thedrifter
08-03-06, 04:38 AM
Commandant assesses Iraq situation
August 03,2006
CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
The top Marine visited Camp Lejeune on Wednesday and addressed the state of the Iraq War, the homefront during wartime and how every Marine needs to “do the right thing.”
Gen. Michael W. Hagee, the commandant of the Marine Corps, spoke to an audience of retired and active-duty Marines and sailors and various community leaders at Lejeune’s Officers Club during a Marine Corps Association retiree professional luncheon. He also answered questions from the audience — and many of the questions focused on how to win the information war against terrorists.
Hagee’s comments dwelt mostly on Iraq and how the Marines fighting over there are doing an “eye-watering” job in extremely harsh conditions.
“Marines are doing a tremendous job in Al Anbar (province),” he said. “Their morale is really quite high. They know they are making a difference; and they are, in fact, making a difference. In my opinion, absolutely changing history in that part of the world.”
But Hagee said he realized military might alone cannot win the war and that this struggle is different than others the Marines have fought in the past.
“We can’t win this militarily,” he said. “The Iraqi government needs to stand up and start providing services to the Iraqi people.”
One of the primary battlegrounds is perception, Hagee said. He admitted it’s not a battle the Marines are used to fighting. The insurgent enemy — which has no uniform or country — has become skilled at using the media and the free-flow of information across a globalized world.
“The bad guys are really quite good at this,” he said. They use our freedoms against us, access to news. … Information operations, I don’t think we really have a handle on that.
“Killing individuals won’t win this war,” he added. “Now, there are individuals out there that need to be killed. That’s a very small number. The rest need to be helped.”
Aiding the world is such a vital part of the perception battle, Hagee said. He pointed to Marine Corps aid after the tsunami in Indonesia and the earthquake in Pakistan as ways to show parts of the world that America is not hostile.
Another part of that struggle is how Marines handle themselves in theater. Hagee did not make reference to allegations of atrocities in Haditha, Iraq, but he did stress that winning the public relations battle often boils down to making good decisions in difficult circumstances.
“These are really hard decisions,” he said. “You’ve got to make a decision now. And if they make the wrong one, they are on CNN in 30 minutes and a talking head is on in 45 minutes discussing what they did wrong.”
An important thing, Hagee stressed, is to discuss decisions before action occurs. Hagee presented the audience with a scenario: A unit on patrol is attacked, a Marine is killed and others are wounded. Five Vietnamese (Hagee said he wanted to allude to the era he was from) civilians are milling about. What do you do?
“If that’s the first time you’ve thought about that, you could make the wrong decision,” he said. “We need to talk about these dilemmas here today. It’s pretty easy to do the right thing. It’s pretty hard to differentiate what the right thing is.”
Hagee also addressed the resolve of the American people. While he said the support of the troops is great, he is not sure Americans realize the sacrifice such an enterprise entails.
“We’re at war,” he said. “Not everyone realizes that. I’m embarrassed to say the majority of Americans don’t understand that. I think most Marines get it.
“The American people are really quite proud and try to support (the troops), but they are happy it’s not their son or daughter. I have a real concern about that. It’s a little cliché, but freedom isn’t free.”
Hagee is nearing the end of his term as commandant, a post that usually lasts about four years. Lt. Gen. James Conway has been nominated as Hagee’s successor and is currently going through the Senate confirmation process.
As congratulations on his impending retirement, the Marine Corps Association gave Hagee and his wife matching chairs on which to enjoy some lazy downtime.
“A single-malt scotch would go really well right here,” Hagee said as he sat in the chair.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 229.
Ellie
August 03,2006
CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
The top Marine visited Camp Lejeune on Wednesday and addressed the state of the Iraq War, the homefront during wartime and how every Marine needs to “do the right thing.”
Gen. Michael W. Hagee, the commandant of the Marine Corps, spoke to an audience of retired and active-duty Marines and sailors and various community leaders at Lejeune’s Officers Club during a Marine Corps Association retiree professional luncheon. He also answered questions from the audience — and many of the questions focused on how to win the information war against terrorists.
Hagee’s comments dwelt mostly on Iraq and how the Marines fighting over there are doing an “eye-watering” job in extremely harsh conditions.
“Marines are doing a tremendous job in Al Anbar (province),” he said. “Their morale is really quite high. They know they are making a difference; and they are, in fact, making a difference. In my opinion, absolutely changing history in that part of the world.”
But Hagee said he realized military might alone cannot win the war and that this struggle is different than others the Marines have fought in the past.
“We can’t win this militarily,” he said. “The Iraqi government needs to stand up and start providing services to the Iraqi people.”
One of the primary battlegrounds is perception, Hagee said. He admitted it’s not a battle the Marines are used to fighting. The insurgent enemy — which has no uniform or country — has become skilled at using the media and the free-flow of information across a globalized world.
“The bad guys are really quite good at this,” he said. They use our freedoms against us, access to news. … Information operations, I don’t think we really have a handle on that.
“Killing individuals won’t win this war,” he added. “Now, there are individuals out there that need to be killed. That’s a very small number. The rest need to be helped.”
Aiding the world is such a vital part of the perception battle, Hagee said. He pointed to Marine Corps aid after the tsunami in Indonesia and the earthquake in Pakistan as ways to show parts of the world that America is not hostile.
Another part of that struggle is how Marines handle themselves in theater. Hagee did not make reference to allegations of atrocities in Haditha, Iraq, but he did stress that winning the public relations battle often boils down to making good decisions in difficult circumstances.
“These are really hard decisions,” he said. “You’ve got to make a decision now. And if they make the wrong one, they are on CNN in 30 minutes and a talking head is on in 45 minutes discussing what they did wrong.”
An important thing, Hagee stressed, is to discuss decisions before action occurs. Hagee presented the audience with a scenario: A unit on patrol is attacked, a Marine is killed and others are wounded. Five Vietnamese (Hagee said he wanted to allude to the era he was from) civilians are milling about. What do you do?
“If that’s the first time you’ve thought about that, you could make the wrong decision,” he said. “We need to talk about these dilemmas here today. It’s pretty easy to do the right thing. It’s pretty hard to differentiate what the right thing is.”
Hagee also addressed the resolve of the American people. While he said the support of the troops is great, he is not sure Americans realize the sacrifice such an enterprise entails.
“We’re at war,” he said. “Not everyone realizes that. I’m embarrassed to say the majority of Americans don’t understand that. I think most Marines get it.
“The American people are really quite proud and try to support (the troops), but they are happy it’s not their son or daughter. I have a real concern about that. It’s a little cliché, but freedom isn’t free.”
Hagee is nearing the end of his term as commandant, a post that usually lasts about four years. Lt. Gen. James Conway has been nominated as Hagee’s successor and is currently going through the Senate confirmation process.
As congratulations on his impending retirement, the Marine Corps Association gave Hagee and his wife matching chairs on which to enjoy some lazy downtime.
“A single-malt scotch would go really well right here,” Hagee said as he sat in the chair.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 229.
Ellie