January 13, 2007
News of the Kansas Guard.
The surge washes across Kansas.
SOME KANSAS GUARDMEMBERS MAY STAY IN IRAQ LONGER TO SUPPORT GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISMReporting As Ordered, Sir! »President Bush's announcement regarding the need for additional troops in Iraq will impact Kansas National Guard soldiers. The U.S. Army's 1st Brigade, 34th Division may be needed to continue its missions in Iraq for an additional time of up to 125 days to help carry out the president's plan.
The 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery, headquartered in Wichita, is attached to the 1st Brigade, 34th Division. The battalion was scheduled to return to Kansas in the spring of 2007. However, the change would likely mean a return in the summer of 2007.
"Our Guardsmen know there is always a possibility that they will be needed for additional missions or an extended timeframe and we appreciate the service they provide in protecting our nation," said Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, Kansas adjutant general. "We know this means additional time away from their families and greater sacrifices for everyone involved. We will continue to support the families of the deployed soldiers and work to ensure the soldiers are brought home as soon as possible."
At this time, the announcement has not impacted other Kansas Guard units, however, additional information is expected in the coming weeks regarding other possible impacts.
The change for the 1st Brigade, 34th Division came about as a result of the Department of Defense implementing policy changes Thursday, Jan. 11, to better allow the military to succeed in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The policy change will also affect the maximum mobilization time for members of the reserve forces. Currently, the policy is for a maximum mobilization time of 18 months. However, for soldiers being deployed in the future, this change will reduce the maximum mobilization timeframe to one year.
According to Department of Defense, the policy objective for involuntary mobilization of Guard/ Reserve units will remain a one-year mobilized to five-year demobilized ratio. However, a number of selected Guard/Reserve units may be remobilized sooner than the current policy goal. That deployment to demobilization ratio remains the goal of the department.
The policy change will also establish a new program to compensate individuals in both active and reserve component forces that are required to mobilize or deploy earlier than established policy goals of deployment to home station ratio times. It will also involve those service members who are required to extend beyond established rotation policy goals.
The policy change also directs commands to review their administration of the hardship waiver program to ensure that they have properly taken into account exceptional circumstances facing military families of deployed service members.
January 11, 2007
Bush on Iraq.
I've said before that President Bush leads, and that's what a President is supposed to do. Vice someone in a leadership position who lives by the poll - effectively looking for where the herd is heading, jumping in front, and saying "Follow Me!"
That's not leadership. Leadership is having a vision, and convincing people to follow you. President Bush has a vision. He's been mixed (and lately bad) on the getting people to follow part.
But give him credit for sticking to his guns, even as he takes his lumps, though I wish he was a little less loyal to close advisors and more flexible in his adaptation.
Jules Crittenden has a pretty good round up on the subject here.
Now, I await the follow-through. Will the *deeds* match the words? We've had plenty of 'leaders' who talk the talk. The question is - will President Bush walk the walk as he has in the past, but not as much lately - and, more importantly, will he be able to make the Iraqi government walk the walk.
Did, as some suggest, the President declare war on Syria and Iran last night? No. The question is - will he *make* war on them in the context of the parameters laid out last night? Will the SOF and Predators prowl in and over Syria and Iran? Will things happen on the border, or inside their borders, in those places where overt and covert support for the mooji's is provided?
If that happens, we'll have some sense of walking the walk. That's just one example. If Maliki gets Sadr to disarm his militia - or turns loose the Coalition on Sadr's Mahdi Army, we'll have some sense.
He may have boxed the Congress for the moment - but this shift in strategy, operations, and tactics is going to have to show something, and soon, in months, for him to keep them boxed.
And the long pole in the tent is... the Iraqis. Can they, will they step up? And if they do - will we support them?
That will be leadership. Unfortunately, President Bush isn't dealing from a position of strength. Now we'll see what his metal is made of. But it won't matter if he's a girder of fine steel, if the footings are balsa.
I'll do my little bit - to include, at the extreme, becoming temporarily unemployed... the money for the surge is coming out of the budget that's been funding the work we've been doing - work that was pretty much guaranteed a month ago has evaporated as the surge sucks the money into different pots and those projects are deferred to next year. This is going to be a lean year for some of us. Hey, there's a war on. S'okay, I'm not worried. Winning is more important than my current job. I'll just engineer a recall... and figure out some way to finesse the physical!
Update: AP/IPSOS Poll shows Americans "overwhelmingly" oppose the surge. I can certainly believe that a majority of Americans believe that, anyway. I know around here, the sense amongst the Auld Soldiers is "Right Plan, Too Late."
Fully 70 percent of Americans oppose sending more troops, and a like number don't think such an increase would help stabilize the situation there. The telephone survey of 1,002 adults was conducted Monday through Wednesday night, when the president made his speech calling for an increase in troops. News had already surfaced before the polling period that Bush wanted to boost U.S. forces in Iraq.
This is where leadership comes in. Of course, if the surge shows results, 6 months from now 55% of the people polled will say "Good idea!"
Show us what you've got Mr. President. The troops will do their bit.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »January 10, 2007
The Summary of what the President will tell us tonight.
As sent to the bloggers on their mailing list:
The New Way Forward In IraqThe President's New Iraq Strategy Is Rooted In Six Fundamental Elements:
Let the Iraqis lead;
Help Iraqis protect the population;
Isolate extremists;
Create space for political progress;
Diversify political and economic efforts; and
Situate the strategy in a regional approach.Ø The Consequences Of Failure In Iraq Could Not Be Graver – The War On Terror Cannot Be Won If We Fail In Iraq. Our enemies throughout the Middle East are trying to defeat us in Iraq . If we step back now, the problems in Iraq will become more lethal, and make our troops fight an uglier battle than we are seeing today.
Key Elements Of The New Approach: Security
Iraqi:
· Publicly acknowledge all parties are responsible for quelling sectarian violence.
· Work with additional Coalition help to regain control of the capital and protect the Iraqi population.
· Deliver necessary Iraqi forces for Baghdad and protect those forces from political interference.
· Commit to intensify efforts to build balanced security forces throughout the nation that provide security even-handedly for all Iraqis.
· Plan and fund eventual demobilization program for militias.Coalition:
· Agree that helping Iraqis to provide population security is necessary to enable accelerated transition and political progress.
· Provide additional military and civilian resources to accomplish this mission.
· Increase efforts to support tribes willing to help Iraqis fight Al Qaeda in Anbar.
· Accelerate and expand the embed program while minimizing risk to participants.Both Coalition And Iraqi:
· Continue counter-terror operations against Al Qaeda and insurgent organizations.
· Take more vigorous action against death squad networks.
· Accelerate transition to Iraqi responsibility and increase Iraqi ownership.
· Increase Iraqi security force capacity – both size and effectiveness – from 10 to 13 Army divisions, 36 to 41 Army Brigades, and 112 to 132 Army Battalions.Establish a National Operations Center, National Counterterrorism Force, and National Strike Force.
Reform the Ministry of Interior to increase transparency and accountability and transform the National Police.
Key Elements Of The New Approach: Political
Iraqi:
· The Government of Iraq commits to:
o Reform its cabinet to provide even-handed service delivery.Act on promised reconciliation initiatives (oil law, de-Baathification law, Provincial elections).
Give Coalition and ISF authority to pursue ALL extremists.· All Iraqi leaders support reconciliation.
· Moderate coalition emerges as strong base of support for unity government.Coalition:
· Support political moderates so they can take on the extremists.
o Build and sustain strategic partnerships with moderate Shi'a, Sunnis, and Kurds.
· Support the national compact and key elements of reconciliation with Iraqis in the lead.
· Diversify U.S. efforts to foster political accommodation outside Baghdad (more flexibility for local commanders and civilian leaders).Expand and increase the flexibility of the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) footprint.
Focus U.S. political, security, and economic resources at local level to open space for moderates, with initial priority to Baghdad and Anbar.
Both Coalition And Iraqi:
· Partnership between Prime Minister Maliki, Iraqi moderates, and the United States where all parties are clear on expectations and responsibilities.
· Strengthen the rule of law and combat corruption.
· Build on security gains to foster local and national political accommodations.
· Make Iraqi institutions even-handed, serving all of Iraq's communities on an impartial basis.Key Elements Of The New Approach: Economic
Iraqi:
· Deliver economic resources and provide essential services to all areas and communities.
· Enact hydrocarbons law to promote investment, national unity, and reconciliation.
· Capitalize and execute jobs-producing programs.
· Match U.S. efforts to create jobs with longer term sustainable Iraqi programs.
· Focus more economic effort on relatively secure areas as a magnet for employment and growth.Coalition:
· Refocus efforts to help Iraqis build capacity in areas vital to success of the government (e.g. budget execution, key ministries).
· Decentralize efforts to build Iraqi capacities outside the Green Zone.
Double the number of PRTs and civilians serving outside the Green Zone.
Establish PRT-capability within maneuver Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs).
· Greater integration of economic strategy with military effort.Joint civil-military plans devised by PRT and BCT.
Remove legal and bureaucratic barriers to maximize cooperation and flexibility.Key Elements Of The New Approach: Regional
Iraqi:
· Vigorously engage Arab states.
· Take the lead in establishing a regional forum to give support and help from the neighborhood.
· Counter negative foreign activity in Iraq.
· Increase efforts to counter PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party).Coalition:
· Intensify efforts to counter Iranian and Syrian influence inside Iraq.
· Increase military presence in the region.
· Strengthen defense ties with partner states in the region.
· Encourage Arab state support to Government of Iraq.
· Continue efforts to help manage relations between Iraq and Turkey.
· Continue to seek the region's full support in the War on Terror.Both Coalition And Iraqi:
· Focus on the International Compact.
· Retain active U.N. engagement in Iraq – particularly for election support and constitutional review.
Of course, this is Death By Powerpoint. The devil is in the details.
Update: The Highlights of the Iraq Strategy Review.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »January 08, 2007
Cpls. Dunham and Miller and Marine Moms
In an act of astonishing sacrifice, Corporal Jason Dunham saved the lives of two fellow Marines three years ago by throwing his body and empty helmet over a live grenade.
At the White House on Thursday, President Bush will present Cpl. Dunham's parents with the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for military valor, the first such award for a Marine since Vietnam. The ceremony will enshrine Jason Dunham for posterity as one who loved his brothers more than himself.In the audience will sit Cpl. Miller, a 23-year-old still struggling with what it means to receive that much love.
Because of Cpl. Dunham's sacrifice, Cpl. Miller is brother to two families and son to two Marine Moms. It's another story of sacrifice, courage, and trying to put the pieces back together...
Flash Traffic (extended entry) Follows » Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »January 07, 2007
A Defense of the ISG recommendations.
Ry will probably like this. Some of you others will not. I'm still pondering my navel, but there are certainly parts that make sense to me.
ASSESSING THE LONG WAR by Frank Hoffman
[January 5, 2007 Frank Hoffman is a non-resident Senior Fellow at FPRI. These comments are his own and do not reflect the position of any organization with which he is affiliated. This enote is available on line at www.fpri.org. ]
America is suffering from a national STD crisis. No, it's not the one you think -it's a Strategic Thinking Deficiency. This deficiency lies at the root of the current challenges in Iraq, an enormous miscalculation and a gross misapplication of national power. This deficiency is also responsible for our continued inability to diagnose today's global struggle in a holistic manner. Too often we look at Iraq as an isolated event, instead of one front or campaign in a larger conflict. Thus, we fail to see how the actions in one theater impact the conduct of the war in a larger or more systemic sense.
The STD limits our ability to measure what is important from what is merely expedient. What should be an American grand strategy ends up a series of policy stovepipes instead of a comprehensive understanding of the problem, and an equally holistic and integrated solution. Such a fragmented perspective fails to recognize our long-term interests and warps American policy. Key strategic interests are being ignored, and isolated actions take us incrementally away from vital requirements.
Washington is responding in classic fashion; after three years of deadly conflict with little concrete progress, a plethora of policy reviews, Congressional blue-ribbon panels, and study groups are underway. The bipartisan Iraq Study Project (ISG) led by former Secretary of State James Baker and Congressman Lee Hamilton tried to provide a remedy. But it did not offer a plan to achieve "victory" in Iraq, and thus the White House apparently has rejected the panel's recommendations. The Chairman of the Joint Staff has assembled an outside team composed of U.S. officers with extensive experience in Iraq. A spate of pundits have chimed in with their own set of options,[1] with most seeking a military solution where there is none.
The ISG was a large dose of common sense. Their report provides a polite but devastating critique of American policy in Iraq. Its 79 recommendations include a few clunkers that are not realistic. But, overall, it serves as an indictment of our current strategy and its implementation. There was nothing terribly original or bold in the report, the product of intense negotiations among ten prominent Americans of great intellect with long careers in public service. That's the nature of these bipartisan groups; the most extreme ideas are left on the editor's floor, victim to the search for unanimity.
The problem with many critiques of the ISG is that they appear to focus solely on Iraq, and thus reinforce Cold War habits. Such reviews focus on individual trees and not the forest. Any serious review needs to begin with the recognition that we do not understand the nature of our enemy or the nature of the war. We began this conflict by calling it the GWOT. This is typical Pentagonese. In essence, we declared war against a tactic, deliberately making our enemies evil and illegal at the same time--but also confusing ourselves about our objective or who really was our enemy.
