The Middle East vs. Southeast Asia
Once again we find ourselves in a war with little hope of winning. As with Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan are just wars, for the right reasons, but are not being fought as a war. Politicians are running and dictating the ‘Order of Fire’ our troops must follow, not the generals and strategists.
In Vietnam, the war started out small with our position as mere advisors and grew from there. As the combat escalated we fought valiantly even though we were forced to fight with one arm tied behind our backs. Iraq started out strong, with threats and bombs, but still with pulled punches. With our nation so divided and polarized now, I fear a repeat of the 1960’s with protests, riots and the loss of patriotism. A war we do not win, but merely stop to end the fighting and dying.
As it stands now, we are in too deep to just pull out. Depending on what the president in office the next four years does, this war could very well be the stumbling block to this nation as Afghanistan was to the USSR. They fought for years, expending lives and billions in capital, never to recover their losses and still did not win.
As for the actions and decisions of the next president, I am sure of two things: if Bush is re-elected he only has history and historians to rule on his decisions. Kerry will have the populous to worry about; therefore his bid for re-election will remain in the forefront of his actions. A newly elected president wants to prove them self and will do what they think the public wants. A president in their second term will do what they want, with little or no regard about what public opinion. Both men could be correct in regards to their outlook on the war, but only time will tell.
If any war is to be won, the politicians need to let the armed forces do their jobs. No politician, regardless of their background, really knows what is going on in the heat of combat. A politician sees votes, won or lost; the soldier on the front sees death, life and maybe another day. Once a person becomes a politician, they are no longer a warrior. Yes, they do battle, but only in facts, pseudo-facts and innuendoes, of policy and public opinion. Their battles center on the vote.
In a war, the soldier sees the battle as life and death, hopefully his life and the enemy’s death. He knows the smell of fear, the sound of death, the taste of loneliness, and the fatigue of victory. They know all these things and more, when they can only defend themselves after a buddy lies feeding the ground his life’s blood. Our armed forces are warriors who destroy only to create. They must destroy the enemy in order to create something better.
Vietnam lasted ten years, more or less. Will we still be fighting a limited war in Iraq for the same length of time? We need to let our forces crush the enemy by the rules of war, not politics. Once the enemy is decimated, the new government can take over the business of ruling their nation and we can leave. In Vietnam we faced women and children carrying bombs to kill us, in Iraq they are the bomb. In Vietnam we were called baby killers and looked down upon. We lost that war! Will we now do the same thing to our armed forces? In war you can only win if you live and the enemy dies, period. As General George Patton said, “No soldier ever won a war by dying for his country; he won it by making the other guy die for his.”
Do you think we would still be a free nation if we had fought WWII as we have fought every war since? The longer we make our armed forces fight a limited war, the more discontent will arise here at home.
If we let the opinions of friendly nations like France and Russia dictate the way we wage war, are we truly a nation unto ourselves? Is Russia a friend? France, as we all know, is truly a friend, at least when they are in trouble and need our help. Any nation that does not stand with us in our time of need can not be called a true friend. Why then should we spend billions of dollars in aid and keep military bases on their soil to protect them? Let them make their own way in the world without our help. I’m sure they will find they need us more than we need them.
When a soldier takes a prisoner, they are not held for ransom and beheaded. Only a terrorist does that. A terrorist is an enemy who deserves no quarter. As we are facing acts of violent terrorism in the war zones, so we are facing political terrorism by a few nations. Anyone who smiles and shakes our hand only to drive a knife in our stomach or back with the other hand deserves a reaction, swift and decisive.
Any leader, either political or religious, who not only supports but advocates terrorist acts warrants immediate capture by any and all means possible. After a speedy trial, and then found guilty, executed without delay.
In Vietnam we saw acts of terrorism on the population similar to what is going on in the Middle East. We did next to nothing and lost the war. Have we, as a nation, learned nothing? Fight terrorism with no holds barred, unlimited warfare. Hunt down the terrorists like rabid dogs. If they put up a fight, destroy them without delay. You can not free a people without removing the threat of retaliation from those who oppress them.
Terrorists look at numbers. Is it not now time for us to also look at the numbers? A repressive regime is not made up of only a handful of despots. They are supported by many like minded individuals and groups. Cutting off the head, in this case, can not and will not end the tyrannical nature of the beast. Only total annihilation of these groups can possibility end the killing. Once the population is free of this tyranny, they may once more join the modern world in commerce and civility.
The Arab and Muslim world once led with enlightenment and technology. If we are indeed the bastion of freedom is it not our place to help them out of the darkness and back into the light?
We, as Americans, need to hold our political representatives accountable for their actions. If they continue to vote for war, let it be a war we can fight without the limitations they have been placing on our fighting forces. These limitations have so far resulted in the needless death of many of our young men and women. This does not include the loss of our civilian contractors being butchered. THIS IS A CRIME.
