According to the New York Times, a Pentagon commission has concluded that there were significant shortcomings in relation to the securtiy in the region of Yemin before the bombing or the U.S.S. Cole. Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen appointed the commission after the suicide attack on that U.S. warship that killed 17 and wounded 39 servicemen.
The commission's review is to answer the questions of whether anything could have been done to avert the attack on the Cole and if anyone in the chain of command should be held accountable for the "lapses" in security.
The Navy has its own investigation going on into this tragedy and is focusing only on the actions aboard the Cole. They have concluded that the captain of the destroyer and the crew failed to follow strict security procedures on the morning that the attack occurred. It also raised the possibility of disciplinary action against Cmdr. Kirk S. Lippold, the Cole's captain, or other officers and members of the crew.
Personally, I think that all those admirals and the Clinton administration are trying to cover their collective "brass". The main question as to why the Cole was even in the Yemini port needs to be asked and answered. Career military personel should not be used as scape goats.
Let's look at a few facts.
Our U.S. Navy does not have enough refuelers to keep our fleet supplied! For that reason, our ships are forced to go to foriegn ports, which leaves them vulnerable to terrorist attacks, to take on fuel so that they can carry out thier mission and return home.
This is not an idle claim. Take into account what retired U.S. Marine General Anthony Zinni while testifying at a recent Senate hearing. He pointed out that just ten short years ago, every U.S. ship in the region refueled at sea. Now they can't do that. In 1990, we had 32 oilers to refuel our ships. Today, just 21 of the oilers are tending to our fleet's needs.
I served in Beirut, Lebanon. I was not present when the barracks was bombed. However, I was working at a radio station at the time that was "the news authority" for Jacksonville, N.C. I remember the cry to crucify the commander of the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit from the liberals in Congress. That was stopped when the Commander in Chief, President Ronald Reagan, said that this happened on his watch. He claimed responsibility for that tragedy.
We are seeing a marked retreat from that form of leadership under the current administration. Now, the powers that be are attacking the people that were placed in that situation by their superiors while overlooking their own culpability.
If Mr. Clinton and the Pentagon brass, who went along with the raping of our military, want to find the ones responsible for the severe lack of security in this tragedy, I suggest that they look first in the mirror!
The following are pictures of the Cole on the transport ship. This gives you a view of the damage that was inflicted on this warship.
