June 2006 Archives

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Two Views of Terrorism

By Charlie

The way I see it, there are two main views on terrorism. With the execrable Hamdan decision this week, I thought it apt to distill the terror argument down to two simple choices: we are either at war, or we are not.

If we are at war, terrorism can be defeated. If we aren’t, terrorism can be managed.

At war, everything must be done to prevent the next terrorist attack. At non-war, some measures may be taken to prevent terrorism, as long as they are not controversial.

Those who see a war on terror see terrorism driven by factors we can influence, like tyranny, hateful cultures, corruption, and extremism. Those who view it as a law enforcement issue see terrorism driven by factors we cannot influence, like tyranny, hateful cultures, corruption, and extremism.

At war, terrorists are war criminals, and are lucky to be spared summary execution on the battlefield. At non-war, terrorists are afforded “rights.”

At war, the “laws of war” and Geneva convention are applied to conflicts. When unlawful combatants break the rules, they fall into a new category. When not at war, law enforcement rules are applied, and things like evidence, chain-of-custody, and Miranda rights are considered for terrorists who flaunt the rule of law.

Iranian "fighters" captured in Iraq

By Charlie

Wow:

"IRANIAN PRISONERS"

The captain and other Interior Ministry sources said the commander of the quick reaction force, Colonel Sami Hussein, and two of his men were killed by a sniper.

No other casualties were reported from the clashes and police said it was not clear how many civilians had been killed or wounded in the initial shooting at the convoy. The wounded were taken to a hospital in Baquba.

"We captured a number of militants and were surprised to see that some of them were Iranian fighters," the police intelligence captain said.

An Interior Ministry official, who did not want to be named, also said Iranian gunmen had been captured. Baquba lies 90 km (60 miles) from the Iranian border.

The United States and Britain have accused Shi'ite Iran of meddling in Iraq's affairs and providing military assistance to Iraq's pro-government Shi'ite militias. However, there have been few instances of Iranians actually being captured inside Iraq.

Iranian SF captued in Iraq? Let's put this on page one, editors! Better yet, let's hold them hostage and make outrageous demands!

Snap, Crackle, Pop! An OPFOR Podcast

By Charlie

Hey folks. John and I have finished another podcast, about the current situation between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

John and I have disagreed in the past over the nature of Israeli/Palestinian engagement, and I think we actually arrive at a consensus during our discussion.

Moving on, John and I are trying to sync our schedules to put up a weekly podcast. Our largest barrier is technology. So, as usual, we need to reach out to the audience for help.

How can we fix our podcasts, get rid of the pops, and improve our sound quality?

Technology Update!

By Charlie

Well, I went for the upgraded Toshiba Notebook, the Satellite A105-S4014. It has a biometric fignerprint reader on it, which lets me substitute passwords for my fingerprint.

Thanks to everyone who commented. Except those who recommended Macs. You all are communists*.

Read More »

Breathing Into A Paper Bag, Trying To Stay Calm

By Maj P

Go read this: Supreme Court Rejects Guantanamo War Crimes Trials.

I'm freaking livid. (Language warning!) So is Michelle Malkin, who is more genteel but no less angry.

This gets filed under "The Long War." Yeah. With stuff like this, it'll be a very long war indeed.

Maj P

ps: As the Greaseman says, AND THEY ASK ME WHY I DRINK?

Destination Unknown

By John

The venerable LT SMASH (LT CMDR SMASH, actually) is deploying again. Smooth Seas, Swabbie.

View from the Front

By Charlie

Reader Owen sends me this:

Here's a quick report from former SSG Dave Bellavia, winner of the Conspicuous Service Cross for his actions in Fallujah, who is in Ramadi embedded with the Iraqi Army. His perspective up at the front is far different than the Green Zone din.

Bellavia Sends:

After taking down the mosque and still in a rough area of Ramadi, the Iraqi soldiers began the unprecedented task of cleaning up the mosque. They painted walls, scrubbed floors, fixed doors and repaired broken windows. I told one Iraqi officer, "You guys know there is a war going on right?"

He responded by saying, "Some things are more important than war"…
...Girls in cheap plastic sandals smacked the back end of a donkey as it squealed down the road. I chased after the donkey yelling, "Papa.. Papa". The Iraqis and the children all laughed. It was hard to remember this was home town of so much grizzly violence.

We made it back to the OP site when 2nd Battalion arrived from the 1st Brigade, 1st IA. All these soldiers hanging out. I didn't understand them, they don't understand me... but we are both soldiers. We chain smoke. LAugh. Talk about cars and women. These IA soldiers have the most expensive cell phones I have ever seen. THey must cost 500 dollars a piece. I ask one of the officers how they can afford them. He tells me, "young soldiers is stupid with money. They buy stupid". We are all the same...

...The noise wasn't consistent and when they came closer I could see what appeared to be dump trucks. They stopped and began throwing garbage in the back I was amazed. The municipal govt center in Ramadi have sent in garbage trucks to clean east ramadi. The Iraqi Army shows a pressence for only 24 hours deep in the city, and already the garbage services are being delivered. Ladies and Gentelmen, this is how you win the will of the people. This is where victory will be won in Iraq.

Hotel Tango http://www.vetsforfreedom.org/blog/

Another One Bites the Dust

By Charlie

The Golden Dome Mosque.

Al Qaeda's last stand in Iraq -the one operation that could have split the country and forced an open civil war- failed. One of the scumbags that planned it was rounded up by the Iraqis:

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Eleven Sunni insurgent groups have offered an immediate halt to all attacks -- including those on American troops -- if the U.S. agrees to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq in two years, insurgent and government officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

In other developments Wednesday, a top Iraqi security official on Wednesday said authorities had arrested a key al Qaeda suspect wanted in the bombing of the Shiite Golden Dome shrine last February in Samarra.

Terrorism is still a huge slice of the violence pie in Iraq, but ethno-sectarian killings are by far the most dangerous and easily spread method of mayhem. The terrorists, mostly AQ, took up the strategy of trying to foment ethno-sectarian strife, and thought that the Golden Mosque bombing would be the key to destroying the young democracy. They were wrong. Now the guy that planned it is in custody, likely coughing up the whereabouts of his cell like the coward he is.

AQ is on the run in Iraq, we've got the initiative back, and freedom is on the march.

The Corporal Conflict Update & Future implications

By Charlie

Israel Widens Operations as Gaza Incursion Enters Second Day

June 29 (Bloomberg) -- Israel expanded operations in the northern Gaza Strip, staging air raids in open areas and telling residents it may move into populated areas, as its incursion aimed at freeing a kidnapped soldier entered a second day.

Residents in Khan Yunis, Beit Hanun and other towns were told in leaflets distributed by the army to stay clear of ``combat zones,'' an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman, who asked not to be identified, said by telephone. Soldiers are now stationed outside northern Gaza's borders, she said.

Israeli Air Force jets flew over Syrian President Bashar al- Assad's palace in Damascus early yesterday, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Syrian state television. The army spokeswoman confirmed the report, calling it a ``message'' to Syria about its possible role in the kidnapping.

The Gaza incursion is Israel's biggest in the area since it evacuated settlers last August and September after a 38-year occupation. Hopes that the pullout would reduce Palestinian attacks and help revive peace talks collapsed after Hamas won a majority in the Palestinian parliament in January and militants stepped up rocket launches from Gaza into Israel.

The operation was prompted by the kidnapping of Israeli Corporal Gilad Shilat on June 25 in a raid by Palestinians, including members of Hamas. Israel has accused Khaled Mashaal, a Hamas leader based in Damascus, of involvement in the kidnapping.

The question is: will this trigger a broader conflict? What should we be watching? Here are my suggestions.

-Iran/Lebanese Hezbollah: These guys could open up a new front with Israel, and are well supplied and well armed.

-Egypt: Their forces are staged near the border, ostensibly for “border enforcement,” which translates into keeping the Palestinians in Gaza. During conflicts, large force concentrations of opposing powers parked near each other tend to make situations less stable.

-Syria: Assad is giving material support to Hamas, and got his house buzzed this morning by Israeli fighters. Syria’s army is very degraded, with its Republican Guard probably being the only effective combat unit in the country. However their artillery assets, all aimed at Israel, are armed with the Arab world’s largest chemical weapons stock.

-Gaza itself: We’ll soon see how much of a fight Hamas can muster. Unfortunately for them, Israel is probably the only other army in the world next to us that can pull off a “Fallujah”- type operation and make it successful. BUT if Al-Aqsa makes good on its dubious WMD threat, or something goes wrong with the op, an “Intifada 3” could be launched, triggering a regional crisis.

Two powers have the ability to stop this: America and Saudi Arabia. The Saudis hold the real purse-strings to the Palestinians, and they could stop the conflict in a matter of hours. The suffering of the Palestinians plays well for them, and I doubt they’ll throw in the towel just yet. America can also put pressure on Israel –but I doubt we will.

In the end, this is what the Palestinian people voted for when they elected Hamas, a government that declared a war they cannot win.

Spetsnatz to deploy to iraq?

By Charlie

...Probably not, but this story raises my eyebrows:

MOSCOW, June 28 — President Vladimir V. Putin ordered Russia's secret services today to find and kill those who kidnapped four Russian embassy employees in Iraq and then executed them, the Kremlin announced in a statement.

"The president gave instructions to the Russian special services to take all measures for finding and destroying the criminals who committed this atrocity," the Kremlin said, according to the official Russian Information Agency.

The Russian president has made similarly pointed threats before — against Chechnya's separatist fighters and those who have carried out terrorist attacks in Russia. Early in the second war in Chechnya Mr. Putin vowed to destroy the separatists in their outhouses. And four Chechen separatist leaders have been killed in strikes or raids since the second war began in 1999, most recently on June 17 when Russian forces killed the latest leader, Abdul Khalim Saidullayev.

I don't know what "special services" consist of in Russia nowadays, but with remnants of the KGB, SPF, and intelligence services still intact, its probably nothing to laugh at.

Driving on, this story is relevant to the topic.

Chechnya: Basayev Appointment Sends Signal To Russia And Beyond

PRAGUE, June 28, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- The man who claimed responsibility for the 2004 Beslan school siege, rebel field commander Shamil Basayev, has been appointed vice president of the breakaway republic's separatist government, putting Russia's most-wanted man next in line to become separatist president.

So... the Chechnyan VP is a terrorist. Damn America's imperialism in provoking the worldwide Islamic resistance! I've got a radical solution to this problem. US/Russian relations are pretty cool, but they might be warmed with a renewed security bargain. This bargain could include some of the arms control negotiations that Putin wants, but it should also include a forces swap. We would give Russia's armed forces some US advisors, giving them some of our COIN experience from the last 5 years of battling terrorists. Russia's performance in Chechnya during the first go-round showed that their operations could use some help.

In exchange for this, we would facilitate Russia's bloody vengance against the Iraq Islamists. Russia could deploy a few elite units, SPETSNATZ or otherwise, to help our SF forces doing COIN and our transistion command in training Iraqi forces. Most of the weapons and equipment the Iraqis use is Russian/Soviet anyway.

Just a thought...

Blame America!

