“Fucktarded”

Georgia National Guard Sergeant Thomas J. Strickland was killed in Iraq, just one day after posting to his blog that the Iraq mission was not going well:

What the fuck has my chain of command been doing? We were winning somewhat when I left. And now we're being pinned down in our own fucking homes? Insurgents are pushing locals out of their homes and taking over my area at will? What kind of fucktarded plan have we been half-assedly executing? Obviously the kind that neglects sound contact with locals. Obviously the kind that gives further distance to unbridged gaps between soldiers and locals. Obviously the kind that has shown enough weakness when confronted by the insugency that it has been encouraged to grow.

While troops bravely face the violence and danger in Iraq, the politicians have created a situation that squanders these troops' lives. There is no caring for who dies or suffers a life-altering injury. For our government it's all about preserving the political advantage at home, or being too spineless to speak up about how wrong the effort in Iraq has become.

Forget the reasons for invading Iraq. None of that matters at the moment. The truth is there is no plan. Rumsfeld's Pentagon has bungled this military effort and he should be held accountable. Bush is willfully ignorant of how much of a failure the situation in Iraq has become. What we've been doing in Iraq for two years has not worked. We need to change our approach, but unfortunately with the Bush Administration and the craven Republican-controlled Congress there is no likelihood of that. So soldiers and marines continue to die.

kherr @ 14:50 CDT | link | war