America can't handle Iraq. We do not have what it takes.

[Redwolf]

We can win this, but right now the enemy expects this, making our job harder. We gotta wait, the media has blown the lid off on this one.

I say we wait untill the next Defcon confrence and offer some cold hard cash to those guys (bonus to whoever shuts down the most air defenses).

Epi- what happened? Don't get all bent up and all wound up. It's just the cable company.

I agree with Red-the media is far too intrusive and gives too much to these Iraqi dudes who monitor all US channels anyway.

[kenyg]

This is not a ground war in the sense of a WWII battle.

Wait and see - many aspects need to be coordinated. - opposition groups, command & control elements, intense special forces activity, and more.

It can be done, a coup essentially, but not a bloodless one.

[thesystem]

Referring to the media, I think the US needs to change a lot of the way they work things. I mean, can the Military just keep the media out of things that are sensitive like that. Whats the purpose of making plans to attack and not let the enemy know, then have your media broadcast it to the world? Stupid, I am really, really hating the media. Yeah, I would like to know whats happening, but I don't want to betray my country. They should make treason laws stricter.
System

[Epidemic]

If they(the media) end up on the beach waiting for the troops to come ashore this time the media should be treated as a threat and eliminated from the beach head with extreme prejudice.

with extreme prejudice.

Read "AK-47"

[ribbitski]

I know that our country could win an all out conventional war with Iraq, but the fact remains that in this day and age that just isn't possible.

Can anyone imagine turning on CNN and seeing a report that we have carpet bombed Baghdad into a pile of rubble? Imagine for a minute the political upheaval that would take place all over the world after such an event.

Guerilla warfare (which is exactly what Hussein is talking about...fighting in the cities where his troops can't be easily picked out of a crowd, but can attack our forces with impunity) is not easily fought or won, except perhaps on the side of the guerillas. A "strategic" air campaign would be next to impossible under these conditions, as every citizen of every city would quickly become a human shield, impenetrable in today's political climate.

Don't get me wrong: I can assure you that our forces are trained to fight in an urban setting. I have spent much time on a MOUT (Military Operations in Urban Terrain) site, even though I am far from an infantryman.

To top it all off, I think that Hussein has demonstrated that he is not afraid to use chemical weapons (even on people of his nation). That is a mighty big deterrent. I can assure you that there isn't a man or woman in uniform who isn't at least somewhat frightened at the prospect of fighting in chemical environment. That being said, however, it must also be recognized that we are heavily trained to do just that (if need be).

I guess that the point that I am trying to make is that it is possible for us to win a war fought under the conditions that Hussein would bring to the table, but there would be a terrible cost to be paid on both sides. Control of the media and the ultra-liberal left aside, of course.

Ribb

[ribbitski]

Originally posted by Epidemic
If they(the media) end up on the beach waiting for the troops to come ashore this time the media should be treated as a threat and eliminated from the beach head with extreme prejudice.

Does anyone remeber watching the Marines come ashore in Somalia on CNN? Your solution was exactly what I was thinking when I saw that...

Ribb

[Epidemic]

That is what I was referring to.

[lost-and-found]

the problem with this war is: we have the forces (weapons) but we don't have the will (a split in the oppinions about Iraq and it's future is never good during any war, remember Vietnam?)