Dec 21, 2006
Training armies
Am I the only person to notice the disconnect between the requirements for training the American army and the Iraqi army?
The Pentagon says that at best it can train an additional 5 to 7,000 new troops a year over and above what it has already planned for. Thus, it would take several years to raise troop strength by 35,000, the new goal.
At the same time the Pentagon is bragging about having "trained" some 100,000 Iraqi troops in the past twelve months or so.
Something's wrong here.
If anything, it should take less time to train Americans. For one thing, American troops can be counted on to be loyal to their country. So why is it taking us longer to train our troops than Iraqis?
The obvious answer is that our training is more involved. When the Pentagon says it is "training" Iraqis it doesn't mean it is TRAINING them as we train our own troops.
What does it mean?
That is anybody's guess.
The media need to find out what training Iraqi troops involves.
Where's Baron von Steuben when you need him?
The Pentagon says that at best it can train an additional 5 to 7,000 new troops a year over and above what it has already planned for. Thus, it would take several years to raise troop strength by 35,000, the new goal.
At the same time the Pentagon is bragging about having "trained" some 100,000 Iraqi troops in the past twelve months or so.
Something's wrong here.
If anything, it should take less time to train Americans. For one thing, American troops can be counted on to be loyal to their country. So why is it taking us longer to train our troops than Iraqis?
The obvious answer is that our training is more involved. When the Pentagon says it is "training" Iraqis it doesn't mean it is TRAINING them as we train our own troops.
What does it mean?
That is anybody's guess.
The media need to find out what training Iraqi troops involves.
Where's Baron von Steuben when you need him?