By Charlie

Richard Holbrooke has discovered why the United Nations is failing in every way imaginable! I'll give you two guesses as to who he blames for this problem:

Nope! It wasn't Kofi Annan!

Read More »

Clueless Newsroom of the day

By Charlie

Fewer Hummers in Iraq: Are we withdrawing?

You'll be seeing less of these in Iraq. The U.S. military is reducing the number of Humvees and other equipment and shipping them home to be rebuilt. Is a withdrawal on the horizon? (AP Photo/Ryan Lenz)

Wow... I'll really be seeing less of these? Gosh -better tell the 3 SBCT/2ID, who will be deploying to Iraq soon (minus one LT Watada)

Here's a hint for you reporter-types out there: HMMWVs have 4 wheels. Better luck next time...

Has the 2006 War (or the corporal war) already started?

By Charlie

Israel is on the knife's edge of open war with the Palestinian people, governed by Hamas.

Fire support assets have begun to prep the battlefield already:

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli planes attacked three bridges in central Gaza, the military said Wednesday, and Israeli tanks were on the move after the government approved a limited operation — a response to a weekend Palestinian attack in which two soldiers were killed and a third captured.

The Israeli military said in a statement that the object of the attacks on the bridges late Tuesday and early Wednesday was "to impair the ability of the terrorists to transfer the kidnapped soldier." Knocking down the bridges would cut Gaza in two, Palestinian security officials said.

Israeli military officials said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert approved a "limited operation" for southern Gaza, aimed at "terrorist infrastructure." The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

Palestinian security forces said Israeli tanks were on the move near the Israeli village of Nahal Oz, a main Israeli staging area just outside Gaza, but that they had not yet entered the territory. An Associated Press reporter saw tanks moving on the Israeli side of the border fence.

Meanwhile, Israeli gunships are targetting power plants in Gaza:

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli helicopter gunships fired at least two missile into a Palestinian power plant in the central Gaza Strip on Wednesday, cutting electrical supplies to large areas of the coastal territory, witnesses said.

Egypt's forces are apparently deployed to their border, obstensibly for the purposes of blocking Palestinians from fleeing into their country (so much for Arab unity). Additionally, the Hamas hardliners in hiding in Damascus who are directing most of the violence must be sleeping a little less soundly tonight, fearing the creeping Israeli agents.

More to come on this...

Air Defense Artillery isn't dead yet

By Charlie

Way to go, North Korea. China must be seething that US/Japanese relations have warmed to the point of allowing the missile defense shield to forward deploy.

Japan and the United States, facing North Korea's apparent plans to test-launch a long-range missile, have agreed to deploy advanced Patriot interceptor missiles on American bases in Japan for the first time, officials said Monday.

The U.S. plans to deploy the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missiles -- designed to intercept ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or aircraft -- as soon as possible, a Japanese Defense Agency spokeswoman.

The spokeswoman, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with agency policy, said the sites and exact timing for the deployment have not yet been decided.

The plan was first reported Monday in Japan's largest newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun. It said the U.S. military would deploy three or four batteries of the surface-to-air missiles on the southern island of Okinawa by the end of the year and send 500-600 additional U.S. troops there.

Head-slapping headline of the day

By Charlie

Wars force Army equipment costs to triple

You mean wars cost the Army more money than peacetime? Somebody get the Pentagon on the line -quick!

Army testing new "land warrior" system

By Charlie

In what will be considered the cornerstone of the "network-centric warfare" doctrine, the Land Warrior system is being tested for eventual fielding in the War on Terror. Networking a vehicle, like a Styker or a tank, is fairly easy -networking a person is much more difficult. In order to network a soldier, the equipment must be wireless, secure, durable, light, and reliable.

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, June 22, 2006) – The Land Warrior and Mounted Warrior Soldier Systems are under operational assessment at Fort Lewis, Wash., by the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.

The U.S. Army Infantry Center conducted a side-by-side comparison between Land Warrior-equipped Soldiers and currently equipped Soldiers at Fort Benning, Ga., in late 2004

“This squad-level operational assessment demonstrated that Land Warrior capabilities do improve the combat effectiveness of Soldiers and small units engaged in dismounted operations. As a result, the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army directed us to conduct a battalion-level Land Warrior assessment,” said Col. Richard Hansen, Soldier Warrior project manager.

Land Warrior combines computers, lasers, navigation modules, radios and other technologically advanced equipment to improve Soldiers’ ability to communicate on the battlefield, their situational awareness, and, ultimately, their ability to fight effectively and survive. It was developed by Program Executive Office Soldier.

No word in the article on the weight of the thing...

24 versus Real Life

By Charlie

Here's an interesting article from National Review on the popular show 24 and national security. Some key quotes:

Make-believe antiterrorism and real antiterrorism have some things in common and many things different, but they matter to one another in this respect: What Americans watch on TV about counterterrorism operations, whether fact or fiction, affects what they expect in real life. Further, what we expect of their homeland defenses affects politicians, which in turn influence the agencies. This is where 24 matters to our real war on terror, it seems: Jack Bauer sets our expectations, which can make things tough for our leaders.

More on Jack Bauer:

On deeper examination, however, this overdependence-on-Washington criticism does not apply to 24, because 24 is a true American drama and Jack Bauer is an American hero. When I was in Germany a few years ago, a Cabinet official said that Europe was once half-full of free-thinkers and independent spirits, but then they all got up and moved to America. The American hero is the cowboy: He is Maverick, he is Han Solo, he is Batman (though, when Batman is in trouble, he turns on the Jack Bauer signal), he is the rag-tag minuteman fighting the well-trained Lobsterbacks.

So Jack Bauer is not Big Brother, and he is not the establishment. Jack Bauer was expelled from CTU and he disobeys orders. He does what needs to be done and he does it in his own way. (Jack Bauer once played Russian roulette with a fully loaded gun, and won.) He is the fitting heir to Rambo and Maverick.

And like Rambo and Maverick, Bauer’s inhuman excellence (Jack Bauer, for example, could strangle you with a cordless phone) still doesn’t keep us from identifying with him. “Jack Bauer is an everyman,” Writer and Executive Producer Howard Gordon said on Friday, “he is the guy who stands for that American, can-do thing.”

On a closing note, Jack Bauer can eat five times his body weight in terrorists.

Picture of the Day: Northern Edge

By John

Continuing our theme of random military hardware juxtaposed against equally random nature scenes....

U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft perform maneuvers over Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, June 14, 2006, during exercise Northern Edge 2006. The joint exercise is one of a series of U.S. Pacific Command exercises that prepare joint forces to respond to crises in the Asian Pacific region. The aircraft are from 112th Fighter Squadron, Ohio Air National Guard.

Emphasis mine. Just sayin'...

Palestinian Terror Group Boasts of Chemwar Capabilities

By John

Al-Aksa claims chemical capabilities

The Aksa Martyrs Brigades announced on Sunday that its members have succeeded in manufacturing chemical and biological weapons.

In a leaflet distributed in the Gaza Strip, the group, which belongs to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah Party, said the weapons were the result of a three-year effort.

According to the statement, the first of its kind, the group has managed to manufacture and develop at least 20 different types of biological and chemical weapons.

The group said its members would not hesitate to add the new weapons to Kassam rockets that are being fired at Israeli communities almost every day. It also threatened to use the weapons against IDF soldiers if Israel carried out its threats to invade the Gaza Strip.

You'll notice that Al-Aksa specifically mentioned mating the chem and bio war weapons with Kassam artillery rockets. That was deliberate. Ever since Israel's successful employment of the West Bank and Gaza security barriers, those rockets have been the only real means for Palestinian terror groups to take Israeli lives.

However, concern over this story should transcend the intitial attack. Successful employment of chemical or biological weapons in Israel could signal the end of the tiny Jewish state's policy of keeping within its recently solidified borders. Another Operation Defense Shield could provide terror groups with the opening they need to launch a third intafada, completely erasing the measured stability achieved over the last three years.

New Pasture, Greener Fields

By John

The lovely ladies of Euphoric Reality have moved to a brand, spankin' new home. And, unlike our lazy asses, they actually did the design work and coding themselves.

Not bad eh?

Give em a look and a link, there's a reason that they were one of the top ten milblogs of 2005.

Always On The "Sunni" Side: Something To Keep An Eye On

By Maj P

This item from two days ago, Pol: Insurgents Willing To Talk To Iraqi Gov't, is something worth a close look.

Now, it could be a false report, it could be a former Iraqi official running his mouth, it could be a trial balloon. Or it could be what it says it is. I am not in a position to say with certainty either way.

However, let's take it for the moment at face value. What does it tell us? That the Sunni insurgency has more than one faction, and that we can draw a line between native insurgents, whose idea of a post-Saddam Iraq might be less than we want but who are amenable to negotiation, and the no-compromise extremists who have no interest in a functioning federal state with a peaceful society.

I don't see this is a direct result of AMZ's demise. ("Say, Abdullah, with AMZ gone, don't you think we should just pack it in?") But I do see it is part of a greater slow movement of the Sunni leadership, who know that they can either play a massively destructive role or a distinctly constructive role in the government.

Winston Churchill, who was certainly not shy of a fight, once said, "Jaw-jaw is better than war-war." The victory in Iraq will be a political solution, an Iraqi political solution. It will probably come from initiatives like this. watch these developments.

Maj P

Aging Hipsters for Palestine

By John

Pink Floyd Frontman Calls on Israel to Remove Wall

JERUSALEM - Veteran British rocker Roger Waters — co-creator of the legendary Pink Floyd album "The Wall" — performed before tens of thousands of Israeli fans on Thursday, after calling on Israel to tear down massive concrete blocks walling off parts of the West Bank.

I won't throw out any lame "just another brick in the wall" jokes, I promise. Which is more than I can say for Waters:

On Wednesday, after arriving in Israel, Waters visited a walled section of Israel's West Bank separation barrier running through the Palestinian town of Bethlehem and spray-painted a line from the album, reading, "No thought control" on the towering concrete blocks.

groan.

Thunder Chickens prepare for lift-off

By Charlie

JACKSONVILLE, N.C. -- Individually, they fly under call signs such as "Bones" or "Ugly." But collectively, they're known as "the Thunder Chickens," the nation's first Marine Corps squadron destined to take the V-22 Osprey into combat.

Thunder Chicken crews have been training for a little more than three months, putting themselves and their tilt-rotor aircraft through the paces above the steamy coastal terrain of southeastern North Carolina.

They will be ready for combat by summer 2007 and are expected to be deployed to Iraq to rush Marines and equipment into danger zones twice as fast as traditional helicopters.

Based at the Marine Corps Air Station New River, the unit is officially called Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263 or VMM-263, but its members affectionately prefer the offbeat nickname, which descended from a predecessor helicopter squadron.

According to squadron lore, the unit was originally called the Thunder Eagles, but the name got mistranslated in Vietnam, and the new moniker stuck. The squadron emblem shows a war bird that looks more like a fiercely determined eagle, clutching lightning bolts in its talons.

"It's distinctive," said Lt.Col. Paul Rock Jr., 40, the squadron commander, who describes the nickname as "a source of pride" that has endured for decades.
...
As a replacement for Vietnam-era helicopters, the V-22 -- known as the MV-22 in the Marine Corps -- can take off and land like a helicopter and fly like an airplane, at a top speed of 330 miles per hour. It can ferry as many as 24 Marines at a time or haul up to 20,000 pounds of cargo. When compared with a helicopter, superlatives abound -- twice the speed, three times the payload, three to five times the range.

