Posted on 07/12/2004 9:34:36 AM PDT by NavySEAL F-16
AUSTIN BAY SENDS THIS EMAIL FROM IRAQ:
I must respond to those who "want a breather" or wish "to take time out" from the war.
There is no time out in war. Occasionally soldiers get R&R, but that means someone else is pulling guard duty or running patrols. I see Mickey Kaus says "we need a break" and Peggy Noonan is worried that the American people want a breather because current history is too "dramatic." I read Peggy's essay and I get the distinct impression her brilliantly conceived column springs from her own personal weariness-- maybe I'm wrong, but she explicitly tells us she's on vacation. Over at andrewsullivan.com, Andrew Sullivan wrote (linking to Noonan) that he had expressed similar thoughts ("Americans are drained"). I appreciate their openness and honesty; I hope they'll appreciate mine. I enjoy thoroughly Sullivan's commentary, and I'm certain he would be the first to say he can climb in his Cape Cod hammock and blog because soldiers put on their helmets and slog-- and don't quit. Perceptive, honest Americans like Noonan, Sullivan, and Kaus understand that quite well. I make the point as a reminder, a useful reminder. Believe me, the hammock is far preferable to the helmet. I would love to be in my hammock in the Texas Hill Country right now (95 degrees in Austin is far cooler than 119 degrees in Baghdad). But this is helmet time. We --the lot of us, all Americans-- are a long haul war, a constant test of will requiring consistent, insistent effort.
I see that effort given every day here in Iraq. Check the photo you ran of those two young soldiers from the 81st Brigade (Washington State National Guard). I snapped it, at sunset, right after they had returned from a patrol. I see the same vignette every morning, every evening. The smiles break out despite the fatigue-- and then the troops buckle up and do it again. Blood, sweat, toil and tears: that's not simply Churchillian poetry, that's the price of victory, and it's the product of spine. This peculiar war will take years to win, long, focused years of trial and error, mistake and success, but a breather, a time out?
(Excerpt) Read more at instapundit.com ...
"Time out" is a mirage of the chattering class. Credit Peggy's and Andrew's antennae for culling out the driving emotional angst behind the chatter. Hate to say it, but the call for "time out" Noonan fears may be another case of Baby Boomers who can't separate Hollywood war from the real thing. Hollywood wars end in a couple of hours. Real earthly hells have no intermission. In current GI lingo, "the enemy has a vote" (the enemy can exercise his will, and act). Take a break and the enemy votes. On 9/11 our enemy went to the polls. We were either going to work, eating breakfast, or lollygagging in bed.
Before I head off to a meeting, let me play history prof for a second. I see several analogs between 1944 and 2004. Fact is, I started a column on that subject before I left for Iraq, but long nights on the ranges at Ft Hood spinning up for deployment left it a sketch. Imagine calling for "Time Out" right after D-Day, which broke Fortress Europe, or during Saipan, which broke the Japanese "inner ring" island defense (many in the Japanese military thought we'd never pay the price to break it). Hey, FDR, we've made the deep offensive penetration, can we take a break? The analogy has weaknesses, as do all historical comparisons. That being said, I think we're in the strategic exploitation phase of this war, a hard, difficult, prolonged exploitation phase, one that requires more hammers and bricks than it does rifles and bombs.
However, we're winning. We can't quit.
I salute our brave warriors...
...AMERICA...HOME OF THE FREE BECAUSE OF THE BRAVE...
BTTT...
Excellent.
Americans aren't weary. The media is. They have exhausted themselves with trying to out Bush and, since it cannot be done, they are trying to persuade the rest of us that they are right, we are wrong, the econony is down, interest rates are up, and so on. The pessimism of the two johns incarnate. When is this media circus going to leave town?
Thanks for the post.
Don't worry NS, contrary to what the pathetic media would have you believe, the AMERICAN people are not going to turn their backs on our fine young men and women. I do hate the fact that we have to lose the best and brightest among us, while the intellectually lazy and morally bankrupt run around in the streets whining and screeming.
Don't worry NS, contrary to what the pathetic media would have you believe, the AMERICAN people are not going to turn their backs on our fine young men and women. I do hate the fact that we have to lose the best and brightest among us, while the intellectually lazy and morally bankrupt run around in the streets whining and screaming.
dittos
i am so proud of our men and woman in uniform, as a veteran, and at 32 years of age i am re enlisting. some say ive done my part for this country, i say as long as there are people who want to harm us, my part will not be over. god bless them all.
Thanks for posting. Our prayers for our military. God bless ALL of you, ALL the time!
Austin Bay is also a collaborator with James F. Dunnigan on military analysis and a couple wargames. A very smart guy.
Great article.
I was watching the news this am and it showed a 67 year old soldier in Iraq. 67! Anyway, he was told he could not join so he told them he would sue them for age discrimination and got in.
He is about to go back for another tour, then retire with 50 years.
Maybe its not right on subject here, But I was amazed at the pair this guy has at 67. What a great example to all, and the younger troops who served with him.
Although sitting in a hammock is relaxing, it accomplishes nothing but temporary pleasure, the job of protecting our Country and wearing a Helmet in the hot Sun of Baghdad accomplishes much for Americans and Iraq's people , and our soliders are altering history,promoting democracy and will forever be remembered for what they did there.
Exactly; the media is the problem, as always.
Thanks for the posting.
May God bless you. Thank you so much.
salute to our military...
teeman
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