14 US Marines killed in Iraq

MSNBC/Imus in the Morning

[leadpenny]

Roadside bomb in western Iraq.

[Alberta's Child]

Besides half hearted threats and hand wringing, what was the response from the Clinton's after the USS Cole? Was the military put on full alert? I think Bush would do that. Was there a demand to friends and foes alike, for intel on the terrorists? I think Bush would do that.

In the case of the Cole, there is only one response that would have had any effect whatsoever -- have the U.S. Navy stop making port calls in sh!t-holes like Yemen. I can't imagine that the Bush administration would have done anything more than that, especially when you consider that this incident occurred late in 2000 and therefore could easily have been addressed by the Bush administration in 2001 (they may have done something, but it sure wasn't anything dramatic).

Was there an immediate realization that the military downsizing of the 1990s was a critical error? I think Bush would have grasped that immediately.

The downsizing of the U.S. military in the 1990s actually began in the first Bush administration. And all indications are that this administration is pursuing an overall approach to military staffing levels that isn't very different from what we saw in the 1990s. Before 9/11, Donald Rumsfeld's primary task as Secretary of Defense was to oversee a further reduction in U.S. military forces. In fact, he was hired specifically because of his age and his wealth -- which meant he didn't have any career aspirations in politics and therefore wouldn't hesitate to tell members of Congress that their pet military appropriations and local bases were getting shut down.

This is why a substantial portion of U.S. forces in Iraq today are comprised of National Guard and Reserve units, and why the war is being carried out with far fewer soldiers than are needed to undertake this kind of effort. There simply aren't enough "regulars" to cover the military's manpower needs.

[StarCMC]

NOOOOO!

crap.


God be with the families. Thank God for heroes like these. But I hate to see them go.

[TomasUSMC]

Iraq is now a fly trap

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We are the fly.

We are losing men at a rate that we cannot afford to. With our present rules of engagement and tactics we are just replaying Vietnam. We can kill them at a rate of 10 to 1 and that still loses for us, because they just send 10 more the next day, while it takes months for us to train an American soldier.

If we fought this war they way we could, it would have been over years ago, but we want to be PC about it - thus our President calling Islam a religion of peace.

Tagline:

[La Enchiladita]

Air power, Tomas?

[TomasUSMC]

This President had it right from the first and still does

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Well the President at least did more than Clinton when the WTC was hit the first time, but I'd say this President had it wrong from the first and still does. We should have leveled Tehran or Damascus or Baghdad back in Sept/01. Instead we went with the touch feely compassionate kinder gentler pc Islam-is-a-religion-of-peace tactics that served us so well in Vietnam.

[Jeff Head]

I agree and believe they will proceed and are proceeding with something that is far better than what they had and with something that is much more likely that we can deal with in peace.

Many more Iraqis are now dying for their country than Americans...and if they are to be free and soverign, that is how it should be. We are still there because the job is not done and I believe, there on the Syrian border we are hunting something of great value in the overall war.

[La Enchiladita]

With this horrific loss of young lives today, on top of the slaughter yesterday, I must ask the question:

Aren't the Iraqis supposed to be risking their lives for their country?

We are supposedly there now as consultants and trainers, in addition to our ongoing humanitarian efforts. Why do we have troops in ground combat at this point?

[TomasUSMC]

Haji usually sets them on the roadside and unless he gets really lucky they don't do too much damage

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Wrong. 70 percent of our killed in action are the result of mines and carbombs last month. And now Iran and Syria are sending in more deadly explosives that tear through armor.

[Bigturbowski]

Semper Fi Devil Dogs...rest in peace... the f&#$ing scum responsible for this will pay in spades. The brothers of these Marines will avenge them all.

[Jeff Head]

We are killing them at a much higher rate than that...and unfortunately, if we are to kill them at all, our people are going to stand into harm's way. It is war.

I agree that we should fight much more aggressively in many respects...ie. Fallujah should have been made an abject example of after we gave ample opportunity for non-belligerents who so desired to leave the place...through our ring of steel. Then we should have used the B-52s, MOABs, MLRSs, etc to literally flattent he place before sending even one of our marines in there.

Just the same, we are drawing the terrorists to our fighting forces by the thousands there and killing them...rather than them coming here.

[southernindymom]

Excuse me, but President Bush was only in office for 6 months prior to 9/11, even less if you look at how immature the Dems were after the entire deal. Clinton passed on several opportunities, if memory serves me correctly, he left no info for Bush anyway. The Saudi's aren't perfect, by any stretch of the imagination, but, they are the only country in that region that allows us to have a military base there, at that time. Sometimes you have to put up with crap to get things done.

[Jeff Head]

They (the Iraqis) are dying in much greater numbers than we at this point. We are there in the desert near the Syrian border because our forces are hunting something (we have not been told exactly what) of great value. I believe the commanders on the scene know what they are doing in that regard.

Just my read.

[TomasUSMC]

I can't believe people think that dropping a MOAB or just giving up and pulling out now is going to solve anything.

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The Japanese believed after Nagasaki. Oh ye of little faith.

[Eighth Square]

I agree, in spades! Here we go again, one hand tied behind, fighting a Politically Correct war. "Don't upset the locals, the Europeans are getting edgy, careful with the UN, the lefty libs are throwing a fit, don't enter the mosque, we're uppsetting just about everybody, we'er torturing those poor folks in 'Gitmo', what will we ever do?" Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!

[Bigturbowski]

A huge can of whoop ass is about to get opened on Haditha.

And I cannot wait until the day this happens. The sooner the better.

[TomasUSMC]

Borders MUST be controlled

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How true. The problem is that we don't have a border control mentality in this administration. Even the Generals are spouting off that we can't control the borders. When that happens, you either must then cross the borders and attack the sanctuaries of Syria and Iran or replay Vietnam.

[Dead Dog]

Syria needs to bleed.

[05 Mustang GT Rocks]

Ditto! However, you are wasting your breath (or keystrokes) with some of the people here. All the relevant points of why are we there, etc. have been made over and over again but you can only reason with reasonable people. The same doom-sayers would have been doing the same whining if had we gone first to Pakistan, or Syria, or Saudi Arabia, or you can insert any country relevant to the WOT. Iraq is just one battlefield and it is going to be a long and bloody war. But some cannot see past their nose.

[jb6]

I argue with a couple of libs at my job about this all the time. Personally, I was against going into Iraq, still, now that we are there, we must win, period. Vietnam didn't follow us after our defeat, no Vietcong popping up in California. Terrorists will.

Personally, I'd have preferred if we'd gone in to Saudi Arabia and sent the corrupt, terror sponsoring House of Saud to the Hell they richly deserve.

[jb6]

When the death toll hits 2,000 (probably around Nov) the MSM is going to raise all unholy hell about it. Hillery is getting plenty of rest for the media run on the 2000 mark.