Why are we at war? Why are soldiers currently deployed? Why were they deployed 5, 10, 15 years ago?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 09:37:36 -0400

In your opinion why do you think we have deployed soldiers in combat areas in the middle east, 15,10,5 years ago and presently. The answer it can be your opinion backed with facts or conspiracy theories as long it is not text book answer, PC answer, or "technically were not at war" BS answer looking for answers with substances.

Response by Cpl George Crab made Sep 27 at 2016 10:25 AM

Cpl George Crab — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 10:25:15 -0400

Because the world wide threat of Fatwas is not going away, and what else should we do? Let the small percentage of Take the World Over Muslims have their way?

Response by LCDR Rabbah Rona Matlow made Sep 27 at 2016 11:09 AM

LCDR Rabbah Rona Matlow — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:09:47 -0400

The ONLY reason we went to Iraq and destabilized and destroyed the country, was because W Bush is a Napoleonic Texan - a small man with a huge ego. As every reason he offered was debunked, he finally settled on Nation Building; i.e. Imperialism. And we really built Iraq, didn't we...

Response by CPO Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 27 at 2016 11:20 AM

CPO Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:20:11 -0400

To be honest if we are "Over there" there is less chance they will make it over here. Every day we pop off a few of them, we cut their supply lines, and we remind them we are still pissed about 9/11. We don't ever give them a true reprieve to regroup. That's what happened in 9/11 we gave them time, space, and noninterference. They tried to hit the towers before and it didn't work, what did we do we went back to the same old routine, so they hit them again and succeeded.

Want to bring our people back home and end this? There really is only one way and its not morally correct. You can not fight an idea, you can not fight a thought, you can not end their hate, short of killing them.... All of them, only through attrition will you end the middle easts blood lust. Only by making them choke on their own blood till they are decimated and surrender will you end this.

When we dropped the two bombs in WWII we broke Japans will to fight. When they understood our resolve and feared that we would go on making entire cities vanish in devastation, then they surrendered.

Till the Middle East has a health fear of America we will continue to be stuck dealing with it.

Response by SFC Kenneth Hunnell made Sep 27 at 2016 11:23 AM

SFC Kenneth Hunnell — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:23:12 -0400

Economy

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Sep 27 at 2016 11:26 AM

CPT Jack Durish — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 11:26:20 -0400

We have been fighting terrorists since 9/11 because fighting terrorists is a good thing, isn't it? I think it is. Sadly, we seem to be going about it all wrong. We're launching jets in the Mediterranean and the Arab Gulf looking for a high tech version of WWII. We need some new thinking, a better defined mission, and armed forces trained and equipped to accomplish it, otherwise it's going to go on for another 5, 10, 15 years or more.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 27 at 2016 12:01 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 12:01:12 -0400

Regardless of what everyone says....regardless of what the "text book" answer is......ideology, perceptions, feelings, money.....whatever the reason......we, as military folk, signed a line and swore an oath. The reason we went was because.....BLUF.....we were ordered to. From Hamburger Hill "You don't have to like it. But you have to show up."

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 27 at 2016 12:45 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 12:45:44 -0400

Hi, Sergeant Sanchez.

We are engaged in an irregular warfare environment with a “country-less” adversary that adheres to an ideology promoted with terrorism against its enemy and the populace at large. The only way to effectively combat such a foe is to engage the affected population in such a way that they, as an entity, denounce the enemy entrenched as part of the population. You weed them out by building up the population in such a way that the people pursue other avenues and arise to be unoppressed.

The problem is multi-faceted. One, GWOT is a war on ideology, and you can’t fight an ideology. Two, the secular, tribal and stovepiped culture of places like Afghanistan is such that any gains in one area are hard to replicate or promote in others. Such advances will require multiple critical inflection points across a generational scope.

Only when we can turn the people, not against the enemy, but to a better way of life nationally will there be any real advances in securing the region. And in a region in which the populace is concerned only with family, honor, and elemental survival, that will take decades.

Response by SSG Warren Swan made Sep 27 at 2016 1:03 PM

SSG Warren Swan — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 13:03:01 -0400

It's a vicious cycle. You figure every 20 or so years, America has to show her "domination" to the world. Afghanistan was legit as hell. Bush tried everything in a diplomatic sense to get Usama to the US for trial. The Taliban wasn't having that, so ohh well I have the worlds most powerful military...time to use it. I don't object to that war. Iraq will always have a question mark next to it. I don't believe we should've gone, the Intel was proven to be faulty and riddled with holes, but once committed we're there. Bush Sr believes we went thanks to Cheney. Now we are basically in Vietnam pt2, where I believe we want to come home, but can't. So best thing I can do is support the men and women who are there, and hope they all come home.
Duty First!

Response by SSG Wally Lawver made Sep 27 at 2016 1:48 PM

SSG Wally Lawver — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 13:48:06 -0400

because I was ordered to go....15 years my butt, I was in Northern Iraq 1991 and 2010......................And I wasnt the 1st or the last....:)

Response by Sgt Kelli Mays made Sep 27 at 2016 3:33 PM

Sgt Kelli Mays — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 15:33:09 -0400

SGT Private RallyPoint Member Because we are fighting terrorism...we are fighting to try and keep American Citizens safe...and other countries...we work together with other countries to keep our countries safe...so that these assholes who want to take over the world and throw us back into the 5th century....back to BARBARIC times...CANNOT get there...to rule the world...cause if we don't....we'll ALL be under their control.

Response by PFC Pamala (Hall) Foster made Sep 27 at 2016 9:51 PM

PFC Pamala (Hall) Foster — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 21:51:59 -0400

Politicians-they are too stupid to give a dang about anything but WHAT CAN THEY GET.

Response by Lt Col Jim Coe made Sep 27 at 2016 9:58 PM

Lt Col Jim Coe — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 21:58:41 -0400

This one is the subject of many books, so a few sentences here won't really do the subject justice. I'll try to provide my opinion and a few facts. To understand why we are in the Middle East today, you have to go back about 100 years. The Ottoman Empire controlled much of the region in the early 20th Century. They made a bad bet and threw in with the Germans during WWI. At the end of that war, the Ottoman Empire was dismantled and many of the countries we see today came into existence at the behest of Western nations. The winners, specifically the UK, moved into the area and greatly influenced or outright governed many of the countries in the Middle East. By the time WWII came around, the countries in the Middle East mostly tried to remain neutral or sided with the Allies. The UK opened a line of communication into Russia through Iran. The Germans and Italians moved into Libya to keep the Allies from using it for bases to attack shipping in the Med. After the US entered the war, we were first brought into North Africa and fought with the Brits to defeat Romel. The attack on Sicily and mainland Italy were launched from North Africa. At the end of WWII, the Western nations again redrew the map of the middle east. Israel was created in 1947 from a British protectorate. As a dominate world power, the US was beginning to replace the UK in the area as the dominate outside influence. Many of the populations and governments in the middle east began to emulate Western governmental systems, dress, education, and economic philosophies through the 50s and 60s. As the USSR increased its power, it came into conflict with US interests in the area. The US attempted to surround the southwestern USSR with allies including Turkey, Iran, and Israel. The US also became increasingly dependent on oil from countries in Southwest Asia. Eventually the US won the Cold War and the USSR disintegrated. (In the meantime the USSR had made its foray into Afghanistan where the US supported forces opposing the USSR.)

This brings us to the last quarter of the 20th century. About the time the USSR collapsed and the US pulled back throughout the world, Islamic fundamentalists increased their power and activity in the Middle East and North Africa. In Iran and Afghanistan they took over the Government. In other countries they increased their influence. These changes endangered US national interests. The Islamic fundamentalists were emboldened by perceived US and Russian weakness. The attacks of 9/11/01 were the result. After that the US was obligated to hunt down and kill the terrorists who had attacked the US. Our extended involvement in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria is the direct result of the current Administration's inability to define victory and commit US forces to achieve it. Our enemies and friends in the Middle East understand the exercise of power, but we won't wield the economic, military and diplomatic power at our disposal. The war will continue to stumble along eating up lives and resources until we have a President and Congress with the will to win.

Response by SFC Pete Kain made Sep 27 at 2016 10:26 PM

SFC Pete Kain — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 22:26:17 -0400

We are still at war due to inept political leadership and lack of National will and focus.

Response by SPC Erich Guenther made Sep 28 at 2016 12:16 AM

SPC Erich Guenther — Wed, 28 Sep 2016 00:16:58 -0400

Because we didn't want to respond with Nuclear Weapons after the 9-11 attacks. We wanted to respond conventionally and keep war as clean as we could. In my view the conventional response while it involves lower casualty counts also raises the stakes again with the next attack that is sure to follow 9-11 at some point.

Response by Cpl Justin Goolsby made Sep 29 at 2016 12:30 PM

Cpl Justin Goolsby — Thu, 29 Sep 2016 12:30:22 -0400

The biggest reason is we are currently engaging an enemy force. Whether or not we helped create that enemy, I don't have the facts. But there is an enemy to deal with and part of being a world power includes helping those that may or may not have the resources to help themselves.

Response by Sgt Wayne Wood made Sep 30 at 2016 2:36 PM

Sgt Wayne Wood — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 14:36:24 -0400

you are at war because the politicians blew it.