I found this today:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/world/mi...amp;oref=slogin

Gen. Petreaus, the best we've got, is making his move y'all.
He comments in the story that he knows he has what he is going
to get - and he's playing it.

I don't want to give odds on the lasting nature of the move,
but I've got to believe GIs who had been pinned down as
occupation forces are pulling on the reins to "get some".

So, while this mission-oriented operation is in play, I'm silent
on the failures - and praying ground is made that my nephew
can hold when he arrives with the Big Red One later this summer.
The measure is - will the Iraqis go to the sound of the guns.

Petreaus is another Bush general and will do as he is told. In the Bush Administration you only get promoted if you are a yes man for Bush.

By that criteria about 99.999% of the folks in the military must be Bush yes men then David, hope that makes you feel some comfort.

I feel sorry for the poor SOB who joins the military in the hope of a better life and finds such poor leadership in place.

Seems to me there's some who wanna have it both ways in the case of General Petreaus, eh? The Senate, controlled by Democrats at the time, showed overwhelmin' support for him movin' into the position he now holds.

Methinks anyone who watched the Senate committee hearin's after his nomination knows he fully and completely described his plans, intentions and probable time table, yet now them same Senators be tryin' to cut the legs out from under him by usin' what he said outa context and such. I know from personal comunications with folks in the military this kinda stuff does affect their morale, eh?

Much as I hate this war methinks I hate as much or more politicians playin' games usin' the folks fightin' it as pawns. That goes equally for them on both sides of the aisle!

Since the Armed Services have been consistantly meeting or exceeding their recruitment goals for going on two years I'd guess their are tens of thousands of folks who think your opinion to be hooey David.

ah... well that's not entirely true Dave. The senate approves all General Appointments. Would you say McCarthy was a Truman General? Truman with congress put him in charge of the Korean "police action".

Glad to see the Texas Guard found a spot for an old timer to teach (Civil Affairs huh? 451st perhaps?).... hopefully something more upto date then a PRC-77. The Guard is running circles around the reserve for retention and recruititng;

We are having several challenges all the way around cross leveling soldiers really screwed up things and continues too.... plenty to work on no doubt. We still have soldiers in a variety of holding patterns at medical facilities accross the country.

Nope, I'm in the Texas State Guard, 2-19. The only chance a me being deployed overseas is if the Chicom Army is fording the Potomoc.

But as the LTC said when told him my age; "You got a lot a years a Soldiering left in you and we need your experience". Doesn't it just give you the warm & fuzzies to feel wanted?

The rest - yeah maybe Bushies...by Gen. Petreaus has bonifidies...
it may not get much bertter overall, but at least the troops got
a go-getter to follow...and the difference is Huge! http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraq21jun21,0,6199777.story?coll=la-home-center

U.S.-Iraqi offensive yields results
A major thrust in Diyala province, which began Tuesday, has left at least 30 suspected insurgents dead and uncovered 1,000 roadside bombs.
By Tina Susman, Times Staff Writer
8:30 AM PDT, June 20, 2007


BAGHDAD -- At least 30 suspected insurgents have been killed in two days of operations being conducted in Diyala province as part of a major thrust by U.S. and Iraqi forces to clear Al Qaeda operatives from the region, the military said today.

Soldiers conducting Operation Arrowhead Thunder also have uncovered more than 1,000 roadside bombs around the provincial capital, Baqubah, where the offensive is being conducted, Iraqi security officials said.

Local residents reported heavy fighting in some neighborhoods and aerial bombardments on the western side of the city, where the U.S. military says many insurgents have been based since the last major offensive in March cleared them from eastern Baqubah.

Until early Tuesday, when some 10,000 troops launched the new mission, U.S. forces rarely had crossed the Tigris river into the western side of town. The latest operation is targeting insurgents who have tried to establish Baqubah as their own capital with strictly Islamic rules imposed on residents.

-----------------

There are two things ya want - a damned good, vet C.O. and a mission...and by God looks like we have one
whose is attempting in a warrior's way to find the other. Gotta love 'im.

