Posted by Carl

For the military to believe that its military task only extends to beating the opposing military is amateurish. It is like the Imperial Japanese Navy only thinking about big battles and forgetting about convoys and fighting submarines. It's a kids idea of what the role of the military is. Occupation and pacification is as much the role of the military as hitting the beach. There is nothing else that can do it. The military didn't whine after WWII about having to occupy all the countries that it occupied. That was a military task, as was the occupation of the South after the Civil War and the Philippines and Puerto Rico and on and on. A military that can't handle occupations or doesn't think it is a military task is just a bunch of well organized pirates.
My point is I think many in the military are willing to step up to the plate, but leadership in the different agencies, principally CIA and Dept of State push back and protect their supposed lanes, even after repeatedly demonstrating they're inept in some areas. The CIA is occasionally held accountable, the State Department never seems to be held accountable for their errors, and it often their errors that lead to failures that is then seen as a military failure.

Do you think we got it right in Panama?

Some hold up El Salvador as an example of victory, but at most we held the communists from achieving a victory, they weren't defeated, and they didn't quit until the USSR collapsed.

Grenada? An overall success, but several serious tactical blunders that led to further reform acts.

Desert Storm? I think it was a complete success up to a point. President Bush appropriately scoped the mission into something that was doable, and sustainable politically. At the end he then encouraged the Shia and Kurds to rise up, and let them get slaughtered by the Iraqi security forces. Not sure what that accomplished except a bunch of hard feelings for the US.

Korea? Partial success, yet North Korea is still one the worst countries on the planet when it comes to human rights abuses. Amazingly we turn a blind eye to the atrocities their while the media continues to beat the drum about human rights issues and suffering in Sudan and Somalia (previously). Political correctness over the professional reporting, got it, but still sad.

Vietnam? Not touching it tonight.

Lebanon intervention in the early 80s?

Iran-Contra?

Shock and awe baby, the more I think about it the more in awe I am.