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Putting Matthew Hoh in Context ... and Asking Hard Questions of the Washington Post
A great American, sure, but a reader noticed this important comment posted by "gadstian" on the Washington Post's website at 11:50 yesterday morning.
I am very disturbed by the journalistic standards of this article and strongly encourage Washington Post readers to contact the paper directly.
First, I am currently serving in a PRT in Iraq. I trained with Matt in northern Virginia in April of this past year before we both moved on to our respective assignments. Matt is a smart young man who has honorably served his country, but by no means was or is he an expert on counterinsurgency, Afghan tribal culture, or U.S. strategic policy.
Second-- this article is riddled with inaccuracies to an extent that almost shocks me, and really makes me question its intent and veracity, coming as it does at a critical time in the debate over Afghan policy.
Matt Hoh is NOT a Foreign Service Officer. This basic fact, central to the article and its headline, is wrong, despite the wording in his letter.
Matt is a "3161" State Department employee, a special category of temporary appointments brought on for 12 month assignments in certain areas of expertise-- engineering, ag, business, rule of law, etc. Some may sign on for a second 12-month tour.
This is a very different thing than being an FSO-- a commissioned, career diplomat who is a generalist and is appointed not as a result of an online job application and single interview (sometimes over the phone), but after a series of competitive oral, written, and physical exams.
Referring to Matt as a "U.S. Official" is about as accurate as referring to a postal employee as a U.S. official.
I am not trying to denigrate 3161s or postal employees! But this article gets such basic facts wrong about Matt that I am astounded, and either bespeaks very poor journalism or, worse, an article produced primarily to push a specific political agenda and that knowingly uses false facts to give a certain impression.
There are hundreds, perhaps over 1000, 3161s in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many, many of them are ex-military (having done multiple tours in Iraq and/or Afghanistan), and have also faced combat, death, etc., just like Matt bravely did. In my own PRT, we are rocketed frequently, have small arms fire, IEDs, etc., hit our movement teams, you name it.
My point is that as compelling as Matt's story sounds to civilians, it is a fairly typical story here in theater, and by no means gives one any special insight.
There are so many people here with the same experience--or much more experience--that would passionately disagree with Matt's assessment.
Maybe Matt is right; maybe not. But to present his memo and resignation as a significant event of a "U.S. official" with special insight is, with all due respect to Matt, patently absurd. He is a de factor contractor that was on the ground in his PRT about 4 months! On that, one assesses strategic counterinsurgency??
And I absolutely guarantee the only reason Matt warranted an audience with Holbrooke and sudden offers of a Kabul job on the Embassy's front office was that the State Department was well aware of plans to go very public at a critical time-- plans for articles like this splashed over front pages, offers from detractors of Afghan policy to meet and speak, etc. I don't know Matt well and will not impugn his motivations, I believe he is no doubt sincere. But there is nothing special about him that's not special about hundreds of others still in theater, and I cannot believe that he has simply stumbled into the current publicity without discussions with many people about how to use this situation for maximum effect.
I wish Matt luck, and don't doubt that he will do well, with a career jump-started by the current affair. Again, maybe he's right.
But I challenge the Washington Post to explain what I note above-- How and why do you assert Matt is a Foreign Service Officer? Did you not confirm that with him, or did he present himself as such? How did he come to your attention? Why did you not interview other 3161s or FSOs with different views? And, finally, WHY does someone on the ground for a few months warrant such front page coverage?
I'm a fan of the Washington Post, but as I told a family friend in Tennessee this past weekend who was asking me for good news sources on Afghanistan, the "down-range" reporting the Times, the Post, and the Wall Street Journal produces on Afghanistan is worlds better than anything produced from Washington. Datelines, in other words, matter. I have a little less respect for the Washington Post after this article.
... the "down-range"
... the "down-range" reporting the Times, the Post, and the Wall Street Journal produces on Afghanistan is worlds better than anything produced from Washington. Bylines, in other words, matter.
The fastidious journalist in me feels compelled to say: I think you mean "datelines," no?
