U.S. May Add Advisers to Aid Iraq's Military -NYT

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 - Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top commander in Iraq, is reviewing a proposal to add hundreds of American military advisers to work directly with Iraqi units, whose disappointing performance could jeopardize the long-term American exit strategy from Iraq, senior military officials said Monday.

Americans are training Iraqi police officers and national guard troops to replace them in securing the country, but the results over all have been troubling, with growing desertion rates, gaps in leadership, and poor battlefield performance, American military officers and troops say.

The advisers would bolster the Iraqi will to fight, help train officers who would lead the troops, curb desertion, and provide Iraqi forces with the confidence that American units would back them up - in some cases fighting alongside them if needed, military and Pentagon officials said.

Several hundred American troops are already embedded with Iraqi units, following a long tradition in American military actions. But the proposal would greatly expand this presence.

The details of the proposal are still being discussed among American and Iraqi officials, and more troops would probably not be embedded until after the Jan. 30 elections, in which Iraqi forces will play a crucial part....

http://nytimes.com/2005/01/04/international/middleeast/04military.html?hp&ex=1104814800&en=1d44abe6f1fb9a3e&ei=5094&partner=homepage

"military advisers" + what gets 15,700 hits?
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=Vietnam+%2B+%22military+advisers%22&btnG=Search

[ogradda]

1. asking us for military advice.

what with our wonderful record in iraq so far:eyes:

[da_chimperor]

2. Ah, just like the good ole' days back in 'nam

Wait . . . those days weren't so good. Nevermind, carry on.

[two gun sid]

3. We just dig the hole deeper...

and deeper.

[qwertyMike]

4. Thousands of 'Advisors'....

were killed in Nam

[slor]

5. Oh, they just got it...

backwards. We usually send advisors first, THEN start the war. So see, everything is really OK in Iraq, they just got the order a lil' wrong, now go back to bed America.

[daleo]

6. I thought advisers came first, then the quagmire comes later

This seems backwards.

On edit - If Bush needs a memory aid for his next invasion, he should just go in the same order that the words appear in the dictionary - advisers, quagmire, Vietnamization.

[americanstranger]

7. Yup, VN in reverse.

At least in 'Nam, we sent the advisors before we trashed the country.

-as

[CHIMO]

8. Probably Just His

Way of getting out and he doesn't realize that it is the 60's in reverse.

[underpants]

13. Lessons learned form Vietnam

Oh sorry no they weren't

[keopeli]

9. Gooooood Morning, Iraq!

[bemildred]

10. You can't make this shit up.

I bet the "advisers" main duty is to shoot anybody that tries to desert.

[underpants]

12. Ever heard the term "flanker" as in football?

That is where it comes from. "Flanker"s stood on the sides of the battles and shot anyone who tried to run away.

[Trajan]

11. From top to bottom ....

his whole ordeal smells of extreme incompetence ....

HOW can these idiots be in power ? ...

[Massachusetts]

14. Blackwater

keeps raking in the moola.

[Cocoa]

15. they should send Matt Foley

all those slacking Iraqis need is a little motivation.