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H&I* Fires, 18 JAN 2007

January 18, 2007 | | Comments (29) | TrackBacks (1)

Open post for those with something to share, updated through the day. New, complete posts come in below this one. Note: If trackbacking, please acknowledge this post in your post. That's only polite. [Hey - trackbacks work again!]

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Opposing views, wildly opposing views, to that of Argghhh! abound. Dan of tdaxp makes an argument that the war for Iraq is over (not a defeatist argument, mind you). Bill Arkin. I’ll just leave it at that.

Murdoc has info on something I’ve been waiting a long time for: Nautical Railguns. Can we mount one on the Sand Pebbles, huh, huh, huh?

Both Zenpundit and Grim of Grim’s Hall have updates on GWOT.

J over at ArmchairGeneralist has an update on biodefense attempts for the US. Not a rosy picture.

Does the PLAAF (People's Liberation Army Air Force) have a working ASAT system?
---ry
(not like it matters at this time of the day, 23:30 11/18/07, but the Arkin link is now fixed.)
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All those who say the Democrats have no plan for Iraq are wrong. Here it is:

The secret for the Democrats, says Emanuel, is to remain the party of reform and change. The country is angry, and it will only get more so as the problems in Iraq deepen. Don't look to Emanuel's Democrats for solutions on Iraq. It's Bush's war, and as it splinters the structure of GOP power, the Democrats are waiting to pick up the pieces.
As I've said before, if they truly believe the best thing to do is get out now, they need to be doing everything in their power to make that happen, but issuing non-binding resolutions for fear of touching a "big issue" is playing politics of the worst kind with war. Tony Blankley calls it for what it is: "Vulture Politics." - FbL

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Four Royal Marines flew into a battle zone clinging to the outside of helicopter gunships in a bid to rescue a fallen comrade, the Ministry of Defence has revealed. L/Cpl Ford: Comrades did not know he had been killed. Unwilling to leave behind one of their number following a retreat, the commandos strapped themselves to the small stabiliser wings of two Apache helicopters and returned into the midst of a fierce gunfight with the Taliban in southern Afghanistan. Details of the unprecedented rescue attempt were revealed as the MoD pieced together the final hours of fallen hero L/Cpl Matthew Ford.
Read the rest here and here.
H/T Rogue Gunner..............Maggie

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Yo, AFSis - you Air Force chicks are hawt. Don't read the regs, but hawt! -the Armorer

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Art Buchwald passes. He was great fun to read. -the Armorer

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Yay! Comments work properly - they post, and the "remember me" button works, too. Though, the comment window still looks like it's not doing anything when it is - but at least moderation is working properly (i.e., we *ain't* moderating) and you don't have to add your data back in every time. Whee! -the Armorer

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*A term of art from the artillery. Harassment and Interdiction Fires.

Back in the day, when you could just kill people and break things without a note from a lawyer, they were pre-planned, but to the enemy, random, fires at known gathering points, road junctions, Main Supply Routes, assembly areas, etc - to keep the bad guy nervous that the world around him might start exploding at any minute.

Not really relevant to today's operating environment, right? But, it *is*

The UAVs we fly over Afghanistan and Pakistan looking for targets of opportunity are a form of H&I fires, if you really want to parse it finely. We just have better sensors and fire control now.

I call the post that because it's random things posted by me and people I've given posting privileges to. It's also an open trackback, so if (Don Surber uses it this way a lot) someone has a post they're proud of, but it really isn't either Castle kind of stuff, or topical to a particular post, I've basically given blanket permission to use that post for that purpose. Another term of art that might be appropriate is "Free Fire Zone".


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Give Them Guns from tdaxp on January 18, 2007 8:24 AM

Farrell, S. (2007). Give us guns -- and trops can go, says Iraqi leader. Times Online. January 18, 2007. Available online: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-2553148.html. My post on how Bush has won the Iraq War, in spite of himself ... Read More

29 Comments

By John of Argghhh! on January 18, 2007 7:33 AM
Actually, Ry, Dan and I are far more in agreement than disagreement in some respects. We share the opinion that killing off the bad guys (as distinct from killing everything that moves) is what changes the correlations. Kill enough Nazis, the support for Nazism wanes.
 
By ry on January 18, 2007 8:01 AM
Okay, so I was wrong. Do I still get to keep the stale Cheetos?
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 18, 2007 8:25 AM
We always keep a bag open for you and the hamster, Ry.
 
By Dan tdaxp on January 18, 2007 9:49 AM
Thanks for the link! I posted a followup. (The link for Bill Arkin needs to be fixed, btw :-) )
 
By Oldloadr on January 18, 2007 10:00 AM
John - actually the AF doesn't call them regs, anymore, they are "Instructions" which was introduced by Gen Tony McPeak in the 90s as part of that empowerment thing that was in vogue then. Guess it worked; she sure felt empowered... I'll tell ya, none of my TIs looked like that (whew!). BTW, didn't the Army have a similar situation with the same publication back in the 80s?
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 18, 2007 10:03 AM
Oldloadr - Don't bother me with the past. I'm embracing Cliff's attitude - only the here and now matters!
 
