cross post by Snooper
Major HT to Lew
November 25, 2007
Anyone who has ever served in the U.S. Armed Services knows that the vast overall majority of their fellow Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines serve with honor and distinction. We also realize that, like in civilian society, a minute number go bad and commit crimes against others.
Listening to those now in our media outlets, one would think nearly all of our Service People go bad and commit crimes against others, especially when deployed overseas. From My Lai in Viet Nam to Abu Ghraib in Iraq, we hear endless accounts of torture, atrocities, rapes and murders as if they were every day occurrences by our Troops. Most citizens tend to discount the steady drone of negativism by the media, but too many embrace it, wrongfully believing the sensationalized accounts.
Our left leaning Hollywood jumps into the fray with movies like Apocalypse Now, Platoon and a host of others. Brian De Palma has entered arena now with his latest effort at slandering our Military, Redacted, a movie loosely based on a true event by a very small handful of Troops that raped and murdered an Iraqi girl in what is known as the Al-Mahmudiyah killings.
Sure to incense audiences around the world against American Troops, lost is that three of the surviving persons involved in this has been arrested and convicted, with sentences ranging from 90 to 100 years in prison. One who had returned to civilan life awaits trial in federal court, with an expectation of a similar conviction and sentencing.
Like any civilized country, in the rare insatnces of Soldiers going bad and committing heinous crimes against civilians, America openly prosecutes those committing the crimes. Our leftist media would lead you to think otherwise.
Often ignored by the media and citizens is another example of Soldiers going bad. Equally as uncommon but similarly sensationalised by the media, these often former Soldiers are embraced by the leftist leaning media after they retire from the Service, often under embarrassing conditions. They turn towards leftist politics and begin undermining the efforts of our Brave Troops that often times, they led.
I am not talking of former enlisted, non-commissioned or junior officers, like the lies told to the Senate and Nation by the now junior Senator from Massachusetts, John 'F'in Kerry, but of career General Officers often forced to retire due to their lack of effective leadership and under whose command some of the very crimes mentioned happened.
We have General Wesley Clark, said by many to have nearly started World War III, which led to his being relieved of command by former president, B.J. Clinton, making General Clark the only General Officer to ever be fired by the only draft dodger to occupy the White House. After failing in his own Democrat bid for the presidency, he helped undermine the Troops efforts, claiming just days before the 2006 mid-term election that all of our problems basically were 'Because of Iraq.'
Retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste, Lt. Gen. Gregory Newbold, Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, Gen. Anthony Zinni, Maj. Gen. John Riggs, Maj. Gen. Charles Swannack and Brig. Gen. John Johns are among a small group of retired Generals who, for one reason or another, have decided they must speak out against the Bush administration, particularly to bring about the retirement of Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld and the ongoing battles in Iraq.
I should add here that most of these retired General Officers held Command in the first years of the Iraq Battle, the very time that most now complain were mishandled and performance was poor. Yet, they choose to blame others for their own poor performance and leadership, hoping to protect their own legacy's by publicly opposing the very battles they couldn't lead to Victory.
The kook anti-war left and Democrat Party embraces these few Generals to bolster their own stance. Other retired Generals who may question public support or speak out in support of the administration are largely ignored.
We can now add another retired General to the list that was forced into retirement for his lack of proper leadership, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez. General Sanchez, who was forced into retirement for his role in the Abu Ghraib scandal, now joins key Democrats in admitting success in President Bush's Reinforcement policy of the Troops, but calling for withdrawal of the Troops as we are winning.
While the ethics of these retired General Officers remain questionable, they cannot be prosecuted like lower ranking Soldiers that go bad. They enjoy freedom of speech as do the rest of us. Every one of them should know better, though, having seen what emboldening our enemies results in back in the mid-1970's when they were junior officers.
As has been admitted, the surge is working and improvements are being made. We have an excellent leader in command with General David Petraeus and the Iraqi's them selves have grown tired of Al Qaeda and are abandoning them and joining forces with our Troops against Al Qaeda. While political reconciliation may be disappointing so far, gains are being made there too, even if small.
I end this post by respectfully asking of these retired General Officers, SIT DOWN AND SHUT THE HELL UP! We are managing just fine without your past mistakes, Sirs!
