Conservative National Review: US Troops are lazy

Thorgrim · 01-10-2007, 03:24 PM

Note that an increase in embeds doesn’t necessarily require an increase in overall troop strength. We’ve got lots of soldiers sitting on megabases all over Iraq. They should be out and about, some of them embedded, others just moving around, tracking the terrorists, hunting them down. I don’t know how many guys and gals are sitting in air-conditioned quarters and drinking designer coffee, but it’s a substantial number. Enough of that

Michael Ledeen on War on National Review Online

My thoughts to this can best be summed up by a user on DailyKos

Not sure about our troops but I'll bet that 100% of the writers for NRO are sitting in air-conditioned quarters and drinking designer coffee.

Diesel66 · 01-10-2007, 03:57 PM

retarded

If he was just making the argument that we should cut down on support positions fine, but

kinggovernor · 01-10-2007, 06:21 PM

I totally 100% agree

Many people who say they are going to war don't actually

Kytro · 01-10-2007, 07:31 PM

The less actual people in the line of fire the better.

Remote control ftw.

RMNIXON · 01-10-2007, 11:20 PM

Originally Posted by Diesel66

retarded

If he was just making the argument that we should cut down on support positions fine, but

If anything this is critical of the higher ups who are in charge of deployments and work assignments. The troops go where they are told to go. I just watched "Jarhead" a few nights ago based on the book, and those guys were ready for action and got mad when they felt left behind.....

smokie700 · 01-11-2007, 04:48 PM

I love how you make jacked up, misleading thread topics. I see nowhere in the article about troops being lazy.Troops working in an office and not doing the work assigned is 2 completly different things.

Edited by Smokie to stay within site rules.

motivez · 01-11-2007, 05:02 PM

Originally Posted by smokie700

I love how you make jacked up, misleading thread topics. I see nowhere in the article about troops being laxy.Troops working in an office and not doing the work assigned is 2 completly different things.

To Thor: Do you hate the troops or you just like making them look bad at every chance?

Please keep comments on topic and not aimed at other members.

smokie700 · 01-11-2007, 05:40 PM

Originally Posted by motivez

Please keep comments on topic and not aimed at other members.

Fair enough. But the thread topic is very misleading and doesn't apply to the link posted in the threadstarter's post. It would appear that the thread topic is a cheap shot against the US troops. I was just curious if it was intentional or if there was another reason.

DosEquis · 01-11-2007, 05:45 PM

I work with a right winger who claims that "the left" (as he calls it) hate bush so much that even look forward to and like to see troop deaths because it makes him look bad. Then he rhetorically says "its like come on guys where is the patriotism".

kinggovernor · 01-11-2007, 05:50 PM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

I work with a right winger who claims that "the left" (as he calls it) hate bush so much that even look forward to and like to see troop deaths because it makes him look bad.

I think there is some credence to that belief

smokie700 · 01-11-2007, 06:09 PM

Am I the only one who thinks the thread topic is misleading?

DosEquis · 01-11-2007, 06:10 PM

Originally Posted by kinggovernor

I think there is some credence to that belief

I think it is 100% false. I dont like bush at all, and every time he looks bad it furthers my justification. Troop deaths, though make him look bad, is not something i look forward to. I think the view is narrow minded and is there to attempt to make people feel shitty about not supporting this president. He is one of those who questions patriotism of those who do not blindly support the president. Personally i question his patriotism for blindly supporting the president. Even Tom Delay says you can support the troops without supporting the president.

kinggovernor · 01-11-2007, 06:13 PM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

I think it is 100% false. I dont like bush at all, and every time he looks bad it furthers my justification. Troop deaths, though make him look bad, is not something i look forward to. I think the view is narrow minded and is there to attempt to make people feel shitty about not supporting this president. He is one of those who questions patriotism of those who do not blindly support the president. Personally i question his patriotism for blindly supporting the president. Even Tom Delay says you can support the troops without supporting the president.

not you but others yes.

smokie700 · 01-11-2007, 06:15 PM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

I think it is 100% false. I dont like bush at all, and every time he looks bad it furthers my justification. Troop deaths, though make him look bad, is not something i look forward to. I think the view is narrow minded and is there to attempt to make people feel shitty about not supporting this president. He is one of those who questions patriotism of those who do not blindly support the president. Personally i question his patriotism for blindly supporting the president. Even Tom Delay says you can support the troops without supporting the president.

But who decides who is blindly following who? I support Bush and while some would say I'm blindly following him for it, I say that I feel that he best represents my views. It could also be said that people who dislike bush blindly follow anybody who opposes him.

DosEquis · 01-11-2007, 06:54 PM

Originally Posted by smokie700

But who decides who is blindly following who? I support Bush and while some would say I'm blindly following him for it, I say that I feel that he best represents my views. It could also be said that people who dislike bush blindly follow anybody who opposes him.

I would consider you a "blind" follower or extremely partisan because there is no way he could represent your views, or any other real republican, other than cutting taxes. His spending was/is out of control, he is not for smaller government, he did nothing about abortion, his immigration policy is not republican-esque, etc etc. Every issue he has pretty much failed real "conservatives".

I would say a good portion of the 30% who still think he is doing a good job is either just saying it because they feel some sort of loyalty to the "team", or they are just blind.

I dont like him because the things he is liberal on, i am conservative and the things he is conservative on i am liberal. He and I have nearly exact opposite views.

smokie700 · 01-11-2007, 07:21 PM

there are things that i disagree with Bush on but those issues are minor compared to the ones I do agree with.

Rouger2 · 01-12-2007, 01:15 PM

Getting back to the topic of the thread. Support troops are important. In Viet Nam I had to go get my monthly dole of funny money one time and ran into a room full of troops behind desks doing our payrolls. They were in viet Nam and part of the war but what a way to spend your year of war in Nam. I was a Medic in a hospital and just another support trooper. Just think of all the support troops it took to manage the D day invasion in france. I not sure of the number but I think it is ten support troops to every man in the field fighting. Yea what about the lazy part. There has not been anyone trying to prove that in this thread. It was just a come on I guess.

AntiCentrist · 01-13-2007, 05:45 AM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

I work with a right winger who claims that "the left" (as he calls it) hate bush so much that even look forward to and like to see troop deaths because it makes him look bad. Then he rhetorically says "its like come on guys where is the patriotism".

That guy sounds like a real intellectual heavy-weight. He probably reads National Review these days (admittedly, I'm being generous in assuming he reads at all). I remember 5-10 years ago, back when National Review was a good magazine. Hell, I even used to subscribe. Now its smarmy dreck fit only for half-witted rubes.

That Michael Leeden character makes me especially want to vomit. His asinine brand of neo-"conservatism" has about as much to with authentic American conservatism as Leon Trotsky or NAMBLA.

AntiCentrist · 01-13-2007, 05:54 AM

Originally Posted by kinggovernor

I think there is some credence to that belief

There is of course some credence to that belief, as any organization with tens of millions of registered members (such as the Democratic & Republican parties) are going to contain a substantial number of worthless, vile pieces of filth masquerading as our fellow humans. That's just a sad inevitability based on the present character of contemporary American society. Never-the-less, when Republicans try to suggest such views are widespread amongst anti-war activists, and people who strongly dislike Bush generally, I think its often a case of them projecting onto others what would actually be their own loathsome behavior, if only Bush had a little 'D' next to his name, instead of a little 'R.'