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ElHombre
03-20-2006, 05:46 PM
paul eaton was in charge of training iraqi forces from 03-04 until he quit in disgust. he now writes (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/opinion/19eaton.html?ex=1143003600&en=2bfb75f452afdf54&ei=5070) about his old boss.


Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is not competent to lead our armed forces. First, his failure to build coalitions with our allies from what he dismissively called "old Europe" has imposed far greater demands and risks on our soldiers in Iraq than necessary. Second, he alienated his allies in our own military, ignoring the advice of seasoned officers and denying subordinates any chance for input.

In sum, he has shown himself incompetent strategically, operationally and tactically, and is far more than anyone else responsible for what has happened to our important mission in Iraq. Mr. Rumsfeld must step down.

In the five years Mr. Rumsfeld has presided over the Pentagon, I have seen a climate of groupthink become dominant and a growing reluctance by experienced military men and civilians to challenge the notions of the senior leadership.

he also rips into generals myers, pace and franks about their roles in letting rumsfeld have his way heedless of the effects it would have on the troops.


Our most important, and sometimes most severe, judges are our subordinates. That is a fact I discovered early in my military career. It is, unfortunately, a lesson Donald Rumsfeld seems incapable of learning.

AOCBravo2004
03-20-2006, 10:14 PM
@ElHombre - Good article, great read, though if I recall it was not this administration that cut the Army down to 10 Divisions.

Durandal
03-20-2006, 11:51 PM
True, it was Bush Sr. and Clinton.

I remember in ROTC back in 1989 they were asking non-scholarship, OPTed, MS3s and 4s to voluntarily drop because of cut backs and not owe money.

Nor is the Executive Branch solely responsible for the state of the military. Maybe you should see the COngressional side of the cutbacks and which politico signed off on 'em (it ain't just Democracts)

With that being said, Rummy waded through brass getting "yes" men, plain and simple, and then used the "we fight with what we have, not with what we want" argument over and over till people believed it.

It disgusts me ever time I hear some politician claim "We would have sent more troops if our generals had asked for them".

Well, they did ask for them. They were denied, passed over, retired, or simply quit, disgusted with the whole thing.

Trust me, I have hung out and sipped drinks with a couple retired officers from the 80s...they LOATHE McNam...errr...Rumsfeld.