RIP David Hackworth

I had to drop everything when reader CK mentioned in comments that we lost a supreme warror, Colonel David Hackworth. I did not know he was close to death.

For those who don't know him - and you can find more here - this man in the last few years especially has been an outspoken warrior against the abuses by the Pentagon in ways that hurt both our soldiers as well as America.

Funny, my first exposure to the man was on - of all places - Geraldo's old show on MSNBC or CNBC in the leadup to the war after 9-11. I wasn't impressed then, but soon became very impressed when I saw this man speak out so often (mostly through his Web site site his criticism apparently made him unwelcome on network TV) about what Rumsfeld et al were doing so badly.

Another irony is that the rabid right likes to point any of us who criticize the Bush wars as anti-American and anti-soldier. That's far from the truth. While the back-patting Bushies say one thing out loud to the troops and then slash essential services to our soldiers, many of us who did not want these wars have been vocal opponents of the attempts to a) use our soldiers improperly and b) remove support and services for our soldiers and vets. I've written more letters in support of troop and veteran services than I have opposing the war, for example. Instead, we want our soldiers to only make sacrifices when the situation warrants it, and I do not believe Iraq (or even Afghanistan with the exception of capturing - which we haven't done - bin Laden) meets that standard. Soldiers should not be used as political pawns, as they have too often been.

Likewise, "Hack" as he was called, not only served bravely and long in the military, he spent his retirement years calling attention to the abuses, the lies, and the outright treacheries.

Thank you, Col. Hackworth, for fighting the good fight for so long. You will be terribly missed.