I was just wondering.... when the USAF carpet bombed Hanoi.... was it definitely to NOT make the North Vietnamese angry?people pushing bicycles; I don't think you need toDifference between then and now? I doubt we'll have politicions saying we can't bomb bin laden cause it would make him angery, like we did in "Nam......we will try to win this one.
be reminded who won that one. Afghanistan is just about impossible for
foreigners to fight in, it has turned out several times over the past few
centuries.
Sorry, this one is going off the deep end folks. We are comparing the culture of young hippies with "peace" and "Love" in their mottos to their slogan, "We MUST destroy these people" of today. The intent was the same... to bring justice to the world and stop something terrible from happening. Now it comes down to whether the lads rely on a "gadget" or themselves. I will never work with a man who says, "Of course we'll win! We have GPS/laser sighting systems/this/that/the other thing."
I will share a bit of a lecture given to one of my courses by a CSM of 30 years service...
"I have found through my experience in Her Majesty's Army
that it is not: the best equipped army that wins wars...
nor is it the best trained army that knows victory...
It is the most determined army that carries the day... <this was
where he whirled, and spitting and frothing and at the TOP of his voice,
thundered>
HOW F*CKING DETERMINED ARE YOU!?!? I WILL SEE TO IT THAT YOU DO NOT
LEAVE HERE UNSCATHED! WE ARE NOT HERE TO TEACH YOU! WE ARE HERE TO TRY
AND KILL YOU!!!"
He did not kill me. He did "scathe" me however... =) In fact he taught me that the above passage was gospel. Why do you think the Special Forces Instructors are always telling the candidates its okay to give up... just say it... we don't want you here anyway... just drop down, put your hands up.... c'mon mate... I know you want to give up... we both know you can't handle this... it'll be all right... just raise your hands and you'll be out of this nasty Welsh sleet and into a nice dry set of trews in the blink of an eye... I'll even carry your Bergen to the lorrie for yer....
And so on... they win because they are skilled, equipped and more determined
than anybody else on the planet.
I think that about says it all.
The guy on the ground with a rifle is what will do this.... not a Tomahawk. Everything in the military exists to support the infantry.... even the SAS & SEALS. While they are all more outright destructive, the true success of destroying an ideology lies within the destruction of its practitioners.... which can only be done face to face, as it were. This is not war. The NATO is really talking about destroying this lot.
Unwelcome rambling complete.
S.