The SysAdmin needs to keep good records . . .
Fascinating piece by Broder in the Post
Share the Facts on The WarBy David S. Broder
Thursday, August 4, 2005; Page A23
The common theme of the controversies roiling the capital this summer is the contest over access to vital information. This is one of the classic points of contention between the executive and legislative branches, but the conflict is sharper than usual this year . . .
As I wrote earlier, Congress, in a little-noted section of the defense spending bill passed this spring, had ordered Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to deliver a detailed report by July 11 on a long list of measures gauging Iraq's economic and political stability, the extent of the insurgency, and the capacity of Iraqi forces to provide security for their own country . . .
It came in two parts, a 23-page public document and a classified annex. The congressional resolution had suggested that questions about planned U.S. force requirements and troop rotations be dealt with in a secret annex, but it asked that everything else be available to inform the public debate.
The Pentagon has not stonewalled the request, but the quality of the information it has given lawmakers and the public is disappointing.
For example, the report includes page after page of blank forms that the coalition command in Iraq has developed to assess the quality of personnel, command and control, training, and logistics in Iraqi military and police forces. But the important question of how many of those units are capable of fighting the insurgency, independently or with help from U.S. and British troops, simply is not answered . . .
Michael O'Hanlon, a defense policy expert at the Brookings Institution, said he was struck by the fact that the Pentagon report not only is silent on the question of the degree of training and preparedness of the Iraqi battalions but also "doesn't capture the quality of the officer corps or the loyalty of the troops. . . . Rumsfeld has a lot more specific information," he said, "and he ought to share it."
Congress has required an update on this report in 90 days, so the Pentagon has an opportunity to improve on the product. The public will be well served if Rumsfeld takes the obligation seriously.
Full story at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/03/AR2005080302012.html
This is a good sign. Congress will increasingly demand good SysAdmin analysis. This will force the Pentagon to develop such measures and make the effort at collection and analysis. This will force debate throughout DoD and USG about what works and what does not.
Congress is doing its job, proving yet again my point: the SysAdmin doesn't come about because it's a cool idea. It comes about because enough failure will convince us all that it beats the alternative.
Side point: Broder remains just about the most sensible op-ed columnist on the planet.