A Smart Marine Sounds Off

[thedrifter]

A Smart Marine Sounds Off



Col. Hackworth,

The last time I emailed you back around the beginning of June, I was still in Iraq. I have since returned home, as have many of my fellow Marines. General Sanchez, the ground CO in Iraq, recently stated that 3 to 6 American servicemen die each week in Iraq. We saw that trend start to develop as early as May. Landstuhl Germany is receiving 40 to 44 patients a day from Iraq with serious injuries. Like an open wound, Iraq is bleeding us bad, and then when we need it the most some other conflict is going to get out of control. Whether it is Korea, or Colombia, or the Horn of Africa doesn't matter, will we have the will and the might to stand and deliver, or will a national sense of isolationism prevail?

The best solution given the lack of support from the UN is to get an Iraqi government up and running in three months. Turn over security to their Army, and get our troops out if not by Christmas then at least by the end of January. This will be a big moral booster not to mention save hundreds of American lives, since right now, no one can see the light at the end of this tunnel our government has dug. If we can get out of Iraq in the next four months maybe we will be ready to fight the next big conflict that is on the horizon, and have the backing of our fellow citizens. If in the long term Iraq becomes balkanized, and the region destabilizes, then the UN can move in and redraw the geopolitical boundaries more suitable to the indigenous population.

The ongoing Sunni/Shiite conflict hints that this may be a possible future for Iraq, so that in the end all we accomplished was a short term regime change by removing Saddam Hussein from power. We should have sent in a CIA hunter/killer team, it would have been much cheaper and in the end achieved the same result.

In the mean time, with North Korea and Iran actively pursuing a nuclear weapons program, a few preemptive nuclear strikes on their facilities might be in order, or to a lesser degree sabotage and elimination of their top scientists. So much for the end of the Cold War, the places and faces may change but the game remains the same.

Semper Fi,

SSGT USMC

http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=Special%20Reports.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=37&rnd=897.2025530457495

Sempers,

Roger
:marine:

[thedrifter]

Message from Iraq



Dear Sir,

I'm writing in regard to a letter you posted on your website from "A CONCERNED CONVOY COMMANDER." The author certainly had some valid points, namely that it is absolutely essential that every soldier remain vigilant at all times, and especially while on convoys along the MSR. Part of that vigilance entails wearing our k-pots and our flak vests, and most importantly, being ready to engage and neutralize targets at a moment's notice, locked-and- load, weapons at the ready. No one in the right mind is going to argue that point. However, part of the problem is that many soldiers, including myself to some extent, have very little confidence in their equipment. First off, many of us are still driving the soft-top HMMVs. While I realize that the up-armor version is much more expensive, it is disturbing to know that there are literally hundreds of HMMVs of that model sitting in Bosnia and Kosovo. Surely the need for these vehicles is much greater in Iraq. Why have these vehicles not been re-allocated? I do not expect each and every unit with soft-top HMMVs to have them all swapped out for the up-armor version, but at the very least those units (especially MP units) that constantly convoy in Iraq should be given the upgrade. I really do not think that this is too much to ask. It is impossible to put a price on a man's life, but you and I know that the Pentagon does this all the time. Second, my unit, and the majority of the units I have encountered here in Iraq, from Camp Bucca in the south to BIAP, still have the 1970's technology flak vests, not the Point Blank body armor. Whether our beliefs are accurate or not, my fellow soldiers and I believe that these vests won't stop anything more than a BB size piece of shapnel, and we know for a fact they won't stop a bullet. Every soldier in Iraq should have the new body armor. That should not even be a debate.

The author's second point involved the story of "a convoy that rolled right past a local standing in the median with an AK-47 at the ready just waiting for the trail vehicle." The author insinuated that there is no excuse for these soldiers for not opening fire on the man in the median. I could not disagree more, and the reason for this is that there is a lack of information being put down to the troops. The fact is that the low level analysts at the Pentagon know more about the guerilla and local police situation in Al Samawah than my unit did when our convoy rolled through there two weeks ago. I was sitting in the back seat of my HMMV locked and loaded with my butt-stock in the pocket of my shoulder looking for targets. I saw a man in an alley-way looking at our vehicle toating an AK-47. The reason why I did not engage him is because we cannot tell the different between friend and foe. He was wearing navy blue pants, the same pants of the Iraqi Police. Until that individual makes an overtly hostile move we cannot engage. We were not briefed on local check-points or municipal security forces (like the US-sanctioned group in An Najaf), which I must add do not wear recognizable uniforms. The only reason I know about the temporarily security force in An Najaf is because it read about it in the Stars & Stripes. Many of the Iraqi Police at the check-points have neither patch nor insignia to distinguish them from the populace. At best what you get is navy blue pants and a light blue shirt. And frankly, I'm not sure I even trust the local police, in light of how quickly they were rushed through their training. Moreover, I have very little faith in the screening process they were put through. There is very little doubt that there are numerous moles within the US-sactioned Iraqi Police.

Although I understand the man's point, the limitations placed on our troops because of poor intelligence is part of the problem. It is a problem that needs to be remedied before more of America's sons and daughters are lost.

In closing, I just want to let you know that you are doing a great job. I encouraged my family members to support your <i>DefenseWatch</i> financially, and I sincerely hope and pray for your continued success. Knowing that we have people like you back home, that truly care about the troops, is great for morale and extremely encouraging. Keep up the good fight.

Thanks,

AN MP SGT

http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=Special%20Reports.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=36&rnd=113.45359594010223

Sempers,

Roger
:marine: