Michael's Dispatches

This is not very encouraging to have our sons and daughters working under these conditions with any one who is less than the BEST in command. Why does the incompetence seep up? I say my prayers everyday for our soldiers.

Once again we see what "liberalsim" has done to our most cherished istitutions.
The men we need, those like Colonel Tunell, are beaten down or driven out by the usless fools who could not operate in the real world. The damage to our forces is so significant that inspite of our "overwhelming" superiority we have become unable to win at war.
We need a purge from the top down before it's too late to rebuild.

Michael - your work is invaluable. S/F BING

Michael,

This letter needs to be blasted out to all of the sources that could conduct an inquiry.

This sounds frightening at the very least and has been my assessment for a long time.

I felt the same regarding much of the war in Iraq when sending FA folks out to run combat patrols.

This guy knows his stuff and should be protected by several knowledgeable Congressmen. I would suggest forwarding your article and the COL's letter to the House Armed Services Committee. I would not even bother with the Senate where Lindsay Graham and are very busy trying to involve us in yet another cesspool (Syria).

Quite thought provoking and one of your better columns of recent. I also like you article last weekend.

Oh yes the "open door" policy, professed to be used by all leaders but when something of significant substance surfaces the brass gets infuriated as opposed to keeping an open mind. Thanks for posting this Yon. The Marine Corps isn't immune to such stupidity either. I recall shaking my head in amazement as an artillery battalion, in the spring of 2004, was tasked and given a BPT to operate as a provisional infantry unit in Iraq. They had three months to prepare/train stateside so what does the brass do....they task them to do artillery training while in CONUS.

MIKE:
This is clearly some of your best work. And it is also an excellent example of how powerful this medium is. Let's not forget that the British have made sacrfices of thier own, but as you point out they can be sooooo..condesending towards U.S. You have spoken of this particular bridge many times in your previous articles...a resonable person would have had thier guard-up, simply based on what you had written. I have enjoyed this article the best of what you have put togther in the last four years.

This letter to me smacks of a general court martial for all those in the chain of command facilitating this absoulute, unmitigated, criminal stupidity and political pandering at the cost of our troops lives :sad:

No wonder idiots and morons like the "Mouse Masher" are allowed to sully the good name of our military and our country

As said before, every general should be schooled in the Art of War doctrines, and a copy of AoW handed out to every troop with a follow-up knowledge test every Friday :-*

Our military seems to have lost it's way, AGAIN :-?

Meanwhile, former ISAF commander, General McChrystal, has settled into comfy billet at Yale. Presumably, he is instructing future State Department officials in sound strategy and tactics.
http://jackson.yale.edu/mcchrystal

I read the first page of Colonel Tunnell's letter then attempted to download the entire PDF file to read. All I got was 8 blank pages. I have not had a problem in reading other PDF files. Is this my problem or do others get the same result?

Michael

As a Brit it is embarassing to read of the incompetence of a senior British commander. I am not however really surprised. The British Army has always has its fair share of dimwits - the famous 'lions led by donkeys'.

I was surprised by the level of incompetence and muddle that you report.

However, poor execution of a mission does not make that mission wrong. I still think that the mission in Afghanistan has merit and that we should do everything possible to win.

Is it possible to expand on what the officer in the article means by 'people-centric' doctrine? What does that actually mean in practical terms?

Michael, I see this letter is dated the 20th of August 2010, something that provokes the question, has nothing changed since these complaints were made. I feel you would say not, and to some extent that maybe so, although that really is more to do with the fact that Afghanistan, in particular the Pashtu element of its population, are culturally imbued with ideas that are to us medieval and not really conducive to the construction of a modern state.

In this its attitude and treatment of women stands out, though this pattern of backward behaviour is hardly restricted to just Afghanistan. That aside, I sense that what is really in the way are the centuries long influences that have inculcated casual acceptance of physical hardship and the role of fate, combinations that have stunted thought and inhibited social progress. However there are those who work for better, Afghans from all sides who have ideas for a life beyond the subsistence level. Unfortunately there are not enough of these educated souls, of these few, too many realise how hopeless it is and just want to escape to the outside world. Certainly the authors recognition of these problems, especially in the Pashtu dominated south cast doubt on the notion that Afghanistan can develop either socially or economically enough to becomes a viable member of the world community.

As for the suggestions of incompetence by British staff officers, well this connects to the ever present undercurrent of both anti-American sentiment and anti-British attitudes that have a place on both sides of the Atlantic. These complaints may have weight, but I have not experienced much of this amongst those whose bacon has been saved by freely given mutual assistance between what are old allies. Perhaps one of the major difficulties here is the role of politics in what is an unpopular war. In essence the aims were unrealistic given the size of Afghanistan and the small numbers of boots committed to the ground. I cannot escape the feeling that the niggling contained in this letter is more a reflection of this than anything else.

Michael

For years now in the UK we have seen a parade of politicians and senior military figures (who also seem like politicians these days) appearing on TV to tell us that all was well in Afghanistan. It was hard to believe them, and this letter suggests that we are right not to believe them.

To a non-military person like me, it seems utterly obvious that the feeble British force in Afghanistan had zero chance of controlling even a small area of the country.

There has been several excellent series on TV here in the UK (especially the ones by Ross Kemp) which have shown the tiny British forces seemingly making pointless occasional patrols through hostile territory. It was very clear that British forces were too small to do a good job and very unclear how these patrols were going to bring about victory.

Obama’s “surge” of troops into Afghanistan was a foolish mistake, aggravated by Obama’s announcement that America would abandon Afghanistan at a fixed date.
The foolish mistake was to mix large numbers of Americans with Afghans on the ground, literally and figuratively bringing American soldiers “down to their level”, rather than maintaining the initial impression established in 2011 of limitless American power unleashed any time, at will. The fear is gone. This is a disaster.

The author of the letter had better watch his six... Obummer will be quietly ordering him to be dealt with like a certain SEAL team was...
Take copies of the full letter to your Senators and personally ask them to read it. Ditto local media, wherever you are. This needs to get around.

Michael

Your last group of posts have been the best from you for ages.

However, what we have heard is all pretty negative - it tells us what has gone wrong.

But what should we be doing instead? How should we be fighting this war? How can we win it?

I still say, God help America and the West if we cannot beat a very poorly equipped and small enemy like the Taliban. What will happen if we ever come up against a big and well armed enemy?

OK, so let me gather my thoughts here. This letter slates UK forces and declares only the rotary and medical staff are prtofessional. The rest have a bucket of shit thrown over them.
I think Michael you personally should have thought carefully about actually publishing this letter. I'm not against critique or pointing out failure, or error and some of the contents of the letter have value and lessons beyond the letter have failed to be learned for 9 years on all sides.
I do not regard this letter as a fair rebuke, or a fair assessment of many men and women on the ground who are not leading officers, and who day in day out do astonishing work.
Further, the bulk of this Afganistan mess is US in nature - so throwing buckets of shit over more junior members of a wide coalition does what? Apart from seeding bad feeling, and feeding the Taliban propaganda props.
I understand the war goes ill. I understand some dark aspects to it, and many failures. But I really would ask that in your eagerness to show a public face to bad things that you don't just tip into being a propaganda feeding frenzy for the enemy.

That is all I really have to say about this letter. (well, other than it is improperly formatted for a personal letter to SecArmy lol)

But, to everything this Colonel wrote... um.. yep. Saw every bit of it and more while I was there, which was 2 years after this letter which only shows it had no impact on how big army is managing the war. I've hinted at it in a few of my articles, but its still too early for me to spill too many beans at one time hahaha

He was not throwing buckets of shit on our allies or those working over there. It clearly labels exactly who is responsible for what and the issues at hand. Get your thong out of your butt and calm down. This is not a letter bashing anything except leadership in various roles. And its spot on. No military is perfect and it never will be. The Taliban will feed on whatever it feels like and this information is not hidden or secret so I don't see how you think this posting is going to tip the scale and the Taliban will somehow conquer the world? If you really "know"... then you would not be making those comments.
Michael... keep up the great work.

