ilBLOGical tidBITs

“Sometime they’ll give a war and nobody will come.”

—    Carl Sandburg (1878–1967)

During the 1960s, protesters were fond of using Sandburg’s quote, but based on recent world history it looks like no one wants to miss the opportunity.

U.S. military leaders are pushing for more troops in Afghanistan, but they can’t seem to provide the public with a clear, concise explanation of the mission. Is it nation building, a regime change, a police action — what? Of course, they may not know because the Obama administration hasn’t shared that information with them.

They won’t give an estimate of how long we will be involved in Afghanistan either. Is it because they really have no idea, or will answering that question have substantial political fallout that the administration does not want to deal with — especially in light of pressing domestic issues.

As the civilian leaders in Washington dither, the fate of U.S. forces in Afghanistan is on the line, even as members of the Afghanistan National Army are reported to have attacked the contracted Afghani guards protecting a U.S. compound.

I hope an answer is coming soon, but I will not hold my breath.

“America is a large, friendly dog in a very small room. Every time it wags its tail, it knocks over a chair.”

—    Arnold Toynbee (1889–1975)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/16/world/asia/16mullen.html?hp

http://www.military.com/news/article/gis-afghan-guards-clash-with-afghan-troops.html

Following a highly publicized incident involving a NATO officer’s call for a strike on a target that resulted in the death and injury of civilians, the rules of engagement (ROE) in Afghanistan seem to be transmogrifying into a recipe for disaster for U.S. and friendly forces.

In today’s asymmetric battlefield, commanders are frequently faced with a choice between engaging hostile forces that routinely hide in protected structures and use civilians as shields against air, artillery and armor attacks, or letting the hostiles go for fear of civilian casualties and collateral damage. This forces the soldiers and Marines on the ground into dangerous situations that are second guessed by others who are thousands of miles away from the battlefield.

Fortunately for the world, the same rules were not in effect during World War II.

Hopefully, those that question the methods of fighting a modern war will realize that in war people die and it is not always the enemy. Whether it is in Iraq or Afghanistan, trying to fight a clean war without civilian casualties is like getting just a little bit pregnant. Either way you’re ….

http://www.military.com/news/article/ambushed-marines-aid-call-rejected.html

An article in USA Today — about the firing of private security guards at the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan — illustrates how poorly the U.S. is doing in the battle for hearts and minds. Is it any wonder that the people in Afghanistan are suspicious of America’s intentions in this part of the world when people at our embassy are so brazenly violating tenets of Islam?

The story also points out the flaw of hiring private security companies to protect not only U.S. personnel and property, but U.S. interests. This specific incident focuses on the breakdown of morale, morals and basic security at the U.S. embassy; whereas, past reports of other private security companies such as Blackwater USA, which has since changed its name to Xe Services LLC, recount indiscriminate use of force and alleged incidents of manslaughter and even murder that have undermined U.S. stabilization efforts.

It is a common practice for companies that contract with the U.S. government to change their company’s name to continue receiving contracts after they have been banned from receiving government contracts under their previous name.

This is one more example of how dangerous the practice is of using private companies to carry out what should be government functions. Apparently, this is a growth industry that shows no sign of slowing down, as more and more federal and state government functions are passed onto the private sector to save government budgets.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2009-09-04-embassy-guards-fired_N.htm?csp=34

 From the land that brought us flying carpets, Aladdin and his lamp, and Ali Baba and his 40 thieves, it looks like magical thinking has found its way into the modern war against terrorist. An article posted on National Public Radio’s (NPR) Web site discusses a bomb detector used by Iraqi police that may have more in common with Aladdin’s lamp than science and technology.

Perhaps if the former Bush administration had one of these they could have found the alleged weapons of mass destruction; however, considering the U.S. provided ample time for Saddam Hussein to remove such weapons — if they existed at all — dubbya would have had more luck using a magic eight ball or gazing into the bald head of Dick Cheney.

“Disbelief in magic can force a poor soul into believing in government and business.”

— Tom Robbins (1936– )

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111750111&ft=1&f=1001

 Yesterday, as leaders of various nations took a moment to recognize events that launched World War II, some countries continue efforts to rewrite world history to fit their current political agendas. How unfortunate that we cannot examine the past with a critical eye and learn from our mistakes, but then that might prevent us from repeating past errors and actually improve the world for all mankind, and as every political animal knows — protecting the status quo takes precedence over any other matter.

“History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.”

— Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/02/world/europe/02russia.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

An article in yesterday’s USA Today illustrates how some continue to sow the seeds of hate.

A teacher once taught me the difference between ignorance and stupidity. He said ignorance is a result of not knowing, whereas, stupidity is having the requisite knowledge but refusing to think differently based on prejudice. Hopefully, ignorance can be overcome, but as the comedian Ron White says, “You can’t fix stupid.”

As long as so many people continue to spread their particular kinds of prejudices and hates, other people will continue to suffer; however, the saddest thing is how many young intelligent minds will be corrupted by the generations that have come before.

Teach Your Children — Crosby, Stills and Nash

You, who are on the road,

Must have a code that you can live by.

And so, become yourself,

Because the past is just a good bye.

Teach your children well,

Their father’s hell did slowly go by.

And feed them on your dreams,

The one they picks, the one you’ll know by.

Don’t you ever ask them why, if they told you, you will cry,

So just look at them and sigh and know they love you.

And you, of tender years,

Can’t know the fears that your elders grew by.

And so please help them with your youth,

They seek the truth before they can die.

Teach your parents well,

Their children’s hell will slowly go by.

And feed them on your dreams,

The one they picks, the one you’ll know by.

Don’t you ever ask them why, if they told you, you will cry,

So just look at them and sigh and know they love you…….

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2009-08-31-hamas-holocaust_N.htm?csp=34

According to stories on CNN’s Web site, the California plan to release 27,000 inmates has run into problems. Also on the CNN site, British Prime Minster Gordon Brown was “repulsed” by the homecoming celebration for the convicted terrorist responsible for the 1988 bombing of Pam Am Flight 103.

So…send the California prisoners to Libya. Obviously, they have no problems with criminals.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/08/25/california.prisoners.release/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/08/25/scotland.lockerbie.brown/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

In today’s news, I saw two headlines that foretell what the future may hold for the world:

“Low Turnout Seen in Afghan Election; 26 Killed”; and

“Lockerbie Bomber Freed, Returns to Cheers in Libya”

Call me negative if you want, but I think we have already lost the so-called war against terrorism thanks to the one-two punch of astronomical naivety and rampant political correctness that permeates the leadership of most western nations.

“There is no need to sally forth, for it remains true that those things which make us human are, curiously enough, always close at hand. Resolve then, that on this very ground, with small flags waving and tiny blasts of tiny trumpets, we have met the enemy, and not only may he be ours, he may be us.”

— Walt Kelly (1913–1973)

The beginning of future instability within Russia and around the worlds may be underway today.

According to an Associated Press article, the Russian government is forcing out 200,000 officers.

Russia has come a long way since the purges by Stalin before and after World War II, but the combination of low morale, erosion of the army’s status within the nation and continual shortages within the infrastructure of the military may lead to an influx of skilled former army officers into the ranks of criminal and terrorist organizations.

The size of the Russian army will not decrease, but getting rid of older and more senior officers will allow the Russian government to increase military spending for modern asymmetric battlefields and to contend with longstanding internal conflicts. This will also allow for the promotion of younger officers who will be more loyal to the current government.

 http://www.military.com/news/article/russia-firing-200k-military-officers.html?wh=news

Some lessons are harder than others to learn and when it comes to involving the U.S. military in conflicts halfway around the globe, U.S. political leaders haven’t learned a thing.

An Associated Press article filed by Alfred de Montesquiou out of Dahaneh, Afghanistan, illustrates how the current rules of engagement are hampering military operations on the ground and in the skies over Afghanistan, just as they did in Vietnam.

No one wants to harm innocent civilians and other noncombatants, but U.S. and allied forces are facing an enemy in Afghanistan that has no problem hiding behind human shields or in protected structures.

I am sure some would argue that this enemy has no choice when faced with a superior force and modern technology and is using whatever advantage it can to continue the fight — after all, it isn’t suppose to be fair, and therein lies the problem. The U.S. and other armed forces in the region are expected to “fight fair”, which only increases the probability of friendly casualties and prolongs the fighting.

What is needed is a two-pronged approach that uses the skills and abilities of civil affairs units to win the hearts and minds of the Afghani people, and offensive combat operations that engage enemy forces and decisively end their resistance. Anything else will only drag out this conflict until it is politically untenable and we withdraw to leave the region worse off than before we got involved.

“The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it.”

— George Orwell (1903–1950)

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_AFGHANISTAN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-08-13-11-01-25