Bush administration officials have told key lawmakers not to expect a U.S. attack on Iraq before the fall elections, allowing time for Congress to debate the possibility of war.
The assurances square with Pentagon estimates that it would take until early next year to have the weapons, intelligence and forces in place to take on Iraq’s 375,000-man army. One key factor: U.S. soldiers can’t fight in Iraq’s summer or autumn heat wearing protective gear against chemical or biological weapons attack.
Hogwash. Bullshit. Balderdash. Nonsense.
I was in the Kuwait desert during the summer. It was miserable hot and we had to take precautions. Yes, I watched my buddies urinate to make sure their urine was not a thick yellow, and if it was, I sat them down and made them drink water. Yes, I had to wear leather gloves every time I touched a tool because otherwise I would burn the hell out of my hands (the sun is that hot). Yes, I had to wear long sleeves and a floppy jungle hat to keep from getting roasted. Yes, I had diarrhea from bad water for a month. Yes, it was 140 degrees inside an M1A1, and at points I thought I was going to dry up and blow away. Yes, I was cold at night when the temperature dropped to 90 (imagine the temperature dropping from 70 to 20- the same difference from 140 to 90).
All those things were true. But anyone who suggests that I would have been incapable of doing my job when ordered to, even with the extra burden of an NBC suit and protective mask, is a moron and a liar and seriously underestimates the training and spirit of the armed forces.
This article is as insulting as it is stupid.