By Oldloadr on January 18, 2007 10:20 AM
So I have to forget about the nay-kid gruntette I saw in PB back in my youth and only dwell on the nay-kid zoomie chick? It'll take a while for me to shift my paradigm; it's that damn conservative mind-set...
 
By AFSister on January 18, 2007 12:29 PM
AF chicks may be hawt... but *that* one was stoopid! ug. Appearing in PB is one thing, but appearing in PB with part of your uniform, being promoted as a hawt military chick, is a whole 'nuther ballgame. (and judging by oldloadr's comments, I'm guessing another "ball"game will be taking place, compliments of SSG Manheart) re: Royal Marines... GOOD LORD, WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAZIES. Dayum... that's insane. They strapped themselves to the OUTSIDE of Apache's and headed back into battle. Amazing. Simply amazing. I'm glad they at least recovered the body of their fallen comrade instead of leaving his body for the Taliban to abuse.
 
By Pogue on January 18, 2007 1:59 PM
AFSis, when I went to SERE back in the 70's they taught us how to open the ammo doors on a Cobra to ride out on it if necessary. There was also at least one downed pilot that rode out on one of the rocket pods. Any ride in a storm, and after a firefight the relative risk of riding outside the aircraft probably seems lower. :-) I'm sure BillT has much more info on that kind of thing.
 
By BillT on January 18, 2007 2:57 PM
Extraction from a hot LZ via Cobra ammo bay door is the preferred method -- you're closer to the lateral c.g. and you can wrap an arm around the support cable. If you're gonna ride a rocket pod, straddle it facing the rear and reach *a-l-l-l-l* the way back to use the trailing edge of the wing for a handhold. As far as riding an Apache, straddle one of the main wheels (tell the pilot to set the brake, first -- heh) and clip on to one of the cockpit entry bars with a D-ring -- which most of us had laced onto our survival vests with parachute cord. Don't dangle your feet, though, or you'll get slammed with the chain gun. You can ride an Apache's rocket pods, although it's a rougher trip than doing it on a Cobra, since Apache pods're articulated. But for a real thrill, hop prone on the wings facing forward (tie yourself off to a launcher shackle and you're now hands-free to provide suppression to the sides and rear) and hum something apropos from Wagner...
 
By Maggie on January 18, 2007 7:19 PM
I don't care if they are "regs" or "instructions". I don't care if she is hot or not. I am with AFSis.......she is stupid. Those should be the grounds for her dismissal. John - Your new progressive attitude gave me a chuckle.
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 18, 2007 9:42 PM
One little blogowner test...
 
By AFSister on January 18, 2007 10:38 PM
Bill- I got my copy of "Loach" today, and have been flipping through the pages looking for my SugarButtons. *grin*
 
By Oldloadr on January 19, 2007 7:03 AM
Maggie - Only officers are dismissed; enlisted are discharged (I know, I'm being anal). My guess is her leadership will decide to offer her article 15 punishment. Based on the statements she has uttered, she may turn it down and demand a court-martial. If that happens, she could get a bad-conduct discharge. If she accepts the article 15 and loses a stripe, she may get a general discharge at the end of her current enlistment since she will then be beyond high year of tenure for an E-4. Personally, I think she should be punished (but not to the extent of a BCD). Anyway, the AF may have an image problem if they try to discharge her after some of the officer misconduct that has taken place recently and the apparently light punishment that was meted out...
 
By Cricket on January 19, 2007 7:49 AM
We have a Pogue amongst us! Welcome. As to the investigation..um...sure. copies of the issue all around while they ask her if she was photoshopped and did she have control of the final copy, etc. *whistling off to feed the Moat Monster and fix breakfast*
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 19, 2007 8:22 AM
Oldloadr - give on the officer naughtiness! Unless the fallout causes her to be unable to perform her duties, I'd lean to a Letter of Reprimand, Article 15. The only problem with the Art15 of course is if she were to call my bluff. Hmmm. The recent Army issue with the 82nd Airborne guys is clouded by the gay issue, I guess I'll go see where those cases ended up.
 
By Justthisguy on January 19, 2007 10:18 AM
I'm waiting for a "Big Beautiful Women" calendar with one or more photos of, er, "healthy" Navy chicks. Don't get me wrong, scrawny wimmin frighten me; they're not normal. Rubens had the right kinda taste in wimmin. P.S. "Normal" wimmin frighten me too, but that's another issue. Sigh.
 
By Justthisguy on January 19, 2007 10:47 AM
P.P.S.: I mind the time I sat next to my cousin and her roomie (housie?) at the dinner after my Mom's funeral. I made one of my (characteristically socially clueless) comments about "fat Navy chicks" and got a rocket right back. "Sorry, I beg yr pardon, Ma'am, Mea Maxima Culpa" I said, or words to that effect. I then asked, what was yer rate in the Navy? "O-5, that is Commander, same as Lt. Colonel", she said. "Oh!", I said. I later saw her wearing a Distinguished Service Medal ribbon, at another funeral. I do still think she's kinda sexy in a weird dangerous way
 
By ry on January 19, 2007 12:13 PM
JTG, on this rather chitty day to be gollum I needed that. Dude, if I ever make it down to Florida the beer's on me.
 