Some commentators like Professor Eliot Cohen and former CIA Director James Woolsey suggest that World War IV is appropriate. This does suggest a protracted contest with numerous fronts, and the multidimensional mobilization that is needed to achieve success. But this gives Bin Laden and Al Qaeda far too much credit in terms of their total capability.
So we've settled now for the Long War. This says a lot about the protracted nature of the contest, but almost nothing about what we are trying to defeat or what we are fighting for. But it does suggest that it should be fought by the Pentagon, which misleads our strategy. We have over- militarized our counter-terrorism strategy and repeated the mistake in Iraq. In many respects, our reactions have been entirely predictable, very costly, and of great advantage to Al Qaeda. As FPRI Senior Fellow Michael Radu has observed, "When you have confusion defining the enemy, you inevitably have confusion in finding ways to fight it."
Just what have we accomplished to date in the Long War? Well, any ledger is going to identify some clear gains. Viewed objectively, U.S. policy has garnered some positive achievement. For example:
* The U.S. has recovered from a deadly attack on our own shores with two swift military campaigns. Saddam Hussein in no longer terrorizing his people and threatening the region.* Despite what you might read, there has been progress in governance and economic development in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
* Our economy is doing well; it may sputter from time to time thanks to high energy costs, but the overall economy has grown some 15 percent since 9/11. Recall what the Dow Jones Index was on that day-it's grown from 9,650 to today's rosy 12,500. * We are working effectively in partnership with key allies-not just Britain and Australia-but thirty odd nations.
* The nation has begun to shore up our home defenses, although clearly the stand up of DHS is still a work in progress--reorganizing in the midst of war is never easy.
* Likewise, we've reorganized our intelligence system, although we're still not sure if competition between OSD and the new Director of National Intelligence create more opportunities for our enemies than it retards.
That's our progress to date. Much of this progress has taken form as organizational initiatives, which reflect a needed strategic readjustment from an outdated Cold War architecture. But the ledger has both black and red ink. On the debit side, the strategic evaluation is long and pessimistic.
The rest is in the Flash Traffic/Extended Entry.
Flash Traffic (extended entry) Follows » Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »January 03, 2007
Bravo!...
Many (probably most) readers will probably disagree with me on this, but I frankly am not disturbed by the way Saddam Hussein spent his last few conscious minutes.
Last night I watched Glenn Beck commiserate with the chia pet-haired Baghdad New York Times Bureau Chief over the way the executioners heckled the murderous son of a b***h before they snapped his filthy neck. Oh, how awful it was. Oh, how insensitive, Oh, how it sullied our reputation and illustrated the ineptitude of the Maliki regime.
Bollocks.
I was first and foremost disappointed that Beck chose the NYT lizard for color commentary on the post-execution "mood on the streets." Hell, why not have Ramsey Clark on for a "fair and balanced" look, eh? Sheesh.
Second, I wish I had been on to ask Glenn: Where were the cigarette burns on Saddam's face in that hanging video? How about the sulfuric acid burns to his eyes? Any hint of broken bones? Electrified genitalia? Fingernails missing? Now THAT'S abuse, and was part and parcel of the way Saddam's goons treated fargin' WOMEN and CHILDREN, for crap's sake!
Honestly, these guys who lament such things just don't get it yet. And maybe that's a good thing, because I wouldn't wish on anyone in the world the kind of treatment Saddam visited on his own people for 30+ years. Think of it, gentle reader with children--one night a knock on your door and two thugs demand your daughter accompany them to a place where she loses her virginity to the son of your President...because they can...AND she's then killed...AND you're responsible for cleaning up the mess. The chattering classes, the media minstrels, the carnival barkers that are today's mainstream media journalists can't put themselves in the executioners' shoes because they will never, ever be exposed to that kind of horror (thank God). And so we suffer through their naval gazing...
Taunting before neck stretching? Shite, you betcha.
Personally, I thought the Shiites showed remarkable restraint in conducting the dispatch of a malignant thing who was the most deadly tyrant on the planet for the period he was alive and in charge.
I guess I was born in the wrong century...if I was developing this war's strategery I would step back and get the attention of our enemies before continuing with the civil affairs stuff, the nation building stuff and all the other hearts-and-minds stuff that is also critical to success.
I would take my cue from 1) the Romans; 2) the Mongols (BEFORE they converted), and; 3) the Borg Collective. The first believed in their civilization and its exceptionalism. The second weren't afraid to inflict maximum damage during and after the attack. The third are, albeit fictional, technologically superior, insanely adaptive and utterly implacable.
Instapilot, Token Barbarian
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »Captain Travis Patriquin, "good in the woods".
This is old news in the sense that this broke into the news cycle around December 15 on ABC. I missed it because I was involved in the Specialist McGinniss story and it was further swamped by the death of Marine Major Megan McClung, which is interesting, since Captain Travis Patriquin died in the same IED explosion. This won't be news for some of you, but for others, it will. It came to me from a different source, so, even late, I'm posting it, if for no other reason than a cyber-memorial to Captain Patriquin and as a source for those who may not have yet seen it.
Captain Travis Patriquin's "How to Win In Anbar."
Given what has and hasn't worked thus far, there's no reason this shouldn't be on the table. Granted, Blackfive has posted on it, and it got a blurb at Milblogs, when I googled it, it was mostly news and lefty sites that came up, nature of how google operates.
I suppose I *should* do some value-added:
From Martha Raddatz's article (the ABC reference above):
In a military known for its sleep-inducing, graphically dizzying PowerPoint presentations, the young captain's presentation, which has been unofficially circulating through the ranks, stands out. Using stick figures and simple language, it articulates the same goal as the president's in Iraq.
Powerpoint - one of the greatest obstacles to communication ever created. Not Microsoft's fault - the users misuse it. Just like it isn't Ford's fault people flee crimes in a Ford, it's not really Microsoft's fault that people create crimes with Powerpoint. It's called restraint, people.
Which brings to mind an AUSA Convention I attended in the 90's. I was walking down the hall where the breakout rooms were and I saw a group of officers standing in the hall looking into a room. On the screen was a Powerpoint presentation that had all the bells and whistles - graphics sliding in from the sides, fades, dissolves, cute noises - all the things that annoy me about Powerpoint and people who can't control their urges to destroy a briefing. The kicker was two guys walking by with divisional patches on their shoulders - they took a look in the room and said "Huh, must be a TRADOC briefing. No one else has the time for that crap."
Heh.
My other pet peeve? People who don't understand the embedded meta-data in their presentations - generating 50 meg presentations they could reduce to two - if they'd just compress/convert their graphics. You know, that sexy graphic, with 200 graphic elements, each merely a re-sized full-size graphic stolen from some other presentation and "grouped," so that each contains the full data of the original.
December 31, 2006
Operation Beastmaster
Dec 29, 2006 BY Staff Sgt. Kason Fark, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regimen -Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »BAGHDAD - Staring down at an empty lot, Spc. Craig McBaine wondered how such a tranquil neighborhood could be the scene of so much carnage.
Nicknamed "IED Alley East," this 700-meter stretch of barren earth has been the scene of many attacks against coalition and Iraqi security forces.
On this day, the patch of land, bordered on three sides by once-beautiful three-story houses, is occupied by up-armored Humvees, Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Abrams Battle Tanks, all in support of Operation Beastmaster.
During Beastmaster, troops from the 4th Battalion, 1st Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division cleared three large neighborhoods in the western Baghdad suburb of Ghazaliya. The sight of much sectarian violence, Ghazaliya is the battle ground for Sunni insurgents trying to push back the overwhelming Shia population in the northern and eastern areas of Baghdad.
"Alternate Supply Route Sword," the U.S. military's name for the largest road running through southern Ghazaliya, is also the in-road from Fallujah to Baghdad proper.
Having just arrived weeks ago, Soldiers of Company D, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, attached to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, have set upon the goal of taking over the security of Ghazaliya from the Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division.
"It's been pretty crazy already," McBaine said. The Florida native's patrol would later be hit multiple times by small arms fire, a rocket-propelled grenade and a roadside bomb.
Based out of Fort Bliss, Texas, 2-12 Cavalry is part of the 1st Cavalry Division's newest brigade - the 4th "Long Knife" Brigade Combat Team. While the unit may be new to El Paso, Texas, it is no stranger to combat.
2-12 Cavalry was de-activated shortly after its return from Operation Iraqi Freedom II in March 2005. The unit has also earned streamers in other conflicts such as World War II, Vietnam, and Desert Storm. The unit was the first U.S. unit in Leyte and Japan. The unit re-activated at Fort Bliss 18 months after returning from Iraq.
Participation in operations such as Beastmaster with the Iraqi Army is the key to handing Iraq back over to its people. The Iraqi soldiers involved were being observed by coalition forces to gauge their ability to perform urban warfare tasks.
Overall, Operation Beastmaster was a huge success. In the course of three days of house to house searches, the Iraqi Army troops uncovered seven weapons caches, numerous roadside bomb-making materials and captured a high-value target.
December 29, 2006
The man certainly makes use of avenues not available to his victims.
Saddam Hussein will be executed no later than Saturday, said an Iraqi judge authorized to attend his hanging. American and Iraqi officials met to set the hour of his death. Lawyers for Saddam Hussein asked a U.S. judge to block his transfer to the custody of Iraqi officials poised to carry out his execution.
Hussein's lawyers filed documents Friday afternoon asking for a stay of execution. The 21-page request was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington before Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly.
Attorneys argued that because Hussein also faces a civil lawsuit in Washington, he has rights as a civil defendant that would be violated if he is executed. He has not received notice of those rights and the consequences that the lawsuit would have on his estate, his attorneys said.
"To protect those rights, defendant Saddam Hussein requests an order of this court providing a stay of his execution until further notice of this court," attorney Nicholas Gilman wrote.
A similar request by the former chief justice of the Revolutionary Court, Awad Hamed al-Bandar, was denied Thursday and is under appeal. Al-Bandar also faces execution. The Justice Department argued in that case that U.S. courts have no jurisdiction to interfere with the judicial process of another country.
Read the rest here, plus another discussion of the impending event here.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 28, 2006
Milblogger wounded.
No, a wounded milblogger isn't any more important than any other wounded warrior. But these are people we know, and through whom we get a little view into the world of the deployed soldier. No more important, just more... accessible. And just like Major Z of From My Position, this is a wounded milblogger who will probably give us another window into Walter Reed and rehab, an important aspect where these soldiers show a completely different level and type of courage and struggle to overcome and adapt.
J.R. Salzman, of Lumberjack in a Desert has been wounded by an IED.
it is hard for me to tell you all this but i was hurt by an ied here. my right arm has been amputated below the elbow, my left has four working fingers. my legs are fine so l can still logroll! i am on my way to the hospital in germany, then back to the states for more care. i am in high spirits. i am going to be ok, but i will have a long road to recovery. please remember me in your prayers, as well as those who were injured with me. i will let you know more as time passes.
This soldier was from the same unit in the Minnesota Army Guard who gave us the "Halp us Jon Carry" banner. JR wasn't one of the people in that photo, but he *did* meet the creator!
Rest assured, the Elves (Chuck and Fuzzybear Lioness) of Project Valour-IT are already on it, having been alerted by AFSis.
Standing tall and maintaining a good attitude. These kids are every bit as tough as their forebears. The Republic is well served. Well served indeed.
Update: The Elves are quick. From email: "...it should be delivered next weekend, assuming they can get ahold of Salzman's family to arrange for the meeting. "
Those of you who contribute to Project Valour-IT - thank you ever so much.
Updated update: Hello to visitors from NRO. You'll probably appreciate the post above this one, too. More importantly... Just a note regarding the Valour-IT link: the entire Soldiers' Angels website is being redone and the server transfer left a ton of stuff scrambled on the Valour-IT section of the site. They're working on it. We apologize for the mess.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 17, 2006
Canadian Air Force Deliberately Unloads on US Positions in Afghanistan.
Bill and Dusty could relate to these guys, methinks.
The Hercules twists and turns through the mountain canyon. The gritty mountainsides seem to press in on either side of the wingtips. We run so close to the edges that paths across the hills are clearly visible to the naked eye. A Taliban fighter with a strong arm could probably hit the Hercules with a stone.This is an aircraft nearly the size of a Boeing 737 thundering along a narrow pass between soaring peaks. For a passenger, it's like racing in an Air Canada flight between the skyscrapers on Bay Street in downtown Toronto.
Then it's time to retreat back up to the clouds. The captain pulls the plane into an abrupt, steep climb that buckles the knees of anyone standing upright. Arms and legs, even the head, become impossibly heavy.
Moments later, the plane levels off. The flight is once again calm and level. The crew is elated.
The first officer, Captain Victor Mota of Toronto, says this is the kind of intense, demanding flying he could never find working for a commercial airline.
The risks are high, but so are the professional and personal rewards of accomplishing tough missions against formidable odds.
"It's just awesome," he says.
