Charlie Rose

SH  04/09/2008 12:25 PM Report

History will be the ultimate adjudicator.

These "anti-nation building" comments were prevalent post WWII as well. Both Japan and Germany seem to have emerged from US "imperialism" (as it is being labeled by some), quite well.

Jack O'Rourke  03/18/2008 01:29 PM Report

We are not engaged in "nation-building" as the good General suggests.

We are engaged in "empire-building."

What the General describes is nothing more than a return to colonialism under a different name. What we are attempting to do in Iraq is create another Northern Ireland - a ruling class that rules in favor of the colonial power rather than the people of the country. We, of course, have to maintain a military presense indefinitely to ensure that the ruling class remains in power.

The real lesson of Vietnam, Bosnia, Afghanistan, and Iraq is that the US military is nothing more than a hammer and no matter how much time, effort, money and training we put into it, that is all it will ever be.

There may be exceptional commanders here and there that can bridge the gap between being a hammer and a diplomat but the exception proves the rule.

Jack O'Rourke  03/18/2008 01:29 PM Report

We are not engaged in "nation-building" as the good General suggests.

We are engaged in "empire-building."

What the General describes is nothing more than a return to colonialism under a different name. What we are attempting to do in Iraq is create another Northern Ireland - a ruling class that rules in favor of the colonial power rather than the people of the country. We, of course, have to maintain a military presense indefinitely to ensure that the ruling class remains in power.

The real lesson of Vietnam, Bosnia, Afghanistan, and Iraq is that the US military is nothing more than a hammer and no matter how much time, effort, money and training we put into it, that is all it will ever be.

There may be exceptional commanders here and there that can bridge the gap between being a hammer and a diplomat but the exception proves the rule.

FM 3-0 on the net  03/16/2008 01:28 PM Report

Anyone interested in obtaining a copy of the new doctrine discussed in Charlie's interview with LTG Caldweel can download it at www.army.mil/fm3-0

Sandy  03/15/2008 10:28 AM Report

I found your interview with General Caldwell very intersting. Thank you for making such a intelligent and thoughtful guest available to us. I am a writer and wondered whether it is possible to obtain a copy of the FM-30 Operations publication? Must I submit a FOIA request? Best regards, Sandy

fg  03/14/2008 03:19 PM Report

I'm sure Mr. Rose's viewers would welcome a discussion, by a panel of experts, on the relationship between deficit spending (especially on the war in Iraq) and America's current economic woes.

David Hamber  03/14/2008 02:24 AM Report

How can the United States presume to "rebuild" other nations when we can't even keep many of our own roads and bridges in a decent condition.

The annual national survey rated 23 percent of the nation's roads in poor condition, resulting in rough rides and costing the average driver $413 a year in additional vehicle operating costs, according to a report released today by TRIP, a national transportation research group.

Another recent survey indicates that 26.2 percent of the nation's bridges are in need of repair or do not meet the highest safety standards.

The biggest irony of all is the fact that Washington, D.C., has the country's least safe bridges, with 63 percent of the district's 245 bridges rated either structurally deficient or functionally obsolete.

Steve  03/14/2008 01:14 AM Report

Charlie, I have to say that you are up to date with your information, I think you are getting to the heart of the matter when you ask what the Army has learned from its past experiences. Even with some of the best and brightest in the Army, they still find it difficult to take the lessons of the past (Panama) and apply them to similar circumstances (Iraq). Why does it take so long to learn the lesson? FM 3-0, and its emphasis on stability operations, I believe is a step in the right direction. Could it be that after all this time, the Army just needed to write their lessons down?

agree with fg  03/14/2008 01:05 AM Report

WHAT A FATUOUS, PEURILE, SPECIOUS CONCEPT. NATION BUILDING BY THE MOST CRUMBLING FAILING STATE ON THE PLANET. WE NEED A NATION-BLDG ARMY TO INVADE US AND (RE)BUILD OUR INTEGRITY AND HONOR AND OUR FINANCIAL VIABILITY AND OUR SANITY. WHERE WILL THE RESOURCES COME FROM TO FOLLOW THE 'NEW' ARMY MANUAL ON NATION BUILDING. THE COLLOSAL DEGREE OF ARROGANCE TO EVEN CONSIDER WRITING SUCH A MANUAL SCREAMS THAT THE OUTRAGEOUS DECISIONS TO DATE ARE BEING PROGRAMMED TO DRIVE US FURTHER INTO THE ABYSS. IS THAT MORE, "WE HAD TO DESTROY THAT VILLAGE TO SAVE IT?" DESTROY TO REBUILD? GO FIGURE. SUCH HUBRIS COMES INTO FOCUS WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. WE'RE TOAST FINANCIALLY AND MORALLY. BUILD ON THAT - AT HOME. AFTERTHOUGHT - DOES BLACKWATER HAVE A COPY?

RE Mant  03/14/2008 12:29 AM Report

Reminds me of the time I interviewed a senior commander and didn't write it up. When the general complained to my editor, I told him that he simply didn't say anything worth writing about. Remains my view of the utility of interviewing generals.

fg  03/14/2008 12:15 AM Report

Why doesn't the United States mind its own business? What a meddlesome Yenta America has become.