Did We Not Learn Anything From the Vietnam Experience?
What was the Key military lesson that was learned during the Vietnam War? The lesson was simple; when you deploy conventional military ground forces against a civilian insurgent or guerrilla force, it is hard to determine who the actual enemy is. During the '60's and '70's , the US military threw everything they had at the Viet Cong and still lost the war. The smiling citizens who walked amongst the troops during the day were often the same guerrilla fighters who shot and bombed US troops after the sun went down.
Flash forward to today, 2006. Iraq & Afghanistan. Was nothing learned from the disaster of Vietnam? Exactly who in the Canadian Armed Forces High Command believes that we are going to be effective in curtailing insurgent activities when we aren't even sure who it is that is planting roadside explosives or running at us with axes?
As we begin to slip deeper and deeper into the quicksand that is Afghanistan, I fear that we have learned nothing from the lessons of the past. While every Canadian supports and worries about our individual soldiers, who is it at the Department of National Defense who thinks that what we are doing is going to be effective?
Insanity is often described as repeating the same mistake over and over, expecting a different result.
Very well said! I've been saying similar things too. Sadly, I wonder if anyone listens. Surprisingly, many Canadians still support our presence in Afghanistan, even though the situation is getting more and more volatile and dangerous, and now we know that we are there in a combat role, and not as a 'peacekeeping' mission.
I fear what more our Straussian Bush-friend PM Harper has in store for us. I've read that we should expect to stay in Afghanistan for a decade or more. Is it to become our Vietnam? When will Canadians say "enough"!? Or will we become complacent, apathetic sheeple like our southern neighbours? Are we sheeple already?
Obiously the U.S. has NOT learned anything from Vietnam. Have we (not)?
Good blog. Keep speaking out. Voices of reason and sanity need to be heard!
best,
Annamarie
verbena-19
Posted by
Annamarie |
4:07 pm, March 05, 2006
Insanity is fighting a war we cannot win. If the Taliban are allowed to seek sanctuary in Pakistan we don't stand a chance.
We're only there because the Americans fucked up. Because they're too busy fighting their insane war in Iraq. And because we wanted to make up to them for not going there too. We've been duped into taking on an impossible mission.These right wing bozos are not only ruining our country. Now they're killing our soldiers.
BTW I like this blog. Go get em doggies!
Posted by
Simon |
1:27 am, March 06, 2006
The people of Afghanistan don't want our help. Sounds like our own Vietnam. I support our troops. I feel they are caught in a plitical web. The Tories are using support of the troops as an excuse to keep them there. We should think about a quick withdrawl before we get caught up in American BS. Why are we fighting in Afghanistan? What's the real reason? To appease the Americans? To get some kind of world reputation? How many Canadians are going to have to die before we realize we are not doing much good???
Posted by
Anonymous |
2:12 pm, March 06, 2006