"War is all hell"

NavySEALs.com ^ | September 1, 2006 | W. Thomas Smith Jr.

[SuzyQ2]

The idea of digging-in disgusted Patton. A victorious army, in his mind, was always on offense, never on defense. It was one of the myriad reasons Patton was such a successful combat commander. It didn’t always make him popular with his subordinates and peers, and he frequently caught hell from the media, but the man knew how to fight and win wars. He was neither a ticket puncher nor a politician. He would have scoffed at modern political correctness. And his only objective was always the combination of a decisive defeat of the enemy and the utter annihilation of his forces. All other matters were secondary.

[Enterprise]

" And those "sissies" usually find their way to the top brass, only to prevent others from being brave when the situation calls for it. Or, they trump up charges because the bravery of another outshines their sissy little self..."

It is dreadfully unfortunate when this happens in the military. In my experience, it describes pretty much all of civil service and a lot of corporations.

[arthurus]

Hearts and minds are irrelevant until the enemy is completely broken and no longer capable of mounting military action of any sort. Then hearts and minds will come around. We did not follow this path in Iraq ane must, therefore watch our backs and will not defeat Islam until we fight it as a real war against Iran or whatever the current enemy capital is.

[RebelBanker]

I can't remember the source right at the moment, but the saying "When you've got them by the b@lls, their hearts and minds will follow" seems appropriate.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

CARRY A BIG STICK BUMP

[Non-Sequitur]

Perhaps you should email the author and ask him what he meant.

Of course he isn't. If he means it then Quantrill is definitely the wrong man for the job, isn't he?

[stand watie]

you could be RIGHT!

free dixie,sw

[backtothestreets]

General Patton had good company in his time. Flag officers that favored "limited warfare" were replaced with flag officers that would fight an unlimited war against our enemies. This required a great deal of restraint by politicians to let the military do its job. The only places "limited warfare" was used was in countries occupied by enemies forces. It was only after WWII that limited warfare became the norm for our nation.

Truman removed MacArthur from his command in the Korean War for criticizing the limited war.

Neither Johnson nor Nixon ever unleashed the full power of our military in Viet Nam. Nixon got close with the bombing of North Viet Nam, but the war in the south, where a vast number of the enemy resided, remained a limited war.

With the current war in Iraq, either our generals have no stomach for unlimited war, or this administration has followed our Post WWII form.

Unlimited warfare is the best protection we can give our troops, and delivers decisive victories.

[stand watie]

actually, NOBODY was murdered. 158 CRIMINALS, ALL of whom were wanted for serious COMMON CRIMES were executed, as the KS government REFUSED to stop the rapes/robbery/arson/torture & slaughter of UNARMED civilians in MO, AR & IT.

Lawrence was the most successful cavalry raid in the WBTS. such raids are called PUNITIVE EXPEDITIONS in the (internationally accepted) Law of War. such punitive expeditions are LAWFUL under "the LoW", even today.

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

well, EUROPEANS taught my people to scalp. scalping was NOT a traditional practice of AmerIndians prior to the coming of "the hairy faces".

btw, Bill Anderson was 1/2 Kiowa.

free dxiie,sw

[stand watie]

you really should go read the TRUE STORY of the punitive raid on Lawrence. NOT a single child or woman was even injured, despite the LIES told by the FILTH from KS.

there is a list of every person executed OR arrested & returned to MO for punishment. ALL were adult MEN,who were wanted for felonies in IT, AR and /or MO.

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

BG Stand Watie was my ancestor's Commanding General. he commanded the First Cherokee Mounted Rifle Regiment.

but, NOPE, NOT a cavalryman, but rather a commander of mounted infantry.

free dixie,sw

[ozzymandus]

Now we have weasely clark.

[stand watie]

NOT if the fascists are COMMON CRIMINALS as the executed thugs at Lawrence were.

free dixie,sw

[backtothestreets]

Moose4, I'll add another name to your list. Army Air Corp General Curtis LeMay didn't order a "limited war" air campaign over Japan. More Japanese died from General Lemay's air offensive than the two nuclear bombs combined. It was General LeMay that ordered an end to precision bombing to shorten the war.

