Having lived through the parade of failures — Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan — it is disheartening to contemplate that US geopolitical incompetence has reached such a depth as the war in Ukraine makes evident. We have been poor students of experience.
One of the biggest surprises of the current war, is simply the lack of preparedness on the part of the US. One would assume that if the foreign policy mandarins decided to “lock horns” with the world’s biggest nuclear superpower, they would have done the necessary planning and preparation to ensure success. Clearly, that hasn’t happened. US policymakers seem surprised by the fact that the economic sanctions backfired and actually strengthened Russia’s economic situation. They also failed to anticipate that the vast majority of countries would not only ignore the sanctions but proactively explore options for “ditching the dollar” in their business transactions and in the sale of critical resources.
We see the same incompetence in the provision of lethal weapons to Ukraine. How do we explain the fact that the NATO nations have been frantically scraping the bottom of the barrel to find weapons for Ukraine? Did our leaders really start a war with Russia not knowing whether they had sufficient supplies of weapons and ammo to fight the enemy? That appears to be the case.
And were our leaders so sure that the conflict would be a low-intensity insurgency that they never planned for a full-blown, combined-arms, ground war? Once again, this appears to be true.
These aren’t trivial mistakes. The level of incompetence in the planning of this war is beyond anything we’ve ever seen before. It appears that all the preparation was focused on provoking a Russian invasion, not on the developments that would happen soon afterwards. What’s clear, is that the Pentagon never “gamed out” the actual war itself or the conflict as it is presently unfolding. Otherwise, how does one explain these glaring errors in judgement:
- They never thought the sanctions would backfire
- They never thought they’d run out of weapons and ammo
- They never thought Russia’s oil receipts would skyrocket
- They never thought that the majority of countries would maintain normal relations with Russia
- They never figured they’d actually need a coherent military strategy for fighting a ground war in eastern Europe.
Is there anything they got right?
Apparently not. Nor will it do, now, to chew our own gums about Vladimir Putin being a fascist bully. Had anyone among our governing powers really believed that, they would have prepared conscientiously for the consequences of their own actions.
We have stumbled into a war that we were not prepared to fight. It is Stumble Joe’s war.
Tidewater News and Opinion Forum 
One very silly falsehood after another.
The underlying premise is outrageously false. The United States did not start this war. Anyone starting with that premise is a liar and a stooge for Putin. So, of course, there they are in UNZ.
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RE: “The United States did not start this war.”
So what? The United States did not start the wars in Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan, either.
RE: “Anyone starting with that premise is a liar and a stooge for Putin.”
Show us someone “starting with that premise.” The post starts with the premise: We have been poor students of experience.
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“So what? The United States did not start the wars in Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan, either.”
Can you not read? Your UNZ piece accuses the United States of starting this war with Russia. You cannot make that lying stupidity go away with one of your patented “So whats.”
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RE: “Can you not read?”
Test your own reading skills. Here is the exact quote: “It appears that all the preparation was focused on provoking a Russian invasion, not on the developments that would happen soon afterwards.”
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Invading Crimea and Donbas is not provocation?
If your neighbor moved into your bedroom and living room, said they belonged to him because 59 years ago his grandfather owned it you might consider it a serious provocation.
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I can read. Can you?
“Did our leaders really start a war with Russia not knowing whether they had sufficient supplies of weapons and ammo to fight the enemy?”
This is the egregiously dishonest premise of the entire pile of bullshit – we did not start the war. We did not provoke the war. We did nothing threatening. The war was 100% the doings of Vladimir Putin based on his stated belief that Ukraine as no right to exist.
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RE: “This is the egregiously dishonest premise of the entire pile of bullshit – we did not start the war.”
We joined it, and that’s the point. As I wrote: “Nor will it do, now, to chew our own gums about Vladimir Putin being a fascist bully. Had anyone among our governing powers really believed that, they would have prepared conscientiously for the consequences of their own actions.”
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“We joined it, and that’s the point”
So the writer lied when he said we started the war. Finally you admit it. And then fallback on another falsehood. We have NOT joined the war. We have provided aid. And we have economically punished the aggressor.
If and when we join the war, don’t blink. It will be over soon. Russia’s murderous convict and conscript military is a corrupt and pathetic joke. They now know it and so does the rest of the world.
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RE: “So the writer lied when he said we started the war.”
