If the most positive measure of the 1600 Crew was incredible incompetance, they'd be sure-fire winners for any Incompetence Award imaginable.
The diversion of assets and funding from Afghanistan to Iraq has been not only deadly, but wholly unconscionable. Read this story, then think about this: the patrol was sent out by helicopter to catch a Taliban bad-guy. Remember, al-Qaeda supported by the Taliban in Afghanistan (and the mullahs in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan our dear, dear GWOT allies) were responsible for the attacks on 9/11. We invaded Afghanistan to rid it of both the Talib and al-Qaeda influences. So off this patrol goes to do a little "hearts and minds" thing, and look for the bad guy. Arriving in the village, they find he's not there. A report comes in that he may be in the wind in another village and
Back in Badamtoy, Stammer and his men were settling in the next morning for a long wait for a helicopter to ferry them back to the base when their banter was interrupted by one of the radio operators. A report had just come through that Akundzada might be in a village called Kawti, just a few miles north.
Stammer instantly switched into battle mode, directing his men to draw up plans for a multi-pronged assault including Afghan security forces and to arrange for Chinook helicopters to transport them to the site.
A few hours before sunset, the group trekked up a hill to board a Chinook. But the new village turned out to like the previous one: a series of humble, mud-walled compounds occupied by passive, if slightly less welcoming, farmers. Akundzada had slipped through their fingers again.
They had to wait a full day for transport to get them there. Let's see, if the assets were probably not sent off to Iraq, there might have been C-130 tankers capable of refueling a helicopter in flight waiting along with said helicopter to pick these guys up and take them to the next village. Now they sit at the butt-end of the line, waiting for the helo that probably has to get tasked through JCS or maybe CENTCOM to move them to the next village, because that's different than its original tasking of taking them back to base.
Really, what kind of war are we fighting and who is really in charge? The diversion of assets from Afghanistan to Iraq ought to have been enough to get the 1600 Crew kicked out. Unfortunately, the republican noise machine made sure it wasn't, and now we're left with not just one, but two battles which are not being effectively prosecuted by virtue poor leadership at the very top and an unwillingness to accept any course correction for fear it would be tantamount to an admission of failure. By an Utter Failure.
posted by Jo Fish on 06.22.05 at 02:28 PM
Comments:
A recent book on Operation Anaconda entitled "Not A Good Day To Die" makes the point that one of the reasons Anaconda was a failure (in spite of extraordinary acts of bravery on the part of American soldiers and special operators) was the ongoing diversion at every level of equipment and personnel to Iraq. This in Jan-Feb 2002.
posted by: fbg46 on 06.22.05 at 03:32 PM [permalink]
Also, just for grins, there's a good case to be made that the diversion of $700 million intended for rebuilding Afghanistan toward the build-up to invade Iraq [documented in Woodward's book] constituted an unlawful misappropriation of public funds under Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution ... and, therefore, an impeachable offense.
If, you know, we had a House Judiciary Committee with one neuron and one testicle among 'em.
posted by: Lex on 06.23.05 at 04:21 PM [permalink]
