National Journal Blog 5 August, 2011

 
Col. W. Patrick Lang Responds to How Can the United States Address Radicalism Within the Military??.

Comments

[William R. Cumming]

I guess this question would be appropriate if the citizenry of the USA knew better what exactly was occurring in the military! My belief is that Political Correctness is the doctrine of the day. My belief is also that the ranks of minorities other than the safe "Hispanic-Americans" has been drastically reduced since the days when infantry units in Viet Nam often were close to majority black. And that also may be an error. IS ethnic data published by DOD for the ARMED FORCES? I don't believe so.

[Patrick Lang]

WRC

"the days when infantry units in Viet Nam often were close to majority black" Utter BS. Go do your homework.

http://www.americanwarlibrary.com/vietnam/vwc10.htm

The NJ question can never be apprpopriate. This question seeks to judge US soldiers as ethno-religious groups. this is an appropriate question for racists and ethnic nationalists like the Israelis. pl

[R Whitman]

I think that the two people who asked the question never served in the US military.

[memjfm1]

The US Uniformed services do and should reflect the general values, economic distribution and ethnicity of the greater population it defends. While the conscription ending 40 years ago warped this reflection by under-representing the wealthy and over demanding from those disadvantaged, today’s service, by my measure, is right about where it ought to be in this regard. Col Lang’s answer on the inappropriateness of the NJ’s question is spot on. Questions like this emanate from journalists who’ve obviously never squatted between a pair of Corcorans. The answer to the article half dozen ending questions is simple; leadership resulting in unit cohesion, personal pride and operational effectiveness.

WRC, I worked in or around a couple infantry units from three different Army divisions and hung around with infantry officers after Vietnam for twenty years. We talked about such things. I dispute the position that any infantry unit were close to a majority black, just ain’t so.

[William R. Cumming]

My statement was based on black soldiers (not many of course) who served in Viet Nam and wore CIB! They said some units losses reduced their value as fighting units almost completely with the normal platoon TOE being reduced by over 1/2 due to combat or illness. Perhaps they were wrong to tell me that but they were men I was then trusting with my life.

Most of the statistical information on Viet Nam long since destroyed. No real follow up exists for example for LBJ's Project 100,000 soldiers. These were all 4th Quartile on the basic IQ for the military. Dumb infantry seldom survive. Smart ones may.

[The Twisted Genius]

How can the the actions of three individuals over nine years be considered a trend? The question itself smacks more of islamophobia and ignorance than social research. It 's close to the growing hysteria about the rise of sharia law in the U.S.

WRC, I can only offer the example of Company C, 1/35th Infantry from 1977 through 1979. Our platoons were roughly one third each black, Hispanic and white with a smattering of every other ethnic group under the sun. My platoon sargeants were consecutively black, white and Mexican. The First Sargeant was first Mexican and then black. All us young lieutenants were lily white. Fights were much more likely to be between 1st and 2nd platoons rather than between blacks and whites. It may not have been all unicorns and glitter, but it was one of the best examples of what America should be that I know of. And this is in the days of the Hollow Army! I'm damned proud to have been part of that band of brothers.

[bill roche]

mr. cummings
I did my basic at Ft Jackson in 68' and although I never served in an infantry unit I did observe those guys doing AIT at Jackson. They were not majority African American units. I had a "chance" to bunk with a unit at the 8th infantry barracks at Bad Kreuznach (I think spring of 71') and they were not majority black. Now maybe that all changed in Nam, I dont know I was never there. Or maybe you were watching too many H'wood movies.
best
bill roche

[Patrick Lang]

WRC

A lot of units are reduced by attrition in combat until replacements arrive. you need to stop listening to the bullshit that some returned soldiers are always feeding to people. they do this from a need for emotional support. Race? did you look at the stats in the link I sent you. pl

[The Twisted Genius]

"The answer to the article half dozen ending questions is simple; leadership resulting in unit cohesion, personal pride and operational effectiveness."

memjfm1, TRU DAT!

[Babak Makkinejad]

This is plainly silly.

Almost all of those Americans who betrayed their country's intelligenc assets/secrets (Aldrich Ames, Jonathan Pollard, and the like) to foreign powers were of European ancestary.

Should now all Americans with European ancestory be disqualified from holding such positions?

Or Baptists, or Christians?

I agree with Col. Lang: this is worse than stupid; it will corrode the fundamental principles on which the United States is based.

[There are many Muslims serving in the State Department - should something be done about them as well?]

[J]

Colonel,

One of the National Journal duo Dreazen went to high school at Chicago's Ida Crown Jewish Academy, and then spent a year of study at Yeshivat HaKotel in Jerusalem's Jewish quarter before attending Univ. of Penn.. It appears that both of them Dreazen and Sorcher comes to the table with apparently preconceived prejudices towards Muslims and Islam, and no real background regarding the Mideast outside of their academic prejudices. Sorcher received her BA in Mideast Studies at Tufts Univ Medford Mass.

Your comment of their 'guides' appears spot on.

[Patrick Lang]

J

dreazen is an chicago born israel firster, who graduated from the orthodox union's ida crown jewish academy in 94, then spent a year in israel studying at yeshivat hakotel, then went to the univ. of penn graduated in 99, that same year he became a wall street journo.


http://www.nationaljournal.com/reporters/bio/21

sorcher
http://www.nationaljournal.com/reporters/bio/61


sorcher worked in israel as a freelancer, says she graduated from tufts univ. with a degree in middle eastern studies, tufts which has 4 campuses in boston mass., medford/somerville mass., grafton mass., and talloires france. doesn't say which campus she attended, however its mideeast studies is located at its medford campus. according to her blog while she still lived and worked in tel aviv, she said that she was fluent in hebrew and proficient in arabic saying that she studied at hebrew university of jerusalem, and participated in an arabic immersion studies at al-akhawayn univ. ifrane, morocco.

PL

[Fred]

Babak,

Next thing you know you'll be providing stats on members of Congress convicted of felonies....

I wonder what Mr. Dreazen thinks caused the conduct at Abu Ghraib? Certainly it wasn't the religious beliefs of our troops.

[Babak Makkinejad]

Yes, Fred, let us hold onto that thought:

May be US could import a number of competent, intelligent, hardworking congressmen from India under some sort of Experimental Congressman Visa Program.

[walrus]

Agree 100% with Col. Lang.

A simple application of the Golden Rule illustrates it; could we read the following and ask the rhetorical question: "What should we do about the Jewish tax evasion problem? "

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/nyregion/20rabbis.html

Off this morning in my Yacht to pay my respects to Two visiting U.S. warships..