Provide logistical and training support to the Iraqi Military so long as they do their part to fight the violence, solve the political issues and try and restore security.
And what do you think the US is doing? Sitting there and telling them "OK I gave you a country, now run it"?
The combat operation I would deploy is one to deal with any al-Qaeda/Hezbollah operation within Iraq. That force would consist of Predator Droned equipped with Hell Fire Missiles to provide real time observation and the ability to engage high value targets in Iraq. The force would have Air Cave and Special Forces when boots on the ground were needed. It would be provided a very substantial air asset in terms of Tac Air as well as precision bombing capability from both the Navy and Air Force.
Sounds like what is already happening in Iraq. You seem to be agree with everything you are complaining about.
I would engage any al-Qaeda concentration, training or command/supply facility identified but would not become involved on lone term ground occupation. I would not be patrolling the streets of Baghdad or occupying large areas in Iraq. That would be turned over to the 350,000 Iraqi military and police.
Try as you might this would be unavoidable. Because we are the occupying force it is our duty to protect the Iraqi people. Up until this moment, and still debatable, the Iraqi military and the police were not ready so who did you think had to do the job? It would have been a stupid strategy to allow the militants, insurgents and Al-qaeda operatives to take over the country 1 town at a time simply because we refused to maintain some kind of order in the country. Patrolling the streets was a must, and even though there is a new Iraqi military, they are still not ready (even according to you since you think they still need more training) so we are still responsible for the streets of Iraq.
This quick reaction force could be located in Iraq or in neighboring areas or BOTH. I would substantially increase the real time Intel of the areas where al-Qaeda is operating and take every opportunity to destroy their operations large and small. I would give them NO rest or refuge. That is also true in Afghanistan. If we see that al-Qaeda continued to seek shelter in the border regions of Pakistan and they do not act to deny them the ability of operating in Pakistan, then surgical quick reaction operations would be extended into the border regions of Pakistan. We must take a far more aggressive posture toward al-Qaeda in the region and remove the bulk of our ground forces from Iraq! No more U.S. combat operation in the sectarian fighting in Iraq.
I'm sorry Col, but you seem to be stating everything the US military is currently doing in Iraq and Pakistan, with the exception that you are dismissing the possibility of hurting innocent people in the process. You're plan is actually the current administrations plan. I see no difference in what you stated. You almost make it sound as if we are not doing anything except sit around and show how big our guns are but we can't use them while the insurgents and Al-qaeda operatives run amok.
Here, let me give you a real solution to this dilemma:
First things first, it’s time to revise our rules of engagement. In this day in age it’s all about winning at all cost. Enemies do not meet in a battle field face to face as they once did back in the days of kings and castles. This is not Braveheart, the enemy will not just stand there and be killed, and it’s not about who has the most men or who has the better and bigger guns. It’s about exploiting every weakness; it’s about taking every advantage possible. It’s about pretending to be a friend only to stab you in the back at any given chance. It’s about survival and today’s enemy is willing to go the extra mile to win regardless of how the world views them. It may be time for use to loosen our rules a bit. While I’m not suggesting flushing the entire rule book, I am suggesting that we make some of the rules less restrictive, less intrusive. We need to stop tying our own hands every time we face a new enemy; we need to stop making it easier for them to beat us. We need to accept that collateral damage is unavoidable and that throwing our people in the line of fire to avoid collateral damage is a fool’s strategy. Battles can not be won with diplomats as commanding officers. Sometimes the moral way isn’t always the best way when it comes to survival. If ever faced with the ultimate decision of leaving my child without his father or leaving the innocent child of an enemy without his father, that’s a no brainer, them before us.
Once we can get past our obsession with looking good in the eyes of the rest of the world we can focus on sending a message to the enemy that we will pound back 10 times stronger for every attack they throw at us. We will show what the US Armed Forces are really made of, we will show them the power of our latest and newest weapons, we will show them that killing our citizens only makes our cause, our mission that much more important to accomplish. We will push forward; we will show them that this is about survival when diplomacy fails. Any enemy installation, any building, any hole and any cave they hide in will be reduced to a pile of rubble. Cooperation is a must of find yourself amongst the collateral damage for aiding and abetting a criminal. The Iraqi people must be motivated into taking over their country. They must be willing to point out any illegal activities, any suspicious people, any information on people with weapons. They must prove they are not part of the group of people looking to make a disaster out of Iraq. If they truly do not want to die at the hands of these criminals they need to make an effort to weed them out, to help the US and the new Iraqi military forces find these criminals and remove them. They need to fight for their country or sit then and die a worthless death from a suicide bomber, an opposing branch sniper or armed conflicts between US and Iraqi forces against these militants.
If we can get past our need to be loved by the rest of the world and be willing to bend the rules a bit for the sake of ending this and saving more lives than are being lost at this moment; we stand a better chance at ending this or at least bring it down a few notches to the point where diplomacy may actually stand a “fighting”(?) chance. It’s time to show the enemy that they can not use our weaknesses against us without any repercussions.
That’s how I would do it. We may not be the perfect US that many would want us to be, but we would still maintain most of our values. I value all life (with the exception of some insects) but having no other choice, my survival and that of my family and/or my country comes first.
