The terrorist collapse continues in Syria. Will Turkey act more forcefully?

Jihadist collapse continues as Syrian Army advances into the heart of Jabal Al-Zawiya #SAA #Syria #Idlib https://t.co/tCJd5rRZrn

— Geopolitics.news (@GeopoliticsN) February 26, 2020

I find this stunning.  The Syrian Army is really moving on terrorist positions and appear to have a strength that I didn't know they had.

Quite honestly Turkey appears to be headed toward being forcefully expelled from Syria.

Will they act to prevent that?  Can they credibly do so if they have the desire?

I'm no longer sure.  Make no mistake about it.  This isn't about substandard equipment, this is about substandard soldiers.  For better or worse the terrorist started acting like a nation state army and its obvious they just can't hold ground.

Which leads to the solution to their problem.  If they were smart they would seek to melt back into the population.  Unfortunately (for them) they can't because so many are foreign fighters.  The same applies in Libya.

Turkey is about to get gut punched...and that doesn't include the damage that the Coronavirus will do to their economy.

Great image of a PLA Army Aviation Z-8G.

Great image of a PLA Army Aviation Z-8G.

(Image via @ZHANGWENTIAN天天 from Weibo) pic.twitter.com/hG4MFvz5uW

— @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) February 26, 2020

I said big cities would get slammed in the US...

At least 700 people in New York under voluntary quarantine over coronavirus fears https://t.co/PrGcIitkpg

— EndGameWW3 (@EndGameWW3) February 26, 2020

Wow.  Sucks to be in New York, that monstrosity known as the Eastern Seaboard, Los Angeles, San Fran, Atlanta, Baltimore etc....you guys are all about to be sick!

Soviet experimental Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21I (A-144) fighter jet

Soviet experimental Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21I (A-144) fighter jet pic.twitter.com/xaKM5FRfKT

— Caesar (@Ninja998998) February 26, 2020

Small Rant. I was right about Coronavirus...

Been away for a bit cause life jumped up and bit me in the ass but I can't let another day go by without chest thumping.

Remember me calling the current outbreak a pandemic?  They still haven't done it but I believe they're laying the groundwork.  Slow and steady drumbeat of the news so that the public isn't freaked out when its declared.

Next I think I was right when I asked if we shouldn't start getting our preps in order.  The US Govt has already called on individuals to prepare and if you're in this crowd you should already be making steps to ensuring you and yours are ready.  Afterall you heard it here first.

Lastly I don't believe the mortality rates one bit.  But even if they're right they're similar to the Spanish Flu.  This thing is gonna be intense if they can't get it solved.

Chest thumping over.

Question.  What should a family do to prepare for this outbreak?  What would be prudent steps?

Late Open Comment. 26 Feb 2020

Russia says Turkey hasn't honored Sochi agreement...

Turkey hasn't honored Sochi agreement on Syria: Kremlin https://t.co/VWWNGRnffR pic.twitter.com/x3cTJGZSLY

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) February 24, 2020

Uh oh.  Turkey has just found themselves between a rock and a hard place.  They turned their back on the US and EU, saddled up to Russia and felt good enough to give us all the middle finger.

Now their savior is apparently destroying well laid plans to annex part of Syria.

Even worse?

They apparently can't win a straight up fight against Russian air power and Syrian ground forces.

The worst case scenario is playing out for Erdogan.  No friends.  No annexation.  No revived Ottoman Empire.  The adventure in Libya is turning into a stunning defeat.  The adventure in Syria is faltering.

Add to all this craziness you have France backing Greece in their dispute with Turkey.

2020 is turning into an awful year for Erdogan.

The Coronavirus keeps spreading...S. Korea has the largest outbreak outside of China...

#BREAKING South Korea biggest #coronavirus centre outside China, 161 new cases pic.twitter.com/fUBzY0llYu

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 24, 2020

#BREAKING Wuhan reverses quarantine relaxation: official pic.twitter.com/GATmwl92DH

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 24, 2020

Now its only a matter of time before the Coronavirus affects the world economy.  With S. Korea being hard hit they're going to have to take measures to keep it from spreading...which means an economic slowdown which will affect others.

For the first we're seeing a major weakness of globalization.  This won't end it but it might alter it going into the future.  Time will tell.

Open Comment Post. 24 Feb 2020.

The low hanging fruit that the Marine Corps/Commandant is missing in the drive to synchronize with the Navy...

I've sat back and watched with anticipation some of the moves that the Marine Corps is making to "get back" to its Naval roots.

We're hearing talk of Medium Amphibious Assault Ships for a more dispersed force.  Talk of a new type of Marine Defense Battalions that can launch missiles against enemy vessels.

Emphasis is being placed on forward arming and refueling points to make sure that aviation and small units can operate far from our fleet that might be involved in the battle at sea.

But we're missing the low hanging fruit.

What about Marine Air?  What about the mix of F-35's that we're buying?

It's past time to keep Marine Air from gobbling up the rest of the Marine Corps. The solution is simple and obvious.

Dump the F-35C.  Buy Super Hornets and most especially E/A-18 Growlers!

Electronic Attack is going to be huge in future fights.  Even if you think that the F-35 can provide a modest attack capability in this realm you can't ignore the fact that the Growler is purpose built for this fight.

Even better is the fact that the joint force doesn't seem to be able to get enough of them.  Additionally it would allow Marine Air to not only integrate with NAVAIR but it would also allow the Corps to provide a valuable asset to the joint force.  No matter where the fight takes place E/A-18's would be welcome to jam, collect intel and attack enemy sensors.

The Navy is just buying a few F-35Cs.  As things stand the USMC is buying the bulk of them.  That's just unsat.  A mix of Super Hornets and Growlers would give us the airplane we need to become part of the sea battle.  Even better, both would be valuable in supporting efforts ashore.

