veteran’s corner
Tom Krabbenhoft
If you know someone that served in Afghanistan I plead with you to check on them.
The two most powerful warriors are patience and time- Leo Tolstoy
Patience and time have been the two sentinels to stand over Afghanistan for thousands of years. Holds true today as well.
Watching events unfolding on the media have been heartbreaking. It’s especially hard amongst the veteran population.
About these events. Right after simplistic military 101 basic knowledge like left face, right face is secure your airfield!
Witnessing our aircraft with hundreds of people running next to it is a colossal failure. One pistol or grenade could’ve turned that aircraft with hundreds of Afghanis aboard into an inferno. It’s a miracle no one was sucked into the jet engines.
The comparison between Saigon and Kabul are not the same. The comparison is insulting to our Vietnam vets and leadership.
The intelligence on the ground in Afghanistan was far superior to what they had in Vietnam.
In Saigon they knew the NVA and Viet Cong were rapidly advancing and taking the country. They knew the South Vietnam Army was as effective as the Salvation Army at fighting. They established operation “Frequent Wind” where 70,000 Americans, allies and Vietnamese were evacuated.
Kabul, even a few weeks ago our leadership at top levels were confident we had weeks and months before the collapse. They thought the Afghan Army would hold. They fell in days. The Afghan Army took 60,000 to 80,000 casualties. Seldomly were they paid and suffered abuse under their leadership. Who would fight for that? As apparent by lack of airfield security and so many Americans and allies trapped no plan existed.
Let’s keep in context not only was modern intel better so was the logistics system, then what was in Saigon. Truth is Custer had a better exit plan than what we are seeing now.
Let’s recall the Berlin airlift where prop driven aircraft supplied, restocked and replenished most of Berlin. A success!
A few weeks before Saigon fell. The US successfully conducted “Operation Eagle Pull.” This was the air evacuation of Phnom Penh Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge were rapidly closing in on trapped Americans. A success!
Lack of negotiations in Iraq gave us ISIS. Normally a SOFA (sustainment of forces agreement) is penciled in. It outlines the troops strength to be kept and timeline for an orderly withdrawal. We are not seeing anything orderly in Afghanistan.
Our exit from Afghanistan is going to have long term consequences. What will fill the vacuum being left?
What will happen to the girls that for the first time were able to be educated?
Will the people recall their purple fingers from Election Day?
Those thousands of filled backpacks and soccer balls US troops gave the kids? Will they remember, rise up and resist recalling how things were with American presence or will it turn into a breeding ground for terror? Will our grandkids be going back to hunt a future Osama Bin Laden?
God bless our troops.
Tom
Story ideas or veteran of the week submissions email 11btwk@gmail.com.