Awhile back I posted about the need to develop a drop-ship. If the Osprey proves itself in Iraq, it may be a military aero-transpo revolution. Blackhawks can transport 11 combat equipped troops, Chinooks (one of the largest choppers out there), 33. A fast, well armed craft that can deposit a platoon minus could change the way the military deploys troops by helicopter.

All I can say to that is: oorah!

I thought they going to start drafting people after the 04 election...

By Charlie

Joan Vennochi, a columnist at the Boston Globe, wants to draft you.

REINSTATE THE military draft and see how quickly the United States ends its war in Iraq.

If we feared our children were next up to be gutted like fish, we might be less likely to shake our heads at crazy antiwar activist Cindy Sheehan. If turning 18 meant your kid's boots on the ground, a resolution to pull troops out of Iraq by a certain date might grab more than six votes in the US Senate.
…
Last February, US Representative Charles Rangel, a Democrat from New York, did so, introducing the Universal National Service Act of 2006. It requires all people in the United States, including women, between the ages of 18 and 42, to perform a period of military service or period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security. The proposal was referred to the House Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

At the time, Rangel said he did not expect the bill to pass; he intended it as a reminder of those who have died and suffered injuries and will continue to do so in Iraq. A news release posted on Rangel's website noted, ``Right now, the only people being asked to sacrifice in any way are those men and women who, with limited options, chose military service and now find themselves in harm's way in Iraq. A draft would ensure that every economic group would have to do their share and not allow some to stay behind while other people's children do the fighting."
…
Either this war is worth every citizen's effort, or it's not worth any soldier's life.

Well, someone woke up on the radical egalitarian side of the bed this morning. It’s not enough that our military consumes 4% of the national GDP, and has about 1.3 million members, who in six years have conquered two formerly hostile governments and established free societies in their place –what our military really needs to be successful is proportionalism!

Aside from the absurd application of social justice here- what would “ensur[ing] that every economic group would have to do their share and not allow some to stay behind while other people's children do the fighting” really accomplish? Does a military’s strength reside in the fact that every soldier in the field is proportionally represented by the populace of its home country? -I must have missed that in Von Krieg. Our volunteer army is why we are winning!

Do we really want to model our army on, say, the USSR? When they invaded Afghanistan with an Army of conscripts (using the “big footprint” strategy vice our SECDEF’s “small footprint strategy in Iraq) they had entire divisions securing LOCs, hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed, and many soldiers dies due to bad training, bad leadership, ill discipline, and other age-old problems of filling the ranks with men against their will. In today’s Army, everyone wants to be there and believes in the mission.

Driving on –there are about 54 million women and 54 million men in the US who are within the range of drafting. How many people should we draft? How should our new conscript army look? The problem with the draft advocates (Rangel voted against his own bill, btw) is that they are more focused on things like social justice than fielding an operational, deployable, and lethal fighting force.

Clinton SecDef Urges Action On North Korea Missile Test

By Maj P

In a man-bites-dog editorial, If Necessary, Strike and Destroy, Clinton SecDef William Perry and A-SecDef Ashton Carter argue that the U.S. should prevent North Korea's missile test by force, before it's launched. They further advocate for unilateral action.

This is a very interesting piece, with opinions emanating from an unlikely source. There is much to recommend their course of action.

Maj P

WMD Find

By John

Today's report is significant, no doubt. But before you get too excited, keep in mind that Saddam's WMD program was only one of the entering arguments for initiating Operation Iraqi Freedom.

That said, I'll offer this one point.

During the initial invasion, the American people (myself included) were expecting some sort of treasure trove find of chem, bio, and nuclear weapons. But, since the invasion, WMD evidence has been more of a slow trickle than a large explosion. Every few months there's been a minor find, making minor news. A former Iraqi general testifies that stockpiles were moved to Syria, a few sarin gas containers are uncovered, empty chem warheads are discovered in an old warehouse, etc. There was no big bang, until today.

The only real usefullness in the report's release -sans the November election implications- is the possibility that it may shut up the anti-war movement for a while (if their mouth is full of crow, it's difficult to speak). But considering the entire anti-war pyramid of hatred is built upon the "Bush lied" cornerstone, we could uncover a Fort Knox of WMDs tomorrow, with pictures of Saddam hugging nuclear weapons and playing catch with sarin gas dispensers, and the progressives would still think the whole stinkin' war was a Big Oil conspiracy.

Good on Hoekstra and Santorum for getting the word out, but let's not get too caught up focusing on 2003's debate when there's still knifework to do in 2006.

Progressive Mind Tricks

By John

The circus of denial is off to a flying start...

Think Progress on the WMD report released today:

Fox News’ Jim Angle contacted the Defense Department who quickly disavowed Santorum and Hoekstra’s claims. A Defense Department official told Angle flatly that the munitions hyped by Santorum and Hoekstra are “not the WMD’s for which this country went to war.”

Ah yes, I've heard this argument before.

These aren't the WMDs you're looking for....

Well I guess I can just go about my business then....

WMDs in Iraq? Say it ain't so?

By Charlie

You mean Saddam didn't smuggle all of his weapons out during the 12+ months at the UN?

The blogs are a'buzz. For those of us who have been paying attention, it was always a matter of when -not if -the WMD stockpiles Saddam had would be discovered. I thought they'd be brought to light in the Bekka Valley after Syria withdrew -but I'm not suprised by this at all.

The question is -if WMD is located in Iraq, what will the anti-war crowd's reaction to it be?

OPFOR Mail Bag

By Charlie

Reader Ben from Denver Writes:

Hey OP-For,

What’s the likelihood of a conventional enemy emerging anytime soon to challenge the US? Also, what would such an enemy even look like and how would they organize? We won’t be fighting terrorists forever –what’s next?

This is a great question. Currently US doctrine isn’t training against a “peer competitor,” and doesn’t believe one will emerge for the next 15 years. However, let’s look at some past conflicts –obviously Panama, Grenada, Iraq (part 1), and Serbia weren’t peer competitors. True “peer competitors” would be Germany and Japan vs America in WWII, or Iran and Iraq in the 1980s. So the current military quandary we face is the America’s ground forces are so preeminent that no one seeks to be the helpless OPFOR against us. Therefore, we get Al Qaeda in Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan –challenges to us militarily, yet asymmetrically. So –if a nation (and it would have to be a nation) sought to conventionally challenge America on the battlefield, it would have to satisfy some of the following conditions.

First, the terrain would have to be unfavorable to US operations. Wherever this country is that would challenge us, it would have to possess rough, mountainous terrain, numerous water obstacles, thick jungles, complex urban areas, and a hostile population that would not be susceptible to US CA/PSYOPS. It would also help if the country didn’t have a long or accessible coastline, preventing US carrier groups from being used as bases for operations.

Next, the enemy would have to be trained, well supplied, and ideologically motivated to fight against the United States. These three conditions are very hard to meet, and are all subject to the effects of US operations. But, for the sake of argument, let’s say that this foreign country had extensive training on weapons systems and tactics from former Soviet Union advisors, was very well supplied, highly motivated, and was deeply rooted in the “ism” of your choice (nationalism/communism/socialism/fanaticism).

All of that being said, traditional conventional unit formations are all very easily recognized by US forces. Take for instance the model for OPFOR- the Soviet motorized Rifle Regiment. This unit was the cornerstone of the Cold War Red Army, and was mainly composed of infantry units on trucks backed by a T-72-equipped armor battalion and SP artillery. However, this is exactly the kind of unit that can be found, fixed, and destroyed by superior US firepower.

If an enemy was to challenge us conventionally, it would have to eschew traditional tactics. Therefore, let’s think outside of the box: maybe OPFOR units in the future will organize themselves into “line units” that are primarily Anti-Tank infantry units, or Air Defense equipped infantry units. Perhaps a future conventional threat will mirror our own “transformation” objectives by pushing combined arms operations down to the battalion and below levels. A maneuver company with infantry, fire support, recon, intelligence, anti-tank, and air defense capability would be a significant departure from traditional maneuver tactics. Combine that with more effective technology to offset US advantages, and it is conceivable that a conventional challenger could emerge.

This is all very unlikely though, when actual nation-states with the capability to field such units are reviewed. The reason decentralized operations are successful is a direct result of the superior training and volunteer nature of US forces. Conscript armies cannot be expected to perform decentralized operations without direct supervision that is often unnecessary for American operations. It is almost a non-issue for a staff sergeant to call in an air-strike, or radio for reinforcements. In many foreign militaries, only high-level commanders can make such calls.

Wrapping up, terrorism isn’t the future of military operations. Irregular warfare has always been with us. We should maintain the military flexibility to respond to any threats that emerge.

Picture of the Day: The Sequel

By John

Probably the first time we've done a follow-on picture of the day, but who cares. Check out some other angles on this week's western Pacific bicep flex fest.

Photo Courtesy of the US Air Force.

Two more below the fold.

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Help! My Technology is Inferior! (open thread)

By Charlie

Hey Folks. I’ve started an OODA loop trying to get a new laptop. I’m leaning toward an updated Toshiba Satellite –I’ve had a Toshiba Satellite for years, and I’ve been very happy with it. I’m not much of a gamer, but I’d like the thing to have at least a gig of DDRAM, 60-80 gigs hard drive, a good graphics card, Wireless internet, and a DVD Burner.

My main uses for the machine are Power Point briefings, document composition, blogging, and internet usage. I’m not married to Toshiba, but I want a good, reliable notebook that I can travel with. Price range is between $1000-$1300.

What say you, commentariat?

Air Assault!

By Charlie

I thought that I would do a post on Air Assault School, to give some insight on current Army training, the National Guard, and the general shape of things on the ground level of the state-side military.

"A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon" -Napoleon Bonaparte, 15 July 1815. To the captain of HMS Bellerophon.

…or go through 11 days of training for an Air Assault badge.

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Another One Bites the Dust

By Charlie

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A key al-Qaida in Iraq leader described as the group's "religious emir" was killed in a U.S. airstrike hours before two American soldiers went missing and in the same area, the military said Tuesday.

Mansour Suleiman Mansour Khalifi al-Mashhadani, or Sheik Mansour, and two foreign fighters were killed as they tried to flee in a vehicle near the town of Youssifiyah, in the so-called Sunni "Triangle of Death."

U.S. coalition forces had been tracking al-Mashhadani for some time, American military spokesman William Caldwell said in announcing his death

Could this have been a timely exploit of the Zarqawi operation? There was a scene in "Black Hawk Down" where the general stares at the crashed chopper on a computer screen, and says "we've just lost the initiative."

We've got the initiative this time -let's press the fight.

More on Somalia

By John

I'm a bonehead for forgetting to mention this earlier.

Eagle1 of Eagle Speak is a retired Navy Captain who excels at handicapping the security situation on and around the Horn. Soak in his analysis here, here, and here.

I've come to appreciate Eagle1's work since we started posting together at Milblogs.

Our loss for not blogrolling him until now.

