We were discussing this in class today, and it got me thinking. Looking back at the war, and how quickly the US sped through Iraq...shouldn't it have been obvious that there were going to be plenty of people left to fight?
Ive heard that one general was nearly fired for insisting that the US slow down in its advance and concentrate more on the Fedaeen (sp?), which is basically what we're fighting now.
Also, if Colin Powell (creator of Powell doctrine) was playing such a big role, why is it that we didnt follow his doctrine, and use an overwhelming ground force to deal with these insurgency issues before they began to get out of hand.
What I mean about "Should some of the blame fall on the generals" is that most of these guys were there in Vietnam, and saw how a guerilla war works, so why is it that they didnt speak up and demand more manpower or perhaps some other strategy? Are they cowards? Is it a symptom of today's military, that a general is too afraid to express his honest point of view for fear of some political reprisal?
Id be interested to hear from MikeD on this too.
Ive heard that one general was nearly fired for insisting that the US slow down in its advance and concentrate more on the Fedaeen (sp?), which is basically what we're fighting now.
Also, if Colin Powell (creator of Powell doctrine) was playing such a big role, why is it that we didnt follow his doctrine, and use an overwhelming ground force to deal with these insurgency issues before they began to get out of hand.
What I mean about "Should some of the blame fall on the generals" is that most of these guys were there in Vietnam, and saw how a guerilla war works, so why is it that they didnt speak up and demand more manpower or perhaps some other strategy? Are they cowards? Is it a symptom of today's military, that a general is too afraid to express his honest point of view for fear of some political reprisal?
Id be interested to hear from MikeD on this too.