I know, I know, we needed Cheney to tell us we are in "deep doo doo." Nobody can do it like Cheney & his gang can. I'm sure you are breathlessly awaiting some sort of screw up like Benghazi and, if not, will try to invent something to carp about. Let China reign them in if they will.
New book entitled "Breaking Iraq" by Col. Ted Spain who was deployed to Iraq as the commander of the 18th Military Police Brigade:
In short, what are the 10 mistakes that you address in your book?
A.
I break the mistakes up chapter-by-chapter.
1.Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld’s deployment plans. They didn’t include an adequate number of military police to control the routes during the ground war, and then we didn’t have sufficient military police to control the streets after the ground war.
2.Law and order was not given sufficient attention in the pre-war planning. This failed to provide a police system to provide security to the Iraqi citizenry and to instill a sense of trust in our Army.
3.The issue of detainees. There was really was no clear guidance on the categorization of them. It was really important to me to adhere to the Geneva Conventions, but I really had to make it all up as I went.
4.The flaws in collecting intelligence.
5.Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, an Army Reserve officer who commanded the military police unit at the Abu Ghraib prison. I actually opened Abu Ghraib prison and handed it over to her in 2003. And I explain that she was the wrong leader at the wrong place at the wrong time.
6.Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, who was the top commander in Iraq from June 2003 to July 2004 and replaced Lt. Gen. William S. Wallace. General Sanchez was over his head, and he continued fighting the ground war long after it was over.
7.The Coalition Provisional Authority, under the leadership of L. Paul Bremer III, dismantled the Iraqi Army, and the highest level of the Baath Party. Under Saddam Hussein, the highest ranks could only belong to Baath Party members, so we lost some of the most experienced personnel that were so vital in putting Iraq back together again.
8.The mistakes of the former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik. He was focused on padding his résumé and getting as much camera time as he could.
9.The Iraqi police and the fact that I was pressured to focus more on quantity as opposed to quality.
10.President George W. Bush’s coalition of the willing. The fact is, those countries had less than 50 people in there. There really was not a coalition other than the United Kingdom.
But, if S'cy Global Test is wrong on this, I will join you in your detestation.
"The Defense Intelligence Agency rang alarms bells on Thursday with a report that it had concluded with “moderate confidence” that the North was capable of launching a missile with a nuclear warhead. Mr. Kerry and other officials later dismissed the report as premature."
Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/13/opinion/the-north-korea-problem.html?hp
I saw that "premature" business. My response: Let's get our ducks in a row, people. Can North Korea upfit its missiles with nuclear payloads or not? Give the American people the straight skinny.
I know, I know, we needed Cheney to tell us we are in "deep doo doo." Nobody can do it like Cheney & his gang can. I'm sure you are breathlessly awaiting some sort of screw up like Benghazi and, if not, will try to invent something to carp about. Let China reign them in if they will.
ReplyDeleteNew book entitled "Breaking Iraq" by Col. Ted Spain who was deployed to Iraq as the commander of the 18th Military Police Brigade:
ReplyDeleteIn short, what are the 10 mistakes that you address in your book?
A.
I break the mistakes up chapter-by-chapter.
1.Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld’s deployment plans. They didn’t include an adequate number of military police to control the routes during the ground war, and then we didn’t have sufficient military police to control the streets after the ground war.
2.Law and order was not given sufficient attention in the pre-war planning. This failed to provide a police system to provide security to the Iraqi citizenry and to instill a sense of trust in our Army.
3.The issue of detainees. There was really was no clear guidance on the categorization of them. It was really important to me to adhere to the Geneva Conventions, but I really had to make it all up as I went.
4.The flaws in collecting intelligence.
5.Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, an Army Reserve officer who commanded the military police unit at the Abu Ghraib prison. I actually opened Abu Ghraib prison and handed it over to her in 2003. And I explain that she was the wrong leader at the wrong place at the wrong time.
6.Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, who was the top commander in Iraq from June 2003 to July 2004 and replaced Lt. Gen. William S. Wallace. General Sanchez was over his head, and he continued fighting the ground war long after it was over.
7.The Coalition Provisional Authority, under the leadership of L. Paul Bremer III, dismantled the Iraqi Army, and the highest level of the Baath Party. Under Saddam Hussein, the highest ranks could only belong to Baath Party members, so we lost some of the most experienced personnel that were so vital in putting Iraq back together again.
8.The mistakes of the former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik. He was focused on padding his résumé and getting as much camera time as he could.
9.The Iraqi police and the fact that I was pressured to focus more on quantity as opposed to quality.
10.President George W. Bush’s coalition of the willing. The fact is, those countries had less than 50 people in there. There really was not a coalition other than the United Kingdom.
But, if S'cy Global Test is wrong on this, I will join you in your detestation.
ReplyDelete"The Defense Intelligence Agency rang alarms bells on Thursday with a report that it had concluded with “moderate confidence” that the North was capable of launching a missile with a nuclear warhead. Mr. Kerry and other officials later dismissed the report as premature."
Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/13/opinion/the-north-korea-problem.html?hp
I saw that "premature" business. My response: Let's get our ducks in a row, people. Can North Korea upfit its missiles with nuclear payloads or not? Give the American people the straight skinny.
ReplyDelete