He backed a colonel when Cheney was selling us out (the colonel kept arresting a Turkish SF team that was arming Turkoman insurgents and planning assassinations of Kurdish leaders, Cheney ordered them released immediately 3 times, they finally got the assassinations done after the third release). Unless you have something solid to base your claim on you seem to be solidly opposed to the facts.

Sometimes you can just gauge a man's demeanor.
Gen. Pet is a wiry, almost little guy with the face
of a grizzled combat vet, a low voice and a cold,
hard, calculating style. The war sucks, but he's
walked point, and I trust him in September to
call a spade a spade. If he says it will take 10 years,
I won't want it given, but it will be straight up.
I don't think he will try to sell it - just tell it like it is.

Meanwhile, I bet GIs will call themselves David's Devils
before Bush's Boys. I have a feeling he will survive (well)
a Democrat president, and might even make a joint chief.

In fact...let me dream...Petreaus for Chief of Army and
Senator Jim Webb, Secretary of Defense...somebody
running should suggest it.

There is a history of generals who speak truth to Bush and company getting fired. Do you guys say that is not true? That fact makes any general currently in charge suspect in my mind. This is the Bush Army and it is loosing the Iraq occupation. They will continue to loose because there are not enough troops to carry out the current troops on every block program. You do not have to be a general to see that comming.

No dispute on this...Petreaus is in a Catch-22...but he has
the experience to do the best. Will that do?

Probably not. But, we should await...his report.
Then we can talk - powerfully. Patience...hard, but powerfull.

A couple brass hats bent over for Bush, Petraeus has shown he's real. They tried to sideline him then brought him back out of desperation. Watch and learn, experience tells me you won't change your view faster than that, you didn't notice the basic changes he brought, much less take the time to learn about the soldier you so gleefully defame.

But I have watched and I have learned what happens to generals and US Attorneys who have ethics and honor get fired. What does that tell you about those who remain?

Nothing, they can't afford to get rid of all of the good ones, it's called the real world.

There is no real world in the Bush Administration, only loyalty to Bush and the Republican Party.

He has done one thing I give him credit for. He has already committed the unforgivable sin in Bush's eyes. He told the truth when he said it would take 10 years. America will not allow this to continue. He may say in Sept. that some areas show progress while other areas decline. That may indeed be the truth, but our nation does not want to spend 10 years worth of life and treasure over this.

He also said it would take negotiation and acted on it, he's a man, win or lose he deserves respect and a chance.

I don't ever remember anyone saying the War on Terrorism was going to get won overnight. Seems I remember everybody has said it was going to be a long slog before the terrorist are defeated.

Rumsfeld explained that comment by saying slog means quick, hard strike.

Well of course they are reaching recruitment goals, they now allow felons, Cripps, bloods, they are making a new home for gang bangers, and old farts who could never get in otherwise. Is this what you hoped for when the war started with your blessings? Are you in favor of the lowering of standards in the effort to maintain recruitment?

The point you are missing is that most Americans are looking for competence from their leadership, and they want a measure of success in this obtuse war, they are getting neither.

Over four years of smoke and mirrors and you good people are still sucking it up. There is nothing new today we haven’t seen in the past, we heard this same crap from T Franks. Bush is in charge and is ultimately responsible.

You are right, don’t you think it’s a shame this administration finds it so easy to dismiss the reality of the real world? Cheney thinks he is a god over and above the presidency, bush can’t see beyond his bible. As seen on many occasions they can dismiss anyone for any reason regardless of the real world, and that’s why many of us remain so concerned about the future of our beloved America.

Confident in the military’s competence eh, if we had some leadership we wouldn't be faced with such troubles would we.

Yeah right Vaughn. To put it plain as day like so much other stuff you just don't know the facts.

The military has addressed the issue of gang members trying to use the military as a heavy weapons training center.

As old as I am I still got to loose the shirt and submit to tattoo inspections.

