Archive for the ‘US Military’ Category
By Ken Marrero
We used to talk like that when we were ambushed. We used to know the difference between a legitimate disagreement, or even a conflict, and a deliberate, unannounced act of war. We used to have the will to see through to the end what had to be done to ensure the threat that revealed itself in that act of war never threatened us again. We used to think we’d always be able to do that. Sadly, it would appear that we are not.
Hawaii is 4 hours behind us here in Tennessee. At 7:55AM, December 7, 1941 the Japanese conducted a surprise attack on the US Naval base at Pearl Harbor. It was 11:55AM here in Tennessee. Over the next 2 hours that attack would claim the lives of 2,403 Americans and wounded another 1,178.
Time Magazine has an excellent timeline of the events. Here are a few excerpts.
07:55 The raid begins at Pearl Harbor as the Raleigh, Helena, Utah and Oklahoma are struck.
07:56 There are two explosions on the Arizona. Pfc. James Cory: "The bridge shielded us from flames … Around the edges in these open windows came the heat and the sensation of the blast. We cringed there … I think that at this moment I wanted to flee, but this was impossible. You’re on station, you’re in combat."
08:06 A 1,763-lb. missile fired by PO Kanai Noboru hits the Arizona. It demolishes the forward magazine and kills nearly 1,000 men. "It was so vivid in my mind," says Private Le Fan, who saw the action from the Marine barracks. "[The Arizona] just quivered, buckled and then settled. It looked like … well, that killed it … It was so devastating."
8:08 Two bombs strike the West Virginia, whose captain, Mervyn Bennion, is mortally wounded by a piece of shrapnel that flies over from the Tennessee.
08:10 (13:40 E.S.T.) In Washington, President Roosevelt is informed by Navy Secretary Frank Knox that there has been a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. This is "just the kind of unexpected thing the Japanese would do," says FDR. "[A]t the very time they were discussing peace in the Pacific, they were plotting to overthrow it."
08:12 The Utah capsizes.
by Sher Zieve
On Monday, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) told reporters that he and other Democrats were not willing to wait for evaluated reports on the troop surge in Iraq. Reid advised that he and his colleagues are moving at virtual breakneck speed to formulate and pass an anti-war bill. While al-Qaeda continues to practice all manner of depravities and perversions—the latest reported corruption being the terrorist organization’s penchant for the profane via literally (not figuratively) baking the children of those it wishes to intimidate and then "serving" said cooked progeny to their parents—most of their debaucheries still go unreported by the terrorist-enabling leftist worldwide press. Most certainly Harry Reid and other Democrat and RINO leaders committed to surrender won’t mention the actual performance and true scope of the Islamists’ goals. Instead, Reid and other appeasers are unwilling to wait for any and all reports from those actually functioning in the Iraq battle theatre. As reports from the front suggest the surge (AKA Operation Arrowhead Ripper) actually is working, the leftist and overwhelmingly Democrat US mainstream media continues their attempts to bury the story.
Note: This same battle surge, being waged by our extraordinary and inordinately courageous US soldiers, must be spun and manipulated by the mainstream media and their Democrat leaders in order for them to achieve their objective of reseizing and then retaining (forever we assume) power. The illusion of power has long been their god.
by Sher Zieve
The US National Guard has been insanely prohibited from using its weapons against armed drug dealers and others at the US-Mexico border. They have been warned that they are to only provide support for the US Border Patrol. This dictate came from the US government and, presumably, the Mexican government as well. Now, Democrat leaders are planning to apply this policy to US troops fighting terrorists in Iraq.
In an attempt to usurp and end the Executive branch of government’s Constitutional powers and ability to wage wars, Democrats are planning to issue legislation that would take all US troops out of a combat role and place them into the tenuous and hazardous position of a ‘support role’—only. Note: We presume this attempt to seize power from the President of the United States only applies to Republican presidents.
By Alan Caruba
Americans have historically been reluctant to go to war. When we do, we are generally pretty good at it. In the last century, after electing Woodrow Wilson who promised to keep us out of the European war, we joined our traditional allies, England and France, to stop the Germans. We did it again about twenty years later, but only after a sneak attack by Japan ignited our righteous anger, plunging us into the existing war in Europe and, for us, the new one in the Pacific.