There's a little bit of R.E. Lee in Captain Mota, as indeed there is in most career soldiers. Read the rest of the story here. H/t, CAPT H.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 15, 2006
Thanksgiving in the Wilderness
Heidi's Thanksgiving, 2006. Via Heidi's Mom.
Click the picture for a larger version.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 14, 2006
Specialist McGinnis update.
From my correspondent in the 1st Cav.
John,MOH recommendation moved up today for Division Commander’s signature. We had some bad weather in Taji, but the packet was eventually specially flown from his unit’s FOB. FYI his battalion is assigned to 2/1 ID, one of our 7 BCTs, but was task organized to 2nd Brigade, 2nd ID, another of our 7 BCTs, so a lot of units will get the privilege of honoring his heroism.
First Team.
C
As I alluded to in my post and Matthew Maynard points out in full - there are 141 precedents. And, as Matt has pointed out - the kid was a lion.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 07, 2006
Heh. Sergeant Boggs speaks truth to power...
"War sucks but a world run by Islamofacists sucks more."
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »Band together or hang separately?
We’ve got a problem on our hands. The latest election has caused some cracks to form in the US domestic coalition supporting the war. Two camps seem to be forming and both are pointing fingers that accuse the other of being dumb or worse. One can be called ‘kick their backsides until they get tired of it and quit as the path to victory in Iraq’ while the other can be considered the ‘Ack! We need to take half a loaf and take a longer view even if means cozying up to crapheads to win in the Long War!’ And we’re starting to see some real hatred form between the two.
My stance found here and of the ‘Ack’ school of thought, makes me kind of unpopular in some circles. My unpopularity is evidenced not only be the response it got in that thread but also by Lex’s dissing it in an illustrative manner to voice his displeasure of the general position here, which puts him in the ‘my leg don’t get tired of butt kicking’ school. Luckily, I’m not alone and have good company (or more like I hide in the shadow of some choice people).
(Rest is below the fold. Modified 23:50 7/12/06)
Flash Traffic (extended entry) Follows » Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »December 05, 2006
Jules Crittenden, on "The Dream of Mature Nations"
This will incite the maple-syrup swillers, perhaps.
A number of Canadians took offense recently to a Boston Herald column in which I slammed Canada and Europe in general for failing to hold up its end in this war for democracy, freedom and security. Specificially, I slammed them for being smug democracies that do little to help the truly oppressed of this world, while throwing insults at us and obstacles in our way.Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »Whatever I thought about their government's attitude toward Iraq, and the insults that were leveled at our president, Canadian soldiers have been fighting and dying in Afghanistan.
I would like to commend and thank the Canadians and others for what they are doing in Afghanistan, and to express my respect for their sacrifices.
But I would still like to know where the Canadians, the French and the Germans in particular were when we needed them in Iraq ... if only to get out of the way. In fact, we could use a lot more troops in Iraq right now. More to the point, the Iraqis could use a lot more troops. They could also use the knowledge that the world actually gives a damn and is willing to stand with them, rather than always against us.
Some people say they don't want the French there ... deer hunting with an accordian. Some people say coordinating a multinational force can create as many problems as it solves. More to the point, most people would say this is all idle and pointless dreaming.
But I'm an optimist and a dreamer. Why not? Tens of thousands of troops flooding in, under NATO leadership, to engage aggressively as we've seen them do in Afghanistan. Do these nations care about Iraq? They claim to. Do they care about freedom and stability in the Middle East? They pretend to. So let's end the hypocrisy. We all know what is needed in Iraq. It isn't a pullout.
December 04, 2006
Heh.
The first paragraph squares with my sources in the box and recently out.
The American military is fed up with Maliki. The ground commanders in Iraq felt betrayed by him this summer when he undermined a push to get control of the streets of Baghdad. The Iraqis failed to deliver on a promise to put enough troops on the ground. A four-star general who declined to be identified discussing a confidential conversation told of this encounter with Gen. Peter Chiarelli, who was in charge of day-to-day ground operations. "Do you have enough forces? Enough to clear an area and stay there to secure it 24/7?" Chiarelli replied, "Of course not." The four-star recalls replying, "It's going to fail, it's absolutely going to fail." The Americans never had enough forces to sweep even half the city, much less secure it. Maliki made their job tougher by in effect forbidding the U.S. military from taking on Shiite fighters; ordering them to lift roadblocks around Sadr City, the Shiite slum, and ordering them to release prisoners suspected of running death squads.It's not clear whether the military made its frustrations known to the White House. Generals tend to salute and say can-do; if anything, the military has not been accurately portraying the dismal events on the ground, at least in the eyes of some White House aides. But with Donald Rumsfeld's departure, the Pentagon is entering a new era of leadership, in hopes it will be one in which the uniformed brass and their civilian bosses will communicate better. Gen. John Abizaid, the overall theater commander, and Gen. George Casey, the ground commander, are exhausted and overdue for replacement. ("There might be a sense that a fresh perspective is needed," said a senior White House aide.) Rumsfeld's former right-hand man, Stephen Cambone, has announced that he is stepping down. Others are expected to follow, stripping the Pentagon leadership of the group around Rumsfeld whose neocon certainties led to such catastrophic miscalculations in Iraq.
Read the whole thing here. I find the sublede mordantly apt: "Folks used to wonder why he didn't push into Baghdad. Baker doesn't hear that question much anymore."
The second paragraph is more troubling, if baldly true, vice filtered through Newsweek's editorial sunglasses. I suspect the truth is somewhat different, more from the effects of the normal filtering of impressions as they go up.
Just like in the intel community, when stark assessments are softened on the way up the briefing chain, the same happens in battlefield reporting.
December 03, 2006
A Commonwealth moment.
News of our Brothers-in-Arms from Canada and Australia.
The Canadians lost a Regimental Sergeant Major in Afghanistan. That is the equivalent in the US Army of losing a Command Sergeant Major, the senior Non-commissioned officer in a battalion-and-higher unit.
CAPT H sent me this, from the Globe and Mail:
Suicide bomber robs regiment of its soul. When Robert Girouard was killed, his unit lost more than its Chief Warrant Officer.CHRISTIE BLATCHFORD
From Saturday's Globe and Mail
As Chief Warrant Officer Robert (Bobby) Girouard and Corporal Albert Storm came home to Canada last night, their flag-draped caskets arriving at CFB Trenton in a light rain, there was nothing to tell the non-military observer what a profound loss he was witnessing.
While the army properly grieves every fallen soldier equally, regardless of rank, the death of CWO Girouard was felt keenly not only on a personal level, but also as an enormous symbolic blow.
The 46-year-old husband and father of three wasn't just the senior non-commissioned officer of the 1st Battalion Royal Canadian Regiment, he was also the unit's Regimental Sergeant Major, the first of about 25 RSMs in the battalion's storied 123-year history to be killed by enemy action.
He and 36-year-old Cpl. Storm, a native of Fort Erie, Ont., and a father of two, died Monday when their Bison armoured personnel carrier was struck by a suicide bomber just west of the main base at Kandahar Air Field.
You should read the rest of Ms. Blatchford's piece, and can do so here.
Canada's warriors have had their own problems with the media not covering them all that well - if at all, topics mentioned elsewhere. What I think interesting in this story is how Ms. Blatchford, recognizing her lack of knowledge on the subject, chose to do some research.
She did do by using the Canadian Army Forums to gain some understanding.
Our own Damian, of The Torch, made a contribution to that thread. One that is illustrative of a good Sergeant Major. His co-blogger, Mark, has more to say on the subject.
Now is the time at Castle Argghhh! when we dance: In Memoriam.
On a more upbeat note - Canadian Armour goes driving in the countryside. In Afghanistan. I do like The Torch's take on it.
Shifting over to Australia, Trias sends us this link showing that just day to day work in the military anywhere is dangerous. At least if you're training like you mean business.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »November 30, 2006
Allies.
KEEPING WATCH — Polish army soldiers assigned to Multi-National Division Central - South, Camp Echo, Iraq, provide security for U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3 personnel and 8th Iraqi Army Division soldiers as they search the home of a suspected insurgent, Nov. 20, 2006, in the village of Al Naimi, Iraq. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Dawn M. Price
Other Allies: Canada in Kandahar, just can't get no respect from their press.
Fallujah, revisited.
The MSM spins things their way - here's the official government view. The truth, as always, probably lives somewhere in between.
Commentary: Fallujah RevisitedReporting As Ordered, Sir! »29 November 2006
By Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV
Multi-National Force-Iraq SpokesmanIf you follow the news coming out of Iraq, you have seen too many headlines about the bloodshed in Baghdad in recent days. As American servicemen and women prepare to spend a fourth holiday season trying to help build a new Iraq, these headlines have led some people to conclude that our mission may be hopeless.
However, my recent visit to Fallujah has reaffirmed my strong conviction that as bad as the situation may sometimes appear, there is still reason to be optimistic for Iraq’s future.
Although it has been out of the headlines for some time, take a minute to recall why the name Fallujah resonates so strongly in our collective memory. Perhaps the most disturbing images of Operation Iraqi Freedom emanated from Fallujah on March 31, 2004, as the bodies of four murdered American contractors were desecrated and the charred corpses hung off the Euphrates River Bridge for the world to see. The “Fallujah Brigade,” a unit comprised of former Iraqi army officers, failed to prevent warlords allied with Al Qaeda in Iraq from effectively taking over the city. Foreign fighters and terrorist insurgents imposed a Taliban-like regime over the city, torturing and beheading innocent people who just wanted to enjoy the freedoms that resulted from the fall of Saddam Hussein. (One torture chamber later uncovered included cages in the basement and a wall covered with bloody handprints). With more than 100,000 explosive rounds stockpiled in weapons caches throughout the city, these invaders of Fallujah exported scores of suicide bombers bent on mass murder. The population of Fallujah fled in droves, reducing the number of residents to only 50-60,000. By October 2004, Fallujah was a city without security, without stability, and seemingly without hope.
In order to rescue the people of Fallujah and eliminate it as a base of operations for Al Qaida, Coalition forces launched Operation Al Fajr, or “The Dawn.” Led by American Marines, Coalition Forces battled 2-3,000 terrorists in fierce and sustained urban combat. Although Fallujah was liberated, half the city was decimated by the intense combat.
What has happened to Fallujah since that ferocious battle?
Last week, I saw a city of 350,000 people who have made incredible progress over the past two years. In the aftermath of Operation Al Fajr, in March of 2005, there were 3,000 United States Marines and only 300 Iraqi Security Forces in Fallujah. Today, the people of the city are protected by 1,500 members of their own Iraqi Security Force and only 300 Marines. The police are comprised of native Fallujans, and enjoy strong support from the local population. They are able to patrol their own neighborhoods, enforce their own laws, and handle the transition to responsibility for their own security and growth. Despite the sectarian violence which plagues other parts of the country, I saw the commander of the local Iraqi Army unit, a Shi’a, sit and work productively with the local police chief, a Sunni – a relationship few would have believed possible in Fallujah just a year ago.
I attended a city council meeting, where a democratically elected mayor and city council led the deliberations about the peoples’ business. To be honest, the Council’s discussion of traffic control was not exciting. But the mundane business of a functioning democracy can be uneventful when its institutions are working properly. At the same time, it was exciting to witness democracy in action on soil that once seemed entirely inhospitable. Membership of the Fallujah Business Association has grown from only 20 members last February to over 350 today, demonstrating optimism for economic growth. I even saw a processing center where Fallujah welcomes persons displaced by instability elsewhere.
Fallujah’s transition has not been easy. Terrorists and insurgents are waging a brutal campaign of murder and intimidation against the city’s government and police force. Unemployment remains high, and there is still much rebuilding to be done. But Colonel Larry Nicholson and the young Marines of Regimental Combat Team-5 firmly believe they have turned Fallujah into a model of what Iraq can become. Iraqis themselves support this hope, as families have been arriving in Fallujah en masse to seek shelter from instability in other parts of Iraq.
In October 2004, the world saw the incredible courage of the Coalition Force, as Marines did their part to create hope for Iraqis. Today, visitors to Fallujah can see the courage of Iraqis for themselves.
Difficult times remain ahead for the U.S. and Coalition Forces in Iraq. Many sacrifices remain to be made by both U.S.servicemen and women and their Iraqi partners in Fallujah. But the city is an example of what can be achieved when courageous leaders, brave security forces, and hard-working citizens unite for a common goal – a secure and unified future. The progress in Fallujah demonstrates that with time and effort, recovery is possible in Iraq in the wake of brutal violence.
November 29, 2006
What Extremists are Saying
CENTCOM sends:
“Part of winning this war on terror is to understand the nature of the enemy”
First Issue of the Technical Mujahid, a New Periodic Magazine Related to Technology and Internet Security Published by al-Fajr Information Center
The first issue of what is indicated to be a period magazine, “Technical Mujahid” [Al-Mujahid al-Teqany], published by al-Fajr Information Center, was electronically distributed to password-protected jihadist forums Tuesday, November 28, 2006.
