Posted on 04/23/2010 11:49:20 AM PDT by ken5050
For the vast majority of Americans the War on Terror (oops..forgot..we can't say that anymore) began on 9/11. In truth, it began decades, if not longer ago. The 1979 burning of the US Embassy in Islamabad, the 1983 suicide bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon...the list is long, the names of the dead forgotten but for their loved ones. For me, the raid on the Libyan madman is especially worth remembering, but sadly for the wrong reasons...
Capt. Fernando L. Ribas-Dominicci, USAF
Capt. Paul F. Lorence, USAF
Capt. Lorence's remains have never been recovered. It is believed that the Libyans still hold them.
The real lesson of the raid, one that sadly, we have not yet learned, is the fecklessness, the duplicity, of our so-called "allies" in the world. Except for Great Britain and Australia, then, as now, other free nations lacked the military power, or the will to project it, or both..and essentially forced the US to go solo on the mission.
France, Spain, and Italy ALL refused the US planes, (which took off from bases in Great Britain) overflight rights, as well as origination/landing rights on European bases. As a result, the US warplanes were forced to fly nearly 3,000 miles extra round trip..the long way around, over the Atlantic ..skirting France, and entering the Med over Gibraltar. This necessitated multiple mid-air refuelings.
The USAF after-action report strongly suggests that fatigue due to the extended flight hours and the strain of multiple refuelings en route contributed to crew stress which may have enabled the Libyans to down the plane.
Additionaly, it was later revealed that then Italian Premier Craxi told the Libyans TWO DAYS BEFORE that the raid was coming, enabling Qadaffi to escape, and allowing the air defenses to prepare, which also helped them to bring down the F-111.
The geo-political lessons to be drawn from this mission are many..sadly we have either forgotten them, or even worse, under Obama...refuse to learn them.
As Santayana reminded us.."Those who forget the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them."
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If Reagan only sat down and talked with them and apologized for America...things would have been so much better...
I like the accidental bombing of the french embassy - probably due to pilot fatigue from having to fly the long way around. President Reagan never was subtle, and that’s a good thing.
“If Reagan only sat down and talked with them and apologized for America...things would have been so much better...”
Don’t forget a couple of really deep bows.
@#$! Figures, the one time I forget to hit “refresh” before posting...
The fella sitting next to me remarked something to the effect of "remember how good he made us feel to be Americans?"
I felt that, and have head that many times, especially from friends that lived overseas during the Reagan years.
Americans were able to hold their heads up high then, thanks to Reagan. We finally had respect again, after years of Carter's mismanagement.
The locals may not have agreed with us on many things, but they knew we were sincere in our convictions, and more importantly - we were not people they wanted to mess with.
Then came the Clinton years.... Bin Laden himself noting in shock how the US changed it's foreign policy if you could just kill enough Americans:
"After leaving Afghanistan, the Muslim fighters headed for Somalia and prepared for a long battle thinking that the Americans were like the Russians. The youth were surprised at the low morale of the American soldiers and realized, more than before, that the American soldier was a paper tiger and after a few blows……would run in defeat."
This image of a weak America ultimately lead to 3000 people being murdered on a sunny day in September 2001.
The new regime is portraying us as a weak and humbled America, dangerously portraying us as Paper Tiger again.
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“Italian Premier Craxi”
In the end, Craxi got his. He fled Italy in disgrace, and died a refugee in Tunisia, hated by his countrymen.
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