Comments for H & I Fires:* 19 Feb 2008

H & I Fires:* 19 Feb 2008

2008-02-20T05:41:51Z

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.

You're advertising here, we should get an ad at your place...

Time to add a new caveat, because from email it's not clear to some folks (mind you, if you don't read this it won't matter...) Being an open post, people (collectively, the Denizens) other than I post in the H&I. They sign their work (most of the time) - keep that in mind when you want to flame someone in email please - if it doesn't say "The Armorer" or "John" then I didn't write it! And honestly - if you don't like something said or posted... leave a comment, and hash it out (within the context of The Rulez which are clearly posted on the comment form, I would add).
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Blackfive links to two great articles from CJR on COIN in Iraq. And a second link to Blackfive, a video called American Alienation. Not to be confused with, but often synonymous with, the ObamaNation.

Neo-neo-con wonders Whatever Happened to those Benchmarks in Iraq? Well, apparently they are being met and the people who really needed some "hope" are getting it. Violence falls 80% in Baghdad.

If you really want to understand what's happening in Iraq, I really suggest reading The Long War Journal's three part series on Iraqi politics:

Inside Iraqi Politics-Part I
Inside Iraqi Politics - Part II
Inside Iraqi Politics- Part III

Seriously, you should be reading Roggio at the Journal every day to get the low down on the GWOT. He has another great piece about "The Sons of Iraq"

Divulging secrets of the CIA when it no longer matters or old tricks die hard: CIA set up bogus companies in Europe and then closed them because, well, they just weren't in the jihadi neighborhoods.

More on the ObamaNation: Defining Patriot Corporations H/T Instapundit The left kept telling us that dissent was patriotic and that we could not define patriotism because we would exclude people who were only concerned about the future and path of the United States. Apparently, though, they have the ability to define it. Something about how much you give the state and how much you give the proletariat...er...employees.

At least McCain isn't making this promise right before a re-election campaign: McCain says "no new taxes".

And, for your daily dose of irony, from The People's Cube: Guess which collectivist said it.
-Kat

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Steeljaw Scribe offers an informed discussion of shooting down satellites, why one might wish to do that. H/t, JTG.

Here's the story of a Marine, a real Marine. One that would make Gunnery Sergeant Tom Highway proud.

"AWOL, positive drug test, busted to buck private. By all rights he should have given up. No promotions, no medals, low man on the totem pole forever.

He didn't give up. He was the best Marine he could be. And in the hand-to-hand urban fighting in Fallujah II, he earned the Silver Star."

Chuck Simmins has the rest of the story, here. I would suspect that Gunnery Sergeant "Manila John" Basilone would approve, too. -the Armorer

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SWWBO has put up a Lolcat piksher at I Can Has Cheezburger! Go, vote! Castle Kittehs can be famusz! -the Armorer

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Castro Retires..........is it against the Rulez to say I wish it was "Castro Dead"? Well, Kevin is one step closer to his cigars....... Maggie

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Valour-IT News:

The first item? Well, let's just say Snoopy would be proud...

The second Valour-IT news item has to do with that $25,000 from the Powerline book award that was donated to Soldiers' Angels. - FbL

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Jules Crittenden reviews PBS Frontline's "Haditha: Rules of Engagement." Looks to be worth the hour of your life it will take. -the Armorer

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Greyhawk's back! And he's got something that makes up for his absence, I think. Trust me, you don't want to miss this. - FbL

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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 (oops, can't call 'em UAVs anymore - they're now Unmanned Aerial Systems... some Colonel got his Legion of Merit for that change...), er, um UAS's 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 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."

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2008-02-20

2008-02-20T14:13:50Z

Sorry, Maggie. But you are correct - on politics, Kevin is a lost cause from your perspective.

Comment from ry on 2008-02-20

2008-02-20T06:14:23Z

(Cough, cough. Goodie, phlem this time and not a lung.) Only one issue with SJS, SM-3 isn't even a proven anti-air system much less bmd. It's gone great guns in test range situations, but it's never actually been put to the only test that matters. Not to be kicking the USN, but it isn't (and thank gawd it never was put to the that test, not that I think it won't work or nothin'). Great point about responsibility though. And, well, why have one reason for doing something when multiple works just as well? Cuba(or more appropriately Kat's China analogy). But China has found itself greatly changed by free trade. 20 years ago they didn't give a fig about the environment. THe people were too damn poor to care. Economic success wasn't something the CCP had to ensure to keep their own necks outta nooses before Deng Xia Peng came along and moved them some what market wise to build up their military. Now, Hu Jintao and the Boys absolutely have to worry about being lynched, by their own military if not just the general populace, if they don't deliver consistent 5% growth each year. Time frames matter. Be the tortoise, not the hare.

Comment from Maggie on 2008-02-19

2008-02-20T02:19:31Z

It wasn't Kat, it was me and I wasn't trying to set him up, I was trying to be nice. See what I get for that? Some crazy cigar lecture. This is why I don't often try to be nice, it never works for me. No worries Kevin, I don't smoke cigars and I don't wear diamonds. Unless you have some sad story about child labor or slavery in Hershey PA or the Coke plant in Georgia....I'm all set. Lesson learned...there's no making Kevin happy, so I'll stop trying.

Comment from kat-missouri on 2008-02-19

2008-02-20T00:54:14Z

Well, if free trade had precipitated free information, then how come all those lovely Euros vacationing in Cuba and trading with them haven't yet created such a society? Or, in places like China where the internet still gets blocked to keep out info? Futile as that seems with all the end rounds. Yet, a little island remains the same with all that? I would say that the only time the embargo lifts is when Castro is really gone and free trade agreements include all the other free flows, too. Like info and education. Otherwise, I am in full agreement that free trade helps the flow of democracy and capitalism, even in a corrupt society. At least there you know who you can bribe to get what you want.

Comment from Kevin on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T22:23:39Z

IF you like Ashtons, try their new San Cristobal line. Where Ashton cigars were formerly only made by the Fuente family and were Dominican tobaccos, the San Cristobals are made by Don Pepin Garcia and are Nicaraguan. They are awesome smokes.

Comment from big al on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T21:19:01Z

I was always under the impression that some of the best Marines were guys who started off not exactly as boy scouts and alterboys.

Comment from BloodSpite on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T21:09:05Z

You can find as good, if not better cigars made by the Cuban exiles now living in the Dominican Republic, Honduras or Nicaragua (Danny-O take note) and not have to have the guilt of a blood cigar hanging over you. Well said, something I've been trying to explain to my semi-cigar enjoying friends. I'll stick with Ashton's myself ;)

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T20:46:29Z

Heh. Kevin makes a living selling cigars... Kat set him up for this one.

Comment from Kevin on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T20:21:13Z

Castro 'retires' ho-hum.... Weekend at Bernies moment. Nothing will change until the junta and the infrastructure supporting him changes their attitudes. And, I'm sure that that crowd is just itching to give up all their special perks in the classless society, for the good of the masses don'tcha know? On the topic of cigars, in this case Cubans. Yeah, we all want what we can't get, funny how that works. But if you are considering buying one, I have a simple answer.... "Don't". Just as diamonds from war torn zones are considered NPC and labeled as 'blood diamonds', so too do I consider Cuban cigars, 'blood cigars'. You are providing hard currency to the regime by purchasing Cuban cigars, you are helping to prop up, legitimize and keep the Communists in power. Yes, the US policy towards Cuba is stupid. End the (ineffectual) embargo and let capitalism take the buggers down. The system simply wouldn't be able to cope with the free flow of information, goods and ideas. I also have always found it rather strange that ONLY Americans cannot have an exchange with Cuba. All the rest of the world can, just not us here in the land of the free.... As regards Cuban cigars, besides their obvious blood drenched state sponsored status, in most cases, they aren't that good anymore. Communist means of production has all but exhausted the soil, they can't keep up with the demand and are even importing tobaccos from Central America to put into 'Cuban' cigars. You can find as good, if not better cigars made by the Cuban exiles now living in the Dominican Republic, Honduras or Nicaragua (Danny-O take note) and not have to have the guilt of a blood cigar hanging over you. The mindset of the exiles is varied regarding Castro and what will happen after that regime finally falls. Some good, some bad, some unrealistic, some pragmatic. Some are determined to get back what was stolen from their families by the Communists. Others are more realisitic as evidenced by a conversation I had with one such political refugee. "What are we going to do? Go back to our land in Cuba and tell the campesinos who have been living there for almost 4 generations to get off our property?" The cigar industry will be in a flux. Brands that are only sold here in the US, such as 'our' versions of famous Cuban name brands, Cohiba, H. Upmann, Romeo Y Julieta etc will likely disappear. The exiles brought these brand names with them when they fled, but those are mainly sold in the US because we can't get the real Cuban brands. The real winners of the Cuban regime falling, aside from the people themselves, will be the lawyers... gag... the legal fights over naming rights, propriety information, claims to stolen property etc. will be long and expensive. The good news is, that 5-10 years after the regime falls, the world will be able to enjoy cigars of a quality never before heard of. By bringing in modern business practices, improving the quality of the product and restoring vitality to the worn out soil of Cuba, these new cigars will be awesome! If I was a millionaire, I'd hire a ro-ro container ship and be circling Cuba awaiting the fall of the dictatorship of the proletariat. Soon as it fell, I'd pull into harbor and start flashing cash. How much for that '48 Packard? How much for that Dusenberg? Etc. The classic car market will swoon. Sadly, though, none of this will come to pass as long as the Reds are running the show. After 40+ years of an obviously ineffective embargo policy towards Cuba, a new line of diplomacy, interaction and exchange is certainly warranted.

Comment from Boquisucio on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T17:21:39Z

I was non-plused when in the BBC's Scrawl Bark at their Morning News, it stated that "Castro, one of the World's longest SERVING heads of states, retires". Funny how, those Socialist by the Thames define service. I hardly think that they would define Milosevic's reign over Serbia as service, wouldn't they?

Comment from Trias on 2008-02-19

2008-02-19T14:26:28Z

You know there really are no new taxes here these days. Tax is such an ugly dirty filthy word isn't it? So much better with all the fees, levies and charges now isn't it? Soon they'll call them compulsory donations.