I don't think anyone doubts that Afghanistan will end badly for us. Even if Mtt Romney is elected we are too far down the road of defeat to salvage this. There are also bigger fish to fry,

Michael and Bing, thank you both for speaking up for our troops.

At some point someone will need to write a book about what happened to the US military between Iraq and Afghanistan. At first glance it was a failure of leadership - presidential leadership definitely but also our general officers. Did they learn nothing from H R McMaster's Dereliction of Duty? Petraeus looks bad. Instead of taking a payoff for Obama with the CIA post he should have resigned - the same for McChrystal and John Allen. Have they no honor?

I could not sleep after reading this letter. I went outside on the porch then read the letter this time entirely in American Sign Language. I visualized the empty road as that bridge and my eyes were opened further as I read the letter and after I got done reading & visualizing things. I got on my knees and prayed for the U.S. Troops and Coalition troops. I am praying for Colonel Tunnell to be promoted and to have free reins for his fighting 82nd Airborne to go after the enemy. Those who tried to threaten to demote Colonel Tunnell for doing his job as a military officer, those people should be kicked out of political office as well any military officer be kicked out for stopping Colonel Tunnell from doing his job. Thank you to Colonel Tunnell and the 82nd Airborne for staying in the fight despite these setbacks. Please know that all of you are in my prayers. My grandfather served with the 82nd Airborne during WW 2. I am glad there are fighting leaders ready to lead fighting men into battle.

Interesting views from the Colonel. Someone somewhere must think Lt General (as he now is) Carter is good at his job. Let hope so as he is one of the architects of the remodelled British Army.

The letter is somewhat of a rant but merely serves to describe the different political direction, approaches and cultures of the various nations and their armed forces that make up the NATO coalition. Is the American army and its chain of command that perfect?

I suspect the military's actions are heavily influenced by their political masters.

History shows us that insurgency on the North West Frontier can never be defeated absolutely. It can only be contained and surpressed for a period of time. After which it will rear its ugly head and return. The British fought wars in Afghanistan during their time in India. After each one they had to go back sometime later and bang heads together.

The war has become too politicised, controlled by politicians who only care for public option ratings the votes of their electorate. Doing the right thing militarily is no longer an option. It is time to cut and run.

God bless Col Tunnell, at least he tried. I wonder how many of colleagues just sit back and accept this type of insanity rather than take a stand for fear of repercussions. I kept noticing the "Open Door Policy" mentioned by the Colonel, I am sure this DC degenerate made a phony appeal like this when they met, and as soon as the Colonel attempted it he was summarily demonized by a bunch of Chicken Hawks in DC with their soft delicate handshakes.

Bring them home or get out of their way and let them do their jobs. This Obama philosophy of Leading From Behind just doesn't make sense. Canadian Military is ordering US troops??? It turns my stomach and makes me thank God I was smart enough to not re-up after my tour. One was enough for me, I saw enough of this crap, but it sure as hell wasn't this demented.

Once again thank you and God Bless you Michael for the amazing work you do.

I still argue that the West cannot leave Afghanistan now without a terrible loss of prestige. It will encourage our enemies to attack us in future. They will say "the West couldn't even beat the Taliban, they are weak and frightened, we can hit them".

We should only leave Afghanistan either when we have won or when it no longer matters.

There are some parallels with the American presence in Saudi Arabia. Remember that for years this was a high profile presence and a source of terrorism. However, after 9/11 and the Iraq war, it became irrelevant and nobody really even noticed when US troops left in 2003. It was a total non-event. No-one say it as a US defeat.

That too may be possible in Afghanistan. Ten years from now, or 20, nobody may care anymore that the US is leaving Afghanistan. The global terrorist threat may have died down.