Ah, %$#@, you're right. I'm
Ah, %$#@, you're right. I'm an idiot.Times and Post? Times of
Times and Post? Times of London? NY Post? WaPO?
This is important. I'm
This is important. I'm pretty surge-skeptical myself, but the distortion to the debate caused by this prima donna needs to be contained. They're going to come after you good (Greenwald, Sullivan, others). Don't let them knock you off your view. OTOH, if they let it drop and the more substantive news knocks Hoh out of the headlines, I'd say follow suit.
As someone with a deep
As someone with a deep interest in Afghanistan....and who is hopiing to serve there, this blog is incredibly valuable to me. I've learned more here---- the good and the bad about our strategy--- than anyplace else on the net....and I surf the GWOT/COIN sites most every day.
Thanks Andrew for what you do......and staying on top of things the way you do. If you ever come to Miami I'll buy you a steak dinner.
Thanks!
Thanks!Coming from near the end
Coming from near the end home of most of the Iron Brigade. Couple things on this jumped out at me when I finally got to the 'nets. First, interesting in that it says he's going to meet the VP's C/S. The same one who was quoted as saying that his problem with COIN in Afghanistan was because the admin couldn't sell it to the American people, not because as a strategic choice it wasn't a good/better choice on its merits. Which leads to my second observation, how/why was this story written? Did he come to the WP, were they directed by mutual interests, or is this part of the great game of intrigue going on right now in DC where the part of the admin against applying COIN is trying to outflank the opposition in the media? Based on who, the article made a point of putting in the article, he is meeting shortly I'm thinking option 3.
That said, it did make me think whether there was a "hybrid" COIN possible in that country where you could have different strategies in different parts of the country, but all feeding into a common goal.
Maybe we could handle it another way, taking a clue from classic Greek warfare and playing to the President's interests. We get the best COIN basketball player and match them against the best CT dude and winner gets to make the call on CT or COIN for the rest of this Presidential term. We get a quick and final decision and the WP can have a twofer writing Afghanistan and the President's latest basketball team(s) in the same story. We have Ex, Col Gentile and Charles Barkley do the TV color. Pay per view bonanza.
"So while countless
"So while countless memoranda and manuals exist instructing U.S. servicemen on how to wage counterinsurgency campaigns at the operational and tactical levels, there is currently little guidance for how U.S. policymakers should use leverage over its Afghan partners."
Andrew, can you be more specific about proper leverage? (Your words were written before news of the CIA's support of Karzai's idiot brother.)
Sullivan's point, in
Sullivan's point, in essence, is that Hoh penned an articulate, informed, and cogent objection to our current set of policies. And I rather tend to agree with that.
The whole kerfuffle makes me think back to the days when COIN was controversial. A host of disillusioned junior officers returned from tours in OIF and either resigned their commissions, or labored to change strategy and tactics. A handful of them - including you, Ex - gained a degree of media notoriety for their willingness to speak out publicly and forcefully regarding failed policies, and to advocate a change in our approach.
So here's what I'm left wondering about Mr. Hoh: Is he the tip of the iceberg, or just an icecube bobbing in the waves? And, honestly, I don't know the answer to that. I think that within a year or so of the Iraq invasion, the overwhelming majority of junior officers felt that they were pursuing a failed strategy. Most still believed in their mission, but they didn't believe in their leadership or in their approach. How does Afghanistan compare today? Are the troops and civilians deployed in the provinces buying in to McChrystal's new approach, or are they skeptical?
I think that Hoh received the attention he did because many stateside observers - particularly critics of the conflict - suspect that he had the courage and the intelligence to put into writing views that are widely held on the ground. And I'll predict that his continued relevance to the debate will hinge on the accuracy of that assessment. If he has, in fact, articulated views that are widely held, we're going to hear a lot more from him. You've suggested, Ex, that not everyone you've spoken with on the ground shares his vision for A'stan, but you've also suggested that there's tremendous dissatisfaction with the current drift of policy. Can you square that circle for us? Is it Hoh's critique which isn't widely shared, or just his solutions?
