Countering Lind-dinistas - if the mission is impossible, don't blame me

[TheCurmudgeon]

Well done Stan, good article. I responded as follows:



A significant contributing factor in the demise of the British military has been the 'can do' response to any challenge by the military to the politicians when it was quite clear the objective could not be achieved. Is the same problem happening in the US?

I am not sure if the conditions that existed in this country from 2002-3 were unique or if that 'can do' response is just inherent in the attitude of the American military. Certainly, at other times, less drastic courses of action prevailed. We did not invade Iran when our Embassy was taken. We also did not nuke China during the Korean War. Those were probably as much a result of the civilian leadership at that time as it was the military advice given.

I do think that it is important that senior military leaders understand the nature of political legitimacy and democratization at least at the level I discuss in the piece if for no other reason than to temper the ambitions of those who might want to try this kind of action again.

I don't think that, if anyone in the military had told the civlian leadership that democracy in Iraq was not possible, that the leaderhip would have accepted that answer or would have passed it on up the chain of command. If they had they would have met the samd fate as General Shinseki.