Picture of the Day

By John

You've gotta love North Korea's timing, just looky what's a happenin' in the far east...

PACIFIC OCEAN (June 18, 2006) -- USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) and USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) carrier strike groups steam in formation during a joint photo exercise (PHOTOEX) in preparation for Valiant Shield 2006. The PHOTOEX featured 14 ships as well as 17 aircraft from Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corp including a B2 bomber. The Kitty Hawk Carrier Strike Group is currently participating in Valiant Shield 2006, the largest joint exercise in recent history. Held in the Guam operating area (June 19-23), the exercise involves 28 Naval vessels including three carrier strike groups, more than 300 aircraft and more than 20,000 service members from the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.
Photo Courtesy of US Pacific Command

The Case for Invading Somalia

By Charlie

If we could have identified the terror camps in Afghanistan and destroyed them from, say 1996-2000, would it have been worth the sacrifice of national resources, troops, and equipment? If the targeting prevented 9/11, then the answer would be yes.

Therefore, we should bomb Somalia.

Mogadishu has just been conquered by a loose union of “moderate” Islamic courts that press Sharia law, shelter terrorists, and seek to spread their degenerate ideology to neighboring countries. This is pretty much what the Taliban did in Afghanistan after the communist puppet government was driven out after the Soviets left*. So, if we identify centers of gravity in Somalia where terrorists are congregating –let’s hit them hard. I’ve even got a suggestion for the troops to task on this one –what’s the one Army unit that may just want to get a little revenge for something that may have happened in 1994 in Somalia? Let’s re-deploy the 75th Ranger Regiment to Somaila, backed up by a multi-national task force headed by the 10th Mountain Division. Let’s raid this failed state, destroy any terror camps that are established, and make no apologies for it.

If we can prevent another Taliban from rising, the costs of preventing another 9/11 far outweigh the deployment of combat troops to the region.

In conclusion, Let’s Roll.

**John Says** I strongly disagree with Charlie on this point. A heavy, brigade level presence in the abyss that is east Africa would satisfy no real strategic end, while enabling the loose confederation of Islamists to hit us the only way they know how: low-level, asymmetric warfare.

Furthermore, there are no real "centers of gravity" to hit in Somalia. The enemy is spread out amongst clans and tribes, blurring the lines between military units and civilian populations. The army is a sword, not a scalpel, better to keep the heavy lifters near the heavy loads: Iraq and Afghanistan.

I'm not saying we should ignore the Horn. CIA paramilitary teams (like the Jawbreaker team in Afghanistan '01) have proven effective in accomplishing US objectives in failed states in the past, and they can do so in the future.

We've learned this lesson already, revenge is not a strategy.

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North Korea: A Threat, or Just Ronery and Looking for Attention?

By Charlie

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and Japan warned North Korea on Monday against a missile launch as some officials said Pyongyang appeared to have finished fueling for a test flight that could reach as far as Alaska.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said a missile launch by North Korea would be viewed as a very serious matter and "provocative act" that would further isolate Pyongyang.

"We will obviously consult on next steps but I can assure everyone that it would be taken with utmost seriousness," said Rice at a news conference in Washington.

There are three main things you need to have a credible nuclear threat: a nuclear device, a means of delivering it to a target, and the means of producing more in order to maintain your posture as a nuclear power. Once you have such power, the will to use it (rationally versus irrationally) is a main factor in the realm of international relations. For instance, France has a nuclear weapon, the means to deliver it, and a viable reactor program from which to produce more weapons –however, they would be unlikely to use those weapons to exert their will on other nations. North Korea, however, lives in a different world than the US and France. I caught a bit of the Rush Limbaugh show on the way back from work today on this topic:

A tyrant, a thug, a dictator will never, ever sit down at the diplomacy table and sign away his power. It won't happen. This little pot-bellied tinhorn dictator in North Korea is not going to do it. This wacko lunatic in Iran is not going to do it. They don't do it anywhere. And the idea that diplomacy is going to get insane lunatics to drop their weapons, which is the only thing they've got to make them feel like something, otherwise they are nothing but Third World countries, is absurd.

Nuclear technology in the hands of a Kim Jong Il, or the Iranians, is inherently more dangerous than when possessed by a responsible state like France, Israel, or Brazil. North Korea knows that it can exploit, threaten, and cajole the international community into funding its regime for the foreseeable future, and nukes allow them to do the exploitation much more louder and more effectively.

Combine that with the fact that we live in a world governed by the aggressive use of force –the threat of which makes us take states like North Korea very seriously. We know that communist North Korea thinks nothing of killing thousands of their own people, and would delight in slaughtering thousands more to further their insular and dictatorial regime.

If North Korea test-fires its missile in our direction, we should “test-fire” some of our own toward them. The time is far-gone to play around with these dictators.

Army Officer Refuses to Fight

By Charlie

From the Cindy Sheehan file of "Suddenly Famous Anti-War Icon of the Month," now comes LT Ehren Watada, an Army officer who has up-and-decided that the war in Iraq is illegal, and therefore he doesn't think he should fight it.

Too bad that's not how things work. Junior officers don't just get to pick and choose the orders they follow, and you aren't always dealt the hand of cards you want. Sucking it up and driving on, completing the mission, and taking care of your soldiers are what being a good officer is all about. This guy seems to have forgotten that:

First Lt. Ehren K. Watada didn't set out to defy the Army and the order sending him to Iraq.

But Watada, who turns 28 today, said he learned more about the war and the rationale for fighting it, and the same principles he was taught in the Army — honor, integrity, sacrifice and courage to do the right thing — now have him facing a court-martial for refusing his deployment orders.

In January, the Honolulu man sent a letter to his brigade commander at Fort Lewis, Wash., saying he was "wholeheartedly" opposed to the continued war in Iraq, and the "deception" used to wage it.

He asked to resign his commission, but the request was rejected.

"I believe so strongly in this cause that I would sit in prison or die for that belief,"

Rock on. If this guy would have left it at that, I would have called him a coward and driven on. BUT, in this day and age, you can't get any press without comparing American soldiers (the very ones he serves with -no less) to Nazis:

I will not subvert the Army, but I will not go along with the opinion that what we are doing (in Iraq) is right or that I am fulfilling my duty. Would the executioners of Auschwitz have been any more justified at Nuremburg?"

Showing that he is the master of the obvious, Watada also had this to add:

"...I know that my case has brought a lot of attention and scrutiny on me by my superiors. Also, I'm probably very unpopular, if not the most unpopular person on Fort Lewis..."

Our military would be in sorry shape if individual soldiers got to simply say "no" to going out on a patrol, delivering supplies, returning fire down alleyways, or deploying in the first place. This guy isn't a "hero" for "standing up for what he believes in." He signed a contract, and whether he agrees with the war or not, it's now his job to lead men in combat. Failing to report for that duty isn't just failing the nation, the Army, and his unit -it's failing the soldiers beneath him. Selling out your boys to save your own skin is an age old act of weak-willed spinelessness -it's nothing new or noteworthy.

The Need for Ballistic Missile Defense

By John

North Korea's impending Taepodong test launch has reaffirmed America's need for a functional ballistic missile shield. Here is another simple reminder of why the shield has become so important to the national defense.

Nations equipped with ballistic missiles in 1972.

And, below the fold, nations equipped with ballistic missiles as of 2004.

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Happy Father's Day- I Have Returned!

By Charlie

Faithful readers, I have returned from the US Army Air Assault Course.

Now, since I’ve been gone, apparently Zarqawi got wacked, In local Virginia politics, James Webb, author of one of my favorite books: Born Fighting How the Scots-Irish Shaped America won the Democratic nomination against sitting Senator George Allen, plus -Taliban have been getting offed at ridiculous proportions.

So I pretty much missed all of the good stuff. A major turning point in Iraq and success looming in Afghanistan. It just goes to show you that when you take a break from the blog, the world keeps on turning without you.

So how was Air Assault School? It was a smoker of a course. I’ll have more to write about it later, when I’m not dead tired and otherwise occupied. The main point of this post is to say: happy father’s day.

My father instilled a sense of perseverance form a very young age: some would classify this as “stubbornness,” or “hard-headedness,” but it has served me well throughout my life. The most recent example of this emerged this week during the Air Assault course. Several times during the course, I questioned the reasons I was there –but there was a central, almost primordial mental block that would not allow me to give up or quit. Because of the way I was raised, I was set up for success later in life.

I know this is a very anecdotal scrap of evidence, but it came to light in a very obvious way this week. Father’s Day is the one day of the year where we can step back and reflect on a great source of inspiration in our lives. Learning to be your own man is a long and complicated road, but the father figure in your life is a significant guidepost along that path. So happy Father’s Day!

I’m glad to be back, folks.

Latest from Afghanistan

By John

Bill Roggio offers some on-the-ground insights from the eastern front:

- Pakistan's lawless tribal belts are a major source of Taliban support, including indoctrinating, funding, arming and training Pakistani and Afghan Taliban recruits. The Afghans I spoke to curse Pakistan for allowing this to happen. The porous situation on the Afghan-Pakistan border is a national security issue for Afghanistan, and the international community as al-Qaeda is operating training camps within the Northwest Frontier Province and Baluchistan.

- The Taliban is unable to stand up against the Western militaries when they attempt to mass in large formations (100 to 300 fighters, equivalent to company or battalion sized units). Their advantage is they know the local terrain far better than the Coalition forces. The solution is to get the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police trained, equipped and on the front lines in southeastern Afghanistan.

- The levels of effectiveness of the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police varies from unit to unit. The Canadian soldiers trust the army units, but are very wary of police units. Corruption is a major problem with local police formations, as is drug usage (this is also a problem within the Taliban). The ANA and ANP are often poorly armed and trained. But to a man, the Canadian soldiers are impressed with their enthusiasm and courage once a fight breaks out. "Once the bullets fly, these guys are solid. They bring everything they got and never shy away from a fight," one Canadian officer said. The Candians stated the Afghan security forces do not like plan operations but want to immediately make contact with the Taliban. The Canadians often have to restrain the Afghans from leaving the gates without planning an operation. Over enthusiasm is often a weakness in conducting military operations.

There's more, read the whole thing.

All Eyes on North Korea

By John

Troublesome developments in the Far East...

North Korea Readies Missile Launch Platform

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has moved key components of a long-range missile to a launch pad as well as 10 large liquid-gas tanks to fuel it, a South Korean newspaper reported on Saturday, citing government officials.

In a separate report, South Korea's Yonhap news agency quoted diplomatic sources in Seoul as saying a missile test could come as early as on Sunday or Monday.

The United States on Friday warned North Korea against conducting a "provocative" intercontinental missile test after U.S. officials said there were signs a launch could take place as early as this weekend.

And in related news, North Koreans Asked to Raise Flags on Sunday

TOKYO, June 18 (Reuters) - The North Korean leadership has told its people to raise the national flag at 2:00 pm (0500 GMT) on Sunday, in what may be a sign that Pyongyang will go ahead with a missile launch test, a Japanese government official was quoted as saying.

Japanese daily Sankei Shimbun on Sunday also quoted the Japanese official as saying that the North Koreans had been instructed to monitor television and other broadcasts for a "message to the people".

