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Did I mishear Obama when he said the War on Terror was over? And if it is, what are the opinions of you GWOT veterans?
Posted in these groups: 
War on Terror
Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)
Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) - Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Iraq
War on Terror Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) - Afghanistan Afghanistan Iraq
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 34
The military has fortunately stopped using the term "Global War on Terror" several years ago. You can declare and win a war against a specific enemy, but you can't declare and win war on a tactic, which is all terrorism is. It's similar to declaring a "Global War on Ambush" or a "Global War on Urban Combat." It's an unfortunate term which should have never been used in the first place, in my opinion. Identify your enemies and wage war on them, but not on something which has always been here, and will always be here.
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/05/23/obama-global-war-on-terror-is-over
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/05/23/obama-global-war-on-terror-is-over
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LTC Yinon Weiss
CPT Zachary Brooks - I would say we are not in a state of real war. There isn't one declared by the President, by Congress, or by the military, so this shouldn't be a surprise.
We do not (or cannot) politically define the enemy, and rather we employ contingency operations to react to tactical threats as they emerge. Until you can walk down an American street and ask 10 people who we are at war with, and have the majority give you the same answer, then our nation is not really at war (even if our military finds itself in dangerous situations). The reality is if you asked 10 people who we are at war with, I would bet that 9 would say "what war?"
We do not (or cannot) politically define the enemy, and rather we employ contingency operations to react to tactical threats as they emerge. Until you can walk down an American street and ask 10 people who we are at war with, and have the majority give you the same answer, then our nation is not really at war (even if our military finds itself in dangerous situations). The reality is if you asked 10 people who we are at war with, I would bet that 9 would say "what war?"
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CPT Zachary Brooks
LTC Yinon Weiss - Sir, I agree with you. We have not declared war in an actual sense since WW II. We need to remain in a state of conflict to continue to line the pockets of our defense contractors and keep our supporters voting out of fear. It is a sad environment, but it feels like the military is more and more becoming a political tool (gays, transgenders, etc) instead of an actual national defense device.
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SSG (Join to see)
Having been to both Iraq and Afghanistan, neither enemy is the same. Both share qualities that seek to undermine our "Stability Operations", but the only type of War we wage is at home amongst our own people. Whether it be race, religion, or sexual orientation, the media has blown everything out of proportion and is detracting any positive efforts against "Terrorism". Without a cleary defined enemy(i.e. The War on Drugs), fighting an idea will never be successful. There are other posts and questions recently on rallypoint that ask why the United States have not won a true war since WW2. The answer is simple. We have only fought ideas the last 70+ years and ideas are the heart of a nation. Imagine if the tables were turned and somebody actually did invade us against the idea of Democracy. Countless numbers of different militias and gangs would actually unite in a semi-organized manner with some for of hierarchy to combat a comonn enemy. I feel like this may lead in the wrong direction, so I will stop here. Just my opinion...and a small rant for freedom.
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It was putting us in an awkward position to declare war on "terror"-- Terrorism is a strategy that works in support of a belief system, not a belief system unto itself. It was silly posturing and should never have been declared in the first place, since it is something that can never truly be "won". We need to declare war against concrete things: people, organizations, that sort of thing.
I still wear my GWOT but if anything I see it as a reminder that some politics bear a terrible price.
I still wear my GWOT but if anything I see it as a reminder that some politics bear a terrible price.
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The GWOT will never end as terrorism is endless and is all over the world.
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