History Archives

Frank Buckles Last Surviving US WWI Veteran

By Townie 76

The Richmond Times Dispatch has a great story on Frank Buckles the last surviving US WWI Veteran who lives in Charles Town West Virginia.

LTC Paul Yingling Hits It Out of the Park

By Townie 76

In this months Armed Forces Journal International, LTC Paul Yingling in an article entitled "The Founder's Wisdom" writes eloquently on the relationship between the Constitutionally defined powers of Congress and the President regarding the military and recent United States History. Many shan't agree with his prescription for restoring the balance, but it should be read nevertheless.

As the U.S. commits additional forces to Afghanistan, Americans would be well-served to return to our constitutional system of war powers. The burdens of fighting in Afghanistan cannot and will not be shouldered solely by those in uniform today. Many of the soldiers who will fight in Afghanistan have not yet entered high school, and many of the workers who will pay for this conflict are not yet born. No war policy can succeed unless the American people are committed to the wisdom and justice of the conflict, and prepared to bear the burdens necessary for victory. America’s Founders understood this principle well, and gave us a system of government to keep us both safe and free. In practice, this form of government provides for a deliberative process that is slow, inefficient, messy and noisy. However, these inconveniences are a small price to pay to ensure that we choose our wars wisely and fight them intelligently and vigorously. We have paid a terrible price for ignoring the Founders’ wisdom, and in doing so have gained neither safety nor freedom. However, the great advantage of our system of government is that it allows us to learn from the past and do better in the future. Perhaps Madison should have added an eighth article to the Constitution: “When all else fails, read the directions.”

Burial At Sea

By Townie 76

This was sent to me by a friend. For all who have had to serve as a notification officer the feelings and sentiments expressed by the author are familiar.

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Lee-Jackson Day

By Lt Col P

Has not been forgotten.

Thank God.

A Memorial Day Speech from 1952

By Townie 76

I found this speech, among my fathers papers after he passed away, I have transcribed it verbatim, and thought I would share this with you.

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The first of the 41 for freedom

By Bull Nav

Today marks a significant event in the history of this great nation. One that, unfortunately, far too few know about or even care about (I know Richard does).

From the commander of US Subvets Groton Base:

Before I get into this broadcast I want to take you back 50 years to 29 Dec 1959. We were already at war in a place that we would be hearing a lot about, a place called Viet Nam. The Cold War between the US, and the USSR was really hot. The next day would be a momentous day for the U.S., for the U.S. Navy, and for the U.S. Submarine Force. The would be an event that would change history and Submarine Warfare forever. The event on 30 Dec 1959 was the commissioning of the USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (SSBN 598). The GW was the first Fleet Balistic Missile Submarine to be commissioned by the U.S. Navy. The weapons that she would carry to sea were intended for deterrence, with the hopes that they would never have to be launched in anger. That arsenal of missles made the bombs that ended WWII in Hiroshima and Nagasaki look like fire crackers. The commissioning of the GW would mean that some where silently patrolling unknown to our enemies were the bombs that would take out the major cities in Russia. The commissioning of the GEORGE WASHINGTON laid the groundwork for 41 Submarines that would carry Polaris and Posieden missiles, and would become fondly known as the 41 for Freedom. Later as these Submarines came to the end of their useful lives, they were replaced by even more incredible Submarines, the TRIDENT Submarines. The groundwork laid by the GEORGE WASHINGTON's Commissioning on 30 Dec 1959 was the foundation for thousands of man years of the crews of all of those Submarines on Deterrent Patrols out of places like Rota Spain, Holyloch Scotland, Groton, Charleston, Kings Bay, Pearl Harbor, Guam, and Bangor Washington. All of those efforts were for peace, and deterrence in the hopes that Russians would not shoot first knowing what was being aimed at them. The men who brought USS GEORGE WASHINGTON to life that day, and the men who first sailed her were pioneers. With everything that followed them, we owe these pioneers a great debt of gratitude for what they accomplished. Many of our members served aboard the GW, and many others followed their initial lead. So to all those who brought GEORGE WASHINGTON to life, I would like to say thank you to each one of you for all that you did for the Submarine Force.

The sail of USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (SSBN598) on permanent display at the Submarine Museum in Groton, CT (photo: bullnav following the December drill weekend).

And 50 years ago...

GROTON, Conn. (June 9, 1959) - The ballistic-missile submarine USS George Washington (SSBN 589) slides down the ways during her launching ceremony at Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation, Groton, Conn. George Washington was originally scheduled to become USS Scorpion (SSN 589) but during her construction she was lengthened by the insertion of a 130-foot missile section and was finished as a fleet ballistic-missile submarine. George Washington was commissioned as the Navy's first nuclear-powered fleet ballistic-missile submarine on Dec. 30, 1959.

Our 14 Trident ballistic missile submarines still patrol the seas today, the submariners aboard them making a different type of sacrifice from those in daily combat, yet just as necessary.

Take a few minutes today to remember the SSBN sailors who spent years of their lives as our most survivable arm of the nuclear triad.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE ROYAL CANADIAN REGIMENT

By Lt Col P

As I am honoured to serve alongside a Major of the Royal Canadian Regiment, allow me to recognise their birthday today.

Here is a short history, up to the Balkans; and here they are up to Afghanistan.

Fellas, if I had any rum I'd happily hand it over for an Ortona Toast.

Happy birthday to you, and may next year see you all home, safe and sound, wreathed with the laurels of victory you have rightly won.

Bob Herbert Part II

By Townie 76

“Every man who loves peace, every man who loves his country, every man who loves liberty, ought to have it ever before his eyes, that he may cherish in his heart a due attachment to the Union of America, and be able to set a due value on the means of preserving it.” James Madison Federalists 41

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Armistance Day in the United Kingdom

By Townie 76

As you are aware I have written a number of times on the British military and in particular of the passing of the World War I generation. Here is a video which I saw on today Daily Telegraph. Here is the accompanying article. Here is something from Canada.

The Annual Muster of the 116th Infantry Regiment, Stonewall Brigade

By Townie 76

In the day of yore; the yeomanry would gather annually for the muster of the local militia. Tomorrow night I shall participate in that ancient tradition.

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Gun-Day Sunday: The Straight-Pull Ross

By Lt Col P

Courtesy of resident gun-sleuth Tony-Sahib, we bring you a particular variant of the straight-pull bolt action Canadian Ross rifle.

Originally chambered in a proprietary caliber for the Canadian Army, the rifle had a checkered history. It was by all accounts a very accurate rifle, and it did well on the range. (There was a good article on it in American Rifleman sometime earlier this year.) However, it was not well-suited to the demands of trench warfare, and was quickly superceded by the .303 Enfield, unofficially at first by acquisitive (and smart) Canadian soldiers.

Now, the one shown below was captured or seized here in the recent past, and was handed down by various occupants of our office. Tony-Sahib did a little checking and found that a whole lot of them was made for the British Army in 1915, chambered in .303. This is one of them. Overall it's in good condition, but somehow the bolt was put together improperly, so that you can't pull it back all the way, thereby rendering it ineffective. A good illustration of why it wasn't a successful fighting rifle. How exactly it got here, none can say, but I bet it could tell some tales.

Here, you can see the straight-pull bolt:

Here, the whole thing, borne by a true rifleman.

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Last of the Chinese Revolutionaries Dies

By Townie 76

From today's Daily Telegraph the obit of the last of the revolutionary leaders of China. I have been fascinated by the revolution waged by Mao, and in particular the long march. Mao was like most Communists--he was a brutal dictator, however he was a genius at conveying the message of Communism to the Chinese peasant. I would commend, if you are interested in this period of Chinese History, Barbara Tuchman, Stillwell and the American Experience in China.

Tankette

By Lt Col P

New Op-Forian and Eggers comrade "Tony-Sahib" uncovered a neat little piece of history, an Italian L3 "Tankette" from the WWII (and pre-war) era.

He wrote, "[An] Afghan officer told me this was a UK tank. However, it is an Italian L-3 made by Ansaldo circa 1935-42. It held a two (small) man crew and mounted two 8mm machine guns. My best guess is that the British captured it during the North African Campaign and brought it to the Indian frontier to eventually make it through the Kyber Pass to Kabul."

Strange things we see out here. Tony-Sahib has a keen eye for the historical, and is a damn good guy to work with!

Yorktown!

By Lt Col P

FYI, don't forget that today is the anniversary of the victory at Yorktown. I've been merci-ing all the French officers I can find here; as heirs to Lafayette and Rochambeau they deserve honest and unstinting praise.

Fortuitously, our section has been reinforced with the addition of one (1) Major from the Royal Welsh Regiment, who, prior to amalgamation, had been a Royal Welch Fusilier. In addition to an historic bond between the US Marines and the Royal Welch, dating back to the Boxer Rebellion (and what I can only imagine (wistfully!) was a good old fashioned post-victory pillaging), the antecedents of the Royal Welch fought from Lexington and Concord to Yorktown, giving as good as they got. Indeed, our Major L has given me a book on the subject, Fusiliers! , that I can't wait to read.

In Memory of the Last Tommy, Harry Patch

By Townie 76

Several weeks ago, I wrote about the death of Harry Patch, who was the last living Tommy, who served in the British Army during World War 1. The study of the history of World War I has always been an interest, in particular, the war poetry, which came from that Great War. I do not claim to be on par as a poet as those who wrote of their experience on the Western Front in World War 1, but the nevertheless, I felt inspired to write about Harry Patch and his comrades who served in that war.

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The Chesapeake Flotilla

By Lt Col P

Nifty article in today's WaPo about the Chesapeake Flotilla, built to try and stop the Royal Navy from ascending the bay in 1814 and burning various places, including the capital:

In the summer of 1813, Barney, a Revolutionary War naval hero, proposed building a flotilla of shallow-draft gunboats and barges that could harass the British, whose far-larger warships controlled the Chesapeake Bay and who were raiding plantations and small towns at will. After being assembled in Baltimore, the flotilla set sail in the spring of 1814, clashing with the British at St. Leonard's Creek in June and escaping up the Patuxent.

The British advanced up the Patuxent in August 1814 and landed an invasion force, trapping Barney's flotilla in the river's upper reaches. Under orders from the Secretary of the Navy, Barney scuttled the fleet with rigged explosives just ahead of the British. He escaped with most of his men and cannons to defend Washington, and they played a heroic but ultimately futile role in trying to stop the British, who captured the city and burned the Capitol, the White House and almost all other government buildings.

"Not only did an army of invasion lay their boots on American soil, they burned our capital, and this fleet was trying to stop it," said Marine archaeologist Donald G. Shomette, author of "Flotilla," a history of the Patuxent naval campaign. Shomette also helped lead the flotilla search three decades ago. "Here we have the presumed flagship 16 miles from the White House, in shallow water. In terms of historical value, this is extremely significant."

I wish them good luck, and I hope they succeed in this very important venture.

11 Sep 2009

By Lt Col P

Pardon me, but I'm going to reprint a slightly edited version of my post from 2006, on the other September 11th, of 1565. I think it's timely and relevant.

The fifth anniversary of September 11th 2001 is upon us. It is fitting that the day should see both a solemn remembrance of the dead and the renewal of a cold-hearted resolve to win the war that was declared on us.

There is however, another September 11th that we should also remember, and from which we can take heart in our own struggle. It is September 11th 1565; the scene was different and so were the actors too, but the nature of the battle was all too familiar. On that day, a small force of European knights and the entire population of Malta dealt Ottoman Turkey a decisive defeat, and in doing so probably saved western civilization.

In May of that year, a Turkish invasion force landed on the island of Malta, held only by a combined force of knights, their hired soldiers, and the mobilized population of the island. The Turkish aim was to seize the strategically located island and clear the way for the expansion of the crescent flag of Islam into the western Mediterranean and western Europe. The Turks, under Sultan Suleiman the Great, also sought to exterminate the last vestige of a crusading order that was still proving to be a dangerous foe.

Those old crusaders were the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John, of Jerusalem of Rhodes, and of Malta. Originally founded in the eleventh century as a hospital order to provide relief to Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land, they quickly grew into a formidable military force that also protected those Christian pilgrims. (They still exist as hospitallers, but if they existed today in the same form as in 1565, they would surely be the strangest NGO in the world. Imagine a merger of Catholic Charities and Blackwater; imagine Mother Teresa with a .45 and the will and skill to use it.)

The Knights of St John were by 1565 already living anachronisms. (Today, wouldn’t they be called warmongers from the religious right?) The crusades from which they derived were old history even then; the Order had been expelled first from the Holy Land and then from the fertile island of Rhodes. They were given the rock of Malta as much to keep them away from Europe as to allow them to get at the Turks, who they saw as mortal enemies. They waged ceaseless war against the Sultan in the form of commerce raiding and other operations.

The Knights knew their enemy well. The Order’s intelligence network gave early warning of the Turkish Sultan’s preparations for a massive attack to crush the Knights for good. Under the Grand Master, Jean de la Vallette, they prepared their defenses and called in their brethren from estates across Europe.

The Knights and the Maltese were virtually on their own in the fight for Malta. The Europe they sought to defend was going to provide little help. The Protestant powers of northern Europe were content to let the Catholic knights fight this battle. Imperial Spain, technically the order’s patron, would prove dilatory at best in sending aid. France had signed a treaty with Turkey some years before, and although much of the Order was of French descent, that country was neither able nor inclined to ride to its rescue.

The siege was brutal. After weeks of attack and counterattack under the hot Mediterranean sun, the Turks took a small position, Fort St Elmo, which guarded the approaches to the main citadels of Fort St Angelo and Fort St Michael. Despite having taken enormous losses, they then hurled their forces against the twin defenses around the grand harbor. More than once their fanatical assaults nearly overwhelmed the defenders; at one point the Turkish assault on St Michael was about to succeed when a surprise attack on the Turkish rear area by the Order’s cavalry caused them to retreat. In June a small relief force of about 700, sent from Sicily, arrived and crept into the fortress under the cover of a fog, and the reinforcement proved just enough to bolster the tired defenders at a critical point.

By the end of summer it was clear that the Turks had shot their bolt, despite their having come very close to victory more than once and having inflicted severe losses on the Knights and the Maltese. The Order had made them pay a very heavy price for their gains, and they could not sustain the campaign. The defenders likewise were on their last legs, but their faith and the leadership and iron resolve of the Grand Master held them firm.

On September 8th, when at last a relief force from Sicily appeared bearing 8,000 Knights and soldiers from across Europe, the Turks began to withdraw. But they left a force ashore, hoping to draw the Knights and their soldiers into an ambush that would secure them the victory in the open that they could not gain in the siege. Their fleet was still mostly intact, and even with the arrival of a relief force the issue was still in doubt. The Grand Master recognized what was afoot but was determined to finish them off; he gave orders to sortie a force to meet the Turks and push them into the sea.

One of the soldiers in that force, Francisco Balbi di Correggio, who left a first-hand account of the siege, tells us about that last battle. The force was made of defenders, nearly worn out by months of combat and privation, and the soldiers of the relief, who sought action after months of waiting in Sicily. They advanced on the Turks and seized a commanding height. With an officer shouting, “Santiago, and at them!” they fought a pitched battle but finally beat the enemy down, stopping only when the guns of the Turkish fleet covered the withdrawal. Yet not all Turks made it off. Balbi tells us that hundreds were left on the island; no quarter was shown to them, save one Turk who was sold into slavery.