Truman committed troops to Korea when the Communist North Koreans attempted to overrun the south. Yes, it’s been called a stalemate for a half century, but the South is a thriving economic power while the North can barely supply itself with electric power or feed its people.
The Vietnam War is generally seen as a failure of American military power. What prolonged the war was the refusal of President Lyndon B. Johnson to listen to advice given him by his Joint Chiefs of Staff in a private meeting they had requested in November 1965. One suspects that President Bush has not been listening to his generals either.
by Sher Zieve
Neither US Border Patrol Agents nor US National Guard troops are allowed to protect the US-Mexico border region. Border Patrol Agents are prosecuted for doing their jobs and National Guard troops are not allowed to use their weapons against Mexican gunmen who cross our border illegally. Many people have and are speculating that it is the trilateral Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP) that has taken precedence and authority over US sovereignty. Note: The SPP effectively provides no borders to illegal immigrants throughout the North American continent. Only legal citizens are, now, required to provide passports.
by Bob Parks
The following a citizen's response to the President's State of the Union address and the Democrat response. This response is to the Men and Women of the United States Armed Forces.
With all the political events of the past week, I was going to issue you an apology. Seeing how the people of whom I would be apologizing for are self-centered, self-righteous, better-than-anyone citizens of our great nation, let it suffice to say I am more disgusted than anything else.
I can't even come close to knowing what you must be going through in Iraq and Afghanistan. During the mid-to-late eighties, I served onboard the USS Midway, at that time the only forward-deployed carrier in the fleet. Her nickname was the "USS Never Dock." Our average deployment was nine months out of the year.
by Robert E. Meyer
Unless you are Rip Van Winkle, you now know that President Bush wants to send more than 20,000 additional troops to Iraq. Personally, I would have felt better if the president had come to this conclusion a bit sooner. However his rational for doing this makes sense to me: there wasn't enough troops to secure the areas that were cleaned out by our soldiers, so terrorists moved back in once the soldiers moved on to another area. Now we will secure those areas.
Alright, count me in as a supporter of the plan.
The Democrats now say that we should begin a phased withdrawal in order to force the Iraqis to get serious about training their own troops and taking responsibility for their own security. They don't want us to be a participating referee in a religious civil war.
by Jim Kouri, CPP
As the United States reviews its plans to secure, stabilize, and rebuild Iraq, the Government Accountability Office submitted several reports forCongressional consideration in developing its oversight agenda for the 110th Congress and analyzing the President's revised strategy for Iraq. On Wednesday night, President George W. Bush is expected to reveal his new strategy in a televised speech to the American people.
These reports and papers are based on the continuing work of the GAO and the 67 Iraq-related reports and testimonies they've provided to the US Congress since May 2003.
Iraq has had three successful elections, adopted a constitution, and installed its first elected government. At the same time, since the initial ground offensive ended in 2003, the costs to secure and stabilize Iraq have grown substantially, as has the level of violence that afflicts Iraqi society.
by Jeff Lukens
Imagine a Super Bowl football team quitting the game in the third quarter simply because they were behind. The premise is so absurd it is inconceivable. So too would be our quitting a war to protect our way of life simply because battlefield conditions are not going perfectly.
Football teams continually adjust their tactics and strategy during a game based on playing conditions on the field. And so does a nation at war. Seldom does any country enter a war with a perfect strategy in which to win it. Almost always, shortcomings are found that require a new approach. A victorious nation modifies what needs to be modified, and they go on.
That's what we've done in almost every war since the American Revolution. It did not happen in the first Iraq war in 1991 because it was over so quickly, but it's what we must do now in the second Iraq war. No one ever said things would go perfectly this time. Unlike football, no one knows for sure when a war will end. But we do know that if we don't play to win, we are sure we lose.
by Thomas E. Brewton
The ever-changing (aka flip-flopping) Senator Kerry gives us his latest straight scoop on Iraq.
In a December 24, 2006, Washington Post article, Senator Kerry shares his insights after literally having been on all sides of the question in the past. His latest thoughts originate in the visit that he and Senator Christopher Dodd made recently to Iraq.
The Senator's conclusion is: The only hope for stability lies in pushing Iraqis to forge a sustainable political agreement on federalism, distributing oil revenues and neutralizing sectarian militias. And that will happen only if we set a deadline to redeploy our troops.
We'll look at that in a few paragraphs down, but first let's indulge in the fun of a few pot-shots at an easy target to hit.