[Mb-civic] Between Iraq and a Hard Place

Thu Dec 16 18:37:54 PST 2004

Between Iraq and a Hard Place

By Brad Knickerbocker, Christian Science Monitor
 Posted on December 16, 2004, Printed on December 16, 2004
 http://www.alternet.org/story/20767/

Griping among the troops is as old as armed conflict, illustrated most
memorably by cartoonist Bill Mauldin's "Willie and Joe" characters during
World War II. But something more than that is happening now in Iraq with
what appears to be growing resistance from the troops.

Evidence includes numbers of deserters (reportedly in the thousands),
resignations of reserve officers, lawsuits by those whose duty period has
been involuntarily extended, and a refusal to go on dangerous missions
without proper equipment. There's also been a willingness at grunt level to
publicly challenge the Pentagon ‹ as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld found
out recently in a trip to the war zone, where he got an earful about
unarmored humvees.

While some don't see much defiance ‹ and, in fact, have been surprised by
the depth of solidarity ‹ others see an unusual amount of tension surfacing
for an all-volunteer military force.

"What is driving the resistance is the same thing that drove it during
Vietnam ‹ a lack of trust in the civilian leadership and a sense that the
uniformed leaders are not standing up for the forces," says retired Army
Col. Dan Smith, a military analyst with the Friends Committee on National
Legislation in Washington. Colonel Smith doesn't expect the kind of
"fragging" incidents that occurred in Vietnam where soldiers attacked their
own officers. "This force is too professional," he says. "But the lack of
trust and the inequity of the tours will very likely be reflected in the
numbers of Guard and reservists who vote no-confidence with their feet."

That already appears to be happening. The Army National Guard is short 5,000
new citizen-soldiers.

"Although generally successful in overall mission numbers, we continue to
experience difficulty in attracting and retaining qualified individuals in
certain critical wartime specialties," Army Reserve chief Lt. Gen. James
Helmly told the House Armed Services Committee earlier this year.

The number of officers wanting to resign from the Army Reserve has jumped as
well. And according to a recent report on CBS's "60 Minutes," the Defense
Department acknowledges that more than 5,500 service personnel have deserted
since the Iraq war began.

While the complaints and the resistance to following some military policies
may pattern earlier conflicts, the fighting in Iraq has a unique context,
experts say.

It's the first large-scale 21st-century conflict against an aggressive
insurgency, causing thousands of US casualties; the first war in more than a
generation in which homeland security and the threat of domestic terror
attack seem so real; the first "semi-draft," with the Guard/reserve
component approaching 50 percent of combat and combat support troops (and
already taking more casualties than they did in Vietnam); and it's the first
time in many years that soldiers have been ordered to serve beyond their
commitments.

Legal challenges to military authority appear to be increasing as well, with
more use of civilian attorneys than was seen in Vietnam. "It's very much in
evidence," says Eugene Fidell, a former military lawyer who heads the
National Institute of Military Justice. Mr. Fidell just finished teaching
the first course on military issues at Harvard Law School since 1970.

All this is happening in an age when CNN brings live war coverage to the
trenches and barracks, when troops are more aware of the successes and
debacles on the battlefield than ever before. At the same time, reporters
embedded with combat units, as well as e-mail and Internet access, make it
easier for families and others back home to be heard by the soldiers ‹ and
for the soldiers to complain to them. This is especially true, perhaps, of
citizen-soldiers, who are not only older than the average GI but more used
to speaking out.

Since the fighting began in Iraq, the number of Guard and reserve troops on
active duty has more than doubled. Critics say this is an indication that US
forces are stretched too thin. One such critic is Sen. John McCain (R) of
Arizona, a supporter of the war who declared this week that he had "no
confidence" in Secretary Rumsfeld.

At this point, much of the data is scattered and anecdotal, like the
doubling of desertions at the Army's Fort Bragg in North Carolina last year
to about 200. It may be too early to draw exact comparisons with earlier
wars, experts agree.

But they also note a growing trend for GIs to speak out and to find leverage
points to protect their interests ‹ including personal safety. "I am amazed
that it is not greater," says retired Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner. "The war
continues to go badly. Their equipment is in bad shape. Supply problems
continue. Tours are extended. Many are on a second or third deployment to a
combat zone. I would expect a louder voice."

A key issue for war planners is whether any of this adversely effects
individual morale and unit performance. That remains an open question,
particularly as the war goes on and its original rationale (weapons of mass
destruction and ties to Al Qaeda) fades.

"Soldiers always gripe, and often with good reason," says Loren Thompson,
head of security studies at the Lexington Institute in Arlington, Va. "But I
don't see much evidence that the enemy in Iraq is eroding the will of US
forces to fight. As long as US forces are well led, the gripes aren't likely
to lead to more serious problems."

Others aren't so sure.

"When you are risking your life on the battlefield, the importance of
knowing why you are doing so cannot be underestimated," says Ivan Eland,
national security analyst at the Independent Institute in Oakland, Calif.
"If soldiers don't know why they are fighting there or believe they've been
hoodwinked, we may see the same phenomenon happen in Iraq as occurred in
Vietnam."