And so it was that on Tuesday, September 11th 1565, the Ottoman Turks were driven from the Malta by the stalwart defense of a small group of living anachronisms and the island’s own brave inhabitants. The greatest military force in the Mediterranean was broken on the walls of the island’s fortresses, and the swords, spears and shields of the islanders and the Knights.

It is difficult to overstate the importance of the battle. In modern terms, it was not only a great victory in and of itself, it was also a critical shaping operation. In 1571, the Turkish fleet met the combined fleet of the now-mobilized European powers at Lepanto. The Turks were crushed, and their naval power never again threatened Europe.

The lessons for us today, almost five centuries hence, are equally important. The same enemy exists today. Instead of galleys he uses airliners, and instead of Janissaries he uses suicide bombers. He hates and fears western civilization, and seeks to convert or enslave us. We have to meet him and engage him everywhere he is, just as the Knights did. What it will take to win against him is what it took to win at Malta: preparation, skill at arms, leadership, and above all faith and an iron will.

While I remember our dead, I'll also remember the Knights of St John.

Remember also 11 September 1683, in which King Jan Sobieski of Poland led his army to the rescue of the city of Vienna, and broke the Turkish siege. Be sure to thank a Pole if you know one. There are several here aboard USS Eggers, and I will be thanking them profusely.

How we got to 9/11/01

By Bull Nav

So, not much news out there this week concerning this Friday's anniversary. Seems health care is sitting on the front burner and even conservative pundits want the war to end (see my BR's comments here).

To provide some context in how we got to 9/11/01, and in where we are going, I recommend reading Lawrence Wright's The Looming Tower. A very well written and researched history on the origins of bin Laden's radicalization (as well as others), and the radicalization of Islam in the 20th Century.

It seems people would rather forget and move on, as if the external extremist threats have been dimmed by the passing of time. We can't, lest this happen again.

Please take some time Friday and remember those who were murdered that day and also those who have given their lives since then to root out the evil. Most of all, remember that this is not over.

A Golden Oldie, A Blast From the Past; Now Appearing on the World Stage Russia (aka the former Soviet Union)

By Townie 76

I found this referenced on Tom Barnett's Website and then visited the article at the Wall Street Journal Website. The author of the article, a true student of Russian/Soviet History put much of what is happening today in context but also offered some sage advice. His summation of Russian History is very insightful.

The solution of the puzzle lies in the fact that during their 1,000-year old history of statehood, the Russians have virtually never been given the opportunity to elect their government or to influence its actions. As a result of this experience, they have become thoroughly depoliticized. They do not see what positive influence the government can have on their lives: They believe that they have to fend for themselves. Yes, they will gladly accept social services if offered, as they had been under the Soviet government, but they do not expect them. They hardly feel themselves to be citizens of a great state, but confine their loyalties to their immediate families and friends and the locality which they inhabit. From opinion polls it emerges that they believe democracy everywhere to be a sham, that all governments are run by crooks who use their power to enrich themselves. What they demand of the authorities is that they maintain order: when asked what is more important to them—"order" or "freedom"—the inhabitants of the province of Voronezh overwhelmingly expressed preference for "order." Indeed, they identify political freedom, i.e., democracy, with anarchy and crime. Which explains why the population at large, except for the well-educated, urban minority, expresses no dismay at the repression of its political rights.

A Flying Tiger Passes

By Lt Col P

One of the last of a true dying breed has passed on:

In September 1941, he left the Army Air Forces to volunteer for service in China as part of a secret program, the American Volunteer Group, nicknamed the Flying Tigers, under Gen. Claire Chenault. Made up of about 400 pilots and ground personnel and based in Burma, the Flying Tigers protected military supply routes between China and Burma and helped to get supplies to Chinese forces fighting the Japanese.

The group's exploits became legend. Flying the P-40 aircraft, their fuselages painted with a toothsome tiger, the Flying Tigers were credited with shooting down 299 enemy planes and destroying 200 on the ground, even though the Japanese at times outnumbered Chenault's group 15 to 1. On one day in late February 1942, the Flying Tigers downed 28 Japanese planes while losing none.

During one of the 1942 engagements, Gen. Bond destroyed three Japanese I-97 planes while piloting his P-40B. He was credited with nine kills in all.

There was a great Dogfights episode on the Tigers. (I also like what he did with his bounty money.)

We salute you, Major General Bond.

Ayo Gurkhali!

By Lt Col P

This past week, the most excellent Michael Yon had a post on being out with the Royal Gurkha Rifles in Afghanistan.

By coincidence, I am thumbing through my very thumbed-through copy of one of my favorite books, Bugles And A Tiger, about life in a Gurkha regiment just before WWII, in garrison, on maneuvers, and on the Northwest Frontier. I know I've mentioned this book before-- it ought to be required reading for junior officers, and its quite pertinent still today. Chapter 17 (fighting in Waziristan) could have been written yesterday. VMI graduates should all read Chapter 22, as well.

No one I've read has brought the Gurkhas to life in the written word as Masters did. But Mr Yon more than does them justice.

Forts

By Lt Col P

Forts. What kid of any age doesn't like a good fort? Snow forts, tree forts, pillow forts, REAL forts too. Today I came across a virtual treasure trove for forts-- North American Forts. Neat stuff that, everything from small coastal batteries to the big ones; old colonial palisades (as in steel-helmets-and-breastplates colonial) to frontier enclaves.

There is also an organization dedicated to the identification and preservation of old fortifications, the Council on America's Military Past. One of its directors is the esteemed former CO of the Marine Corps History Division's reserve detachment, Col Nick Reynolds.

Got an old fort in your backyard? I'd love to hear about it...

The Ploesti Raid

By Lt Col P

With a Hotel Tango to a commenter at MMM, we take you to Red State's outstanding remembrance of the Ploesti Raid, sixty-six years ago today.

Go read it all. It's an amazing tale.

The One-Niner-Eight

By Lt Col P

Behold the M198 155mm howitzer-- museum piece.

I was driving past the 10th Marines area yesterday and saw it sitting there, all clean and painted and shiny, which of course was my first clue that something was amiss. Yes, there it was among all the other museum pieces, the legends of Marine Corps artillery. (When I reported for duty in 1990, we still fielded the M101A1 105mm, as well as 155mm SPs and the 8-inch. All of them are on display too.)

Certainly it was on the big and heavy side, but it never failed to deliver the goods. If the Marine Corps sees fit to send me back into the artillery community proper, I'll be happy to get just as acquainted with its successor, the M777.

The Great War Is But a Memory

By Townie 76

The last surviving World War I Tommy living in the United Kingdom has died.

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Oldest British Veteran of WWI Dies

By Townie 76

Royal tributes for oldest veteran

It is often noted that the generation which fought WWII is quickly passing; but what we often forget there are a handful of Veterans of World War I living. At the intersection of the 5th and 6th Corridors of the 2nd Floor at the A Ring one can see pictures of the living US Veterans of World War I. With the death of Henry Allingham there are two living British Veterans of World War I. They soon will be gone, but their voices can be heard on the pages of Lyn MacDonald's multiple books on World War I, or the pages of the poems written by the soldiers of that war. Wilfred Owen of that war wrote perhaps the most haunting of the poems about World War I "DULCE ET DECORUM EST", one which I commend to each of you. I would also commend Paul Fussell's Great War in Modern Memory.

My friend, you would not tell with such high zest

To children ardent for some desperate glory,

The old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est Pro patria mori.

Last Australian WWII VC Holder Dies

By Townie 76

Ted Kenna, who died on July 8 aged 90, won the Victoria Cross on May 15 1945 while serving with the 2nd/4th Australian Infantry Battalion in the South West Pacific. He was the last surviving Australian VC recipient of the Second World War.

Room Temperature: Robert Strange McNamara

By Lt Col P

R. Strange McNamara, SecDef during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations and ex officio scapegoat for Vietnam, has passed to his reward. The AmSpecBlog delivers a two-fisted eulogy.

Noted industrialist, WWII Air Force vet (poor eyesight and all!), and card-carrying smart guy (a Harvard man, you know), he was bested by Indo-Chinese revolutionaries who didn't give a rat's ass about statistics but understood war very well indeed. The (mis)direction of the Vietnam War has a long roll of fools and fiends, but R. Strange McNamara holds the star billing.

Poor chap, he didn't know what he didn't know. Goodbye to you, Mr McNamara.

The Fourth!

By Lt Col P

Good morning, everyone, and Happy Fourth of July! I enjoin all of you to have a great celebration, replete with heaps of chow, (quality) beer, fireworks and if at all possible, firearms as well. (Firearms first, then beer, please. Mmmmmmm, beeeeeeeeeeeeerrr...)

Also, please read the entire Declaration-- read it aloud before friends and neighbors-- and revel in the ringing sounds of Liberty. Not "democracy", but Liberty, the only political condition fit for free citizens, all others being serfdom to a greater or lesser degree. Finally pay close attention to the list of specific grievances the Founders; some sound distressingly familiar.

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

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An Unknown Hero

By Townie 76

While reading the Daily Telegraph on line this AM I came across this obit of a Brit who was instrumental in the USMC success at Guadalcanal. I had seen mention of the exploits of the Coast Watchers at Guadalcanal but nothing specific, this provides interesting insight to one individuals contribution.

The Slow and Unnecessary Death of Three Old Warriors

By Townie 76

A trip to Patriots Point in Charleston South Carolina is well worth the trip if for no other reason to see the neglect of three warriors. Oh yes, the mighty Yorktown (actually the Bonne Homme Richard and re-commissioned as the Yorktown) is the show piece of Patriots Point. Money and upkeep are readily spent to keep the main attraction ready to welcome visitors. There was a time when there were three others ships of the line you could visit, but recently it is my understanding they have been closed to the public because they are sinking.

These three ships while not as physically impressive as the Yorktown but whose history and survival are important to our understanding of U. S. Naval History are the USS Laffey DD 724, USS Clamagore SS 343, and the USCGC Ingham WHEC 35 and whose collective history spans World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the Cold War.

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In Honor of and the Memory of the Men of the 121st Field Artillery Battalion 32nd Infantry Division (Red Arrow)

By Townie 76

Today, as the world rightly remembers the valiant sacrifice of the men of Allied Armies who landed at Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha, and Utah beaches on the coast of France, we sometimes forget, that on the other side of the world, Allied Armies were locked in a struggle against the Armies of Imperial Japan.

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Midway

By Bull Nav

On this 67th anniversary of the Battle of Midway, I would like to highly recommend a book I read last month which has significantly changed my views on that battle: Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway by Jonathan Parshall and Anthony Tully.

Two things are singularly impressive about this work.

First, the scholarship and diligence with which the authors approached the topic. The use of original Japanese source documents in crafting this history shows a side of the battle we have never seen, nor much thought about. Additionally, much is developed in the way of Japanese tactics and the state of the IJN at that point in the war.

Secondly, the debunking of several myths which have surrounded the battle. Most significant was the myth that the Japanese aircraft were caught on deck changing armament when they were attacked by US dive bombers.

Read it. I promise that you will not be disappointed.

The Candy Bomber

By Lt Col P

Yesterday I had the great privilege of seeing and hearing Colonel Gail Halvorsen, the famous "Candy Bomber" of the Berlin Airlift.

... While flying missions during the airlift, Halvorsen began dropping chocolate bars with tiny parachutes to Berlin’s children. His actions earned him the love and gratitude of Berliners and the acclaim of people in the United States and throughout the free world.

Halvorsen was on hand to help to dedicate the corridor, and he also spoke during the ceremony. He reminisced about his experiences and how he was inspired by some German children he met at the Berlin fence in 1948 who told him, “Someday, we’ll have enough to eat. But if we lose our freedom, we’ll never have it back.”

A great piece of living history, and a real character too, from one of the Air Force's finest hours. I'm glad I was there to see it.

Curiousier and Curiousier

By Townie 76

From the folks who brought you many of the most weird and wacky court decision, the United States Court of Appeal for the 9th Circuit, comes a decision that has Liberals suffering fits of hysteria, the Brady Bunch (e.g. Anti-Gun Brady Bunch) gasping for air, and Conservatives scratching their heads, comes a decision which incorporates the 2nd Amendment through the 14th Amendment and applies the principals laid down by Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller 554 US 290, 128 S. Ct. 2783 (2008). Here is what the folks at SCOTUS Blog said.

Samuel P. Huntington; The Soldier and The State: The Theory and Politics of Civil-Military Relations

By Townie 76

Samuel P. Huntington; The Soldier and The State: The Theory and Politics of Civil-Military Relations; Cambridge, The Belknap Press of Harvard University; 1957

Several weeks ago, during my move to Northern Virginia, as I was separating my books into categories, I picked up the late Samuel P. Huntington, The Soldier and the State, I did so for two reasons, as he had just recently died I wanted to gander at his first work which had a decided impact on the United States Military and two because of some research I am doing, I thought he would be a good starting point. I first read this book while a Cadet at the Virginia Military Institute, and again while in graduate school, so my intent was only to scan particular chapters of the book. However, once I began reading, the genius of Huntington was once again evident to me, I have gone back and reread the entire book.

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Where Are They When We Need Them?

By Lt Col P

By way of MMM, a brilliant and beautifully executed send-up of the Congress, our Fools-not-limited-to-April.

Where are the Founding Fathers when we need them? I look around and don't see too many would-be emulators...

Uncommon Valor

By Lt Col P

Today, 64 years ago.

Gun-Day Sunday: Corrosive Ammo Bleg

By Lt Col P

I'm about to take possession of a Finnish M39 Mosin-Nagant, a long awaited acquisition (photo below fold).

Questions for alcon: Any and all TTPs you have to share are welcome, but I really want to know about the ammo. The bulk military ball ammo looks to be wonderfully cheap but corrosively primed. I have never dealt with this sort of ammo before, so I want to hear the voices of experience. Are there particular cleaning solvents either to avoid or use? Any other pitfalls?

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Go West This Summer

By Lt Col P

Planning your family's summer vacation? GO WEST (or east, or north, depending where you are), and see the country. Behold, a shameless (uncompensated) plug for my mother-in-law's place out in Montana: Lost Trail Hot Springs.

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Honoring those lost at sea

By Bull Nav

I first came here to NAVSUBASE New London in 1990 to attend the Submarine Officer Basic Course. After a year of nuclear power training, it was a welcome respite in the realm of submarine tactics, training us to actually operating the submarine as a warship instead of operating a reactor plant.

It was not that academically strenuous as the nuke side had been, so we enjoyed much alcohol and fun in the surrounding area (primarily Mystic).

Six years later, I returned, this time for the Submarine Officer Advanced Course (SOAC) which is the Submarine Force Department Head course. This is all strategy and tactics. Learning tactics, weapons employment, etc. Very intense, but we were so focused: this would lead to submarine command. Six months it lasted...and I lived in a room right across the hall from that which tonight I occupy.

A year later, we came up here (my boat, that is, the mighty USS SCRANTON (SSN756)) for predeployment training. Two weeks of classroom training and Attack Trainer sessions, 18 hours a day...

Throughout all those times up here, I noticed that not a thing had changed.

When I passed through the main gate last month, the only thing I could immediately discern was the improved barricades and security. Otherwise, this place could have been in a time capsule. The CBQ has not changed, the roads have not been repaved, it's all the same...

But not really.

The streets on base here are all name for lost submarines from WW II. I knew that my previous times here, but never gave it much thought. Last month, I clearly noticed that the street signs had been changed.