Got the wrong tattoo, get a quick trip home.

I guess we could enlist the aid of the tooth fairey, she could wave her magic wand and make it all better, eh?

Isn’t that exactly what we’ve been living with? bush + cheney= tooth fairy

Again, are you in favor of lowering enlistment standards to make the quota, or are you denying the change in standards?

The real world still exists whether they accept it or not, what part of that concept is eluding yhou?

No kidding, reality exists. There is the reality of bushs 26% approval rating, all 26% believe they are dealing with the real world, and then there is the rest of us. I’m pretty much into living with the facts irregardless of where they take us, and you?

My statements about Petraeus are based on the facts, these facts have made no impact on your position, I'm not the one ignoring reality.

No big deal, you're a 26 percenter, at least you're not alone. You can ride this out until Jan 09, not sure what to suggest you do after that.

Petraeus is but one in a long line of yes men subservient to bush.

You think I'm a Bush supprter? That grasp of reality would explain many of your comments.

26% approval is a hell of lot better than the 14% approval rating our new congress has achieved, eh Vaughn?

It's been since the days following 9/11 that over 80% of Americans agreed on something.

I provided 3 in stances of his definately NOT being either a yes man or subservient to Bush, provide specifics or admit that your comment is pure defamation made up of whole cloth.

Well, that's the way it's suppose to be Vaughn, Bush is the commander in chief of the military.

If you want the Generals to be different I'd suggest Guatamala or El Salvadore.

Is that so gunny, if I’m reading you right, bush should be the brains and Petraeus should keep his thoughts to himself? Hasn’t that been the course we followed thus far, and we all see the magnificent results eh. Could generals from Guatemala or El Salvador do a worse job, probably not.

The results on the ground are speaking for all of us. Re; see six o'clock news

In other words you admit your defamation is made up out of whole cloth, thanks for the clarification.

Everyone posting here is correct, IMHO.

The war was misguided, it has gone poorly
under poor leadership without vision...but
there are going to be 100s of thousands come
home from it. If I were one of them...I'd want
to be able to say...I fought under Gen. David Petreaus.

My experience is that being able to say who you
fought under, and with, is all you have sometimes.

History will color the war, soldiers recollections
will color the war. But, thank God...before we come
home there will be men under arms that served
a worthy commander, a combat vet who paid his dues.

I expect his report in September to be true, hard and
uncolored by politics. It may not be enough to excuse
the adventure, but it will be enough for privates seeking
personal, moral justification to hang their helmets on.

37 years after I had to search for such, I appreciate
the value. I'd want to say my commander was Petreaus.
It ain't everything, but maybe just enough to deal with it.

Kudos for the educational background, but I don’t see any combat experience here, how would you know if he had what it takes to lead under fire? He may have been good under fire, or maybe not, one never knows until the shooting starts and he never experienced that.
I can say I fought under Gen Westmoreland, and so……………….BFD