Cynic, you put your finger
Cynic, you put your finger on the key question. I don't have the answer, though I suspect Hoh is in the minority among political officers. Visitor above, I think the US has to reconcile differences in strategy and interest between the CIA and ISAF before it can start using leverage to its best effect.Cynic, If he has, in fact,
Cynic,
If he has, in fact, articulated views that are widely held, we're going to hear a lot more from him.
I don't believe he has articulated views that are widely held, but I have a feeling that we will hear a lot more from him anyway.
The comment that you've
The comment that you've found on the Washington Post does make an important distinction between career employees and employees - like Hoh - on limited non-career appointments. For some obvious reasons, someone on a non-career appointment is more likely to publicly resign, so that public resignation is less significant.
I'm not suggesting that this reflects better on career employees or non-career employees - it's just a reflection that we are all governed by practical considerations as well as our principles.
However, the reporting isn't as black and white as the letter states. Yes the headline and first sentence are (from the perspective of the State Department) misleading, but the original WP article clearly stated that Hoh had been hired into a one-year position. Unfortunately, journalism is often about simplifying complicated narratives.
What bothers me most of all
What bothers me most of all is his conclusion that the insurgency is in its essence localized (by valleys even). I have found in my experience here among the Ghilzai that this is far from being accurate to put it mildly.
Of course a war-needer like
Of course a war-needer like Abu Muqwama cherry picks the media and tries to tear down a story that undermines the case for the war the COIN industry needs to stay relevent.
Oh, good grief, Ex, stop
Oh, good grief, Ex, stop jumping on this guy. Considering how much press you get, it is amazing that you would make these sorts of arguments. You're just a retired O-3, grad student with a memoir. You're quite literally the last person who should be making this case.
We listen to people like you and maybe Hoh because they seem smart and have managed to get the respect of various senior folks. There is nothing magic about being an FSO than provides wisdom any more than there is about being a college professor or whatever.
We listen to people like you
We listen to people like you and maybe Hoh because they seem smart and have managed to get the respect of various senior folks. There is nothing magic about being an FSO than provides wisdom any more than there is about being a college professor or whatever.
This is a ludicrous argument. "We" are listening to Hoh because his resignation was headline news. One might reasonably expect that Hoh to be atypically qualified or senior for his resignation to be given such a high media profile. A think it's perfectly reasonable for people to come out and say "look, this guy's opinion is just one of many," even though I happen to share a lot of his views. When a story is covered the way this one has been, it implies a certain crisis in the ranks or something, and it seems plain that this is just an instance where one guy's significant but not exactly original reservations have been sensationalized by a group of people that are crying out for a visible and articulate champion "inside the system."
Is there anything to confirm
Is there anything to confirm the allegations in the comment by "gadstian"?
Is taking a comment on the internet as the truth without checking its veracity as bad as the accusation you're making towards WaPo?
I hear the Post is working
I hear the Post is working on a Counter-COIN field manual.
I thought Joe Biden was
I thought Joe Biden was working on the Counter-COIN field manual?
One guy (thanks for your service!) writes a letter......
Gulliver: But the media
Gulliver:
But the media jumped on it because there was a backstory that Eikenberry and Holbrooke has personally tried to convince him to stay. He's important because because Tony Blinken invited him to meet with him personally. He's apparently done more than just impressed a group of outside critics looking for a standard-bearer.
I don't know him from a hole in the wall. I've never heard of him. But reading that senior officials thought enough of him to call him in for personal meetings is significant.
--BF
But reading that senior
But reading that senior officials thought enough of him to call him in for personal meetings is significant.
I agree with you here, though I think it's probably fair to assume that Eikenberry and Holbrooke recognize how damaging it looks for ANYbody to be quitting at a time when we're talking about how important it is to have civilian contributions to the COIN effort.
As for Blinken, I think that one's pretty self-explanatory.