The street signs now also contain the date the boat was lost and the number of submariners lost that date. SHARK, SCORPION, HARDER, GRAYLING...TANG.

Heritage.

Remember.

Ding-Ding! Ding-Ding! 2008, Departing...

By Lt Col P

Well, then, 2008, what do you have to say for yourself?

It was the year in which-- shhhh!-- it looks like we won in Iraq. It was the year when the American electorate passed on the better man but chose the stronger candidate. But keep your eye on the woman scorned. I do believe she will be back, and not a moment too soon.

It was the year of gun sales and ammo stockpiling. It was the year when I re-connected with BR Neal, and not a moment too soon. And BR Wayne moved into the area, a most welcome development.

It was the year that saw the passing of one of the greatest Marines ever to wear the uniform, and now one of the living links to the old OLD Corps too.

As for 2009, I predict that the economy will turn the corner as long as it's not tinkered with too terribly much. I predict that Afghanistan also will turn a corner, with the help of God and a few Marines, not to mention soldiers, sailors and airmen, and a hard core of allies, although we probably won't know the tipping point when we see it, and in any case it'll be a full-on fight. I predict that various global miscreants will test our new President. And may it please God that they be thumped mightily for their temerity.

Happy New Year to all of you, from all of us. Visit often, leave comments, spread the word.

Ding-ding! Ding-ding! 2009, arriving...

John-- Please Tell Us You've Been Here!

By Lt Col P

A fine article in NRO on what has to be one of the smallest, strangest military museums in the U S of A, at least since the Marine Raider Museum packed up and moved out of Richmond. (Not that a museum for the Raiders was strange in and of itself, it's just that what it was doing there, I never knew.)

The Titan II missile was the largest nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile ever in the U.S. fleet. Just over 100 feet long, powered by two liquid-fuel rocket engines, it was the same vehicle used to launch the Gemini manned space missions in the mid-1960s. The warhead was also the biggest ever on an American missile, the nine-megaton load dwarfing anything in the U.S. arsenal today.

Sheee-it.

John Noonan-- please tell us you make an annual pilgrimage! Honestly, sounds like a nifty place and a destination all its own.

(And don't make fun of no damn dial phones.)

Partner's in Command

By Townie 76

What struck me, as I read this book, is that if either Marshall or Eisenhower's careers were duplicated in the Army today, they would have both retired as Lieutenant Colonels -- at best. While I believe it is absolutely essential that our leaders have experienced Command, the success of Marshall and Eisenhower in fashioning Strategic Plans which won World War II, makes me wonder if our template career path, which makes it easy for the Personnel pukes to make safe decisions, may not deprive our Army of the next Marshall or Eisenhower.

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Civil War Preservation in the Valley

By Lt Col P

Great news from Winchester, VA: Over 200 acres of battlefield preserved from development and ruin.

The sale will preserve 209 acres of woods and hayfields on one of Northern Virginia's most significant battle sites, where Yankee and Rebel forces waged brutal hand-to-hand combat for control of the Shenandoah Valley. Preservation groups will add the land to their holdings to create a 575-acre park with trails, interpretive signs and free public access.

YOU CAN HELP. In fact, we all need to help. This was a sale, not a gift. "A $1 million grant from the state will contribute to acquiring the land, and by May the two preservation groups will need to raise the remaining $2.35 million through grants and private donations." Go HERE and HERE.

This is a truly wonderful development, no pun intended. Winchester is being assaulted by the same problems that ruined urbanized much of NoVa. Better still, the land will continue to be a working farm. A tremendous round of applause is due to the Huntsberry family for this generous and far-sighted act.

Totally Rad Armored Car of the Day

By John

...would be the Rhodesian Selous Scouts' Pig.

Word is that the Scouts ripped off a West German APC design, fixed it with a pair of Belgian 7.62mm MAGs, and used it to shred "Terrs" in the Rhodesian bush.

Due to international sanctions, the Rhodesian military had to develop most of their armor on their own -- though they did receive a shipment of T-55 tanks from South Africa at one point.

Anyways...

There's some more Rhodesian wheeled awesomeness here, should you find yourself interested.

We Few, We Happy Few

By John

Today marks an important epoch in literary and military history, St. Crispin's Day -- or the Battle of Agincourt, if you want to be a dick about it. Merge the two together and you get an Anglophonic tribute to Anglo-ass kickery... or just another undistinguished game in a long -very long- French battlefield series (the Frogs mostly end up going O-fer, btw. Sorry if I spoiled the surprise).

I'm not sure which is more appropriate. Either way, one hell of a speech!

Happy Columbus Day!

By Charlie

I picked this book up at an airport a year or so ago, and I figured this would be a great day to plug it. The story of Columbus seems to have lost much of its factual accuracy -this book describes shipwrecks, hurricanes, mutinies, hostile natives, and feuding imperial navies on the high seas. So while most folks enjoy the day off, give some thoughts to the great explorer whose legacy is a 3-day weekend in October.

The Last Voyage of Columbus: Being the Epic Tale of the Great Captain's Fourth Expedition, Including Accounts of Mutiny, Shipwreck, and Discovery by Martin Dugard

Inchon: "We Shall Land And I Shall Crush Them"

By Lt Col P

Today is Inchon Day, commemorating one of the greatest military strokes ever delivered. The Navy Historical Center has a great set of webpages on the operation with some memorable photos, including the one below, surely one of the enduring images of the war:

First Lieutenant Baldomero Lopez, USMC, leads the 3rd Platoon, Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines over the seawall on the northern side of Red Beach, as the second assault wave lands, 15 September 1950. Wooden scaling ladders are in use to facilitate disembarkation from the LCVP that brought these men to the shore. Lt. Lopez was killed in action within a few minutes, while assaulting a North Korean bunker.

Lopez was later awarded the Medal of Honor for the action.

It was a singular day for the Navy/Marine Corps team, but it also involved the Army's now-disbanded 7th Infantry Division, units of the Royal Navy, and three ships of the Royal Canadian Navy. Inchon remains a master stroke, a jewel of miltary art and science. It combined the genius of a great captain with the tenacity and skill of first rate naval, air and land forces.

There stands Jackson like a stone wall

By Richard S. Lowry

I am settled in my new job. Today I drove a mile from my new apartment to the Manassas Battlefield.

Click for a few more photos of my afternoon adventure:

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Static Line Jump

By Bull Nav

For LT COL P and Slab, a trip down memory lane:

I took this picture Saturday at Thunder Over Michigan. The aircraft are C-47s and the jumpers are all WWII re-enactors. The day was windy as hell with a very low ceiling. They had to make 4 passes over Willow Run before they finally jumped.

After the jump, there was a huge WWII battle re-enactment that was pretty incredible. I will try to get some pictures up soon.

Victory, Out of Providence

By Lt Col P

Concluding my visit to Newport and following up on last night's post on General Greene, I think it's a fascinating coincidence that the French forces which formed the backbone of the siege at Yorktown sallied forth from Newport and Providence. Indeed, they sailed and marched probably within sight of Greene's home.

This site has a great day-by-day look at Rochambeau's movement from Rhode Island to Virginia, a prodigious undertaking, from 18 June to 26 September 1781. (See here for more information on the French naval officer, Comte De Grasse, whose fleet defeated the British at the mouth of the Chesapeake and sealed Cornwallis's fate. Who knew that De Grasse was a Knight of Malta?)

What amazes me is that in an age of slow and uncertain communications, Washington and his subordinates and allies were able to draw together the far-flung campaign threads, and arrive by turns at the decisive place and time. Dare we say that Providence played more than one role here?

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General Nathanael Greene

By Lt Col P

I write to you tonight from Naval Station Newport, as congenial a duty station as anywhere in the naval service. (If any Op-Forians are in the area, send me an email at ltcolp at op-for dot com.)

Rhode Island is the birthplace of one of my personal heroes, General Nathanael Greene, and so because I am here now I think it appropriate to mention him once again. Greene was the guy who rarely won a battle, but whose very bold and canny campaign plan drove the British Army from the South and destroyed its irregular wing. In doing so he set Cornwallis up for entrapment and defeat at Yorktown. I often wonder what Cornwallis, a very capable professional soldier, thought of his lot after he realized he'd been ejected from the Carolinas and penned up in Virginia after never having lost a battle, all courtesy of a gimpy little renegade Quaker and self-taught soldier. It would have driven a lesser man to drink.

Here's to you, General. I hoisted a few in your honor tonight; we have much to thank you for.

The War of the World

By Bull Nav

I have not read the book.

I had not heard of the book.

I thought I should watch the show.

So I DVRed the PBS show last week and watched it.

And I was amazed. Certainly Mr. Niall Ferguson has the credentials and education. I have studied the history of WWII, but not with the intensity with which I would hope a tenured academic would.

My, uh, conclusion would not be the same.

Mr. Fergeson begins the "documentary" with a 30 minute dissertation on how bad the Nazis were. In my mind it was nothing new. The "lebensraum" of the Third Reich, the horrors of the Final Solution, the Blitzkrieg and the Soviet-Nazi secret pact. He included the fact that Stalin's regime thought they had an agreement with Hitler.

No big surprise.

Mr. Ferguson's real surprise came next when he said that WWII was, " ...a matter of Evil versus Lesser Evil."

He seems to think that the US, the UK, France, and all other allies had to resort to those same things that the Axis did on a regular basis in order to win. I don't believe that. I don't believe that was done on a national basis, certainly from the top levels.

He showed a film of Marines summarily executing Japanese soldiers. Now, I don't disbelieve this at all. There was not a whole hell of a lot of prisoner taking in the western Pacific. Just not the case. Look at Bataan. Look at captured US Submariners and Aviators.

When men fight, the rules of civilization go out the door. Man killing man is not natural. The desire for instant revenge and retribution are strong. Very strong.

Mr. Fergeson discusses that Allied troops were conditoned to kill.

In fact they were not. The data indicates that only 2% of infantrymen actually fired their rifles. Not necessarily killed the enemy, but just fired their weapons. Following WWII, the US Army took Lord Moran's studies to heart and developed methods in which our soldiers would "dehumanize" the enemy. Because that is the only way in which we can have a truly effective fighting force which will kill without thinking. Not that the killing won't affect those involved in it, because it does. Not the point of his show however...only the racial implications.

It finishes up with the question of who really won the war, which I really don't quite see how he got there. Seems he thinks the US and the UK completely ignored what Russia was all about. It seems he thinks we should maybe have been better served had we started a war with the Soviet Union at the writhing throes of WWII.

The final episode is this coming week, so I will have to see how he views the Cold War. More to follow.

For Liberty!

By Lt Col P

Happy Independence Day!

This is the greatest day to be an American, the day where we revisit the magnificent promise of liberty made in 1776 and secured countless times since, and celebrate the blessings of the singular nation we call home.

I strongly urge all to read the Declaration of Independence-- not just the ringing lines of the first paragraphs, but the whole thing, the damning point-by-point indictment of King George's gross misrule and petty tyrannies.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

(Them was fighting words!)

So enjoy the cook-outs, the fireworks, the beer, and maybe the guns too. (Guns first, please, then beer.) Forget about the naysayers, and just have a good day. Here's to the glory of the United States, and damnation to our enemies!

Lost British Ship Found in Lake Ontario

By Lt Col P

Fascinating story out of the Great Lakes.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — A 22-gun British warship that sank during the American Revolution and has long been regarded as one of the "Holy Grail" shipwrecks in the Great Lakes has been discovered at the bottom of Lake Ontario, astonishingly well-preserved in the cold, deep water, explorers announced Friday.

Shipwreck enthusiasts Jim Kennard and Dan Scoville used side-scanning sonar and an unmanned submersible to locate the HMS Ontario, which was lost with barely a trace and as many as 130 people aboard during a gale in 1780.

The 80-foot sloop of war is the oldest shipwreck and the only fully intact British warship ever found in the Great Lakes, Scoville and Kennard said.

Here she is, HMS Ontario, lost since 1780:

The article goes on to state that there are no plans to raise her or remove artifacts; she still belongs to the Royal Navy, and will be treated as a war grave. Rightly so. May she and her crew rest in peace.

The Lynch Lie

By Richard S. Lowry

Once again, the media has chosen to ignore the facts and is propagating the Jessica Lynch lie in the Washington Post article Kucinich's compelling case for impeachment

So, in my own Quixotic fashion, I have shot a letter off the the author. I thought some of you might be interested.

Dear Ms Cocco,

It distresses me more than I can express that you and your colleagues continue to spread the lie that Jessica Lynch's story was fabricated by the government. It is painfully clear to me that you know nothing about her ordeal. You stated in a recent article, "There is the Jessica Lynch fairy tale, in which the former Army private was said to have been brutalized and the subject of a dramatic rescue, a story that also was fabricated."

I am not just an angry reader. I am the author of MARINES IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN. It is the only book to tell the entire story of Lynch's ordeal. Please read a short piece I wrote last year, when Mr Waxman was on his "witch hunt." http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/568yzazb.asp

Then, if you are truly committed to the truth, read MARINES IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN. I spent more than two years researching the battle of Nasiriyah. I interviewed several of the survivors of the 507th Maintenance Company "ambush." I also interviewed the real heroes of the fight and several members of the team involved in her rescue. Jessica may have been well treated in the Saddam Hospital, but she was definitely brutalized prior to arriving there. The rescue was not staged. Military commanders would have been remiss had they not moved to rescue her with the forces they used.

Please consider getting the facts of what really happened, then help me to try to undo the damage from years of media irresponsibility. The real story needs to come out. It is not as if I have not documented it completely, no one in the media seems to care. It reminds me of a old phrase.

"My mind is made up - don't confuse me with the facts."

As for your article, he who lives in glass houses should not throw stones.

Richard S. Lowry
www.marinesinthegardenofeden.com
http://www.militarywriters.com/review-MarinesInTheGardenOfEden.htm

Midway

By Bull Nav

Steeljaw Scribe has an outstanding summary of the big lessons learned from the Battle of Midway, which occurred 66 years ago over the last few days.

Luck indeed smiled on the Americans that day, but she did not grab them by the hand (or scruff of the neck) and tell them what must be done in PowerPoint bulletized format. She merely opened the door, a crack, and offered a fleeting moment to change the course of the battle…the Americans grasped it and changed the direction of the war. Review the list above - these are timeless lessons learned, every bit as applicable today as they were 66 years ago. My observations lead me to believe we are ignoring them at our future peril. - SJS

Knowing Your Neighbors

By Bull Nav

A couple of months ago, back when it was still cold and snowy, we were enjoying a Saturday afternoon at home. One of my son's buddies was over as were some other folks when the doorbell rang. It was the 80-something woman from two houses down, and boy was she frantic. Her boyfriend, who was recovering from hip replacement surgery, had fallen off a barstool and could not get up from the floor. She needed some assistance to get him up and into a bed. I put on my boots and headed over to their house where I was able to lift him up and carry him over to the bed. Apparently, his hip had popped out causing him to fall off the stool. Needless to say he was in a lot of pain.

I figured that's what neighbors are for, that's what you do. You help out.

This past Sunday, my family and I were out in the garage getting ready to do some yard work, when Jim (the gentleman I had helped out a couple of months ago) drives up and pulls into our driveway. He wanted to thank me for helping him out, which really did not seem like a big deal to me. He explained all the hip surgeries he has been through, and where he had worked, and we just generally had a nice conversation. I had not really talked with him before as he has only been in the neighborhood for about 2 years and we generally don't see them much.

