As I type this, the president is sitting down with General McChrystal to discuss the general's recent comments as revealed in a Rolling Stone article. There has been a lot of pundit talk about what should happen. Amazingly, most of Congress has kept quiet on this, awaiting today's meeting.
One point that is lost in all of the noise and dust is somewhat buried in the article. That is the frustration of the front line troops with the existing rules of engagement. More on that below.
By now, everyone is aware of the general's comments and those of his staff. They were uncomplimentary to the president and his staff, otherwise known as the Civilian Command. Now, like Obama or not, he is the Commander in Chief. We only have one at a time, and he is it. This is not an optional acceptance for the military. Their oath is to the Constitution.
Reports are that McChrystal will offer his resignation. Obama should accept it and demand the resignation of his staff as well. As Commander in Chief he has little choice. This is not a new situation for a president. Ask Patton or MacArthur. Outstanding commanders who both violated the rules.
McChrystal's comments - which he does not deny - are a direct violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Here are the sections he and his staff violated:
88 of the UCMJ - CONTEMPT TOWARD OFFICIALS:
"Any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the President, the Vice President, Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Governor or legislature of any State, Territory, Commonwealth, or possession in which he is on duty or present shall be punished as a court-martial may direct. "
Article 133 - CONDUCT UNBECOMING AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN:
"Any commissioned officer, cadet, or midshipman who is convicted of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman shall be punished as a court-martial may direct."
134 - GENERAL ARTICLE:
"All disorders and neglects to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces, all conduct of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces, and crimes and offenses not capital, of which persons subject to this chapter may be guilty, shall be taken cognizance of by a general, special or summary court-martial, according to the nature and degree of the offense, and shall be punished at the discretion of that court."
These are not flexible rules like traffic laws. They exist for a purpose. And the US Military is well aware of that. McChrystal not only proffered these comments, but allowed an environment among his staff to exist that emboldened them to violate these rules. The general knows this. This is not about politics or points. This is about the military and the chain of command.
Buried in the Rolling Stone article is the real problem in Afghanistan. The real reason we have been there for this long. The real reason we cannot progress beyond a point. They complain about having to fight with one arm behind their backs. They are right.
The front line troops are frustrated by the existing rules of engagement and that I blame on both the prior and current administrations and the Congress for falling for the "civilian casualty/collateral damage" lie that the UN and their buddies have cooked up. Only the US and Israel get slapped for that and for the last 8 years, the military has been constrained by it. Obviously it is wrong to just shoot up a village, but it is not wrong to bomb an enemy stronghold. Especially when we know this enemy uses civilians, schools and churches as shields.
We know that this enemy has no qualms about killing hundreds of innocent civilians just because they can. We know that they hide in and among the civilian population. Our troops know this, yet they are asked to not fight this enemy to win. They are asked to worry about PR value.
Well, war is ugly. Nasty, sad, messy and ugly. It is supposed to be that way. We seem to have fallen prey to the world view that war is some kind of surgical procedure. We have allowed the UN and the rest to tell us how best to conduct ourselves. The same UN that refuses to denounce terrorists. The same UN that condemns Israel for defending itself and never condemns the killing of Israeli civilians by Palestinian terrorists.
We should stop listening to these sideline barking cowards. They are not in this fight. It was not their cities that came under attack and it was not their civilians that perished by the thousands. If we are going to fight this war, then fight it to win.
When McChrystal offers his resignation, Obama should accept it. Reluctantly and with sadness, but he should accept it. Military discipline and tradition demand no less. Then Obama should change the rules and allow our troops to fight to win.
This is indeed Obama's command moment. I hope he does the right thing for the military and our troops and not the popular or easy thing.
Showing posts with label Military. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Military. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Blind ideology - always a bad idea.
Picking through today's news and political droppings, it was hard to miss the raw display of blind ideology being put on by the Senate Armed Services Committee. The hearing was on the somewhat goofy "Don't ask, don't tell" policy inflicted on our armed forces. And I do mean inflicted.
Why that word? Well, in a nutshell, that policy tells those men and women that want to serve and happen to be gay that they are going to have to lie in order to defend truth, justice and the American way. We would be better served by returning to the outright ban (something I do not personally endorse) since it at least left honesty as an option.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs told the committee that he felt it was time to remove the policy. He made it clear it was a personal opinion, but he also left little doubt. This opened the door for a display of nonsense the likes of which had not been seen since the Finance Committee hearing that same day.
