Is Baghdad Burning?...Hardly!

Posted By Blackfive

Sprightly619 informed me that the Houston Chronicle published an interesting letter yesterday. It comes from Joe Roche, an adjunct fellow with the National Center for Public Policy Research, who is currently on Active Duty in Iraq with the 16th Engineer Battalion.

A soldier assures us: Our progress is amazing
By JOE ROCHE

I'm a soldier with the U.S. Army serving in the 16th Combat Engineer Battalion in Baghdad.

The news you are hearing stateside is awfully depressing and negative. The reality is we are accomplishing a tremendous amount here, and the Iraqi people are not only benefiting greatly, but are enthusiastically supportive.

My job is mostly to be the driver of my platoon's lead Humvee. I see the missions our Army is performing, and I interact closely with the Iraqi people. Because of this, I know how successful and important our work is.

My battalion carries out dozens of missions all over the city — missions that are improving people's lives. We have restored schools and universities, hospitals, power plants and water systems. We have engineered new infrastructure projects and much more. We have also brought security and order to many of Baghdad's worst areas — areas once afflicted with chaos and brutality.
<...>
Baghdad has more than 5 million inhabitants. If these people were in an uprising against the United States, which you might think is happening, we would be overwhelmed in hours. There are weapons everywhere, and though we are working hard to gather them all, we simply can't.

Our Army is carrying out 1,700 convoys and patrols each day. Only a tiny percentage actually encounter hostile action. My unit covers some of the worst and most intense areas, and I have seen some of the most tragic attacks and hostility, such as the bombing of the United Nations headquarters.

I'm not out of touch with the negative side of things. In fact, I think my unit has it harder than many other Army units in this whole operation. That said, despite some attacks, the overall picture is one of extreme success and much thanks.

The various terrorist enemies we are facing in Iraq are really aiming at you back in the United States. This is a test of will for our country. We soldiers of yours are doing great and scoring victories in confronting the evil terrorists...

Because Joe Roche works for a conservative think tank, his words will probably be ignored by the main stream media.

I am not trying to say that Fallujah or Samarra are problem-free, but that the left-wing is trying to turn Iraq into Vietnam more than the Iraqis are...

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Comments

[roach]

Good piece. We need to keep perspective. Only a smallish perentage of the Shia, in Sadr's camp, oppose us. And the rural and tribal Sunni that benefited most from Saddam's rule. Southern Shia, Urban Sunni professionals, Kurds, Christians, Gypsies: All of these constituencies are basically supporting us.

The defeatism of the post-Vietnam era is quite annoying. I think most of us realize this is not just some jack-ourselves-off foreign adventure but a necessary attempt to show that terrorism does not win.

[Oscar]

I just got done mentioning on WoC that this goes back to before Vietnam: I was at Harvard during the Cuban Missle Crisis (TM). I was surrounded by people screaming that KENNEDY was going to start WWIII!!!

This recollection makes me think that this stream is not defeatism, but cowardice.

I opposed getting into Nam for the reasons Eisenhower gave for staying out of Asia, so I ended up spending four years trying to keep the Russians out of the Fulda gap. And I was so scary they never came :-)

[Storming Heaven]

Can anyone help a confused youth?

I've learned over the years to trust my instincts and my gut.
My instinct tells me that the Liberals are wrong, and the conservatives are wrong.
It tells me that big government is corrupt.
It says that our CINC is out of touch with the men and women who have dirt on their uniforms and blood on their hands.
It tells me that the politics for attacking Iraq were wrong, but that in the name of humanity it was the right thing to do.
It says that Bush has confused the roles of society and government. Government exists to service society, not the other way around. I question his motivation. I wish that he'd take his advice from the grunt on the ground.
It says Kerry lacks the spinal and testicular fortitude to lead a nation though such a crisis.
It wishes for a leader I'd have the confidence to follow anywhere, a McCain or a Powell.

No matter how thick a document you study, you will never get the full picture. Documents do not present reality... they present and create favorable facts.
I know with every fiber of my body that when a commander needs to make a decision, when hes gauging the situation he should consult the grunt with blood on his hands and brass at his feet what he feels. Its the soldiers at the spear who understand the situation best of all. They may not always know how the fix the problem, but they know whats broken.

And as I rant, I find fewer answers and more questions. More tangents. But they all stem from one concern.

Im an Army Cadet, I have taken an oath to defend the values that make this nation great. Soon I will become an Army Officer... an Infantry Officer. And I WILL do my duty, be it under Bush or Kerry or Micky Mouse.
My concern is with the men I lead. With doing my job. I hope that when the metal meets the meat, my men and I will be fighting for something constructive. I hope that we will have the proper equipment, proper training, and proper leadership to be successful. I hope that I will not have to order anyone up a modern Hamburger Hill because of the ineptitude and or criminal stupidity of those above me (all the way to the White house?).

So I ask those of you who have been there. How do you go into something like war with your eyes wide shut? Do you just do your job to the best of your ability and train for the worst? Do you just turn a blind eye to those above you and focus on the men below you?

I think im starting to discover that, thats what being a soldier is all about.

[Casey Tompkins]

Storming Heaven: re: your opinion that Bush "is out of touch with the men and women who have dirt on their uniforms and blood on their hands."

Do you trust your brothers and sisters who have been under fire; known pain, fear, and death; have held a beloved comrade in their arms while that man or woman died?

If so, ask them about the CINC. I think you'll be surprised.

[roach]

In my experience a surprising number of soldiers are very concerned with detail and deliberately indifferent about big picture stuff. Blow open a door, take a bridge, kill some guerillas, they know the ins and outs. Balance Syria, Lebanon, Iran, and multiple Shia factions, you'll get some blank stares.

I think this is not an intellectual or moral failing either. But there's different levels of strategic thinking and you can't do high and low level stuff at the same time.

In other words, the big strategic picture needs to be something that the military is subordinate to and that is created by the civilian leadership. The military is there as a tool for our foreign policy creators. International relations is just as if not more tricky than planning an amphibious raid. I don't think a Lance Coolie just out of HS necessarily has much to say on the subject.

[Storming Heaven]

Btw... it might sound like it... but I didnt actually intend to come off as a whiny jackass. I've just got some questions.

[Jack Grey]

Storming Heaven,

First, congratulations on figuring out that liberals and conservatives are often wrong. Ideologies aren't perfect, and being open to the possibility of error is a step toward actually thinking about your decisions.

Forget the "politics" of attacking Iraq. It was the right thing to do for both the people of Iraq and our national interests. You should research this yourself. Read the MilBlogs, read the links... then look at the arguments on the other side. Do a threat assessment. Eliminate the arguments that are "All War Bad", "Bush=Devil" and "Must Have UN"... and see what you come up with. Remember, this IS a War.

As far as Bush, I agree with the previous post that you should ask around. I served under the previous CIC, and uh, lets just say I believe the level of respect for the current one to be much higher.

Your oath is to the Constitution and you should always remember the ideals that it states. All the officers above you have taken the same oath. Realize that the President of the United States has also taken a similar oath.

You have a concern for the men you will lead... and that is how it should be. As you rise through the ranks, do you expect to lose that concern? (yes, I know, some do... but I believe they are exceptions) I'm sure you will strive to earn the trust of those that serve under you... give those above you that opportunity, as well.

Without a doubt, it is true that those at the "point of the spear" have a different perspective than those at command staff level. Unfortunately, that statement is both an accusation and an explanation. It's the job of a commander (in my view) to explain the mission to his troops. It doesn't always happen... but that's where the trust thing comes in, again.

-JAG

[bubba]

"Our progress is amazing."

Glad you left this up. It's good for a laugh.