North Korea's test launch of one of their Taepodong missiles over northern Japan in 1998 shook both the Japanese and US defense communities to the core. It was enough to place ballistic missile defense on the the front burner in Congress, and the subject was a point of intense debate during the 2000 presidential election. And perhaps most importantly, the '98 launch is the primary reason why we have a Missile Defense Agency today.

The United States now has 10 operational ballistic missile interceptors in Alaska and California, as well as shipborne ABM assets in the Pacific fleet.

Imagine the message that it would send to kill a North Korean sortie while it was still in its boost stage.

Conversely, imagine the message it would send if we missed.

Flag Officer Conference and Gen McCaffrey’s AAR

By Maj P

Seeing Big John’s post below reminded me of a post I’ve had back-burnered for too long. A few months ago I received a forwarded email with an after-action report by General Barry McCaffrey, concerning his trip to Iraq in April. You can find it here.

The CFR note says that “His findings are mixed.” I didn’t get that impression, but I’ll let you make your own judgment.

Much of what the General said stood out; I found a few points in particular worth noting, in light of recent events and John’s post on the Council of the Elders.

1. It’s the US armed forces and the intelligence community, alone and unafraid in the war effort. Save for “a handful of brilliant, courageous, and dedicated Foreign Service Officers” [I met one over there, he’s right] every other segment of the federal government is UA, AWOL, whatever you want to call it. The result is a fragmented effort. Military force can only go so far in doing the job; others have to pitch in.

2. The press and the military are in an increasingly adversarial relationship. This needs to be stopped, and the military should take the chance and welcome embeds and visiting reporters. The information war is critical, and the story can’t be told if it’s not being reported. Hold the press to standards, but don’t shut them out.

3. Bet on an Iraqi unity government succeeding. Note that he said this a couple months ago. Now that AMZ is DOA, what do we see? We see a unity government emerging, and looking increasingly strong. The General pegs this correctly is a “central requirement.”

4. The foreign fighters have failed strategically and operationally, although tactically they will still be a problem. The Sunni insurgent bloc is now no longer monolithic; knock the foreign fighters out and the problem takes on a different aspect, one that would be more amenable to a solution worked out and imposed by an Iraqi unity government.

5. We’re not out of the woods yet, we have much work to do. Significantly, he avoids the woe-is-me/what-an-awful-mess-we-have hand wringing that seems to be in vogue these days: “There is no reason why the U.S. cannot achieve our objectives in Iraq. Our aim must be to create a viable federal state under the rule of law which does not: enslave its own people, threaten its neighbors, or produce weapons of mass destruction. [Brilliant.] This is a ten year task. We should be able to draw down most of our combat forces in 3-5 years. We have few alternatives to the current US strategy which is painfully but gradually succeeding. This is now a race against time. Do we have the political will, do we have the military power, will we spend the resources required to achieve our aims?”

Do we indeed? That is the question. I know the military has the will. For everyone else, I cannot answer.

I recommend the whole report; there is more to it but I believe I have extracted some of the more interesting points. I think General McCaffrey definitely “gets it,” and his assessments are all the more salient because he wrote them two months ago when things were looking decidedly less sunny.

The Council of the Elders

By John

The Neo Con Blogger has a fascinating email from last week's retired General and Flag Officers' Conference in Fort Carson, Colorado. The email as a whole summarizes the collective judgment of a panel of several Army field commanders, most with operational experience in either Iraq or Afghanistan. While their analysis as a whole makes for choice reading, I was particularly drawn to their thoughts on the public affairs war, commentary which I believe underscores the importance of milblogs.

Public Affairs: We are losing the public affairs battle for a variety of reasons. First, in Iraq, the terrorists provide Al Jazeera with footage of their more spectacular attacks and they are on TV to the whole Arab world within minutes of the event. By contrast it takes four to six days for a story generated by Army Public Affairs to gain clearance by Combined Forces Command, two or three more days to get Pentagon clearance, and after all that, the public media may or may not run the story.

Second, the U.S. mainstream media (MSM) who send reporters to the combat zone do not like to have their people embedded with our troops. They claim that the reporters get “less objective” when they live with the soldiers and marines – they come to see the world through the eyes of the troops. As a consequence, a majority of the reporters stay in hotels in the “Green Zone” and send out native stringers to call in stories to them by cell phone which they later write up and file. No effort is made to verify any of these stories or the credibility of the stringers. The recent serious injuries to Bob Woodruff of ABC and Kimberly Dozier of CBS makes the likelihood of the use of local stringers even higher.

Third, the stories that are filed by reporters in the field very seldom reach the American public as written. An anecdote from Col. McMaster illustrates this dramatically. TIME magazine recently sent a reporter to spend six weeks with the 3rd ACR as they were in the battle of Tal Afar. When the battle was over, the reporter filed his story and also included close to 100 pictures that the accompanying photographer took. TIME published a cover story on the battle a week later, allegedly using the story sent in by their reporter. When the issue came out, the guts had been edited out of their reporter’s story and none of the pictures he submitted were used. Instead they showed a weeping child on the cover, taken from stock photos. When the reporter questioned why his story was eviscerated, his editors in New York responded that the story and pi ctures were “too heroic”. McMaster had read both and told me that the editors had completely changed the thrust and context of the material their reporter had submitted.

As a sidebar on the public affairs situation, Colonel Bob McRee, who was also on the panel and is bringing a Military Police Battalion to Iraq next month, invited the Colorado Springs Gazette to send a reporter with the battalion for six weeks to two months. He assured the Gazette, in writing one month ago, that he would provide full time bodyguards for the reporter, taking the manpower out of his own hide. The Gazette has yet to respond to his offer.

The Flag and General Officers Conference is the largest single gathering of retired military leadership in the country. If the overall attitude of both the panelists and participants is indicative of the retired military community as a whole, it seems to disprove contentions from the mainstream media that the majority of retired generals are opponents of the current Iraq policy.

Was Zarqawi The Missing Link?

By John

Solid commentary from Thomas Joscelyn of the Weekly Standard on Zarqawi, Saddam, and the Al-Qaeda hierarchy:

Al-Masari claimed that Saddam's regime actively aided Zarqawi and his men prior to the war and fully included them in his plans for a terrorist insurgency. He said Saddam "saw that Islam would be key to a cohesive resistance in the event of invasion." Iraqi officers bought "small plots of land from farmers in Sunni areas" and they buried "arms and money caches for later use by the resistance."

Al-Masari also claimed that "Iraqi army commanders were ordered to become practicing Muslims and to adopt the language and spirit of the jihadis."

Just as Saddam ordered, many of Iraq's senior military and intelligence personnel joined or aided Zarqawi's jihad. Many of the more prominent supporters and members of Zarqawi's al Qaeda branch, in fact, came from the upper echelon of Saddam's regime. Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (aka the "King of Clubs") and his sons allied with Zarqawi, as did members of Muhammad Hamza Zubaydi's (aka the "Queen of Spades") family. Zarqawi's allies included Muhammed Hila Hammad Ubaydi, who was an aide to Saddam's chief of staff of intelligence, and some of his more lethal operatives served as officers in Saddam's military, including Abu Ali, "Al-Hajji" Thamer Mubarak (whose sister attempted a martyrdom operation in Jordan), Abu-Ubaidah, and Abdel Fatih Isa.

THESE BAATHISTS, and others, have spilled much blood in Zarqawi's name. Their attacks were among "Zarqawi's" most successful, including an assault on the Abu Ghraib prison and the first attack on the U.N.'s headquarters. The latter strike was among al Qaeda's earliest, killing Sergio de Mello, the U.N.'s special representative in Baghdad, in August 2003.

If Jocelyn's data is accurate, it indicates that Saddam was not only housing Al-Qaeda elements in Iraq, but also integrating them into his post-invasion strategy. If that's not a strategic alliance, or at the very least a partnership, I don't know what is. Give the entire article a look, Joscelyn's coverage of Saddam's high command and their post-war entry into Zarqawi's organization makes for a stimulating read.

Senate to the Troops: Continue the Mission

By John

Senate Rejects U.S. Troops Pullout in Iraq

WASHINGTON - Congress plunged into divisive election-year debate on the
Iraq war Thursday as the U.S. military death toll reached 2,500. The Senate soundly rejected a call to withdraw combat troops by year's end, and House Republicans laid the groundwork for their own vote. In a move Democrats criticized as gamesmanship, Senate Republicans brought up the withdrawal measure and quickly dispatched it — for now — on a 93-6 vote.

Six Democratic Senators voted to withdraw, Senators Kennedy, Harkin, Kerry, Byrd, Boxer, Feingold. Although that's a small minority of the Senate's Democratic contingent, those six seem to be speaking for the majority of the Democratic base.

Those popular anti-war sentiments were made crystal clear yesterday at the Campaign for America's Future:

Senator Clinton was met with loud booing, hissing, and protest chants during a speech at a conference of left-leaning Democrats yesterday when she repeated her view that American troops should stay the course in Iraq.
Mrs. Clinton called the Iraq war a "grotesque mistake" before adding "but we cannot bring the troops home until they make sure Iraq has a unified government," a comment that set off a round of raucous booing from all parts of the hall where the Washington conference of Campaign for America's Future, mostly made up of Democrats, was held.

Interesting conundrum. The democratic base obviously won't nominate any pro-victory candidate for a presidential run. Conversely, as the 2004 election and this vote proves, any candidate who supports bringing the troops home early will have a very difficult time gaining those much-needed moderate swing votes needed to win on the national stage.

Roggio Reports

By John

More from Bill Roggio, as he reports on Operation Mountain Thrust and 1st Battalion of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry:

Charlie Company rolled from the 430 compound in the late morning, and headed west to the Helmand desert regions of Registan, which translates to "sandy place". The company, which is augmented by Afghan National Army and their Embedded Training Team from the US Army, broke for lunch in the scorching desert sun in the barren, sand and rock strewn moonscape of the Registan.

The battle group receive their orders: the Zari and Panjwai regions south of Highway 1 are to be swept of large concentrations of Taliban believed to be in the area. Charlie Company and the Afghan National Army are the hammer, and Bravo Company and the Afghan National Police are the anvil, setting up blocking positions in an effort to seal the Taliban's escape.

Read the whole thing.

New York Times Opens Op-Ed Page to Suspected Terrorist

By John

My latest is up at Newsbusters. Here's an excerpt:

Today's [New York Times] editorial page features an op-ed from Mourad Benchellali, a French national awaiting trial in France on terror charges. Benchellali's op-ed, entitled "Detainees in Despair," claims that he was unjustly plucked from an outdoor cafe by Pakistani police, and held under brutal conditions at the Guantanamo Bay facility without reason or probable cause. Benchellali writes:

"I was seized by the Pakistani Army while having tea at a mosque shortly after I managed to cross the border. A few days later I was delivered to the United States Army: although I didn't know it at the time, I was now labeled an "enemy combatant." It did not matter that I was no one's enemy and had never been on a battlefield, let alone fought or aimed a weapon at anyone."

Unfortunately for Benchellali, a major US newspaper had already extensively covered the very specific charges that he was facing in France. That paper -amazingly enough- was the New York Times.

