Marine Corps Moms: "The last best hope for success"

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January 12, 2007

"The last best hope for success"

Will the troop surge work? I think it will. Looking at it from a logistical point of view, there are currently about 13,000 troops in Baghdad, a crime-ridden war zone. Baghdad has an area of about 254 square miles and approximately 5,800,000 residents. Compare that to New York City with 303 square miles and 8,104,000 residents. NYC also has a police force of 37,000 for a city that is not at war with anyone. Sending in 17,000 more troops to Baghdad and dividing them between the 9 boroughs will provide - finally - enough manpower to clean out some of the deeply rooted insurgency and provide security for the civilian residents who want the same things that you and I do - to live, work, play, and worship in peace and security.

And, I have good reason to think that it will work. In August 2004, my son who served with 1/7 Marines left for his second deployment to Iraq - this time to the Syrian border town of Husaybah. The town was a hellhole - deeply rooted insurgency and the 200 Marines of Baker Company held it for 7 months. They saw action every time they went out, but with limited troop strength, they were unable to make much headway. Even so, they gradually gained the trust and cooperation of the townspeople.

When 1/7 returned home, they left the city in the hands of an entire battalion. Additional Army forces were brought in and in November 2005, Operation Steel Curtain cleaned the town. For 17 days, US and Iraqi troops worked side by side, house by house, systematically cleaning out the cities of Husaybah, Karabilah and Ubaydi. they selaed the border to prevent al Queda reinforcements from filtering across. And, it worked.

1/7 Baker Company returned to Husaybah in February 2006. My son reported that it was a different place. Kids played on the streets. Women could walk to the market without fear. And, our Marines continued to work hand in hand with Iraqi soldiers to maintain security and tranquility. It wasn't a perfect place to live. But it was a major turnaround.

Unfortunately, examples like that one are routinely ignored by politicians and media bent on grim predictions of failure. Cassandra has multiple examples of this over at Villainous Company today:

After the President's historic speech Wednesday night, the media rushed to demonstrate they would pay any price and bear any burden to assure the defeat of his proposal. Those who expected some attempt at balance or open mindedness were sadly mistaken. CBS's Dick Meyer spent six or seven paragraphs ramming home the point: the President is completely alone. Newsweek's Howard Fineman couldn't quite manage to control his contempt, "George W. Bush spoke with all the confidence of a perp in a police lineup." Sheryl Stolberg seized the opportunity to remind readers the President was sElected, not elected before making a series of misleading statements.

Selective memory. It's easy when you have nothing more to lose than an election. President Bush reminded us of that yesterday when he spoke to soldiers at Fort Benning:

On September the 11th, our nation saw firsthand the destructive vision of a new kind of enemy, and once again the men and women of Fort Benning answered the call to protect our country from that enemy. You know, I knew that right after the attacks, the American psyche being what it is, people would tend to forget the grave threat posed by these people. I knew that. As a matter of fact, I was hoping that would happen so that life would go on. But the fortunate thing for this country is that those who wear the uniform have never forgotten the threat. You understand the stakes.

High stakes indeed. But I've heard overwhelming support for the troop surge from both the troops and their families - those who have a huge personal interest. Here's a letter to Nancy Pelosi from USMCR Captain Michael Hendrickson who is preparing for upcoming deployment, and has more at stake in this fight than any of us here at home:

Dear Madame Speaker,
On September 11, 2001 I was deployed in Australia with the 15th MEU. Five months later I left Afghanistan and returned to the states. During that time I was overwhelmed by and immensely proud of our country’s willingness to put aside partisan differences and prosecute the global war against terrorism. Today, I am preparing for a second combat deployment, this time to Iraq, and I am dismayed and saddened by the actions of my countrymen.

I am deeply concerned about the President's new plan for Iraq. I am concerned that it has no hope of success. My concerns are not founded in the abilities of our nation's military or the capabilities of the Iraqi security forces. I am concerned that your party and the American citizens that follow your leadership will fail once again to put partisanship aside and fully support victory in Iraq. I am afraid that the blood of my brother and sister marines will be on your hands because of your unwillingness to do everything in your power to ensure that we are victorious in Iraq.

The plan outlined by the President last night was the last best hope for success. As was the initial foray into Iraq, it carries with it enormous risk and like all audacious plans in war, relies on more than a little luck. Unfortunately, the "incalculable" effect of our national will has not been and will not be brought to bear against our enemies in Iraq because your party has sought to undermine the military effort and the national will ever since we crossed the line of departure into Iraq five years ago. It is painfully obvious that the political defeat of President Bush is synonymous with America's defeat in Iraq.

Mrs. Pelosi, I respectfully request that you stand in the House, with your comrades in the Senate, and give the President and my marines the support we need to make a legitimate stab at final victory in Iraq. The President has provided you with a time table and a benchmark to measure success. If there is no significant progress by November of this year and we have not achieved the metrics outlined last night, relentless criticism is warranted and should reach a crescendo unmatched in the Iraq debate.

Until then, I still believe, as almost all of my comrades in arms do, that we can and will be victorious in Iraq. Please do not undermine our efforts. Please support our mission. Help us to be victorious.

Semper Fidelis.
Respectfully Submitted,
Michael J. Hendrickson
Captain 0302/USMCR

Unfortunately, the viewpoints of those who have the most to lose are of little interest to those who have staked their political careers on losing in Iraq. Captain Hendrickson deserves the unconditional support of Pelosi, Kennedy, and all other nay-sayers in Congress who are betting on failure, and drawing up non-binding resolutions of troop non-support.

Success happened in Fallujah. It happened in Husaybah. It can happen in Baghdad too. And I'm betting on success in Baghdad rather than settling for failure.

Posted by Deb at January 12, 2007 05:40 PM

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