--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored…" description: "\"“The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and bulletproof plates for flak vests was only the most conspicuous demonstration of how the Iraq War..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png" --- # The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and… ![“The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and bulletproof plates for flak vests was only the most conspicuous demonstration of how the Iraq War, like every war -- just or unjust, won or lost -- became a conspiracy of the old and powerful against the young and dutiful.” quote by George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png) > ““The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and bulletproof plates for flak vests was only the most conspicuous demonstration of how the Iraq War, like every war -- just or unjust, won or lost -- became a conspiracy of the old and powerful against the young and dutiful.”” [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote portrays war as a conspiracy where the powerful sacrifice the young, emphasizing the tragic exploitation inherent in conflict. **In simple terms:** War exploits the young for the benefit of the powerful. Key Takeaway Recognize and resist the manipulation of war. Themes war power dynamics generational conflict political critique Mood somber reflective Type political historical When to use this quote - activism - education - policy advocacy Key Concepts sociology military ethics history Questions to Reflect On - How do personal narratives of soldiers fit this view? - What reforms can break this cycle? A Different Perspective The statement may overlook individual agency and complex motives beyond simple exploitation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Iraq war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iraq-war/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Soldiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soldiers/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [The whole idea that the rescue was staged or the soldiers were shooting blanks, that's just obvious stuff. Why would you do that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-lynch/the-whole-idea-that-the-rescue-was-staged-or-the-soldiers-were/) [Jessica Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-lynch/) > [Desertion is the army's dirty little secret. Since the beginning of the Iraq war, more than 20,000 American soldiers have given up the fight.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wil-s-hylton/desertion-is-the-army-s-dirty-little-secret-since-the-beginning-of/) [Wil S. Hylton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wil-s-hylton/) > [I am reading "The Yellow Birds" by Kevin Powers and "Redeployment" by Phil Klay . Both Powers and Klay are Iraq War vets. Klay's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/i-am-reading-the-yellow-birds-by-kevin-powers-and-redeployment-by/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [The Iraq war was always a long shot. But it was made immeasurably longer by its principal architects in Washington, including Douglas Feith, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-iraq-war-was-always-a-long-shot-but-it-was-made-immeasurably/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [I'm reading a bunch of fiction by Afghan and Iraq War veterans for a New Yorker piece. 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There’s just no getting any of it back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/no-one-is-now-what-they-were-before-the-war-there-s-just-no-getting/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Again, in Wag the Dog, war has to be declared by an act of congress. But if you go to war, you don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-kilmer/again-in-wag-the-dog-war-has-to-be-declared-by-an-act-of-congress-but/) [Val Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-kilmer/) > [As the war was just in its origin and necessary and noble in its objects, we can reflect with a proud satisfaction that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/as-the-war-was-just-in-its-origin-and-necessary-and-noble-in-its/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) ## More by George Packer > [I don't think they need to be nice to reporters, but the White House seems to imagine that releasing information is like a tap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/i-don-t-think-they-need-to-be-nice-to-reporters-but-the-white-house/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [So many writers grew up in tortured isolation, in revolt against their families. I and my sister were in a house where writing was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/so-many-writers-grew-up-in-tortured-isolation-in-revolt-against-their/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Afghanistan can't police its borders, and its neighbors give sanctuary and assistance to insurgents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/afghanistan-can-t-police-its-borders-and-its-neighbors-give-sanctuary/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Hillary Clinton's such a classic Democratic political figure and believes so much in institutions and in gradualism in the old way of reaching compromises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/hillary-clinton-s-such-a-classic-democratic-political-figure-and/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [“In other words, Foxx represented what Sarah Palin (speaking at a campaign fundraiser in Greensboro three weeks before the election) called “the real America,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/in-other-words-foxx-represented-what-sarah-palin-speaking-at-a/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [America's vast population of working poor can only get so poor before even Walmart is out of reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/america-s-vast-population-of-working-poor-can-only-get-so-poor-before/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [The Olympics are never just about sports.