You are quite right in using General Sherman as an example too. Until General Sherman, both the north and south fought limited war campaigns. By limited, I mean they only engaged the opposing military forces. General Sherman sent his forces against everything ahead of him, military and civilian alike. That's the only proved way of defeating an enemy on their own land.

[RedEyeJack]

This is a squad leaders fight. The enemy will not stand and do battle. He sets booby traps and assassinates unarmed civilians. Marine Corporals find these characters by moving among the people with their Iraqi counterparts finding out who the evil doers are and capturing or killing them if they resist (most don't). If you want an anology it would be Chesty Puller and Bill Lee working with the La Guardia de Nicaragua hunting down "bandits".

It happens every day in Al Anbar and the cities of the WERV (Western Euphrates River Valley).

[ozzymandus]

Executed thugs at Lawrence? Please clarify.

[backtothestreets]

Quite right arthurus. We went into Iraq with a limited war policy and our troops are paying the price now. Limited warfare is great for removing occupying forces, as we did in WWII France, and in Kuwait during the Gulf War. The "Shock & Awe" of limited warfare makes great television, but does not defeat an enemy on their own land. That's what the British tried against an unruly bunch of disloyal subjects a couple centuries back. Worked out great for US.

[PzLdr]

You want to read about Quantrill? Try"The Devil Knows How to Ride", by Edward R. Leslie; "Quantrill's War", by Duane Schultz; "William Clarke Quantrill": His Life and Times", by Albert Castel; "Quantrill and his Civil War Guerrillas", by Carl W. Breihan; "The Vengeful War of William C. Quantrill", Castel ["Civil War", the magazine of the Civil War Society, Vol X, No.1, Jan-Feb 1992]; "Quantrill's Last Ride", by Stuart W. Sanders [America's Civil War", March 1999].

For that psychopath supreme, "Bloody Bill Anderson", I suggest "Bloody Bill Anderson: The Short, Savage Life of a Civil War Guerrilla", by Albert Castel and Thomas Goodrich;"Bloody Bill's Centralia Massacre", by Stuart W. Saunders ["America's Civil War, March 2000].

For the Guerrilla war in Missouri in general, try: "Inside War", by Michael Fellman; "Black Flag", by Thomas Goodrich; "Gray Ghosts of the Confederacy", by Richard S. Brownlee.

For a detailed account of the raid on Lawrence, suggest "Bloody Dawn", by Goodrich

William C. Quantrill was a brilliant guerrilla. He showed flair as both a strategist and tactician. He was also a thief and a murderer. Anderson was, IMO, a full blown psychopath. He murdered unarmed prisoners, and mutilated the corpses of enemies fallen in battle, or who died at his hand. Come to think of it, he's a perfect fit for Baghdad. He'd fit right in with the terrorists.

[stand watie]

ALL of the persons on the KILL LISTS (the PUNITIVE RAID was VERY organized.)& ONLY those persons who were WANTED were killed OR returned to MO for trial/punishment

NOT a single innocent man OR any woman/child was even INJURED!

only TWO persons on the "kill lists" were NOT killed or arrested. COL Jim Lane disguised himself in a dress & passed himself off as a woman (thus he was NOT detained. he then swan across the river & hid in a cemetery until dark.) & "Doc" Jennison was in MO, raiding farms & robbing a bank that day.

ALL of the executed/arrested were GROWN MEN and each was wanted for common crimes (such as horse/cattle rustling, rape, arson, kidnapping, torture, armed robbery & murder)in AR, IT and/or MO.

had the state of KS chosen to bring these COMMON CRIMINALS to justice OR deliver them to the law enforcement officers of the 3 other jurisdictions, there would have been NO PUNITIVE EXPEDITION. punitive expeditions, btw, are ACCEPTABLE (even today!)under the internationally recognized Law of War.

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

you have PERFECTLY parroted the simplistic/official DAMNyankee, REVISIONIST line!

the REALITY was MUCH more complicated.

check your mailbox.

free dixie,sw