A Soldier's View of the ISG

Okay this is probably like a chain-blog, nonetheless it is a soldiers view from reputable string of Conservative Blogs.

I found this at Blogs for Bush with a pedigree that stretches to Powerline.
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A Soldier's View of the ISG

Blogs For Bush

December 08, 2006

We stack up one soldier against the members of the Iraq Study Group, and guess who comes out on top? (From Powerline via Dean's World)

After watching the Iraq Survey Group press conference today I am a firm believer that all politicians are idiots. Okay well not all of them but they all have a problem understanding reality. If any politician is reading this now feel free to email me and we’ll go out for coffee and I’ll further explain. But I digress.

The Iraq Survey Group’s findings or rather, recommendations are a joke and could have only come from a group of old people who have been stuck in Washington for too long. The brainpower of the ISG has come up with a new direction for our country and that includes negotiating with countries whose people chant “Death to America” and whose leaders deny the Holocaust and call for Israel to be wiped from the face of the earth. Baker and Hamilton want us to get terrorists supporting countries involved in fighting terrorism! If I am the only one who finds something wrong with that then please let me know because right now I feel like I am the only person who feels this way.

Not only are the findings of the ISG a joke but the people who led the group (Baker and Hamilton) treat soldiers like they are a joke. One of the main recommendations of the ISG is to send more troops to Iraq in order to train Iraqis so they can secure their own country, but they don’t feel that we are doing a good job of that right now because training Iraqis isn’t an attractive job for soldiers to do because it isn’t a “career advancing” job. As someone who trained Iraqis from time to time I take personal offense to this remark. In my experience soldiers clamored for the chance to train Iraqis. Any soldier who doesn’t think training Iraqis is worth their time because it isn’t a “career advancing” job shouldn’t be part in the war on terror plain and simple.

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I feel like all of my efforts (30 months of deployment time) and the efforts of all my brothers in arms are all for naught. I thought old people were supposed to be more patient than a 24 year old but apparently I have more patience for our victory to unfold in Iraq than 99.9 percent of Americans. Iraq isn’t fast food--you can’t have what you want and have it now. To completely change a country for the first time in its entire history takes time, and when I say time I don’t mean 4 years.

Talking doesn’t solve anything with a crazed people, bullets do and we need to be given a chance to work our military magic. Like I told a reporter buddy of mine: War sucks but a world run by Islamofacists sucks more.

Imagine a world in which we allow our troops to do their bit unfettered by mental hand-wringing and various forms of giving aid and comfort to the enemy from the left here in the United States - it is a world where we would then turn towards Iran's mullahs and say, "do you want the same?". RIght now, what we're saying is, "make things messy for a couple years and you'll find a large portion of America's leadership wetting its pants and wanting to get out at any price".

I heard today on the radio that President Bush is going to give a major speech before the end of the year regarding Iraq and the War on Terrorism - I pray that it is a throwing down of the gauntlet, both to our enemies abroad and our critics at home. This is war, and it is a war we can lose to our destruction if we allow it.
The troops are ready to fight on to victory, President Bush retains a large measure of support among the politically active and I do believe that we can rally a majority in favor of victory if we just do it.

McCain's statement on Iraq Study Group report

Senator John McCain [R] from Arizona is a potential Republican candidate for President in 2008. Frankly I mistrust McCain’s social values for America. Thus as the Republican Party chooses its candidate for 2008, I hope it is not McCain.

On the other hand I admire McCain’s rough demeanor. It portrays strength when America needs that projection.

I totally agree with McCain’s assessment of the Iraq Study Group (ISG). McCain finds more to dislike than to like.

Is a Global Jewish Sell-Out Afoot?

The DEBKAfile (*via Prophecy Update) pretty much validates Israel’s contempt for the new Secretary of Defense. In the Confirmation Hearings before the U.S. Senate, Gates publicly revealed aspects of Israel’s National Security that should not have been placed in the public record.

Gates revealed that Israel has a nuclear arsenal. Of course everyone knows this; however Israel has never made this a public issue. Israel’s nuclear arsenal would only be used in self-defense from its wacko Mohammedan and Islamofascist neighbors and terrorists.

Israel must be reeling from American hints of forcing Israel to give up the Golan Heights to Syria and acquiescing to a nuclear armed Iran. These are issues that could terminate Israel’s existence. If or when Israel is forced to do the unthinkable, who will secure Israel’s existence?

Will the EU come to Israel’s rescue with a combined Mohammedan invasion? And I do mean combined! Do you think Mohammedans that have made peace (Egypt and Jordan) will not join in an invasion if they presume the Mohammedans will finally eliminate Jews from the Middle East?

Will America come to Israel’s aid if a combined Mohammedan invasion comes to the Zionist Nation? I do not think that would be the case by the implication of Gates’ testimony before the Senate. There is the appearance of a Jewish sell out afoot.

NRO Symposium on ISG

The National Review Online conducted a symposium on Iraq Study Group (ISG). The names involved are Peter Brooks, Victor Davis Hanson, Clifford D. May and David Schenker.

The NRO panel of writers is unanimously critical of the ISG report. Some agree about criticizing Iraq for not doing their part to battle sectarianism in Iraq. Agreement ends there.

The NRO panel points out that dealing with Syria and Iran for the sake of ending chaos is ludicrous. Both of those nations thrive on chaos in order to be players in the Middle East. Dealing with Syria and Iran will mean America forcing to give something up that will be unpalatable at best and unenforceable at worst.

Dealing with Syria will sell out Lebanon and Israel. Syria will want to dominate Lebanonese politics and the return of the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights are used as an invasion buffer to continuously belligerent Syria.

Dealing with Iran will cause the West and America to live with a nuclear armed Iran. There are huge hints that America and the West are willing to acquiesce on this issue. I have heard talk from the new Secretary of Defense (designate) Robert Gates understands Iran’s need to go nuclear. Iran is surrounded by potentially nuclear armed enemies: Sunni Pakistan, Russia, Israel and American WMD armed Naval and Military in Iraq and in Afghanistan. That sounds like the go ahead to me.

Read the NRO Symposium written relating to the ISG.

Other posts on the ISG: Here, Here and Here.

Iraq Study Group Thoughts

Betsy’s Page Blog has some marvelous ideas on how to utilize a fact finding commission.

Evidently this Iraq Study Group (ISG) was commissioned by Congress and not the Executive Branch of Government. Betsy implies that Congress and legislative bodies have had a bad record of prosecuting a war.

Here is an insight that I at first glance agree with: The Executive Branch should Commission such a study group rather than a deliberative body responsible to specific constituents, special interests and ideology. Deliberative bodies simply take too long for decisions that an unfettered Executive Branch may have to do quickly.

Another excellent point is that a commission built by the Executive Branch could better ascertain the needs of strategy; i.e. continue or change and prosecute the decision.

And yet another good point is that such a Commission should be paneled secretly and only release its findings when the information will not give insight to the enemy on how the Executive Branch operates.

A most excellent read, I have Betsy’s post in the comment section of SlantRight.com.