Like Churchill and Ike

21 February Washington Times commentary - Like Churchill and Ike by Tony Blankley.

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Gen. David H. Petraeus is certainly no Clark Kent, the "mild mannered and meek" character of yesteryear's comic books. But is the general Superman? Because, to turn the chaos in Iraq into a semblance of order, it will take someone possessing superpowers.

Gen. Petraeus has inherited, or has been dealt, a very weak hand. President Bush upped the ante with a no-limit pot, betting everything on his new Iraqi strategy. The responsibility for playing that hand has been placed by the president squarely and almost entirely on the wiry shoulders of the former commander of the famous 101st Airborne Division.

To drive this point home, who is Gen. Petraeus' American civilian equivalent in Iraq? The answer is there is none.

Consider several of the weakest cards in the general's hand. First, military force cannot overcome or resolve the political, economic, social, ethnic, tribal and sectarian points of conflict alone...

Second, the so-called surge that has made Baghdad the strategic center of gravity is no secret. Insurgents, militias and other enemies fully understand this plan and will respond, to use the current jargon, asymmetrically...

Third, the Iraqi government is at best dysfunctional and at worst non-existent...

Finally, Gen. Petraeus must cope with a political mood at home that lacks patience. There can be no tunnel or even a "light at the end of the tunnel." Results are needed and needed now, but it is unrealistic and even foolish to believe that the new strategy can work instantly or even over a few months...

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Much more at the link...

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"Anticipating an electrical drought, over three years ago, the United States wisely ordered some two-dozen electrical generators from a Finnish company. The generators arrived at Aqaba, Jordan, where they sat awaiting construction of the facilities in Iraq. Being responsible contractors, the Finns performed preventative maintenance on the generators, keeping them operable in the extreme heat and climate. When the Iraqi facilities were finally ready, the Finns presented a maintenance bill to the United States for $20 million. But, when the contract was negotiated, no one anticipated this lengthy storage. It was not in the contract. The United States refused to pay. So the Finns sued and the generators sit in Aqaba."

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Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?!?

The electrical generators story seems indicative of the Washington approach - we have money and resources to support more troops but not enough to provide needed services to improve Iraqi lives. A penny wise and a pound foolish as the old saying goes. We seem to have a habit of claiming a "hearts and minds" strategy but our actions seem to always fall back on the "coercion and enforcement" strategy. That is not a military malady, it is a political one.

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Originally Posted by Stratiotes

The electrical generators story seems indicative of the Washington approach - we have money and resources to support more troops but not enough to provide needed services to improve Iraqi lives. A penny wise and a pound foolish as the old saying goes. We seem to have a habit of claiming a "hearts and minds" strategy but our actions seem to always fall back on the "coercion and enforcement" strategy. That is not a military malady, it is a political one.

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Amen! There has almost always been a disconnect in American military history between the "talking" and the "doing" when it comes to this sort of thing. As many of you know, I've got a bit of a "thing" for the Frontier Army, and it's difficult to keep track of the number of very promising peace initiatives that foundered because the government (read Congress) would not fund programs for the various tribes, to include treaties and other activities that might have helped avoid open conflict. Of course, back then Congress was also very interested in cutting the Army as well, seeing it as a cost savings. It would be interesting to compare the cost of the delayed and rejected peace programs with the eventual bill that came due through open warfare.

Steve - you would probably like that book I recently reviewed: _Chasing Ghosts_ by Tierney...or, perhaps you have already read it. Anyhow, one of the "heroes" who seemed to get some things right in his approach to the Apaches was Gen. George Crook. _Chasing Ghosts_ gives a few examples of his approach and how it seems to have been lost to history. We forget all the successful counterinsurgency lessons and keep repeating the mistakes it seems.