The Real Iraq We Knew
Today marks five years since the authorization of military force in Iraq, setting Operation Iraqi Freedom in motion. Five years on, the Iraq war is as undermanned and under-resourced as it was from the start. And, five years on, Iraq is in shambles.
As Army captains who served in Baghdad and beyond, we’ve seen the corruption and the sectarian division. We understand what it’s like to be stretched too thin. And we know when it’s time to get out.
What does Iraq look like on the ground? It’s certainly far from being a modern, self-sustaining country. Many roads, bridges, schools and hospitals are in deplorable condition. Fewer people have access to drinking water or sewage systems than before the war. And Baghdad is averaging less than eight hours of electricity a day.
Iraq’s institutional infrastructure, too, is sorely wanting. Even if the Iraqis wanted to work together and accept the national identity foisted upon them in 1920s, the ministries do not have enough trained administrators or technicians to coordinate themselves. At the local level, most communities are still controlled by the same autocratic sheiks that ruled under Saddam. There is no reliable postal system. No effective banking system. No registration system to monitor the population and its needs.
The inability to govern is exacerbated at all levels by widespread corruption. Transparency International ranks Iraq as one of the most corrupt countries in the world. And, indeed, many of us witnessed the exploitation of U.S. tax dollars by Iraqi officials and military officers. Sabotage and graft have had a particularly deleterious impact on Iraq’s oil industry, which still fails to produce the revenue that Pentagon war planners hoped would pay for Iraq’s reconstruction. Yet holding people accountable has proved difficult. The first commissioner of a panel charged with preventing and investigating corruption resigned last month, citing pressure from the government and threats on his life.
Against this backdrop, the U.S. military has been trying in vain to hold the country together. Even with “the surge,” we simply do not have enough soldiers and marines to meet the professed goals of clearing areas from insurgent control, holding them securely and building sustainable institutions. Though temporary reinforcing operations in places like Fallujah, An Najaf, Tal Afar, and now Baghdad may brief well on PowerPoint presentations, in practice they just push insurgents to another spot on the map and often strengthen the insurgents’ cause by harassing locals to a point of swayed allegiances. Millions of Iraqis correctly recognize these actions for what they are and vote with their feet — moving within Iraq or leaving the country entirely. Still, our colonels and generals keep holding on to flawed concepts.
U.S. forces, responsible for too many objectives and too much “battle space,” are vulnerable targets. The sad inevitability of a protracted draw-down is further escalation of attacks — on U.S. troops, civilian leaders and advisory teams. They would also no doubt get caught in the crossfire of the imminent Iraqi civil war.
Iraqi security forces would not be able to salvage the situation. Even if all the Iraqi military and police were properly trained, equipped and truly committed, their 346,000 personnel would be too few. As it is, Iraqi soldiers quit at will. The police are effectively controlled by militias. And, again, corruption is debilitating. U.S. tax dollars enrich self-serving generals and support the very elements that will battle each other after we’re gone.
This is Operation Iraqi Freedom and the reality we experienced. This is what we tried to communicate up the chain of command. This is either what did not get passed on to our civilian leadership or what our civilian leaders chose to ignore. While our generals pursue a strategy dependent on peace breaking out, the Iraqis prepare for their war — and our servicemen and women, and their families, continue to suffer.
There is one way we might be able to succeed in Iraq. To continue an operation of this intensity and duration, we would have to abandon our volunteer military for compulsory service. Short of that, our best option is to leave Iraq immediately. A scaled withdrawal will not prevent a civil war, and it will spend more blood and treasure on a losing proposition.
America, it has been five years. It’s time to make a choice.
