We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:23:24 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html Wed, 07 Jan 2009 07:27:03 -0600
If it was a regular Army unit, the unit designation would have been given by PAO.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82594 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82594 Thu, 08 Jan 2009 09:41:24 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82590 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82590 Thu, 08 Jan 2009 04:12:54 -0600
No, I don't think any of the above violates OPSEC.  The troops in that area have been there for more than 6 months.  The Taliban and HiGs (I think more likely HiGs) in the area know exactly who they are.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82537 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82537 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:09:41 -0600
On the one hand, I think we should make every effort to reduce the loss of innocent life among civilians and other non-combatants, both on basic humanitarian grounds and to avoid alienating and radicalizing the civilian population any more than they already might be.

But on the other hand, I think the only way we have any hope of countering the terrorists' ability to use the civilian population as shields is to somehow convince the civilians that there is a GREATER cost for them in allowing the terrorists to use them as shields.

Now, I know many people will chafe at this statement, and claim that these civilians don't have much choice, that they're being brutalized by the terrorists, and that they may not be armed well enough to keep the terrorists out of their midst.

In some cases, this is undoubtedly true.  However, in many more cases, I believe the opposite is true. I believe that much too often, the civilian population either tacitly or strongly shares the ideology, attitudes, and goals of the terrorists and willingly allows the militants to hide among them with the certain knowledge that American, Coalition, and Israeli troops will assume greater risks to themselves in order to avoid collateral damage and civilian deaths.

Quiite frankly, I think if the civilian population knew - without a shadow of a doubt - that we would not hold back in hitting attacking forces wherever they are, they'd make much more of an effort to keep their homes and villages from becoming sanctuaries, driving them out into the open where we could hit them without greater risk of collateral damage and civilian deaths.

At the very least, we wouldn't have terrorist groups like Hamas being elected as governments.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82536 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82536 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:06:22 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82534 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82534 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 10:48:46 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82522 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82522 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 08:30:29 -0600 ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82521 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2009/01/coalition_force_2.html#comment-82521 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 08:26:45 -0600