As we were talking, he noted my crutches and asked what happened. I explained that I had ruptured my achilles tendon at drill at Great Lakes a while back and he answered that his son had gone to boot camp there. He further explained that he had done his boot camp at Parris Island.

We started sharing military experiences, and he stated that the worst time he spent in the Marines was when he was in Korea and trying to sleep on the ground at 30 below zero.

I noted that I had read a couple of accounts of the Chosin Reservoir and how it was bone chillingly cold for the Marines up there.

"That's where I was," he answered.

Needless to say, I was floored.

I didn't have a comeback for that, except to shake his hand and thank him for his service. We continued to talk for a while more until we were done.

He headed on home and my wife and I got on with the yardwork, with a new found respect for the man down the street.

108 Years Ago

By Bull Nav

On 11 April 1900, the Navy took delivery of the first submarine, SS-1. Since then, today has always marked the birthday of the Submarine Force.

From those humble beginnings, it grew to have a significant impact on the war with Japan. While comprising less than 2% of the Navy, the Submarine Force accounted for 55% of all Japanese ships sunk during World War II.

Today, about 3% of the Navy manpower (about 10,000 men) man the 52 SSNs, 14 SSBNs, and 4 SSGNs that comprise the force (about 21% of our total combatants). Though you don't hear of them much in this day an age of the Global War on Terror, OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM, and OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM, rest assured that those guys are going to sea and making significant contributions.

It is not for nothing, that our Submarine Force is referred to as the "Silent Service." During the '90s while the number of submarines was cut in half, worldwide combatant commander requirements increased 1000%. SSNs went to sea for months at a stretch, in radio silence. Likewise the SSBNs continued with their deterrent patrols, just as they have since the days of the 41 for Freedom.

They are always out there, always on patrol or on a mission.

Happy Birthday!

For more info, go to the SUBLANT history or the USS NAUTILUS (SSN571) Museum website.

Also, The Subreport has a daily roundup of submarine-related issues.

UPDATE: Since LtCol P asked (and Richard answered quite nicely) in the comments, I did not realize some folks might not know what the SSGN is. You can go to the SUBLANT site here to see the detail on the conversion of the first 4 Tridents to carry up to 154 Tomahawk Cruise missles, and a whole bunch of SPECWAR folks.

USS THRESHER (SSN593)

By Bull Nav

It was 45 years ago today that we lost the first of two nuclear submarines.

The USS THRESHER (SSN593), the first of a new class of fast attack submarines, was lost with all hands while conducting sea trials off the coast of Massachusetts.

The Navy quickly figured out what went wrong and made some sweeping operational and material changes (to include implementation of the SUBSAFE Program) which significantly enhanced subarine operations.

There will be a memorial service this Saturday in Kittery, ME.

Gunday Sunday: Charlton Heston

By Lt Col P

Charlton Heston, actor, patriot, veteran, civil liberties activist, died yesterday in California.

Generations of movie-goers know him by his major roles. Even greater numbers of Americans are indebted to him for his outspoken advocacy of Liberty. He marched for civil rights in the 1960s. In the 1990s he ascended to the presidency of the NRA and added his voice and considerable presence to the fight for the 2nd Amendment, retaking the moral high ground and fearlessly venturing into campus lions' dens and MSM cesspools. He never backed down and always did it with a smile and a good-natured challenge to his audiences-- good advice for us.

Let's not forget that he also served in the US Army Air Force in WWII, in an unglamorous but vital theater of the war. Like millions of others, including most of his fellows in the entertainment industry, he did what he was called on to do, when and where he was needed. There too is good advice for us.

Godspeed to you, Mr Heston. Keep your front sight clear and your powder dry. Thanks upon thanks for all you did for your country.

Desert Storm revisited - Part II

By Richard S. Lowry

Pardon me for opening with a commercial, but my first book, "The Gulf War Chronicles" is being re-released this week. My book sales are my only means of income. I would appreciate it if you would help support my writing by passing this on to as many people as you can and if you would truck on down to your local bookstore and ask them if they will carry the book on their shelves. Here is the Amazon.com listing.

A comprehensive and compelling account of the Gulf War. Lowry's operational history is valuable for military historians and professionals; it is also accessible to general readers. Understanding the current war in Iraq requires an understanding of the 1991 Gulf War. Richard Lowry's "The Gulf War Chronicles" is a great place to start. – Colonel H.R. McMaster, USA.

Thanks for your patience. Now, for the rest of the story.

In 1991, VII Corps was moving its thirteen hundred Abrams and Challenger tanks into attack position. The Big Red One faced the Iraqi’s westernmost fortifications. The British 1st Armoured Division was positioned directly behind the U.S. 1st Infantry Division. On the left flank of the 1st Infantry, the 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment was preparing to race into Iraq. Its mission was to find the Republican Guard. The U. S. 1st and 3d Armored Divisions would follow the 2d ACR and smash Iraq’s best units.

By the time the 1st and 3d Armored Divisions were engaged with the Republican Guard, the 1st Cavalry Division would be in place to act as a reserve. Lieutenant General Fred Franks wanted to strike the Republican Guard with a single heavy metal fist. He worked diligently to maneuver his divisions into position so that they could all attack simultaneously. As VII Corps rolled into Iraq, Franks ordered that only scouts could advance ahead of the juggernaut.

Colonel Don Holder charged forward with his entire Dragoon Battle Group. One hundred twenty M1A1 tanks and more than a hundred and fifty Bradley Armored Fighting Vehicles of the 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment (2d ACR) rumbled east toward the Republican Guard and northern Kuwait.

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Desert Storm revisited

By Richard S. Lowry

Colonel H. R. McMaster was recently passed over for Brigadier General for the second time. A second denial is usually the door to retirement. I hope Colonel McMaster hangs in there as he is the kind of officer our military needs in the 21st Century. He is a warrior, leader and scholar. Dr. McMaster's doctoral thesis detailed the mistakes of the Vietnam War. It was later published as the best selling book Dereliction of Duty. The treatise is a scathing indictment of the Johnson administration's prosecution of the Vietnam war.

Colonel McMaster has a knack for telling it like it is. In November of 2003 he wrote a student paper while attending the U. S. Army War College, titled Crack in the Foundation. While not knowing Colonel McMaster personally, I believe that his views in this paper are what have kept him from rising farther in the military. Don't get me wrong - I think he is spot-on in his analysis but I believe many in the Pentagon were embarrassed by his logic and candor.

So, who is the officer that writes it like he sees it?

Richard S. Lowry is the author of Marines in the Garden of Eden and The Gulf War Chronicles.

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Recommended Reading: You're Stepping on My Cloak and Dagger

By Lt Col P

Am sitting in the Tampa Airport, on the way back from drill. On the way out I finished an outstanding memoir of life in the OSS in WWII, You're Stepping on My Cloak and Dagger, by Roger Hall.

Not only is it full of interesting facts about the OSS, it's punctuated with the sort of self-convulsing witticisms that I appreciate. Consider this, the opening line-- "My orders were concise, with hygienic overtones: 'Report to O.S.S. Wash.' "

Above and beyond the well-placed puns, there are some great observations on airborne school at Benning. His experience on the towers, especially the 250-footer, was nearly identical to mine, except that when he went off the thing it was almost brand-new.

Go forth and get a copy, you won't be disappointed.

The Greatest American Presidents

By Lt Col P

As I suggested below, I think the greatest American President is George Washington. His influence on the character of the nation itself, on its young and emerging governing institutions, and on the course of history, is so pervasive and strong that no other chief executive can be adequately compared to him. So, for me, the real question is, Who is the greatest American President other than GW?

I would nominate Abraham Lincoln in the 19th Century-- he preserved the Union.

I would nominate Theodore Roosevelt in the 20th Century-- he brought the U.S. into the community of first-rate powers, and oversaw extensive doemstic reforms. Also, he led a great, tough, truly American life.

Your turn. (Remember the rules...)

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Presidents' Day Op-For Reader Challenge

By Lt Col P

A challenge for all loyal Op-For readers, a sharp and perceptive crew if ever there was one: In honor of Presidents' Day, I'd like to hear your submissions for the greatest Presidents in U.S. history. Roosevelt? Lincoln? Jefferson? You tell me.

Here are the rules.

1. George Washington is out. He's in a class by himself, and it's not fair to compare any others with him.

2. You are allowed two submissions, one each for the 19th and 20th centuries.

3. Defend your candidates, but be brief.

Think about it over the weekend and make your submissions by way of the comments page when I re-post the challenge on Monday morning, 18 Feb.

Good luck!

Three Huzzahs for "Six Frigates"!

By Lt Col P

I'm only about a quarter of the way into it, but unless this book completely goes flat, I'll be giving three huzzahs-- the only appropriate accolade-- to Ian Toll's history of the early American Navy, Six Frigates.

I started it earlier this week, I can't put it down. I read it in every free moment during a conference this week, and sometimes during not-free moments.

The book describes in great detail how and why America came to have its Navy-- note that, despite being a maritime nation, no one saw a need for a real naval defense-- and how in particular the little nation came to possess six extraordinary, innovative, and dare I say transformational vessels. At the time, the frigate build was the largest Federal spending project; it drew resources and skills from across the country. Not surprisingly, the project was also heavily politicized, controversial, over budget and off schedule. All (reassuringly) familiar. Much to my surprise I learned that even though American yards had turned out hundreds of ships by the end of the 18th century, the four 44s and two 38s were the biggest vessels ever built in America, and the size of the project strained the available workforce and technologies.

My one complaint is that so far I have found three (3!) instances of a failure to capitalize the title "Marine." Although I am incensed by it, I shall overlook it.

All in all, strongly recommended.

George MacDonald Fraser, R.I.P.

By Lt Col P

The prolific author, 14th Army rifleman, and creator of the Flashman novels, has died. Our favorite beefy Afrikaner has a post and links.

I am a big Flashman fan, and above and beyond that a Fraser fan. His Steel Bonnets is a superb piece of real history, and Quartered Safe Out Here remains the rifleman's memoir of World War II.

Let us commemorate his passing appropriately, as good old Flashy might have, although he wasn't prone to that sort of thing. Still, pass a cigar and the brandy bottle, as Flashy demanded of Otto von Bismarck in Royal Flash. If you have a bearer or any other kind of servant, thrash him soundly. If you have a wench or dancing girl, give her a good solid rogering.

Godspeed to you, G.M. Fraser-- how many millions have you entertained and educated!

Paul Revere's Ride

By Charlie

Because we don't get a lot of American history, and because I felt like it, here's Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

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“A Date Which will Live in Infamy”

By Charlie

From December 7th 1941 to August 14, 1945, the US fought a long and brutal campaign in the pacific. This bloody campaign included the Normandy-size invasion of Okinawa, naval sparring in the Coral Sea, and gave us names like Iwo Jima, Midway, and Guadalcanal. The fighting culminated with the employment of two of the most devastating weapons in the history of mankind.

All of this started on December 7th, this day in history. The attack on Pearl Harbor was a monumental event, a 9/11, but with a militarized empire backing it up rather than a shadowy terrorist network. The importance of this date cannot be understated, and has ties to the global war we are now engaged in. Facing a global threat after Pearl Harbor, the US invaded…North Africa with Operation Torch.

My grandfather fought in the Island hopping campaign in the Pacific as a Marine paratrooper, and doesn’t talk much about his experience to this day. We anguish over our casualties in Iraq, and I have lost friends there, but imagining casualties of over 100,000 killed and 250,000 wounded or missing is difficult for any of us to conceptualize.

So this day will be remembered, not only because of its significance to the country, but because it was a moment in time that harkened back to the Revolution- in 1941 the minutemen shouldered their rifles and went to war when called, just as they did in 1776, just as they did in 2001, and as they will do in the future in time of great peril.

Tarawa

By Lt Col P

On this day in 1943, the bloody ugly nasty fight at Tarawa began. Three days later it was over, at the cost of a thousand Marines killed. A full scale diorama at the National Museum of the Marine Corps brings it to life in vivd detail.

Action In The Swat Valley

By Lt Col P

This past saturday or sunday morning I was watching Fox News, and in the microsecond I was able to take my eyes off Courtney Friel I saw one of the tickertape headlines saying something about a punitive expedition in the Swat Valley of Pakistan. Ah! That struck a chord!

Yesterday I found this in the WaPo:

Pakistan Bolstering Forces in Northwest

"More than 1,000 security forces, civilians and fighters have been killed in the past five months in Pakistan. Much of the violence has occurred in the Swat Valley, an area in North-West Frontier Province once known to tourists as the Switzerland of South Asia.

"Pakistani army officials said government forces killed 100 fighters loyal to a pro-Taliban cleric in three days of fierce battles in the northern Swat Valley. Forces loyal to the cleric had been gaining ground in recent weeks, capturing several towns in the valley. In the adjacent Shangla district, they have seized government buildings with little resistance from security forces."

(The Torch noted it too.)

The fabled Valley of The Swat is no stranger to trouble. Winston Churchill described it in detail in 1897, when he penned his account of the expedition of the Malakand Field Force, a story which bears close resemblance to current events. After describing the valley's former glories as a pacific kingdom of Buddhists, he continues thusly:

"The reputation which its present inhabitants enjoy is evil. Their treacherous character has distinguished them even among peoples notoriously faithless and cruel. Among Pathans it is a common saying: 'Swat is heaven, but the Swatis are hell-fiends.' "

There is much to note beside that picturesque passage, which again should remind smart readers that events do repeat themselves. Chapter One in particular provides a description of the inhabitants of what was then the Northwest Frontier that is, I expect, still mostly valid. The book fired my imagination when I read it, some 25 years ago, and it still does today. I strongly recommend it.

A Proud Day for Australia

By John

History comes alive in Beer Sheva, Israel.

If the title and post don't really sound related, just click. The photos are incredible.

Hotel Tango: Robert Avrech

Into The Wild Blue Yonder

By Lt Col P

Brigadier General Paul Tibbets, the pilot of Enola Gay, slipped the surly bonds today at the age of 92. B5 has a good post and good links.

He ought to be remembered for what he was-- a fine American who did his duty to the fullest, in an extraordinarily difficult mission. Just about every story done on him mentions that dropping the first bomb never bothered him much at all. We should all be glad that he did, and not least of us the modern Japanese. That's right. Modern Japan was almost certainly saved from a truly horrific invasion and occupation by the two bombs, the first of which was delivered on time and on target by one Col Tibbets. Think I'm wrong? Those devices destroyed two cities; Operation Olympic would have laid waste to the entire country, prolonged the war by a year, cost us a million more casualties, and the post-war occupation wouldn't have been pleasant at all. (See George MacDonald Fraser's Quartered Safe Out Here for a WWII rifleman's view of the bomb.)

Here's to you, General. And Godspeed on your final flight.

"All Hands to General Quarters"

By Bull Nav

So spoke CDR Ernest Evans, Commanding Officer of the USS JOHNSTON (DD557), as Kurita's Center Force bore down on TAFFYIII.

He continued:

Prepare to attack major portion of the Japanese fleet.
All engines ahead flank.
Commence making smoke and stand by for a torpedo attack.
Left full rudder.

And thus the CO and crew headed off into history and doom in the few short hours they had left. On his own initiative, before being ordered to do so, CDR Evans drove his ship towards the overwhelming Japanese force to defend the 6 jeep carriers he was escorting.

Sixty-three years ago today.

Five ships of 13 in TAFFY III lost. Over 1000 men killed.

