Decimation.

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Devoted readers to the blog will understand I was onto this image instantly with a story to tell!

Goya, Manet, Picasso. Add to the list Unknown!

Esteemed and world-famous artists their illustrations of a military execution as carried out by firing squad all having a similar form.

Here with yet one more example:

1 July 1916, Fusillade. Execution of mutinous Italian alpine troops [Alpini] during the Great War. ARTIST UNKNOWN! "Objective to punish mutinies, rebellions or acts of cowardice within the Royal [Italian] Army". Some devoted reader to the blog knows the name of the artist?

Based on a historical event:

"The Decimation of Cercivento, also known as The Rifles of Cercivento . . . identifies the decimation of an entire platoon composed of eighty Alpini of the 8th Regiment belonging to the 109th Company of the Battalion Monte Arvenis then operating on Monte Cellon, near the Monte Croce Carnico pass, accused by [the] Company Commander, Captain Armando Ciofi and his deputy Lieutenant Pietro Pasinetti, of insubordination and rebellion."

FOUR ALPINI SENTENCED TO DEATH AND EXECUTED.

The Italian Army during the Great War [WW1] infamous for the application of harsh and unremitting discipline, often draconian in nature.

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Defector.

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"We welcome you!!"

"THE CHIEU HOI PROGRAM OF VIETNAM"

From an Internet article by SGM Herbert A. Friedman (Ret.)

Chieu Hoi! Viet Cong [VC] and North Vietnames Army [NVA] defectors during that period of the Second Indo-China War.

Psychological warfare directed against enemy combatants in Vietnam, a program that worked and found to be cost effective in the extreme.

GVN = Government of Vietnam. South Vietnam.

JUSPAO = Joint United States Public Affairs Office.

CONSIDER THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE CHIEU HOI PROGRAM:

 "To date [1968] , the total defections of Viet Cong [VC] returning under the program total 75,000. If we take this figure in the commonly accepted ratio of ten government soldiers needed for each insurgent guerrilla, the program has saved the GVN-US a troop strength of over 750,000 soldiers. If we do a little arithmetic from the dollar-saved angle, the total cost of the program, using a cost-sited figure of $127 to bring in a Viet Cong defector, would be around nine and a half million dollars. But looking at the cost to kill a Viet Cong, which is estimated at $300,000 each, this number would have cost two and a quarter billion dollars." - - Johnston.

"By the end of 1966, Vietnamese and U.S. efforts resulted in 20,242 Hoi Chanh returned (or rallied) to the Government of Vietnam. About two-thirds of these were VC combatants rather than political supporters, a significant drain on enemy strength. The number of Hoi Chanh since the program’s inception now totaled 48,041, and the trend in ralliers had been increasing steadily since mid-1965. More important, MACV estimated the total cost of the program so far (not counting US salaries) at only $125.12 per returnee. JUSPAO estimates were slightly higher, showing a cost per Hoi Chanh of $150, but when compared to the estimated $322,000 cost per VC combatant killed, the program was remarkably inexpensive. . ." - - Barger.

Kit Carson Scouts also those defectors recruited, willing and able to fight with American units after rallying to the side of the GVN. Very valuable assets my understanding.

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Fourth.

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More in the nutshell stuff, extracts with key points from an article by Barno and Bensahel that tip from isegoria.net, the future of warfare.

"in a nutshell - - when you want to make it clear that you're going to sum something up in just a few words. ..."

"The Fourth Industrial Revolution will transform the character of war"

"The U.S. military has extensive combat experience — in small wars — but it may not know what to expect from war in the Fourth Industrial Revolution"

FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AS DEFINED BY:

"Characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, the developments are affecting all disciplines, economies, industries and governments, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human."

"What will it mean to fight wars in a world characterized by the Fourth Industrial Revolution — and what will it take to win?"

    "Just as it will disrupt and reshape society, the Fourth Industrial Revolution will transform the character of war."

    * "Space and cyber. Artificial intelligence, big data, machine learning, autonomy, and robotics."

    * "The return of mass and the defensive advantage. A new generation of high tech weapons."

    * "The unknown x-factor. Secret technologies developed by friend and foe alike will likely appear for the first time during the next major war, and it is impossible to predict how they will change battlefield dynamics.s of unanticipated, unfamiliar challenges to U.S. forces."

    * "The emerging characteristics of the Fourth Industrial Revolution suggest we are on the precipice of profound changes to the character of war."

    * "The study of warfare has always heavily relied upon scrutinizing past battles to discern the lessons of those as yet un-fought. But in today’s world, that important historical lens should be augmented by one that focuses on the future."

See previous blog entries the topic of which was the future of warfare, the body/mind/technological/cyber connection:

http://militaryanalysis.blogspot.com/2017/07/mooneyham.html

http://militaryanalysis.blogspot.com/2017/07/year-2060.html

http://militaryanalysis.blogspot.com/2017/07/legion.html

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UAV Libya.

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NOT ever heard any of this before!

Air war Libya! Ongoing and for nearly six full years now. NONE of which has ever been reported?

Thanks to the article by David Axe, courtesy the Daily Beast and MSN:

"The Escalating Air War No One Is Watching"

"A complex air war over Libya has killed hundreds of innocent civilians, and possibly many more, since the U.S.-led NATO intervention in the North African state began in 2011. And almost no one outside of the war-torn country has even noticed. The U.S. government, for its part, increasingly seems to prefer it that way."

"Manned warplanes and drones from four foreign countries and various Libyan factions conducted at least 2,158 air strikes between September 2012 and mid-June 2018, according to a new report from the Washington D.C. based New America Foundation and Airwars.org, an air-strike-tracking project affiliated with the University of London."

Air war Libya conducted primarily it seems by drone, armed and otherwise.

Air war Libya as fought by various Libyan warring factions and foreign interventionists.

Air war Libya numbers of sorties slightly more than one per day for a prolonged period. Deaths due to air strikes too probably less than the number of persons killed in Libyan road accidents during the same period.

I guess it isn't all so bad. Unless the Hellfire missile is aimed at you.

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Chiang.

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As excerpted from  a "The Reader's Companion to Military History" article by Arthur Waldron the topic of which is the Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek.

"Long compared unfavorably to Mao Tse-tung, Chiang has yet to find biographer, and until recently most assessments of him have  been closer to that of Joseph Stilwell who ridiculed him . . . than to that of Owen Lattimore, who considered him a 'great man.' But a recent confirmation of the staggering human cost of Chinese Communism has vindicated Chiang's judgment of its threat, while the corruption and disorder of post-Mao China serve as reminders of how intractable were the problems he faced."