Bernard Finel is precisely
Bernard Finel is precisely correct that the salient point is not whether Hoh is an FSO, but that the resignation of this 'unimportant' individual reached such stratospheric levels as Eikenberry and Holbrooke. Can you imagine if the fellow had been a DoD contractor who had resigned and the issue was taken up at the three or four star level? I very much regret to say that your post on this subject, while somewhat useful in clarifying minor details, whether intentionally or unintentionally, tends to distract from the substance.
OK, I gotta call
OK, I gotta call bullshit.
"There are hundreds, perhaps over 1000, 3161s in Iraq and Afghanistan"???? What???!!!???!!!!
I have to say this news to me. I've been to Iraq and have never met or heard of these 3161's.
This little story is making the 3161's sound like the 80's State Department GLG20. Think about it. :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eB8sG4smWbo
OK, just did a quick search. Thank you Google.
http://careers.state.gov/iraq-jobs/compensation.html <--- Wow click this link.
HOLY S&IT!!!!! These 3161's can make up to $227,300 for pay year 2009????!!?!?!!?!?! YOU GOT TO BE FRIGGIN KIDDING ME! Almost a quarter of a Million Dollars for 1 year of work!!! Whoever invented this 3161 should be shot, burned and Hilary Clinton should piss on his/her ashes!!!
"Comment by Sailani on
"Comment by Sailani on October 28, 2009 - 2:47pm"
Didn't know you worked with the Ghilzai. Could you perhaps share more about that? Most of the Ghilzai live in Pakistan, I believe (although it seems many Pakistanis and Indians tend to call all Pashtuns "Pathan" and not differentiate between the tribes) In fact the Ghilzai ruled most of India for some time, including in the mid 1500s AD.
Oh by the way, Registan is lucky to have you as a new commentator. :-)
I think Hoh's observations may have related to Zabul. In parts of Zabul, could Ho's observation be accurate?
Snake: HTS Social
Snake:
HTS Social Scientists, when you factor in the various add-ons to base salary, make $200,000+.
This reminds me of Dan
This reminds me of Dan Rather running a story that relied on falsified documents.
Exum wrote: "I'm a fan of the Washington Post..."
Why? Even before this, why?
Tangentially
Tangentially on-topic
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/georgepacker/2009/10/what-obama-an...
PS. I dont think this
PS. I dont think this necessarily is a "Small War" or a "counterinsurgency" anymore, nor is it a "peacekeeping mission". Both the US, NATO, and Pakistan are now engaged and the oppos hold the initiative still, as seen in Kabul and in Peshawar.Its a clusterf of a deathlock with a very resilient enemy with substantial amount of veteran knowledge still untapped.
War in Waziristan is never funny. If the Pakistani pashtun network goes fully to war, a lot of hard men might sign up.I hope someone has been doing the calculations on long-term scenarios.
Doesn't surprise me. Amuses
Doesn't surprise me. Amuses me though that a Democratic Administration is now getting a taste of the yellow press that people in the previous Administrations had to deal with for the last eight years.
I appreciate you covering
I appreciate you covering this. I wrote about this yesterday here: http://lifeafterjerusalem.blogspot.com/2009/10/before-inevitable-critici...
I have linked to you at
I have linked to you at http://lifeafterjerusalem.blogspot.com
Agree or disagree with what
Agree or disagree with what he said the man has the right to say it, If media outlets jump on what they perceive as a good story, that allows them to forward their agenda - and as a working staffer for a media org we all have agendas, then that's going to happen.
It will be interesting to see if he a stand alone of if there are more staffers out there who feel the same enough to either resign or at least go on the record. Bear minimum it will worth waiting to see if the Post et all start to run with more unnamed FSO/Employee/Contractor is AFPAK with gripes to spill stories.
If that's the case then we certainly owe it to all involved to accept the fact them possibly there are a lot of unhappy civilians working there , ann as Veritas said aren't we trying to encourage more to sign up.
HTS Social Scientists will
HTS Social Scientists will be the reason we lose this war....Anthropologists and people like Montgomery McFate have no reason to be on a battle fiend / they have sent us down a path we will never recover from.
