From the Pilipines:
[quote][b]US troops get credit for village
That seems to be all kinds of smart. TC, if you continue to follow this story, I’d like to know what you learn.
[quote=“Jaboney”]That seems to be all kinds of smart. TC, if you continue to follow this story, I’d like to know what you learn.[/quote]Jaboney -
Hearts and Minds Jaboney. It works. Slowly but surely. People woudls rather have a source of clean water and a school than a fuckwad reading marxist theory under a tree while the ville has to listen at gunpoint.
[quote=“TainanCowboy”][quote=“Jaboney”]That seems to be all kinds of smart. TC, if you continue to follow this story, I’d like to know what you learn.[/quote]Jaboney -
Hearts and Minds Jaboney. It works. Slowly but surely. People woudls rather have a source of clean water and a school than a fuckwad reading marxist theory under a tree while the ville has to listen at gunpoint.[/quote]
Indeed it does work! The currency gained thru sweat and toil in improving the basic infrastructure of isolated rural areas is often far greater than that proferred by search & destroy. Especially if that area has recently suffered at the hands of the insurgents, not just in a military sense, but in a basic common needs sense, epecially food, water, shelter, health care & education.
The American military has historically been rather good at this kind of thing. Unforturnatly, it’s often lost in the rhetoric and wickedness of partisan politics…
TGM -
A tip o’ the hat.
TC:.
The historical record speaks for itself.
And then there’s my own experience as a Canuck army brat while my family was posted in Europe for 10 years at the height of the cold war. American units were involved in Great Health Care and Excellent Libraries in many poorer sections of several European towns and cities.
And they even let their Canuck allies use 'em. Poor third World Cousins that we are! 
And in the 3rd World, the work of the Army Corps Of Engineers has been outstanding, to say nothing of the Medics. :bravo: :America: :bravo:
A buddy of mine is a combat troop stationed in a Sunni area of Iraq and a long time Bush hater. He told me the reasons we are there and what we are doing now that we are there are two different things. He was very positive about the military building a good relationship with the Iraqi people. He also said when insurgents bring weapons across the border the Iraqi people rat them out.
See, I think that the military has a role to play, but have read any number of generals say that it’s not and should not be their role: it’s not what they’re trained for. I’ve also spoken with the head of Doctors Without Borders, and he’s adament that the military a) doesn’t know what it’s doing, b) can’t do the job, and c) endangers ngos capable of doing the work (because they’re wrongly confused with military-associated operations. But that’s them. A guy I know is the current Canadian chief of staff in Afghanistan, and did time in Bosnia: he’s got a different take–limited applicability. I think that the military has a role to play. That said, I’m not sure that militaries have consistently the job well in the past.
That is a very good Point Jaboney, can we really expect some nineteen year old kid to play the role of social worker/ambassador/diplomat. Of coarse it is not the militarie’s fault that they are placed in this position.
Perhaps I have been unclear. Let me clarify my position. I do not support the war but I strongly support our military and our troops and I am very impressed with the job they are doing, that is, under the circumstances. Given troop levels and mission objectives which may not be an appropriate use of the military it is all the more commendable when they accomplish those objectives.
Perhaps ngo’s do things more efficiently, but there’s a big benefit to having the military do a part of the work because then our soldiers aren’t just the guys with guns. Also the military has at least something of an advantage over ngo’s bc they already have a lot of manpower and they have to set up all the basics of moving people and supplies anyway.