Actually, you are the liar because you falsely pretend that the writer blames the U.S. for war.
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So I am a liar because you can’t read? Sorry, that does not compute. Here, read again what your UNZ dope had to say . . . “Did our leaders really start a war with Russia not knowing whether they had sufficient supplies of weapons and ammo to fight the enemy?”
What part of “start a war ” do you not understand? It really does not seem that hard.
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We most certainly did start the war in Iraq by invading the country.
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No. First, Iraq had been at war with Iran. Then Iraq invaded Kuwait.
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And we invaded Kuwait, but did not pursue Saddam’s military as they retreated into Iraq.
I was, of course, talking about the 2003 invasion a decade later. Shock and awe, remember.
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RE: “I was, of course, talking about the 2003 invasion a decade later. Shock and awe, remember.”
I remember. Iraq had been at war with Iran and Iraq’s use of chemical weapons was one of the justifications we used to become involved.
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It may have used to excuse the invasion but we still invaded first.
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“It may have used to excuse the invasion”
It is worth remembering at this point that Iraq was encouraged by us to attack Iran and that we were the source of the chemical weapons they used.
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You have posted some pretty pathetic diatribes in the past, but you have outdone yourself this time.
From your usual snappy retort, “So what?,” to your insistence on posting trash from such stellar sources as “The Unz Review” (host to such renowned columnists as Andrew Anglin) your posts border on pornography. To anyone with a functioning brain cell, they are in fact, obscene.
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“So what?” is a legitimate question. If you can’t answer it, you probably have nothing to say.
It is also an invitation. If you have a valid criticism and are able to support it, please do.
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SO WHAT!
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You have nothing to say and don’t want to say it. That’s “what.”
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SO WHAT!
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” “So what?” is a legitimate question ”
No the way you use it. Here is a typical exchange.
You : Ukraine started the war.
Someone else : But, Russian armies crossed the border and attacked.
You : So what?
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You are playing at Don Quixote again. I have never argued that Russia’s invasion is unimportant. I have, however, argued that it doesn’t matter who started the war or why, since the war itself is the reality we must deal with.
Do you and Ms. Radford believe that it is OK for women and children to be dying because Putin is evil?
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“Do you and Ms. Radford believe that it is OK for women and children to be dying because Putin is evil?”
Obviously it is NOT okay for women and children to be dying. That is how we know that Putin is evil. Duh!
Oh, you meant that the deaths are OUR fault because we have answered Ukraine’s plea for help. I do not accept that for a second. The level of suffering appropriate to defend your country from an invader is not a question for anyone but the invaded.
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Are you admitting Putin is evil? If so, I agree. At least you are admitting Russians are killing civilians. That’s a baby step forward for you.
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…” it doesn’t matter who started the war or why”…
It doesn’t matter? Really? That has been the root of many discussions on this forum. You continually claim that Russia’s invasion was justified. And then you blame the US for the war.
Such counterfactual nonsense with just a dose of hypocrisy.
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RE: “You continually claim that Russia’s invasion was justified.”
You are misinformed. I challenge you to quote me.
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RE: “Are you admitting Putin is evil?”
No. I am saying that calling Putin evil is useless, even stupid.
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” I am saying that calling Putin evil is useless, even stupid.”
So is referring to the current POTUS as “Stumble Joe”.
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RE: “Oh, you meant that the deaths are OUR fault because we have answered Ukraine’s plea for help.”
I meant that you and Ms. Radford are foolish — maybe even ignorant — for believing that blaming Putin is a useful thing to do.
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“you and Ms. Radford are foolish — maybe even ignorant”
When there is a war going on, how it ends cannot be divorced from how it started. It is HIGHLY relevant that this war was started by Putin – not by the United States as your lying liars would have it.
The question Putin raised for us by starting this war is . . . “Should aggressor nations be rewarded for their aggression?” You want to reward Putin. I don’t. Whatever Ukraine decides to do, the punishment of aggression should continue until there is significant regime change in Moscow.
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…”that blaming Putin is a useful thing to do.”
Right. The invasion started ALL by itself widdle self.
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“I meant that you and Ms. Radford are foolish — maybe even ignorant — for believing that blaming Putin is a useful thing to do.”
Do not presume to tell me what I believe.
I believe the only useful thing to do is kick Putin’s ass all the way back to Moscow.
But you’re too busy kissing it to notice.
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