Yet, the superior Japanese force which could have easily crushed them and then went on to slaughter the invasion force in Leyte Gulf turned around and ran.

After all was said and done, 1 PUC, 1 MOH, 29 Navy Crosses, 2 Silver Stars, and 2 Bronze Stars were awarded.

The story of the Battle Off Samar is well chronicled in James Hornfischer's Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors.

Additionally, you can find more information at The Battle Off Samar website.

Grenada (Heard From Today!)

By Lt Col P

23 Oct 1983, the same day as the Beirut bombing, a scratch joint task force assaults and takes the island of Grenada, overthrowing its tinpot Marxist government and ejecting Cuban soldiers and workers.

The Navy history website has a nifty little account of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Fox and Echo companies [of 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines] merged north of St. George's and secured a flat, stadium-like area called the Queen's Racecourse, which the Marines dubbed "LZ Racetrack" (LZ standing for landing zone). The battalion landing team commander set up headquarters there.

"We did a lot of humping today," said Marine Captain Mike Dick, Fox Company commander, after the first day of the operation. He looked over his men and added in a low tone, "It's quite a bit different from Camp Lejeune. We're doing this for real and for keeps."

Make that Capt Mike Dick, VMI '77, now Colonel, USMC, retired.

Two Hundred Forty-One

By Lt Col P

23 Oct 1983-- two hundred forty-one Marines, sailors and soldiers dead.

It's been fairly well established who did it, and who was behind it.

They have yet to be brought to justice, and I don't mean in a court of law.

Some day that account will be settled.

"Her Sides Are Made of Iron!"

By Lt Col P

On this day in 1797, America's oldest warship slipped off the ways into Boston harbor and was launched on a career that has yet to end. One of the six original frigates of the US Navy, she and her sister ships were larger than the frigates of other navies, and were built to outrun those they could not outgun, and vice versa.

Although she is most famous for a series of stunning victories over British vessels in the War of 1812, her in-service years saw peace as well as war. Before 1812 she saw action in the Med against the Barbary pirates, and against the French in the Quasi-War.

She is still in commission today.

The Liberation Trilogy, Book II

By Bull Nav

Rick Atkinson's second book in his Liberation Trilogy is finally available.

The Day of Battle covers the Italian campaign from 1943-1944 and I am very much looking forward to reading it. I read the first book, An Army at Dawn when it came out 3 years ago and was astounded by the depth of his research and thoroughness of the book. He left no stone unturned and did not paint anyone in a glorifying light. It was an excellent historical study that was a very good read.

I expect the same from the latest endeavor, but I will have a hard time waiting for the last installment...

Best Sunday Ship Post EVA

By John

Eagle1 of Eaglespeak combines two things near and dear to every VMI man's heart: The Goshen Pass and Matthew Fontaine Maury.

Although I barely recognized Eagle's pictures of Goshen. Place just doesn't look the same without half a company's worth of piss drunk VMI cadets exploring innovative new ways to break limbs on Goshen's rock-strewn waters.

I still have scars, folks.

Anyway, go over to Eagle's and learn something. I'm pretty sure that OPFOR only makes people dumber.

The Military and the Constitution

By John

Hey, so Small Wars Journal doesn't have a monopoly on deep-minded strategic thinkers/bloggers. We just have to import ours, har. This bit comes from Colonel Hank Foresman, a VMI alumn (of course), currently serving as Chief of Transformation Third Army Operational Maneuver Future Plans.

The Military and the Constitution

Colonel Hank Foresman

Many of us in the United States military have not given much thought to what our Oath of Office means. We begin that oath by swearing or affirming that we “will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that [we] will bear true faith and allegiance to the same,” we then swear that we “will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over. . .so help [us] God.” Unlike many militaries our allegiances is not to the Head of Government, but rather to the fundamental law of our nation, The Constitution of the United States.

So what does that Constitution say about the military. It says very little, but by reading what it does say, it is clear, that it was the founders intent, nee their desire that whilst declaring the President the Commander-in-Chief, they clearly intended that the Congress would be the dominate branch in administration of the Armed Forces. Congress was given first and foremost the power to declare war. Whilst formal declaration of wars have ceased to be fashionable, clearly the intent of the founders was that prior to the commitment of the Armed Forces of the United States that the Congress of the United States would give their assent. So why is this power given to the Congress and not the President. For a very simple reason the founders of our nation were well aware of the misadventures, which had occurred under the prerogatives of a nations sovereign. They understood the lessons of a common shared history, a history that had seen Royal government ignore the desires and weal of the Parliament, to fight wars without the assent of Parliament and to demand later that Parliament pay for his adventures. The founders sought to ensure that they alone, as the representatives of the citizens of the United States would commit the United States Armed Forces.

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Airborne Heroes, Fort Benning Place-Names

By Lt Col P

While going through the Airborne Course at Fort Benning, I noticed that several of the training areas were named after Medal of Honor recipients from the Airborne forces. I waited and waited for some period of instruction to begin with a brief lecture on who these men were and what they did. Sadly, I never heard a word.

I think this is a major gap in the programme of instruction at Benning. The Airborne forces do not lack for real heroes, and it would be a small but far-reaching step to tie the training of today with the courage and sacrifice of yesterday.

So, allow me to introduce to you PFC Elmer Fryar, for whom the drop zone is named, and PFC Joe Mann, for whom the ground branch training area is named.

Let their names not just be letters on signs.

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Beer & Artillery

By Lt Col P

I find myself these days in Columbus, GA, and am pleased to report that the place has a nice downtown and historic district.

Dating back to the early 1800s, Columbus was a river port that played a significant role in the Civil War. It is said to have been the site of the last battle of that conflict. Fortunately, many antebellum structures either survived the unpleasantness or were rebuilt, resulting in a tree-arched avenue lined with old homes, and a fine old monument to the Confederate war dead, complete with a delightfully defiant inscription.

Two other sites of interest also caught my eye. The first is The Cannon Brewpub, easily identified by the (working) 1/2-scale model of a Civil War bronze cannon by the front door. I found the service indifferent, the food very good, and the beer outstanding. Strongly recommended. Beer and artillery-- what's not to like?

The second is the National Civil War Naval Museum, a large and ambitious undertaking housing the resurrected hull of an ironclad built in Columbus, as well as many many other truly fascinating exhibits. I am not sure this museum gets the press it deserves. The website doesn't do it justice, so perhaps you'd better just come on down and see it. I spent a morning there and enjoyed every minute.

I'm going to visit the Infantry Museum at Ft Benning next.

"Santiago! And At Them!"

By Lt Col P

So was the battle cry on that great day, that magnificent day, the 11th of September 1565, when the Knights of St John and the long-awaited Spanish relief force from Siciliy drove the Turk from Malta.

And unless I am wrong, today is the Feast Day of the patron saint of Spain, Santiago Matamoros-- Saint James the Moor Slayer.

:-)

Evening Quote

By John

Just because....

A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one.

-Alexander Hamilton

We Will Joust!

By John

Pinch has a phenomenal first hand account of escorting legendary fighter pilot Robin Olds to a post-conference party. I'm pretty sure it's how the man would want to be remembered (General Olds passed recently):

Robin at age 75 or so, was still in ‘ burner ‘! Given that my grip on his sport coat had become a very stabilizing force in his life, other than an occasional teeter, he was showing no wear!

At my rickety edge of consciousness I meekly re-suggested a departure.

“Are you saying I am too drunk to drive?” he bellowed again.

To which I tactfully replied, “Absolutely not, sir, I only desire the honor and the privilege of driving the General to his quarters.”

He demurred.

Another hour passed before he sensed my weakened state and offered a window of opportunity.

“I demand an honorable challenge before going to quarters,” he declared.

Thinking that I retained superior SA [ another error in judgment ] I replied:

“Let the General engage with his weapon of choice! ”

“ Get me two brooms and those two empty scotch bottles over there. We will Joust! ”

The story is so classic fighter pilot, it hurts. Read the whole thing.

The AK-47 Turns 60

By Lt Col P

The AK-47 turns 60 today-- the "47" in the name referring to 1947, the year in which it was adopted, hence the nomenclature.

The great LtCol Jeff Cooper called it a "peasant's gun," not suitable for the true rifleman, but readily admitted that it had some real virtues. Not least of them was simplicity, followed by reliability. If accuracy was never its strong suit, well, it's good enough within its parameters. And good enough is good enough.

It also shows its ugly mug all around that world, and for that added reason it has gained some real currency in the world of serious firearms instruction. Respected outfits like Gunsite and EAG Tactical teach AK-specific classes, and they don't lack for students.

The only reason I don't own one is that I haven't coughed up the cash to buy one. I really should rectify that because a good solid Romanian WASR-10 runs about $330 on GunsAmerica.com. That's 330 bucks for the rifle and, "2-30 rd magazines,sling, cleanig kit [sic], oil bottle and manuel [sic]." I can only assume Manuel is the illegal that cleans it and polices the brass after I'm done firing, damn his eyes. But I could be wrong.

So, a muted happy birthday to the AK and its inventor. I don't love you, but I respect you.

LIBERTY!

By Lt Col P

Happy Independence Day, folks! Today the Founding Fathers declared not only independence from the mother country, but also Liberty, that magnificent political and social condition that we enjoy still today, although in some quarters it's a bit battered.

What's the difference between freeom and Liberty? Freedom is the absence of restraint, whereas Liberty is the condition in which engaged, active citizens can live as they choose and pursue their goals as they see fit. Freedom too often descends into license, while Liberty, if preserved, offers the best balance between an unfettered life and civic order. Liberty is what the Founders fought to win, and sought to hand down to us. It is worth fighting for.

Via Michelle Malkin, here's a great piece of historical writing-- Liveblogging the Continental Congress.

And below the fold, I have placed the entire text of the Declaration of Independence. Too often we remember only the opening passages and forget the rest, the devastating point-by-point critique of King George and his government. An extraordinary document, written by truly great men.

Enjoy your 4th.

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Another great Submariner from the greatest generation passes

By Bull Nav

I just found out that one of the greatest submariners ever, winner of the MOH, 4 Navy Crosses and a DSC has passed away:

CNO Statement on Passing of Retired Rear Adm. Eugene Fluckey
Release Date: 6/30/2007 1:34:00 PM
Special from Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Mullen
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Every man and woman serving our Navy today joins me in mourning the death of retired Rear Adm. Eugene Fluckey, recipient of the Medal of Honor and a true naval hero. We extend humbly to his family our thoughts, prayers and deepest sympathies in this, their time of great grief and sorrow.

He was a true leader. Bold, innovative, he truly cared about his men.

In his final war patrol report as commanding officer of USS Barb, he had this to say about his crew: “What wordy praise can one give such men as these; men who … follow unhesitatingly when in the vicinity of minefields so long as there is the possibility of targets … Men who flinch not with the fathometer ticking off two fathoms beneath the keel … Men who will fight to the last bullet and then start throwing the empty shell cases. These are submariners.”

He will be sorely missed.
Bubblehead also has it.

Phantoms of South Korea

By John

Reader John C. sends:

Here is a pic of one of our Phantoms at Osan AB ROK 51st fighter Wing.This pic was taken in 1984 right after the 3rd generation shelters were opened for business. They were suppose to be sealed in case of a chem attack. We could put 4 Phantoms in each one with wing tips folded. The girls (and I literlly mean teenage girls) at the paint barn at Clarke AB Phillipines would paint the sharks mouth on by hand after they painted the NATO paint scheme. We were sending two planes at a time to Clarke to be painted,a brutal TDY,lol. This was one of the first ones to go from the old lizard paint to the NATO paint pattern. That is a CAP-9 trainer missle on station 8a, and a ALQ119 jammer pod on the rt front AIM 7 station.

Very cool, thanks John!

Darkhorse

By Slab

I got my issue of the Marine Corps Times yesterday, was impressed with their cover story. They had a good article on one of the most storied battalions in the history of the Marine Corps, the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Marine Regiment. 3/5 used to call themselves "Consummate Professionals", but this was changed to "Darkhorse" in 2005. In the past year, 3/5 has been in the news after 7 Darkhorse Marines and one sailor were accused of killing a man in Hamdaniyah last April.

Marine Times, to their great credit, decided to focus on the valor and sacrifice of the Marines of 3/5.

In a large glass case, the images of two dozen Marines etched in wood and crystal glance from several shelves. Each piece represents the battalion’s fallen warriors, many young infantrymen who died in places like Fallujah and Ramadi, where they fought insurgents, patrolled neighborhoods and helped steady the fledging Iraqi government and security forces during three combat tours.

On a nearby podium lie three binders, two bulging with pages of award citations detailing the actions of 3/5’s men in the intensity and stress of combat. The citations represent bravery, determination and courage — of fighting up stairwells, assaulting trenches, dodging wounds and gunfire to evacuate wounded buddies — and include nearly every level of commendation and decoration leathernecks can earn for their actions in war.

3rd Battalion 5th Marines, which has seen combat from WWI France to Guadalcanal, the Chosin Reservoir, Da Nang, and the Al-Wafrah forest of Kuwait, has been to Iraq three times, and is getting ready for a fourth trip this year. They were part of the "March Up" in 2003, participating in the seizure of Baghdad. In November 2004, they took part in the assault on Fallujah. And last year they returned to Iraq to operate in the Fallujah and Habbaniyah areas. Through all of this, 6 Darkhorse Marines have been awarded the Navy Cross - more recipients than any other unit in this war.

Not much is said about 3/5's deployment to Iraq last year. Unlike the race to Baghdad and the assault on Fallujah, there were no great climactic moments. If you didn't know any better, you might think it was defined by the Hamdaniyah incident. However, I had the distinct pleasure of working alongside several Marines from 3/5, as I was in direct support of the battalion's Military Transition Team for three months. The pride and professionalism of these guys was amazing.

The 3/5 MTT team, when they finally got to meet some of the advisors they would be replacing in Jazirah, were told that they would be going into "the scariest environment imaginable". Their new home would be a small Combat Outpost in an area that had never been under Coalition control. When the old MTT team was preparing to occupy this new COP, the leaders reconnaissance was almost a battalion-sized operation, complete with Bradley IFVs on overwatch. When the 3/5 MTT actually arrived, they found themselves engaging in gunbattles almost daily. Their COP was hit repeatedly by enemy mortars, and by March they had the dubious distinction of being the most heavily mortared base in Iraq. In May, the insurgents loaded a 14.5mm heavy machinegun (similar to the Chinese Type 75 pictured here) in the back of a truck and attacked the COP. The Marines of MTT 3/5 loaded into a Humvee, drove out to meet their attackers, and brought back the heavy machinegun after killing or driving off all of their attackers.

That was a few days before I arrived. Within a few weeks it became apparent that MTT 3/5's aggressiveness had caused the enemy to give up direct attacks in favor of indirect methods such as IEDs and occasional mortaring. The Iraqis near the COP began to spend more time outside their houses, and they started to let their children play in the fields. Several of them thanked the 3/5 Marines for making the area safer. One even asked to pose for a picture with the gunnery sergeant who shot him accidentally during a heated gunfight weeks before.

Links to the citations for all 6 Navy Crosses are below the jump. It is stories like these, not Hamdaniyah, that make up the legacy of the consummate professionals of the Darkhorse Battalion. Remember to raise a glass in their honor at your next opportunity.

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Summer "Escape" Reading

By Lt Col P

A handgun course I took Memorial Day weekend caused me to realize again how tough the human spirit can be, which in turn lead me to think about the men who have sustained grevious injuries in this war and still volunteered to go back into combat. That, in turn caused me to remember a name from books I had read long ago-- Douglas Bader.

