Why don't we let them decide? (UPDATED)(BUMPED)

UPDATE 3.0 - Ah, I was wondering when Misha would shred Arkin to pieces. He begins

When the troops were finally (and kudos to NBC for having the balls to air a viewpoint contrary to the teachings of the Traitor Left) allowed to express their frustration with the tireless efforts of the objectively pro-terrorist Left Column to stab them in the back just like they did during Viet Nam, we fully expected the nutjobs in the media to throw a hissy and, right one cue, we have this in The Washington Compost:

... and of course the rest is a classically perfect snark-fisk. Make sure you go read!

And Ace hops aboard, too, saying

The big problem with kicking this little sissy's ass is that it would be too goddamned easy.

Again, read the whole thing! [/UPDATE 3.0. We now return you to your regularly scheduled program]

After all, they're the ones over there doing the job; why don't we listen to what our troops are saying about "redeploying" or "a formula that will in short order allow our combat forces to leave Iraq. [emph mine]" (link)

McQ, over at QandO, publishes a YouTube video of an NBCNews (!!) interview with some of our soldiers:

"One thing I don't like is when people back home say they support the troops, but they don't support the war. If they're going to support us, support us all the way."

"If they don't think we're doing a good job, everything that we've done here is all in vain."

Yep. The troops are "feeling the love" from Code Pink, Michael Moore, Jon Kary (*smirk*), the RINOS, MoveOn, the SheHag...

It seems to me to be the perfect time to quote from Patrick Henry's pamphlet series, the Crisis. The first paragraph of the first pamphlet, dated 23 December, 1776, says:

THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated...

This wise man went on to say:

Tis surprising to see how rapidly a panic will sometimes run through a country. [...] Yet panics, in some cases, have their uses; they produce as much good as hurt. Their duration is always short; the mind soon grows through them, and acquires a firmer habit than before. But their peculiar advantage is, that they are the touchstones of sincerity and hypocrisy, and bring things and men to light, which might otherwise have lain forever undiscovered. In fact, they have the same effect on secret traitors, which an imaginary apparition would have upon a private murderer. They sift out the hidden thoughts of man, and hold them up in public to the world.

Indeed.

And now we seem to see these hidden thoughts exposed in many. The craven cowardice and the lack of discipline and resolution in the face of a threat to our country do in fact disclose "secret traitors."

Listen to the men and women who are there on the front line: they want to finish the job well. They want to persevere.

They want us to WIN!

(Crossposted to WAR)

UPDATE: DJ McGuire catches a WaPo columnist wallowing in liberal condescension and arrogance: William Arkin says "the Troops Also Need to Support the American People."

I'm sure the soldiers were expressing a majority opinion common amongst the ranks - that's why it is news - and I'm also sure no one in the military leadership or the administration put the soldiers up to expressing their views, nor steered NBC reporter Richard Engel to the story.

Oh, right, like we don't already get bombarded with anti-war claptrap in the LameStream Media already. Sure, they're always talking about how nobly and courageously our men and women do their job, right? The MSM is constantly talking about the lives saved, the medicines distributed, the schools built, the smiles and respect earned, the friendships made by our troops. Right?

*crickets chirping*

I'm all for everyone expressing their opinion, even those who wear the uniform of the United States Army. But I also hope that military commanders took the soldiers aside after the story and explained to them why it wasn't for them to disapprove of the American people.

Really? You want to explain to citizen volunteers why they can't voice their profound dissatisfaction with the constant refrain of "We can't win this war" and "Redeploy!" from spineless wimps who couldn't collectively gather a gram of honor or courage from amongst their ranks? Wow. I want to be a fly on that wall: it should be entertaining.

Mr. Arkin then quotes some soldiers from the video, as I have done, and then says:

These soldiers should be grateful that the American public, which by all polls overwhelmingly disapproves of the Iraq war and the President's handling of it, do still offer their support to them, and their respect.

Through every Abu Ghraib and Haditha, through every rape and murder, the American public has indulged those in uniform, accepting that the incidents were the product of bad apples or even of some administration or command order.

M'kay. Like, we've got hundreds of rape and murders we've been prosecuting, right? Oh, no, that would be the "insurgents." We've had our bad apples, yes - but they get prosecuted and jailed. You guys would far rather lionize the terrorists and give them a pass for their barbaric murders (torture - REAL torture, babycakes, beheadings, suicide bombers, killing civilians deliberately and regularly...). You assume "innocent until proven guilty" for our men and women in uniform, yet you want to extend rights equivalent to those of citizens to these Islamic monsters.

"These soldiers should be grateful that the American public..." Exactly backwards, Willy-boy. These men and women put their lives on the line in service of freedom and democracy while YOU sit on your fat rear end back home and toss spit balls on their honor.

So, we pay the soldiers a decent wage, take care of their families, provide them with housing and medical care and vast social support systems and ship obscene amenities into the war zone for them, we support them in every possible way, and their attitude is that we should in addition roll over and play dead, defer to the military and the generals and let them fight their war, and give up our rights and responsibilities to speak up because they are above society?

Hey. NO WHERE did I see a call from the soldiers for you to give up your "rights and responsibilities to speak up." How about you learn some responsibility for the consequences of your juvenile little whine? Our enemies have access to the 'Net and our media - don't you think they're going to gloat gleefully over opinions like yours? You and your ilk, sir, give ample opening for the enemy to strengthen themselves and gorge themselves on America's lack of resolve and commitment.