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Petraeus

Petraeus entered the U.S. Military Academy in 1970. He was commissioned an infantry officer upon graduation in 1974, too late to see combat in Vietnam. He began his career with an assignment to a light infantry unit, the 509th Airborne Infantry Battalion at Vicenza, Italy; ever since, light infantry has been at the core of his career, punctuated by assignments to mechanized units, command staffs, and educational institutions.
After leaving the 509th as a first lieutenant, Petraeus began a brief association with mechanized units when he became assistant operations officer on the staff of the 2nd Brigade, 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized) at Fort Stewart, Georgia, and in 1979, when he was promoted to captain, he was charged with a company in the same division: Company A, 2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment (Mechanized). Later, in 1978-79, he also served as operations officer to the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized)'s 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment (Mechanized) and its 1st Brigade. In 1981, Petraeus became aide-de-camp to the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized)'s commanding general. (According to NPR his record as aide to various general officers has led some of his detractors to characterize him as a "professional son.")[4]
Petraeus left the 24th's 19th Infantry to continue the higher education he began at West Point, earning the General George C. Marshall Award as the top graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College Class of 1983 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He subsequently earned a MPA and a Ph.D. in international relations from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1985 and 1987, respectively, and later served as an Assistant Professor of International Relations at the U.S. Military Academy. His doctoral dissertation, "The American Military and the Lessons of Vietnam: A Study of Military Influence and the Use of Force in the Post-Vietnam Era," dealt with the influence of the Vietnam War on military thinking regarding the use of force. He also completed a military fellowship at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service in 1994-95, although he was called away early to serve in Haiti.
After earning his Ph.D. and teaching at West Point, Petraeus continued up the rungs of the command ladder, serving as military assistant to Gen. John Galvin, the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. From there, he moved to the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) and then to a post as aide and assistant executive officer to the U.S. Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Carl Vuono, in Washington, D.C. He would return to the Pentagon in 1997-99 as Executive Assistant to the Director of the Joint Staff and then to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Henry Shelton.
Upon promotion to lieutenant colonel, Petraeus moved from the office of the Chief of Staff to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he commanded the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)'s 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment from 1991-93. As battalion commander of the Iron Rakkasans, he suffered one of the more dramatic incidents in his career when, in 1991, he was accidentally shot in the chest during a live-fire exercise when a soldier tripped and his rifle discharged. He was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, where he was operated on by future Senator Bill Frist. [5]
During 1993-94, Petraeus continued his long association with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) as the division's director of plans, training, and mobilization. His next command, from 1995-97, was the 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, centered on the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment. At that post, his brigade's training cycle at Fort Polk's Joint Readiness Training Center for low-intensity warfare was chronicled by novelist and military enthusiast Tom Clancy in his book "Airborne." In 1999, as a brigadier general, Petraeus returned to the 82nd, serving as the assistant division commander for operations and then, briefly, as acting commanding general. From the 82nd, he moved on to serve as Chief of Staff of XVIII Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg during 2000-01. In 2000, Petraeus suffered his second major injury, when, during a civilian skydiving jump, his parachute collapsed at low altitude due to a hook turn, resulting in a hard landing that broke his pelvis.

I stand corrected, and educated...
sh*t, can't we find one Col. David Hackworth
in the whole GD Army?

Another political general. He came up being STAFF and going to school. Of course that does not mean he cant lead and command. I am not holding my breath on that one. I say that because he is a Bush general. How does Bush pick generals? You say and do what Bush says no matter how stupid it is.

The combat experience was in Iraq, this isn't his first tour. He's a well respected general who got a lot done and gained the respect and cooperation of local leaders.

Had Petreaus spoken truth to power he would have my respect, but he didn’t. He sucked the shrubs orders up like he was still a “butter bar”. He never said a word about what it would really take to pacify Iraq so we could begin a withdrawal. Since the day the statue fell a large contingent of military and vets were saying this situation would require a half a million troops to stabilize Iraq. They didn’t have the proper resources and they didn’t give a crap. It would have taken political will and backbone to go to the people and say we blew it and now we need a bigger military even if it takes a draft. Had this war been worth it the American people would do as they have done before when facing a real threat, they would have given bush what ever he needed. The idea was a joke, Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, and they knew very few folks would support it if they knew the those facts, Petreaus knew the facts and said nothing. The facts are now well known, and we see how many Americans still support bush’s war.
I must add that our military has stood up and done more than they were asked to do. They have been magnificent, and even knowing their boss is an idiot they continue to follow orders without question. They are once again proving to this old soldier why America is so great.

Wake up and smell the coffee gunny, these ain’t the same requirements that were the standard in the past.
I will say one thing, my heart goes out to those 42 year olds willing to give it a shot.

He said the approach they'd been taking would always fail, got at least some of the changes he advocated, said they needed more troops and actual diplomatic support and covered his men for doing their duty when Cheney was selling them out. Sorry he wasn't man enough to violate the UCMJ and just let them get slaughtered to look good to you.