Score One for Bill Roggio

By John

USA Today's Baghdad correspondent, Caesar Soriano, isn't happy. Soriano feels that criticism of the mainstream media for their negative coverage of the Iraq war is the collective effort of "chairborne rangers," basement dwellers to whom Soriano challenges:

If you think you can do better, I've got a spare bed in the Baghdad bureau.

Bill Roggio, the independent journalist currently embedded in Afghanistan, didn't take kindly to Soriano's jab. Bill fowarded me his sharply worded reply to Soriano this morning, a communique that USA should strongly consider publishing.

Hello Cesar,

I'd take you up on the offer of "the spare bed in the Baghdad bureau" but this Chairborne Ranger is currently embedded in Kandahar, Afghanistan. I'll head back to Iraq for the second time this year after I make my next stop in the Horn of Africa. No doubt Michael Totten and Michael Yon, two other notable Chairborne Rangers, have similar plans.

You should also ask another group of Chairborne Rangers, such as Smash, Greyhawk, OpFor, and the other military bloggers who did their blogging from the combat zones to see if they need a rack. Oh, and I'll be bypassing Baghdad to go outside the comfort of the hotel, so you can keep the spare bed.

Best wishes, be safe and enjoy the pool!

Bill Roggio
Co-Editor, The Counterterrorism Blog
http://counterterrorismblog.org
Co-Chairman, The Counterterrorism Foundation
http://counterterrorismblog.org/foundation.php

Blackfive also posted Bill's reply, and included a rather hefty list of MSM-critical milbloggers who are currently deployed in-theater or have recently been deployed in-theater.

Soriano's point is a mild mutation of the old "chickenhawk" line, designed to pack a heavier punch since he reports from Baghdad. But Roggio touches on an issue that was heavily discussed at the milblogging conference last April, the simple fact that most MSM reporters and stringers in Iraq attend CENTCOM briefings from within the safety of the Green Zone, rarely -if ever- leaving "the wire" to get the nitty-gritty stories.

Credit to Soriano for getting out there and doing his job. But if he's really, truly interested in countering allegations of biased reporting, he needs to stop writing egotistical puff-pieces, get outside the wire, and report on stories that aren't spoon fed from CENTCOM public affairs officers.

Happy Birthday, Soldiers

By Maj P

Today is the US Army's 231st birthday. Make sure you pass on the appropriate HOO-AHs to any and all you know who have worn that uniform. They have every right to be proud of it.

Happy birthday, soldiers!

Maj P

Belleau Wood, June 1918

By Maj P

Matt and the crew at Blackfive beat me to a Belleau Wood post, which I commend to your attention.

That month-long battle was fought by 4th Marine Brigade, which was part of the U.S. Army's 2nd Infantry Division. (The division's Indian-head and star patch are featured on the logos of the 5th and 6th Marine Regiments, whose members today still wear the fourragere to commemorate the Croix de Guerre awarded to their illustrious forebears.) The importance of the battle-- and its place in Marine Corps history-- cannot be overstated. Among other things it secured modern reputation of standard Marine Corps rifle marksmanship, which I can tell you remains true today.

(BTW... Speaking of Marines, allow me to say thanks to all, especially to blogmasters like Blackfive and Michelle Malkin and Bill Roggio, who are standing up for the Corps. This will not be forgotten.)

Maj P

ps: I'm shooting much better too, thank you very much. Just took a few practice strings.

"Lions" Indeed

By John

Al-Zarqawi's Successor Vows New Attacks

CAIRO, Egypt - The new leader of al-Qaida in Iraq vowed to avenge Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's death and threatened horrific attacks "in the coming days," according to a statement posted on the Web Tuesday - the first from the new terrorist leader. "Don't be overcome with joy about killing our sheik Abu Musab (al-Zarqawi), God bless his soul, because he has left lions behind him," it said.

The statement was posted one day after the group announced that a man identified by the nom de guerre Abu Hamza al-Muhajer would succeed the Jordanian-born militant as its leader.

Right. "Lions." Here's an assessment of the operational situation, courtesy of one of the frightful felines:

The only power the mujahidin have is what they have already demonstrated in hunting down drifted patrols and taking sniper shots at those patrol members who stray far from their patrols, or planting booby traps among the citizens and hiding among them in the hope that the explosions will injure an American or members of the government.

Heh, "lions" indeed.

Been There, Done That

By John

Hawkings Says Humans Must go to Space

Of course some folks are already there.

Sigh

By John

Democrats Not Finding Unity on Iraq:

Washington -- In a span of 90 minutes Tuesday, three prominent Democrats offered competing visions of how to proceed in Iraq and displayed how difficult it will be to turn what was once the Republican Party's strongest asset into its electoral downfall.

As President Bush was returning from his surprise visit to Baghdad, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, a leading contender for the Democratic Party's 2008 presidential nomination, told a gathering of nearly 2,000 liberals that the war was a "strategic blunder,'' but warned it would not be in the nation's interest to "set a date certain'' for withdrawal. She was followed by House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, who told the same group the war was a "grotesque mistake,'' and that troops should be withdrawn "at the earliest practical date.''

And moments later, Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, the party's standard bearer in 2004, said he had made a mistake by voting to authorize the president to use military force in Iraq, and called for a "hard and fast deadline'' for troop withdrawal.

Did someone at least float victory as an option?

Charlie Foxtrot

By John

Nonaligned Nations Prepare to Back Iran:

VIENNA, Austria - Western countries pushed Tuesday for broad support on the need for Iran to freeze uranium enrichment, but nonaligned countries backed Tehran, saying all countries have the right to pursue a nuclear program for civilian use. A statement drawn up by the 16-nation nonaligned bloc at the board meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency "reaffirmed the basic and inalienable right" of all countries to develop, produce and use atomic energy "for peaceful purposes, without any discrimination and in conformity with their respective legal obligations."

In related news, Israel has been awful quiet recently.....

Vlogging the UN

By John

Pamela of Atlas Shrugs brings her, uh...brusque New York persona to the UN reform debate.

Hot Dog! State on State Conflict is Back!

By John

Peter Brooks on the Shangai Cooperation Organization (SCO):

Some see it as a NATO counterweight. Others call it a Club for Dictators -- or at least near-dictators. Some consider it an anti-American stalking horse for Chinese and or Russian hegemony, with the potential to become "OPEC with nukes."

Whatever: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) -- a so-called "anti-terrorism, anti-separatism, anti-extremism" grouping, including China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, which holds its fifth annual meeting this week -- definitely reeks of trouble for Uncle Sam.

Well, I guess calling them calling it "anti-American" would be lacking in the subtly department. Of course by "anti-American" I don't mean some long haired unhappy Seattle teenager who gets his political info from Green Day songs, but rather anti-American interests, specifically in southeast Asia. According to Brooks, it's all about the hegemony (well, regional hegemony):

...consider the wider strategic implications. Beijing and Moscow are using the SCO as a tool to eliminate U.S. influence in the Eurasian heartland -- the home to half the world's population, a key front in the War on Terror and the location of key world energy supplies. The SCO formally agreed at last year's summit to reverse America's post-9/11 military presence in Central Asia. Soon after, Uzbekistan closed Karshi Khanabad airbase to U.S. forces. Now the rulers of Extortistan -- er, Kyrgyzstan -- are trying to raise the price of the U.S. lease on Manas airbase rent from $2 million to $200 million a year.

And it could affect our efforts to de-nuke Iran:

The SCO has offered observer status to India and Pakistan as well as Iran, and discussed full-membership for all. Iran and Pakistan are keen to join -- and may be offered the chance later this year. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad may push for membership at this week's session -- it would help scuttle U.S. and European Union pressure over Tehran's nuclear program.

With NATO pushing closer and closer to Russia's borders, and America and her allies circling China, the alliance makes sense. The question is, how large will the SCO grow, and will the new alliance translate into some sort of pseudo east-Asia version of the Warsaw Pact?

'JAG'ged Justice?

By John

Unhappy about the Haditha investigation and military justice as a whole, Eric Umansky writes in Slate:

There is no independent prosecutor's office in the military. There's nothing like the Department of Justice or an attorney general. Prosecutions only happen when a commander decides to have them. If an officer believes somebody under his command might have done wrong, then the commander can go after him and bring charges. Or not. It's all up to his discretion.

Umanksy isn't necessarily wrong, but he isn't exactly right either. It is true that commanders have exceptional power when it comes to the prosecution and punishment of their troops, but the way Umansky spins the story makes it sound like individual commanders are the end all/be all for military justice. In reality, the military legal system -from investigation to prosecution- is an incredibly complex, multi-layered entity, in which the unit commander is a single stone in the technicolored mosiac.

Umansky props his argument up on this cornerstone:

It took the military four months to launch a formal criminal investigation of the killings at Haditha—and it came only after Time magazine started raising questions. The delay is going to make the case that much harder to prosecute.

The fact that the military considered Haditha a legal engagement prior to Time magazine politicizing the situation should be telling. But while the military is still trying to ascertain exactly what happened at Haditha, Umansky has already taken the next step, saying, in essence, that "there was a massacre, and shame on the military for taking 4 months and the prompting of a magazine to launch the proper investigation."

Even if the investigation discovered some sort of grand coverup that permeated the accused Marines' chain of command (right now there isn't), there is no evidence of other coverups that would indicate some sort of flaw in the military investigation process. There's no pattern here, no repeat offenders.

In fairness, Umansky isn't seeking a top down overhaul of the military legal system. He argues for improvements to the existing system. But his entering argument for the said improvements is based on a military investigation that is still very much in process, making his point as a whole a bit difficult to digest.

**Update** Army Lawyer takes a somewhat more aggressive stance on the Slate article.

"punch my E-ticket for Magic Ho Mountain"

By Maj P

If you're a fan of Herbert Kornfeld's particular style, you MUST go look at this on Iowahawk. (HT to Kim Du Toit.)

Warning, it's damn funny but it's not socially acceptable.

Maj P

Shooters, Your Prep Time Has E-N-D-E-D!

By Maj P

Haven't qualified on the old M9 pistol in a while, due to all sorts of intervening circumstances, so when I reported to the range this morning, lo and behold...

I SUCK. (From the 25 yard line. Everything else was pretty much in the black. But, it doesn't help when the Marine next to you obliterates the X-ring and doesn't need any white pasties.)

Thank God I have the rest of the week to settle down.

Maj P

New Project for Democracy

By John

A group of Eastern Europeans have assembled a blog that should be bookmarked, the New Project for Democracy.

NDP promotes democratic movements in Eastern Europe, with particular focus on Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, and the Black Sea region. Their coverage of Ukraine's potential entry into NATO is particularly interesting, be sure to give it a look.

Picture of the Day

By John

06/02/06 - U.S. Navy Landing Craft Air Cushion Five Seven makes a landing on Singapore's Sudong Island during an amphibious operations training event as part of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training 2006, a regularly scheduled series of bilateral military training exercises with several nations designed to enhance interoperability of the respective sea Services. US Navy Photo

And The Downside Is??

By Maj P

As Op-For John might say, the day is full of good news...

Three beds open. I'm sure we can find three new worthies to fill them.

Maj P

Guess That's One Way of Putting It....

By John

Check out David Axe's killer piece on the death-from-above technology that eliminated Al-Zarqawi over at Tech Central Station, titled "The Art of Aerial Assassination."