Several of my FSO colleagues
Several of my FSO colleagues resigned over State's/Uncle Sam's position towards gay couples and the serious problems it causes for couples overseas. Didn't make any news at all until an ambo did it (viz. Michael Guest). Your resignation statement only matters if it ruffles the right person's feathers.
Snake, if you do more
Snake, if you do more checking you will find that is a pretty standard pay scale for contractors in Iraq, especially after Iraq instituted its 17% "Blackwater tax" levy on all contractors. And I have met contractors here in AFG whose pay is similar.
if you want civilians with useful skill sets to volunteer to live in a war zone, work 80+ hour weeks, and put up with all the mickey mouse restrictions and low quality of life, you have to pay.
@ anan on October 28, 2009 -
@ anan on October 28, 2009 - 5:37pm
Absolutely, his observations may be accurate in his area. They are also accurate where I am in to a certain extent. What I had a problem with was, what I understood to be, a characterization of the insurgency as primarily a locally motivated and fueled enterprise whose fragmentation is its main characteristic - hinting also that the presence of international forces is THE key driver of the insurgency. I disagree strongly with this as I see the insurgency as much more of a network of interconnected local nodes that fit into an overall narrative, if you will, that is strategic and regional.
The local is of course very important in our work here, and I often say and believe, that the "win" here lies at the district level. COIN strategies therefore ought to focus on local situations in an attempt to dislocate the insurgents from there, reduce their influence and ensure those areas are integrated into the social contract that is the backbone of a functioning state (services provided in return for allegiance, taxes, etc.). This isn't groundbreaking stuff, but if we look at the insurgency as primarily as a localized phenomenon (in small pockets all over) it makes me think of someone drying up water on the floor of a house, but failing to consider that the puddles are caused by a leaky roof (if you'll permit the rather weak analogy).
I'm impressed that Exum was
I'm impressed that Exum was perusing the comments at WashPo. That is some high-brow reading, for sure.
If Hoh was just one of a
If Hoh was just one of a thousand similar Americans serving in Afghanistan, and he had only been there for 4 months, then why is his opinion significant enough to print his letter in the WaPo? Maybe the reason his letter was printed had less to do with the war in Afghanistan and more about the political battle in Washington. Could the fact that his opinion more or less slammed COIN & endorsed the Biden plan have something to do with it?
"If you do more checking you
"If you do more checking you will find that is a pretty standard pay scale for contractors in Iraq, especially after Iraq instituted its 17% "Blackwater tax" levy on all contractors. And I have met contractors here in AFG whose pay is similar."
===============================================================================
This is just another reason why we would be using the draft to recruit the best and the brightest into the military ranks and ditch the use of contractors. We could be saving a hell of a lot of money and ended this war a long time ago. This is another reason this war has dragged on for so long, is because the contractors are doing everything to delay a decisive victory and not doing this jobs responsibly.
I bet you a chicken dinner that if we had been using the draft the last 5 years in Iraq and Afghanistan, both wars would be over. We wouldn't be continually dumping trillions of dollars into this ever-lasting dynamo of violence, bloodshed and money. The only people getting rich are the construction companies and contractors. case in point, Paul Pelosi, husband to Nancy owns a construction company that does all the over-head cover in Iraq and Afghanistan. Along with their investments in the stock market, they are one the wealthiest couples in America because of these wars.
Research it yourself and find out.
Abu: "... the "down-range"
Abu: "... the "down-range" reporting the Times, the Post, and the Wall Street Journal produces on Afghanistan is worlds better than anything produced from Washington. Bylines, in other words, matter."
Comment by Gregg Carlstrom:
"The fastidious journalist in me feels compelled to say: I think you mean "datelines," no"
Bylines matter at least as much. If somebody's predictions were wrong before, why believe them now?
If The Village followed that rule, the neoconmen would be nothing more thant picked-clean skeletons hanging in chains in front of their various 'think tanks'.
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