Hi Win Smith; Re: "The looted barrels used to carry water fits in perfectly well with Rummy's general "stuff happens" plan for postwar security and occupation ..."
It's now fairly clear that the Iraqi ambushes of convoys is what prevented the US from stopping looting at key sites. They'd planned to put soldiers there, but when the Iraqis didn't show up with flowers, they had to shift troops to defending supply lines. Here's a good reference from "Soldiers for the truth":
Battle Report: Inside Skinny From A Colonel In Iraq
Hack,
The people who attack the truth telling are nothing but a bunch of cheerleaders, who are knowingly turning a blind eye to the OVERALL outcome of the plan. They continue to bring up the fact that 3ID and 1st Marines were able to continue the attack into Baghdad, despite the Fedayeen and Irregulars who attacked the MSR and were held up in the towns and cities bypassed by the attack. I agree, this was the case. I believe the 3ID and Marines kicked ass against the Fedayeen and the Irregular Isamic Volunteers, but, this is not reason I say we went in too light with not enough force.
The plan for the 101st and 2/82nd was NOT to secure the lines of communications. These units were to be airlifted into Saddam International Airport and then into the city to secure all the significant or key parts of the city, INCLUDING WATER TREATMENT PLANTS, HOSPITALS, POWER PLANTS, THE CULTURAL SITES SUCH AS THE MUSEUMS AND THE LIBRARIES. This bullshit that we could not control the looting and chaos is just that. The reason it was so rampant was because the 101st and the 82nd were securing the MSR, which should have been done by the combat MP units or Cav units which were not in theater, PERIOD. Hack, anyone who says this was not so either uninformed or a liar. This is where we were too light. This is why we could not control Baghdad.
...
Had all the Iraqis given up, welcomed us a their liberators and saviors, the plan would have worked flawlessly. BUT it did not, and we were to light to stop the chaos and looting during the aftermath.
sftt.org
We're still way too light to stop the guerilla war.
-- Carl |