This edition, 64-pages in length, contains articles that primarily deal with computer and Internet security, in addition to other pieces explaining Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites and video types, editing, and encoding into different formats. The editors of the publication state that it was written to heed the directives of the Emir of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, and his call for technical support. Material such as this, regarding anonymity on the Internet, concealing of personal files locally on a computer, and utilizing all schemes of encryption, is to serve as electronic jihad, and a virtual means of supporting the Mujahideen.
Like individual postings made by jihadist forum members concerning Internet security and protection of incriminating files, or manuals that were provided by the Global Islamic Media Front for the same, the “Technical Mujahid” demonstrates the technical acumen of the jihadists. Articles like, “The Technique of Concealing Files from View” and “How to Protect Your Files, Even if Your Device was Penetrated,” were written for the intermediate to advanced user, and describe a variety of methods and software that provide security. Links to download referenced software, such as the VMware virtual machine, and key generators to unlock features are also given by the editors. Another writer discusses PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) software and determines that its encryption is not adequate for the needs of the Mujahideen.
Another article, The Last Card: We Need it in their Homeland, written by a member of the information office of the Islamic Army in Iraq , like the editorial contained in the magazine and an introductory message, emphasizes the great purpose of jihad in the information sector. This front is determined by the author to be “a main pillar in the battle of Islam against the Crusaders and the polytheist belief”. To this end, advertisements for the most recent Juba sniper video from the Islamic Army in Iraq and a news caption about its release on DVDs in Iraq, is used as an example.
For future issues, the editors urge members of the jihadist Internet community to submit articles in the field of technology for publishing. They write: “My kind, technical Mujahid brother, the magnitude of responsibility which is placed upon you is equal to what you know in the regard of information. Do not underestimate anything that you know; perhaps a small article that you write and publish can benefit one Mujahid in the Cause of Allah or can protect a brother of yours in Allah. This way you will gain the great reward with the permission of Allah”.
Pilot Earns Distinguished Flying Cross
Someone you should know, if you haven't seen this elsewhere. I'm sure the NYT didn't find it newsworthy.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 3, 2006 — Back in March in Iraq , Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lori Hill, with the 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, was piloting her Kiowa Warrior when the lead chopper came under heavy fire. She drew the fire away, simultaneously providing suppressive fire for the troops engaged with the enemy on the ground.A rocket-propelled grenade hit her, damaging the helo’s instrumentation, but instead of focusing on her predicament, she established communication with the ground forces and continued to provide them with aerial weapon support until the soldiers reached safety.
As she turned her attention to the aircraft, which was losing hydraulic power, the helo took on machine-gun fire, a round crashing into one of Hill’s ankles. Still,
with a damaged aircraft and an injury, she landed at Forward Operating Base Normandy, saving her crew and aircraft.
For her actions she was presented the Distinguished Flying Cross by Vice President Richard Cheney at Fort Campbell , Ky. , on Oct. 16.
Vice President Richard Cheney presents the Distinguished Flying Cross to Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lori Hill in a ceremony at Fort Campbell , Ky. on Oct. 16. U.S. Army photo
“It’s was a once-in-a-lifetime thing to get the award and then have the vice president come and award it to you,” she said. “It’s just incredible for any soldier.”
Recalling that day in March, Hill reflected, “I was actually just glad I didn’t pass out and very happy I was able to help the ground guys out, and get our helicopter down safely on the ground.”
Right hand to the right eyebrow, Chief.
November 28, 2006
Uh-oh.
NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND
7115 South Boundary BoulevardTitle: USAF F-16 CRASH INVESTIGATION BEGINS
Description: SOUTHWEST ASIA — The interim safety investigation board convened by U.S. Central Command Air Forces has begun its efforts to gather evidence to determine what caused a United States Air Force F-16C to crash approximately 20 miles northwest of Baghdad at about 1:35 p.m. Monday.
The single-seat jet was in direct support of extensive coalition ground combat operations when it crashed in an uninhabited field.
Coalition reconnaissance assets and fighter aircraft were overhead when the crash occurred and confirmed that insurgents were in the vicinity of the crash site immediately following the crash.
Ground forces secured the crash scene Monday as soon as the extensive ground combat operations in the area had ceased. The primary concerns of USCENTAF in responding to this incident have been the safety of Coalition forces and the recovery of the pilot. The pilot was not found at the crash site and his status cannot be confirmed at this time. The investigation board has collected DNA samples from the crash site and will release results upon completion of testing.
The F-16 was deployed to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad Air Base, Iraq. The accident investigation convening authority is Air Combat Command.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »
November 27, 2006
Jonathan Chait thinks the unthinkable...
From his LA Times piece (and you should read the whole thing, not just my selective quoting):
THE DEBATE about Iraq has moved past the question of whether it was a mistake (everybody knows it was) to the more depressing question of whether it is possible to avert total disaster. Every self-respecting foreign policy analyst has his own plan for Iraq. The trouble is that these tracts are inevitably unconvincing, except when they argue why all the other plans would fail. It's all terribly grim.So allow me to propose the unthinkable: Maybe, just maybe, our best option is to restore Saddam Hussein to power.
He goes on:
At the outset of the war, I had no high hopes for Iraqi democracy, but I paid no attention to the possibility that the Iraqis would end up with a worse government than the one they had. It turns out, however, that there is something more awful than totalitarianism, and that is endless chaos and civil war.
One can only expect that Mr. Chait finds this next quote, well, quaint, outmoded, and astonishingly naive...
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. John Stuart Mill English economist & philosopher (1806 - 1873)
Oh, there's no doubt we screwed the pooch in Iraq, and that Rumsfeld's Way of War was certainly an incomplete doctrine if you were going to do something other than fight the Big War. Rumsfeld's Way of War is really more of the Way of A Campaign, and especially a campaign that is a supporting effort.
Too many invalid assumptions were made, and weak, uncoordinated planning between the relevant US agencies, not to mention the seemingly deliberate sabotage by some elements of the US government directed at others, such as the strife between the CIA, State, and Defense. And that was all the professional bureaucrats there - the long-termers, a problem that spans Presidents and parties. But, President Bush was in charge, and he failed to take heed and bring those people to heel. Of course, I know from long experience in government myself they can be a hard breed to bring to heel.
I also know that nothing is as ever clear while it's happening as it is after the dust has settled, which is one reason I don't get as shirt-rendingly shrill as some when things turn out to have been a cock-up. I get shrill when people won't fix what is now clearly wrong, and this President seems to have left that to his successor, not that he'd get much done now, anyway. They can wait him out.
But that's a digression.
Chait is on to something. Perhaps not Saddam, but whoever rises in his place. The ultimate in realpolitik. Who cares what's going on somewhere as long as it doesn't affect us directly. The silence of the grave is preferable to chaos... at least as long as it isn't our personal grave.
Problem is, Mr. Chait - as long as your doctrine prevails, little advances, really, and the rule of law is really eroded, until we're completely back to the rule of men. Tribalism Resurgent.
I can hear the intake of breath, and see the fingers poised over the keyboards of some readers - Rule of Law? What part of torture, and illegal wars have you missed, Donovan?
Heh. The fact that we discuss torture, the fact that people can call the President a liar who made up an excuse for war and should be sent to The Hague to stand trial, the fact that terrorists are tried in courts and have lawyers (whatever limits may be placed on them because the terrs are truly dangerous people), and that Famous People and Faceless People make these claims... yet there hasn't been one "disappearance," or "death under suspicious circumstances," or mass arrests and imprisonments, and that government policies are challenged in multiple venues argues that the rule of law is actually working quite well, despite what the loons at DU think. Or the loons at Freeper during the Clinton administration.
But Chait is essentially arguing that peace at any cost is preferable.
I'm in Mill's camp.
Discuss.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »November 21, 2006
Support and the Soul
Jules Crittenden's provocative column, "Quitting a Worthy Fight Would Be a Great Mistake," has created some interesting discussion on his blog. The issue of "supporting" the troops but not the war came up in the context of the reception Vietnam veterans received upon their return home.
When the U.S. military went into Afghanistan, I had a powerful personal reaction to thoughts of what was being done on my behalf. It was a reaction of overwhelming sorrow and humblest gratitude. At a level that was as yet inarticulate, I understood I was inextricably linked to what happened on the battlefield and that the aftermath of those events created in me and every other U.S. citizen a response born of moral obligation and a debt that would never be repaid. And so from that day I knew at a deeper level than ever that support for our military and its goals was my obligation now that the fighting had started.
But yesterday at Crittenden's blog, a commenter finally gave me words for what I knew in my heart five years ago. He articulated exactly why it's not only incorrect to say one can support the troops without supporting their goals, it's morally reprehensible.
I had first written in comments (in part):
...[Vietnam veteran] soldiers who came home and were told their service was either dishonorable or useless (due to us giving up) had a harder time coping with the psychological and physical aftermath of that service. Humans can bear an amazing amount of suffering if they believe it is a result of [in service of] something noble or admirable, but being told they suffer for nothing good can literally make it harder to cope.
The response from commenter NAMedic:
As a combat medic and Vietnam Veteran who is 100% disabled due to PTSD, I can confirm the general point you make. It was not until five or six years of therapy, peeling away all the layers of horror from the war, that the final root of my problems was revealed. The worst trauma was in coming home, by far, and by far it was the hardest to see, and the most painful to admit. [snip]A nation cannot ask normal human beings to engage in warfare unless that nation, top to bottom, validates what they have to do in such extremities. Normal human beings cannot remain psychologically whole, believing that their behavior was immoral - and all warfare is internally recognized by any soldier as profoundly immoral unless it is validated by a "higher power" outside the individual soldier.
Yes, it is our obligation to fight a wrong policy with every ounce of our strength before it is implemented, particularly when it involves issues of life and death. But war is a very special case, for so many lives hang in the physical and psychological balance. Once a war has begun, there can be only one course of action. To do otherwise than embrace the soldier for what he does for you is a kind of pernicious evil that takes the selfishness of one's natural desire to avoid the ugliness of this world to a new low [quote continued from above]:
This is also why the whole pose of "support the troops but oppose the war" is so insane and naive, if not deliberately and hypocritically self-serving. The "support" that counts, the only support that counts, is moral validation. If you oppose the war, you are withholding that very validation. You are destroying the soldier’s soul.
Yes, this is a democracy and you have every right to think your soldiers are on a fool's errand. But once it's been started, shut the hell up! Let them do what they must to win so that the duration is shorter and the suffering is less.
With the military power we possess, we have the capacity to win any conflict (it simply matters how much damage we want to inflict), so you cannot argue that a war we are engaged in is fundamentally unwinnable. It simply comes down to whether or not you want to pay the cost. If you don't, or you think that the prosecution of that war is a bad thing, then fine. But the only other option to winning is losing. So face up to it and admit that you want our soldiers to lose, you want them to believe they are doing immoral things for no moral reason, you want their death and suffering to be in vain, and that you are (in the words of someone who has "been there, done that") "destroying the soldier's soul."
Don't you dare stand there and clothe yourself in the rightousness of being "anti-war!" For your actions are not only prolonging the conflict and increasing physical suffering (on both sides), but they are robbing your fellow citizens of the healing they require for what they have done in your defense. And no, short of taking up citizenship in another country, you cannot repudiate their gift to you. It is always there, staring you in the face whether you pick it up or not. And frankly it's a defining moment for your philosophy and and relationship to humanity: are you going to pick it up and embrace the giver in sorrow and gratitude? Or are you going to try to simultaneously kick aside his gift as stupid at best and try to tell him that walking the darkness with the demons was wasted on you as you assure him you "support" him?
This is why what Code Pink did in the beginning months of their protest at Walter Reed ("Maimed for a Lie," etc.) was so evil. This is why military support volunteers do what they do. This is why a wounded senior NCO at WR once said to a friend of mine: If it wasn't for y'all [the volunteers here], half these boys would be suicidal.
War is not something that happens to others on a distant shore. It happens to all of us, and all of us have an impact on how it plays out and what happens to those most directly involved. What's your impact?
If you haven't yet, please read NAMedic's entire comment at Crittenden's; he has important things to say.
[A cross-post from Fuzzilicious Thinking, with the Armorer's permission]
[Say, rather, at the Armorer's urging... -the Armorer]
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »November 17, 2006
News you can use. Next OIF and OEF Rotational Units.
Operation Iraqi Freedom:
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1169-06 November 17, 2006--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DoD Announces Units for Next Operation Iraqi Freedom Rotation
The Department of Defense announced today the first of the major units scheduled to deploy as part of the next Operation Iraqi Freedom rotation. This announcement involves one Army division headquarters and five Army combat brigades consisting of approximately 20,000 service members. The scheduled rotation for the forces identified in this announcement will begin in early 2007.Force levels in Iraq continue to be conditions-based, and are determined based on the recommendations of military commanders in Iraq and in consultation with the Iraqi government. U.S. force rotations will be tailored based upon changes in the security situation. Iraqi security forces continue to develop capability and assume responsibility for security in Iraq.
This rotation continues the U.S. commitment to the stability and security of Iraq, yet is flexible and adaptable in order to meet the evolving requirements for the mission.
For Operation Iraqi Freedom, the major units announced today are:
3rd Infantry Division Headquarters, Fort Stewart, Ga.
4th Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Ks.
4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wa.
