The Nation | Blog | The Daily Outrage | Soldiers Speak Out | Ari Berman: "Poor Training:

Donald Rumsfeld, December 7, 2003: 'Our force today is as trained, equipped, experienced, combat hardened, benefiting from lessons learned in Afghanistan, benefiting from lessons learned in Iraq, benefiting from lessons learned in the post-major conflict portion of Iraq.'

 

Awbalth, a soldier from CA, October 20, 2004: 'The thing we needed most in Iraq wasn't bullets, body armor, cash, air conditioning, hot chow, or armored vehicles, although we were short on all of these things; the thing we really needed the most was training and preparation. We had no or very little training on urban combat tactics, raids to detain or kill targeted individuals, collecting, reporting, analyzing, and using human intelligence, developing sources of information, using interpreters, bomb/unexploded ordinance detection and disposal, handling of detainees, questioning detainees, use of non-lethal force, cordon and search operations, and riot control. This lack of training has caused the deaths of untold numbers of soldiers and Iraqis.'"

(Via The Nation Weblogs.)