And Group Captain Bader gave rise to this post.

There exists in the literature of WWII a sub-genre of escape books, and some of them are among the best memoirs of that war. Several are among my own favorites, and made a powerful impression on me. So, here is a short list of suggested reading for your summer "escape," to remind us all that you can't keep a good man down.

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Fence Woes

By John

G-8 Security Fence Troubles Germans

HEILIGENDAMM, Germany -Bystanders gazed in curiosity and disgust Monday at the razor-wire-topped fence that will separate Group of Eight leaders from the rest of Germany during this week's summit — part of security measures that, for some, evoke memories of life behind the Iron Curtain.

Cutting across seven miles of verdant farmland near some of Germany's main seaside playgrounds, the fence is reviving memories of the Berlin Wall as authorities confront the modern realities of global terrorism and radical protest movements.

Hey, once you get past the dramatics and realize that both fences were designed to separate militant socialists from peaceful capitalists... it doesn't seem like that much of a stretch.

65 Years Ago Today: Midway

By Bull Nav

What is commonly referred to as the "turning point" in the war in the Pacific occurred 65 years ago today. Lots of good resources out there to look at including some great background information by Steeljaw Scribe and the attack on the Japanese carriers that occurred on 4 JUN 42 described a the Naval Historical Center website here.
A couple of books of interest are Miracle at Midway, which I read a couple of decades ago and was a good history at the time, and Shattered Sword, which I have not read yet, but is on my list.
Truly an incredible battle, in which luck played as much a part as skill (which is more often the case than not).

New Market Day 2007

By John

Anyone know why VMI is the only corps of cadets in the nation afforded the high honor of fixing bayonets during parade? Here's a small video taste:

New Market, Virginia. 1864. The only time in US history that a student body has fought in combat as a military unit. We lost 10 "boys" that day, after Union forces opened a gaping hole in confederate lines:

Breckenridge knew he must quickly fill the 350-foot gap in the center of his line or abandon the field. One of his staff suggested sending in the untried cadets. "I will not do it," Breckinridge replied. "General, you have no choice," responded the desperate officer. "Send the cadets in," Breckinridge ordered, "and may God forgive me ..."

The parade, seen above, usually masses a crowd of several thousand parents, friends, relatives, VMI supporters, and civil war buffs. Looks like the corps kept it sharp this year, although the Regimental XO (I think? Reg CO would be planting the wreath, right VMI men?) "bounced" after his about face. Phenomenal command voice though, highly motivating.

The real winners, in this clip at least, was the integrated regimental band and pipe band. Pay close attention to the two drum majors, side by side, executing a very, very difficult "eyes-right." Gives new meaning to the term "military precision." The song that they're playing, Shenandoah, is a beautiful old Virginia folk song that is a VMI anthem of sorts.

Call it one of those few good things to sprout out of this politically correct atmosphere from which even a spartan school like VMI is not immune. For decades, the band played Dixie as they passed the graves of the fallen 10. PC sensitivities axed that tradition some while ago, but I've got to be honest....I prefer Shenandoah. The VMI band/pipe compilation has been known to dampen a crowd full of eyes during those gorgeous Lexington fall parades, and y'know....when you think about it...

Shenandoah is more appropriate for us VMI types anyway.

Update: Mike Roark, a graduate of the VMI of the north, suggests I do some fact-checking into the whole "fix bayonets" thing, referencing a bayonet induced scar on the back of his head from his cadet days. Well, here's one reference:

On May 15, 1864, VMI cadets fought as an independent unit at the Battle of New Market.[6] VMI is the only military college or military academy in the nation that holds this distinction and is therefore the only school authorized to "fix bayonets" during parades.

Gasp! Lied to by Wikipedia? Say it ain't so!

Obviously I'd take Mike's bayonet wound over the much-touted online encyclopedia any day of the week. But, I do remember that line being announced during VMI parades as well, on how the right to fix bayonets is only granted to military units that have seen combat. There is a difference between fixing bayonets in drill and fixing bayonets in formal parade. I can't think of any battles that West Point fought in as a corps of cadets.

Am I wrong here?

Gun-Day Monday: The Enfield & The Mauser

By Lt Col P

I began this post last week, or somewhere thereabouts, but had to put it aside until I could find the photo I wanted. In the meantime, KduT had a good post on Great War Rifles, which is a fine but perhaps unintentional double entendre. It was one of his earlier posts combined with something I found that lead me here...

Let us extol the still-extant virtues of two of the world's great military rifles.

The first post, by way of a post by our favorite beefy Afrikaner, sings the praises of the Enfield No. 4 Mk 1, although in this case slightly shortened, which is probably not a bad thing in the practical sense. If what this fellow writes is true, and I have no doubt it is, he comes close to Cooper's approximation of a real rifleman as the man who can make his rifle do what it was designed to do, on demand. Good for him, I say. Note please that this is no eeeevil assault rifle but a real functioning battle rifle, even though it's found today in more museums than gunsafes. And note please that this is one of the great military rifles of the 20th Century, having armed the soldiers of the Empire and the Commonwealth for decade upon decade. (GM Fraser sang its praises in Quartered Safe Out Here.) I saw a captured one in Fallujah, in excellent condition, in April 2004. Talk about pearls before swine! An unadorned Enfield in the original .303 or better still in .308 is a fine choice for the serious marksman: it's dirt cheap, it attracts no attention, it works, and foolish people usually underestimate a man with a beat-up bolt-action rifle.

(And the author's comments on what do with the bayonet made me laugh out loud. "If found in lifeless perpetrator, please return via postal service to: [...]")

The second example is the Enfield's old foe, the Mauser 98K. The Mauser, with its super-strong action, is the progenitor of most military bolt-action rifles. It is to modern rifles as Pilsner Urquell is to golden-colored beer. Now here again is a rifle that a serious marksman should pick up, in its original caliber, or like the Enfield, better still in .308 if you can find a converted one. For the historically-minded, this firm offers two choices-- Serbian rifles made on German tooling, and in a fairly new development, real German WWII-era Mausers, in fully shootable condition. Some of them can be had with curious ordnance stamps, if that sort of thing strikes your fancy. The price, in any case, is right. And the Mauser shares many of the Enfield's attributes-- simplicity, reliability, accuracy. It was made under license in many many countries, and quality variants abound. Along with the Enfield mentioned above, I saw two captured Mausers in Fallujah back in '04-- one a shorty-- and they were in very good condition.

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What Do These Guys Have in Common?

By Bull Nav

General George S. Patton
LTGEN Chesty Puller
RADM Richard E. Byrd

Answer after the jump.

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Inbound

By John

Max Boot's The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power.

I love Boot's writing on Iraq, so I'm looking forward cramming my nose into this one.

Hotel Tango: VDH, who also recommends Michael Oren's Six Days of War, which I read back when I was a VMI cadet, and actually had the chance to meet Oren when he lectured to our class at the University of Tel Aviv. Great guy, and the nonfic is an absolutely superb account of one of the most compelling "small wars" of the 20th century.

Oh and while we're on the topic, read Hanson's column The Return of Military History.

And here I thought the military history discipline was going to way of the dodo...

New Market Day 2007: Our Best Men

By Lt Col P

One of the best memoirs of World War II is the second volume of John Masters' autobiography titled, The Road Past Mandalay. In it, he describes his experience in command of a Chindit column operating deep behind enemy lines, far from friendly units. When the going was good, his column was lord of all it surveyed. But once they lost their mobility and started to get pinned down by the Japanese, their situation turned dire.

One of Masters' recurring themes is Send Your Best Man. He would instruct his subordinates to assign their best officers to tackle a particularly important task-- to take back a lost position, to hold a critical post-- and increasingly the best men were lost. The need to send the very best, despite the growing cost, weighed heavily on Masters and haunts his writings. It is the central tragedy not only of his book, but of war in general.

On 15 May every year, the great VMI family remembers the Corps of Cadets that marched forth to do battle in 1864 as part of the small Confederate army defending the Valley against the ever-stronger Union forces. Ten of those cadets paid the ultimate price at the Battle of New Market, and are honored each year by a special parade at which their names are called out, to be answered by cadets with, "Died on the field of honor, sir."

Masters-- who visited VMI in the 1930s-- may not have had the New Market cadets in mind when he wrote his memoirs, as he knew more than enough from his own experiences. Yet his words ring true. VMI has been sending forth its best since before the Civil War; today, our best men are found in every service and in every theater. And like their predecessors for over a century and a half, they go voluntarily, despite knowing the possible cost. The best men will always go, but not all will come back.

So this year, while we will not fail to remember the boys of 1864, let us also commit to memory the names of our best men who have fallen in this war, and honor those who still march out of the gates determined to win, whatever the cost.

Mr Gregory R. Wright, Jr, VMI Class of 1995

Capt. Lowell T. Miller II, VMI Class of 1993

Captain James C. Edge, VMI Class of 1996

Captain Luke C. Wullenwaber, VMI Class of 2002

Major Paul R. Syverson, III, VMI Class of 1993

Sergeant Ryan E. Doltz, VMI Class of 2000

Lieutenant Joshua C. Hurley, VMI Class of 2001

Captain John Robert Teal, VMI Class of 1994

Lieutenant Commander David Lucian Williams, VMI Class of 1991

Mr. Charles W. Mathers, VMI Class of 1962

It's Flashman Day, Damn Your Eyes!

By Lt Col P

This weekend is not only the 2nd Annual MilBlog Conference and Son & Heir's second birthday, but it's also Harry Flashman's birthday. To those of you who are Flashman fans, he needs no introduction. However, to the uninitiated, he is the most magnificently vile, awful, lecherous, treacherous, cowardly scoundrel you could imagine. He is, in fact, the greatest soldier that never lived.

Who fled for his life during the retreat from Kabul, and was later hailed as the gallant sole survivor? Why, it's old Flash Harry! Who was that paleface seen valiantly cutting down the Sioux at Little Bighorn, or errr, rather trying to save himself from one of his own most despicable acts? It's Colonel Flashman, God Bless 'im! Who was it that toadied his betters from India to England, bullied his inferiors nearly from pole to pole, and never passed up a chance to debauch a lady of any race, creed or nationality? Why, it's the hero of Balaclava!

The genius of the Flashman books is their unimpeachable historical accuracy, save of course for Flashman himself, and he is a borrowed work of fictional genius. One can learn so much from them that they should be classed as faction instead of fiction. The Great Game, the American Civil War, the slave trade, the Opium Wars, the Indian Mutiny, and God knows what else. It's all there in great detail, told by one of history's greatest cads.

So to Flashman fans new and old, raise a glass this weekend to Sir Harry. Don't we all wish we could be him for a day!

Late addition... The "editor" of the Flashman Papers is none other than the author of Quartered Safe Out Here, one of the best memoirs of WWII.

"To The Shores of Trip-O-Leeee"

By Lt Col P

(Editorial note: Meant to post this last night, but got involved with some of THIS, and the time positively flew by.)

27 April 1805: First Lieutenant Presley N. O'Bannon, who with seven other Marines was part of a force of Greeks and Arabs led by American Consul William Eaton, raised the United States flag for the first time over a conquered fortress of the Old World at Derne, a stronghold of the Tripolitan pirates. Two Marines were killed and one wounded in the assault on the walled city.

There are several points of interest above and beyond the boldness-and-daring aspects. One, the entire enterprise was led by a diplomat. Two, there was employment of private military contractors. And three, the Marines took substantial casualties but pressed on nonetheless. Except for the warlike diplomat (a rare bird indeed), one could say that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

And, although not noted in that paragraph, it was a joint op with the Navy, featuring a good old fashioned iron shampoo delivered in the form of a naval bombardment of shore fortifications.

Sunday Update: A comment from our dear friend and colleague Boston Maggie jolted my memory. Please see this article by Christopher Hitchens for an interesting take on the Barbary Wars. The more things change, indeed, the more they stay the same!

Aussie Aussie Aussie

By John

Oy Oy Oy.

Anzac Day down under, mates. Eh...call it a slow blogging day.

Anyway...

ANZAC Day - 25 April - is probably Australia's most important national occasion. It marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. The soldiers in those forces quickly became known as ANZACs, and the pride they soon took in that name endures to this day.

So, basically they wanted to capture Istanbul (not Constantinople...or is it the other way around?)...and well, failed. But it's a big pride thing, Australia was shiny new country back then....for them to travel halfway across the world to topple the capital of the Ottoman Empire? Takes stones, y'know?

John Donovan honors our Aussie brothers with the his usual roundup of old military gear. No idea where he digs this stuff up, but I bet his basement is a trip.

And Greyhawk launches a new grassroots campaign: Free Aussie Milbloggers!

Me? I'll probably down a few Fosters and go leave some drunken comments at Tim Blair's place.

Update: Crittenden takes the lame route. Not one Outback Steakhouse reference. Sheesh, at least I brought up Fosters.

Falklands War; Recommended Reading

By Lt Col P

I have a short reading list below, four book that I think are not only well written and authoritative, but when read as a set paint a reasonably complete picture of the whole conflict, from the strategic to the tactical.

But before I list them, let me address one other issue. The Royal Navy and Royal Marines, with whom we have stood and fought side by side for many years now, are taking it on the chin over the mess with Iran. Lots of bloggers have pointed out that they should have fought it out (correct), that Nelson is probably spinning in his grave (correct), and that the UK today probably couldn't mount another Falklands op independently (correct, unfortunately). I don't want to pile on, but would rather send this note to them: We need you in the fight, because the list of the able and the willing is short indeed. So let's take our lumps, boys, and resolve to get back in action. Your fellow Marines of Naval Party 8901 fought like hell on the Falklands, and even more so on South Georgia where they nearly pulled off a mini Wake Island, with a true Nelsonian Royal Navy captain alongside them.

Now the reading list.

The Battle for the Falklands (Hastings & Jenkins). This is the first and still probably the best, an A to Z view of the war, its origins and conduct. I have been grubbing around for my copy, but have since forlornly realized that I lent it to someone years ago and never got it back.

One Hundred Days: The Memoirs of the Falklands Battle Group Commander (Adm Sandy Woodward). I didn't read this one til 1994, when I was aboard the 2nd Fleet flagship off Haiti as the LNO from 24th MEU SOC. And it's a good thing I didn't because I wouldn't have been able to appreciate fully the expeditionary challenges that lay before the British task force, without having had three full floats under my (then) non-reg riggers belt.

No Picnic: 3 Commando Brigade in the South Atlantic (Julian Thompson). A very good view by the Commando Brigade commander, detailing both tactical and operational issues, with a good bit about having to execute a full landing and then a bold movement across the island into the teeth of the enemy's defenses. Add in that Thompson's span of control increased from three RM Commandos and supporting units to five maneuver units with the addition of two Army parachute battalions, that at no time could the task force guarantee him immunity from air attack, and that the logistics of his advance eastward were, to put it mildly, strained, and you begin to appreciate his enormous task. This too, I lent to someone and can't lay my hand on it.