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-olympics-are-never-just-about-sports/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > ['The Assassins' Gate' is a very tightly controlled story of the ideas that led to the war and the consequences of those ideas in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-assassins-gate-is-a-very-tightly-controlled-story-of-the-ideas/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Amazon's identity and goals are never clear and always fluid, which makes the company destabilizing and intimidating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/amazon-s-identity-and-goals-are-never-clear-and-always-fluid-which/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Ideology knows the answer before the question has been asked. Principles are something different: a set of values that have to be adapted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/ideology-knows-the-answer-before-the-question-has-been-asked/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Everything seems set up for success in digital journalism - money, eyeballs, software, brands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/everything-seems-set-up-for-success-in-digital-journalism-money/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Climate change joined immigration, job creation, food safety, pilot training, veterans' care, campaign finance, transportation security, labor law, mine safety, wildfire management, and scores…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/climate-change-joined-immigration-job-creation-food-safety-pilot/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Much of the international unease with the Sochi Games has focused on the threat of terrorism, Putin's domestic repressiveness, and the Russian campaign of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/much-of-the-international-unease-with-the-sochi-games-has-focused-on/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [I've been interested in American politics since I was eight. That was in 1968. It was an interesting year. I was a huge Eugene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/i-ve-been-interested-in-american-politics-since-i-was-eight-that-was/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [When I interviewed Paul Bremer in his office, he had almost no books on his shelves. He had a couple of management books, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/when-i-interviewed-paul-bremer-in-his-office-he-had-almost-no-books/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) [Explore all 144 George Packer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) ## More Iraq war quotes > [Five days or five months, but it certainly isn't going to last longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/five-days-or-five-months-but-it-certainly-isn-t-going-to-last-longer/) [Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [In the lead up to the Iraq war and its later conduct, I saw at a minimum, true dereliction, negligence and irresponsibility, at worse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-zinni/in-the-lead-up-to-the-iraq-war-and-its-later-conduct-i-saw-at-a/) [Anthony Zinni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-zinni/) > [In any event, it is one thing to assert, then or now, that the Iraq war was ill-advised. It is quite another to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-silberman/in-any-event-it-is-one-thing-to-assert-then-or-now-that-the-iraq-war/) [Laurence Silberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-silberman/) > [The GOP is broken. They need a Bill Clinton moment with someone to figure things out. Let me just say - and I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahm-emanuel/the-gop-is-broken-they-need-a-bill-clinton-moment-with-someone-to/) [Rahm Emanuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahm-emanuel/) > [Pentagon records show that at least 8,000 members of the all-volunteer U.S. Army have deserted since the Iraq war began. Hey, at least somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-fey/pentagon-records-show-that-at-least-8-000-members-of-the-all/) [Tina Fey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-fey/) > [The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/the-british-government-has-learned-that-saddam-hussein-recently/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [“The Crucified is the One most traumatized. He has borne the World Trade Center. He has carried the Iraq war, the destruction in Syria,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-langberg/the-crucified-is-the-one-most-traumatized-he-has-borne-the-world/) [Diane Langberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-langberg/) > [I ran in 2006 as an opponent of the Iraq War, and I came to Congress to change overreliance on U.S. military power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-murphy/i-ran-in-2006-as-an-opponent-of-the-iraq-war-and-i-came-to-congress/) [Chris Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-murphy/) > [ “\[T\]hose who are in a position of strength have a responsibility to protect the weak.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-cushman/t-hose-who-are-in-a-position-of-strength-have-a-responsibility-to/) Thomas Cushman > [The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-byrd/the-last-un-weapons-inspectors-left-iraq-in-october-of-1998-we-are/) [Robert Byrd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-byrd/) > [Heavy as they are, the costs of action must be weighed against the price of inaction. If Saddam defies the world and we fail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/heavy-as-they-are-the-costs-of-action-must-be-weighed-against-the/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The problem is that Iran has been identified as a dangerous enemy, and the longer the media forwards that proposition - and the media…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hooman-majd/the-problem-is-that-iran-has-been-identified-as-a-dangerous-enemy-and/) [Hooman Majd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hooman-majd/) > [It's very hard to understand just what our strategy is in Syria, frankly, and on Iraq that this is Iraq's war, that the role…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ignatius/it-s-very-hard-to-understand-just-what-our-strategy-is-in-syria/) [David Ignatius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ignatius/) > [“You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." --George W. Bush, interview with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/you-know-one-of-the-hardest-parts-of-my-job-is-to-connect-iraq-to-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) [Browse all 351 Iraq war quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iraq-war/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and bulletproof plates for flak vests was only the most conspicuous demonstration of how the Iraq War, like every war -- just or unjust, won or lost -- became a conspiracy of the old and powerful against the young and dutiful.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Packer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-vehicles-and-bulletproof/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Iraq war" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-vehicles-and-bulletproof/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fd/george-packer-2917_iraq-war_the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-v_1446826.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored vehicles and bulletproof plates for flak vests was only the most…” — George Packer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "George Packer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The slow, mismanaged arrival of armored...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-vehicles-and-bulletproof/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/the-slow-mismanaged-arrival-of-armored-vehicles-and-bulletproof/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```