It's really a no-brainer.  The Commandant should be bold.  Keep the F-35B if you must but the F-35C needs to go.  It just doesn't fit in with the plan laid out.

Erdogan admits the truth....He admits to sending terrorists to Libya!

So basically contributing to the development of Jihadists and prolonging conflicts, terrorizing already traumatized and terrified civilians and overall increasing regional instability. #Turkey #Libyahttps://t.co/VB5jcBm3Hr

— Hawzhin Azeez (@hawzhin_azeez) February 23, 2020

Coronavirus is spreading in Europe and Chinese leadership starts speaking the truth...

#BREAKING Italy's coronavirus infections jump to 79, including two deaths, says official pic.twitter.com/PldqTRUUw1

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 22, 2020

Ok.  The Italians are screening refugees CAREFULLY, even to the point of keeping them aboard rescue ships for 24 days until being allowed to step on their soil.

#UPDATE Xi says China facing "big test" with virus, global impact spreads https://t.co/eDhsW4Xb1i pic.twitter.com/c7GKcXgRER

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 23, 2020

Xi is saying this?  Things must be much worse than we're hearing in China.  Additionally Xi must be coming under much more pressure than we're hearing from party members.  Xi could be facing a challenge to his continued leadership of the party.  He either gets this fixed soon OR we might see a change at the top of Chinese leadership.

The implications are becoming a bit stark now.  We have an inkling of Xi.  We know that monster.  What happens if the next guy is even more nationalistic? What if he wants to see the challenge to America's dominance NOW instead of waiting till 2040?

I view China as being aggressive.  What if the next guy is hyper aggressive?  Much opportunity and much danger in this disease outbreak.  I wonder if national security experts are onto this yet.

Indian Mig-29K crash...

Photos of that Indian Navy MiG-29k that crashed today. 2/https://t.co/LlyZmhqMlR pic.twitter.com/jHuLwFCKf6

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) February 23, 2020

Turkish M60-TM's enter Idlib...

Akkor Pulat entegreli M60-TM, İdlib pic.twitter.com/p39eawKgSL

— @tskkarakuvvetleri (@kkktsk) February 21, 2020

Houthis are the perfect Hybrid force...

Musical video of Yemeni Houthis about their Air Defence with footages of SAm launches etc. pic.twitter.com/TvIRGwp4bn

— Yuri Lyamin (@imp_navigator) February 23, 2020

We really should be taking a closer look at the fighting in Yemen.  The Houthis, labeled a terror group by the Saudis, look to be the perfect Hybrid force.

They have ballistic missiles.  They have moderately sophisticated anti-air missiles.  They have apparently modern anti-tank missiles.  Although primitive they are effective small unit fighters.

This is the force that we will fight in the future.

Think about this.

What if the Taliban had ballistic missiles?  What if they had anti-air missiles by the hundreds?  What if they had huge numbers of anti-tank missiles?

Our fight would have been even more brutal than it already is.  Quite honestly that move would have forced us to either go all out or leave.  The relatively primitive form of fighting has forever changed us (IEDs have forever altered our view of armored vehicle protection) so what would we do if faced with what the Saudis are?

Russia takes the gloves off with regard to the Coronavirus...

Moscow authorities are targeting Chinese nationals with raids and using facial recognition technology to try to keep a new virus that began in China from resurfacing and spreading. https://t.co/AcHBBX1QNZ

— The Associated Press (@AP) February 23, 2020

Interesting.  Many don't realize it but quite a few Europeans (probably of the nationalist ilk...my observation and I could be wrong) view Russia, not the EU, as the protectors of Europe.

The fact that they're doing this...targeting Chinese nationals amid the Coronavirus fears leads to a few conclusions...any of which could be wrong.

Conclusion 1.  The Coronavirus outbreak is MUCH MORE serious than we're being told.

Conclusion 2.  The Russian govt is taking this opportunity to gather intel on Chinese citizens operating/visiting their country.

Conclusion 3.  All of the above is correct.

Conclusion 4.  Perhaps everything above is incorrect and Russia is simply acting prudently on the information we all have to prevent a massive outbreak in their country.

I leave it to you to either add to the possibilities or to tell me why I'm wrong on all counts.

Chinese DF-17 Missiles Operational?

I think CCTV snuck DF-17 stock footage into a December 2019 broadcast ostensibly about other missiles.

If true, then regardless of if they have hit actual IOC, then they are at a minimum probably doing training ops/drills. pic.twitter.com/pbNkmYfn2A

— Scott LaFoy (@wslafoy) February 22, 2020

That's quicker than expected.  Thought this was near future, not now.  Calculations need to change.

Politics Talk. The Dem Primary is getting interesting!

I luv this!

Bernie is talking shit, Bloomberg and the establishment are getting scared and once again the little people are scaring the party leaders.

This is too good.

I'm almost to the point of not caring.  Extreme lurches to the left and to the right just make the middle more solid.  Once the gyrations are over we might be able to wrap our heads around a way forward.

In the meantime this is too delicious.  Pass the popcorn while I watch all the "masters of the universe" (on both sides...meaning the think tank boys, mega media and fellow travelers) shit their pants.

Ultra Light Scout Concept by Doug Didia

Israeli Navy's SpecOps training with Dolphin 2 (AIP) class SSK. Photo by Tal Shema.

We always talk about the Israeli Army and Air Force but VERY RARELY about the Israeli Navy.  What role does the IDF see them playing in their future war plans?  Are they considered a major "striker" in the inevitable fight with Iran? Will Naval Special Ops be tasked with sinking the Iranian Navy in port?  Can they pull it off if asked?

Many questions but few answers.  The Israeli Navy is almost as secretive as their Special Ops Forces.