With all due respect, Sir, I completely disagree.

Congressman and Col John Murtha, USMCR - Ret. is by all accounts a bona fide American Hero.  He has bled for this nation in a foreign land and shown great courage.  He has now called for the establishent of a rapid timetable for the withdrawal of US Troops from Iraq, stating that we "have done all we can do."  Colonel, I could not disagree more.  Unlike the mudslingers in Washington D.C. and the Media, I don't believe that Col. Murtha has anything but the best of intentions and the welfare of the troops at heart, so I will not slight the man's character in the least.  I do, however, believe he is making a critical error.  The case has been made many times, and well, by others that establishing a timetable for withdrawal merely tells our enemies how long they need to go underground to conspire and train their thugs before unleashing them on the people full-scale.  I will not bother with repeating that argument.  I wish to explore a few other points instead.

We are far from having done all we can do.  Part of the US Military Culture that makes us so effective is our qualitative approach.  This is especially the case in combat units.  In my 13 years in the service, I have heard: "We work to a standard, not to a schedule" a countless number of times.  Quitting time comes when the task is accomplished to standard, which is almost never 5pm.  We have our objectives to meet:

• Kill or capture terrorists
• Restore Infrastructure and Services
• Establish and protect a functional Iraqi version of Democracy
• Establish better respect for individual human rights
• Train the Iraqi Security Forces to do/facilitate the same

All of these objectives are intertwined.  And from my view, we are not done yet by a long shot.  The killing and capturing of terrorists has slowed down the progress of all the other objectives.  Americans seem to have a "microwave popcorn mentality" about these things.  I know that most Americans will forego the 10-minute popcorn on the stove for the 2-minute popcorn in the microwave oven.  This is one of the many nice things about living in an industrialized nation.  The problem is that war is not popcorn and countries are not appliances.  Instant gratification is not on the menu.

This country has a culture with different sensibilities from our own.  Like many others in the world, this has never been a full-scale first world nation.  When it was growing, starting to move toward that end and prospering, it was taken over by what can only be called a mafia family and driven into the ground by 3 horribly destructive wars leaving its people in fear, it's infrastructure destroyed, and the landscape crawling with thugs and criminals formerly employed by the government or recently released from prison.  The land mass is about the size of California and population is greater than that of Texas.  What has happened to this country makes hurricane Katrina look like spit on the sidewalk.  THERE IS A HUGE MESS TO CLEAN UP AND A CULTURE TO REHABILITATE, not to mention an army to rebuild.  Three years, with fighting continuing, is a blink.  It took over a dozen years to get from the declaration of the Declaration of Independence to the ratification of the US Constitution, and there were still several rebellions and a horribly bloody civil war to follow.  The Iraqis are way ahead of the power curve on a historical basis.

We left this this job half done before, and the vipers' nest remained.  Thousands of Shia in the south were murdered because they thought we would help them in their uprising.  Our aircraft enforcing the UN mandated no-fly zones were fired upon daily - read:  Acts of War.  And this remained a preferred retirement home/vacation spot/training academy/financial endowment for terrorists.  It was not the only one, but it was a prominent one.  Now the terrorists have been put out of the government and into the shadows, where for three years they have been hunted.  We have culled the herd, but the population is still large enough to warrant keeping the guard dogs busy.  If we leave or give notice, we will, like in Somalia, leave the power to be restored to the vermin.  Saddam will have been replaced, but it will be the same vermin surrounding the new boss.  If you ask me, I really don't care if my cement shoes are made by Gambino or Gotti.  Iraq was not a peaceful place before we came here, it will be worse if we leave before we have met the standard.  It's going to take a few more years.  If I have to do another tour, so be it.  I won't like it, but I'll do it because it needs to be done.

I have to give Congressman Murtha credit in yet another regard.  Of all of the carping, nitpicking and fault-finding I have heard from those complaining about how badly this is going, he is one of the few with the guts to offer another idea.  Many have said, "well we never should have gone there."  Nice sentiment from a Monday-morning quarterback, but no longer relevant.  The question is, what now?  Unless you are going to step up and suffer the backlash of those who call for a pull out, shut up if you don't have a better idea.  Again, I think a pullout or notifying our enemies, who may yet be pursued elsewhere, of our pullout date is a horrible idea.  But empty nit-picking is worse.  Our military has always been strong, but our national will seems constantly in doubt.

We have a standard to meet, and if allowed to do so by our people and our leaders, we will.

Comments

[dave]

Greetings Major K. I'm a big fan and love the on-the-scene insights you provide. I witnessed an exchange last night (Nov 21,2005) between a retired army general (in favor of withdrawl) and retired marine general (against) about this very topic on the Lerher Newshour (PBS). I could not help but think of your post about how "minimum abilities like email and literacy" are not present over there, and how this is hampering our efforts to train their military and police. It is clear that your version of the situation is not making it to the Lefties back home who want to quit.

Keep up the good work, our prayers are with you and your family.

[Pat in NC]

Thanks for a sensible post that spells out the needed steps toward a successful mission. The military has my complete support.

[Lisa Gilliam]

Major K much thanks to you and the rest of our service people over there.it is a shame that we have people and a sorry excuse of a press who care more about politics than they are about National security.It stinks!

[Ledger]

I agree with you Major K.

Notifying our enemies is a horrible idea! With that knowledge the enemy would just hunker down and reemerge as soon as we leave. Due do Iraq's strategic position and huge oil wealth, criminal elements would swoop down and pick it apart. Worse, it could become breading place for terrorists who have significant wealth and the ability to buy very destructive weapons. These terrorists would certainly strike America again. We could end-up fighting them on our shores. That is a horrible thought.

[George A. Wojtowycz]

Terrorism is as much a political war as it is a tactical one. When "major hostilities" ended, we should have put security and infrastructure first, not disbanding the iraqi army with weapons. And why didn't we go in with enough troops? Why didn't we have enough troops to handle the looting when a full division was just across the border in Kuwait? And why did we let the economic situation there fester for so long that so many iraqis are unemployed. And what happened to that 480 tons of ammo we allowed to just sit there? I'd say these things make all Iraqis feel a little bit uncared for. All these things, if taken care of, would have gone a long way towards changing that feeling and winning that political war. The over 2000 of our dead, and the hundreds of thousands of civilian dead were unnecessary deaths. And sir, I am a U.S. citizen born and bred. It is my right to question these things.

[Major K.]

Mr. Wojtowycz,

It is your right to "ask questions." But it is rather foolish to ask hindsight-based questions that or no longer relevant or to ask questions when you have no intention of listening to the answer. A legitimate question would be, "So what do we do now?" It is my job to protect your rights, however you choose to exercise them.

[Patrick]

I'm a vet and I have a son in the 3rd I.D. presently training Iraqi soldiers. We communicate quite often by I.M. and his comments and observations are nearly a mirror image of yours, Major K.

God bless you and your fellow soldiers in this daunting task. What you have done is already changing for the better, the complexion of the middle east.

We are proud of the job you are doing. Keep up the good work. As to the honorable Congressman Murtha, I do not question his patriotism, but I do question his wisdom.