3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.
1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C
173rd Airborne Brigade, Vicenza, Italy
The department also alerted approximately 27,000 active duty and 10,000 reserve component troops in combat support and combat service support units smaller than brigade-size elements for deployment beginning in 2007.
DoD will continue to announce major unit deployments as they are identified and those units are alerted. The individual services will announce the smaller, supporting units for this rotation. For information on the units announced today or other units involved in this rotation, please contact Army Public Affairs at (703) 692-2000.
Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan):
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1170-06 November 17, 2006--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DoD Announces Unit for Next Afghanistan Rotation
The Department of Defense announced today that the 218th Brigade Combat Team, South Carolina Army National Guard, will deploy in support of Operation Enduring Freedom to train the Afghan National Security Forces. The scheduled rotation will begin in early 2007, and will include approximately 1,500 service members as presently envisioned.The department also alerted approximately 6,200 active duty and 600 Reservists in combat support and combat service support units smaller than brigade-size elements for deployment beginning in 2007.
This deployment reflects the continued U.S. commitment to Afghanistan. Force levels in Afghanistan continue to be conditions-based, and are determined based on the recommendations of military commanders in Afghanistan and in consultation with the Afghan government. U.S. force rotations will be tailored based upon changes in the security situation. Afghan security forces continue to develop capability and assume responsibility for security in Afghanistan.
DoD will continue to release major unit announcements as they are identified and alerted. The individual services will announce the smaller, supporting units for this rotation. For information on the units announced today or other units involved in this rotation, please contact Army Public Affairs at (703) 692-2000.
Mobilized National Guard and Reserve Units:
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1159-06 November 15, 2006--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
National Guard (in Federal Status) and Reserve Mobilized as of November 15, 2006
This week, the Marine Corps and Coast Guard announced a increase in the number of reservists on active duty in support of the partial mobilization, while the Army, Navy and Air Force had a decrease. The net collective result is 561 fewer reservists mobilized than last week.At any given time, services may mobilize some units and individuals while demobilizing others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease. Total number currently on active duty in support of the partial mobilization for the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 78,964; Navy Reserve, 5,288; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 6,008; Marine Corps Reserve, 7,344; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 363. This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel, who have been mobilized, to 97,967, including both units and individual augmentees.
A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel, who are currently mobilized, can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Nov2006/d20061115ngr.pdf .
Ralph Peters and Captain (P) Dave Baer.
In my email I got the following two bits, on the same day.
Arabian Nightmares, by Ralph Peters.
With Iraqi society decomposing - or, at best, reverting to a medieval state with cell phones - the debate in Washington over whether to try to save the day by deploying more troops or withdrawing some is of secondary relevance.What really matters is what our forces are ordered - and permitted - to do. With political correctness permeating our government and even the upper echelons of the military, we never tried the one technique that has a solid track record of defeating insurgents if applied consistently: the rigorous imposition of public order.
That means killing the bad guys. Not winning their hearts and minds, placating them or bringing them into the government. Killing them.
If you're not willing to lay down a rule that any Iraqi or foreign terrorist masquerading as a security official or military member will be shot, you can't win. And that's just one example of the type of sternness this sort of fight requires.
In a timely, but perhaps more important way, I got this, from an officer now in Iraq, training the Iraqi Army - an officer who's boss, LTC Paul Finken, was killed two weeks ago - but there's no lessening of the fight in Dave.
Mr. Donovan,By all means send my note on to his family. Before I got this job on the MiTT, I was a mechanized infantry company commander in southeast Baghdad and I lost two soldiers so I know what it's like to write letters of condolence and what kind of loss his family must be feeling. You always hear certain people in Congress talk about leaving Iraq because of the horrible casualties we are taking and whatnot. However, they never seem to be the ones with family over here doing the grunt work. And as for casualties, each loss is a blow, but overall we have been extremely lucky to have as few deaths as we have had since 2003. No one in D.C. ever seems to ask guys like me what we think because they know that we would tell them that we have to stay until the job is done. If you want to win in Iraq, you have to take the gloves off like we did in OIF I and OIF II. We were aggressive and violently kinetic. It worked and the bad guys were deathly afraid of us and the people of Iraq respected us. Now we use kid gloves and the bad guys walk all over us and the people of Iraq don't think they should support us because we may pack up and leave and then they would be the object of reprisals. It's the hard right (lots of offensive action and firepower and not afraid to use it in a city) or the easy wrong (the kinder, gentler approach to dealing with terrorists to try and avoid casualties). I know which one works and which one doesn't. I know which one will solve this "problem". It will break a few eggs, but in the end we will have an omelet that will be passably good and tasty.
I told him he was channeling Ralph Peters' Arabian Nightmares piece (which wasn't released when Dave sent the note above).
Channeling Ralph Peters? I don't think anyone has ever paid me that nice of a compliment before. Now if you throw in Matt Ridgway and Jumpin' Jim Gavin I would really feel like a great guy. Anyway, sure you can publish anything that I put in my emails. I never send anything that I wouldn't want my boss to see. I think that the basic message that I would like to get out (and one that my soldiers heartily agree with) is that we can and will win this war if we take the gloves off and stomp the guts out of anyone that so much as says "boo" to us. The American soldier is trained and disciplined to the point that we should have no reservations as to their ability to discriminate between innocent people and legitimate targets. Massive firepower brought down on any transgressor is the answer. Sometimes you need to use a sledgehammer to crack a walnut if you want people to pay attention and learn the correct lessons in life. If an IED blows up outside someones house and the homeowners tell you that they don't know anything about, bulldoze the house and salt the ground. After you do that two or three times, Iraqis will shoot the terrorists themselves to protect their homes. I realize that this may not be totally in keeping with some people's concept of "the American way of war", but if we are in it to win it, we need to take all the steps required to totally destroy the terrorists ability to make war on us and turn the population against them. Right now, because of our kid glove approach, there is no threat to the average Iraqi that helps the terrorists or turns a blind eye. We have to make it painful to the point that the Iraqi people say, "These Americans are serious about winning and they won't stop until they have won." No Iraqi is worth the life of one American soldier. I want Iraq to have a solid stable country with an elected government. I want this more than most Iraqis do, but we can't get to that point unless we kill enough of the e bad guys that the survivors surrender, leave the country, or give up and start selling Zam-Zam on the side of the road. War is an ugly business, but it is even uglier if you don't play to win.David J. Baer
CPT(P), IN
3/2/6 IA MiTT Team Chief
Here's one soldier whose morale is not being ground down by the enemy he faces. If it's being eroded, it's by the people who putatively support him.
November 16, 2006
News from the Front.
Literally. I noted in a previous post that I knew LTCs Paul Finken and Eric Krueger, who were killed by an IED just before he was to return to the United States from Iraq. I received an email from one of Paul's officers.
I was reading your website and noticed that you mentioned LTC Finken and his passing. He was the 2/6 IA MiTT Team Chief and I am the 3/2/6 IA MiTT Team Chief. He was an enjoyable person to work for and certainly had a great understanding of the difficulties inherent in training and leading Iraqi soldiers. It's not always the case in the Army that your immediate superior is someone who is willing to actually listen to what you have to say and take heed of it, but LTC Finken was one of those officers. All of us will miss him and the Army is a lesser place without
him. It's just a damn shame that he died within a couple days of him leaving Iraq. On a lighter note, I have always enjoyed perusing your blog (when I have the time) and certainly appreciate the humor and insights. Keep up the good work.David J. Baer
CPT(P), IN
3/2/6 IA MiTT Team Chief
I have had some more emails with the good Captain Baer, which you will see more of when I am able to compose a suitably well-crafted post for them. Oh, like tomorrow.
This is up today so that anyone googling for Paul Finken will hopefully come upon this. A leader couldn't ask for much better an epitaph than...
It's not always the case in the Army that your immediate superior is someone who is willing to actually listen to what you have to say and take heed of it, but LTC Finken was one of those officers.Reporting As Ordered, Sir! »
November 06, 2006
The war comes home to Castle Argghhh! again.
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1123-06 November 06, 2006--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died Nov. 2 in Baghdad, Iraq, of injuries suffered when an IED detonated near their vehicles.Killed were:
Lt. Col. Paul J. Finken, 40, of Mason City, Iowa.
Lt. Col. Eric J. Kruger, 40, of Garland, Texas.
Staff Sgt. Joseph A. Gage, 28, of Modesto, Calif.
Finken and Gage were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky. Kruger was assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colorado.
We knew about this last week, DoD doesn't release the official releases until the notifications are complete, and then gives the families a few days to adjust.
Subject: Sad news from IraqI received some tragic news from Iraq this evening and I wanted to share it with you all. LTC Paul Finken, who used to work for all of you, was killed today in Iraq. He was conducting a right-seat ride with the unit that was to relieve him when the HMMWV they were riding in was hit by an IED. From what I understand, all four passengers in the HMMWV were killed. Paul was scheduled to return home in two weeks from his second tour in Iraq with the 101st. During this last tour, Paul led a MITT team, supporting an Iraqi Army Brigade in Baghdad. MAJ B, another former employee assigned to the 101st Division who went to NPS with Paul and me, called me with the news this evening.
Paul's wife was notified this afternoon while their three daughters were at school. They are all now at their home surrounded by many close friends and loved ones. I'm sure they would appreciate all of our thoughts and prayers.
I will update you all with additional information as I receive it. Please keep the Finken family in your thoughts and prayers.
[edited for privacy]
What I didn't know at the time is the name of LTC Kruger, another officer I know from previous assignments.
Paul was featured in this MSNBC video clip from earlier this year. Wait for the report by Mike Boettcher.
Actually, it's been a busy email box today.
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1122-06
November 06, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died of injuries suffered when an IED detonated near their vehicle Oct. 31 in Wygal Valley, Afghanistan. All soldiers were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.Killed were:
Maj. Douglas E. Sloan, 40, of Evans Mills, N.Y.
Sgt. Charles J. McClain, 26, of Fort Riley, Kan. He later died in Asadabad, Afghanistan.
Pfc. Alex Oceguera, 19, of San Bernardino, Calif.
And again...
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1124-06
November 06, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.Spc. James L. Bridges, 22, of Buhl, Idaho, died Nov. 4 in Baghdad, Iraq, when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations. Bridges was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Fort Wainwright, Ala.
Now is the time at Castle Argghhh! when we dance: In Memoriam.
November 03, 2006
New Marine Gear.
The Marine Corps is engaged in an acquisition program to develop a Tactical Unmanned Ground Vehicle in order to provide the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) with a tele-operated/semi-autonomous ground vehicle for remoting combat tasks in order to reduce risk to Marines and neutralize threats. The Gladiator is designed principally to support dismounted infantry during the performance of their mission, across the spectrum of conflict and range of military operations. The primary function of the Gladiator will be to provide the Ground Combat Element (GCE) with unmanned scouting and reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA). Operating forward of GCE units, the Gladiator will perform scouting and reconnaissance tasks while permitting the operator to remain covered and concealed some distance away. Additional functions of the Gladiator system will be to utilize a modular configuration capable of employing the Anti-Personnel/Obstacle Breaching System (APOBS), M240G/M249 Machine Guns, and currently fielded chemical detection systems. With the development of future Mission Payload Modules (MPM), projected operational capabilities include: obscurant delivery; direct fire (lethal and non-lethal); communications relay; tactical deception (electronic and acoustic); combat resupply; casualty evacuation, or counter sniper employment. These modules will allow commanders to increase their operational capability by tailoring the capabilities of the Gladiator to best meet their mission requirements.
H/t, mostly Strategy Page with a little help from GW.
October 23, 2006
October 23, 1983.
