It never rains but it pours. Seymour Hersch in The New Yorker:
As the ground campaign against Saddam Hussein faltered last week, with attenuated supply lines and a lack of immediate reinforcements, there was anger in the Pentagon. Several senior war planners complained to me in interviews that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his inner circle of civilian advisers, who had been chiefly responsible for persuading President Bush to lead the country into war, had insisted on micromanaging the war?s operational details. Rumsfeld?s team took over crucial aspects of the day-to-day logistical planning?traditionally, an area in which the uniformed military excels?and Rumsfeld repeatedly overruled the senior Pentagon planners on the Joint Staff, the operating arm of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. ?He thought he knew better,? one senior planner said. ?He was the decision-maker at every turn.?
Hebben ze daar dan echt niets geleerd over micromanagen en oorlog voeren?
Enfin, ‘t is een geruststelling dat Rumsfeld niet alleen idiotieën en blunders pleegt als hij over “old Europe” spreekt, maar ook als hij onderhandelt met de legerleiding:
One witness to a meeting recalled Rumsfeld confronting General Eric Shinseki, the Army Chief of Staff, in front of many junior officers. ?He was looking at the Chief and waving his hand,? the witness said, ?saying, ?Are you getting this yet? Are you getting this yet???
Iets dergelijks doen is niet alleen contraproductief, maar zelfs gewoon achterlijk.