Great Col Hackworth column from 2004 (Clinton's Military)

[wakeme2008]

Saw this over at Bartcop

http://www.tonyrogers.com/news/hackworth_0629_2004.htm

Sack 'em and rack 'em

By David Hackworth
© 2004 David H. Hackworth
June 29, 2004


America would be a whole lot safer if the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Richard Myers, was flying for Virgin Airlines, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was competing on "Survivor." Both war leaders have done so miserable a job honchoing the military side of our critical conflict against global terrorism, and in the process so jeopardized our national security, that they should be sacked for dereliction of duty.

Contrary to continuing political spin, Iraq and Afghanistan both are running sores with little promise of even a long-term turnaround, and our world today is far more dangerous than it was before 9-11. Unless there's a 180-degree change in overall strategy, the USA is doomed to follow the same bloody path through these two brutal killing fields that the Soviet Union took in Afghanistan.

The mighty sword that Rumsfeld and Myers inherited four years ago – the finest military force in the world – is now chipped and dulled. And the word is that it will take at least a decade to get our overextended, bone-tired soldiers and Marines and their worn-out gear back in shape.

Top generals like former NATO commander Wes Clark and a squad of retired and active-duty four-stars warned long before the invasion of Iraq: Don't go there. It doesn't involve our national security. It's not the main objective in our war with international terrorism. Even retired four-star Colin Powell said that if we go to Iraq and break the china, we own it. But know-it-all Rumsfeld and go-along-to-get-along Myers totally ignored this sound military advice.

.. more at article link...

[Adelante]

1. Hack's Guest Book - RIP

4278 Entries - 172 Pages

Please sign here:

http://www.hackworth.com/cgi-bin/csGuest/csGuest.cgi?command=view&gid=1

[wakeme2008]

2. Thanks will sign today

:)

[Totally Committed]

8. Thanks so much for that link...

Vaia con dios, Hack!

TC

http://www.military.com/Resources/ResourceFileView?file=Hackworth_092303.htm

[Skarbrowe]

3. Did anyone see any mention of Hack's passing on MSM?

I admit to not being able to watch much TV at the time, but I was wondering if any news network even mentioned his passing.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

6. They replayed an old interview on BookTV this weekend

It was from about '89

About Face: The Odyssey of an American Warrior
David Hackworth

Col. David Hackworth expresses his concern for the declining standards in the U.S. Army. The author sat down with Brian Lamb in 1989 to talk about his book, "About Face: The Odyssey of an American Warrior." Col. Hackworth discusses the controversial television interview he gave in 1971 where he criticized Army leadership and explains how it led to his early retirement from the Armed Forces.

Bio: Col. David Hackworth wrote the syndicated column, Defending America and co-authored the "Vietnam Primer," which was published by the Pentagon and used as a training manual during the Vietnam War. His other books include "Brave Men," "Hazardous Duty," "Steel My Soldiers’ Hearts" and the novel "The Price of Honor." Col. Hackworth died Wednesday, May 4th, in Tijuana, Mexico, where he was receiving treatment for bladder cancer.


link to the video should be here in a day or two
http://www.booktv.org/feature/index.asp?segid=3176&schedID=362

[PATRICK]

4. And the other side

is that we have provided a large shooting gallery and training ground for any anti-American or generic terrorist organization the world might spawn. They have been shown they can kill the invincible and defeat the machine and that every battle is protecting their homeland from American conquerors.

Also, the GOOD side of American character or true military soundness is part of an American serpent devouring its own tail. It is too late for the Americans to become brutalized enough to even have the brute power of winning. The situation is that our fraudulent, unaccountable fantasy leaders are more responsible for the defeat and destruction of their own military than the enemies they blundered into arrogantly. Might as well be Benedict Arnold, but that would be a rational double agent traitor mindset. Epithets are thrown about freely, especially by people loudly deflecting the aptness away from their own reputation.

But it apples. SO destructive it matters little whether they are deliberately destroying America or simply refashioning it into a ugly winning monster. The simple conclusion is that first and foremost they must be removed for everyone's sake.

But THAT kind of attrition is not happening at all. The PNAC Central Command keep promoting themselves and denying their deeds.

This happened long ago too since the obvious should never have been a matter of debate. That no matter what visions of sugarplums a pro-war faction might have, experience is not equivocal in the easy predcitons of what must happen in an illegal occupation for which America is fundamentally incapable under false colors. In sum, there were few surprises and those of the unpleasant, uncorrectible sort weighing against us.

[PATRICK]

5. The end sum

means reliance on the ultimate toys, the nukes. People chipping away at the borders of this disaster are letting them casually move to the "last resort" which they consider the easy way out and the end all answer to the messy business of brutally conquering the world.

The logic of all their illogic drives them there if they don't have it all on paper already. They hate armies because they saw them turn against despots and even side with people movements in the Soviet Bloc. They hate democracies. Reality and the majority of mankind and the huge development of civilization beyond their old money control must move them to "final
solutions". The horror is that no one really has to intend this. It is the effluent flow of evil and absolute power.

While we make arguments for the application or restoration of the rules.

[wicket]

7. He was a Warrior for Truth

And will be greatly missed.

:kick: