This is not a partisan attack. This is not based on any political beliefs whatsoever. This is based on the welfare of the troops. I would write this exact same thing regardless of what political parties were involved in what roles. When I read something like this, I become furious.
The report attributed the slide to critical shortfalls in equipment, which have made it more difficult for units back home to train with the tanks, armored vehicles and other weapons it will fight with.
"Army military readiness rates have declined to levels not seen since the end of the Vietnam War," said the report.
Representative John Murtha, who released the report at a press conference here, said he will present a resolution calling for the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld "not only for his past mistakes but for the future of the military."
About half of all army units received the lowest readiness rating that any fully formed unit can receive, according to the report.
Although units deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan are at peak readiness, non-deployed units "are critically short of equipment and personnel, causing the vast majority of them to be rated at the lowest readiness levels," it said.
….
The report also said that the low readiness levels of non-deployed units means the army has no combat-ready reserves to fall back on if it needs to respond to a crisis elsewhere in the world.
"These are the units that would be called on to go to war in North Korea, Iran, or elsewhere," the report said. "The degradation of army readiness here at home has effectively eliminated the United States ground force strategic reserve."
There are constructive ways to handle concerns of this type even if these are true and not exaggerated. There are bi-partisan ways to approach these issues. And then there are irresponsible and stupid partisan hacks who would endanger the troops in the field by trying to use this kind of issue for cheap, sleazy political gain
Like John Murtha.
You are a disgrace to this country and the office that you hold, Murtha. That you feel the need to risk our soldier's lives for you sleazoid political goals tells the world what you are. You care not one whit for the damage you cause or the troops that may well suffer for your irresponsible actions. You do not care the danger you put our entire country in by broadcasting information that encourages those who would kill us.
John Murtha, your picture should be in the dictionary next to the words 'Stupid' and 'Irresponsible'. Shame on you, you hack.
UPDATE: Many thanks to Guy who found a statement from the US Army that calls (in very diplomatic terms) John Murtha exactly what he is: A partisan hack who distorts the truth. One should also keep in mind, of course, that Murtha's arm of the government controls the purse. If there are money issues – it s HIS fault. Period.
Disclaimer: I work for the Army at Ft. Hood.
OK, I read the story and can’t find where the data to support the report is. I know that some of it is true (maintenance backlogs, overworked soldiers), but I place the blame squarely on Congress for not passing Defense Appropriations bills in a timely fashion. If the Dems felt that this was a real issue, they would have been fighting to get the bills through rather than fighting to get Rummy fired. Let’s face it- he is not the most charismatic SecDef we’ve ever had, but he cares deeply for the soldiers and their needs. As for Murtha; he is scum.
If you think the 1st Cav is not ready to kick ass in Iraq, just watch them.
He’s a hack of the worst sort. He literally doesn’t care if people die so long as he and his cronies get political office.
In cxase you hadn’t noticed, he really pissed me off this time.
Like old_dawg said, I don’t see anywhere in that article who, exactly, is responsible for this report… other that Murtha. It’s probably closer to an “assessment” cobbled up by a pack of armchair DNC analysts cherrypicking their way through (possibly outdated) data to paint the bleakest picture imaginable.
If Murtha gave a damn about anyone in uniform, he’d be ramming defence spending bills into Hastert’s hands every single day, not beating on Rumsfield.
The likes of Murtha (and Kerry and McCain) make me livid. A couple of decades ago they were in the service, so they are deemed experts… why? A couple of decades ago I played in a punk band; that doesn’t mean I should be heading a goddamned record company today.
At least that goofy Wesley Clark actually earned the right to talk about the reality of today’s military since he was in charge of a piece of it before going into politics. The other three are living on unearned laurels.
Does anyone out there think that if push comes to shove in
North Korea that a land invasion will be part of immediate plan?
I think we will bomb the hell out of them and all their missile sites,
South Korea has a large army, the other border is China.
Does anyone think that the Japanese are not ready to defend
themselves.
Jack Kelly, a Marine and a former Green Beret wrote a while back it is
custom that one who served honorably is never a former Marine -
Murtha should be an exception to that.
He must travel with a large entourage as I would think that Marines who now have sons serving as Marines in harms way would want a piece of the old S.O.B!!!
Perhaps a rather silly observation, but with young boys in house
VCR tapes of Star Wars were played for years – the 3 original, therefore
this observation:
He creeps me out – has the skin tone of Star Wars Emperor
Oops! I left a comment on the wrong article. I just found this on an Army site,….sheds a whole new light on Murtha…
http://www4.army.mil/ocpa/read.php?story_id_key=9568
Super link, Guy. Thank you.
I’d be happier if the Army’s response had more directly taken on the specific readiness claims.
Some of the contentions re testing are almost funny, though. If trainees are initially scoring poorly on aptitude, isn’t that primarily the fault of schools that are getting worse instead of better? And who defends the education status quo?
Good point. Maybe Murtha can issue a report on the declining public education system. See how the teacher’s unions react to that.
Even if the readiness claims are valid, this is a completely inappropriate way to address them.
Your post, and the Army link above, sounds typical of survey work.
“Are your troops completely equipped?” Answer Yes or No
“No” Publish this answer.
“Are your troops completely equipped when they get to theater?” Answer Yes or No
“Yes” Do not publish this answer.
See how it works?
Pingback: Blue Crab Boulevard » Blog Archive » He Should Not Have To Give This Warning