Abbott, Terry W. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. New Richmond, OH
Alexander, Clemon S. ...... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Monticello, FL
Allman, John R. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NM .. Carlsbad ... NM
Arnold, Moses J. Jr. ...... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Bailey, Charles K. ........ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Berlin, MD
Baker, Nicholas ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Alexandria, VA
Banks, Johansen ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Detroit, MI
Barrett, Richard E. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Tappahanock, VA
Bates, Ronny K. ........... USN .... HM1 .... 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Aiken, SC
Battle, David L. .......... USMC ... 1stSGT . 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Hubert, NC
Baynard, James R. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Richmond, VA
Beamon, Jesse W. .......... USN .... HN ..... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Haines City, FL
Belmer, Alvin. ............ USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Bland, Stephen ............ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Midway Park, NC
Blankenship, Richard L. ... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Hubert, NC
Blocker, John W. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Yulee, FL
Boccia, Joseph J. Jr. ..... USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Northport, NY
Bohannon, Leon Jr. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Bohnet, John R. Jr. ....... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. TN .. Memphis, TN
Bonk, John J. Jr. ......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Boulos, Jeffrey L. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Islip, NY
Bousum, David R. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Fife Lake, MI
Boyett, John N. ........... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Brown, Anthony ............ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Detroit, MI
Brown, David W. ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. TX .. Conroe, TX
Buchanan, Bobby S. Jr. .... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Midway Park, NC
Buckmaster, John B. ....... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Vandalia, OH
Burley, William F. ........ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NJ .. Linden, NJ
Cain, Jimmy R. ............ USN .... HN ..... 10/23/1983 .. AL .. Birmington, AL
Callahan, Paul L. ......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Lorain, OH
Camara, Mecot E. .......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Campus, Bradley J. ........ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Lynn, MA
Ceasar, Johnnie D. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. TX .. El Campo, TX
Cole, Marc L. ............. USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Ludlow Falls, OH
Coleman, Marcus A. ........ USA .... SP4 .... 10/23/1983 .. TX .. Dallas, TX
Comas, Juan M. ............ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Hialeah, FL
Conley, Robert A .......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Orlando, FL
Cook, Charles D. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Advance, NC
Cooper, Curtis J. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. North Wales, PA
Copeland, Johnny L. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Burlington, NC
Corcoran, Bert D. ......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Katonah, NY
Cosner, David L. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. WV .. Elkins, WV
Coulman, Kevin P. ......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Seminary, NY
Croft, Brett A. ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Lakeland, FL
Crudale, Rick R. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Warwick, RI
Custard, Kevin P. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MN .. Virginia, MN
Cyzick, Russell E. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. WV .. Star City, WV
Davis, Andrew L. .......... USMC ... MAJ .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Decker, Sidney James ...... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. KY .. Clarkson, KY
Devlin, Michael J. ........ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Westwood, MA
Dibenedetto, Thomas A. .... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. CT .. Mansfield Center, CT
Dorsey, Nathaniel G. ...... USMC ... PVT .... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Baltimore, MD
Douglass, Frederick B. .... USMC ... SGTMAJ . 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Cataumet, MA
Dunnigan, Timothy J. ...... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. WV .. Princeton, WV
Earle, Bryan L. ........... USN .... HN ..... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Painsville, OH
Edwards, Roy L. ........... USMC ... MSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Elliot, William D. Jr. .... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Lancaster, PA
Ellison, Jesse ............ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. WI .. Soldiers Grove, WI
Estes, Danny R. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. IN .. Gary, IN
Estler, Sean F. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NJ .. Kenall Park, NJ
Faulk, James E. ........... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Panama City, FL
Fluegel, Richard A. ....... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Erie, PA
Forrester, Steven M. ...... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Foster, William B. Jr. .... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Richmond, VA
Fulcher, Michael D ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Madison Heights, VA
Fuller, Benjamin E ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Duluth, GA
Fulton, Michael S. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. TX .. Ft. Worth, TX
Gaines, William Jr. ....... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Port Charlotte, FL
Gallagher, Sean R. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. N. Andover, MA
Gander, David B. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. WI .. Milwaulkee, WI
Gangur, George M. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Cleveland, OH
Gann, Leland E. ........... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Garcia, Randall J. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. CA .. Modesto, CA
Garcia, Ronald J. ......... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Gay, David D. ............. USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Harrisburg, IL
Ghumm, Harold D. .......... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Gibbs, Warner Jr. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Portsmouth, VA
Giblin, Timothy R. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. N. Providence, RI
Gorchinski, Michael W. .... USN .... ETC .... 10/23/1983 .. IN .. Evansville, IN
Gordon, Richard J. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Somerville, MA
Gratton, Harold F. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Conoes, NY
Greaser, Robert B. ........ USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Lansdale, PA
Green, Davin M. ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Baltimore, MD
Hairston, Thomas A. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Haltiwanger, Freddie Jr. .. USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Little Mountain, SC
Hamilton, Virgil D. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. KY .. Dayton, OH
Hanton, Gilbert ........... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. DC .. Washington, DC
Hart, William ............. USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Haskell, Michael S. ....... USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Hastings, Michael A. ...... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. DE .. Seaford, DE
Hein, Paul A. ............. USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Held, Douglas E. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Helms, Mark A. ............ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NE .. Dwight, NE
Henderson, Ferrandy D. .... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Tampa, FL
Hernandez, Matilde Jr. .... USMC ... MSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Midway Park, NC
Hester, Stanley G. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Raleigh, NC
Hildreth, Donald W. ....... USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Sneads Ferry, NC
Holberton, Richard H. ..... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Beaufort, SC
Holland, Robert S. ........ USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. KY .. Gilbertsville, KY
Hollingshead, Bruce A. .... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Fairborn, OH
Holmes, Melvin D. ......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Chicago, IL
Howard, Bruce L. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. ME .. Strong, ME
Hudson, John R. ........... USN .... LT ..... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Riverdale, GA
Hudson, Terry L. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. AL .. Prichard, AL
Hue, Lyndon J. ............ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. LA .. Des Allemands, LA
Hukill, Maurice E. ........ USMC ... 2ndLT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Iacovino, Edward F. Jr. ... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Warwick, RI
Ingalls, John J. .......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Interlaken, NY
Innocenzi, Paul G. III .... USMC ... WO1 .... 10/23/1983 .. NJ .. Trenton, NJ
Jackowski, James J. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. S. Salem, NY
James, Jeffrey W. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Baltimore, MD
Jenkins, Nathaniel W. ..... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Daytona Beach, FL
Johnson, Michael H. ....... USN .... HM2 .... 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Detroit, MI
Johnston, Edward A. ....... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Struthers, OH
Jones, Steven ............. USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Brooklyn, NY
Julian, Thomas A. ......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Middleton, RI
Kees, Marion E. ........... USN .... HM2 .... 10/23/1983 .. WV .. Martinsburg, WV
Keown, Thomas C. .......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. KY .. Louisville, KY
Kimm, Edward E. ........... USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. IA .. Atlantic, IA
Kingsley, Walter V. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. WI .. Wisconsin Dells, WI
Kluck, Daniel S. .......... USA .... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. KY .. Owensboro, KY
Knipple, James C. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Alexandria, VA
Kreischer, Freas H. III ... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Indiatlantic, FL
Laise, Keith J. ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. East Stroudsburg, PA
Lamb, Thomas G. ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MN .. Coon Rapids, MN
Langon, James J. IV ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NJ .. Lakehurst, NJ
Lariviere, Michael S. ..... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Perry, FL
Lariviere, Steven B. ...... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Chicopee, MA
Lemnah, Richard L. ........ USMC ... MSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Lewis, David A. ........... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Garfield Heights, OH
Lewis, Val S. ............. USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Atlanta, GA
Livingston, Joseph R. ..... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Champaign, IL
Lyon, Paul D. Jr. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Milton, FL
Macroglou, John W. ........ USMC ... MAJ .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Maitland, Samuel .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Martin, Charlie R. ........ USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Martin, Jack L. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Oveido, FL
Massa, David S. ........... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Warren, RI
Massman, Michael R. ....... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Port Huron, MI
Mattacchione, Joseph J. ... USMC ... PVT .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Sanford, NC
McCall, John .............. USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Rochester, NY
McDonough, James E. ....... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Newcastle, PA
McMahon, Timothy R. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. TX .. Austin, TX
McNeely, Timothy D. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Mooresville, NC
McVicker, George N. II .... USN .... HM2 .... 10/23/1983 .. IN .. Wabash, IN
Melendez, Louis ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. PR .. Puerto Rico
Menkins, Richard H. II .... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Tully, NY
Mercer, Michael D. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Vale, NC
Meurer, Ronald W. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Milano, Joseph P. ......... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Farmingville, NY
Moore, Joseph P. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. MO .. St. Louis, MO
Morrow, Richard A. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Clairton, PA
Muffler, John F. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Munoz, Alex ............... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NM .. Bloomfield, NM
Myers, Harry D. ........... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Whittler, NC
Nairn, David J. ........... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Nava, Luis A. ............. USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. CA .. Gardena, CA
Olson, John A. ............ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. MN .. Sabin, MN
Olson, Robert P. .......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Lawtons, NY
Ortiz, Richard C. ......... USMC ... CWO3 ... 10/23/1983 .. OK .. Ft. Sill, OK
Owen, Jeffrey B. .......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Virginia Beach, VA
Owens, Joseph A. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Chesterfield, VA
Page, Connie Ray .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Erwin, NC
Parker, Ulysses ........... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Baltimore, MD
Payne, Mark W. ............ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Binghamton, NY
Pearson, John L. .......... USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Perron, Thomas S. ......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. MA .. Whitinsville, MA
Phillips, John A. Jr. ..... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Wilmette, IL
Piercy, George W. ......... USN .... HMC .... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Mt. Savage, MD
Plymel, Clyde W. .......... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Merritt, FL
Pollard, William H. ....... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Pomalestorres, Rafael I. .. USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Prevatt, Victor M. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Columbus, GA
Price, James C. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. AL .. Attala, AL
Prindeville, Patrick K. ... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Gainesville, FL
Pulliam, Eric A. .......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. E. St. Louis, IL
Quirante, Diomedes J. ..... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. RP .. Calcoocan City, RP
Randolph, David M. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. AZ .. Siloam Springs, AZ
Ray, Charles R. ........... USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Relvas, Rui A. ............ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Rich, Terrence L. ......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Brooklyn, NY
Richardson, Warren ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Brooklyn, NY
Rodriguez, Juan C. ........ USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Miami, FL
Rotondo, Louis J. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
Sanpedro, Guillermo Jr. ... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Hialeah, FL
Sauls, Michael C. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Waterboro, SC
Schnorf, Charles J. ....... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Camp Lejeune, NC
Schultz, Scott L. ......... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Keeseville, NY
Scialabba, Peter J. ....... USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Moorehead City, NC
Scott, Gary R. ............ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Rankin, IL
Shallo, Ronald L. ......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Hudson, NY
Shipp, Thomas A. .......... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Shropshire, Jerryl D. ..... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Macon, GA
Silvia, James F. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Portsmouth, RI
Sliwinski, Stanley J. ..... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Niles, OH
Smith, Kirk H. ............ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Miami, FL
Smith, Thomas G. .......... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. CT .. Middletown, CT
Smith, Vincent L. ......... USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Soares, Edward ............ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Tiverton, RI
Sommerhof, William S. ..... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Springfield, IL
Spaulding, Michael C. ..... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. OH .. Akron, OH
Spearing, John W. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Lancaster, PA
Spencer, Stephen E. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. RI .. Portsmouth, RI
Stelpflug, Bill J. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. AL .. Auburn, AL
Stephens, Horace R. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Capitol Heights, MD
Stockton, Craig S. ........ USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Rochester, NY
Stokes, Jeffrey G. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. GA .. Waynesboro, GA
Stowe, Thomas D. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Sturghill, Eric D. ........ USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Chicago, IL
Sundar, Devon L. .......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. CT .. Standford, CT
Surch, James F. Jr. ....... USN .... LT ..... 10/23/1983 .. CA .. Lompoc, CA
Thompson, Dennis A. ....... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Bronx, NY
Thorstad, Thomas P. ....... USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. IN .. Chesterton, IN
Tingley, Stephen D. ....... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. CT .. Ellington, CT
Tishmack, John J. ......... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. MN .. Minneapolis, MN
Trahan, Lex D. ............ USMC ... PVT .... 10/23/1983 .. LA .. Lafayette, LA
Vallone, Donald H. Jr. .... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. CA .. Palmdale, CA
Walker, Eric R. ........... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. IL .. Chicago, IL
Walker, Leonard W. ........ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. AL .. Dothan, AL
Washington, Eric G. ....... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. VA .. Alexandria, VA
Weekes, Obrian ............ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Brooklyn, NY
Wells, Tandy W. ........... USMC ... 1stSGT . 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Wentworth, Steven B. ...... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Reading, PA
Wesley, Allen D. .......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Philadelphia, PA
West, Lloyd D. ............ USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Weyl, John R. ............. USMC ... SSGT ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Wherland, Burton D. Jr. ... USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Jacksonville, NC
Wigglesworth, Dwayne W. ... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. CT .. Naugatuck, CT
Williams, Rodney J. ....... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. FL .. Opa Locka, FL
Williams, Scipio Jr. ...... USMC ... GYSGT .. 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Charleston, SC
Williamson, Johnny A. ..... USMC ... LCPL ... 10/23/1983 .. NC .. Asheboro, NC
Wint, Walter E. Jr. ....... USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. PA .. Wilkes-Barre, PA
Winter, William E. ........ USMC ... CAPT ... 10/23/1983 .. SC .. Fripp Island, SC
Wolfe, John E. ............ USMC ... CPL .... 10/23/1983 .. AZ .. Phoenix, AZ
Woollett, Donald E. ....... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. OK .. Barthesville, OK
Worley, David E. .......... USN .... HM3 .... 10/23/1983 .. MD .. Baltimore, MD
Wyche, Craig L. ........... USMC ... PFC .... 10/23/1983 .. NY .. Jamaica, NY
Yarber, James G. .......... USA .... SFC .... 10/23/1983 .. CA .. Vacaville, CA
Young, Jeffrey D. ......... USMC ... SGT .... 10/23/1983 .. NJ .. Moorestown, NJ
Zimmerman, William A. ..... USMC ... 1stLT .. 10/23/1983 .. MI .. Grand Haven, MI
Now is the time at Castle Argghhh! when we dance: In Memoriam.
Photo by Ron Williams.
October 20, 2006
A gloom and doom moment.
