"The Modified Vertical Stroke -- A Modest Proposal for the Pentagon"

[scarletwoman]

Originally posted at the Defense in the National Interest website (here: http://www.d-n-i.net/fcs/comments/c492.htm ), I came across this piece at the David Hackworth website: Hackworth link

I don't know if this was already posted at DU sometime in the last week (written on 9/11/2003) -- tried a search and didn't find it -- anyway, it's a VERY interesting, thought-provoking read.

The Modified Vertical Stroke: A Modest Proposal for the Pentagon

By WERTHER*

As the administration's Iraq "policy" careens out of control like a car stolen by joy-riding teenagers, critics are confronted with the inevitable retort: "But what would you do? Be constructive!" In truth, this rejoinder is a red herring: people who had no role in creating this mess have no moral "responsibility" for solving it; the authors of the mess have. And to the extent one accepts responsibility for rescuing the situation, one implicitly believes that one actually has a role in governing this erstwhile republic. In reality, the neo-con-artists, Big Oil plutocrats, and "defense" contractors will not release their iron grip on U.S. foreign policy until their avaricious hearts cease to beat.

But in the constructive spirit of Jonathan Swift's "Modest Proposal," we herewith offer a few eminently constructive suggestions:

1. Clean house at the Pentagon. Show Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, et al., the door. Disband the Office of Special Plans (or whatever its successor might be named) and send Douglas Feith back to writing position papers for Benyamin Netanyahu. Abolish the Defense Policy Board and banish Newt Gingrich to the rubber chicken circuit and Richard Perle to the Borscht Belt. Revoke the security clearances of all these luminaries so that further damage is limited. Appoint Anthony Zinni (Gen USMC Ret.) as Secretary, and empower him to appoint, free from White House interference, subordinates of professional competence and moral probity. The same conditions would apply to his direction of the officer corps, including the chairman, JCS.1/ And at the NSC, replace the over-credentialed and underwhelming Condoleeza Rice with a certifiable adult such as Brent Scowcrowft.

Go to either link to read the his other 6 "suggestions" -- well worth your consideration, imho.

sw

[Brucey]

1. Great stuff - thanks.

[gristy]

2. A very good start to a great list.

1. Clean House at the Pentagon.
2. Rescind Halliburton, Bechtel, etc. contracts.

The criminality of these evil clowns is beyond the pale. The challenge is to get Americans to realize just HOW evil they are. This DU thread ( Cognitive Dissonance: WHY Americans are in Denial) from earlier today lends some insight into this problem.

[TacticalPeek]

3. Love this.

5. Repair the damage to our military personnel. Our troops were obliged to redeem the lies of the American Enterprise Institute, The Weekly Standard, and other plague bacilli, with their time, absence from their families, and their blood. Honorable service in Iraq should net every enlisted person a bonus of $10,000, tax free, above and beyond any other special pays. Junior officers would reap $5,000; field grade officers, $2,500. General and flag officers would receive the thanks of a grateful Nation, suitable for framing. snip

:kick: