Thursday, November 26, 2020
This is some evil shit in Australia over a damn mask...
Melbourne teenager is choked unconscious and thrown to the floor like a rag doll by hotel security, for not wearing a mask. #TheNewNormal pic.twitter.com/cZFdDmUvhG
— President-Elect BeachMilk (@YellowCube7) November 25, 2020
I'm so glad my Sheriff has us steering away from enforcing any of this stuff. Any leader of a security force, police/sheriff's dept or even private security would be well advised to avoid this.
For better or worse this is becoming a polarising issue. The genie is out of the bottle and the chance to build consensus has passed. There are just some people that will refuse to comply.
We have bigger fish to fry than to get into pissing matches over this issue.
Before it's over (and maybe it's already happened) someone is gonna be killed by an act of violence over this foolishness.
Marine Corps short 6 infantry battalions
Note. Read the entire article but these are the parts that caught my eye...via Marine Corps Times.
The biggest hurdle for the Marine Corps to overcome in future fights is its size, according to the report.
By analyzing every fight the Marine Corps has been involved with since the Korean War, Wood estimated the Corps would need 15 infantry battalions, along with the supporting force, to be effective.
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Under that assessment the Marine Corps with “only” 24 infantry battalions would have received an overall grade of “weak.”
In 2020 Wood accepted the Marine Corps’ insistence that it is a one-war force with an added crisis response mission. Under the new evaluation the estimated requirement was lowered by Wood to 30 infantry battalions and the Corps score was moved up to “marginal.”
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“There is a potential for the Navy, acting as the anchor, the drag, that keeps the Marine Corps from realizing what it needs to be,” Wood said.
“But it is also possible the success the Marine Corps has in developing and proving these new concepts pulls the Navy forward.”
Like I said.
READ THE WHOLE THING FOR YOURSELF!
The most stunning part of the thing to me? Enlisted boatspaces are taking a dramatic hit and while that is being accelerated we're seeing officer slots increase!
At this rate we're gonna have officers commanding squads....
Cold Weather AAV Life-Fire Range
Note. Really don't get this. By rights we should be seeing the ACV platoon operating here. By rights (assuming I'm correct and the AAV/ACV are heading out the door) we should be seeing JLTVs, small boat raids, and tons of Marine Raiders in cold weather gear lasing targets for missiles/aircraft. More digging around the interwebs to see if they're actually testing Berger's concept (if they are then you can bet body parts you highly value that it will be HIGHLY SCRIPTED with a predictable outcome).
The Commandant of the Marine Corps is charging into the future, but some aren't ready for change
via Task & Purpose
Most people appreciate that the services are always competing with each other for publicity, prestige, and ultimately resources. Just as a small business doesn’t try to sell the same goods as a much larger business, the Marine Corps can’t sell itself as another army, just with a tougher boot camp and better uniforms. It needs to differentiate. Unless it offers the nation something different than the Army, the Corps’ existence is in peril. America can barely afford one Army, much less two.
The Marine Corps can’t out-armor the Army. It can’t out-artillery the Army. Thankfully, it certainly can’t out-MP the Army, nor should it try. But it can out-Marine the Army. Throughout its history, the Corps has had to periodically reinvent itself to maintain its relevance. As America pivots from hunting insurgents in the desert to eying Chinese moves in the Pacific, it’s again one of those times. As Army Gen. Eric Shinseki once said,” If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.”
Let the Army worry about fighting land wars in Asia — everyone knows that’s a classic blunder. The Marine Corps, along with its sister service, the Navy, can concentrate on winning them at sea.
Read the entire thing for yourself but I chose to post his closing remarks as a winning example of how batshit crazy Berger's concept really is.
We can't out Army the Army?
WTF is that?
What does that even really fucking mean?
The sad reality?
Heading down this road we've switched from out Army-ing the Army (in their warped way of thinking) to trying to out Navy the Navy and out Air Force-ing the Air Force.
If you've been keeping up with the "modernization" news then you'll find that the Air Force is looking at developing austere basing in the Pacific region, the Army is getting into the ship killing business etc...
Long story short?
There is no core competency for the Marine Corps to carve out for itself in this new concept. There is no guarantee of "relevancy"!
For some reason the Marine Corps (yeah Amos you motherfucker I blame you for this idiocy) has been whining (and I use that word deservedly) about one issue or another for the past two decades.
It's past time to man up and get about the business of defending this country instead of reaching for the next transformationalist pie in the sky.
My one redeeming thought about this article?
It points to the Commandant losing control of this debate. Marines ARE NOT getting in line and flowing behind him. This concept is dying right before our eyes and that's not a good thing. It's a great thing.
Fighting just might happen in the middle of Africa and if this thing dies then we might see the Marine Corps carrying its load, not just depending on Marine Air to be a taxi service for the other services.
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Quick hit. Is the military the largest socialist program in America?
This is a quick hit.
On another blog thread some of my readers are calling the military the largest socialist program in the US.
Their rational?
The military provides free medical and post secondary education.
They're missing the point.
The military isn't the largest socialist program in America. What it is, is one of the last remaining bastions of patriotism. What do I mean? There are few other jobs that require you to be away from your family for long periods of time, have the inherent risk of death or serious injury attached and demand a specified time period of service without the option (mostly) to leave the organization because of dissatisfaction.
Providing medical and education benefits to those individuals isn't socialism. It's the least that can be done.
I have great readers. I disagree with them on a variety of issues. On this one we disagree. But it's worse than that. I vigorously disagree with them. In my opinion they totally missed the boat with their thought process and attempted to make a cheap point that was invalid from the start.
1st mountain maneuvers for the Griffons of the 13th BCA
1ères manœuvres en montagne pour les Griffon du 13e BCA, à l'occasion de #Cerces2020
— Forcesoperations (@ForcesOperation) November 25, 2020
➡️La suite en vidéo, par @27bim : https://t.co/EOtAOoV1Yn pic.twitter.com/57Pkq5oqd8
The secret sauce of military recruiting? A weak economy?
Interest in joining the Navy and @RoyalMarines has surged by one third during the pandemic.
— Royal Navy (@RoyalNavy) November 24, 2020
The rise in applications - and growth of the RN - means @HMS_Collingwood will turn civilians into sailors from January alongside @HMS_Raleigh and @DartmouthBRNC.https://t.co/hRi3Z5KeSl pic.twitter.com/BGdWGuuEwz
Some in the Twitterverse are claiming that the rise in trainees is because of a weak economy. I don't know. Military age people are still aware of the potential dangers so I have more than a few doubts that its ONLY that. It's still impressive whatever the cause.
AAVs in the Arctic
Note. Berger made the classic mistake MOST transformationalist make. He badly overreached. Imagine if he had simply sought to push his concept in just one targeted Marine Corps Division. He left the other two for actions as needed and made one specialized for combat in the Pacific. What if he had simply moved tanks to the Reserves as many have recommended. But he didn't. He had to make sweeping changes with the rational hidden behind scripted/secret simulated combat games without comment from those affected and alas with no by-in from those he leads. Now he's faced with a faltering concept that has little support outside of those that walk the hallways of Quantico, a Congress that appears (from the outside) to be a bit skeptical and a budget that will not support the transformation he desires. He's committed the biggest sin a Commandant can commit but one that his two predecessors share in doing. He's leaving the Marine Corps in a worse state than when he found it. But back on task. AAV/ACV without tanks or a mobile gun system make no sense. I stand by my previous. LAR/AAV/ACV is the walking dead. Their colors are probably already cased at HQMC.
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
Is it too early to make predictions about the near future? Nah! Let's go for it!
I was just watching the news and drinking in coverage of the incoming Biden administration and I had a couple of thoughts about the near future. I could be wrong. It could be way too early to do this but what the fuck...let's give it a whirl.
Post your thoughts in the comments and we'll bat this around. Here's my list...
1. Biden will get covid before the end of the 2021. It will knock him back but not kill him. His mental capacity will further diminish due to the disease and we'll be in a constitutional crisis about the mental health of our president.
2. Some entity (not China) will challenge the US. I expect the Iranians to behave because we'll be back in the agreement but my guess is that a terror group (more than likely the Houthis or some other element in N. Africa) will take a serious swing at us.
3. Illegal immigration will swell to crisis proportions. It will be so bad that even the Biden administration will have to act to stop border/airport jumpers.
4. The defense budget will be ravaged. The Dem house will demand cuts. The Senate will offer token cuts in an effort to keep them at bay but at the end of the day we'll probably see a real cut of at least 10% before its all over.
5. Biden will die in office before the end of his term (within two years) and Harris will take over.
6. Gas prices will rise astronomically in the US. Gas taxes will rise to make the green new deal a reality.
7. Personal income taxes will rise. New social spending will drain the middle class and cause a hardening of the anti Progressive stance of those in the rural community. The Dems will see support erode in the suburbs.
8. This covid crisis and the response by the govt (lockdowns) will lead to a GREAT recession (probably a depression in everything but name...the stock market hitting 30K is simply the smart money getting ready to bail). Businesses will close and they won't come back. This era will be seen as the murder of the small business community.
9. Executive orders will flow so hard and heavy across such a variety of issues that you will see an effort to curtail their use.
10. They're gonna make an effort to tax guns, ban high capacity mags etc...
That's my list. What do you think?
IFV MARDER @ Exercise "Heidesturm 2020
Wow. The Germans still use this thing. So much for making fun of the Brits and their Warrior IFV!
Sidenote. Is it true that the Germans consider the Puma superior to the KF41?
The battle between guns & butter begins...Rep Omar fires the first shot of a 4 year war....
Buckle your seatbelt folks. Before this is over it's gonna get ugly!!!
A single F-35 costs over $100 million. For that kind of money, we could feed 40 million kids.
— Rep. Ilhan Omar (@Ilhan) November 23, 2020
I've introduced legislation to block the sale of F-35s and other weapons to the UAE, a global human rights abuser. We should be focused on the deadly pandemic, not arming dictators. pic.twitter.com/tUUldnPfIn
Armenia got smashed in the war with Azerbaijan...
Armenia suffered a great loss in the war of Nagorno Karabakh, in terms of troops and weapons systems.
— Clash Report (@clashreport) November 24, 2020
Armenian occupation forces lost 8️⃣0️⃣% of its medium and long-range air defense systems.
Its total loss is over 5️⃣0️⃣%. pic.twitter.com/b3dizg5Unv
No wonder they were suing for peace. They got smashed....LITERALLY! This is what happens when you have an unbalanced force that is "optimized" for a certain type of combat.
The enemy always gets a vote.
Hyundai Rotem Sherpas
According to Aju Business Daily, two Hyundai Rotem Sherpas will be delivered to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) within the next six months. #ugv #unmanned #robot #robotics #korea #autonomy #autonomousvehicles #combat #reconnaissance #experimentation pic.twitter.com/NsAX7qTeuH
— Melanie Rovery (@MelanieRovery) November 24, 2020
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