Over at "The Corner" on National Review Online yesterday, they were having an interesting discussion on foreign nationals using military service as an avenue to citizenship. Just go scan the whole day yesterday to catch the discussion. Something Mark Krikorian said caught my attention:
Re: Military Path to Citizenship [Mark Krikorian]Not only do I agree with Derb that recruiting foreign soldiers (Max Boot has been flacking an American Foreign Legion for a while now; see here) is a terrible idea, I'd go further and ask whether even legal residents who are not yet citizens should be permitted to serve in the military (for instance, see here).
If there's a problem in persuading enough Americans to fill the ranks, then the problem may be that our foreign policy is not be in line with our national character. One of the most important considerations in crafting a response to today's global jihad is whether that response is politically sustainable over the long term — and in a democracy that means whether enough of the public will support it for the many, many, many years the struggle against radical Islam is going to last. The kinds of sustained counterinsurgency and "nation-building" we are attempting in Iraq and Afghanistan, however advisable it may seem on paper, requires the American public to go along with things, for decades to come, that are simply contrary to our national character — like bribing tribal chieftains to kill troublemakers, killing lots and lots of civilians, ripping out the fingernails of bad guys to get them to talk, lying on a scale and with a sang-froid that would make even one of congressmen uncomfortable, and in general the permanent committment of large numbers of troops in very dangerous but very ambiguous situations.
Other countries, with a less moralistic character, may well be capable of sustaining this sort of thing over the long haul. Remember the Rainbow Warrior? The French secret service blew up the Greenpeace ship in New Zealand in 1985 to prevent it from interfering with nuclear tests in Polynesia, killing one of the 12 people aboard. Here, this would have been a big deal; in France no one cared — after all, that's the kind of thing you have to do when you're a Great Power, right? (I don't want to debate whether France is a great power; the point is that the French think they are.) Heck, it seems the brother of the current socialist (socialist) presidential candidate is the one who set the bomb, and no one cares.
My point is not that there's some clear popular will that's going to tell us what strategy to follow, just that if you're going to sail to windward, you at least have to take account of the wind. The difficulty Boot notes in increasing troop levels ought to be a clue that, while we're happy to sign on to kill Saddam or nuke Japan or burn Atlanta (sorry to you Georgians out there), not enough of our people are interested in playing nursemaid to a bunch of crazies to make that a sustainable policy. To ignore that, and call instead for the recruitment of foreign soldiers, stems from the same impulse as Brecht's crack about "dissolving the people and electing a new one" — if the American people aren't interested in signing up for police duty in Araby, lets find people who are.
That brought to mind an exchange I had with Ry, which I was working into a post. It's a bit muddled, but it isn't getting any better with me staring at it, either.
I *was* uncomfortable with the invasion. I don't like to see the US in that mode, absent the obvious provocations. I wasn't happy with Kosovo for the same reason.
Doesn't mean I don't recognize that good can come out of it - but in my heart of hearts, I don't like that role for us, "regime change." Doesn't mean I'm right, and it might well mean I'm not the guy to be President... 8^)
I know the "world is different now" argument *does* apply. That said, it's one thing to go in and kick someone's a$$ because they've obviously done something to you, and quite another to go kill someone because, well, they've talked badly about you, they keep bumping you in the subway, and you know they've keyed your car and TP'd your house, and now, because they said they're going to burn your house down you decide to pre-empt by going over to kill them, and, oops, they're a Hatfield, aren't they, Mr. McCoy? And I understand that "keying your car" and "TP'ing your house" trivializes death and destruction - but in the environment of relations between states, some stuff falls into the realm of "friction" - though if you are one of the molecules in that friction, it hurts.
I'm wary of the unintended consequences.
I do know we aren't "Edwardian and earlier" Britain. We don't do "The Long Game" well, especially if it involves shooting, as the Brits did while building the Empire. We can do the Cold War pretty well, but a seeming never-ending Hot War? Of course, I don't think any major nation, in this kind of media environment, can do so except perhaps China. Taking down a nation like Iraq and rebuilding it into something more like a western democracy is a decades-long process - and whatever it grows into, it's going to look like an Arab/Middle East/Muslim Democracy, not a western-style. And no one, except Imperial Britain, has really interested in the job in that way and over those time-spans. The French, Spanish, Portuguese, Belgians... were all more about stripping the riches and shipping them home (which, ironically, is what we keep getting accused of) than developing markets, which was the Brit interest. Which is one reason why the former Brit colonies are, on the whole, more successful than those places where other colors flew.
Iraq could still tip either way, but I strongly suspect it's gone far more down the path that I thought it would likely go than it did down the path the people who decided on the invasion thought it would go.
This was more than regime change - it was a culture change. And that takes a long time - even when it comes from within, much less is imposed from without.
Unless you go the Carthage, Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan route of death-dealing, which either eliminates the issue by leaving "no stone standing, one on the other," or creates a tipping point. We did neither in Iraq. And we weren't prepared to. We were expecting a response more along the lines of France in 1944 than what we got, which was Germany 1945... without the full imprint of military disaster upon the vanquished, because we weren't able/willing, nor did we want to, inflict the requisite amount of damage.
We essentially expected Saddam's people to rise in revolt. I would note the Germans didn't. And while the French did, in a fashion, after we invaded, they did so to throw out the *foreign* invader. If we had been removing an Iranian-led regime, this would have gone differently, I think. As it is, it's gone somewhat as I expected/feared in very broad terms - and while I'm willing to pay the cost, the US as a people don't have a good track record in this kind of thing... my concern from the get-go. And I don't often publish stuff like this, because the leftoids will seize on it for all the wrong reasons. That, of course, is a major problem with discourse these days - you can't have a chat like this in public, without someone trying to turn it into "See? Throw the bums out and run away!" which is not what I'm saying. But the Army AAR process doesn't work well in the political world. Which is too bad, because it really does do a pretty good job of getting at problems and solutions, and applying the lessons learned to the future. At least in the narrow sense of unit training and event analysis.
Sigh. So, the big guys can't admit to mistakes (and this doesn't matter which party is in power) without it being presented as proof positive that the whole idea was wrong, bad, evil, and in fact, the bums should be impeached and thrown in jail because they didn't do it our way (leave aside that that way hadn't worked either, that's *different*). I live in the belly of the beast. Those "what went right/what went wrong, and how do we do it better" discussions take place all the time - but stay inside, because if we let them slip out, the political opposition misuses the discussions - again, regardless of which party is in power. But if you think there is no internal self-examination going on, or that Rumsfeld completely squashes dissent, you aren't paying attention. LTG Petraeus, who has not always been complimentary of the way things happened during the initial stages of the campaign in Iraq - is in charge of writing Army doctrine and the education system. That's not where you put people to silence them. I'm sure among my military readers we can come up with other examples that are similar - and we can come up with examples of people who *have* been sidelined. My point is - nothing is ever quite as simple as it seems from the outside looking in. But the external environment makes it very difficult to engage in any form of nuanced discussion - and actually, that does lend itself to reinforcing the bubbles - which isn't what we want, is it?
My brief email exchange with Mark Krikorian ended this way:
Me:
Bingo.
Exactly my concerns about us engaging in nation building that gestates from us having destroyed the initial nation, so to speak. Not because it isn't necessarily needful, but because I'm not convinced we'll finish what we start - and if we won't, we shouldn't start.
Cheers,
Jonah's Military Guy
Mark Krikorian's response:
Yes, that's what I was trying to get at -- nation-building and the like may be a great idea in political science class, but if our national character makes it unlikely that we'll be able to stick it out to the end, don't go down that path.
Therein lies the rub. If you're President Clinton, you just go with the herd, and do what the polls tell you. If you're President Bush, you try to lead the herd down a different path.
And, as President Bush is finding out - inertia, especially when a lot of the bigger steers in the herd are stubborn and contrary simply because it's easier to be contrary than offer true enlightened opposition, can be very very hard to deflect.
Sadly - the lesson the political class is likely to take away from it is... leadership is too hard, lets just ride the wave.
Which is *not* how I define their role.
Update: I would note I wrote this *before* I read the Blogfather's piece.
October 18, 2006
Transformation, Agility... and gun pr0n!
This is a kewl picture.
If you've the time and interest (Like I did, with the rifle) - here's a hi-res version.Here's the caption:
U.S. Army Sgt. Chris Walsh checks his weapon's scope while performing overwatch security in Sekeik, Iraq, Sept. 16, 2006. Walsh is from 1st Platoon, 2nd Battalion, 300th Field Artillery Regiment, Wyoming National Guard Police Training Team. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Billy Brothers) (Released)
Heh. Something old (the rifle and the crossed
Cold Warriors - take a look at that caption... a National Guard soldier, acting as Infantry, who is a member of the 2nd Battalion, 300th Field Artillery, which has duty as the Wyoming National Guard Police Training Team.
How many of us, when we took the oath, would have expected to find ourselves in a situation like that?
The times they are a'changin'. And thank heaven's we've got the quality of troop to make it happen!
Welcome home, Kansas Redlegs!
...and other news of militant Kansans.
First up... an award for valor to a Kansas City, Kansas native, Specialist Anthony Tonasket:
(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Richard Phelps, 2nd Bn, 137th Inf. Regt. UPAR, 38th DISCOM, MND-B)">
CAMP SLAYER, Iraq Spc. Anthony Tonasket (right), a native of Kansas City, Kan., is awarded the Purple Heart, Combat Action Badge and Army Commendation Medal with a "V" device for Valor by Col. James Trafton, commander, 2nd Battalion, 137th Infantry Regiment, 38th Divisional Support Command, MultiNational Division, Baghdad, during an awards ceremony for his actions during an attack on his convoy March 7. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Richard Phelps, 2nd Bn, 137th Inf. Regt. UPAR, 38th DISCOM, MND-B)
Well done, Specialist Tonasket!
HHB (-) of the 1st of the 127th FA is coming home from Iraq on Friday:
News from The Adjutant General's Department
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Oct. 17, 2006
No. 06-109
1st BATTALION, 127th FIELD ARTILLERY COMING HOME OCT. 19
Approximately 150 Kansas National Guardsmen of the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery (-), 1st Battalion, 127th Field Artillery will be welcomed home to Kansas on Thursday, Oct. 19. The ceremony which is tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m. (See Note) will be held at Lee Arena on the Washburn University campus, Topeka.The unit is returning after a year-long deployment to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The public is cordially invited to attend and welcome the soldiers home.
The soldiers will be released to join family and friends at the conclusion of the ceremony. The battery mobilized to Fort Lewis, Wash., in July 2005 where they received training before deploying in September 2005 to Baghdad, Iraq.
NOTE: The 1 p.m. time is based upon current travel arrangements for the unit. Due to unforeseen circumstances this time could change.
As was forcefully brought home last week with the death of Specialist Wood, the 891st Engineers still have people in Iraq. While not a current photo (the Kansas Guard doesn't show up much in the Army photo collection at the moment) it's illustrative of what they are doing - and taking casualties while doing it. (see H&I Fires for 17 Oct for funeral details for Specialist Wood).
by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo July 15, 2005A South African-built Buffalo of the Kansas Army National Guard's 891st Engineer Battalion stands by to investigate a suspected IED that was spotted along the shoulder of a highway in southern Iraq.
In other Kansas Guard news...
Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame Induction SetFor Immediate Release
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Contact: Michele J. Henry
National Guard Association of Kansas
(785) 862-1066
Topeka-The Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame Board of Governors has announced the 2006 inductee for the Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2006 at the Holiday Inn West, 605 S.W. Fairlawn, Topeka, Kan. The public is invited to attend.The inductees for 2006 are retired Brig. Gen. Alfred P. Bunting and retired Brig. Gen. Ronald D. Tincher.
Bunting retired from the Kansas Air National Guard with more than 42 years of service. He spent the last five years of his service as the Assistant Adjutant General and Commander of the Kansas Air National Guard. Bunting and his wife, Marjorie reside in Burlingame, Kan. They have four children and three grandchildren. Their son, Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, is the current adjutant general of Kansas.Tincher retired from the Kansas Army National Guard also with more than 42 years of service. His last years serving in the Kansas National Guard were spent as the Assistant Adjutant General for the Army. He was also appointed Commander of the Kansas Army National Guard. Tincher and his wife, Judy reside in Olathe, Kan. They have 7 children, 17 grandchildren and one great grandson.
This marks the 28th year for the Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame induction. The 2006 inductees will make the 82nd and 83rd Kansas Guardsmen to be so honored. Guard men and women may be nominated and selected by their peers and associates for truly exceptional contributions to both the Kansas National Guard and the communities in which they live. Selection is made following a rigorous grading process by two committees and final approval by the Hall of Fame board of directors.
The Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame is located in the Museum of the Kansas National Guard, Building 301, at the main entrance to Forbes Field, Topeka, Kan. It is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, except holidays.
Now that the Kansas Adjutant General's office and I have connected, we'll try to keep up with the doings of the Kansas Guard. Now if I could just get the Missouri Adjutant General to see some utility in exploiting willing bloggers...
October 13, 2006
Leopards spotted in Afghanistan.
Somebody else didn't get the memo... remember this little bit of cargo the AF took to Afstan? The Dutch SP howitzer?
Looks like someone else didn't get the memo on "We don't need no steenking heavy tracked vehicles to fight in the 'Stan!" that Rummy and crowd put out.
