Posted on 10/04/2009 7:54:39 PM PDT by Saije
One fundamental tenet of Gen. Stanley McChrystal's controversial Afghanistan strategy aims at avoiding precisely the kinds of attacks that killed eight American soldiers Sunday.
In what is being described as one of the boldest attacks of the Afghan insurgency, an estimated 300 militants sustained a day-long siege against a coalition outpost in Nuristan Province – a place where the rule of law is so tenuous and the terrain so forbidding that it is seen as one of the likeliest hiding places for Osama bin Laden.
It is also has fewer people than Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Beyond the request for more resources that has engrossed America, McChrystal's battlefield assessment proposes deploying American troops in a profoundly different way.
Rather than sending them to the farthest-flung corners of a far-flung nation to hunt down scores of militants hiding in remote mountain caves, it intends to protect the Afghan population first, giving the most Afghans the greatest opportunity of establishing something approaching a safe and normal life.
Fourth of McChrystal's "four fundamental pillars" for a new strategy is: "prioritize available resources to those critical areas where the population is most threatened."
In fact, the very troops in Nuristan forced to fight off unseen attackers firing down from ridge lines cloaked in inclement weather Sunday are poised to be redeployed under McChrystal's new leadership, according to the Washington Post.
The change in course does not promise fewer casualties. Rather, it intends to focus US soldiers on areas where their sacrifices can potentially lead to longer-term security gains.
(Excerpt) Read more at csmonitor.com ...
Obama should be made to pay. He WANTS and WELCOMES our defeat.
sounds like Obama has found a general of like mind
don’t kill the enemy, let the enemy kill you (or more precisely, your own soldiers)
It isn’t good to have our worst enemy in control of our fighting men and women. Fox in the hen house.
"There's nothing so much like God Almighty on Earth, as a General on the battlefield". When did we lose that?
/johnny
generals have always been subject to the whims of politicians.
I don't believe this is true. I think McChrystal and Petraeus and others are trying to win this war. Their strategy may be counter-intuitive, leading initially to more casualties, but then the Surge was counter-intuitive as well. And so have a lot of other military campaigns in history. Just my opinion. But there's no way I am going to compare McChrystal --who's put himself in harm's way for this country for the last 3 decades-- with that loser in the White House.
give me a break
the surge was not counter-intuitive
the surge was based on finding and killing bad guys
our strategy in Afghanistan is to get our own a$$’s blown off
“I think McChrystal and Petraeus and others are trying to win this war. Their strategy may be counter-intuitive, leading initially to more casualties, but then the Surge was counter-intuitive as well. And so have a lot of other military campaigns in history. Just my opinion. But there’s no way I am going to compare McChrystal —who’s put himself in harm’s way for this country for the last 3 decades— with that loser in the White House.”
I absolutely agree!!!!
I.e., unimaginable to the keyboard kommandos hereabouts who advocate the "kill 'em all" strategy.
I honestly belive Obama stressed his support for Afganistan during the campain just so he wouldnt look like a liberal coward. It was all an act. He is going to mess this thing up then pullout.
“the surge was not counter-intuitive
the surge was based on finding and killing bad guys..”
Only part of it. It also included getting off the big bases and getting into the neighborhoods, making the soldiers vulnerable to attack, changing the way they approached the locals, stuff like that.
Hey, I’m no military expert but I don’t see how we can put this on McChrystal. He’s only got so many men over there, only so much equipment. He’s asked for more. And he’s getting no response.
It’s also true that this administration is attempting to micro-manage aspects of the war. Thus, a number of very stupid decisions are being made....in DC.
Nuristan is a logistics nightmare. It is a place for DA OPs and better left for SOFs/SF - Not the place with our current force structures to have conventional FOBs. In a few years, yes. Not now, under the current force structures.
I will not think a US General is trying to let us loose. I will believe an anti-American ‘president’ like OBama will try and destroy us. So just we know, I have zero faith in this dirt bag.
The general has it all wrong. He should fight the war ruthlessly, as was done in WWII. Bomb the hell out of the resistance. Kill all the enemy and all those who support them. Don’t fight with two hands tied behind you. ROE’s are handcuffs. Put the fear of God in the enemy. Don’t honor Allah. Bomb them in their mosques. They go there 5 times a day. A little more rubble, a lot less trouble.
I have NO faith whatsoever in this administration. Look what they’re doing with the Iran situation too.....
Obama’s agenda today was hysterical when I saw it on TV...he had 9 hours blocked out for the Detroit-Sox game and then he was going to watch the Bears-Lions and then Sunday Night Football with friends...then it is off to campaign all week at schools across the country for his health care plan.
He spent all day watching sports. I bet he spent all of 30 mins doing anything presidential.
Actually that is not true. The "Surge" was to fill the vacuum of power left over from all the finding and killing bad guys DA Ops of 06/ early 07. The Surge was perfectly timed to do so. However, the dirty secret of Iraq is, AQ and its main allies within Iraq were defeated, routed in the ugly fighting of 06/07...which created a vacuum of power that needed to be filled. Filled by whom? Either more mimics of AQ, Iraqis? or us? Us being the most dependable....which is exactly what the surge did and accomplished. Thus giving further time for a normalcy effect to further take root within Iraq. Which is exactly what has happened.
But it was the Op tempos of 06 (along with the maturity of our FID operations) that allowed for the surge to be so successful.
