Personally, I think we can learn from our enemies as well as our friends. "Learning" from them does NOT mean agreeing with them. (Hail, Sun Tzu!)
Some "takes" on the Gulf War:
Bush did more than give Powell/Schwarzkopf what they needed and leave them alone.
- George Bush created and held together an incredibly diverse group of nations under a UN alliance that permitted an Arab/Arab war supported, indeed devised and operated, by non-Arabs.
- Bush kept Israel from responding to SCUDs landing on Israeli soil. An Israeli response, however appropriate, would have destroyed the coalition and created a worse mess than we could imagine - possibly starting a regional conflict that could have led to WW3.
- Bush required Powell to justify whatever he needed, then gave Powell everything Powell could justify. Unlike Carter (an honorable but incompetent man), Bush let the military run the war (within the stated parameters of the UN Chapter 7 justification of force).
- Powell not only supported Schwarzkopf, Powell added many divisions that Schwarzkopf never asked for (thinking he had no chance). Powell kept the war from beginning until Schwarkopf said he was ready. (This reflected what Powell had learned from his Vietnam experience and insight.)
- Schwarzkopf held together a shaky coalition of friends and enemies without alienating them and weakening the war effort.
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There's more, but that's not my point.
PLEASE remember that just because a person is anti-gun, that does not make him incompetent in all areas of his life experiences. Just because a person is on our side, fighting gun control, that does not make him moral, reasonable, or correct in his other viewpoints.
We must learn all we can, both from our friends and from our enemies. We must learn to fight in ALL arenas, in ALL forums, for we must not fail! We must win against the forces of tyranny.
I'm starting to get wound up here, so I'll shut down my tirade with the hope we can take what is useful for our struggle from anyone, anywhere, so long as it is moral, effective, and efficient.
((I gotta stop, guys....))