic/industrial resource base to support the same is otherwise so weak. Nukes are a lot cheaper than building up conventional military credibility.
If the current regime gets even one nuke, it is too late. Due to the risk of nuclear terrorist retaliation, not even Israel will try to stop them then.
If the current regime stays in power after getting that one nuke long enough to field a force of say, 30 nukes they could deliver with their already available medium-range missiles – a process I’d SWAG at 5 years – then they WILL attack Israel. The nuclear war that results will kill at least 100 million and lay waste to the entire region. What do you or anyone else here think THAT will do to the world economy, etc? The cost of stopping Iran is nothing compared to the cost of NOT stopping Iran.
To those who say that the mullahs in Iran are “pragmatic” and would not risk the destruction of their country at Israel’s hands, I would remind you that not very long ago, during the Cold War, many people both here and in the USSR seriously talked about a “winnable” nuclear war (remember T.K. Jones and “With enough shovels”?). Given the short flight times of missiles between Iran and Israel, given the disparity in physical size and population between those two, given that the leaders of Iran live in the Middle Ages as opposed to something resembling the modern era…what kind of “pragmatism” can we really expect from them???
It would be nice if the mullahs in Iran were overthrown before any of this happened, but that is a pretty thin reed to rely on . A much worse regime in North Korea remains in power – reputedly with nukes that the U.S. under Bush the Younger swore were “unacceptable”.
Israel cannot rely on the U.S. or anyone else. She’ll have to act, and I hope she does and still can do so effectively. I allow that it may already be too late. I hope not.
“Iran hates us because of 1953 and our CIA (Look it up, youtube preferably)”.
So Youtube is your resource of choice for historical studies? I think you are not my choice for the best qualified analyst of these matters.
The last 10 years in Afcrapistan has accomplished absolutely nothing – nothing positive for America that is. All the American lives and limbs lost there past the first few months, which made sense, have been lost for nothing. May Justice find our generals and may Mercy scorn them.
And may Obama “live in interesting times”.
Yup, the Iranian Mullahs and their yet to be developed nuclear arsenal, are the greatest threat to us. Along with Christian Russia of course, the last great nation in the northern hemisphere, culturally related to the West, that some of our folks are hell bent on pushing into the arms of China. Wonderful.
Here’s an article to be kept in the back of one’s mind when the Pavlovian conditioned response “Iran is the greatest threat”, is triggered by various media and opinion blitzes.
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/314685/syria-why-al-qaeda-winning-ed-husain?pg=2
As a european citizen, I want to thank M. Leden for his appreciation of the real issue about Iran. It is not only Israel that is threatened by the Iranian Bomb, but all of occidental countries. That is a fact which is of course neglected by our blind european governments, frightened to displease muslim countries and the (far too) many muslim ” citizen” that we have harboured in the Old World.
Obviously, the European countries have not drawn any lessons from the Hitler era. I hoped that the US had …Please, do not tell me they have not !…..
As as Europaphile, it saddens me to see so many European nations turning into theme parks…
I hope this article will help refocus attention on where it needs to be – I’ve been pulling my hair out thinking about how people have been too busy focusing on Romney’s taxes and free condoms to speak seriously about the terror masters getting nukes.
Time to stop swatting flies and drain the swamp
In my view a good way to frame the fight we have with Islam is to think of it as the same as the fight the Romans had with Christianity. A good start would be to remember that even though the Romans crucified Jesus and eventually scattered the Jews, this once Jewish movement won anyway.
The deal folks is that it is not a fight between armies for territory or for a military victory however defined, it is a fight about ideologies. As we have no need to covert the people of the Middle East to our way of thinking, and as we have shown our importance in doing so, I suggest we start by letting those people be as they are. The fight for the United States should be over the incursion of Islam into Western Cultures.
The reason the Arabics are so touchy about insulting Islam is because it is such a load of rot that it would never hold up under anything like objective scrutiny. We need to be insulting Islam every day of the week, not with lies but with the simple truth about how superficial and obnoxious it is. And then when the inevitable violence arises, realize that it is actually inevitable and the longer we wait to confront the cult the bigger the body count will be.
The arabs are accusing the West of eaxctly what THEY ARE DOING. Europe and the USA, because of this ferocious, continuous, manipulated propaganda spread by the obnoxious world medias in the interest of more profits, has created a “guilt complex” in the occidental countries that makes these ever more tolerant to abuse from the moslem “minorities” established all over. This is exactly what the moslems want,this a pure repetiton of nazism and Hitler in the years 1920-1937, preceding WWII. THE INTENTION OF THE IMAMS, MULLAHS, MUFTIS IS EXACTLY THE CONQUEST AND CONVERSION OF THE “BARBARIC OCCIDENT” TO THE “PURITY OF ISLAM”… The important point is that without the Occident’s need and consumptio0n of petroleum, the arabs today would continue being camel-drivers and goat-herders. U.S.A., don’t allow your heroes who fought for freedom and justice to have died for nothing, for a return to barbarity, to the filth that Islam wants to change the world into, through its totalitarian religious racism and intolerance. React before it’s too late, before you have to regret and re-enact all the wars and misery you left behind.