Word: naval
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...Chief of Naval Operations, one of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, came aboard. He was visiting our task force, which was just training, and the rumor went around that he was on his way to the ships patrolling the Nicaraguan coast. He told us that two Marines had died in Lebanon a few hours earlier. A collective gasp went through the assembled crew. Half of it was from anger and sadness; half was worry that the ship would be sent straight to the Mediterranean. The men wanted their scheduled time in port, with their families and friends. Seven months...
...ROTC and, later, in the Navy. But on a larger scale I also saw firsthand some of the underlying factors at work in situations like Nicaragua and Lebanon. The Caribbean Sea and the Pacific coast of Central America are de facto American lakes, completely open to our naval forces and nearly inaccessible to anyone else's. Readily available supply and refueling facilities, a large number of friendly ports, and especially the proximity of the continental United States allow the U.S. to enjoy a constant advantage over the only non-NATO deep water navy in the world--the Soviet Navy...
...there) possesses more airpower than all of Central America combined. The Nicaraguan and other governments in the region are fully aware of this. And no matter what these officials may say in public, it is impossible for them not to take seriously the kind of high-level naval and air operations I witnessed nearly every day for three straight weeks...
...this leads to the other side of the sword. We must not misuse this enormous power against nations like Nicaragua. On a pragmatic level, even vastly superior naval forces are vulnerable to some kinds of stealthy attack, like the Exocet missiles used against Britain in the Falklands conflict. But on a much broader, moralistic plane, it would be simply wrong to abuse our strength, even if there were a reason to use it at all. Reminding unfriendly regimes of American power is fully within the legitimate parameters laid down in the Constitution, and recognized by international law. Attacking nearly defenseless...
...strictly military maneuvers are concerned, however, the United States has so far shown admirable restraint and careful execution. The Marines are clearly still in a defensive and policing mode of operation, even if that defense has broadened to include help for the Lebanese Army. The use of naval gunfire has so far been limited to retaliation against direct shelling of American or Lebanese Army positions. Carrier-based warplanes have thus far held themselves to reconnaissance missions only. In general, American use of military power, although more direct than in Central America, has been very moderately and wisely used in support...