By the way, our men and women aren't paid HALF of what they're worth, especially since they have to deal with your arrogant, supercilious and disdainful rhetoric while at the same time trying to exterminate inhuman cockroaches... AND they do it with loonies like YOU insisting they keep both hands tied behind their backs.

You, sir, are unworthy to polish the soles of their boots with your spit.

Now. Run along and find a veteran at Walter Reed or something, so you can get your ass properly whupped.

Idiot.

UPDATE 2.0 - Greta makes the excellent point in the comments) that the troops shouldn't decide, precisely, since our Armed Forces are under civilian command. I admit it was a somewhat poor choice of words on my part, but certainly the civilian command ought to at least listen to what our troops are saying and take heed?

As my blog-brother, Ward Smythe, says:

(Click the sticker to go to CafePress and buy it)

Also, you MUST go over to BlackFive for a glorious takedown of Mr. Arkin's drivel, and then visit Cassandra at Villainous Company to see Mr. Arkin receive another well-deserved beating.

Comments

[Mustang]

1.

To bring our troops home before they have accomplished their mission, before they have achieved a clear victory over the insurgents does (1) a profound disservice to those who have lost their lives, and (2) merely encourages the enemy to continue their activities. That the democrats cannot understand that speaks volumes about who they really are: socialists.

[Greta]

2.

Great clip thanks for sharing. As for letting them decide- we don't & shouldn't. That is not the way the military is organized. I am disgusted by the "we support troops but not the war" sentiment that only hurts soldiers & their families in the long run. The war divided at home will hurt morale & that is soooo sad.

[Wild Thing]

3.

Thanks for this post Kat. I am furious at the politicans and media and the freaks in protests that keep having any say so in how this war is fought. Let our Military be in charge they know how to do it, they are masters at this, the best in the world.

[Ogre]

4.

That whole "We support the troops but not the war" has been a damn lie from the beginning. It's said so that those who honestly hate America won't be pilloried on the spot. It's said so that the focus can be taken away from the evil that is being fought and placed on who has more patriotism. It's the anti-war at all costs left that loves to say that.

Give the US to the liberals and we'll be France in a minute: we'll surrender. Hope you have your headscarves ready.

[Beth]

5.

You said it all, Kat. How dare that scumbag say the troops should be grateful? What an ignorant ingrate he is! Unsurprising that he should find the sentiments expressed by those who serve so unbelievable--he clearly doesn't understand the first thing about who or why people serve. Jackass. Just like the rest of his America-hating ilk.

[Lumen]

6.

If you call for your school's football coach to be fired, are you a disloyal fan or are you stating a viewpoint that you think will make your team better? I've been deployed to Iraq twice, and it appears to me and many of my fellow soldiers that our strategy in that country is sorely lacking. The currently planned "surge" seems to be a feeble attempt to look like we are adjusting strategy, but without really changing much. I think most Americans pay lip service to supporting the troops and America's aims but have had to give up very little in support of this war effort. If you want to see my views on these topics more thoroughly analyzed, see some of my posts from early January and December on vafederalist.blogspot.com.

[Douglas V. Gibbs]

7.

Most Americans that argue against Iraq supported going into Afghanistan. They see Iraq as a distraction to the war on terror. They fail to recognize Iraq as being a significant part of the war on terror. Fact is, if we do not stand up to this radical ideology that is now talking about forming a Islamic Superstate (via Australian Islams of late, but echoed throughout the Muslim World), we are doomed to repeat the lessons taught by history. And, I have many friends in the military (I am a vet myself) and many involved in Iraq, and thought there are various opinions on how the war may have been handled better (have you ever seen a war go smoothly, anyway?) but they agree that we needed to go in, and now that we are there we SHOULD NOT CUT AND RUN. And I am sick of these polls saying things like 70% of America is against the war, etc. These polls are conducted in the northeast, normally, which is a hotbed of liberal thinking. Take the polls in the south, or middle America, spread it out. The polls are inaccurate, and the poll takers are biased. If you word the questions correctly, you can get a poll to say anything you want it to say, anyways. Great post.

[gene]

8.

America has problems fighting the war on terror and it is not america problem or the military or president bush that is the problem, the problem is the rino,s and demorats in dc playing political games with our troops lives for their own position in the us government, that my friend is america,s problem. but the people would elect them if the terrorist killed 3 Million Americans they would lie and say bush,s fault to get them a higher political position. the plate heads that vote for them belives every lie that comes out of their mouth, it a shame that americans has stoop as low as they have.

[gene]

9.

I know that there is one hundred and fifty nine Million People out here that support the war and the troops to the dems 130 mil that is againts it, The dems lose either way we win they dont get elected, they force us out and three hundred million iraqies die and the terrorist wipe dc off the map so the dems and rino,s lose either way. and pelosi will not need a big air plane to fly back and forth to week end party,s there will be no dc , they did hit dc on 9/11 right you never hear much about that anymore. it might cost a demorat or rino His job. and then when we have to go to war againts syria and iran our allies will say wait a minute you government forced you out of iraq go by your self we can not trust you.