Lew
Major HT to Lew
November 25, 2007
Anyone who has ever served in the U.S. Armed Services knows that the vast overall majority of their fellow Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines serve with honor and distinction. We also realize that, like in civilian society, a minute number go bad and commit crimes against others.
Listening to those now in our media outlets, one would think nearly all of our Service People go bad and commit crimes against others, especially when deployed overseas. From My Lai in Viet Nam to Abu Ghraib in Iraq, we hear endless accounts of torture, atrocities, rapes and murders as if they were every day occurrences by our Troops. Most citizens tend to discount the steady drone of negativism by the media, but too many embrace it, wrongfully believing the sensationalized accounts.
Our left leaning Hollywood jumps into the fray with movies like Apocalypse Now, Platoon and a host of others. Brian De Palma has entered arena now with his latest effort at slandering our Military, Redacted, a movie loosely based on a true event by a very small handful of Troops that raped and murdered an Iraqi girl in what is known as the Al-Mahmudiyah killings.
Sure to incense audiences around the world against American Troops, lost is that three of the surviving persons involved in this has been arrested and convicted, with sentences ranging from 90 to 100 years in prison. One who had returned to civilan life awaits trial in federal court, with an expectation of a similar conviction and sentencing.
Like any civilized country, in the rare insatnces of Soldiers going bad and committing heinous crimes against civilians, America openly prosecutes those committing the crimes. Our leftist media would lead you to think otherwise.
Often ignored by the media and citizens is another example of Soldiers going bad. Equally as uncommon but similarly sensationalised by the media, these often former Soldiers are embraced by the leftist leaning media after they retire from the Service, often under embarrassing conditions. They turn towards leftist politics and begin undermining the efforts of our Brave Troops that often times, they led.
I am not talking of former enlisted, non-commissioned or junior officers, like the lies told to the Senate and Nation by the now junior Senator from Massachusetts, John 'F'in Kerry, but of career General Officers often forced to retire due to their lack of effective leadership and under whose command some of the very crimes mentioned happened.
We have General Wesley Clark, said by many to have nearly started World War III, which led to his being relieved of command by former president, B.J. Clinton, making General Clark the only General Officer to ever be fired by the only draft dodger to occupy the White House. After failing in his own Democrat bid for the presidency, he helped undermine the Troops efforts, claiming just days before the 2006 mid-term election that all of our problems basically were 'Because of Iraq.'
Retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste, Lt. Gen. Gregory Newbold, Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, Gen. Anthony Zinni, Maj. Gen. John Riggs, Maj. Gen. Charles Swannack and Brig. Gen. John Johns are among a small group of retired Generals who, for one reason or another, have decided they must speak out against the Bush administration, particularly to bring about the retirement of Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld and the ongoing battles in Iraq.
I should add here that most of these retired General Officers held Command in the first years of the Iraq Battle, the very time that most now complain were mishandled and performance was poor. Yet, they choose to blame others for their own poor performance and leadership, hoping to protect their own legacy's by publicly opposing the very battles they couldn't lead to Victory.
The kook anti-war left and Democrat Party embraces these few Generals to bolster their own stance. Other retired Generals who may question public support or speak out in support of the administration are largely ignored.
We can now add another retired General to the list that was forced into retirement for his lack of proper leadership, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez. General Sanchez, who was forced into retirement for his role in the Abu Ghraib scandal, now joins key Democrats in admitting success in President Bush's Reinforcement policy of the Troops, but calling for withdrawal of the Troops as we are winning.
While the ethics of these retired General Officers remain questionable, they cannot be prosecuted like lower ranking Soldiers that go bad. They enjoy freedom of speech as do the rest of us. Every one of them should know better, though, having seen what emboldening our enemies results in back in the mid-1970's when they were junior officers.
As has been admitted, the surge is working and improvements are being made. We have an excellent leader in command with General David Petraeus and the Iraqi's them selves have grown tired of Al Qaeda and are abandoning them and joining forces with our Troops against Al Qaeda. While political reconciliation may be disappointing so far, gains are being made there too, even if small.
I end this post by respectfully asking of these retired General Officers, SIT DOWN AND SHUT THE HELL UP! We are managing just fine without your past mistakes, Sirs!
Lew