More Shock Sleaze

By John

Shock Mag has burned Michael Yon not once, but twice, in the past month. First for stealing his famous photo of an American soldier cradling a dying Iraqi girl, second for altering the terms of the legal agreement that was to resolve the dispute.

Mike is understandably upset, and has sounded the trumpets to battle.

As it turns out, there's quite a bit that you can do to help. Please visit Mike's place for more.

**Update** Kevin and Greg from the widely lauded Pundit Review Radio program will be interviewing Mike tomorrow evening on WRKO Boston. Hear it from the horse's mouth Sunday at 8pm est.

Guests Of The Ayatollah

By Maj P

A few weeks ago I posted a brief in-stride review of this book by Mark Bowden on the Iran hostage crisis. Today, I will give you a fuller review, for your weekend (or summer) reading pleasure.

This is one of the best books I have read in recent memory. Although I am old enough to remember the incident fairly well, I had not known much detail about it, nor had I read much about it. The impressions that stuck with me, as I watched the news in 1979 and all through 1980, were sadness and frustration at American impotence.

Read More »

Stratfor Weighs In On AMZ Being DOA

By Maj P

I just received a forwarded email with Stratfor’s initial operational analysis on the Zarqawi hit. Since you really need to be a subscriber to get it (and I am not one) I won’t post the whole thing, but I will say it’s titled, “Iraq: The Implications of Al-Zarqawi's Death,” and it’s available at Stratfor.com.

Allow me to draw out the important points.

1. AMZ was not just the public face, the “figurehead” as I heard on the radio today, but a very effective operational planner and executor. And he was the one guy in Al Qaeda who was producing results.

2. The removal of AMZ changes the Sunni/Shia/Kurd dynamic, for the better. That improves the chances for governmental unity.

3. AMZ wasn’t just found, he was fingered. This has Iraqi political implications and suggests that HumInt operations there more effective than we thought.

4. Iraqi political progress has implications in the U.S./Iran dynamic and in international oil investment. Both are very good things.

The one point in the analysis on which I am not satisfied is that an end to the insurgency might be in sight. However, that does depend on what one considers “in sight.” It might be, as Churchill said, not the beginning of the end but the end of the beginning.

If you’ve seen this document, please weigh in and tell me where you think I’m off base. I think it hits the mark, and it says things I haven't seen or heard anywhere else.

Maj P

Woe Is Me-dia

By Maj P

The yes-butters are hard at work on the Zarqawi operational post-mortem. Need we cloud this lovely achievement with doom and gloom? Apparently some feel the need. Advances in civilization come in all shapes and sizes, we should welcome each and every one on its merits. Did the invention of the flush toilet have a downside? I say not. The development of calculus? Besides making my life miserable at VMI, I see no real detriment to it.

I was thinking this morning on my very long drive to work, what historical analogies can we apply to this situation? (Nihilist in Golf Pants has already come up with one; brilliant!)

Let’s try this one: 18 April 1943, in the skies over the Solomon Islands, specially selected and trained members of the 339th Fighter Squadron, flying P-38 Lightnings, jumped the planes carrying Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and blew them out of the sky. Down went the architect of Pearl Harbor, and Japan’s primary naval strategist and fighting sailor. Removing him from the fight was a real blow to Japan’s war effort, and a great boost to morale in the U.S. From what I gather there was no sense that this single act would end the war, but it was widely hailed as a good thing in and of itself.

Removing the unlovely Mr Zarqawi is a step forward, a major victory, and nothing less.

Maj P

Spammer Fined for Millions

By John

Today is just full of good news.

Texas Spammer Fined 10 Million Dollars

CHICAGO (AFP) - A college student who led a massive spam e-mail operation has been fined more than 10 million dollars, the Texas attorney general said.

"Spam e-mail is not only pervasive in our society but is one of the most aggravating problems computer users face," Attorney General Greg Abbott said in a statement Wednesday.

"Today's crackdown effectively shuts down one of the worst spam operators and sends a warning to others who would engage in spam e-mailing for profit."

So who gets the 10 million? There are millions of victims here....

A few weeks ago, I woke up to find 50 new comments posted to Op For. Every single flippin' one was spam. Had to delete each one individually. Charlie and I worked hard to get Op For just the way we like it. For it to be tainted with cheap advertising, placed without our permission, is infuriating.

I also consider it stealing. Military.com pays good money to advertise on Op For, and other companies pay good money to other bloggers to advertise on their sites. Spamming blogs with advertising, against the consent of the blog owners, should be criminal.

Or, if nothing else, bloggers should be allowed to sue the pants off of these clowns.

Podcast with the Coastie Chief.

By John

Military.com talks Katrina, homeland security, and the future of the Coast Guard with USCG Commandant, Admiral Thad Allen.

Good stuff from our boys in, uh...light blue.

The Awesome Tony Snow

By John

Blackfive has a chunk of bloggy goodness from this morning's White House press conference. Tony Snow is the man.

AMZ: QUESTION OF THE DAY

By Maj P

John and Charlie said I can't use bad words on this blog, so I'll have to direct you here in order to pose The Question Of The Day.

Feel free to post your answers, here or there.

Maj P

Kos Kids Reax to Al-Zarqawi's Death

By John

Kos kommenters confuse me:

The right way to handle this would have been to say nothing ... "bombing attack killed some insurgents ..." Instead, this foolish glee will help make him a martyr ... and, yet again, we have a 'major milestone' ... 'major step forward' ... and such which may -- or may -- not have real impact on what is going on in Iraq.Did Zarqawi really matter as individual ... or will there be a Spartacus-type moment with tens now stating "I am Zarqawi ..."

But, again, believe BushCo blew this one in how they're handling it ... any surprise?

Greyhawk says: "Guess it sucks to be a progressive today."

What To Do With Lieutenant Watada

By Maj P

An interesting solution to the problem of Lt Watada-- great pic at Michelle Malkin-- was suggested to me at work today:

Relieve him of operational duties and send him to work at Walter Reed, to handle the in- and out-processing of wounded veterans.

Sounds like a good plan to me.

Maj P

Good Work, Fellas (Updated)

By Maj P

**UPDATE** See below...

Bye, bye, AMZ. You *won't* be missed.

As many have pointed out already, this isn't the end. But it is one of the innumerable steps forward toward victory. The background to the operation-- which we'll never know, or won't know for many years if ever-- would reveal the true extent of the win, the intelligence coups, the dozens of smaller joint and combined operations, the painstaking planning and execution. So to those unnamed men (and women) overseas who had a hand in this victory, I say good work.

Update: the intrepid Bill Roggio tells us who did it.

Maj P

Picture of the Day: Ospreys in Flight

By John

More than meets the eye.....

Two Air Force CV-22 Ospreys prepare to land at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., on Friday, May 26, 2006. These Osprey are two of only three in the Air Force inventory. The Ospreys and their crews are taking part in the filming of the movie, "Transformers."

Photo Courtesy of the US Air Force

Betraying an Oath

By John

In late 2003, LT Ehren Watada swore the following oath:

"I, Ehren Watada, having been appointed an officer in the Army of the United States, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

In resposne to Lt Watada's refusal to deploy to Iraq, John Donovan wrote:

Let us assume that Lieutenant Watada is sincere. We owe him that much.

Bull. I owe Watada an ounce of Jack and a pint of shit. He selfishly placed his own petty politics above the most sacred of vows, a sin that all the sincerity in the world cannot wash away. By violating that oath, Watada has cheapened its meaning and violated its purpose.

Worse, to justify his desecration of the oath of office, Watada has claimed that Iraq is an illegal war. Thus, by Watada's logic, all officers who faithfully discharged their duties are war criminals.

What Watada did, or plans to do, is dishonorable. Period, the end. He has dishonored himself and he has dishonored the uniform. And his will serve time in jail for his transgressions.

Personally, I hope he's busted to private and deployed straight to the Iraqi theater for convoy duty.

Golfers, Help!

By John

I spent 2 hours at the driving range today trying to fix this hideous slice I've developed.

I've got the distance, I lack the accuracy. Tips?

Indonesian Defense Minister Lectures US on Terror War

By John

Indonesian Scolds US in Terrorism Fight

JAKARTA, Indonesia, June 6 — Indonesia's defense minister warned the Bush administration on Tuesday that its approach to fighting terrorism was perceived as overbearing, and that the United States needed to be sensitive to local concerns.

"It's best that you leave the main responsibility of antiterrorist measures to the local government in question, and not be too overly insistent about immediate results arising from your perception about terrorists," the minister, Juwono Sudarsono, told reporters as Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld stood nearby.

Okay, that's fair. Indonesia is like Pakistan, they have to strike a tough compromise between appeasing their majority Muslim demographic and appearing muscular on international terrorism.

There are two languages in international relations, one spoken in public and one spoken in private. The Indonesian Defense Minister used his public voice prove that his administration is not a tool of the United States. In private, I suspect the two defense chiefs were hammering out some sort of resolution to the Proliferation Security Initiative.

The two governments working through the proposed PSI should have been the real story here, btw....not damaged egos.

LA Times and USA Today Spin Geneva

By John

Cross-Posted at Newsbusters.

Earlier today, the Los Angeles Times reported that Pentagon officials were considering dropping Article 3 of the Geneva Convention from FM 34-52, the Army's field manual on interrogation. While the Pentagon has not reached a final decision on the potential modifications to FM 34-52, the Times and USA Today certainly have. Follow the escalation.

LAT's lead this morning was: Army Manual to Skip Geneva Detainee Rule.

"The Pentagon has decided to omit from new detainee policies a key tenet of the Geneva Convention that explicitly bans "humiliating and degrading treatment," according to knowledgeable military officials, a step that would mark a further, potentially permanent, shift away from strict adherence to international human rights standards."

The story prompted USA Today to run this headline at their On Deadline online forum:

"REPORT: PENTAGON TO DROP GENEVA."

It appears that the MSM is playing the old telephone game. DoD and State Department officials indicated that there was debate over a legal realignment in an obsolete Army field manual. LA Times spins the story into a defacto abandonment of all tenets of Article 3 of the Geneva Convention, and USA Today ups the ante with a headline claiming the Pentagon plans to "drop Geneva."

Give this another day or so and we'll be hearing reports like "Pentagon Burns Geneva Convention in Druid Ritual."

If you're interested in hearing a more level approach to the discussed modifications of FM 34-52, see milblogger Army Lawyer's interpetation of Geneva's Article 3.

Taliban II: Rise of the Africans

By John

This has the potential to be pretty bad news, folks.

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 5 — Islamic militias declared victory today over Somalia's traditional warlords in the battle for control of Mogadishu, quelling months of fierce fighting in the lawless capital but raising new questions about whether this regime, which American officials have accused of sheltering terrorists, will steer the country down an extremist path.

Another collapsed state that has the potential to turn into a big-time breeding ground. Somalia is starting to look alot like pre-Enduring Freedom Afghanistan. A few posts down, Charlie mentioned that:

this expands the Sharia sphere of influence, from Sudan to Somalia. The Palestinian Authority is up in the air on Sharia, and it is being fought full bore in Iraq and Afghanistan. We need a "rollback" strategy for this Dark-Age style of governance.

