When US Representative Jack Murtha publicly characterized our troops as "broken, worn out" and "living hand-to-mouth," I decided to check the allegation out. Since Murtha was complaining mainly about military equipment, I reasoned that the symptoms would show up at major theater repair depots.
So I sought out the opinion of an NCO I know, who supervises mechanics at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. Early in his deployment, this soldier had mentioned trouble getting parts and snafus like the engines of some "up-armored" Humvees not being able to handle the extra weight of the armor.
The sergeant had not heard about Murtha's comments; outside news sources are few at Arifjan, and the soldiers there are too busy keeping things in good repair to spend time surfing the 'net.
1
Murtha = Lying Traitor
Army = Kicking Ass, Taking Names
Dhimmicrats = Treasonous Scum
Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at December 05, 2005 12:24 PM (0yYS2)
2
they're not worn out, the force is "broken"!
dumbasses!
Posted by: Jawa and all Jawa supporters....Suck! at December 05, 2005 12:48 PM (/3n/k)
Posted by: dave at December 05, 2005 12:50 PM (CcXvt)
4
Yeah, right Suckbaby, tell it to your friends, who are getting their asses kicked every time they stand up to fight. But they are nothing but little chickenshits, just like you, posing under a stupid nick.
Posted by: jesusland joe at December 05, 2005 01:23 PM (rUyw4)
5
Every day liberals make it harder to argue against dumping them into mass graves.
Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at December 05, 2005 01:45 PM (0yYS2)
6
Come on lil' jawa ... - be truly bold n' don't play this whinney weinie legalistic semantic game of the wishy-washy Dems ... "broken???????"
be proud n' say it ...
"We are defeated! we have lost! We must retreat!"
Broken is a discriptive adjective but it is also extremely vague, and open to selective interpretation with implied "nuiances" (love that word).
The Dems use language like this to "walk the line"- to give them the option of saying "I didn't mean it that way".
If they did come out boldly and clear - then the American public would demand 2 things ...
1) Some realistic degree of PROOF of our defeat provided by (guess who) the MEDIA! This would put the media on the spot! They can slant the news, focus solely on hardships suffered by the Iraqi people (from the insurgency - its unavoidable) and other issues ... but they can't actually show a "DEFEAT"! Nor can them Dems for that matter. (note HRC is currently trying out "mis-managed")
2) The American people would fully expect the Dems to end it with bills and votes in Congress!!!!!!!! Not press-releases or 15 minutes on Face the Nation! And that is not happening!
Everyone note - the Dems may not be doing anything to help the war effort (and some trying to undermine it) - but none are actually trying to stop it with their congressional authority and powers.
An old (& now conservative) term many here would understand
NO BALLS NO GLORY
Posted by: hondo at December 05, 2005 02:11 PM (3aakz)
7
rummy spoke of the left-wing meme - that the army is broken, and called it unadutlerated BS (NOT his words!).
he said that the army is stronger, better trained, better experienced now than at any time EVER in our history.
also: he cautioned against using NUMBERS to grade the military.
3 smart bombs are more effective than 50 dumb bombs.
ditto other miltary assets - including service members.
so: murtha is just flat out WRONG!
he should be tried and shot for treason. or hung. or whatever: as long as they kill him. after a trial.
ramsey clark can defend him. heh.
Posted by: reliapundit at December 05, 2005 02:28 PM (Ja1vM)
8
Murtha has taken a noble 37 career in the military and a long career in government acquiring the title of the guy who "gets things done" and thrown it all in the crapper. He'll rue the day he hooked up with Babs Boxer.
Posted by: Oyster at December 05, 2005 03:15 PM (fl6E1)
9
If I had a nickel for everytime I threatened to behead someone, I would be some scumball taking civilian hostages. Hmm, that makes no sense. Either way, the staff at the Guardian are still pussies.