Those contrarian Canuckistanians!
One can't help but wonder that if we'd gone in with the 1st CAV and 4th ID, if they'd be going in with nothing but the PPCLI... ;^)
'Spirit of McChord' gives Canadians a liftby Master Sgt. Mitch Gettle
376th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs10/10/2006 - MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan (AFPN) -- Normally they move people, humanitarian supplies, troop rations and equipment, but Airmen with the 817th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron's Detachment 1 here were tasked Oct. 7 to move different equipment -- several 30-foot, 100,000 pound Canadian tanks.
The C-17 Globemaster III "Spirit of McChord" and its crew made two trips to Kandahar AB, Afghanistan, in one day to transport the equipment for Canadian ground forces supporting the NATO mission.
Col. Michael McLean, Canadian Defense Attaché, said the Leopard tanks will support Canadian troops by providing greater mobility on the ground and more flexible options.
"The enhancements will enable troops to counter threats more effectively and safely," said Colonel McLean. "The sooner we can provide the security and stability, the sooner we can help the Afghan people develop a positive and independent future for themselves and their children."
The 817th EAS, deployed from McChord Air Force Base, Wash., supports the mission of the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing, NATO forces, and operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom."It filled me with pride watching a (Canadian) tank being loaded onto a McChord C-17," said Senior Airman Bryan Mumma, 376th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chief, also deployed from McChord AFB. "We work hard to keep our aircraft operational as the supplies we deliver downrange are crucial to our troops and in this case, to the Canadian ground forces."
Other C-17s and crews, also deployed from McChord AFB, worked all week to move the much-needed equipment to the U.S. coalition partners in theater.
Preparing a tank for flight falls on the shoulders of the C-17 loadmasters, who ensure this 30-foot weapon weighing more than 100,000 pounds is properly positioned and secured in the cargo compartment.
As the tank is driven onto the C-17, the loadmaster marshals and positions the tank to ensure safety and optimal performance of the aircraft during flight.
"We make sure there is enough forward, aft, vertical and lateral restraint so the tank will not move in flight," said Tech. Sgt. John Woodard, 817th EAS Det 1 loadmaster.
To keep the tanks in place, the loadmasters use multiple 25K-rated chains, tie-down mechanisms and rings on the floor of the cargo compartment.
"Once the chains are in place, we have to calculate the restraint of each chain to make sure we have enough restraint to meet the forces of 3Gs forward, 1.5Gs aft, 2Gs vertical and 1.5Gs lateral movement," Sergeant Woodard said. "We calculate for each direction to ensure restraint is met for all directions and if more chains are needed, we add them."
"It has been an awesome deployment for us," said Maj. James Hall, 817 EAS Det. 1 commander. "We have had the opportunity to haul stuff for just about every member of the International Security Assistance Forces. The Dutch, Romanians and now the Canadians have had major moves since we have been deployed. It is a great experience working with the militaries from all over the world, especially when it is carrying something as cool as tanks for our great neighbors from up North."
You're welcome, Kate. H/t, CAPT H.
October 12, 2006
Rotary in Action.
In this case, literally. My Rotary Club and our District support this effort. In fact, our District (starting first with our club two years ago) has been supporting efforts to help Iraqi children for over two years, via deployed members or their offspring serving in the Box.
Roger is a Kansas National Guardsman who runs the Joint Visitors Bureau (JVB), which is a high-risk job, professionally - he handles all the visiting dignitaries. And in Baghdad, it can also be high-risk personally.
Letter from Rotarian Roger Aeschliman from the Topeka Downtown Club and currently stationed in Iraq
Howdy everyone, 1 October 2006Several times this year everything canceled right out from underneath us. Such too this week. There were significant missions scheduled and we looked to be nearly maxed out. Then one by one they all disappeared. We never know beforehand why these lulls occur but afterwards sometimes learn. Once was when Zarqawi got whacked; once when all the senior commanders demanded some relief from visitors so they could fight the war; another time was the seating of the new government ministers. Wonder what this one will turn out to be?
For the nonce, very slow for me and most of the JVB, though as predicted last week, Muslims are killing Muslims more now during their holy Ramadan than prior.
Much of my spare time this week was absorbed by the mission planning and delivery of all your boxes of health, hygiene and first aid supplies, as well as toys and soccer balls, to the town of Makasib (my desk area is tidy again after about a month of piled up boxes).
Charlie Company, one of our Wichita-based units, owns the territory outside of Camp Slayer, including the town of Makasib. I coordinated with Captain Rob Stone to insert our armored utility truck into one of his combat patrols into the town. Here at the JVB we loaded all the boxes Wednesday evening, early Thursday picked up an Army Public Affairs Reporter, then headed to the Royal Palace Complex to meet CPT Stone. Broke fast in yet another wonderful mess hall in yet another impressive palace, then received the patrol briefing and rolled out of the gates into the farmlands south of the Baghdad International Airport.
The convoy was four M-1114 gun trucks (formerly known as Hummers, now heavily armored and armed) and the armored truck (replacing all the old 2 ½ ton trucks that served the army since World War II). We wheeled by the farms and occasionally the .50 caliber machine gunners would throw a soccer ball to the children that magically cluster along the roadways. There must be some kind of ESP linking all these kids as they popped up out of nowhere to line the way ahead of us. The roads ranged from a few decent blacktops down to narrow, rutted, dike-top footpaths and we wove back and forth over an unpredictable route. This area is very calm, mostly poor Sunni farmers and not the site of any sectarian violence. Nevertheless Charlie Company troops discovered roadside bombs over past months, had a few blow up near patrols and encountered random small arms fire. This trip was blissfully uneventful other than kids fighting over soccer balls.
We made it unscathed to Makasib rolling straight into the middle of town, stopping right in front of the clinic. We dismounted just in time to see the local butcher cut the head off a living goat. By the time we were all done the goat was skinned, quartered and hanging on hooks for sale.
As foreshadowed by CPT Stone we were immediately surrounded by children – truly hundreds. They all wanted something: “hey mister. Gimme …” a pen, rank insignia, a lighter, money, whatever. Tugging at sleeves and trousers. You can’t let them swarm you as they will pick your pockets. So smile, smile, tousle hair, pat cheeks and say “La! La!” No, No.
The village headman (not actually a tribal sheik or the official mayor but nevertheless accepted as in charge by the locals) met us at the clinic and we chatted and toured. There are a dozen rooms in the building and half of them are empty. The rest have some hodge-podge of castoff furnishings and nothing else. A male and a female doctor were on hand to receive the boxes. After further discussion we allowed the headman and the doctors to decide what to do with the whole shebang. Their decision? Store everything in the clinic where it would be safe from pilfering. The people would have extra incentive to go to the clinic where they could leave with some item of health or hygiene after a checkup or treatment. The docs would also have toys to give away to their frightened young patients. The headman retains the right to distribute things amongst the populace as he sees fit.
This is a win/win/win outcome for us. Your Kansas soldiers (AND YOU!) got credit for bringing necessary and helpful things they could not otherwise afford, the clinic and the ministry of health get credit for being effective and the headman gets to exercise leadership and largess bolstering his position and maintaining tribal norms.
We talked at length about Topeka and that these gifts were from real people who care, not a governmental program. We tried to explain Rotary but the translator gave up saying that the idea of a large group of people sitting down together to do good works for others without desire for recognition or reward was incomprehensible in this culture. I found that fascinating yet hope he is wrong.
They know we will be back in a few weeks to bring the 62 boxes of medical clinic supplies and equipment collected by Topeka’s four Rotary Clubs, spearheaded by my dear friend Maria Wilson. And they are grateful. Yet they also have a sense of doubt about our motives. Why would these people from Topeka and Texas and Washington State (some of whom I don’t even know) care about Makasib? In Islam giving to the poor is required in order to go to heaven. You MUST do it; it is a fundamental pillar of the faith. So giving is not a choice made selflessly; there is a quid pro quo. This is a cultural difference that must be overcome by them as they seek to develop a civil society rather than the hunker down and avoid pain dictatorship society they have known for 3,000 years.
Makasib boxes from Rotarians Joe McFarland x 3, Anita Wolgast, and Frank Memmo (and Sandra). 112 boxes for Makasib. That’s probably it except for the 62 full of clinic supplies coming from Rotary and the many donors throughout Topeka. Thanks!
American by birth. Soldier by choice. Volunteer by God!
Roger T. Aeschliman
Major, Armor
Deputy Commander, First Kansas Volunteers
GLORIA MERCES VIRTUTIS**
In the spirit of the Naval Service, "Non Sibi Sed Patriae!"*...
Ladies and Gentlemen, I say to you the Dead of the USS Cole, DDG-67:
Hull Maintenance Technician 2nd Class Kenneth Clodfelter
Electronics Technician Chief Petty Officer Richard Costelow
Mess Management Specialist Seaman Lakeina Francis
Information Systems Technician Seaman Timothy Lee Gauna
Signalman Seaman Cherone Louis Gunn
Seaman James Rodrick McDaniels
Engineman 2nd Class Marc Ian Nieto
Electronics Warfare Technician 2nd Class Ronald Owens
Seaman Lakiba Nicole Palmer
Engineman Fireman Joshua Langdon Parlett
Fireman Patrick Howard Roy
Electronics Warfare Technician 1st Class Kevin Shawn Rux
Mess Management Specialist 3rd Class Ronchester Santiago
Operations Specialist 2nd Class Timothy Lamont Saunders
Fireman Gary Graham Swenchonis Jr.
Ensign Andrew Triplett
Seaman Craig Bryan Wibberley
Now is the time at Castle Argghhh! when we dance: In Memoriam of early casualties of the Global War on Terror.
Linda of Something... and Half of Something has her own take on the event up today.
Here is a link to the DoD Commission Report.
Flash Traffic (extended entry) Follows »» EagleSpeak links with: Some remember: USS Cole attacked 6 years ago
» Blue Star Chronicles links with: Remember The USS Cole
October 10, 2006
DNA CONFIRMS DEATH OF AL-QAEDA BAGRAM FUGITIVE
A senior Al-Qaeda type who escaped from custody at Bagram, Afghanistan last year got smoked by some Brit squaddies last month in Basra. DNA confirms the kill.
BAGHDAD , – Ground forces have verified the death of Mahmoud Ahmed Mohammed Al-Rashid, also known as Umar Faruq, through DNA testing.During a raid on Sept 25 in Basrah, ground forces killed Mahmoud Ahmed Mohammed Al-Rashid Faruq. As forces maneuvered to the objective, they received small-arms fire from suspected terrorists. Forces killed an individual wielding a firearm as they reached the objective. After taking photographs and gathering DNA evidence from the individual, ground forces left the suspected terrorist remains at the site. It was later determined through DNA gathered the individual killed was Umar Faruq.
Good.
October 02, 2006
CENTCOM Sends
Heh. Nice weapon, Ayman. I hope you're better with it than your late not-too-lamented minion in Iraq...
This just in: President Bush reacts to Zawahiri - encourages freedom loving people the world over to squash Dark Ages throwbacks like Zawahiri...
Ayman Al-Zawahiri Reacts to Bush, Pope; Urges Muslims to Support MujahidinOn 29 September, a jihadist website has been observed to post several links to a new videotape for Ayman al-Zawahiri, second-in-command of Al-Qa'ida, produced by Al-Sahab Media, an underground media organization that produces Al-Qa'ida tapes. The tape is entitled "Bush, Pope of the Vatican, Darfur, and the Crusader Wars" and is dated "Sha'ban 1427 Hegira."
The following is the translation of Al-Zawahiri's statement:
[Al-Zawahiri first appears wearing a white robe and dark brown turban with an office setting in the background. He begins to speak in Arabic, with English subtitles appearing on the tape.]
In the name of God, praise be to God, and may peace and prayers be upon the Messenger of God, his family, companions, and allies.
Muslim brothers everywhere, peace be upon you and the mercy of God and His blessings.
The murderer and spiller of Muslim blood, Bush, has stated that he has secret prisons, in which he holds the dangerous leaders of the group of Qa'idat al-Jihad [Al-Qa'ida of jihad], including the mujahid brother Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad, may God free him, and he has stated that during the three years after Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad's arrest, the interrogators have been able to get from Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad valuable information which has helped the Crusaders to kill and arrest a number of leaders of Al-Qa'ida. I want to ask this lying failure: Who are those leaders of Al-Qa'ida whose killing or capture was facilitated by the information extracted from Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad? And I say to him: You lying failure, what is the size of your losses after the capture of Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad, may God free him?
Bush, you deceitful charlatan, three and a half years have passed since you captured Khalid al-Shaykh Muhammad, so how have you found us during this time? Losing and surrendering? Or, by the grace of God, attacking, seeking martyrdom, advancing, and injuring you on a daily basis. The strikes of the mujahidin deprived you of the pleasure of quenching your thirst for revenge with the capture of our champions, those who repeat what [Islamic poet] Abu-Firas [al-Hamadani] said:
Ya wanna see Abu-Firas' poetry? And the rest of his rant? It's below the fold, in the Flash Traffic/Extended Entry.