Chiang Kai-Shek great as in the Biblical sense! Best understood as a man wielding a lot of power. Not necessarily for good or bad. Merely wielding.

The war record of the Chinese Nationalists both BEFORE and AFTER Pearl Harbor and indeed in the aftermath of Japanese surrender controversial and a matter for discussion.

Chinese Nationalist troops fighting the Japanese their effort described often as half-hearted, lackadaisical and poor. Chiang in particular always portrayed by the media of the time as more interested in fighting the communists and Mao rather than the Japanese invader.

A full, complete and unbiased understanding of the Chinese war effort during the Second World War the scholarly effort fraught with difficulty? See a previous blog entry dealing with this topic.

Influential elements of the foreign press too their portrayal of Chiang less than flattering and in perhaps even an intentional and malicious manner?

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Games.

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As excerpted from "The Reader's Companion to Military History" article "War Games" by Thomas B. Allen:

"Fletcher Pratt's Naval War Game became popular in the United States in the late 1930's, introducing a pastime that would become widespread by the 1960's. To determine whether a ship would be sunk, Pratt, a military writer, used a complex formula involving the thickness of a ship's armor, its speed, and the caliber and number of guns on each of the ships in an engagement. As proof of his formula, Pratt used the real-world fate of the Admiral Graf Spee, the German 'pocket battleship' fatally damaged in 1939 during a running battle with three Royal Navy cruisers. 'Rated on gun-power and armor,' Pratt wrote, the Graf Spee 'should have been more than a match for the three British cruisers, but by the formula . . . they should have beaten her. They did.'"

See this Binkov You tube video an analysis a naval war game the adversaries the World War Two battleships USS Iowa and the IJN Yamato. Who would win? Describes quite well the variables that must be taken into consideration when modeling such an encounter. As to the eventual outcome of such a duel, you have to go see the entire video.

Those of you devoted readers to the blog further interested in the topic of war gaming and naval war gaming in particular as it was done in the Fletcher Pratt mode go see the War Times Journal "QUICKFIRE  PRE-DREADNOUGHT ERA FAST-PLAY RULES"

Have fun and good luck. I recommend highly without reservation or qualification. And YES, luck and the throw of the die favorable or otherwise does play a role.

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Punjab.

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Here with a critique and key points: "Lessons from the Punjab Campaign".

As extracted from the South Asian Terrorism Portal and thanks to same!

The Punjab insurgency a rebellion by Sikh separatists seeking an independent nation. Defeat of the ten-year long insurgency due to a variety of factors.

SF = Security Forces. COIN - Counter-Insurgency.

"Secrets of COIN Success Lessons from the Punjab Campaign"

By Anant Mathur

 "The Punjab campaign stands out among the most recent, successful and victorious COIN campaigns in the world. This was largely made possible by a coherent grand strategy and tactical innovations on the ground. This campaign provides interesting lessons that are applicable to all COIN campaigns."

* "First, the importance of promoting an anti-insurgency leader needs greater emphasis than observed in available COIN theories."

* "Secondly, it is essential that Governments must demonstrate the resolve for a political solution of the conflict only from a position of strength."

* "Thirdly, election of insurgents for constitutional posts creates even bigger problems for the COIN campaign."

* "Fourthly, COIN campaigns are inherently labour intensive."

* "Fifthly, cutting-edge technology has a limited role to play in COIN campaigns."

* "Sixthly, the insurgency’s sympathizers in the SFs should be handled sensitively."

* "Seventhly, the COIN campaign should focus on the leaders and ideologues of the insurgency."

* "Eighthly, external help to the insurgency must be stifled using all instruments of state power."

* "Lastly, the campaign must develop specific measures of effectiveness to gauge the level of popular support."

The security forces [SF] of India perhaps the most experienced and adept in the world when it comes to counter-insurgency operations, at both the practical and theoretical level.

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Figures.

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Before May 1943 the German U-boat campaign in the Atlantic during World War Two [WW2] effective. In the aftermath of May 1943 the German U-boat effort more or less an insignificant factor in the war if not a total failure.

As excerpted from "The Reader's Companion to Military History" article by Holger H. Herwig the topic German WW2 Admiral Karl Doenitz; the German U-boat campaign, success and ultimate disaster:

"Donitz commanded Germany's U-boat forces in the Battle of the North Atlantic. His submarines sank 175 Allied warships and 2,603 merchant ships but lost 784 boats and 28,000 men. In April 1943 Convoy HX231 drove off all attacking U-boats. Allied convoys, radar, aerial patrols, depth charges, special naval 'killer groups,' and Ultra electronic intercepts blunted the German underseas campaign. Donitz conceded defeat in the battle on May 23, 1943, when he recalled his boats. After 1943  more than thirty-five hundred Allied ships in sixty-two convoys crossed the Atlantic without a single loss."

Those various convoys after May 1943 in totality by my calculations carrying enough war-making munitions alone to supply and equip an army of about five million men.

Eighty percent of German submariners losing their lives during the war!! A submarine sinking as you can well imagine the loss of life 100 % in almost all cases.

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Trust.

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Nothing new under the sun!

As it was in the time of Augustus Caesar two-thousand years ago as it is now!

"The latest casualty in the global pension catastrophe is…"

From the Sovereign man Internet web site the article by Simon Black that initial portion copied in entirety the original tip from Chuck.

"In the year 6 AD, the Roman emperor Augustus set up a special trust fund known as the aerarium militare, or military treasury, to fund retirement pensions for Rome’s legionnaires."

"Now, these military pensions had already existed for several centuries in Rome. But the money to pay them had always been mixed together in the government’s general treasury."

"So for hundreds of years, mischievous senators could easily grab money that was earmarked for military pensions and redirect it elsewhere."

"Augustus wanted to end this practice by setting up a special fund specifically for military pensions."

"And to make sure there would be no meddling from any government officials, Augustus established a Board of Trustees, consisting of former military commanders, to oversee the fund’s operations."

"Augustus really wanted this pension fund to last for the ages. And to keep a steady inflow of revenue, he established a 5% inheritance tax in Rome that would go directly to the aerarium militare."

"He even capitalized the fund with 170,000,000 sesterces of his own money, worth about half a billion dollars in today’s money." [See previous blog entry  the purchasing power of Roman currency at the time!]

"But as you can probably already guess, the money didn’t last."

SOCIAL SECURITY TAXES IN THE UNITED STATES PLACED INTO THE GENERAL REVENUES DURING THE VIETNAM WAR IN MEASURE PAYING FOR THE CONFLICT. SOMETHING THAT WAS NEVER TO OCCUR BECAME SO! AND HAS NOT CHANGED SINCE!

CLEVER SENATORS BEING CLEVER! ROME FROM TIMES OF YORE, UNITED STATES TODAY! SENATORS! SOLONS! WISE MEN? SURE!

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UB-85.

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It seems that World War One U-boat Captain Forstner was not alone.

Sea monsters everywhere! And attacking without restraint!

So it was alleged. Consider now within the perspective of a recent discovery the entire issue of German U-boat under assault by a paranormal creature the existence of which is unknown to science.

Thanks to the English tabloid Daily Mail and their Internet web site.

"Mystery of the WWI U-Boat and the 'sea monster' solved: How bungling German captain sank his own vessel after demanding a heater in his cabin - and then blamed the leak on a creature of the deep"

* "UB-85 was patrolling the Irish Sea when captain claimed monster attacked"
* "Captain said damage forced them to surface and surrender to British"
* "Sub was recently found by Scottish Power when laying undersea cables"
* "German navy logs reveal sub sunk after issues caused by captain's heater"

NO! NO! A THOUSAND TIMES NO! NO SEA MONSTER!

This German U-boat captain in contrast to so many others apparently a slacker and a poor leader of men, infamous as one who shirked his duty unwilling to press home the battle to the enemy?

But, no sea monster! We can agree about that!

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East & West.

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Here with perspective on the American Civil War I might have only very vaguely familiar with. Union forces in the western theater of the war effective. Union troops in the eastern theater of the war not so very effective.

Thanks to "The Reader's Companion to Military History" and the "American Civil War" article by Williamson Murray.

". . . what remains inexplicable is the considerable contrast between the eastern and western theaters in terms of the performance of the opposing forces. Unfortunately the disparity in the military effectiveness of the armies has to a great extent eluded historians. All too often, histories of the war have depicted Southern troops as an idealized country folk, trained and prepared for war by their youth on farms, whereas Northern troops, living in dank factory slums, were incapable of fighting. In fact, 85 percent of the North's population lived on farms, and if Northern armies had a difficult time against Confederate force in the eastern theater, their comrades in the West dominated their Southern opponents throughout the war. The performance of Northern and Southern armies had less to do with the makeup of the armies - - they were all drawn from similar backgrounds - - than with the particular styles of leadership and battle effectiveness that resulted from idiosyncratic factors, such as the ability of senior leaders"

Think Lee, Jackson and the Army of Northern Virginia [Confederate] in the east. Think Grant, Sherman and Thomas and the various army formations of the Union in the west.

LEADERSHIP MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE!

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Rampage.

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Boris has one! Benjamin has one too!

From the latest edition of the DEBKAfile news letter:

This missile has been used by the Israel Air Force against Syrian targets? And with great success? Apparently a stand-off weapon system air-to-ground missile.

Rampage!

"New Israeli supersonic air-to-ground missile"

16 June.

"The new air to surface missile, dubbed Rampage after a popular video game, is a powerful weapon nearly impossible to detect or intercept and equipped with a warhead, rocket engine and advanced navigation for precision targeting, say its makers Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Military Industry Systems (IMI). It is also cheaper to produce than comparable weapons in Israel's arsenal. The 4.7-meter long missile weighing 570 kilos is designed for strikes on command centers, air force bases, infrastructure and field targets shielded by air defense batteries"

Boris boasts, Benjamin does not. The proof is in the pudding as they say and Rampage already battle tested. Nothing more to say!

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BB Saudi.

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"…we are in dialogue with the accused criminals who have been convicted with smuggling drugs, murder, rape, from the following nationalities: 110 Yemenis, 21 Palestinians, 212 Saudis, 96 Sudanese, 254 Syrians, 82 Jordanians, 68 Somalis, 32 Afghanis, 94 Egyptians, 203 Pakistanis, 23 Iraqis, and 44 Kuwaitis."

"We have reached an agreement with them that they will be exempted from the death sentence and given a monthly salary to their families and loved ones, who will be prevented from traveling outside Saudi Arabia in return for rehabilitation of the accused and their training in order to send them to Jihad in Syria." - [Signed] Director of follow up in Ministry of Interior [Saudi] Abdullah bin Ali al-Rmezan

THE DIRTY DOZEN BUT MUCH MORE THAN A DOZEN.

From the War Nerd Internet web site and somewhat dated but still of interest.

"The Saudi Dirty Dozen and Jihadi as Risk Disposal"

By Gary Brecher September 10, 2013

The BASHI-BAZOOK! Criminals in the Islamic context released from prison on the condition they perform military service as an irregular combatant. Their reward plunder if possible with their sentence expunged.

Foreign interventionists in the Syrian Civil War fighting in furtherance of Saudi goals.

Criminals rarely if EVER make for good soldiers. Criminals accustomed to using violence but in almost all circumstances doing so against persons far weaker than themselves and not having an ability to resist. Criminals too not used to or again EVER comporting themselves in the manner of a soldier, accepting discipline of any sort.

Just a bad idea! Image however as accompanying this blog entry outstanding!

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Reflections.

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Concluding!

In finality an extract without comment from the Strategic Outpost column as seen at the War on the Rocks Internet web site:

"STRATEGIC OUTPOST AT 50 (COLUMNS): SOME REFLECTIONS"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel  JULY 5, 2017

"This is the 50th time that our 'Strategic Outpost' column has appeared at War on the Rocks. When we published our first piece on January 27, 2015, we had no idea how long our column would last or how it would be received. On this notable occasion, we’ve chosen to share some reflections about these past two and a half years for readers who may have joined us along the way."

"As we looked back on our body of work, here are some of our favorite pieces, by category"

* "Most Important"

"All of our columns are important, of course, but some of them stand out to us as particularly special, raising a critical issue or perspective that we hadn’t seen anywhere else."

* "Most Under-Appreciated"

"Some of our articles don’t resonate among our readers as strongly as others."

* "Most Controversial"

"We try not to wade into national politics too often, but it has been difficult to avoid during the past year."

* "Most Impact (That We Know Of)"

"Impact is notoriously hard to gauge, of course, but sometimes there are indirect indicators"

* "Most Fun"

"We love putting together periodic reading lists, because we get to expand our own horizons while helping our readers do the same."

Also and let us not forget: "I blog, therefore I am!!"

For yours truly as well! 

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Mirages.

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Assumptions regarding American military power as based on recent modern conflicts questionable?

What has worked in the past will not work so well [or work at all] in the future?

From Strategic Outposts:

"Mirages of War: Six Illusions From our Recent Conflicts"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel April 11, 2017

Six illusions as accepted as fact but indeed questionable:

* "Illusion 1: Warfare is Land-Centric."

* "Illusion 2: There Will Be Adequate Time to Adapt"

* "Illusion 3: American Technology Rules"

*" Illusion 4: U.S. Supplies runneth Over."

* "Illusion 5. There Will Be Plenty of High Tech Munitions."

* "Illusion 6: The United States Will Never Need a Draft."

NEVER AGAIN WILL THE UNITED STATES NEED A DRAFT [CONSCRIPTION] UNLESS A PROTRACTED WAR IN THE MANNER OF WW1/WW2/KOREA IS THE CASE? DEVOTED READERS TO THE BLOG CAN COMMENT? WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF SUCH AN INSTANCE OCCURRING? WHO HAS THE CRYSTAL BALL?

Modern warplane assembly of a F-15 for instance requires a minimum of eighteen months for the start/finish process, raw material to fly-able fighter jet! What is in the inventory now if gone will be hard to replace!

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Machine.

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Right and wrong, Hollywood style!

"What We Saw in War Machine"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel June 13, 2017

A movie review thanks to Strategic Outposts:

"War Machine (2017)"

Storyline:

"A general from the US is sent to Afghanistan to 'clean' the situation up after eight years of war in the country. He finds himself amongst tired soldiers and disillusioned politicians eager to leave. In this situation he feels his mission is to 'win' the war, something deemed impossible by everyone around him."

* "What the Movie Gets Wrong"

    "The General. Brad Pitt plays the movie’s lead character as a buffoonish and rather dull-witted (though sincere) stereotype of the modern American general."

    "The Chain of Command."

    "The Loyal Wingman."

    "The Afghan Strategy Spaghetti Chart."

    "McMahon the Runner."

* "What the Movie Gets Right"

    "The Isolation of Senior Wartime Commanders."

    "Wartime Pain for Military Families."

    "The Unending Rotation of Military Commanders"
   
* "The Fight for the Rolling Stone Cover"

* "The Big Takeaway"

    "Tilda Swinton brilliantly plays a German parliamentarian who politely but relentlessly grills McMahon about his war-winning strategy during a briefing in Berlin."

NO, I HAVE PERSONALLY NOT SEEN THE MOVIE OR EVEN READ THE BOOK.

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Limits.

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HARD POWER as a panacea to various critical world events neither desirable or even effective? FORCE of the military variety often counter-productive? President Trump behind the learning curve in this regard?

"hard pow·er - noun - a coercive approach to international political relations, especially one that involves the use of military power."

From Strategic Outpost courtesy the War on the Rocks Internet web site.

"Trump’s Next Task: Learning the Limits of Military Power"

David Barno and Nora Bensahel May 2, 2017

Limits as enunciated but I think hardly limited to:

* "First, Trump is, by all indications, enamored with military power"

* "Second, the Trump administration is reducing its non-military options by systematically gutting the civilian elements of U.S. national power, especially diplomacy and development."

* "Third, the Trump administration has too many generals influencing its thinking on national security."

* "Fourth, as noted earlier, Trump has now delegated nearly unprecedented decision-making authority to Secretary Mattis and U.S. military commanders in the field."

"THE BEST INTERNATIONAL LAW IS THE STRONGEST ARMY!" - - G.S. Patton.

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Obligation.

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Once more with extracts and commentary from the Strategic Outpost column of the Internet web site War on the Rocks. The topic in this particular instance the possible reinstatement of the military draft [conscription].

The professional all-volunteer military force of the United States now a done deal for over forty years and counting.

Conscription as was the norm for a twenty year period from Korea through Vietnam done away with and perhaps for all time?

Conscription however as a means of bolstering the American military with "warm-bodies" and "boots on the ground" not a done with forever concept?

Generally speaking military service seen as one of three most important duties of a citizen. Voting and jury duty as the other two.

"THE DEEPEST OBLIGATION OF CITIZENSHIP: LOOKING BEYOND THE WARRIOR CASTE"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel MAY 15, 2018

"Yet the remarkable success of the all-volunteer force masks its one profound disadvantage: It has become too easy for most Americans to believe that they are no longer responsible for fighting the nation’s wars. It has unintentionally sent the message that 'someone else' will take those risks and fight those fights. Since fewer than 1 percent of the population serves in the military, and most of those who now serve are related to someone who has served, the civil-military gap has expanded into a massive chasm."

"Why is this such a serious problem?"

"First, it makes it too easy for the nation to go to war. It is much easier to decide to send someone else’s children, parents, and friends to war than to send your own."

"Second, and even more importantly, in this era of renewed great power competition, the United States may well find itself having to fight wars of greater size, scope, and casualties that require more troops than the nation can recruit voluntarily."

AN AMERICAN MILITARY CONSISTING OF MOTIVATED AND PATRIOTIC AMERICANS WILLING TO DO THEIR DUTY SUPERIOR TO THE CONSCRIPT AND FOR THE MOST PART COMPELLED TO DO THEIR DUTY DRAFTEE? I FOR ONE DO BELIEVE SO.

ANYWAY, AMERICANS AS A WHOLE DO NOT WANT A RETURN TO CONSCRIPTION AND THE DRAFT. 

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CoS.

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Continuing additionally with extracts and commentary from the War on the Rocks Internet web site continuing column Strategic Outpost by Barno and Bensahel and thanks to both.

Kelly? A bad idea?

"Why No General Should Serve as White House Chief of Staff"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel September 12, 2017

* "First, having a retired general serve in such an unabashedly partisan role further blurs the boundaries between the military and politics, and erodes the long-standing reputation of the U.S. military as an apolitical institution."

* "Second, Kelly’s appointment promotes the myth that military leaders are superior to civilian leaders."

* "The final danger of having Kelly (or any military leader) serve as White House chief of staff is that any major policy failure occurring on his watch would undermine the standing of the military, rightly or wrongly."

A PRESIDENTIAL CHIEF OF STAFF [CoS] DOES NEED MANAGERIAL AND LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND IN ABUNDANCE. YOU DO NOT NEED THE PROVERBIAL SHRINKING VIOLET OR A PERSON WITHOUT STRONG BACKBONE. ANY MAN/WOMAN WHO HAS ACHIEVED THE RANK OF FLAG OFFICER POSSESSES MANAGERIAL/LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND IS PRACTICED AT SAME. KELLY HARDLY A BAD IDEA.

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Warning.

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MAD DOG FIRES A SHOT!

Further still an extract with my commentary from the Strategic Outpost column of the War on the Rocks Internet web site.

"JIM MATTIS FIRES A CLEAR WARNING SHOT"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel MARCH 20, 2018

"In case you missed it, here’s the most important sentence in the recently released National Defense Strategy: 'America’s military has no preordained right to victory on the battlefield.' These blunt words from Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis encapsulate the key theme of the document, which conveys a powerful sense of urgency about what it will take to fight and win the nation’s future wars."

"The Inside Message"

* "The National Defense Strategy clearly states that the central challenge to U.S. national security is 'the reemergence of long-term, strategic competition' with Russia and China."

* "Second, the National Defense Strategy states that the joint force needs to be resilient."

* "Third, the joint force needs to be able to rapidly adapt to a fast-changing and highly competitive operating environment."

"The Outside Message"

* "The National Defense Strategy is a fairly wonky document. Few Americans will read it, and most will not know it exists at all."

"won·ky - - adjective - - informal crooked; off-center; askew. (of a thing) unsteady; shaky. not functioning correctly; faulty."

WE ARE IN NOW A PERIOD OF GREAT POWER GEOPOLITICAL CONFLICT [SANS WARFARE] AS IT WAS IN THE PERIOD JUST PRIOR TO THE GREAT WAR [WW1]. WORLD GLOBAL MACHINATIONS BY A HOST OF DOMINANT NATIONS EACH HAVING AIMS AND GOALS WHICH ARE IN DIRECT COMPETITION.

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Misconceptions.

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What? Me worry?

Yet more, extracts with my commentary from the STRATEGIC OUTPOST column as seen at the War on the Rocks Internet web site.

"Why Americans Aren’t Really Worried About War With North Korea"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel January 16, 2018

AMERICANS NOT WORRIED ABOUT WAR NORTH KOREA? THEY OUGHT TO BE!

* Misconception #1: The U.S. military is the best in the world, so any war with North Korea will be short and decisive. While the first part of this statement is undoubtedly true, the second part leaps to the wrong conclusion.

* Misconception #2: Few Americans would die in a conventional war with North Korea.

* Misconception #3: War won’t impact Americans at home.

* Misconception #4: War won’t personally touch me or my family.

* Misconception #5: The war will end with the defeat of North Korea.

MORE AMERICAN CASUALTIES PROBABLY IN THE FIRST DAY OF A FULL-SCALE WAR WITH NORTH KOREA THAN KILLED IN GULF WAR ONE, GULF WAR TWO, IRAQI COUNTER-INSURGENCY AND AFGHANISTAN COMBINED!!

OUTCOME OF THE WAR MIGHT AGAIN RESULT IN YET ANOTHER STALEMATE WITH DESTRUCTION ON AN EVEN GREATER LEVEL THAN WAS THE CASE IN THE FIRST KOREAN WAR. [NOTE IT IS SOMEWHAT INCORRECT TO SAY THERE WAS A FIRST KOREAN WAR, FIGHTING ONLY CEASING WITH AN ARMISTICE BUT NOT A PEACE TREATY]

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Veterans.

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Yet still again more another extract with my commentary from the Strategic Outpost column as seen at the Internet web site War on the Rocks.

"HOW TO TALK TO A VETERAN"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel NOVEMBER 7, 2017

"This Veterans Day, the country will pause to honor those that have served in the U.S. military — including more than 2.7 million veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Yet, as many have noted, fewer than 1 percent of Americans serve in the military today, and they are growing increasingly distinct and isolated from the remaining 99 percent. Most Americans hold the men and women who have fought in these wars in high personal esteem, yet often struggle to connect with this new generation of veterans."

* "Questions to Avoid"

* "Questions to Ask"

* "How to Say 'Thank You'"

* "On the Lighter Side"

* "The Advanced Course: After Your First Conversation"

OTHER THAN WITH OTHER VETERANS I PERSONALLY NEVER HAD A CIVILIAN ASK ME A SINGLE DARN THING ABOUT MY MILITARY SERVICE.

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Assumptions.

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Again with extracts, those key points with my commentary from "Strategic Outpost"

"The U.S. Military’s Dangerous Embedded Assumptions"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel April 17, 2018.

Assumptions embedded and dangerous to include:

    * "The U.S. military still knows how to fight a major war."

    * "The United States can protect its ground forces from air attack."

    * "The U.S. Air Force will be able to fight effectively from contested bases."

    * "Stealthy aircraft will remain stealthy"

    * "Aircraft carriers can be both effective and survivable"

    * "U.S. submarines will remain undetectable."

    * "Amphibious operations remain viable."
   
    * "The U.S. military can protect its air and sea logistics pipeline"

    * "Advanced U.S. weapons systems will operate effectively under wartime conditions."

    * "The U.S. military can keep its secrets."

WITH REGARD TO STEALTH AIRCRAFT, DO NOT THINK STEALTHY WARPLANES ARE TOTALLY INVISIBLE. MERELY LESS VISIBLE. ENEMY REACTION TIME REDUCED SIGNIFICANT FOR EFFECTIVE ACTION TO BE TAKEN.

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Know.

This is coolbert:

Continuing with extracts from the Strategic Outpost column of the War on the Rocks Internet web site with my commentary.

 Army Chief of Staff Mark A. Milley wants you to know!

"Three Things the Army Chief of Staff Wants You to Know"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel May 23, 2017.

Those three key points the CoS wants you to know to include:

1. "Embrace the Suck"

"Milley talked at length about his views on how war will change in the future. He argued the fundamental nature of war (including fear, uncertainty, and chance, according to Clausewitz and others) will remain largely unchanged, but the character of war is evolving rapidly."

2. "Disobey Orders — Smartly"

"The future battlefield will not only be one of chaos and unpredictability, but will frequently lack reliable communications up and down the chain of command."

3. "Break Out of Your Bubble"

"With less than 1 percent of the population serving in the military, the divide between the military and American society is growing ever deeper."

NOT NECESSARILY DISOBEY ORDERS. EXERCISE YOUR INITIATIVE AS IS COMMENSURATE WITH A DYNAMIC SITUATION IN KEEPING WITH THE COMMANDERS ORIGINAL INTENT!1

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First.

This is coolbert:

As extracted from the STRATEGIC OUTPOST column of the War on the Rocks Internet web site that evaluation of the current Korean Crisis and possible use of atomic weapons of eliminating the North Korean nuclear threat as perceived.

IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE TRUMP/KIM SUMMIT, HOW MUCH MORE GERMANE CAN WE GET?

"THE GROWING DANGER OF A U.S. NUCLEAR FIRST STRIKE ON NORTH KOREA"

By David Barno and Nora Bensahel OCTOBER 10, 2017

"The escalating tensions over North Korea have brought the United States closer to war on the Korean peninsula than at any other time in decades. Yet Washington is just as likely as Pyongyang, if not more likely, to initiate the first strike — and would almost certainly use nuclear weapons to do so. Such a strike may be the only way to decisively end the North Korean nuclear program"

"The possibility of a first strike against North Korea has long been discussed as one way to address its growing nuclear threat. Yet very few understand the grim military logic that only an overwhelming surprise nuclear strike provides a decisive option. There is simply no other way to destroy North Korea’s nuclear capabilities while minimizing the risk of massive conventional or nuclear retaliation."

"There are two crucial reasons why a conventional first strike cannot be effective. First, the time lines involved are too long. It would require weeks or even months of preparation: building up troops, aircraft, and ships, as well as evacuating tens of thousands of U.S. citizens."

"Second, and more important, a conventional first strike simply cannot destroy enough North Korean military capability to prevent a retaliatory second strike."

CONVENTIONAL MILITARY AIR STRIKES AGAINST THE NORTH KOREAN NUCLEAR APPARATUS IN TOTALITY WILL NOT WORK! ONLY A NUCLEAR FIRST-STRIKE WILL WORK!

THREAT NOW LESSENED? WE SHALL SEE!

coolbert.

STRATEGIC.

This is coolbert:

Here with an introduction to a series of blog entries, "in the nutshell" postings, extracts from the "STRATEGIC OUTPOST" column of the Internet web site "War on the Rocks" Posts without regard to precedence or chronology.

"in a nutshell phrase of nutshell. 1. in the fewest possible words."

"STRATEGIC OUTPOST" a continuing column as authored by David Barno and Dr. Nora Bensahel.

As to the curriculum vitae [CV] of the authors:

"Lt. Gen. David W. Barno, USA (Ret.) is a Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the School of International Service at American University and a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brent Scowcroft Center at the Atlantic Council. He was senior American commander of U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan from 2003–2005. Barno was a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. He has published extensively and testified before Congress numerous times."

"Dr. Nora Bensahel is a distinguished scholar in residence at the School of International Service at American University. She was most recently a senior fellow and codirector of the responsible defense program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), where she previously served as deputy director of studies."

WHEN GENERAL BARNO AND DR. BENSAHEL SPEAK, WE SHOULD ALL LISTEN? THAT IS THE QUESTION?

Personally I rate the Internet web site War on the Rocks and the STRATEGIC OUTPOST column highly and recommend to all devoted readers of the blog, without reservation or qualification.

See all my comments in CAPITAL LETTERS and understand I am not SHOUTING!

THANKS to General Barno and Dr. Bensahel in all cases too.

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Tinian WW2.

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Best amphibious operation of the entire Second World War!

Tinian, 1944. First it was Saipan. then it was Guam. Then Tinian. The Marianas Campaign, World War Two.

As extracted from: "1001 Things Everyone Should Know About WWII".

"This ten-mile-long [sixteen kilometers] islet shuddered under a forty-three-day air/sea bombardment before the 2nd and 4th Marine Division . . . went ashore on July 24, 1944. Opposed by more than 8,000 Japanese soldiers, the Marines overwhelmed organized resistance by August 1, with a little mopping up left to be done. U.S. losses came to 295 killed and 1,554 wounded while the Japanese lost 7,000 killed along with 316 prisoners."

"Marine lieutenant general Holland M. Smith, heading the Marianas Expeditionary Troops, thought Tinian the best amphibious operation of the Pacific campaign."

See this Marine Corps news reel type documentary movie the subject of which is the Tinian operation. They make it all sound so easy. And in comparison to other amphibious landings of  WW2 it probably was so. Tinian only three miles [five kilometers] from the southern most point of Saipan. Tinian is that very rare example of a military operation proceeding more or less according to plan, deviation in response to dynamics very limited?

Best a very subjective judgment in most cases but in the instance of Tinian we can all agree [??] the amphibious invasion of the island, reduction of the Japanese garrison and capture by U.S. forces was indeed the BEST of WW2.

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Death.

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Fact or fiction?

From the wiki entry for Directed-Energy weaponry we have this item:

"The fictional 'engine-stopping ray'"

"Stories in the 1930s and World War Two gave rise to the idea of an 'engine-stopping ray' [internal combustion engine]. They seemed to have arisen from the testing of the television transmitter in Feldberg, Germany. Because electrical noise from car engines [ignition coil minus radio wire] would interfere with field strength measurements, sentries would stop all traffic in the vicinity for the twenty minutes or so needed for a test. Reversing the order of events in retelling the story created a 'tale' where tourists car engine stopped first and then were approached by a German soldier who told them that they had to wait. The soldier returned a short time later to say that the engine would now work and the tourists drove off. Such stories were circulating in Britain around 1938 and during the war British Intelligence relaunched the myth as a 'British engine-stopping ray', trying to spoof the Germans into researching what the British had invented in an attempt to tie up German scientific resources."

A WEAPON IN THAT ERA BEFORE AND DURING WW2 THE CAPACITY AND PURPOSE OF WHICH WAS TO SHUT OFF THE INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE OF A WARPLANE WHILE IN FLIGHT!!

NO SUCH DIRECTED-ENERGY WEAPON "DEATH-RAY" DEVICE EXISTED BUT WAS THOUGHT FOR A TIME TO BE A POSSIBLE!

Now you know the rest of the story and are so much the better for it too.

"Here's looking at you kid!!"

coolbert.

6th Gen.

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From Sputnik and the original article as seen at Militarywatchmagazine.com.

"Chinese ‘Dark Sword’ is the First Sixth-Generation Warplane - Military Experts"

"The recently-revealed Chinese ‘Dark Sword unmanned aircraft, already dubbed a 'nightmare for the US,' might be the first military flyer to achieve the 'sixth generation' milestone."

"It should be noted that the definition of a ‘sixth-generation jet' is not yet defined. According to some, the jet must include direct-energy (laser) weapons and missile defenses and/or cyber-attack capabilities — apparently this means the plane should be able to hack the adversary's systems remotely — and travel at much longer range.

"The definition of a sixth-generation aircraft would then simply entail [include]: 'cheap, expendable and swarm-capable unmanned drone.'" .

TO REITERATE WHAT EXACTLY CONSTITUTES A SIXTH GENERATION WARPLANE?

Features to include: [but I think hardly limited to]

* Unmanned.
* Cheap.
* Expendable.
* Swarm-capable.
* Direct-energy weaponry?

VARIOUS OF THE WORLD MILITARY POWERS HARDLY NOW ABLE TO PLACE INTO THE AIR FIFTH-GENERATION FIGHTER PLANES, WARPLANES EXPENSIVE AND TOUCHY, DIFFICULT TO MAINTAIN AND SUSTAIN DURING A PERIOD OF PROLONGED COMBAT CONDITIONS.

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Slim.

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Bill Slim. Viscount Slim of the Arakan.

More on the famous British general officer from the era of the Second World War [WW2].

Extracts with commentary from the "The Reader's Companion to Military History" and thanks in measure to the article by Williamson Murray.

See previous here and here blog entries the topic of which was Bill Slim.

Operational plans [OPLAN] of the British Fourteenth Army in Burma as mandated by Slim to incorporate in all instances:

1. "The ultimate intention must be for an offensive one."

2. "The main idea on which the plan is based must be simple."

3. "That idea must be held in view throughout and everything must give way to it."

4. "The plan must have an element of surprise."

Imphal and Kohima excellent examples of the strategic defensive of which Slim as was Wellington before him a master.  Strategy offense - - tactics defense.

"The attack of a position is becoming notably more difficult than its defense. The defensive during the first phase of battle offers a decisive superiority. The task of a skillful offensive will consist of forcing our foe to attack a position chosen by us, and only when casualties, demoralization, and exhaustion have drained his strength will we ourselves take up the tactical offensive.... Our strategy must be offensive, our tactics defensive."  - - Von Moltke [the Elder]

This also regarding Bill Slim:

"His memoirs rank with those of Ulysses S. Grant as one of the few honest testaments to the profession of arms by a great general."

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Geography II.

This is coolbert:

Continuing and concluding.

Your military geography lesson further all thanks once more to the "The Reader's Companion to Military History" and the article by Robert Cowley

1. Oceans.

"the greatest part of the earth's surface has been hardly, if at all, touched by war. Most of History's major naval battles, for instance,  have been fought inshore, often as an adjunct to land campaigns. Opposing naval forces have trouble finding one another in the open ocean . . . even as late as World War II."

ON THE WATER AND BELOW THE WATER BOTH IN THE MODERN CONTEXT.

Just in number of participants the largest naval battle of all-time fought entirely inland, brown-water naval combat.

2. Seventy percent [70 %].

"'Almost seventy per cent of the world's 60 million square miles [about 160 million square kilometers] of dry land' . . . 'is either too high, too cold, or too waterless for the conduct of military activities.'" - - Sir John Keegan.

With exception consider [and then only on a limited basis] areas such as desert, jungle, woodland historically not places where large-scale combat fought.

Woodland where the predominant growth of trees is eighteen inches or greater [about forty-six centimeters] in diameter normally not passable by an armored force.

URBAN TERRAIN AND URBAN WARFARE IN ADDITION GENERALLY PRESENTING A SERIES OF DIFFICULTIES UNIQUE AND HAZARDOUS IN THE EXTREME FOR THE ATTACKING FORCE. URBAN WARFARE TO BE AVOIDED IN ALL POSSIBLE CIRCUMSTANCES.

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Geography I.

This is coolbert:

Some aspects of military geography I was not so conversant with. From an entry by Robert Cowley as seen in the "The Reader's Companion to Military History".

1. "Armies have always chosen the paths of least resistance, staked out by geological features."

Paths to include [but hardly limited to]:

* Bosporus.
* Northern Italy.
* Israel [Levant].
* Khyber Pass
* Flanders.
* Eurasian steppe land.

For clarification:

* Levant that area directly adjacent to the eastern most coast of the Mediterranean.
* Khyber Pass only one of several passes through the mountains acting as a barrier between Afghanistan and the Indian sub-continent.

2. "Certain areas are combat-intensive, it follows that military actions have converged repeatedly on a handful of places."

Areas to include [but hardly limited to]:

* Vimy Ridge.
* Panipat.
* Jerusalem.
* Adrianople.

WITH REGARD TO THE LATTER: "Adrianopole [now called Edirne] west of the Bosporus" that "most fought-over place" . . . "Adrianople has witnessed no fewer than fifteen major battles and sieges between 323 A.D. and 1913 A.D."

MOST fought over. Hardly a good thing I would think.

Give us this day your daily geography lesson and all devoted readers to the blog are more the better for it too. Yours truly included!

More to follow!

coolbert.

Chi-kuang.

This is coolbert:

Thanks in part here to the "The Reader's Companion to Military History"as edited by Cowley and Parker an extract from the entry by William McNeill with my commentary.

Consider the Chinese combat commander Ch'i Chi-kuang a leader at least an equal to Napoleon and even beyond that!

Ch'i Chi-kuang. Chinese general. 1527-1587.

"Ch'i Chi-Kuang initiated reforms of tactics and training that allowed Chinese troops to move safely across the steppe lands of East Asian and use their superior numbers to defeat nomad horsemen decisively and permanently in ensuing decades."

Training and tactics to include:

* Incessant drill.
* Cart divisions.

Read of the Chinese "cart divisions" their organization and how employed in combat.

"The Chinese state as we know it today thus came into existence, largely on the strength of the improvement in tactics and training that General Ch'i instituted."

As to Ch'i at least an equal to Napoleon and perhaps even more proficient and successful as a combat commander add defeat of the wokou pirates as an additional big plus to the impressive resume of General Ch'i.

Ch'i a combat commander and practitioner of the operational art again at least an equal to a Napoleon?  You the devoted reader to the blog decide for yourself.

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Valmy.

This is coolbert:

Valmy not listed as one of: "The Ten Most Important Land Battles." but perhaps it should be.

Before there was Napoleon there was Dumouriez and Kellermann [the Elder].

"The Battle of Valmy, 20 September 1792, was the first major battle of the War of the First Coalition, and saved the infant French Republic from early destruction. French victorious over the coalition forces of Austria and Prussia. Efforts to restore a French monarchy by the coalition in vain.

NO French victory at Valmy and NO French Republic. NO French Republic, NO Napoleon. NO Napoleon or French Republic and modern European history and indeed world history irrevocably changed.

"The new commanders arrived in mid August. On 16 August General Charles François Dumouriez took command of the Army of the North, while on 27 August General François Etienne Christophe Kellermann [Kellermann the Elder] took over the Army of the Centre. The two French armies were made up of soldiers from the old Royal army, with a sprinkling of volunteers. At Valmy it would be the experienced Royal artillery that would win the day."

"The battle of Valmy ensured the continuation of the French Revolution."

You need not say anymore!

The Austrian and Prussian in coalition. Warfare by coalition difficult at best.

Kellermann at Valmy the father of the famous Kellermann of the Napoleonic era, the two not to be confused.

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Forty.

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Gör dig redo för imorgon

'In time of peace prepare for war!" - - Cicero.

SWEDISH HOME GUARD DRILLS! FIRST TIME IN OVER FORTY YEARS!

SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME?

From the Russian media outlet Russian Times [RT] and with thanks to same.

"War cry: Sweden mobilizes all its reservists for 1st time in 40 years (PHOTOS)"

"For the first time since the height of Cold War, Sweden has called its entire Home Guard force – 22,000 reservists – for snap exercises."

"Sweden mobilized all 40 Home Guard battalions in an unprecedented exercise that has not been held since 1975. The drills marked the National Day of Sweden, celebrated on June 6."

. . . .

"The main task of the Home Guard is to fulfill secondary military roles, such as patrolling and guarding important infrastructure objects, while the standing army is engaging an enemy at the front lines."

HOME GUARD HAVING A COMBAT CAPABILITY BUT MORE OR LESS IN A DEFENSIVE AND PASSIVE POSTURE!

FORTY THAT NUMBER SIGNIFYING THE END OF ONE ERA AND THE BEGINNING OF ANOTHER! SURELY THIS IS SO!

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Radio WW2.

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A MUST!

6 June 1944. The D-Day invasion, Normandy, France.

AS IT WAS REPORTED BY THE NATIONAL [USA] RADIO MEDIA.

Thanks to the tip from Al.

I recommend highly without qualification or reservation. Listen 

"Complete Broadcast Day D-Day [CBS]"

"D-Day Broadcasts: Compare and Contrast."

"It's fascinating to listen to CBS News' careful, scrupulously-vetted accounts of the Normandy landings (often based on confusing, fragmentary information). Compared with modern media debacles . . . this is exemplary work---should be mandatory listening for student journalists."

"Complete Broadcast D-Day [NBC]"

"Subject: What Was It Like On June 6, 1944? Listen To These Podcasts!"

"Because these are recordings of the original live news reports, you can learn how the American people were informed of the D-Day invasion."

". . . . On this particular occasion, the producers of that program decided to rebroadcast excerpts of radio news coverage of that day."

MODERN JOURNALISTS AND JOURNALIST STUDENTS AND ESPECIALLY THOSE IN THE BROADCAST MEDIA COULD BENEFIT GREATLY BY LISTENING TO THESE BROADCASTS? I MIGHT VENTURE SO!

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Doomed.

This is coolbert:

With the context of these prior blog entries here and here consider also these comments of an acknowledged aviation authority, the Turkish Air Force now rendered for all practical purposes null and void, combat ineffective now and for the foreseeable future:

[what follows is profound and heavy stuff!!]

"The more complex a military weapons system is, the more complex and lengthy the manner of choosing, training, and maintaining its personnel is. A fighter plane force needs pilots who are chosen from a large pool of available, qualified people, who show the right amount of intelligence, physical skill, ability to learn, open mindedness receptive to training, and desire to learn throughout a career."

"Erdoqan’s efforts to turn his fighter pilot forces into a religiously correct, politically reliable fighting force are doomed to failure . . . [choosing pilot candidates on the basis or religious and political reliability] will automatically exclude the most capable people in the pool of prospective pilots."

"All military organizations are comprised of several levels of people—a progression of education, experience, and maturity.  Removing all levels at once means . . . you have to take up to three years to properly train and prepare a qualified fighter pilot: one year for basic pilot training (more if he or she needs physics and math training), up to one year for fighter pilot training, then at least one year before the young pilot is really considered 'combat ready' to do his or her job."

"After that, there needs to be a level of experienced pilots to lead and add to the training of the newer pilots.  You can’t just throw a bunch of newly minted fighter pilots into combat without having older, experienced ones to lead them and show them how to fight wars beyond what an instructor tells them in a training unit.  Each unit fights together, combining different roles and formations in different missions.  These roles and formations may even differ from week to week, as an enemy adjusts or alters its approach."

"Finally, there has to be a level of top leadership, comprised of the most senior officers in each fighter unit—the ones whose vast experience and continued training throughout their careers has prepared them to make the tough decisions, identify and promote the up-and-coming future leaders, and to ensure that the right training programs, opportunities and efforts are directed in the way that benefits the unit and the nation."

"So after the training phase of about three years to make a qualified combat pilot, it should take years more to make a force that includes new pilots and the mid-level combat qualified pilots who are the leaders of combat formations and who add to the training and education of the new pilots. Then there is the years of weeding out, promoting and further educating the experts and highly qualified, and maturing of the senior officers who can guide and direct the entire force into total effectiveness."

"The guidelines for bringing up a senior level of fighting men to existence do not necessarily equate with the best men/women available when the criteria still demands the most politically or religiously reliable people be considered ahead of other, more secular qualities of science, experience, education, and maturity."

"Removing all three levels to make the force more reliable in ways that have nothing to do with the science and skill of flying complex machines in war ensures that an Air Force will remain ineffective for at least the three years needed to select and train its new fighter pilots, and then it will be relatively less effective for the rest of its history, so long as a program designed to keep out the most qualified pilot selectees, mid-level officers, and senior officers, is in place."

"It is guaranteed."

IT IS GUARANTEED! TODAY, TOMORROW, PERHAPS FOREVER!

And thank you acknowledged aviation authority! Most impressive.

coolbert.

Mob II.

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Conclusion.

Herewith comments of an acknowledge military authority the topic of which is the mobilization process as was the case in those days just prior to the commencement of hostilities, The Great War [WW1]: 

"Yes, all mob [mobilization] plans, once started, could not be undone. Most countries’ plans had no where to keep the huge masses of men; they were assigned road routes right up to the border. No nation could ignore entire armies standing spring-loaded along its borders in an invasion posture, unless it had its own maximum number of troops there, ready to resist or counter invade in another location. Many mob plans included a swift move into invasion, as there were only plans to feed, equip, and shelter men already moving into battle inside the enemy’s area. As German soldiers debarked from trains to their mob stations on the border, they were pushed forward by the mass of troops unloading just behind them. One Belgian citizen reported seeing German soldiers march on the street by his house by the tens of thousands per hour, somewhere well inside his country for ten hours straight without break, none of whom had seen combat yet. A huge grey river of humanity."

"How, indeed, do you stop that clock. No country had any option but to mobilize its own masses in response, often with their own invasion plans at the same time. Or, if not mobilized, have it’s politicians talk to an enemy whose Army-led diplomats already knew they were holding a gun pointed across the table at an enemy who came empty handed. You can’t bluff a man in poker where you and your opponent know he has four aces and you have nothing, not even a pair of deuces. The only discussion will be how much you will pay him to feed and clothe his troops in your house. And where to stack your army’s rifles for the enemy to pick up."

ONCE STARTED COULD NOT BE STOPPED! GET THERE FIRST WITH THE MOST!

And thank you acknowledged military authority.

coolbert.