'Support the troops' mantra is a tired argument

I DISAGREE with Greg Stevens ("Yet more Bush-bashing," Letters, June 4). He claims that James Carroll, in his May 25 op-ed, slapped "American servicemen and women in the face by stating that the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan are failures." Clearly, Carroll was slapping incompetent, or worse, leadership in the face with phrases such as "at the peak of the chain of command." I have the utmost respect for our troops; I have a son in the Army. But they are faced with impossible situations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Despite the infamous "mission accomplished" banner, it is hard to argue objectively that those campaigns are not failures. Failures of leadership? Yes. Failures of the troops? No.