Last but absolutely not least, Take That Hill! Royal Marines in the Falklands War, by (then) LtCol Nick Vaux, who commanded 42 Commando. This book ranks as one of the finest books a young officer, or an older one, can read to gain insights on his trade. I bought it when I was a cadet and have jealously guarded it ever since, reading it over and over again. Among Vaux's challenges were having a whole compnay group yanked from him at embarkation-- they went to retake South Georgia-- and having to build a new company with wherever he could get people and gear. In doing so they proved the worth of the "every Marine a rifleman" philosophy that colors the Royal Marines as deeply as it does the US Marines. Military readers will also appreciate the detail he provides about preparations for major actions, the imperative for brilliance in the basics, and how a good commander sets himself up for success in battle. (I was privileged to meet one of his provisional rifle company Marines later on, in 1994, in a NATO exercise in Sardinia. I happened to have the book with me on that float, recognized him from a photograph and his name from the text. Damn good guy, he was as surprised as I that I figured out who he was.)

Go forth, read, and enjoy. You'll learn a lot.

The Avro Vulcan

By John

Since LtCol P seems to have officially kicked off Falklands Week here at OPFOR, I figured now would be as good of time as any to profile one of the heroes of the conflict, the British Avro Vulcan bomber.

She's pretty, even for a broad that was built in the early 1950s (B-52 jocks take no offense).

The "Tin Triangle's" primary mission was to nuclear body-check the Ruskies:

As part of Britain's independent nuclear deterrent the Vulcan initially carried Britain's first nuclear weapon, the Blue Danube gravity bomb. Blue Danube was a low-kiloton yield fission bomb designed before the United States detonated the first hydrogen bomb. The British then embarked on their own hydrogen bomb programme, and to bridge the gap until these were ready the V-bombers were equipped with an Interim Megaton Weapon based on the Blue Danube casing and Green Grass, a large pure-fission warhead of 400 kT yield. This bomb was known as Violet Club. Only five were deployed before a better weapon was introduced as Yellow Sun Mk.1.

But it was the Falklands War where the Vulcan really cut her teeth:

Although the primary weapon for the Vulcan was nuclear, Vulcans could carry up to 21 x 1000 lb (454 kg) bombs in a secondary role. The only combat missions involving the Vulcan took place in the 1982 Falklands War with Argentina, when a number of Vulcans flew the 3,380 nautical miles (6,300 km) from Ascension Island to Stanley to attack Argentine radar installations with missiles and bomb the occupied airfield there with conventional bombs in Operation Black Buck [1] [2]. Victor aircraft were used for air-to-air refueling in a complex scheme described here: [3].

Five Vulcans were selected for the operation: their bomb bays were modified; the flight refuelling system that had long been out-of-use re-instated; the electronics updated; and wing pylons designed, manufactured, and fitted to carry an ECM pod and Shrike anti-radar missiles. The engineering work began on April 9 with the first mission on April 30–May 1, 1982. While only one 1000 lb bomb hit Stanley's runway, this first raid demonstrated the willingness and ability of the British to attack targets in the South Atlantic.

There were seven raids planned, but only five went ahead, with two scoring hits on radar installations. At the time these missions held the record for the world's longest distance raids. One effect was to force the Argentines to withdraw their Mirage II fighters from what had become their vulnerable position on the Falkland Islands to stand defence over the similarly at-risk Argentine mainland. The planning and execution of the "Black Buck One" raid has recently been described in Rowland White's book "Vulcan 607" [4].

Those were the good ole days, when the Brits were strong.

The Falklands War

By Lt Col P

On 2 April, 1982, the armed forces of Argentina invaded and seized the Falkland Islands, compelling the surrender of its British governor and small garrison. Thus began a short, sharp, decisive little war that few saw coming and many did not believe would happen even as it was happening. Yet it ended as abruptly (and decisively) as it began, and as with all mlitary history, offers us some important lessons.

I was in the 9th grade at the time, and was even then a keen student of military history. I remember some of the editorial cartoons published right after the Argentine invasion-- puns on "The Empire Strikes Back!" and another showing a gaucho on horseback, perched on the edge of an island, grinning at a figure in pith helmet and monocle rowing a patched rubber boat away from the shore. "I'll be back," says the figure in the boat, "And when I do, you're in for a bloody thrashing!"

That was all pretty funny, but also very prophetic. The empire did strike back; it was bloody on both sides, and Argentina did indeed get a thrashing. More importantly, the resolve and military capability displayed by Great Britain and her iron-willed Prime Minister, gave a critical boost to the NATO alliance and showed the Soviets that a Western power could and would fight to the finish, and could project power across the globe.

We at Op-For will be examining the Falklands War over the next few weeks, and presenting analysis of some of the more important actions. I suggest referring to this site, Honour Regained, for an excellent series of articles and photographs.

The .45 Turns 96

By Lt Col P

My Gunsite calendar tells me that tomorrow is the birthday of the M1911 .45 ACP pistol. In truth, I look upon the occasion more as the commissioning date for the pistol than the birthday, since it was on 29 March 1911-- hence the nomenclature-- that this magnificent weapon was adopted by the U.S. Army. (The Marines brought it on a few years later.) Six and one-half dozen; either way, the old warhorse is nearing the century mark and still going strong.

(The Kimber Warrior, discussed below.)

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"Some Things You Never Forget"

By Lt Col P

I saw this article in today's WaPo, "Some Things You Never Forget," and it immediately intrigued me. The second paragraph reads, "For 39 hours in March 1977 -- before the word "terrorism" entered our daily vocabulary -- 12 gunmen paralyzed the District in a three-point siege. The group of Hanafi Muslims held about 150 people hostage in three buildings, and before they surrendered, a young reporter was killed and dozens were injured, including D.C. Council member [and future Mayor and noted criminal Marion] Barry. A shotgun pellet pierced his chest, right above his heart, nearly killing him."

NEVER HEARD OF IT BEFORE. Wow. I read on.

One of the main targets was the B'nai B'rith International Center. Another was an Islamic center. I read on. "The 12 gunmen had several demands. They wanted the government to hand over a group of men who had been convicted of killing seven relatives -- mostly children -- of takeover leader Hamaas Abdul Khaalis. They also demanded that the movie "Mohammad, Messenger of God" be destroyed because they considered it sacrilegious."

And then... nothing. The rest of the article talked about the one man killed, as it properly should, and cited the terror of the hostages, as it should. But beyond that, no detail. Beyond being "Hanafi Muslims," who were the hostage takers and what was their agenda? Were they homegrown assholes or imported assholes? What happened to them?

I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised if the WaPo soft-pedalled the Muslims-go-nuts-take-over-building-kill-innocents-demand-film-on-Big Mo-be-censored angle. Because if they didn't, well, that might raise some interesting questions. Such as, This was happening before 9/11? Yep. Before we invaded Iraq? Yep. Muslim fanatics hated us back then too?

Yep.

WaPo, you rolled over and played dead. Good dog. Don't worry, they'll probably come for you last.

Planning for Victory, Legislating for Defeat

By Lt Col P

Let's draw together two or three threads.

The first is from one of our notable colleagues at B5, the magnificently obscene Uncle Jimbo. In a recent post he laments (and rightly so) our failure to prepare adequately for the post-war reconstruction of Iraq. He points us to an Army War College study that predicted the consequences of such a failure, with disquieting accuracy.

I delved into that report and one thing out of dozens really struck me. On page 13 is this passage: "In the spring of 1942, a School of Military Government was established at the University of Virginia, and thinking began there about postwar reconstructions of Germany, Japan, and Italy. This new emphasis produced Operation ECLIPSE [the occupation of Germany] and the impressive success described previously." In other words, they were planning to win the peace even as they were waging the war, and at a moment when things looked particularly bleak, I might add. That speaks volumes for the dedication of that generation to total victory, and the utter lack of defeatism.

The second is from Michelle Malkin today, as she writes on GEN Petraeus's words about how the campaign in Iraq will not be won by force alone. He is correct. In the same post are comments from Michael Yon on the yeoman work being done on reconstruction by other agencies from the U.S. government... NOT!

So we know that we should have prepared better. (Although how exactly the left would be spinning that today would be interesting to watch. "SEE!" I can hear it now, "See how well they prepared to occupy and rule Iraq after their war of conquest! They had their little regime and its puppets all lined up, now didn't they??")

And we know now what has to be done, and we also know that it is getting done, slowly but surely.

So why are we legislating for defeat? Why are we trying to pull the expensive rug out from under Petraeus's feet? Let's take another lesson from our WWII veterans and give it one hundred percent until the job is done, and stop planning to lose.

Recommended Reading: The Story of the Arab Legion

By Lt Col P

I saw this morning, during my daily professional reading session, a letter to the editor of Marine Corps Gazette extolling the value of The Story of the Arab Legion for Marines (and soldiers) going to Iraq to work with the Iraqi Security Forces. I was especially pleased to see this as I was the one who recommended it to the writer of the letter, Major Philip Cushman. The book describes the formation and growth of the finest Arab force raised during the British control over the region, and its eventual transformation into the regular army of Jordan, through the eyes of its remarkable commander, John Bagot Glubb.

In his letter, Major Cushman (or "the most excellent Major KOOSH-maan," if you know him) notes that the book contains descriptions of combat in Ramadi, Fallujah, and other places in the 1920s which bear some resemblance to today. More importantly he also notes that the book "should be on the shelf of any Marine involved in advising Arab troops," and that he wished he had read it before his first tour in Iraq in 2004. He is correct in these assessments. Glubb's book is almost a how-to manual for raising, training and leading semi-regular and regular Arab forces, especially ones filling a constabulary role. Most significantly, it shows how one can transfer the loyalties of highly individualistic soldiers from the local to the national.

Regrettably, Maj Cushman also notes that the book is hard to find. I purchased my copy of the book in 1990, for some (then) exorbitant sum, forty or fifty bucks. (This was before amazon.com, and I found it by looking in the large hardbound volumes of "Books in Print," and having the ladies at the Camp Lejeune bookstore order it for me. Ha!) However, if you're headed over there, it would be a good investment in time and money to find a copy.

Marine Field Historian: A Single Digit Midget

By Lt Col P

I just gave LtCol Kurt Wheeler at Marine Historian another virtual reach-around, since the comm gremlins are in his loop again as he prepares to withdraw from Mesopotamia. He has some parting words of encouragement. Go give 'em a read.

19 FEB...

By Lt Col P

1945. Marines hit the beaches on Iwo Jima.

Photo courtesy of USMC History Division.

(Hotel Tango to Brother Rat BullNav, who didn't jolt my memory, he punk-slapped it.)

Washington The Great

By Lt Col P

Today we honor one of history's greatest figures, George Washington. Although his name and face are everywhere, on items both sublime and ridiculous, I'm not certain we fully appreciate what a great man he was, what a singular figure it was that graced the stage of momentous events.

I find him-- the real GW, not the legend-- endlessly fascinating. Whenever I'm asked who I think is the greatest American president, I always reply that Washington is the greatest, but that he was so much in a class by himself that the real question is, who is the greatest American president other than George Washington?

I have a short list. (So does our favorite burly Afrikaner.) In no particular order:

Roosevelt. (That's T. Roosevelt, not the other one, the socialist.)
Jackson.
Lincoln.
(Honorable mentions: Jefferson, Reagan.)

What say you?

Snakeshit Gets the Medal of Honor

By John

Forty years after the fact:

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Feb. 9, 2007) - The White House announced today that President Bush will present the Medal of Honor to Bruce P. Crandall in recognition of his actions at Landing Zone X-Ray during the Battle of Ia Drang, Vietnam, in November 1965. Crandall will receive the medal during a Feb. 26 White House ceremony for repeatedly flying into a landing zone under intense enemy fire to rescue and resupply 1st Cavalry ground troops - even after the LZ had been closed.

....

Witnesses said the actions taken by Crandall and Freeman on the first day of the battle, Nov. 14, kept the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, resupplied and reinforced, and gave wounded Soldiers a chance at life.

.....

A grateful ground commander, retired Lt. Gen. Harold Moore, who was a lieutenant colonel leading the Ia Drang battle, said that without Crandall's "extraordinarily heroic effort" that day, "we on that field would have gone down."

Crandall's love for low-flying earned him the callsign "Snakeshit." If the name sounds familiar, it might be because you caught Greg Kinear play Crandall in the movie We Were Soldiers.

Here's his Medal of Honor citation.

Very cool story.

Hotel Tango: Crittenden

Downfall

By John

Was watching Starz the other night and caught an excellent foreign film called Downfall.

Hands down one of the best World War II films I've ever seen. Downfall superbly captures the final days of the Third Reich, with Hitler cowered in his bunker, Germany crumbling, and the Soviets posturing for one final push into Berlin. Fascinating how the dreams of the ultra-loyal SS elites collapsed just as quickly as Berlin did. And the guy who played Joseph Goebbels should have won an Academy Award, what a creep.

Highly recommend checking this flick out if you have the opportunity. Might be tough to find at Blockbuster, but if you have Netflicks you might stand a chance of finding it.

If You're Looking for a Unique Perspective on Iraq

By John

I suppose a combat Rabbi would be a good place to start.

Climbing over the rotting garbage, I realized I was the first Jew to enter this holy place in over 50 years. I am writing to you from Nineveh, the city of the prophet Jonah. Its present name is Mosul. I have had the privilege of seeing its ancient walls, of touching its stones, of going to the grave. Islamic tradition says is the prophet Jonah’s. There is a mosque at the site; but hundreds of years ago, the Iraqis we work with tell me, it was a synagogue. They tell me the reason the site is so sacred is because of the sacredness in which the Jews held it. Presently, there are no signs of this ancient synagogue.

Sometimes I think that it takes a Jew to really understand the historical significance of a place like Iraq. It's easy to forget how far back into the books the Hebrew culture reaches, or that most Jewish Rabbis wear the historian hat as well as the religious one. Fascinating perspective.

Hotel Tango: Robert Averch

History Says No Such Thing

By John

Putting 9/11 into perspective:
The attacks were a horrible act of mass murder, but history says we're overreacting.

Certainly, if we look at nothing but our enemies' objectives, it is hard to see any indication of an overreaction. The people who attacked us in 2001 are indeed hate-filled fanatics who would like nothing better than to destroy this country. But desire is not the same thing as capacity, and although Islamist extremists can certainly do huge amounts of harm around the world, it is quite different to suggest that they can threaten the existence of the United States.

Yet a great many Americans, particularly on the right, have failed to make this distinction. For them, the "Islamo-fascist" enemy has inherited not just Adolf Hitler's implacable hatreds but his capacity to destroy. The conservative author Norman Podhoretz has gone so far as to say that we are fighting World War IV (No. III being the Cold War).

And until this becomes a war of attrition on American civilians, much like in Israel, the Right will be overreacting?

I doubt Bell applies that sharp historical perspective to Iraq, one of the lowest casualty conflicts in American history.

Lex nails it:

Hyperpartisans like Maha have spent so much time sneaking around trying to frighten each other with their Geo. W. Bush frightmasks, that they’ve blinded themselves to the real erosion in human liberty that occurs when you find a way to rationalize away the death of your own citizens - and after all, what more fundamental right exists than the right to life?

That right is an individual right, which is why the collectivists pooh-pooh it. They do this while piously spouting the dogma of identity politics and catechizing their victimization theology which combination more than anything else attempts to carve the electorate into ever-smaller groups of mutually antagonistic favor seekers snuffling at the trough of governmental dependency.

Which, ewww.

Yes, and that emphasis on the individual rights and freedoms is precisely what we're fighting to defend. When waging an ideological conflict, it's not the size of your army that matters. Ideas build and topple empires, Professor. And that's something I learned in High School history.

