Spanish Marines receive new Piranha APC's.

via Circle Trubia Blog.  Notice the Lancer Turret on one of the vehicles?  Another is sporting the Textron Systems manned turret.  The USMC has an opportunity (rather BAE does) to standardize the Western world's Marines Corps on the AAV upgrade as the standard or the winner of the Marine Personnel Carrier Contest.  Either vehicle could quickly become the standard vehicle for amphibious forces...think Leopard 2 but in APC form.

Japanese Type 10 Tank.

A beautiful tank but I wonder how survivable it can be at a mere 44 tons. Quite honestly its almost the same weight class as most IFV's now.  It is undoubtedly strategically mobile but is it survivable on the modern battlefield or are we seeing the re-birth of the tank destroyer in all but name?

Russian Swimmer Delivery Vehicles.

 Covert Naval Blog appears to be dead now, but they have a fascinating series of articles on mini-subs and swimmer delivery vehicles.  Abpve are a few pics from one of their articles.  If you have an interest, I recommend you head over and grab a little info before the internet demons kill the pages forever.

E-2C Hawkeye

VENTURA, Calif. (Nov. 20, 2012) E-2C Hawkeye aircraft assigned to the Wallbangers of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 117 fly over the Pacific Ocean near Ventura, Calif. VAW-117 is a command and control and airborne early Warning Squadron dedicated to deliver time critical situational awareness to warfare commanders and coalition partners. (U.S. Navy photo by Command Master Chief Spike Call/Released) 121120-N-ZZ999-005

VENTURA, Calif. (Nov. 20, 2012) E-2C Hawkeye aircraft assigned to the Wallbangers of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 117 fly over the Pacific Ocean near Ventura, Calif. VAW-117 is a command and control and airborne early Warning Squadron dedicated to deliver time critical situational awareness to warfare commanders and coalition partners. (U.S. Navy photo by Command Master Chief Spike Call/Released) 121120-N-ZZ999-008

Prepping. You're doing it wrong and lessons from a Sandy survivor.

Quite honestly I've been wanting to do a post on this subject...
1.  On why we haven't heard anything from preppers that went through the Sandy.
2.  Why I think most preppers are doing it wrong.

The first got answered.  You can go here to read a list of one survivors experiences...a few tidbits though...

*You quickly become the guy in the neighborhood who knows how to wire a generator to the electrical panel, directly wire the furnace to a small generator, or get the well pump up and running on inverter power or you are the guy whose Master’s degree in Accounting suddenly means nothing. (Love you Steve!)*I was surprised how many things run on electricity!*. If you do not have water stored up you are in trouble.

• a. A couple of cases of bottled water is “NOT” water storage

If you check out most prepping videos on YouTube they always focus on firearms/get home bags/bug out vehicles etc...That's just not how things normally work.

Bugging in will more than likely be the default position for most people.  So making your home "fortified" as in livable in a power down situation makes sense.  Additionally guns and bags are neat.  They're fun.  They're hobbies in most cases.

A gun for use by preppers is a self defense  and harvesting tool.  You can defend yourself from two legged vermin and you can use it to harvest food.  To emphasize your hobby instead of actually preparing for bad times will cost alot of people.  Most notably is water.  That's one of my take aways from the Sandy Storm.  When the grid goes down, water goes away.  And unfortunately we use a helluva lot more than we realize.  I'm personally going to try and determine how much I use a day and then plan accordingly.  Something tells me that those 55 gallon water containers I've been looking at will get pushed up in priorities.

Food is another take away.  I'll never forget the lady saying that she was gonna die unless she got help.  That's another pressure on your water supply.  Food prep and sanitation.  Having enough food to last for at least a month should be the baseline from the experience with Sandy.  Quite honestly, probably two months should be the base.  USGOV website talking 72 hours is unmitigated bullshit.  Even winter storms cause outages that last longer.