And I would still argue that the way that the British smothered the IRA with roadblocks, observation posts, electronic surveillance, informers and sheer time, may provide a way to weaken the Taliban. Remember, the IRA was never reduced to zero activity, only to a level which made their military victory impossible. Eventually they saw that and have given up the military option.

Thank you so much for posting this. Amazing, and sad. I really hope the best for our troops, but I know that our casualty numbers keep going up and up over the last four years.

I've read for the last few years but never contributed, but this is really extraordinary so I'm going to change that. Best to you Michael.

This was Obama's goal all along, to sabotage our war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has already accomplished that in Iraq and thrown away everything that the blood of our troops had gained. And he is doing it in Afghanistan, a little at a time. But the Coup de Grâce was removing Gen. Petraeus. Leaving him in place assured a good chance of achieving our goal. Removing him guaranteed the opposite. And removing him took him out of the loop that would have enabled him to have a say in what happened in Iraq. Petraeus had to be removed before both of Obama's goals could be realized.

Being deployed with task force Stryker from 09-10 I am forced to relive many experiences that are spoke of in this letter. They are deadly accurate! There were many times when things just didn't make sense to us and all we were told was that it was coming from higer. Missions that didnt have a proper and adequate resupply plan were still carried out because that's what higher wanted and directed. One of the hardest things for us to get over was the fact that we weren't aloud to occupy the road when civilian traffic was present. We were, at times, forced to pull over and let them pass putting ourselves at danger just to protect the civilian populace. To this day it still boggles my mind how one civilan casualty seems to be more of an issue that an entire Stryker vehicle with brave men being lost.

Gen. Patton rolls over in his grave.

We have sooooo lost the courage for war.

For those who can't read the PDF.

I have converted this important letter and placed a link to the converted letter here. www.AustenLennon.co.uk/letter.html

My son was wounded (and died eight days later) in southern Afghanistan in July of 2009. This is not the first time I have felt unbelievably sick to my stomach that my only child did not die at the hand of the enemy, but rather by the very issues described in this letter. When is enough going to be enough? Thank you Michael for continuing to bring attention to these important issues. God willing it will save lives and heartache.

It's the enemy within that is killing us. But then we don't seem to be smart enough any more to see who our real enemies are. God help our Military because our present Government is not. Where does the buck stop people....wait...the one in charge never takes credit for things gone terrible wrong....He blames everybody else in the world. This is trickle down destruction of our Nation and that includes our Military. Stop blaming middle men who have become nothing more than puppets of the State now days. The truth hurts but we have to face it....and I hope like heck this situation can be turned around come November....but it's hard as heck to rid yourself of a dictator once he has taken over pretty much every institution in a country. Stop trying to put bandaids on the situation and start stomping out the disease.

God bless you, Michael Yon. ♥

Jill, I am so, so desperately sorry to hear of the loss of your son. I am not from a military family, but not long after 9/11 I got involved in any way I could to show my support and appreciation to our military. I thought....how would I feel if my boys were there? Your pain touches me deeply. Your attitude shows the honor and courage you possess, I am sure your son had the same qualities. There are no words...except to say you inspire me to keep involved and show my appreciation and thankfulness in any way that I am blessed.

All politics aside, this letter is of deadly importance. Thank you Michael for acquiring and disseminating it. I will try to spread it where I can also. Outstanding work.

Don't know if everyone here has really caught the impact of what Col Tunnel did with this letter, unless you spent sometime inside the military industrial complex :-?

This type of letter written on DoA letterhead as an "official memorandum", is a death sentence to anyone's career on the "inside", civilian or military :-*

Only pure desperation brought on by patriotic fervor and/or love of fellow man, would drive a career officer, with a possible bright future, to write such a damning letter to the second highest civilian officer in his chain of command, next to POTUS :-?