Lee, Jackson, and the Battle of Cowpens: A Great Week in Military History

By Lt Col P

This past week was a significant one in American military history, as it saw the birthdays of two of the greatest soldiers this country ever produced—Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson—and the anniversary of one of the most interesting and important battles of the American Revolution, the Cowpens.

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Never Forget

By John

This is really the Navy's day, so I'm going to let our Swabbie milblogging brothers do the talking.

Neptunus Lex
EagleSpeak
Smash
Bubblehead
Cdr. Salamander
Instapinch

No comments, send them to the other guys.

Happy St Barbara's Day

By Lt Col P

I have been negligent in my duties as Op-For’s Artilleryman in Residence, specifically in failing to wish all red-legs prompt greetings on 4 December, St Barbara’s Day. We frequently take comfort in knowing that we artillerymen lend a certain grace and refinement to what would otherwise be an unseemly brawl. It is more comforting to know that we have a extra measure of divine protection as well.

Recommended Reading: Fire In The Night

By Lt Col P

I just finished reading for the third or fourth time Fire In The Night, the very good biography of Orde Wingate, who was both the founder of the Long Range Penetration Group in the China-Burma-India theater (better known as the Chindits), and the real father of the Israel Defense Force. Eminently readable and full of illuminating references and footnotes, the book sheds some critical but not unsympathetic light on that complex and controversial man.

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Today in American History

By Charlie

Today is November 22, and it is an important day in US history. Why? Because in 1988, the Stealth Bomber was unveiled:

In the presence of members of Congress and the media, the Northrop B-2 "stealth" bomber is shown publicly for the first time at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California.

The aircraft, which was developed in great secrecy for nearly a decade, was designed with stealth characteristics that would allow it to penetrate an enemy's most sophisticated defenses unnoticed. At the time of its public unveiling, the B-2 had not even been flown on a test flight. It rapidly came under fire for its massive cost--more than $40 billion for development and a $1 billion price tag for each unit.

In 1989, the B-2 was successfully flown, performing favorably. Although the aircraft had a wingspan of nearly half a football field, its radar signal was as negligible as that of a bird. The B-2 also successfully evaded infrared, sound detectors, and the visible eye.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the original order for the production of 132 stealth bombers was reduced to 21 aircraft. The B-2 has won a prominent place in the modern U.S. Air Force fleet, serving well in bombing missions during the 1990s.

Oh, and in 1718, the dread pirate Blackbeard was slain off of the coast of North Carolina.

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Happy Birthday, VMI!

By Lt Col P

Today is the 167th anniversary of the founding of the Virginia Military Institute. From the Institute's current catalogue comes this passage:

Before its formation as an institution of higher education in 1839, VMI’s site was occupied by an arsenal, one of three in the State of Virginia.

The arsenal guard of some 20 soldiers, although living a strict military life while on duty, lacked self discipline, and their leisure-time activities upset the decorum of Lexington. In 1834, several of Lexington’s leading citizens, including attorney John Thomas Lewis Preston, proposed that the arsenal be transformed into a military college so the cadets could pursue educational courses while protecting the stand of arms.

The plan led to legislation establishing the Virginia Military Institute. It was Preston, generally credited for conceiving the idea of VMI, and later one of the original members of the faculty, who gave the new institution its name: “Virginia—a State institution, neither sectional nor denominational. Military—its characteristic feature. Institute —something different from either college or university. The three elements thus indicated are the basis of a triangular pyramid, of which the sides will preserve their mutual relation to whatever height the structure may rise.”

On November 11, 1839, 23 young Virginians were mustered into the service of the State and, in a falling snow the first cadet sentry, John B. Strange, relieved the old arsenal guard. To this day cadets perform guard duty and serve the State as a military corps, as the first Corps of Cadets did.

To all my brothers in the Corps of Cadets, young and old, in barracks and overseas, I wish you success in boardrooms and on battlefields, long life and prosperity.

More Marine Corps History

By Lt Col P

(Disclaimer: neither LtCol P nor John nor Lightning (nor anyone else for that matter) will be held responsible for the hideous consequences arising from use or misuse of the following. Drink responsibly.)

If you really want to celebrate the 231st Birthday of the Marine Corps in historically accurate fashion, try this rum punch recipe, which traditon tells us was the enlistment bonus for new recruits to the Continental Marines.

- One part dark Jamaican Rum
- Four parts lime juice
- Maple sugar and grenadine to taste
- Pour over cracked ice in a glass punch bowl

Yes, I've had it. It is vile yet oddly compelling.

Thanks to the Westchester County Detachment of the Marine Corps League.

Happy Birthday, Marines

By Lt Col P

I tuned in just in time to see the President's remarks at the opening of the National Museum of the Marine Corps, and to hear him say that Corporal Jason Dunham will be posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for an act of extraordinary heroism in Iraq. (Here's a post on him from our good friends at Blackfive.)

To all Marines across the globe, in every clime and place, to the old ones and the young ones, to the ones in uniform and the ones who've hung up their uniforms, I say HAPPY BIRTHDAY! May the good Lord above watch over us, the Corps and the Nation, and may all those overseas now return home safe and sound to enjoy next year's birthday.

**John Says** Matt from Blackfive sends an updated post on Cpl. Dunham. Read the whole thing.

Love and War

By Lt Col P

A good friend of mine, fellow Marine artilleryman and author of Team Med-Fah, just told me he had heard that Eric Newby had died. I did a quick search, and indeed this remarkable author has passed.

Newby was a British travel author, and a real master of the art. I have read several of his books, and can re-read them again with every bit as much pleasure and anticipation as when I first picked them up. My little eulogy to him belongs here, on a milblog, because his best book by far is Love and War in the Apennines, an account of his own experiences as an escaped prisoner of war on the loose in northern Italy. I remember parts of it like I read them yesterday, especially-- VMI grads will appreciate this-- his careful desciption of, (how shall I put this?), covert autoeroticism in a barracks-like POW camp where privacy was nonexistent, drawing upon lessons learned in all-male educational settings. "The more vigorous among us," he wrote, "soon revived these ancient skills." His descriptions of the hardy and kind mountain peasantry of the country are matchless, as are his renderings of their speech patterns.

I would also recommend A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, and The Last Grain Race. (The ship on which he sailed in that book, "Moshulu," is now a floating restaurant in Philadelphia, easily visible from I-95; that little bit of knowledge made an otherwise vile trip bearable, as I drove past it on drill weekends with HQ Battery 3/14.)

Godspeed, Mr Newby, you make me laugh out loud.

On the Nightstand

By John

Currently reading:

11 pages in so far and I'm glued. More when I'm done.

Grenada & Beirut

By Lt Col P

(Pardon me for filing this a day late, I've been busy securing gainful civilian employment.)

23 October 1983: a date with dual signifcance.

The Beirut barracks bombing took the lives of 241 Americans. (Another blast on the same day killed almost 60 French paratroopers.) Informed opinion then and now pointed to Hezbollah, Syria and Iran as the culprits and instigators. The act remains unavenged. Visit the memorial site here.

US forces invaded and seized Grenada to prevent it from becoming the third point in a Soviet-Cuban triangle in the Caribbean. Looking at Cuba today, we forget what an activist menace it was in the 80s. Thousands of Cuban soldiers were exporting their revolution in Angola; Cuban influence was heavy in Nicaragua, and stoking the insurgency in El Salvador. Operation Urgent Fury gave Castro a good solid check.

Put This Date on Your Calendar: 13 Nov 2006

By Lt Col P

That being the day the new National Museum of the Marine Corps opens at Quantico, Virginia.

See other pics here.

Folks, this will be an extraordinary museum, and well worth a visit. I can't wait to see it.

19 Oct 1781: Victory at Yorktown

By Lt Col P

Two hundred twenty-five years ago today, General George Washington accepted the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, effectively ending the American Revolution.

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7 October: A Great Day in American Military History

By Lt Col P

(Yes, I know today is 6 Oct, but I'll be on travel shortly and wanted to post this.)

7 October was twice a salient day in the American Revolution. Two events occurred to change the course of the war. Although they took place three years and hundreds of miles apart, their consequences came together in a single climactic battle later.

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Yorktown: 28 Sept 1781

By Lt Col P

On this day in 1781, the combined forces of General George Washington and Comte de Rochambeau arrived at Yorktown, Virginia and besieged Lord Cornwallis' 8,500-strong army. The subsequent victory of the American and French force would spell the end of the American Revolution and the independence of the former British colonies.

How did Cornwallis, a very capable and enterprising soldier, come to be trapped in a relatively insignifcant little tobacco port? Quick thinking and action by Washington and Rochambeau got the army (and French navy) in place, but Cornwallis found himself there because he had been forced out of the Carolinas by General Nathaniel Green's deftly planned and executed campaign of 1780 and 1781. And that campaign we will discuss shortly, because it features some of the quintessentially American military actions.

LtCol Jeff Cooper, R.I.P.

By Lt Col P

John Dean Cooper, Lieutenant Colonel, USMC, died yesterday at his home in Arizona. Known far and wide as "Jeff"-- I just called him "colonel"-- he was a Marine, a hunter, a marksman, and an author.

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19 Sept 1777: The Battle of Freeman's Farm

By Lt Col P

On this day in 1777 took place the battle of Freeman's Farm, the first of the two main actions that are commonly but erroneously known as the "battle" of Saratoga in the American Revolution.

The action featured the use of regulars and irregulars on both sides, and was not notable for any tactical innovations. Gen Daniel Morgan and his Virginia riflemen acquitted themselves well, as Virginia riflemen are apt to do. At the end of the day the British, under "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne, held the field but little else. One of the leading figures on the American side was Benedict Arnold of Connecticut, who displayed once more the dash and bravery that made him famous.

The Saratoga campaign is worth studying because it is a good illustration of how a concerted series of actions forms a campaign, and how the outcome of said campaign has a direct effect on the war.

In this case, the series of actions included not only Freeman's Farm (and its successor, Bemis Heights) but maneuver, and shaping actions such as Hubbardton, Fort Ticonderoga, and Bennington. Not all these fights went to the Americans, including Freeman's Farm, but the net effect of the campaign up to that point was to place the British in a progessively weaker position vis a vis the Americans, although they were ostensibly the stronger force and in possession of the field.

Also of note is the relation of this campaign-- and the combined strategic effects-- of other operations in the war. The setback at Saratoga cost the British dearly, for it emboldened the French and then the Spaniards and the Dutch to enter the war. Several years later, a similar series of actions in the southern department would expel the main British army from the Carolinas and set it up for defeat by a combined force of Americans and French on the land and the sea. But of that, more later.

Aerial Lifeline

By John

All this talk of America sending PGMs to Israel reminds me of Operation Nickel Grass, the emergency resupply of Israel via airlift during the October War.

Known as the "Airlift that saved Israel," Nickel Grass employed American C-5 Galaxies and C-141 Starlifters to deliver critically needed weapons, spare parts, and munitions to the embattled Israeli Defense Force. With the Soviets already aggressively resupplying their Arab allies, President Nixon ordered a duplicate effort in support of Israel. Unfortunately for the Israelis, the Europeans refused to play ball, denying American transport aircraft the use of their airspace. After seemingly endless negotiations, Portugal agreed to allow the US to use Lajes Field in the Azores. With a route "green," Nixon gave the order to "send everything that can fly."

Thus, under fighter escort from bases in Italy and US carriers, a massive fleet of American transport aircraft flew a precise line down the center of the Med to Ben Gurion International Airport in Israel. The war supplies enabled Israel to push back against the devasting Arab assault, penetrating to the outskirits of Damascus and across the Sinai Canal in Egypt.

An American C-5 Galaxy unloads an M-60 tank at Ben Gurion International Airport during the October War.

If you ever forget what Nickel Grass accomplished, use our handy air force phrase "Nickel Grass saved Israel's ass." heh.

Canada, Climbing Out

By Pinch

Back in 2005, our neighbor to the north decided they needed to address their national defense programs after decades of neglect.

The Canadian Senate Committee on National Security and Defence issued its first report in September last year, titled : " WOUNDED, Canada’s Military and the Legacy of Neglect, Our Disappearing Options for Defending the Nation Abroad and at Home."

One of the rather stark admissions was this comment:

“Canada should mount enough military strength to protect its own borders, assist in the protection of North America, and – by focusing carefully on assignments within its grasp – assist in defusing international instability. This would represent a wise investment in Canada’s future. Instead, Canada is neglecting its military, neglecting its foreign aid program, and attempting to make its international mark mainly through the use of words – weak words when they are backed with so little substance.”

The implication, of course, is that all of this was not happening in the Canadian military of the late 20th and early 21st century.

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The 4th Of July: The Great Experiment Called America

By Maj P

I want to extend to all the Op-For family thunderous greetings on our nation's birthday. On this day we celebrate Liberty, and the ongoing experiment called the United States of America.

I have a few comments on Liberty and Freedom here, if you care to take a look.

In closing, I leave you with the text of the Declaration of Independence. It needs no further comment from me.

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In the Mail...

By Charlie

Only in America by Paul Oreffice. The book, which I've read a bit of already, is all about something that still endures today: the American dream. Here's a blurb:

Only in America weaves the story of Paul's immigration to America, revealing how difficult early experiences sharpened him and molded his outlook on management and life. He gives practical business advice--from someone who has been there--on how anyone, especially an immigrant, can seize the abundant opportunities this country offers, converting obstacles and setbacks into achievements and success.

I'm not an immigrant (and don't have any immigrants in my family). My ancestors came to America in the early 1700's with one of the first waves of the Scots-Irish migration. However, I believe that one of America's enduring ideals is the concept of the American dream -that you can achieve anything you are willing to work for. At VMI, the inscription above Jasckon Arch reads "You may be whatever you resolve to be."* That's America, folks.

Immigrants or not, everyone can succeed here.

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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.

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.

Adios Oriskany

By John

Murdoc has the story on the soon-to-be-sunk aircraft carrier, with pics.

She's headed to Davy Jones locker tomorrow, already making plans to dive on her.

Two Years Ago in Fallujah

By John

Must read item of the day. Official USMC historian and milblogger Maj P dusts off his Iraq journal, and takes you inside insurgent infested Fallujah 2004.

24 Apr 04:Spent yesterday with 2/2 [2nd Bn 2nd Marines], and then 3/4 [3rd Bn 4th Marines] invited me to go out to Fallujah to overnight with India Company. A great trip, one of the highlights thus far. India’s position is in the northeast quarter of the city, perhaps 700 meters in from the MSR. The line is no more 300 meters long, and is in the shape of an “L,” with the long side running north-to-south. It is the position they occupied when word came down to cease the advance.

I spent the bulk of the time with 1st Platoon, under command of 1stLt Andrew Lee, a dyed-in-the-wool Boston Irishman—he referenced the date of the battalion’s move to Fallujah from the days of Holy Week—who did six years in 1/25 [1st Bn 25th Marines] before going on to join the Merchant Marine as an engineering officer. Sometime after Sept 11 he walked in to the OSO, presented his credentials and went to OCS. He fought in the battalion in OIF1. (By the way, he is also Recruit Lee in Thomas Ricks’ book, Making The Corps.) [And also now in Bing West’s book, No True Glory, that's his photo on the cover.] He is a fine officer in every respect, and a real character.

Lt Lee’s platoon occupies the roofs of about four or five houses right on the street that is the limit of advance. Everything to their front is bad Fallujah. On the avenue of approach that tees into their main position, a wide street running about 400 meters west, is a burned out car (their handiwork); another is in a trash filled lot only 50 meters across the street.

Read the whole thing.

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