Army Captains Write About Iraq War
Twelve former Army captains write about Iraq war in a sincere realistic way.
The US Army captains, all who served in Iraq, do not say that the US should immediately draw down all troops and leave Iraq. They do say that the US should face up to the reality that five years on, Iraq is in shambles. That we do not have enough troops to prevail in Iraq. That we should either reinstate the draft and come up with the troops or unless troop levels can be rapidly increased withdraw ASAP in as orderly a way as possible.
A US Army infantry captain would usually have responsibility for a company of men. That would be from about 120 up to 150 soldiers. Thus their experience in Iraq would generally be in the field with combat operations. In other words they would have first hand experience with how things are on the road, in the villages, on search and destroy missions, with engaging insurgents in urban and rural settings. These guys and gals are the lifeblood of field operations in the Army.
The twelve captains write they they tried to pass up their opinions through the chain of command. Their observations and comments were not welcome and as far as they know were not passed upwards to any level of importance.
The captains note a few sad facts of life in the US occupied Iraq. Baghdad is lucky to receive eight hours of electricity a day. Roads, bridges, hospitals, schools, and infrastructure in general are in terrible condition. Oil output after over five years of occupation is still below that achieved by the Iraqis under Saddam. There is an acute shortage of clean water. Corruption is widespread. The Iraqi government is non functional even at the most basic levels. And the list goes on.
Why are the opinions of Army captains with Iraq combat experience important?
These folks have first hand experience with conditions in the field. They are not high ranking officers who spend most of their time in the Green Zone working on PowerPoint presentations. They are not concerned about getting their first or next star.
No, these captains speak from the experience of having been involved with the nitty gritty side of life in Iraq. Their opinions are worth listening to. If only our present US leadership would listen to anyone whose opinion differs from their own we might have a chance to someday exit Iraq with some degree of honor. Unfortunately, the Bush administration doesn’t seem to have ears for any dissenting opinions.
Therefore, the outlook for a favorable outcome from the US point of view to this foolish and terribly destructive Iraq war does not look good.
Unfortunately our loss will likely be Iran’s gain. Our own actions have greatly strengthened Iran’s influence within Iraq and in the region.
