Disgruntled troops complain to Rumsfeld

[atommom]

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait - Disgruntled U.S. soldiers complained to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld on Wednesday about the lack of armor for their vehicles and long deployments, drawing a blunt retort from the Pentagon (news - web sites) chief.


"You go to war with the Army you have," he said in a rare public airing of rank-and-file concerns among the troops.

In his prepared remarks earlier, Rumsfeld had urged the troops — mostly National Guard and Reserve soldiers — to discount critics of the war in Iraq (news - web sites) and to help "win the test of wills" with the insurgents.

Some of soldiers, however, had criticisms of their own — not of the war itself but of how it is being fought.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041208/ap_on_re_mi_ea/rumsfeld_14

[phantom power]

1. I don't see how it could be any more clear. Rumsfeld doesn't

give a flying fuck about our soldiers. I have to believe that any soldier listening to this exchange would be enraged.

[rsmith6621]

2. Rummy Needs To Resign

He has Corporatized the Military........Many more boys will die on his clock.

[crossroads]

3. I would hate to be the guy who spoke up and took one for the team...

I wonder if he will get a reprimand for being honest and telling it like it is? He is a hero in my eyes!

:kick:

[WhiteTara]

12. I wonder what hell hole he will now be assigned to?

I can only imagine the courage it took to say a word to Rummy,
much less make complaintS.  

[eoberhauser]

4. Don't you love the negative tone toward the troops in this title?!

The title was something different on this story - I don't appreciate the negative tone.

Erin

[maddezmom]

10. negative tone is towards Rummy, not the troops

the troops are pissed, they still don't have the equipment they need.

[lebkuchen]

5. "You go to war with the army you have"

What does THAT mean?

Why go to war if your army is ill equipped? This war didn't have to be fought. There were no WMD and Bush has said the Iraqis were not responsible for 9-11. So, why go to war, especially if your army isn't ready?

[TahitiNut]

9. "the army you have" ... on which we spend more than the rest of the world

... combined! It's too bad that the money is so criminally spent, enriching war profiteers and administration cronies. Lives are cheap. "Voluntary" cannon fodder.

[theshadow]

15. I am not a veteran...

...as I missed Viet Nam by just a couple of years, thank God. But you don't need to be a veteran to recognize his response as stupid and trite. It's the kind of thing a member of a village board tells the Parks Department when the budget is tight and they'll have to settle for a more basic Jungle Gym. It's the cliche, "Is this a 'need' or a 'want'" or "you can settle for the Chevrolet, not the Cadillac". This is NOT an appropriate response from the head of the DOD to his soldiers.

[lebkuchen]

16. There's so much naivete in the ranks that his remark may dazzled them

though, still, I doubt Rummy's response was acceptable to the majority.

Couple this with soldiers refusing an order, and it may snowball from here as far as the ranks go. It sure isn't going to get better, if we can believe yet another CIA memo of forebodings.

[mslux]

6. Outsource the Army

Gee, with outsourcing so many jobs it seems we could outsource our military. There must be some third-world country with people willing to work for less than the pittance we pay our military. And the nuisance of veterans benefits would go away. And war won't be much more dangerous than working conditions in many other countries, exposure to toxic chemicals, long work hours, no day of rest. We have to get immigrants to do our agricultual stoop labor, to clean our toilets, to care for our sick. I'm sure there would be more benefits than just the two cold meals a day that would make the military preferrable to the 11 cents an hour sweatshop child labor.

But then again, maybe not.

[Voltaire99]

14. Demilitarize the US now!

The US could do with half the army it has now. There aren't that many threats, actually: the real purpose of this oversized army is to project the frontiers of empire for our corporate masters.

Judging from factors as various as economic decline, the cost in dollars and lives, the rise of terrorism, and international hatred, US hegemony isn't a sustainable proposition. A few get very wealthy. The US masses have enjoyed (for a period; but not for much longer) extra cheap credit fueled by foreign investment. The rest of the planet suffers.

Not much of a trade-off, is it?

[signmike]

7. Were there any more questions from the men?

I've only seen a little on the one soldier's query about the armor - Channel 2 had a VERY short mention - shows the Q being asked and there was the start of a loud reaction/applause from the men, which was cut off by Ch. 2 - I bet it resounded. Then they show Rummy's arrogant answer and that's cut short -- makes it look as though it was a real, acceptable answer. Damn, they always use every advantage to show the Repugs in the very best light possible. I'd like to see the Michael Moore version...the uncensored one.

[MADem]

8. Brave youngsters, they....

You can bet your most prized possession that those kids were TOLD, in no uncertain terms, not to "push" any issues during the Q and A. The fact that they did it anyway is heartening. These kids volunteered to serve their nation out of a sense of patriotism, but they sure as hell didn't volunteer for suicide missions. I'm glad they are speaking out. I hope they get the protection they deserve, and I hope like hell they all come home soon.

[Voltaire99]

11. Murmurs of mutiny? From the NY Times...

Mr. Rumsfeld seemed taken aback by the question and a murmur began spreading through the ranks before he silenced them. "Now settle down, settle down," he said. "Hell, I'm an old man, it's early in the morning and I'm gathering my thoughts here."

LOL.

Looks like the sheep are getting restless with the old shepherd, eh?

[RamboLiberal]

13. This one's a Dupe to this thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1053879

[Moderator]

17. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1053879