By Oldloadr on January 19, 2007 2:56 PM
John - the officer indiscretions and subsequent punishments don't bother me too much but they have been all over AF Times and Stars & Stripes, with all kinds of opinion letters about "different rank - different spank." That's why I mentioned them and that's why I don't think she'll get a BCD. However, as you touched on, I would expect her to lose the MTI AFSC and be reverted to her original AFSC as I don't see the AF leaving her as the first face of the AF that 50 new recuits see...
 
By Cricket on January 19, 2007 3:54 PM
What torques me is the allegations of sexual harassment and then this. Sorry, that just feeds the fire and I personally think she ought to lose a stripe and have a bar to reenlistment. The military busts a gut to narrow the definition of porn, allows Playboy to be sold in the base exchanges, denies it in the workplace, punishes personnel who engage in inappropriate conduct and then some floozy tech does this? Every single woman who has wanted to be taken seriously on her ability and works hard to play by the rules and puts up with garbage in the workplace doesn't need this. Your mileage may vary. *stirring chicken noodle soup and checking on the rolls and fruit salad*
 
By Oldloadr on January 19, 2007 5:29 PM
Cricket - I have a daughter who is a SSgt in the AF (jet engine mechanic). I'm goinng to send her this link and ask her to respond with her opinion.
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 19, 2007 5:47 PM
Oldloadr - Um, I don't *read* the Air Force Times. Shocking, I know. I guess I'll hafta google up S&S.
 
By Maggie on January 19, 2007 7:46 PM
Oldloadr - I had something to say........but..... "different rank - different spank." knocked it right out of my mind!
 
By Justthisguy on January 19, 2007 9:06 PM
It wasn't all that long ago, I think, that you weren't allowed to enlist in the Air Force, as a woman, without producing a photograph to show that you were good-lookin. I betcha Sgt Mom will back me up on this. She is, of course, good-lookin, as is (I presume) her daughter, Corporal Blondie, USMC.
 
By Cricket on January 19, 2007 9:43 PM
oldloadr, Thanks. I guess I shouldn't have gotten angry, as I am generally not a supporter of women in the military. But the ones who have broken the taboos, worked hard and earned the respect of their male peers, colleagues, supervisors, commanders, etc. certainly don't need this. And the ones in the war zone ESPECIALLY don't need this type of propaganda BS especially if they get caught. Remember, the enemy is watching, and one thing that I do remember from my college days is that every single male Muslim student did two things: Drink and buy porn. Saddam's sons, may they roast with their father were notorious for having this double standard which is totally against Islam and feeds into their derogatory ideas about women in general and western women in particular. It is all about example, and I would say the same if it were an officer. I will be anxious to hear what your daughter has to say.
 
By Oldloadr on January 19, 2007 11:26 PM
Cricket – I am angry, too about what this person did. However, with my experience in the AF and the sandbox, I am willing to say she should be punished but not discharged because: 1. By all accounts she has had a stellar career up to this point and 2. As I have mentioned (documented in the AF Times) the AF has had its share of sexual scandal (amongst the higher ups) and none of them lost their pension. 3. If she is willing to put her nose to the grindstone and do her job from here on out, she should be allowed to continue to serve, albeit with proper documentation in her record. And some form of punishment behind her - BTW My daughter is staioned in Germany, so it may be a day or two before she sees my e-mail and responds.
 
By Cricket on January 20, 2007 9:00 AM
I can respect that...but wasn't there a woman pilot who had an affair with an enlisted man? And didn't they both get bounced? I know that sometimes the different rank thing should not be a part of it; wrongdoing is wrongdoing. But I have also seen instances where a higher up had nothing more than a grudge and abused the system to get rid of someone they had a personal gripe about. In this instance, she is using the 'I stood up for my rights' to do what she wanted. There are women in harm's way who don't need this additional evidence of a stereotype. We are at war. Were this peacetime, yeah a slap on the wrist would be about right. But she has potentially jeopardized other women with this and don't think for one minute that the Islamist radicals in this country won't get that magazine and get it to their mujahadeen. And other women who pose nude do American women no favors. That is one of my 'issues.' It may be a guy thing to look at it, or buy it, but ultimately it serves no purpose other that to belittle and denigrate women. Okay, I have said enough and I am not trying to impose my morals here. Thanks for letting me have my say. I am going to retire from this thread.
 
By John of Argghhh! on January 20, 2007 9:31 AM
Cricket brings up an excellent point about comment threads. Sometimes, they should just die. When they get circular, positions staked, and no further movement. Around here, we're pretty good at that. Some places, however. Or - during our semi-legendary meltdown around here during L'Affaire Schiavo. The real point I'm going to make is: Retirement doesn't mean concession, as it is so often taken for and crowed about. It just means... I'm done, take it or leave it.
 
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