This column was written by 12 former Army captains: Jason Blindauer served in Babil and Baghdad in 2003 and 2005. Elizabeth Bostwick served in Salah Ad Din and An Najaf in 2004. Jeffrey Bouldin served in Al Anbar, Baghdad and Ninevah in 2006. Jason Bugajski served in Diyala in 2004. Anton Kemps served in Babil and Baghdad in 2003 and 2005. Kristy (Luken) McCormick served in Ninevah in 2003. Luis Carlos Montalván served in Anbar, Baghdad and Nineveh in 2003 and 2005. William Murphy served in Babil and Baghdad in 2003 and 2005. Josh Rizzo served in Baghdad in 2006. William “Jamie” Ruehl served in Nineveh in 2004. Gregg Tharp served in Babil and Baghdad in 2003 and 2005. Gary Williams served in Baghdad in 2003.
© 2007 Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
Bring the troops home immediately. They’re there illegally.
I appreciate this courageous statement by these twelve soldiers. An international force acceptable to the various groups (as Kucinich’s plan calls for) replacing US troops could help turn the situation in Iraq into a positive direction.
Instead of emailing their article to the Washington Post, they need to send it directly to the White House! Even if Dubya never reads it, his aides will, after all isn’t that who he listens to, besides God?
If these captains were so concerned why did they wait till they were out of the army to say something about it.
It takes more guts to point out these facts when you’re in the midst of the frey
Maybe this is too little, and too very late.
These captains seem to be expressing what many other current and former military officers and enlisted troops have also said … and how many Americans feel.
Intelligence experts have also reported the same findings.
I never thought I would see another Vietnam situation like I did in my youth. Yet, here it is.
For those who are too young or didn’t pay attention during the Vietnam War, the article noted below may be of interest …
“Americans felt turning points on Vietnam, Iraq wars in ‘70, ‘07″
http://americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=31984
Straight talk as they believe. I disagree with a draft since I believe it would split this country, fail to fix an unfixable Iraq (at least by us) and in fact be used to start a war with Iran. But people these 12 spoke out and this war is not over. We as Americans should respect their straight talk. It costs them more than it does civilians who comment on CD.
People say those in the military should speak up but then some criticize that they didn’t before. Which is hardly respecting that they have now nor encouraging others in the future. While blood is being split, it is not too late or late at all.
They obviously did speak out earlier as they have said through their chain of command. They speak to us now. Their civilians. They did NOT leave it stay silent with the chain of command or the civilian command. They did NOT leave it and wash their hands of it. Thank them for their service. Speaking out included.
As a former Army Captain, I would be also be extremely pissed that Blackwater mercenaries are making six times more money than I am without being subject to the UCMJ or to any laws for that matter and to be able to quit and go home when you want to. When war becomes a growth industry, it’s time to question your patriotism.
I wonder if any of these people know that Iraq was a fully functioning first-world country, with more engineers and scientists per capita than the US (many of them women) before it was destroyed by the US through sanctions and war?
It also had a far more skilled, unionized work force than the US.
The sooner the US gets out, the sooner it’s engineers can return and rebuild the country. They don’t need the stupid americans - most of whom are hardly literate and cannot even recite a single one of Newtons laws to show them how to do anything.
Thank you for speaking out gentlemen, but you were participants in a crime against humanity.
How is it that so many fail to understand that this war on Iraq is a criminal act?
Greenspan himself said so in his own book. So how is it?
Can there be that many USA citizens that actually benefit from this act?
Has the USA become like China where there is no respect for the rule of law?
It’s nice that the captains “spoke out,” but their comments have rather limited value. None of them said a word about the war’s lack of honest justification. None of them seems to have the slightest sense that they participated in a monstrous & historic crime.
They said they saw “the exploitation of U.S. tax dollars by Iraqi officials and military officers.” I don’t doubt that that’s true, but they said nothing about the exploitation of U.S. tax dollars by American officials and American war profiteers, which is certainly many orders of magnitude greater than anything the Iraqis are skimming off.
They also don’t mention torture, or murder of Iraqi civilians.
They write, “Against this backdrop, the U.S. military has been trying in vain to hold the country together. Even with “the surge,” we simply do not have enough soldiers and marines to meet the professed goals of clearing areas from insurgent control, holding them securely and building sustainable institutions.”
