First off, Iraq wasn't a failure any more than the War of 1812 was a failure, or the Civil War was a failure. Iraq has been on its own for a while now, and yes the killing is on an uptick. Iran is a right bastard to have for a neighbor. Peace is that brief moment of time where everyone pauses to reload....Its been a long time since I've actually cheered when it comes to a post on the military and its been a positive story.
I wonder how the British Army felt after Yorktown? Were there calls for reforms? Was blame passed about? Or did someone realize, "You know, fighting an expensive foreign war a long distance from our lines of supply is never a recipe for success."
But in terms of what the US Military could do, and did, in Iraq, was definitely a "success" in terms of kicking ass and taking names in six weeks, then spending almost a decade trying to rebuild some semblance of representative government. It's like a carpenter with one tool, a sledgehammer. Great for knocking down walls, but just not the right tool for doing finish work on cabinetry. But when your only tool is a sledgehammer, that is what you use.
Afghanistan, same story as Vietnam. We win in every engagement, but we are supporting a corrupt government that everyone knows is corrupt.
In terms of actual fighting, we've kicked ass and always kicked ass. If you want us to do something other than fighting, like Somalia, Lebanon, the rebuilding of Iraq an Afghanistan, by the very definition of what Armies are, we kinda suck at that.
Much needed and spot on.
Sidenote: I still believe we have Flag Rank bloat and perhaps too many officers overall but that won't be solved till we thin the herd at the top.