So what's the better Somalia scenario for the war on terrorism? A standing, functional, yet hostile government that *might* be pressured into playing ball with the West, or a collapsed state at controlled by factions of constantly-feuding warlords? Both settings are environments in which terrorists flourish.

Sudan, then Somalia. I sincerely hope Nigeria isn't next. I concur with Charlie, we need a rollback strategy for the dark continent's rising Islamist tide.

The Rangers of Point Du Hoc

By John

June 6th marks the 62nd anniversary of The Battle of Normandy, otherwise known as D-Day. So our moment-in-history zen for the day is the legendary capture and holding of Point Du Hoc by the US 2nd Rangers.

Rangers demonstrate how they scaled the cliffs of Point Du Hoc using rope ladders.

Point Du Hoc was a prime example of Rangers doing what they do best, beating insurmountable odds to accomplish their mission. By D plus 2, the 2nd Rangers -with their backs literally to the cliffs- had defeated 5 vicious German counterattacks. The price was high, as the Rangers suffered some 70% casaulties in the two day action.

For more on Point Du Hoc, read Brian Williams gripping account of the battle below the fold.

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6 Day War Started, This Day in History

By Charlie

The war that changed the face of the modern Middle East began on June 5th, 1967.

Islamists claim Mogadishu victory

By Charlie

America lost a proxy war today:

An Islamist militia says it has seized Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, after weeks of fighting against an alliance of warlords allegedly backed by the US.

n a statement read over local radio stations, the Union of Islamic Courts leader Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed said the control of Mogadishu by warlords was over and he urged residents to accept the new leadership.

"The Union of Islamic Courts are not interested in a continuation of hostilities and will fully implement peace and security after the change has been made by the victory of the people with the support of Allah," he said.

"This is a new era for Mogadishu," he told AFP news agency, adding that the Islamic Courts were ready for dialogue.

This expands the Sharia sphere of influence, from Sudan to Somalia. The Palestinian Authority is up in the air on Sharia, and it is being fought full bore in Iraq and Afghanistan. We need a "rollback" strategy for this Dark-Age style of governance.

USS Cole to Return to Duty

By Charlie

NORFOLK, Va. -- The USS Cole is heading to the Middle East for the first time since a terrorist bomb killed 17 sailors aboard the Navy ship in Yemen's port of Aden nearly six years ago.

The Norfolk-based guided missile destroyer is one of seven ships with 6,000 sailors and Marines leaving the East Coast this week to conduct security operations in support of the war on terrorism, the Navy announced Friday. They'll be gone six months.

...None of the sailors who were aboard the Cole during the attack is still on the ship, Kafka said.

''The Cole has gone through an extensive certification process, and they are ready to deploy,'' Kafka said when asked whether the Second Fleet has concerns about the Cole returning to the Middle East.

The Cole was refueling Oct. 12, 2000, when an explosives-laden boat rammed into it. The attack, blamed on Osama bin Laden's terror network, blew a huge hole into the Cole's side.

One of the first casualties in the World on Terror getting back on the front lines is a big step. This is what America is all about, rebuilding and driving on. Next up, we should rebuild the World Trade Center, and return it to duty.

Died on the Field of Honor

By John

June 5th is the two-year anniversary of the death of a friend, Sgt. Ryan E. Doltz, in Sadr City, Iraq.

Ryan joined the National Guard while attending the Virginia Military Institute.

Read More »

US sweetens the pot for Iran

By Charlie

In a move that will surely be mocked and laughed at by the mullahs, diplomats have offered Iran trade deals to give up their nukes. Think it will work?

VIENNA (AFP) - The United States has offered to lift some of its trade sanctions against Iran as part of a package of benefits the EU will deliver to get Tehran to guarantee it will not make nuclear weapons, diplomats told AFP.

The United States is proposing "lifting sanctions partially, not only waiving sanctions but actually lifting them," in an agreement to be worked out in multilateral talks that would start once Iran suspended uranium enrichment, said a senior Western diplomat, who requested anonymity.

Washington, which considers Iran a sponsor of terrorism and now fears it is covertly developing nuclear weapons, has since the mid-1990's banned most US trade and investment with the Islamic Republic.

Lifting sanctions would allow sales to Iran of things like agricultural technology and commercial planes to replace the country's dilapidated fleet.

US officials have said they want to keep the details of the proposal secret in order to avoid the appearance of threatening Iran.

Well, what a relief that this is still a "secret" proposal. Meanwhile, the Iranians seem to be hinting that they will brandish the economic weapon in a slightly different manner:

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of the world's fourth-largest oil exporter, said on Sunday that if the United States makes a "wrong move" toward Iran, energy flows in the region would be endangered.

The futility of negotiations is getting clearer each day...

We Answer Mail

By John

William H asks:

What is the proper way to write "Op For"? I have seen you use several variants (OPFOR, Op For, OpFor, Op-For) and I never know which one to use.

Just get the spelling right my friend, the rest is gravy.

Dave R sends:

What happened to the Wolf Dog? I miss Wolf Blogging.

Actually that's Charlie's bag, and I emailed him the same question almost a month ago. He replied:

The wolf went feral and killed several people. We don't talk about it anymore. We have no wolf.

Wolf-Dog is still out there though, lock your doors folks.

Listen to Pundit Review Radio this Evening!

By John

The PR team and Blackfive will be featuring a good friend of ours as "Someone You Should Know."

A very special thank you to Matt for recognizing our buddy Ryan, who died on the field of honor two years ago Monday. Charlie and I greatly appreciate it.

Listen live here, and be sure to let WRKO know what a great job the Pundit Review guys do by clicking their feedback link.

Gaza Ghetto Fabulous

By Charlie

Members of a newly deployed Fatah militia parade in the West Bank town of Jenin Saturday June 3, 2006. The Fatah movement of moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas deployed the new militia, in a show of force against the militantly anti-Israel Hamas government. The new unit, which Fatah officials said numbers 2,500 members, is the movement's answer to a militia of 3,000 Hamas activists that the government deployed last month over Abbas' objection.(AP Photo/Mohammed Ballas)

First, nothing about this photo screams "moderate" to me.

Next -Now both "governments" in Gaza have their own "armies". When does this get called a civil war (unlike the non-civil war in Iraq)

Finally, where can I get one of those T-Shirts?

PS: That's a BAR Browning Automatic Rifle haji's carrying -I think. What say you, commentariat?

Canada Gets A Wakeup Call

By Maj P

Good counterterrorist work north of the border. Whether this jolts them into stronger action in operations overseas remains to be seen. I, for one, would welcome it.

Maj P

Don't Give Up: A Soldier Reports From Iraq

By Maj P

From last sunday's Roanoke Times, commentary by MAJ John S. Phillips, an Army reserve officer serving in Iraq. This is a superb article, and I think it captures well the sense of what is going on there, and what is at stake there.

I know John Phillips. He is a member of the remarkable VMI class of 1987, and fully exemplarizes the citizen-soldier ethos that the Institute seeks to instill. Among his Brother Rats are two current Marine battalion commanders, one Marine field historian, and Op-For Charlie's own battalion commander, to name only a few.

Drive on John, and it'll be good to have all of you back.

SF,

Maj P '89

Round and Round...

By Charlie

Take a deep breath –things can get much, much worse in the MidEast

By Charlie

The US has had some recent setbacks in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the problems in these two countries don’t hold a candle to the forces roiling against the entire region of the middle east. Terrorism, extremism, poor governance, WMD proliferation, genocide, ethnic cleansing, violence, civilian deaths, and oil politics affect all countries in the region –not just the ones with US troops in them. These forces could split the Arab/Muslim world apart just as easily as Iraq and Afghanistan could collapse on us. Folks, things could get way worse.

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Picture of the Day: Heritage Flight Over Manhattan

By John

Hey we haven't done one of these in a while.

A P-51 Mustang, flown by Jim Beasley; an F-16 Fighting Falcon, flown by Maj. Dax Cornelius from Hill Air Force Base, Utah; an F-15 Eagle, flown by Capt. Tony Bierenkoven from Eglin AFB, Fla.; and an A-10 Thunderbolt II, flown by Capt. Jeff Yost of Pope AFB, N.C., fly over New York City on Thursday, May 25, 2006.

.....presumably to attack a giant gorilla.

The Haditha Firestorm

By John

Haditha. I'll keep it short and sweet.

1) If you believe the narrative which dictates that Haditha is some sort of microcosm of military murder, you need to get a life.

2) The military is investigating. Let them do their job. That means you, Democratic Underground.

3) Innocent until proven guilty still applies folks.

All I got.

Waking the Red Giant

By John

The Chinese threat, fact or fiction? Allan Topol says "fact."

China now has more than 700 combat aircraft based within un-refueled operational range of Taiwan. China has deployed almost 800 short-range ballistic missiles across from Taiwan. China’s naval force now includes 75 major surface combatants, 55 attack submarines and 50 costal missile patrol crafts. In ground forces, the Peoples Republic Army and the paramilitary Peoples Armed Police have over 4.6 million available troops. In addition, China can draw upon more than 10 million organized military militia members.

Of the total number of ground troops, some 400,000 are deployed to the three military regions opposite Taiwan, an increase of 25,000 over last year. Moreover, China has been upgrading these units with tanks, armored personnel carriers and a substantial increase in the amount of artillery. There is no doubt that China has in place the necessary military resources to launch an all out attack in an effort to recapture Taiwan, which China views as a renegade province. Beyond Taiwan, the report notes, “China has the greatest potential to compete militarily with the United States and field disruptive military technologies that could over time offset traditional U.S. military advantages.”

China's been pulling a far-east version of the Pentagon's lighter, faster, more flexible force plan since -I believe- 2001 or 2002, trimming their huge army and redirecting all those saved Yuans towards state-of-the-art Russian made military toys. Topol's piece is interesting, as it indicates that China is still interested in the whole "China mad, China smash!" steamroller strategy for the invasion of Taiwan.

Of course with all the firepower the Chinese have pointed at the tiny island, you have to wonder if there would be anything left post-bellum...

Aggressive Negotiations

By John

Here's today's feet up, slippers on, pipe puffing, evening reading on Iran. Steve Schippert:

Reading media reaction, whether as reportage or editorial, to yesterday’s statement by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the United States is open to direct talks with Iran on the nuclear crisis is largely disappointing. Nearly every report or editorial places an inappropriate emphasis upon the offer to Iran of direct talks without understanding – or at least properly explaining to news consumers – the profound significance of the prerequisite condition of the cessation of all enrichment activities.

The enrichment cessation demand – decidedly not a policy shift, reversal or concession – is mentioned by each, but readily discarded and supplanted by lengthy conversation and coverage of what direct talks with Iran may mean. This misplaced focus on ends rather than means puts the proverbial cart clearly and ill-advisedly before the horse.

Let us be clear: The enrichment cessation demand has never been nor will it become a negotiable point for the Bush Administration.

Let us also be clear: Tehran has made it unmistakable that enrichment is their right and that enrichment has never been nor will it become a negotiable point.

I'm so proud of Steve. The reason he's been writing so eloquently recently means he probably sat down and read that copy of Hooked on Phonics that I sent him last month

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