Peace through the act of war is a tedious proposition.
Ed Williams
©
In Vietnam, the war started out small with our position as mere advisors and grew from there. As the combat escalated we fought valiantly even though we were forced to fight with one arm tied behind our backs. Iraq started out strong, with threats and bombs, but still with pulled punches. With our nation so divided and polarized now, I fear a repeat of the 1960’s with protests, riots and the loss of patriotism. A war we do not win, but merely stop to end the fighting and dying.
As it stands now, we are in too deep to just pull out. Depending on what the president in office the next four years does, this war could very well be the stumbling block to this nation as Afghanistan was to the USSR. They fought for years, expending lives and billions in capital, never to recover their losses and still did not win.
As for the actions and decisions of the next president, I am sure of two things: if Bush is re-elected he only has history and historians to rule on his decisions. Kerry will have the populous to worry about; therefore his bid for re-election will remain in the forefront of his actions. A newly elected president wants to prove them self and will do what they think the public wants. A president in their second term will do what they want, with little or no regard about what public opinion. Both men could be correct in regards to their outlook on the war, but only time will tell.
If any war is to be won, the politicians need to let the armed forces do their jobs. No politician, regardless of their background, really knows what is going on in the heat of combat. A politician sees votes, won or lost; the soldier on the front sees death, life and maybe another day. Once a person becomes a politician, they are no longer a warrior. Yes, they do battle, but only in facts, pseudo-facts and innuendoes, of policy and public opinion. Their battles center on the vote.
In a war, the soldier sees the battle as life and death, hopefully his life and the enemy’s death. He knows the smell of fear, the sound of death, the taste of loneliness, and the fatigue of victory. They know all these things and more, when they can only defend themselves after a buddy lies feeding the ground his life’s blood. Our armed forces are warriors who destroy only to create. They must destroy the enemy in order to create something better.
Vietnam lasted ten years, more or less. Will we still be fighting a limited war in Iraq for the same length of time? We need to let our forces crush the enemy by the rules of war, not politics. Once the enemy is decimated, the new government can take over the business of ruling their nation and we can leave. In Vietnam we faced women and children carrying bombs to kill us, in Iraq they are the bomb. In Vietnam we were called baby killers and looked down upon. We lost that war! Will we now do the same thing to our armed forces? In war you can only win if you live and the enemy dies, period. As General George Patton said, “No soldier ever won a war by dying for his country; he won it by making the other guy die for his.”
Do you think we would still be a free nation if we had fought WWII as we have fought every war since? The longer we make our armed forces fight a limited war, the more discontent will arise here at home.
If we let the opinions of friendly nations like France and Russia dictate the way we wage war, are we truly a nation unto ourselves? Is Russia a friend? France, as we all know, is truly a friend, at least when they are in trouble and need our help. Any nation that does not stand with us in our time of need can not be called a true friend. Why then should we spend billions of dollars in aid and keep military bases on their soil to protect them? Let them make their own way in the world without our help. I’m sure they will find they need us more than we need them.
When a soldier takes a prisoner, they are not held for ransom and beheaded. Only a terrorist does that. A terrorist is an enemy who deserves no quarter. As we are facing acts of violent terrorism in the war zones, so we are facing political terrorism by a few nations. Anyone who smiles and shakes our hand only to drive a knife in our stomach or back with the other hand deserves a reaction, swift and decisive.
Any leader, either political or religious, who not only supports but advocates terrorist acts warrants immediate capture by any and all means possible. After a speedy trial, and then found guilty, executed without delay.
In Vietnam we saw acts of terrorism on the population similar to what is going on in the Middle East. We did next to nothing and lost the war. Have we, as a nation, learned nothing? Fight terrorism with no holds barred, unlimited warfare. Hunt down the terrorists like rabid dogs. If they put up a fight, destroy them without delay. You can not free a people without removing the threat of retaliation from those who oppress them.
Terrorists look at numbers. Is it not now time for us to also look at the numbers? A repressive regime is not made up of only a handful of despots. They are supported by many like minded individuals and groups. Cutting off the head, in this case, can not and will not end the tyrannical nature of the beast. Only total annihilation of these groups can possibility end the killing. Once the population is free of this tyranny, they may once more join the modern world in commerce and civility.
The Arab and Muslim world once led with enlightenment and technology. If we are indeed the bastion of freedom is it not our place to help them out of the darkness and back into the light?
We, as Americans, need to hold our political representatives accountable for their actions. If they continue to vote for war, let it be a war we can fight without the limitations they have been placing on our fighting forces. These limitations have so far resulted in the needless death of many of our young men and women. This does not include the loss of our civilian contractors being butchered. THIS IS A CRIME.
Peace through the act of war is a tedious proposition.
Ed Williams
©
posted by Ed | 00:19
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