I think Generals are supposed to avoid fighting the last war. Or in this case that last one five wars ago.
is it possible that McChrystal could have moved them sooner
Seems to me like that's the problem, when a socialist or communist is the CIC they never want to give any resources.
Just ask the troops in Somalia what happened when they asked for armor.
With any luck at all the army will put the congressional progressive caucus on a couple of planes to Cuba and start from scratch.
He 's a communist crypto-muslim and bald faced liar who never goes anywhere without his PR men telling him what to lie about next.
I think today the big lie is that the recession is over.
In this case, the General on the ground should have/take complete control of his command and do what he thinks right, win or lose. Politicians should provide or with-hold resources.
Battle is battle, and politicians have no clue.
Bet that 'Bama is trying to find someone to re-animate the corpse of McNamara.... Grump, grump, grump.
/johnny
In Afghanistan, it is *essential* that if you are going to retreat or retire, it has to be kept secret, then done with LOTS of armed support. It is a local tradition to see retreat or retirement as a sign of weakness, and open season for massacre and butchery.
This is what happened when the British left Afghanistan, while under the command of perhaps the most incompetent General who ever lived, Elphinstone.
Just makes me friggin thrilled he is taking some time off to relax with all the stress of having to be dodging bullets all day, every day. Eight of our kids dead because this narccisist SOB can’t squeeze up the intestinal fortitude to make a simple life saving decision. FUBO
‘”There’s nothing so much like God Almighty on Earth, as a General on the battlefield”. When did we lose that?’
We lost that when communication btwn battlefield commanders and the White House got really good, starting with Korea. True battlefield victories after that have been rare. Typically, we see mealy mouthed responses or just plain no guts. The current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania is the poster child for “no guts!” Our forces in Iraq and Afghanistan are screwed with this chickens**t in the White House.
And how exactly is the general supposed to do that when he can’t get the necessary resources from zero for even a far less agressive strategy? When zero won’t even tear himself away from baseball and football long enough to even read the general’s report and approve more resources?
The kind of strategy change you want can only come from the administration, and we all know how likely that is to happen...
Actually the prevailing sentiment hereabouts seems to be that we should get the heck out of Afghanistan, mostly because Obama doesn't seem committed to it which means he's going to pull out sooner or later anyway and men are being killed for no good reason in the meantime. It's easy to see why some believe that, given how he seems either gripped by paralysis or completely disinterested, take your pick.
“In fact, the very troops in Nuristan forced to fight off unseen attackers firing down from ridge lines cloaked in inclement weather Sunday are poised to be redeployed under McChrystal’s new leadership, according to the Washington Post.”
~~~
If true,,,This is a retreat,,,
IIRC : JDAMS and Arty don’t need sunshine to kill the enemy!
Arc-Light Arc-Brite!!!...
Didn’t anyone see Jed Babbin on Huckabee this weekend? These generals are NOT of like mind to the Failure in Chief. It’s been suggested that both Patreus and McChrystal might resign if their efforts continue to be blocked by the anti military attitude of this abhorrent administration . Wait and see: this could be very serious and very telling very soon.
These generals are heroes: they know what they need and and they would never willingly put the lives of their men in harms way. Of course, they want to win the war!
The generals should resign. But they probably are too loyal to their men to leave them in the lurch. I hope they stop all offensives and go on defense. Simply have as little casualties as possible.
However he did find time for more serious national security discussions.
Radar sees through inclement weather....and rain, and wind, and snow.
Arty is affected by that.
13A
ooops....isn’t
ooops....isn’t
Now, that's the sort of military coup I could live with.
Get Obama and his whole administration on that plane, too. Handcuff them all, and let 'em off in Cuban airspace.
I can't imagine that they would resign. It would be so demoralizing for the officers below them, the colonels, the captains, lieutenants, etc. And it would be damaging to our military, for senior officers to resign because of disagreements with the civilian command. No, I think there are a few wise men left in this country, maybe some on the Democrat side even, who would intervene to find some solution.
Roger Dat!!!
If moozzi is on a ridge then bomb the ridge!!!,,,DUH,,,!
It ain’t the friggin’ A Shau Valley and this ain’t the 60’s!
In a year the Taliban reconquers Afghanistan, there will be 1,000 Al-Qaeda agents in the Taliban Government. In 5 years, there will be around 10,000 Al-Qaeda agents with the reestablishment of the terrorist training camps throughout the country.
Somewhere in my dozens of hours of off-the-air video of GW1, there was a segment on FAEs that had a slo-mo of a BIG "umbrella spread" high above ground -- with a spectacular shockwave propagating across the desert below it. I just don't have the time to spool through that many feet of VHS just to find those few seconds of video...
And then if we do capture any TERRORISTS (there 0bozo, I said the word), we are supposed to read the bastards the Miranda rights, protect the muzzie brothers of 0bozo. God help our nation and forgive the dastardly 52% for electing this socialist-fascist-commie pig usurper & muzzie pres____ent. May God quickly & soon, strike down 0bozo before our country is destroyed any further.
Uh, you left out his anniversary date with Michelle.
ping
It is bad enough to have a dumb-ass as President but to also have a lazy one is disgusting!
Exactly!
When does 'the one' actually work?! He gives us peons a lot of lectures and flies around the world but when does he actually WORK?!
You will notice there is never anything on his desk in the oval office, ever.
Arrogant, lazy, stupid and doesn't seem to get it. What a life! At least, we have a half black President to show the world we aren't 'racist'! /s
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