Army stretched to breaking

[leftchick]

http://www.shns.com/shns/g_index2.cfm?action=detail&pk=EDARMY-02-20-06

The Marines may be the most celebrated of the American armed forces, but it's the Army that does most of the heavy lifting, as it is doing in Afghanistan and Iraq. In the process, the Army is being battered and shattered in the same way that it was in Vietnam.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld says that isn't the case; everything's fine. But a recent authoritative study says he is wrong. Commissioned by the Pentagon, the study was done by Andrew Krepinevich of the independent Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. He's a West Point graduate who served in a variety of Army roles, including a stint on the strategic plans and policy division, before retiring. He holds a doctorate from Harvard University.

Krepinevich says that coming out of Vietnam, military leaders were determined never again to get bogged down in prolonged small-unit combat. If the Army must fight, it would hit with overwhelming force, achieve its objectives and get out. The need to behave that way was reinforced by the end of the draft late in the Vietnam War. U.S. military forces now needed to focus on their ability to attract new recruits and retain experienced personnel.

That doctrine dictated how the Army was organized for Afghanistan and Iraq. It was totally unprepared to cope with extended battles against insurgencies; the Bush administration's strategy didn't take them into account.

[Nickster]

1. Problem is, will there be a single Pentagon internal leader willing to

stand up and start banging the damn drums on this message? Not likely....Rummy took care of replacing just about every dissenter.

We lost a lot of leaders that had personal experience with operations in Vietnam, they took alot of that learning and changed how things were done in the first Gulf War. I was so proud of our leadership that they took our mistakes in Vietnam and not only vowed to stop those mistakes from reoccuring, but took action to do so. Now, we need to re-learn the same stinking lessons.

[ixion]

2. "out of bounds", "beyond the pale", "aiding the enemy"...

and so it goes... :puke:

[blackhorse]

3. The comparison is apt ...

except that Vietnam was fought with a drafted army and the current war is being fought with a volunteer army.

This leads one to wonder -- since the army isn't drafted today, there will probably be less home-based political pressure to break off the war. If that turns out to be true, how long can the army take the strain without breaking?

There is another difference. In Vietnam, tours were done by individuals and lasted around a year. In Iraq, the units are rotating -- but having to return after only a brief period of rest out of the theater. My guess is that eventually there will be a mass exodus from the army if any kind of economic opportunity is present for those getting out.

BH

[Dunvegan]

6. But the new policy of "No More Vietnams" is how we got the volunteer army

Now that the architects of that sensible and strong method of ensuring enlistment for security of the country has been dismantled, we have broken the promise that guaranteed such an army.

And a volunteer army is the very best sort of army to have. They are all there by choice.

We shall not see such a phenomenon again in at (the very least) another generation or two. The trust is broken.

Next: Iran.

After that....

[tabasco]

13. Not entirely a volunteer army.

Tens of thousands of soldiers want to get out but can't because of stop-loss orders.

Thousands of others have been forced to active duty from the active and inactive reserves.

Recruiting is a major problem right now. General Joulwan, my former division commander in the 3rd AD and former NATO commander, says the Army is nearly broken.

The freepers like to watch war on teevee, but don't like to participate.

[Missy M]

4. Another major failure in this administration yet 40% of......

Americans still support Bush. How can that be. In spite of the failure Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld insist on remaining in Iraq and are perhaps looking to do something with Iran next. They must be stopped.

[genie_weenie]

10. Well, how many of those 40% have a member of their family in harm's way

And no one wants to believe they are being lied too. I mean, the United Staters *want* to believe their president and it takes almost overwhelming evidence to convince them that an administration actually does not have their best intrests at heart.

"After you watch this, you're gonna get your popcorn out of the microwave and you'll forget me by the end." predicts Robert Beatty in Gunner Palace.

[saigon68]

14. Its real easy

Don't "JOIN UP"

And don't let your children either.

The military is rotten to the core.

[genie_weenie]

15. Well I joined under Billiam

not to be lied into going abroad under the Aegis of Realignment of the Middle East for Usage by Large Corparations and War Profiteering for Cronies of those in Power.

[rodeodance]

5. "thanks to the flawed vision of Rumsfeld and Bush"---last sentence

.......That doctrine dictated how the Army was organized for Afghanistan and Iraq. It was totally unprepared to cope with extended battles against insurgencies; the Bush administration's strategy didn't take them into account.

.........

The effects of this flawed strategy have been dramatic. The Army has no strategic reserve to call on if another threat were to develop. Divorce rates, domestic abuse and all kinds of mental and physical problems are on the rise among active duty soldiers. In sum, the Army is headed for a "catastrophic decline in recruitment and retention" unless something is done. The "thin green line," Krepinevich says, will break. And don't look to NATO, the United Nations or private contractors for more help, or expect Iraqi forces to develop without many years of effort.

Adding an additional 30,000 to 40,000 personnel, "if aggressively executed, could create a force sufficient to sustain current force levels indefinitely, while maintaining a modest strategic reserve," Krepinevich writes. But even that wouldn't help unless the Pentagon's strategy is changed. From a force organized "to compete as a world-class sprinter," Krepinevich says, the Army must recast itself to run marathons _ to put a "greater priority on stability operations." That, he says, will take years, and there are no good options for getting through the transition, even if nothing else happens in the world requiring the Army's attention.

Thus the Army finds itself just where it was in Vietnam, and without a draft. Its near-term future looks bleak, thanks to the flawed vision of Rumsfeld and Bush.

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.shns.com.)

[leftchick]

9. flawed vision is an understatement

more like insane delusions.

[RobertSeattle]

7. Late 90's RW Talking Points: "Clinton has over stretched the military"

Remember those days when Clinton's peacekeeping missions were supposedly causing the military to be overstretched - what yammering we heard from the right wing. Now Bush had done it by a factor of 100 times and from the right wing? Chirp Chirp - Creeeeek.

[AndyTiedye]

8. Repubs Are Holding the Army Hostage

They want to dupe the Dems into introducing the draft. If we do, the Repubs will rule forever
and be able to draft everbody to to fight their Crusades for them.

[DoYouEverWonder]

11. Of course Rumsfeld see this has success

If destroying our military is your goal, then his policies have been a huge success.

[Raffi Ella]

12. ...

I have a brother who's 30 yrs old,married with a child and working in a field he loves.He served at Fort Bragg N.C in the 82nd airbornne division when he was in his early 20s...he told me that they are basically harassing him and trying to bribe him into coming back.
He recieves a letter atleast once a week from the military trying to guilt him into returning and "serving his country in a time of need".They offered him a huge sum of money to entice him and when that didn't work they offered him more.

My other brother is in Special Ops up at Fort Bragg.He can't tell anyone details of anything but he has said that the situation is pretty bad.A Lot of Special Ops personnel have either been wounded out of action or they are leaving the military and it is getting more difficult to retain highly trained military personnel in every division he said.


THIS is how George Bush is protecting us...I feel sooo safe.Especially now that he's gonna sell port security to the UAE!!WOoooooo BOY!Now THAT's aptriotism for ya'!

[Road Scholar]

16. If we really did need them, then they'd be all used up or in other

words,we lost the war of choice in Iraq.