General Dimzinni

Well, I got home today from our accreditation assignment. We had an excellent exit interview with the Chief of Police and his staff. I am impressed by the quality of the personnel who work in the Hamburg PD and the entire town can take pride in their fine police department. The civilian and sworn members do an outstanding job and it was readily apparent to three outsiders (the team) who took a close look at the operations of this agency.

But I can't say the same thing about some people who will say and do anything to profit at the expense of their country. On August 2, 1974, I took an oath of office swearing before God and man that I would defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New York. Upon retiring I don't remember anyone saying, "Oh, that oath you took twenty-four years ago? Forget it, it's null and void. We no longer require your assistance." I look out for the best interests of my community, my State and my Country. It just seems to me that as I am drawing a pension, I'm still getting paid to do that.

But apparently General Anthony Zinni doesn't agree. Some may protest, saying, let's cut the guy some slack. He is a general with an honorable career and there is nothing in that career that would indicate that he has forgotten his oath of allegiance when sworn in as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1965.

But to forget his testimony of only six years ago when, as the Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command at MacDill AFB, Zinni testified before Congress that "Iraq remains the most significant near-term threat to U.S. interests in the Arabian Gulf region. This is primarily due to its large conventional military force, pursuit of WMD, oppressive treatment of Iraqi citizens, refusal to comply with United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR), persistent threats to enforcement of the No Fly Zones (NFZ), and continued efforts to violate UN Security Council sanctions through oil smuggling," Zinni told Congress early in 2000.

There is more That Zinni told Congress and it in context of what he is saying now, it is sickening... perhaps treasonous.

"While Iraq's WMD capabilities were degraded under UN supervision and set back by Coalition strikes, some capabilities remain and others could quickly be regenerated. Despite claims that WMD efforts have ceased, Iraq probably is continuing clandestine nuclear research, retains stocks of chemical and biological munitions, and is concealing extended-range SCUD missiles, possibly equipped with CBW payloads. Even if Baghdad reversed its course and surrendered all WMD capabilities, it retains the scientific, technical, and industrial infrastructure to replace agents and munitions within weeks or months. A special concern is the absence of a UN inspection and monitoring presence, which until December 1998 had been paramount to preventing large-scale resumption of prohibited weapons programs. A new disarmament regime must be reintroduced into Iraq as soon as possible and allowed to carry out the mandates dictated by the post-Gulf War UN resolutions."

As CINC of Central Command from August 1997 through September 2000, he would have been responsible for preparing our nations assessment and response to potential military problems in his Area Of Responsibility. This assessment would have been made available to the President-elect upon taking office. For my understanding of what responsibilities a CINC must handle, I rely upon Bob Woodward's excellent book, The Commanders.

As A CINC he would have been responsible for identifying every single area within his command (which includes the Near and Middle East) that could be a problem for the US. And he did so!

From today's The American Thinker:

"... as reported by the Chicago Tribune on October 2, 2000:
Zinni has briefed senior administration officials on a secret war plan that details how the U.S. military, with limited allied help, would seek to topple Hussein. The effort would be massive, involving possibly as many as half a million troops, according to one knowledgeable official.

The article continued:

Although he has confidence in U.S. forces, Zinni has no illusions that such a scheme could win public support, considering the cost in lives and dollars it would almost certainly involve.
Yet, conceivably the most telling statement made by Zinni in this piece was the following:
Containment is what you do when you can't come up with the popular will to take decisive military action. [emphasis added]"

And this (getting rid of Hussein) is exactly what we did. And three years later this weasel starts chewing on the ankles of the leaders who replaced him.

The American Thinker has even more on the pre-war intelligence aspects and another excellent article on Zinni's apparent ineffectiveness as a CINC and his affiliations after his departure from the USMC. From the May 2004 article:

Ineffectiveness:
"So, it appears that Gen. Zinni and CENTCOM had become very proficient at troop withdrawals, disaster relief, and shooting cruise missiles at empty tents. To be fair, Gen. Zinni was but the last in line of three CENTCOM commanders (the others being Hoar and Peay), who were essentially outmaneuvered by Iran. Even worse, they allowed a build-up of Iranian forces in the Persian Gulf and the Horn of Africa. These moves were countered by nothing stronger than the strategies of withdrawal (Somalia), shows of force, and the ever-popular but widely misunderstood concept of “engagement.”

Affiliations:
"It seems the General is a Distinguished Military Fellow on the Washington, D.C. staff of the Center for Defense Information www.cdi.org. The mission statement for this organization is:

dedicated to strengthening security through: international cooperation; reduced reliance on unilateral military power [emphasis mine] to resolve conflict; reduced reliance on nuclear weapons; a transformed and reformed military establishment; and, prudent oversight of, and spending on, defense programs.

A quick glance of the list of people on CDI’s Board of Advisors includes such great military thinkers and left wing activists and donors as:

- Ben Cohen – Founder, Ben & Jerry’s Homemade, Inc., South Burlington, Vt.

- Paul Newman – Motion Pictures, Los Angeles, Calif.

- Joanne Woodward – Actress-Director, Westport, Conn. "

I also like to play "Follow The Money." Take a look at Zinni's schedule of speaking engagements for this month.

4 April 2006: 0840-1040 ABC Radio Network Interviews ; 1100-1200 ABC News; 1615 = WBUR On Point; 1900 Book Signing - Council on Foreign Affairs – NYC

5 April 2006: 0800 = CNN American Morning; 1100 = CBS News; 1400 = WNYC- Leonard Lopate Show (NY); 1800 = Taping for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

6 April 2006: 1200 = WXAM Person to Person (NY); 1700 - The Charlie Rose Show; 1900 = Book signing – The Oxonian Society (NY)

9 April 2006: 1100 = CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer

10 April 2006: 1000 = WHYY (Phil.) Radio Times; 1130 = CN8 (Phil.) Larry Kane Show; 1730 = Book signing The Gershman Y (Phil.)

11 April 2006: 1200 = KOA The Mike Rosen Show (DC); 1830 = Book signing World Affairs Council

12 April 2006: 0900 = WUSA TV (DC); 1100 = Diane Rehm Show

17 April 2006: 1500 – TV – Tavis Smiley (LA)

18 April 2006: 1500 = KGO The Pete Wilson Show (SF); 1830 = Book signing World Affairs Council

19 April 2006: 0815 = KTVU TV Mornings on Two (SF); 1130 = Book signing MarineÂ’s Memorial Club; 1830 = Book signing World Affairs Council (SF)

20 April 2006: 1900 = Book signing, Vroman’s Bookstore – Pasadena

21 April 2006: 0900 = Book signing, City Club on Bunker Hill – Town Hall (LA)
2000 = TV, CBS, Real Time with Bill Maher

22 April 2006: 1100 = Book signing, Channel City Club, Santa Barbara; 1600 = Book signing, Pacific Council

27 April 2006: 1500 = Radio, WGN Extension 720 (Chi.); 1800 = Book signing, Pritzker Military Library

28 April 2006: 1300 = Book signing, Union League Club of Chicago; 1900 = Book Signing, Harry Schwartz Books, Shorewood, WI.

29 April 2006: 1900 = Book signing, Council on Foreign Relations

Dimzinni may have forgot what he said six years ago but he displays amazing recall on what side his bread is buttered on. Maybe I'm just too much of a cynic, but there's nothing like a little controversary to heighten interest in what you have to say. Even if you contradict what you said previously.