Yup. I was so disgusted by Carter at this point that I thought about how he couldn’t even get this one right... (& I DIDN’T vote for him). The next month Mount St. Helens blew and distracted me for awhile (as I responded that day, 18 MAY 1980).
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Carter had the opposite of the midas touch. Even when he eventually made the right decision, it still went to shit.
Nice person, terrible president. I remember in the 90s he was swinging a hammer down in Liberty City for Habitat for Humanity. He was just there to help, no press and he didn't want recognition and there was a drive by shooting on the construction site. He also died in a way I wouldn't wish on anyone but the worst serial killer / pedos. The guy just couldn't buy a break, not that it alleviates him of any of his terrible policy decisions.
The most ironic thing is Carter did actually manage to free the hostages, he negotiated until the last hours of his presidency and finally they agreed to release the hostages if Carter unfroze Iranian assets. But the hostages didn't leave Iranian airspace until after Reagan was sworn in and as a result most people credit Reagan with getting the hostages freed when it was really just a final FU from Iran to Carter.
It's a tragedy Eagle Claw didn't work. If we got similar results that Thatcher got with the SAS retaking the Iranian Embassy in London we probably wouldn't have had to endure most of the BS from that region. Obviously our hostage situation was just a bit more complex. I also don't think Carter knew how to effectively use the military, especially special forces. His efforts seemed to stress the inclusion of every branch of the armed forces making a complicated plan even more complicated. Sometimes the results are more important than making sure everyone gets equal recognition and participation.
I was able to meet two of the Iranian hostages. One was the father of a fellow cadet at Fort Knox during Basic Officer Candidate School. We were in the same platoon. The other lived in the town I work in and he worked at Crane NSWC.
I was a freshman at Indiana University when Desert One occurred.
My how the time has gone.
I was just a wee lad, but severely disliked Carter's politics and policy, which has only been reinforced over the past 40-something years. With regards to Eagle Claw, at least he had the balls to try, and he took full responsibility.
Regarding bolded/italicized, we did not have SOCOM, we didn't have special operations unified commanders, we didn't have 160th SOAR, we didn't have dedicated capability. That's why we had to use every branch. Out of those ashes came those things.
Right?
Remember it? I wasn't born for nearly a decade afterwards. Though, with the state of the military, our current POTUS's own Carter-like ability to fail, and tensions with Iran, I do wonder if I'll get my chance to remember an upcoming live fire reenactment.
I was so pissed at Ford, that like a just turned 18 idiot I voted for Carter.
Years later Carter came to Israel in 1983, I had moved to Israel and had one war under my belt by the time he arrived.
We were hosting some people from England and one of the officers father had been in the King David hotel when it had been blown up. So he had pre trip requested a meal at the hotel, which we did. Carter was also staying at the hotel at the same week. So after the meal, as I was leaving the hotel, I saw a female member of the Shabak protection, she had a huge afro and well the rest is history.
I will never vote for a democrat as long as I live, you vote for one democrat and you have to live with the pain in the neck forever. But she put up with a lot wars, chasing terrorist, and a lot of time away from home and country through the decades.
Yes he did, but the real problem is he attempted diplomacy far too long. He should have realized if a country can't even respect your embassy, there can be no real diplomacy. He suffered from Jimmy Carter syndrome which is basically "I'm a reasonable, rationale person and then assuming everyone else must be also." I don't think he could even conceptualize the extremist views of the average Iranian, much less the militant, martyristic views of the revolutionaries.
I understand that, I even understand that Delta as also pretty new. But Eagle Claw still seemed needlessly over complex. While on a much smaller scale we were able to pull off stuff like Son Toy, which all things considered had a high probability for failure. But it did seem like Carter tried to include everyone and give everyone a meaningful role over letting the experts say what they needed and just doing that. I'm not here to criticize Carter, I just don't think he knew how to use the military as effective as other presidents. Reagan also didn't have SOCCOM but he generally knew how to use the military to it's own best advantage.