- I have no doubt they believe this, but it amounts to a sadly brainwashed version of what the US military is actually “trying to do.” The US is not there to “help” Iraqis to build “sustainable” institutions. It is there to crush anyone who opposes US control of the region & its oil. The 12 captains seem to think they were there “trying to do good” — this just reflects the limited nature of their perspective. They were physically in Iraq; they no doubt served to the best of their ability — but they have no idea what the war is really about.
They see the main problem as simply the insufficient number of US troops. They write, “There is one way we might be able to succeed in Iraq. … we would have to abandon our volunteer military for compulsory service.” In other words, if the US sent a half-million or a million troops, these 12 captains think this could lead to “success.” In reality, that would simply be a larger crime than we’re already committing.
RichM saved me the trouble of pointing out the self serving aspects of this op ed piece. The reality is, the second bar in the insignia is awarded when one is still “young and dumb”, and on the job, they are bombarded with propaganda.
What was the u5 mortality in Iraq of those born 1991-1995? What is it for those born 2003-now? Who is responsible?
I’m tired of hearing stories of soldiers’ remorse or regret (and every other after-the-fact “exposé”). You’re IRAQ war veterans…not VIET NAM vets! You weren’t drafted; no one forced you.
While I understand the idea of a Poverty Draft, we shouldn’t forget that members of the US Armed Forces are VOLUNTEERS! As such, they have volunteered to take part in an illegal war and volunteered to commit crimes against humanity. No, not every US soldier has actively commited war crimes, but they are members of the organization that does (and defends its use)…
What should they have done? I would answer that with a few questions. Are they religious? A US soldier recently was HONOURABLY discharged for refusing to fight on conscientious grounds, stating his CHRISTIAN faith forbade him from fighting. Did they believe that speaking up earlier would have put their (or their families’) life in danger? If no, then why not offer poetic justice and perfect irony: Invoke the very Christian teachings forced down soldiers’ throat as grounds to refuse to fight!
If you just go along, hoping everything will be ok in the end and only make your voice be heard when it will not affect any outcomes, then what good are your words??? After all, I’m sure some Nazi soldiers regretted what they did, including those at the concentration camps. Should that excuse their actions? No.
Soldiers Resist. If you enter the Forces by way of the poverty draft, evoke the religion they force down your throat. Resist. We all knew the war was illegal. We know that numerous crimes against humanity continue. If you take part, you’re part of the problem. Spare us the protestations after-the-fact. They’re beginning to sound like the rantings of a guilty conscience…hoping that by shedding light on the actions of current soldiers, they deflect scrutiny on their own past actions.
The demolition of Faluja was not holding things together . It was a clear case of collective punishment. The entire war is collective punishment for the sin of being vulnerable, Islamic, and oil rich. I beleive most soldiers want to defend the vulnerable and serve a just cause, but the problem here is not the number of troops but the entire plan which is clearly a criminal war of aggression based on falsified information. More troops with the same plan could easily be far worse.
Mejia and Watada have taken far more difficult and principled stands in the face of the criminal nature of this war and their writing has passion, intensity and persuasive force that I fail to see here. There is abig dose of blaming the victim in this article. This is the same tactic that Hillary is taking. Will some of these fellows end up speaking for her? Let’s see how good my guess is.
If Congress really wants to find out the truth about Iraq it should conduct a hearing by calling these 12 captains whose individual first-hand knowledge and whose credibility exceeds that of a single office-general like BetrayUs. But again, Congress is an accomplice in the disaster.
Right, no First Lt Ehren Watada are these twelve captains, who actually write basically complaints about the war effort failing; instead of condemning the whole damn war from the very start because it is wholly illegal and not only criminal in legal but also moral terms. It is a wholly hellbent war, but the twelve captains don’t pay notice to this FACT, damn! Bunch of idiots I’d never accept to follow orders of or from.
And the President keeps laughing.
good comments above, this piece is mostly self-justifying crap. we totally destroyed this country, the solution? more of the same! a draft, a bigger military!
