Lt. Col's Letter re Iraq: "I'm Tired"

Two weeks ago, as I was starting my sixth month of duty in Iraq, I was forced to return to the USA for surgery for an injury I sustained prior to my deployment. With luck, I'll return to Iraq to finish my tour.

I left Baghdad and a war that has every indication that we are winning, to return to a demoralized country much like the one I returned to in 1971 after my tour in Vietnam. Maybe it's because I'll turn 60 years old in just four months, but I'm tired:

I'm tired of spineless politicians, both Democrat and Republican who lack the courage, fortitude, and character to see these difficult tasks through.

I'm tired of the hypocrisy of politicians who want to rewrite history when the going gets tough.

I'm tired of the disingenuous clamor from those that claim they 'Support the Troops' by wanting them to 'Cut and Run' before victory is achieved.

I'm tired of a mainstream media that can only focus on car bombs and casualty reports because they are too afraid to leave the safety of their hotels to report on the courage and success our brave men and women are having on the battlefield.

I'm tired that so many Americans think you can rebuild a dictatorship into a democracy over night.

I'm tired that so many ignore the bravery of the Iraqi people to go to the voting booth and freely elect a Constitution and soon a permanent Parliament.

I'm tired of the so called 'Elite Left' that prolongs this war by giving aid and comfort to our enemy, just as they did during the Vietnam War.

I'm tired of antiwar protesters showing up at the funerals of our fallen soldiers. A family who's loved ones gave their life in a just and noble cause, only to be cruelly tormented on the funeral day by cowardly protesters is beyond shameful.

I'm tired that my generation, the Baby Boom - Vietnam generation, who have such a weak backbone that they can't stomach seeing the difficult tasks through to victory.

I'm tired that some are more concerned about the treatment of captives than they are the slaughter and beheading of our citizens and allies.

I'm tired that when we find mass graves it is seldom reported by the press, but mistreat a prisoner and it is front page news.

Mostly, I'm tired that the people of this great nation didn't learn from history that there is no substitute for Victory.

What Israel is experiencing now is proof positive a policy of cutting and running from Iraq would be a far deadlier proposition for the US in the long run than seeing the mission in Iraq through to the end.

Think back on recent history. In 1982, Israel had gone in to Lebanon to stop the kinds of terrorist attacks across its borders that precipitated the current conflict. They maintained a buffer zone presence within Southern Lebanon to prevent terrorists from having enough proximity to Israel to lob rockets and infiltration attacks across Israel's northern border.

However, as a result of an ongoing insurgent operation by Hezbollah forces against Israeli troops similar to that in Iraq, Israel's leaders slowly allowed themselves to be brow beaten by short-sighted Israeli public opinion, and the Clinton administration, into suddenly withdrawing from Southern Lebanon in 2000 without any guarantees by Hezbollah, Syria or Iran that terrorism into Israel would stop.

The result is what we see now. An emboldened Hamas and Hezbollah, with the latter having a vastly inflated reputation in Lebanon as a result of being able to claim they defeated Israel. With that came a greatly enhanced military capacity as arms and recruits flowed in to Hezbollah after Israel allowed itself to give in to a policy of Jack Murtha-like "retreat and defeat" in Southern Lebanon in 2000.

Yassir Arafat and Hamas, seeing how easily the Israelis were made to retreat from Lebanon, figured he could shed enough blood within Israel proper to force Israel to withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank. The result? The second intafada within Israel's borders that broke out in 2000 which left hundreds dead and later a terrorist mini-state within Gaza.

If we cut and run from Iraq, much as Israel is now being forced to confront the failures of its past policy of precipitous withdrawal we'll be back to fighting a far deadlier war against the exact same people in the same place in 6 years--only next time they'll be MUCH stronger and much more entrenched, as the Israelis are discovering to their chagrin about Hezbollah.

What we can accomplish in the next few years in terms of giving the Iraqi security forces the breathing space to become more adequate to the task of taking on terrorist forces will save us a far greater investment of blood and treasure later with what will be an inevitable confrontation with the results of our earlier impatience.

Before we make the same mistake Israel did in retreating out of Lebanon, we need to carefully exam the lessons the Israelis learned from that experience, i.e. that backing down from a fight with terrorists does not cause them to back down. They only grow more formidable as they use the cache of their perceived victory to gain recruits and international sponsors who will arm them to the teeth to press their cause. America retreating from Iraq would not guarantee us peace and the good will of jihadi terrorists, as some Democratic pols have suggested, any more than Israel's retreat from Lebanon resulted in peace and Hezbollah being mollified.

I haven't heard of that happening. Is he thinking of our favorite Kansas preacher?

I'm tired that some are more concerned about the treatment of captives than they are the slaughter and beheading of our citizens and allies.

The "some" that Lt. Col Repya is referring to includes his commanding officer, Gen. David Petraeus.

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