Dozens of soldiers in Iraq said that the United States should not abandon its efforts in Iraq, the Washington Post reported.
“It’s still fragile enough now that if the coalition were to leave, it would embolden the insurgents,” said Capt. Mike Lingenfelter. “A lot of people have put their trust and faith in us to see it to the end. It would be an extreme betrayal for us to leave.”
Added Lt. Col. Mark Suich, who commands the 1st Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, just south of Baghdad: “Take us out of that vacuum — and it’s on the edge now — and boom, it would become a free-for-all.”
What wasn’t clear in the article was whether the soldiers were just talking about a sudden, precipitous withdrawal, or whether they had the same opinion about a more carefully planned, phased withdrawal.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
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17 Comments
A dozen soldiers out of tens of thousands. Yup, that’s a representative poll. Half a dozen retired generals said to get out of Iraq.
Oh, and who are these mystical “terrorist” of whom your imagination speaks.
And what happened to the 72% of soldiers who want to come home.
We had a “civil war” and somehow we survived and what makes us being there, in the middle of their shit so stabilizing?
That’s passed nutty……..
Retired Generals are passed politics and can speak their minds without the fear of retaliation from the shit who got us into this mess.
Ed that is not me.I’m signed in.Some pussy coward with nothing to do.
Hey Ed. LTNS?
And a very good morning to you Tracy. Happy happy joy joy
How’s yer Dad? How are you?
It’s a good day today for sane people. I suspect the trolls here will be making everyone as miserable as possible.
Must be a republican strategery. It worked so well for the preznit….
Good morning KFG.Lovely day.
We know that Joe Lieberman has stolen the Senate Race because the People of Connecticut don’t want him. So it’s just a question which AIPAC Members broke which laws and which Democrats were threatened, and who goes to jail.
It’s now time for the FBI to get off their collective ass’s and do what they’re paid to do.
And shame on any newspaper that rolls over on this.
My Fellow Bloggers,It is career suicide to wear a military uniform and speak out against the Commander in Chiefs mission.My impression is that if we were to withdraw in the next year or two….the soldiers will thank their lucky stars to be on our sacred ground out of harms way.Bush is lying. Rumsfeld is lying. Give the dems a year and we all will know these lies.Soldiers do as they are told…and rightly so.Generals are not cowards…the Pres, Cheney, and Rumsfeld are the real cowards.
Do not forget – the Repubs had control for the last 12 years.There was ZERO oversight of the Pres., or Rumsfeld, etc.That is cowardice.
Funny, but the headline is not what I’ve been seeing and hearing. Like Vietnam, troops are coming home disillusioned. We aren’t hearing them yet, thanks to the (former) balance of power, but I think many will step forward and speak out in the near future.
Looks like Rumsfeld is cutting and running now.
I noticed that only commissioned officers were quoted in the IP on this thread. Their comments were appropriately cautious and ambiguous, given the reality of the UCMJ provision I cited on another thread a few weeks ago. I suspect many of the troops themselves are ambivalent.
However, a unilateral sudden withdrawal just won’t work. Iraq was invaded, and the current situation there is a direct result of deposing Saddam. We (the U.S., as I feel there will likely not be many “coalition” forces there soon) need to set some conditions and begin a phased withdrawal, IMHO, but a unilateral pullout now will surely result in bigger problems in the long run. The issue is, has been, and will be, whether the Iraqi citizenry can overcome the centuries of tribalism and develop a sense of nationality. If they can, there is hope for stability and security for the Iraqi people. I am not optimistic this can occur.
Maybe they missed the last poll of Iraqi citizens which showed that they want us out and that by a 3 to 1 margin think it’s ok to attack US troops. I wonder how long it will be before Bush pardons rummy?
VT,
I haven’t heard any sound cries from liberals about unilateral withdrawal. Anybody with a brain knows that spells trouble.
But something must be done, rather than leaving our presence in Iraq open-ended, risking more and more lives as we wait. And wait. And wait for Iraq to take hold of their own destiny.
It’s time for some real leadership.
RD, by my comments about sudden withdrawals, I meant to reference Phillip’s remarks in the IP.
I agree with your thesis; IMHO, the Iraqis should be provided a “drop dead” date to take over for their own security. Perhaps with Rumsfeld’s resignation and the results of the election, new and real leadership will be provided.
Poll all of the American Soldiers instead of a handful. I would really like to know where they stand.