It is very unwise to imply that our soldiers are war criminals.
It is conceivable that the United States might someday have a moral imperative or other cmpelling reason to go to war. There are many fine and brave individuals who enter the military voluntarily for various justifiable reasons.
Not only is it cruel and misguided to blame the soldiers for the war, it is also a very bad strategy. If the liberal side is the side that engages in troop-bashing, it will lose credibility and members and provide fodder for the “Support the troops = keeping them in Iraq” idiots.
Many military people are speaking out now. It doesn’t make a dent in the President’s policy, but every measure, however small towards peace and sanity should be applauded..
For the record, I have never served in the mililtary, nor does any family member or close friend.
You asked, “If these captains were so concerned why did they wait till they were out of the army to say something about it.”
You can certainly ask that question but the reality is that the UCMJ has soldiers by the …
I said this when I got off the plane, and it almost got me court martialed. “There are big questions about the war and how we got there. To think that Iraq, the land of mud hut and fudal structure was ever a threat to us, is irresponsile.”
Universal Soldier, Buffy Ste. Marie:
He’s 5 foot 2 and he’s 6 feet 4
He fights with missiles and with spears
He’s all of 31 and he’s only 17.
He’s been a soldier for a thousand years
He’s a catholic, a Hindu, an atheist, a Jane
A Bhuddist, and a Baptist and Jew.
And he knows he shouldn’t kill
And he knows he always will kill
You’ll for me my friend and me for you
And He’s fighting for Canada.
He’s fighting for France.
He’s fighting for the USA.
And he’s fighting for the Russians.
And he’s fighting for Japan
And he thinks we’ll put an end to war this way.
And He’s fighting for democracy,
He’s fighting for the reds
He says it’s for the peace of all.
He’s the one, who must decide,
who’s to live and who’s to die.
And he never sees the writing on the wall.
But without him,
how would Hitler have condemned him at Dachau?
Without him Caesar would have stood alone
He’s the one who gives his body
as a weapon of the war.
And without him all this killing can’t go on
He’s the universal soldier
And he really is the blame
His orders comes from
far away no more.
They come from him.
And you and me.
And brothers can’t you see.
This is not the way we put an end to war
Bernadette,
To echo what some others have said, while you are in uniform you are subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Speaking out about what’s going on to someone other than the chain of command can be called sedition or treason. That can get you prison time.
Military people are trained in recognizing the difference between legal and illegal orders. The latter they are not required to obey.
The ultimate authority is the President as Commander in Chief. The military is obliged to follow that individual’s orders as part of civilian control of the military. If you will remember, Congress voted to give Bush authority in this matter. Now, I think that was a mistake.
The point is, however, that if you want to restrict the elected command authority from engaging in wars like Iraq, then the key is in influencing the elected command authority and the congress. The ultimate influence is replacing those in power doing things you disagree with with people who will do things you agree with. Don’t rely on soldiers disobeying the lawful orders of their superiors.
As to the draft, there has been a lively discussion going on in a forum on Amazon.com. I invite you to join in. Here’s a link. http://www.amazon.com/tag/politics/forum/ref=cm_cd_notf_message?%5Fencoding=UTF8&cdForum=Fx1S3QSZRUL93V8&cdPage=8&cdThread=Tx2OIZJ77VDPH41#Mx1YSY8BY1POV1Q
The sliver of a silver lining brought out by these comments and others from Iraq War vets is this: the brass in the Pentagon, well aware of what an endless nightmare we’re in already, and how close to the point of breaking is the military, might refuse to start yet another war with Iran. (They might have already privately informed Bush and Cheney of this — they will resign rather than carry out any orders to attack Iran.)
Sure, there is a sizable cadre of Jerry “My God is Bigger Than Your God” Boykins in the US military, but not enough of the religiously insane to conduct a war by themselves.
Another ’sliver’ is that a good portion of the traditionally conservative-Republican military will be voting for the Dems next year. They are as tired of President Cheney and his little dog Junior as everyone else.