Last but not least the biggest takeaway was that during these type situations the last place I want to be is in a government shelter.  I can't confirm the stories but if you search the internet you'll see stories that make prison look as welcoming as some of the places they were sheltering people.  I also remember the issues with Katrina and personally vow that I will never let myself or loved ones become "wards" of the state or federal government.

Preppers.  We're doing it wrong.  Time to go back to the drawing board.

*Note*  For those of you that don't prep, no problem.  I'm sure you'll be fine.  

One-man foxhole protects against tanks. ( FM 5-15: Field Fortifications, U.S. War Department, February 1944.)

via Lone Sentry Blog.

I'm really surprised that the training manuals from that time didn't emphasize the need for grenade sumps or reinforcement in sandy conditions.  I've read too many stories about Tiger tanks simply spinning in place burying troops in the defense.

USS Enterprise infographic.

Son of a bitch! They already made the move to put women in the infantry!

Feel good lady.  You and yours took what many men failed to earn...all because you have ovaries and leadership that's too scared to call bullshit on bullshit.

via the Daily Reporter...

SAN DIEGO — Marine 1st Lt. Brandy Soublet is about as far from the war front as possible at her desk in the California desert, but she's on the front lines of an experiment that could one day put women as close to combat as their male peers.
The Penfield, New York woman is one of 45 female Marines assigned this summer to 19 all-male combat battalions. The Defense Department in the past year has opened thousands of combat positions to women to slowly integrate them and gauge the impact such a social change would have on the military's ability to fight wars.
No branch is likely to feel that change more than the Marine Corps.
The small, tight-knit force is the most male of the armed services and prides itself on having the toughest and most aggressive warriors. The Corps historically has higher casualty rates because it is considered to be the "tip of the spear," or the first to respond to conflicts. It also was among the last military branches to open its doors to women, forming the first female Corps in 1943, according to the Women's Memorial in Washington D.C.
But changing times are challenging the traditions of the force, long likened to a brotherhood.
Modern warfare has put women in combat like never before over the past decade, even though a 1994 policy bars them from being assigned to ground combat units below the brigade level, which were considered too dangerous since they are often smaller and closer to combat for longer periods.
Already under pressure to provide the same opportunities for women, the Defense Department was hit Tuesday with a second lawsuit by female service members — including two Marines — charging that the gender barriers unfairly block them from promotions open to men in combat.
The lawsuits are intended to accelerate the military's slow march toward lifting the ban that plaintiffs allege has barred women from 238,000 positions.
Defense officials say they recently opened 14,500 jobs to women, and they need to move cautiously to ensure the change will not disrupt wartime operations. Soublet and the other 44 women are part of the quiet, slow transformation. Women make up about 7 percent of the Marine Corps compared to about 14 percent overall among the military's 1.4 million active military personnel.
She said some Marines initially eyed her pioneering presence in the all-male battalion with skepticism.
"The way that I would describe it to friends and family was it was kind of like I showed up to work in a costume," the 25-year-old logistics officer said in a phone interview from Twenty-Nine Palms, a remote desert base east of San Diego. "They stared a little bit but after a while it wasn't like that anymore."
That experience may play out on bases and boats worldwide as the Pentagon levels the battlefield.
The Corps earlier this year opened its grueling infantry officer training school to female Marines and surveyed 53,000 of its troops with an anonymous online questionnaire about the impact of erasing gender barriers. Survey results are expected to be released soon after review by the defense secretary.
Only two female Marines volunteered for the 13-week infantry training course at Quantico, Virginia, and both failed to complete it this fall. No women have volunteered so far for the next course offered in January, officials said.
Soublet said she was nervous she would feel unwelcome in the combat engineer battalion.
Six months into her historic assignment, she said she has been treated equally.
"I have heard, you know, whisperings, like 'Hey, before you got here we decided to maybe take down some pictures and clean up our language a little bit,' but other than that, they haven't really expressed anything to me," said Soublet, who will remain two years in her battalion and is expected to deploy with them to Afghanistan this spring.
The Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James F. Amos said he met with the top leaders of the 19 battalions and told them to establish the proper command climate. The early steps of assigning females to artillery, tank, combat engineer and other all-male battalions have been successful, but there may be some anxiety if women join infantry, Amos said.
Camp Pendleton combat Marine Carlos Laguna, who left the Corps in 2011, agreed.
"The screams of women, they have a big psychological effect on men. A woman just has a different pitch," said Laguna, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder after two tours in Iraq. "If we're in a firefight and a woman is shot or lost her arm, male Marines like me would want to stop and help. It's our nature to help women."
The survey addressed those concerns, asking males if they would be distracted or "feel obligated to protect female Marines." It also asked whether women would be limited because of pregnancy or personal issues.
Female Marines were asked if they would feel pressured to suppress their femininity.
Former Marine Capt. Kristen Kavanaugh, who runs The Military Acceptance Project, a San Diego-based organization promoting equality in the services, found those questions offensive.
"I don't think women who signed up to give their life for their country are worried about the appearance of their femininity," she said.
Former Camp Pendleton Marine Capt. Anu Bhagwati was only the second woman to complete a martial arts instructor training school, earning a black belt in close combat techniques. But she said years of discrimination caused her to quit in 2004.
"I learned early on that the Marine Corps will expect you to fail if you are a woman," said the head of the Service Women's Action Network, which helped the women file the lawsuit. "I faced so much discrimination and sexual harassment that it made me wonder why I was serving."
Soublet said in her three years in the Corps she has found her fellow Marines to be respectful and professional.
"This isn't a big deal," she said. "We're Marines, we're here to do a job and it doesn't matter what our gender is."

The worse part?

The total lack of institutional honesty.  I've seen it from the Commandant's Office, the SgtMajor of the Marine Corps office and from extensions such as USNI.

Instead of honestly telling Marines that women will be allowed in combat per orders of the President of the United States they've fed us all bullshit.

I find the fact that social change is more important to the Marine Corps than winning the war that we're in and getting ready for the next one disturbing.  We have a child in the white house and it seems we have cowards in the Pentagon...but most especially in and around the Commandant's lair.  The lack of leadership will be the reoccurring theme when the history of the Marine Corps during this era is written.  From Jones up to Amos these bastards will be vilified---and rightfully so.  

Japanese Type 1 Ho-Ki Armored Personnel Carrier: One of the world's first "modern" APC design.

stats via Lone Sentry Blog (you really should subscribe if you have an interest in WW2).

 U.S. intelligence report and photograph of the "Ho-Ki Armored Tracked Personnel Carrier" appeared in the Catalog of Enemy Ordnance:This vehicle serves as an artillery prime mover and as a personnel carrier for 24 men. It appears to be of recent manufacture, and its first known appearance in combat was during the Leyte campaign in the Philippines.
It is a full-tracked vehicle armored with 1/4-inch plate throughout. The engine which is located at the right front of the body is a 6-cylinder, in-line, valve-in-head, air-cooled diesel of a type similar to those used in the Model 2595 light tank and the combination prime mover and wrecker. Two fuel tanks provide an estimated total capacity of 50 to 60 gallons.
The tracks and suspension are of the conventional Japanese design, using dual bogie wheels and a steel center guide track. The four bogie wheels, apparently identical with those on the Model 2595 light tank, are mounted on bell cranks and are sprung by horizontal coil springs which are inclosed within the body armor with only the bogie arms exposed. There are two return rollers. The track is driven from the rear. A clutch and brake steering system is used. The transmission provides four speeds forward and one reverse. A high and low transfer case is also provided.
A mount for a 7.7 mm machine gun is located on the left front of the driver’s compartment. The vehicle does not mount a winch, but is provided with a spring mounted towing pintle for use as a prime mover. It has a capacity of from 2 to 3 tons if used as a cargo carrier. Maximum speed is reported as approximately 35 miles per hour, with exceptionally good cross-country performance due to the amount of track area in contact with the ground in relation to the weight of the vehicle.
SPECIFICATIONS

Length (overall)		15 ft., 9 ins.
Width (overall)		6 ft., 8 ins.
Ground contact		9 ft., 10 ins.
Width of track		10 ins.
Pitch of track		3-13/16 ins.
Track links		125
Speed (maximum)		35 m.p.h.
Armor (reported)		1/4 in.
Armament		7.7 mm machine gun
Engine		6-cylinder, in-line, valve-in-head, diesel.
Transmission		4 speeds forward, 1 reverse; high and low range.
Steering		Clutch and brake system
Seating capacity		24

This vehicle along with the LVT series, M75 and the other Japanese amphibious vehicles could easily be called the first modern APCs.  They all laid out the basic framework for what we have today.

Wild Hog Kill. Don't watch if squeamish.

I'm really getting into this wild boar hunting in a big way.  Year round hunts without a sideways glance from Game Wardens?  Love it!

Anyway, I learned a couple of things that I thought I'd pass on to you...

1.  They have built up scar tissue which explains why they're so hard to put down and why bullet placement is so important.  It runs from the neck past the rib-cage which is why you can hit them and they bounce up and scamper away.

2.  They're a bigger problem than most people are admitting.  The PETA types are putting our natural resources in jeopardy because of the restrictions on hunting that they've put in place in some of the more liberal areas of the country.  They're called a nuisance species for a reason.

3.  There are actually people that kill them with knives.  I don't have the courage to try that.  250 pounds of wild boar trying its best to rip my throat with its tusks indicates a need for firepower.  Still some are really into it.

4.  Trained dogs make it easier but I just couldn't see risking it with my animals.  I've seen pics of dogs that got shredded and its not a pleasant sight.

5.  They make you earn the kill.  Unless you have scouted the area pretty thoroughly and know there patterns (which could change if they start seeing TOO much human activity).  Expect to find them in the thickest, swampiest, rat and snake infested areas of a property...unless you're able and willing to set up feed stations for them...even then it can be hit and miss.

6.  Sows are good.  Piglets are good.  Boars are terrible.  Tasting that is.  I never took the chance cause the meat always smelled so rank when I tried to dress one big boar I took.  It was confirmed by some old timers I talked to.  Don't even mess with them...and definitely don't try and cook it out.  You won't be able to stay in your house for a week.  You can cook it well, chop it up and feed it to your dogs.  Don't let them eat it raw though.  The dangers of that should be obvious.

Last but not least.  If you care for your natural habitat then do your community a favor and kill a wild pig.

A must read from the Marine Gazette.

Read it.

Absorb it.

Debate it.  And then subscribe to the Gazette Blog.

The Red Dragons Strikes...Meeting Engagement II...section 5.

Badger Flight...ten A-10C's flying into Liberia...
The air was thick down low and Capt Collins was getting a fair bit of buffet on his flight in.  He was leading a 5 ship formation into hostile airspace and although top speed wasn't what the fighter jocks would be impressed with, when you're 50 feet off the ground on a pitch black night it kinda makes things a bit more relative.  The fast attack boys in the F-15E's were suppose to have eradicated the anti-air danger and had moved on to secondary targets...specifically the Chinese armor.

You can never be sure though and for the 3rd time in 10 minutes he performed  radio checks, confirmed kill boxes and established targeting priorities.  Armor first---tanks and armored personnel carriers---artillery second----self propelled and towed---infantry third, in the open or in identified fortifications and then any anti-air they ran up against.

That crazy, bible thumping, swearing Deputy CINC wanted blood.  An interesting guy Howling Mad was.  He could pray to keep his guys safe and turn around without missing a beat and pray that God allow his men to kill every son of a bitch that went up against his extended family---the United States of America.  Civilians would find that thought process to be an impossible paradox. Capt Collins thought it was beyond cool.

He paused and considered something that mad him laugh inside.  He was never a praying man himself but the more he thought about it the more he knew that on this night he was praying at the alter of death and destruction.  It was nothing personal.  He didn't know the guys on the ground...on either side...but he wanted to wipe enemy blood off his canopy when this was all over.

Dragon Flight...thirty SU-30's rocketing into Liberian airspace.
Major Tran was a rising star in the Chinese Air Force.  He was a family man and he was a patriot.  He was not one of the architects of the mission in Liberia but his nation called upon him to help defend his countrymen.

Tran liked American culture.  Enjoyed the music, loved the movies and clothes and quite honestly believed that the two country's had more in common than they had differences.

That was then.  This is now.

Tran ordered his flight to go supersonic.  American warplanes had bombed Chinese troops.  This was the first of many fighter sweeps to keep the capitalist dogs at bay.  If they could not return the respect that he and his countrymen gave to others then he would at least earn their fear.

Tran readied his AA-12 missiles, test fired his gun and watched his screens.  He saw 10 enemy airplanes flying low swirling up and down bombing his people.

The first meeting between the Chinese and American air forces was seconds away.

1stSgt Alexander.  75th Ranger Regiment on the ground in Liberia
The entire command element had been wiped out--they walked into a well laid enemy ambush.  The fighting had been intense but it really was a done deal...Rangers are good.  No.  Fuck that.  Rangers are terrific.  But terrific don't cut it when you're staring down the barrel of a 30mm cannon mounted on a Norinco 8x8.

Alexander had spent the last two days escaping and evading, making radio contact with Rangers when he could, picking up stragglers and basically---as far as he knew it, was the highest ranking Ranger left alive.  So far he had rounded up 45 of his boys and they were making their way to the coast line.  Hopefully the daredevils in the 160th would be able to extract them.  If not it was a long walk to Djibouti.

He wondered aloud how such a simple airport seizure could go so wrong.  Intel had definitely screwed the pooch and someone would taste his blade...if he made it out alive.  And considering how much enemy activity he was seeing that was a mighty big if.

All he could do is keep moving, think about his wife and kids and ask God for one more sunrise.  A bad day hasn't gotten any better and he really didn't expect it to.

section 6.  The fight is on.  USN steps in.  160th swoops low.  Chinese Mech Infantry/Tank Division lands.

42 Commando trains at 29 Palms.

Pictures: PO(Phot) Sean Clee, 3 Cdo Bde

The mortar troop fire star shells to illuminate the desert

He ain’t heavy… A Lima Company marine carries a comrade over the arid, scrawny Mojave terrain during the company-sized assault

Get some... one of the defenders of Operation Ruby tries to stop the oncoming marines with a machine-gun

Armscor is actually building the 22 TCM!

Armscor is actually building the 22 TCM.



Why SOCOM isn't all over this round is beyond me.  This could be a small arms game changer.  Add to it the work that the Marine Corps and Army Marksmanship Units SHOULD be doing to explore the possibilities and its obvious that civilian shooters are FAR ahead of anything that the military is doing.  Its really ironic.  Civilians are leading military and law enforcement when it comes to development now.  Bug out bags?  Took off in the civilian world and now the concept has come full circle to the military.  Piston driven AR's?  First sold to civilians because the Direct Impingement market was saturated and then the military climbed aboard.  Zombies?  Another marketing tactic to lure in more civilian shooters and then Federal Law Enforcement is all over it.

Hat tip to Zombie Hunter and everyone that sent info on this caliber!

The Marine Corps within the Marine Corps expands.

The Marine Corps is something I no longer understand.  Check this out.

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Special Operations Command recently stood up two new battalions as part of a reorganization effort designed to accommodate its influx of combat support and combat service support personnel.
The Marine Special Operations Logistics Battalion (MSOLB) and the Marine Special Operations Combat Support Battalion (MSOCSB) will house the nearly 800 Marines scheduled to join MARSOC’s support component by 2016. The new Marines will provide support in intelligence, engineering, explosive ordnance disposal and other capacities to MARSOC’s special operations teams, which often operate in forbidding and remote locations with little reach back to conventional support assets.  NOTE:  EXCEPT FOR MARINE AIR THEY'RE ORGANIZING A NEW MARINE EXPEDITIONARY BRIGADE UNDER THE BANNER OF SOCOM.
Now the need for critical support assets from conventional forces will be even less, as the new logistics battalion will fulfill roles in engineering, embarking and logistics, with Marines trained specifically to support MARSOC’s special operations missions.
“The support we’re going to be able to deliver to our deployed (Special Operations Task Forces) and companies is going to increase their survivability and their ability to conduct operations globally,” said Col. Jeffrey Fultz, commanding officer of the Marine Special Operations Support Group, which oversees the new battalions.
Fultz went on to say that MSOLB is one of the Marine Corps’s most unique logistics battalions, due to its Individual Training Program (ITP).
“For the first time in combat service support in the Marine Corps, the Marines (in MSOLB) will have an ITP,” said Lt. Col. Stephanie L. Walker, commanding officer of the new logistics battalion. “If you’ve ever been in any other unit with combat service support, you’re either deployed or you’re home doing your pre-deployment training. But you never get time to individually train. That’s what MSOLB offers these Marines; some time to hone their skills prior to going out in support of MARSOC.”
Each support Marine at MARSOC is required to complete a comprehensive checklist of individual training requirements, including the Special Operations Training Course (STC), and Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training. Added to a combination of unit training requirements and a short dwell time between deployments, MSOLB’s new ITP is a welcome change, said Walker.
The activation of MSOCSB also brings new advances to the command, particularly in the intelligence realm. A revision of MARSOC’s former intelligence battalion, now equipped with a communications company and a headquarters company, MSOCSB is capable of bringing every intelligence asset to the battlefield, providing another platform upon which MARSOC can operate independently.
“Combat support battalion’s Marines are not only able to find and fix, they’re also able to finish,” said Fultz. “With the addition of headquarters company, which includes Multi-Purpose Canines and Joint Terminal Attack Controllers, and communications company, they’re adding a whole new piece to their kit bag, and their ability to support MARSOC worldwide.”
Fultz went on to say that MARSOC has long prided itself on its ability to task organize a fully enabled and integrated SOF capability, largely through the fusion of operations and intelligence. Combat support battalion, with its additional assets, will enhance this capability.
Growth is steady, but slow. The Corps’s gradual downsizing of 20,000 Marines is shrinking the pool that MARSOC can draw from. However, according to Fultz, that won’t be a problem. MARSOC will continue to do more with less, as all Marines do.  NOTE: THIS IS UTTER BULLSHIT.  THEY'RE NOT DOING MORE WITH LESS AT MARSOC!  WHEN UNITS DEPLOY SHORT OF CANNINE OR EOD OR ANY OTHER CAPABILITY YOU CAN BET THAT IT'LL BE A CONVENTIONAL NOT MARSOC UNIT.  CONVENTIONALS ARE BEING FUCKED FOR MARSOC!
“We’re going to continue to ask a lot of you,” said Fultz, addressing a formation of MSOSG Marines. “We’re going to continue to push you. But I know you’ll continue to accomplish the mission."

All the SOCOM cheerleaders and fan boys will cheer this announcement.  All I can see is the beginning of the end for the Marine Corps.

UPDATE:  I just realized that the US Army Rangers, US Army Special Forces, US Navy SEALs and USAF Special Operations all provide more shooters (or at least the same number) with a smaller logistics tail.  The original goal of the US Army Rangers has been realized...They're out Marine-ing the Marine Corps.

NOTE:  It occurs to me that the arguments that the entire Marine Corps duplicates Army missions on land, Air Force & Navy air missions in flight and essentially performs a role that can be accomplished by a force more the size of the Royal Marines...THEN WHY KEEP THE USMC AROUND?  I mean seriously.  Consider this.  MARSOC is about the size of the Royal Marines now. I argue against it, but if one day it is decided that forcible entry from the sea is no longer needed OR can be performed by a much smaller organization---say one the size of MARSOC then how do we justify the Marine Corps?

The Red Dragon Strikes...Power Personified...Section 4.

Brigadier General John "Howling Mad" Strepkowski, USAF, was a walking, talking dinosaur.  He said what he thought, believed what he said and believed in God first, family second and Nation third.  Always.  In that order.  No zipper control issues here, Howling Mad (HM if you were a friend) was a warrior monk in an age where so called "values" shifted with the sand...belief systems were fudgable and people were generally chicken shit.

HM had a problem.  AFRICOM's CINC was out of area, doing the political thing in DC while US Army Rangers were on the ground in Liberia hookin' and jabbin, trying there very best to see another sun rise.

The politically correct thing for HM to do would to simply sit on his hands and wait till orders came in from DC.  Meanwhile precious time would be wasted and men would continue to suck sand in a far off land.  He wouldn't have it.  He immediately ordered the 23rd Tactical Fighter Wing (-) operating at Camp Lemonier to go into action.  On deck were 20 A-10C's...another 10 F-15E were also on the ramp.  Some smart ass blogger outted the operation so most aircraft were kept inside hangars so that the real numbers would go undetected.  30 attack airplanes with Brits providing ISR, Cargo and Refueling support via their A330's and he should be able to help keep those boys on the ground alive---at least till the dumbasses in DC could finally make a decision.

The plan was simple.  The F-15E's would head out at top speed to push the issue.  The Chinese had a nice little force of mechanized Para-troopers...they might be able to give transports hell but once the F-15's got finished with them, it would be a mopping up operation for the A-10's.

HM never went for the interservice nonsense.  He always considered it one fight, one force, one mission.

He'd bring every unit he had available in Africa together with one goal in mind.  Pull our brothers out of harms way.  Hang on guys.  Heaven's angels were coming...and they were pissed.

Zulu Flight....6 F-15E's led by Colonel Jonathan McMasters, USAF.
McMasters had just refueled from the Brit A330's, he called off from the tankers and radioed his flight to go to full military power.  They were rocketing along at just below the speed of sound carrying a full load of small diameter bombs.  Testing had revealed that at max altitude they could lob these bad boys at over 80 miles from the target.

The mission was simple.  They were going to divide the country into sectors and then the muzzles were coming off....Fangs were out teeth were barred and the Para-troopers were going to experience true death from above.

McMasters loved the fighting spirit of the 82nd and Rangers.  But when it came to death and destruction they were rookies.  His WSO called out the first target and he felt a couple of bombs drop off.  This was gonna be sweet.  But this was just the beginning.

China stabbed his country in the eye.  China fucked with America.  China was gonna get payback.  It started on a dark night with a flight of Eagles.

That night 25 8x8's were destroyed and 200 Chinese Para-troopers met their maker....unfortunately for them it was just the beginning.  The A-10's had just arrived to start working their kill boxes.

Things had suddenly changed.  Not only were US Army Rangers hooking and jabbing and trying to see another sun rise...but so were the Chinese Para-troopers.  A long night for both sides and the angel of death was just getting warmed up.

22nd MEU steaming toward the coast of Liberia.
The warning order was simple.  Prepare for combat operations in Liberia.  Opposing force is a Reinforced Chinese Brigade of Para-troopers.  Reinforcements are arriving aboard merchant ships acting as Privateers and the CIA has indicated that unusual air activity has been spotted in the area.  Colonel Bennett, didn't expect an opposed landing but he would make sure to coordinate with the Nimitz strike group and USAF units out of Djboutti.

Everyone thought that after Afghanistan, that a peace dividend would kick in.  Well that was bullshit...the same bullshit that every peacenik dreams of.

Reality is a bitch.

The US Marine Corps was once again heading toward a real deal shooting war and Bennett couldn't be happier.

X-47B Inaugural Land-Based Catapult Launch.

9mm necked down to 22 cal!

You know what sucks?

It sucks when you think you've hit on something revolutionary and then find out that it's already been done.  That's what happened today when I shot an e-mail to a friend of mine that reloads.  I said I wanted to try a bullet that had a super flat trajectory and could defeat most soft body armor.

My idea?  A necked down 9mm to a 22 cal.  Maybe even a 45 necked to 22.

The problem.

Armscor has been there and done that!  Why it isn't widespread is beyond me but the stats on this little wildcat are impressive.  Read a bit about it here.

UPDATE:
Thanks for all the info guys.  The more I read about this round the more excited I'm getting about it.  It blows the 5.7 away in performance and its potential would make a weapon equipped with it a one shot stopper.  The velocity almost rivals that of a rifle.  The testing I've seen shows that it penetrates hard targets with ease (I'm talking steel plates).    This is definitely going on the wish list.

Ronda Rousey: Cute but she'd kick your ass.

Saw her on my MMA feed.  Supposedly Dana is about to give the girls a try in the UFC...especially since its gaining traction in StrikeForce.  I'm not sure though.  Women's boxing is only see every four years and its been around for years.  Rousey is suppose to have skills...check out this vid...



See how she passes guard and mounts...and then just when Tweet thought she got out, she transitioned to an arm bar.

Fucking Sweet!  I originally was gonna go with her interview on Jim Rome's show but this is better.  

Ship Board Pull-Up Challenge! Yeah Baby! Git' It!

First Lt. James P. Rooney, platoon commander, Weapons Platoon, pulls himself up while 1st Lt. Murphy A. Bright, platoon commander, 3rd Platoon, both with Kilo Company, Battalion Landing Team 3/5, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, prevents him from swaying back and forth during the Campbell Cup Pull-Up Challenge in the gym of the USS Peleliu, Nov. 24. Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group worked in teams of seven to see who could do the most pull-ups in ten minutes. The 15th MEU is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group as a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. Rooney, 25, is form Long Island, N.Y., and Bright, 24, is from New York. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John Robbart III/Released)

Corporal Cesar Carrillo, technical controller, Command Element, and Capt. Samuel C. Ksiazkiewicz, embarkation officer, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364 (Rein.), both with 15th Marine Expeditionary unit, pull themselves up during the Campbell Cup Pull-Up Challenge in the gym of the USS Peleliu, Nov. 24. Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group worked in teams of seven to see who could do the most pull-ups in ten minutes. The 15th MEU is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group as a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. Carrillo, 24, is from Bell Gardens, Calif., and Ksiazkiewicz, 28, is from Jackson, Mich. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John Robbart III/Released)

Sergeant Maj. John W. Scott, sergeant major, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, pulls himself up during the Campbell Cup Pull-Up Challenge in the gym of the USS Peleliu, Nov. 24. Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group worked in teams of seven to see who could do the most pull-ups in ten minutes. The 15th MEU is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group as a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John Robbart III/Released)

Lance Cpl. Matt J. Mistretta, team leader, 1st Squad, 3rd Platoon, Kilo Company, Battalion Landing Team 3/5, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, pulls himself up during the Campbell Cup Pull-Up Challenge in the gym of the USS Peleliu, Nov. 24. Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group worked in teams of seven to see who could do the most pull-ups in ten minutes. The 15th MEU is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group as a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. Mistretta, 22, is from Reno, Nev. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John Robbart III/Released)

Marines with Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364 (Rein.), 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, take a moment to enjoy their recent victory, accruing 538 pull-ups during the Campbell Cup Pull-Up Challenge in the gym of the USS Peleliu, Nov. 24. Marines and sailors of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group worked in teams of seven to see who could do the most pull-ups in ten minutes. The 15th MEU is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group as a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force, providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. John Robbart III/Released)