The Cost of Unchecked Rage

“Let them loot. After all they’ve been through, they deserve it,” the Battalion Commander for 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group told his staff.

The place: Baghdad, Iraq.
The time: April 2003.

Immediately after the ground invasion and occupation of Baghdad, residents began breaking into the homes of Saddam supporters, taking food, money, furniture—basically everything that wasn’t nailed down. We watched from the relative safety of our compound. The Colonel was right, to an extent. These people had endured a violent dictatorship for over twenty years, many losing family members to political purges, war, and other atrocities. Let them rage.

Then they started knocking down the walls of houses to strip out copper piping. Soon, they were doing the same to government buildings—hospitals, schools, vital infrastructure. The very things needed to rebuild Iraq were being destroyed. Still, we let them pillage. Anyone familiar with the history of Operation Iraqi Freedom knows what happened next. Things spiraled out of control, dragging the U.S. into an almost twenty-year conflict that cost thousands of lives and billions of dollars.

What’s the lesson here? I believe there are two—one on the international stage and another within our own borders.

International
There were many reasons why we allowed the looting to continue, but the main catalyst was a complete lack of planning for what to do after the Iraqi Army was defeated. I was there before, during, and after the invasion. No thought was given to what would come after the Saddam regime fell. All planning focused on tactical routes, Thunder Runs, and what to do if we got slimed.

This is not a new experience for Americans. Every war that dragged on indefinitely was the direct result of unclear objectives. Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq—all wars that started out fine but ended poorly.

National
Allowing people to “express their rage” is a dangerous game. A few years back, liberal politicians urged Americans to loot, riot, and kill in places like Portland and Seattle. Lawlessness was encouraged and supported, along with attacks on law enforcement, government employees, and public institutions.

Encouraging Americans to harm or kill fellow Americans under any circumstances is inappropriate, irresponsible, and immoral. This is especially true when it’s done purely for political gain.

Whether at home or abroad, politicians and military planners must be cautious when turning a blind eye to—or outright encouraging—destructive rage. Rage builds nothing except more rage.

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Nick is a Police Officer with the Redwood City Police Department in Northern California. He has spent much of his career as a gang and narcotics investigator. He is a member of a Multi-Jurisdictional SWAT Team since 2001 and is currently a Team Leader. He previously served as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army and is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has a master’s degree from the University Of San Francisco.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.