Why are the insurgents making the troops look bad?

Question

The insurgents are kicking the butts of the puny American soldiers and ther is nothing the USA can do about it. How can this be? The insurgents are a rag tag group of men but yet they rule!! Amazing!

Answer 1

Wow are you ever mis-informed. Let someone who is here in Iraq tell you how it is. Currently I am stationed in a place called Camp Taji, Iraq. It is about 30 minutes north of Baghdad.

I am an advisor serving on a MiTT (Military Training Team) instructing the 9th Iraqi Army Division (Mechanized) on how to both fight the insurgents and how to behave as an Army.

Our perimeter was attacked last night (for the second time) and there were no friendly casualties, however, the Insurgent Forces (we call them AIA = Anti Iraqi Forces) suffered heavy losses.

Secondly, I have been in heavy combat three times (this is due to complex attacks involving mortars, small arms fire and rockets in an ambush style assault) and each time we prevailed against the AIA forces without any losses.

Third - I was in a Convoy on Sunday and was engaged twice by small arms fire. They aren't very good shots (for which I am personally grateful).

So before you start judging our tactical situation and making foolish statements about how our butts are getting kicked and that we are "puny" you might want to get your own *** down here and see what is happening. Then you will be in a far better position to make "educated" statements, which at this time you are not.

The only thing amazing about your question is that an idiot like yourself, who obviously has never served a day in uniform, and who likes to open his mouth prior to knowing the facts, could conjecture as you have and state it as it is a fact.

I don't want to be here - I don't like it at all, but it is a job, and it is what my country has asked me to do. I don't give a damn about the politics, just about finishing my mission so I can return to back to the US. However, ignorant foolish people such as yourself really make me wonder what I'm here for - if it were only for people like you, I'd have to reconsider., thank God most of America is totally the opposite from you.

Enjoy your freedom, you haven't earned it, you don't deserve it - think about that for a few minutes; don't worry - I'll still do my job so that you can make the stupid statements you have made.

- CAPTAIN, US Army

Answer 2

Well, that is a heck of a poorly worded question.

As for why the "insurgents" are doing so well:

It's because the US forces are so drastically outnumbered and the people they are fighting can attack and then blend with the population. And why should that be so shocking? The United States pioneered the return of guerilla warfare in its own Revolutionary War. We should know that it is difficult for a standing army to engage guerillas and not be surprised at all by this.

Also, I object to the term "insurgent." RIght now the US is a foreign occpying force. The Iraqis fighting against the US are fighting to eject an occupier. If what we want is for them to have self determination, we should leave because they are surely giving quite a signal that the US is not wanted there.

On the whole, though, your question was rudely phrased and I hope you will consider a more polite way of discussing this since we are talking about a situation in which people are losing their lives.

Answer 3

The insurgents aren't making the troops look bad, our media is. They are reluctant to report progress, but hastily report any setbacks or unfavorable news. Our troops are doing the best job they can, but the media has them under a microscope and their hands are somewhat tied. While the insurgents have no rules of engagement limiting their barbaric behavior, the US is bound by many international agreements. If we were permitted to respond with the same brutality of insurgents and other agressors, this war would have been over long ago. The people who insist we leave Iraq are the same people who want to place absurd restrictions on how the soldiers fight (i.e. no psychological warfare operations, covert/black operations, etc). All highly effective and all highly demoralizing to the enemy. While I can't understand the logic of 'embrace your enemies, make your own soldiers suffer", I am confident that even under such maniacal policies our troops will be successful - provided their leaders know what the hell they are doing. God bless our troops.

Answer 4

Insurgents are not making the troops look bad. The media is making the troops look bad. There has been so much good progress made over there that it would suprise the majority of the population to know. The media will not report these good events and progress due to they are so anti-Bush. It has already been proven they doctored photos, reporter not leaving the safety of the hotels and only report the deaths. They do not report all of the successful humanitarian projects the military has completed. The Iraqi people are behind our soldiers, it is Syrians and other nations we are fighting. America needs to wake up and realize that technically, we are in a world war. Quit listening to the media and research information yourselves.

Answer 5

They can hide, blend in with the population and have support from their community. Soldiers are labeled by their uniforms, they don't blend in, are obvious foreigners and don't have the support of the populous.. That is why occupiers can never win. They don't live there and can only be there temporarily while the insurgents can pick their time and moment of confrontation since the are there for the long run. They can simply out wait the occupiers until they get tired or run out of patience and go home.

Answer 6

I don't know where you're getting your information, but the insurgents arn't kicking the american's butts...the only reason that they are doing as well as they are is the fact that most of them are willing to sacrifice themselves to kill an american. the US miliatary dosen't operate in the same way. But if you could find the total death tolls on each side you'd realize that the american's have far fewer casualties than the insurgency.

Answer 7

Pretty disrespectful post you have there. Imagine going into someone else's homeland where you know very little about the terrain and location of the enemy troops. The climate is different, as are the people, languages spoken and the entire way of life.

These insurgents will stop at nothing to kill our people, even if that means killing themselves.

Answer 8

I assume you are one of them huh? ya know i have been to iraq and several other nasty countries, and i can tell you that those coward insurgents have nothing over us. They hide there faces, why?? because they are afraid they will be identified. If you are an american; well I would suggest putting a pistol in your mouth and pulling the trigger! If you are one of them insurgents; well i hope to see you on the battle field, but you will be in my sights, and dead! those bad guys run their mouths really good until they have a few bullets in their a$$. I really wish you would tell all of us where you live so we could come visit you? Why dont you tell me, i wont tell anyone i promise! SCUMBAG!

Answer 9

It is called asymmetric warfare. The US military is not prepared to withstand opponents who use every dirty trick out of the book and stop at nothing to attain their goals. The US is bound by the rules of war, human rights and things like the Geneva convention, which were designed for classic warfare, when one army fought another.
A second reason is motivation. The US army is a group of professional soldiers, who are well trained, but poorly motivated in comparison to people who fanatically fight for their religion and what they perceive as "freedom".

"Forgiven", I salute you!

Answer 10

They make the solders look bad because it makes the insurgents look better and the goods are the baddies.