Tuesday, July 10, 2007
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From General Petraeus
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Posted by:
Hugh Hewitt at
10:43 AM
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General Petraeus, from a Q&A with Ralph Peters:
Q: After more than four years of often frustrating operations in Iraq, troop morale remains remarkably resilient by historical standards. Even re-enlistment rates are impressive. How do our men and women in uniform remain so committed?
A: They know they're engaged in a critical endeavor, one that's "larger than self." They recognize the mission's importance not just to Iraq, but to the entire region and to our own country. Despite multiple tours and separations from loved ones, not to mention the impatience, frustration and other emotions we all feel at times, our men and women in uniform want to see Iraqis succeed - and, of course, they have a fierce desire not to let down their buddies. The bonds of those who have served together in combat are particularly strong.
We celebrated the 4th of July with a wonderful ceremony in Baghdad. It included what may have been the largest re-enlistment ceremony in history: 588 of our men and women raised their right hands and signed up for another tour in the Armed Forces. Following that, 161 soldiers and Marines became United States citizens, reciting the oath to the nation they had been serving in combat, but that had not yet been their own. They were proud Americans, and we were all proud of them.
(HT: RealClearPolitics).
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You may not have had time to answer, but please help me out on this. What exactly do you think will happen to Iraq if we did just get out? |
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Can we once and for all understand: US troops have absolutely nothing to do with policy failure in Iraq. Troops are young men and women in the armed services, doing their job, in a courageous way. Policy failure belongs to President Bush and especially, Vice President Cheney, and they will shortly go down for it. Big time. They should. |
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Conservative Wordsmith,
I agree with your sentiments regarding the American Soldiers. And am happy about there not being a draft but think you need to inspect the reasons behind that a bit closer.
Bush has stated that this is the most critical fight we have ever been in, why so than no draft? Why are our Soldiers bearing the brunt of this sacrifice that is so critical to this country? In every war, up until this one, the American public has had to make a sacrifice whether it is copper, a draft, or a 2nd job.
I believe it is because if the American public had to start making sacrifices, opinion of this war would plummet. We would start inspecting the reasons why we were in this war a bit closer.
Why are there so many armed contractors in Iraq? Have we ever used armed contractors in a war before. Why?
This is not the war we were sold, but it is the war we are in. All praise to the men and women fighting the tactical fight, however the strategy is flawed. |
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The point is very simple: Ralph Peters is a hack. Lets read the question again, "After more than four years of often frustrating operations in Iraq, troop morale remains remarkably resilient by historical standards. Even re-enlistment rates are impressive. How do our men and women in uniform remain so committed?"
Like much about the spin attached to this war, the facts on the ground do not match the rhetoric. Re-enlistment rates are not impressive over the past two months. Moreover, the Army has had to drop their recruitment goals just to avoid a public relations disaster. It would be nice if we could have a little bit of objectivity in this "new media" that Hugh keeps promoting. |
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I can never get an answer from anyone who wants to get out of Iraq ASAP. Since you have the courage to admit that it is "CUT AND RUN", in your opinion, what exactly do you think will happen to Iraq if we did just get out?
Also, I have a friend here in the states who is from Baghdad. While he isn't exactly for the war(yet happy Saddam is gone), he feels it is the full responsibility of the United States to make sure Iraq is safe and stable before we leave, since it was the US who inititated the war. In his opinion, Iraq is in big trouble if we leave. Since he thinks we're going to leave too early, he has bought property in Dubai to move his family to. |
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We've lost. It's time to CUT AND RUN.
Get our soldiers out of there NOW and focus on our enemy! |
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American Soldiers deserve everyone's respect and admiration. They are willing to risk their lives for us, and do it voluntarily. Remember that there is no draft now, and they are not being forced to enlist. |
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So your point is? Recruiting is like selling cars. It's never the same from month to month.
It doesn't help when the DEM's & MSN keep calling our boys a bunch of killers. |
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By the way, the Army missed its recruiting goals for the second consecutive month. |
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Hugh -
Nice post. Guess which presidential candidate was at the re-enlistment ceremony General Petraeus mentioned. John McCain. Guess which presidential candidate often talks, like Petraeus, of serving a cause larger than self. John McCain. Guess which presidential candidate is most serious about victory in Iraq......
It's a damn shame that you haven't given him the credit he is due for being the republican who has consistently done the best job of making the case for victory in Iraq since the war began.
Would it really be a bad thing for you to make just one post that gives him props for that? Just one. It would not mean that you were endorsing him or anything of the sort, but it would be an acknowledgement that he has taken a tough position (one that you actually agree with for once) and has had the political courage to stick to it. That's no easy thing these days. |
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