Posted by: Wine-aholic at December 05, 2005 03:37 PM (Wsn+K)
10
The Struggle to Gauge a War's Psychological Cost
By BENEDICT CAREY
Published: November 26, 2005
http://tinyurl.com/cltz5
A continuing study of combat units that served in Iraq has found that about 17 percent of the personnel have shown serious symptoms of depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder - characterized by intrusive thoughts, sleep loss and hyper-alertness, among other symptoms - in the first few months after returning from Iraq, a higher rate than in Afghanistan but thought to be lower than after Vietnam.
In interviews, many members of the services and psychologists who had completed extended tours in Iraq said they had battled feelings of profound grief, anger and moral ambiguity about the effect of their presence on Iraqi civilians.
Psychologists and psychiatrists on the ground have to break through the mental toughness that not only keeps troops fighting but also prevents them from seeking psychological help, which is viewed as a sign of weakness. And they have been among the first to identify
the mental reactions particular to this war.
One of them, these experts say, is profound, unreleased anger. Group cohesion is strong, and the bonds only deepen in the hostile desert terrain of Iraq. For these tight-knit groups, certain kinds of ambushes - roadside bombs, for instance - can be mentally devastating, for a variety of reasons. "These guys go out in convoys, and boom: the first vehicle gets hit, their best friend dies, and now they're seeing life flash before them and get a surge of adrenaline and want to do something," said Lt. Col. Alan Peterson, an Air Force psychologist who completed a tour in Iraq last year. "But often there's nothing they can do. There's no enemy there."
Another powerful factor is ambiguity about the purpose of the mission, and about Iraqi civilians' perception of the American presence. The Americans had been handing out candy to children and helping residents fix their houses the day before the ambush, and they felt they had been set up, he said.
The entire unit, he said, was coursing with rage, asking: "What are we doing here? Why aren't the Iraqis helping us?"
The emotional casualties, Colonel Ritchie said, are "not just an Army medical problem, but a problem that the V.A. system, the civilian system and the society as a whole must work to solve."
That is the one thing all seem to agree on. Some veterans, like Sergeant Flanders and Sergeant Willis, have reconnected with other men in their units to help with their psychological adjustment to home life. Sergeant Willis has been transferred to noncombat duty at Camp Pendleton, in an environment he knows and enjoys, and he can see Commander Hoyt when he needs to. Sergeant Flanders is studying to be an officer.
But others, particularly reservists and National Guard troops, have landed right back in civilian society with no one close to them who has shared their experience.
Specialist Pickett, since her return, has felt especially cut off from the company she trained and served with. She has struggled at school, and with the Veterans Affairs system to get counseling, and no one near her has had an experience remotely like hers. She has tried antidepressants, which have helped reduce her suicidal thinking.
She has also joined Operation Truth, a nonprofit organization that represents Iraq veterans, which has given her some comfort.
Finally, she said, she has been searching her memory and conscience for reasons to justify the pain of her experience: no one, Specialist Pickett said, looks harder for justification than a soldier.
Dr. Marlowe, the former chief of psychiatry at Walter Reed, knows from studying other wars that this is so.
"The great change among American troops in Germany during the Second World War was when they discovered the concentration camps," Dr. Marlowe said. "That immediately and forever changed the moral appreciation for why we were there."
As soldiers return from Iraq, he said, "it will be enormously important for those who feel psychologically disaffected to find something which justifies the killing, and the death of their friends."
Posted by: Steve J. at December 05, 2005 07:03 PM (ekw6V)
11
>>>"they're not worn out, the force is "broken"
hondo,
their whiny talk isn't all that hard to decipher. Here is a direct translation from the Libspeak: the U.S. must be defeated at all costs and our troops withdrawn with tail tucked securely between legs so that Democrats can win in '08. Should America win the Iraq war, Democrats are toast for the next 40 years.
Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at December 05, 2005 08:45 PM (8e/V4)
12
Agent Jones quotes Donald H. Rumsfeld, "You go to war with the Army you have, not the Army you might want or wish to have."
Posted by: Agent Smith at December 06, 2005 05:54 AM (VX7Tm)
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