Needless to say, Republicans opposed the idea in lockstep. They cited tattoos, fraternization and sexual activity. And, needless to say, Democrats embraced the idea without a clue as to what or why, citing civilian precedent. Both sides simply scurried to their respective partisan comfort zones and stayed there.
Republicans used the very overused "not when there is all this stuff going on," excuse and Democrats used the equally overused "everyone can do everything." Both are simply wrong and both are staying with the blind ideology that seems to rule the day.
I remain baffled as to why we would want to discourage any American from joining the military and defending our freedoms. I would think we would welcome them. One would hope that our elected leaders might want to set aside their poll driven, molded opinions and simply applaud those brave men and women willing to put on the uniform and serve our nation.
Senator McCain, who I respect immensely for his service to this nation both in and out of uniform - was perhaps the most disappointing. 4 years ago, McCain said he would listen to the leaders of our military when they came to him and said it was time to change the policy. Yesterday, he scolded Admiral Mullen for asking that the policy be changed. So what happened? Simple. Blind ideology overcame simple honesty.
At the same time, Senator McCaskill, who has never shown what I would call appropriate respect for our military commanders suddenly lauded them. So what happened? Again blind ideology overcame honesty.
Of course, that won't happen. Why? Because they actually don't care that much about our military or those courageous young men and women wanting to defend us. Nope. They actually aren't going to listen to the same military leaders that each side demands that the other side listen to. Because, when the hearing is over, they get to call their donors and favored reporters and boast about the stand they took.
Because all any of those Senators cares about is the next interview or the next fund raiser or the next election. Not one of them expressed an interest in hearing from the actual military members. Not one wanted to examine the record of service. Not one.
To them, it is not about the members of our military - the best in the world - who are actually willing to fight and put their lives on the line. It is not about what is best for the nation. It is not even about the will of the people. It is about getting reelected. It is about making sure party dogma is adhered to.
It was just another session of flaming spitballs, courtesy of the US Senate.
(note - I am not going to bother with the whole party label and state when naming members of Congress. They no longer represent anyone and both parties are equally corrupt and dishonest.)
Why that word? Well, in a nutshell, that policy tells those men and women that want to serve and happen to be gay that they are going to have to lie in order to defend truth, justice and the American way. We would be better served by returning to the outright ban (something I do not personally endorse) since it at least left honesty as an option.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs told the committee that he felt it was time to remove the policy. He made it clear it was a personal opinion, but he also left little doubt. This opened the door for a display of nonsense the likes of which had not been seen since the Finance Committee hearing that same day.
Needless to say, Republicans opposed the idea in lockstep. They cited tattoos, fraternization and sexual activity. And, needless to say, Democrats embraced the idea without a clue as to what or why, citing civilian precedent. Both sides simply scurried to their respective partisan comfort zones and stayed there.
Republicans used the very overused "not when there is all this stuff going on," excuse and Democrats used the equally overused "everyone can do everything." Both are simply wrong and both are staying with the blind ideology that seems to rule the day.
I remain baffled as to why we would want to discourage any American from joining the military and defending our freedoms. I would think we would welcome them. One would hope that our elected leaders might want to set aside their poll driven, molded opinions and simply applaud those brave men and women willing to put on the uniform and serve our nation.
Senator McCain, who I respect immensely for his service to this nation both in and out of uniform - was perhaps the most disappointing. 4 years ago, McCain said he would listen to the leaders of our military when they came to him and said it was time to change the policy. Yesterday, he scolded Admiral Mullen for asking that the policy be changed. So what happened? Simple. Blind ideology overcame simple honesty.
At the same time, Senator McCaskill, who has never shown what I would call appropriate respect for our military commanders suddenly lauded them. So what happened? Again blind ideology overcame honesty.
Of course, that won't happen. Why? Because they actually don't care that much about our military or those courageous young men and women wanting to defend us. Nope. They actually aren't going to listen to the same military leaders that each side demands that the other side listen to. Because, when the hearing is over, they get to call their donors and favored reporters and boast about the stand they took.
Because all any of those Senators cares about is the next interview or the next fund raiser or the next election. Not one of them expressed an interest in hearing from the actual military members. Not one wanted to examine the record of service. Not one.
To them, it is not about the members of our military - the best in the world - who are actually willing to fight and put their lives on the line. It is not about what is best for the nation. It is not even about the will of the people. It is about getting reelected. It is about making sure party dogma is adhered to.
It was just another session of flaming spitballs, courtesy of the US Senate.
(note - I am not going to bother with the whole party label and state when naming members of Congress. They no longer represent anyone and both parties are equally corrupt and dishonest.)
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