I have been involved in the War on Terror in some way shape or form for a couple years now. I have seen a number of sides of it and experienced more than most. And here is my conclusion. The United States is committed to fighting War on Terror, just not committed to winning it.
We are dumping countless dollars and resources into the War on Terror, but we aren’t making very much headway. Yes, we kill bad guys everyday, and we send out patrols, and fly UAV missions, as well as have many, many boots on the ground. This shows that we are ready for the fight. However, we are not doing what we need to win.
Whether it be lack of understanding of the culture, not having the correct training for the mission, making war fighting decisions out of political motives or not eliminating the dead weight we have bogged ourselves down. Most of the problems we experience, we create ourselves. And unfortunately because of the systems in place, it is difficult (and in some ways impossible) to correct the problems.
However it is not all bad news. This is winnable for us. However it means making some hard choices and a willingness to do the right and sometimes hard thing to do. We need to cease this mentality that things will get better with time, or that the next person will do it. Also the stupidest sentence I have ever heard is, “that is the way we have always done it.” That drives me so crazy. You find a faster, cheaper, easier way to do something and it gets shot down, why? Because the old way is how they have always been doing it.
We need to stop thinking so instant gratification and start thinking, and acting long term. While deployed as a soldier in Afghanistan we saw a number of things that were wrong. Especially with one in our leadership, but they wouldn’t get rid of him. If you get rid of a person, you have to explain why, and then it is thought that that person is a reflection on you. “Barney” was a horrible leader and would have made a great private, but a lousy Platoon Sergeant. He crossed many lines and got a lot of the wrong kind of attention.
Here is how we fix that, relieve the guy and simply say, “he was fucking up, I have handled the situation.” Of course that would have made things easier. Instead we try to sweep his mistakes under the rug and drive on. Of course you hit a point that there are too many mistakes and if you remove him now, when asked for cause someone is going to ask why he wasn’t removed a long time ago. Now you are in the situation that you have to keep him there and hope no one finds out about everything.
By the way, Barney is still in the Army last I heard, when we got back to the states, the Captain wrote a decent evaluation report so he wouldn’t have to answer for why his senior soldier was messed up. That is how our system works. Protect that guy to protect you.
I think that every soldier should know how to shoot. And I think that having people that can pass a physical fitness test is important. However, there is more to being a soldier than that. In a certain reserve unit the First Sergeant made sure that people passed certain requirements so that he could pass up a report that said his people were good. Unfortunately that report did not ask if they could actually soldier. Sure it is easy to lie on the ground and shoot at 40 targets that pop up in a timed manner. It is even easier when someone calls out which one will pop up next. And it is good if you can run he two miles in under fifteen minutes. But what about running one hundred meters and fire off rounds at a target that shoots back? How many of those people can hit a target with their heart pounding? What about basic soldier skills? Screw that, what about basic soldier common sense?
We all know the story of a convoy that got lost in Iraq and the result. Let us not dwell on that, that situation has been rehashed too many times, but how many of those people passed their PT tests? How many qualified on the rifle? I will bet all did. That is how it is, we will check all the blocks and push people through, even though they are not ready.
When I left Infantry and re-classed to a job that was supposed to be “Special Operations” I thought that this would be a challenge. When we went through the course and there came a land navigation day, everyone whined. “Why do we have to learn that, it is an Infantry skill?” First of all, it is a soldier skill, and second, they should have already learned it. This was all prior service military people, I forgive the former Navy guys, but no one else has an excuse.
So when we need bodies, we push people though and get our numbers. There isn’t a need for artillery in Afghanistan. Not that kind of war, but Arty units get sent. And just so that they don’t sit around and get fat, they use them as security or patrol missions. I don’t want to take anything away from the gun bunnies, they are good at their job, but they were not trained to do patrol missions. And I would rather have Afghan National Army guys as my security than those jokers. (I have had both, and ANA do a better job.) Again check the block and drive on.
When I look at the number of soldiers in Afghanistan, I can tell you that we need at least twice the people, but we can do the same amount of missions with half the number of people, if that half works efficiently.
And it isn’t better on the civilian side of the house. Everybody wants to be a chief nobody wants to be the Indian. So to show that you are indeed in charge you have to make a rule. No matter how stupid it is, and then you have to defend it. There was a decision made by someone in an AC office in a secure faciltiy that people in a certain job in Afghanistan shouldn’t carry weapons when they talk to the locals. That is the rule. They can carry in the vehicle, but once they get out, armor and weapons get left behind. That was about as stupid as it gets. No one in Afghanistan cares if you have weapon, and as a gringo, it is a pretty good idea. But they would not listen to reason.
Now I talked to a number of subject matter experts. Not just someone who was sent to an AC office in the country to file paperwork. I am talking about people who have spent time on the ground in country. They worked daily with locals, ate on dirt floors with village leaders, learned about the country and culture and continued to keep up to date on the direction of the country. Some are still in contact with Afghans. These are subject matter experts, of which I am one.
Every single one, everyone without exception, said that it would be okay to have a rifle and wear body armor into a meeting with locals, especially out in indian country or away from a secure facility. Did the person in the AC office change their tune? Nope. They dug their heels in and defended the position. “The locals will think you are there to kill them if you step out of a vehicle with a weapon.” Despite plenty of examples (based on volumes of personal experience) they did not change their minds. The solution, nod and do what is right in the field anyway.
Now here is the big one. I am all for freedom of speech, and I think that the people back home should know what is going on. A free press is one of the many things that make our country great. However, here is an important thing to remember, media in all its forms, television, radio, newspaper, magazines, and even internet is a business. Let us cover that again because it is important. Media…… is a business! No matter what they say about the public’s right to know they are out there to make money. Every newspaper wants a good first page picture. That is why in Somalia there were a group of reporters taking pictures of a Marine patrol landing on the beach. Cool pictures I’ll bet, but that is every shooter’s wet dream. A bunch of guys in the open illuminated by bright lights that destroys their night vision and ability to fight.
So here is what we need, responsible journalism. I know that is a pipe dream, but I am ranting here. They need to think of the effect before they publish. Since that is not going to happen, think before you tip off a reporter. I know that everyone likes to be in on the secret, and what good is it being on the inside if no one knows it?
Lately it seems that sensitive information has been leaked to the press. We need to plus the leaks. Yes I think that the right people need to know and need to be dealt with, but let us not display national secrets for the price of a newspaper. I still think that freedom of speech and of the press is a very important thing, but freedom with responsibility should be our aim.
Now for the part we don’t like to talk about. War is ugly, it is a dirty business. And the rules we follow, our enemies ignore. It seems like whomever we have fought has not played b the rules we follow. I am sorry for each and every soldier that has been lost during the War on Terror. And it sucks that more have to.
