Monday, November 01, 2004

Rumsfeld's Rise and the Generals' Demise

If you missed the Frontline episode on Donald Rumsfeld's rise(s) to power, you can still watch it here. Learn about his struggles with congress, Colin Powell, and the Pentagon.

Also, 60 Minutes had a segment on ill-equipped soldiers in Iraq. If you saw the episode, you were as disgusted as I was. Soldiers are forced to drive plywood-armored vehicles through the streets of Baghdad?? Didn't we approve $87 billion "for the troops" last year? The check must still be in the mail. Where is the disconnect? This Veterans' Day, think of those who served valiantly in Vietnam, WWII, and the other wars and conflicts, but pray for the courageous men and women who are short-handedly doing their duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.

3 comments:

-epm said...

The same party that insisted on adhering to the Powell Doctrine during Gulf War I, insisted on trashing it for Gulf War II. Go figure....

Help me out here; what exactly do all these people with those "Support the Troops" magnets, stickers and decals really mean?

RE $87B: I think something like $1.7B has been spent from that fund. That's because the bill that would have actually SPENT the money was voted down in commitee.... you know the one Kerry voted for, before he voted against the empty promise bill.

Who, me bitter? Nah.

John said...

I think the people with the magnetic ribbons are trying to say "I stand behind our troops." I like to think it's sincere, and not just a show of blind patriotism. To me, though, the word "support" includes ensuring that our troops get the resources they need to come home safely, which means doing more than slapping a magnet on your car.

It's a good thing we asked for 87 billion NOW to sustain operations. At this rate, we'll be sputtering it out until 2055. Or maybe there's some "creative" budgeting going on here.

SugarDuck said...

I saw part of that 60 Minutes segment. Nice way to support our troops. I was proud of the troops they interviewed, who seemed determined to carry out their duty despite the lack of support. If only the folks who are supposed to look out for them had the same sense of responsibility.