To call this "Memorandum" sicking, does not begin to describe just how foul the points he makes really are in my mind and the far reaching disastrous repercussions that have resulted in AfPak. :eek:

But there are more issues here at play than just the inane criminal ineptness of the current military structure in AfPak and the Middle East as a whole, much more, military industrial complex geo-political strategies are at work here

It is that factor, which holds the reins of power on these issues, and is part and partial to blame for the cluster f**k that has become our Middle Eastern foreign policy, been there, done that, got the T-Shirts :-?

This comment is not an indictment of the MIC, far from it, we need it and will always need it as long as humans continue to act like barbarians and attempt to use fear, murder, and torture as international stepping stones to power and wealth(that is what this really all about, not some medieval ideology), rather this is an indictment of the elected officials who are supposed to be watching the hen house but have let the foxes in to run the place through political kickbacks and "favors" from MIC Lobbyists and PAC's :eek:

Has anyone taken the time to search the web and see how many MIC contractors have Political Action Committees :-?

What do you think these folks in these MIC PACs do, sit around all day smoking fat cigars drinking brandy, while thinking up ways to save the taxpayers money? Really :-?

NOT? They out there in the Beltway with their sexy offices and sexy secretaries, running around wining and dining committee chairpersons and influential politicians, for said politicians vote, for more MONEY, period!

Now tell me again who controls our foreign policy :-*

EOL

I was going to say that MajGen Carter was a complete idiot, but then read where Tunnel said that Carter made disparaging comments about Pelosi in public...

So, the guy can't be all bad.

[quote name="ASG"]That if you kill 3000 of our people, we will make you pay.[/quote]

Make _who_ pay, the perpetrators, many of who died in the attack, or do we just randomly start killing people who can't effectively fight back? How many people do we need to kill to feel better, to feel like we've been paid?

We even assassinated OBL rather than caputure him and put him on trial, trial which is demanded by our Constitution and which was afforded to much greater monsters such as Goering. That we treated OBL with less humanity than Goering says more about us then about them.

Last I heard Col Tunnel had been reassigned to riding a desk in Fort Knox. And WTF is being "too lethal" supposed to mean? Is combat now only supposed to be semi-lethal? Is that like being a little bit pregnant?

I have a real problem (since 1963) with politicians (civilian or military) screwing around trying to be nice guys. If you're not in it to win it, then don't get in the fight to start with!

http://mobile.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2012/06/the_war_in_afghanistan_and_harry_tunnell_s_stryker_battalion.html

Here's a different perspective on COL Tunnell

Hell, our enemies can stay home and smoke their camel dung--the incompetence of IFOR will destroy itself. The US has not overwhelmingly won a major war since WW2. And we seem to have great and powerful weapons but weak and incompetent Leadership--from CIC down.

Loved Strongest Tribe - Michael, keep up the good work!
V/r

[quote name="mikestevens"]warmonger.[/quote]


Dhimmi

Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge,Afghans who were in charge of securing this bridge!

A few years back I read the book "The Only Thing Worth Dying For..ODA 534 and their operations with the Northern Alliance and their success in dealing with the Insurgents. I remember there was a suggestion made that Afghanistan be fought as for what it was a guerilla war and be fought by our
Special operation people . This purely second guessing true but Michael the war grinds on and young
Americans are dying as I write this. It's been said America doesn't know how to win a Guerilla war .
After watching how the Seals, Delta force, the Green Beret and Rangers work together I find it
hard to believe.
b

So what? Tunnell was probably as 'right' as anybody else.

The proof? That when the brass conned Obama into a 'kaiserschlacht' to break the insurgency for once and for all. It, too, fell flat on its duff - with the prognosticating 'honchos' heading for retirement packages and big jobs in other aspects of the 'defense industry'.

The Surge laboured and brought forth a litter of mice, even given free rein to all the 'new blood', new 'focus' and 'kinetics' Tunnell claimed to be missing.

No Brits or wandering Canuck swains to blame for another great failure to thrive.

After reading this letter I sure don't want any of my Infantry sons deploying to Afghanistan.

It appears neither the Colonel nor the superiors he critiques truly understands COIN doctrine.

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