400 US Mercenaries in Ukraine?

via Russia Times.

About 400 elite mercenaries from the notorious US private security firm Academi (formerly Blackwater) are taking part in the Ukrainian military operation against anti-government protesters in southeastern regions of the country, German media reports.
The Bild am Sonntag newspaper, citing a source in intelligence circles, wrote Sunday that Academi employees are involved in the Kiev military crackdown on pro-autonomy activists in near the town of Slavyansk, in the Donetsk region.
On April 29, German Intelligence Service (BND) informed Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government about the mercenaries’ participation in the operation, the paper said, RIA Novosti reported. It is not clear who commands the private military contractors and pays for their services, however.
In March, media reports appeared suggesting that the coup-imposed government in Kiev could have employed up to 300 mercenaries.That was before the new government launched a military operation against anti-Maidan activists, or “terrorists” as Kiev put it, in southeast Ukraine.
At the time, the Russian Foreign Ministry said then that reports claiming Kiev was planning to involve “involve staff from foreign military companies to ‘ensure the rule of law,’” could suggest that it wanted “to suppress civil protests and dissatisfaction.”
In particular, Greystone Limited, which is currently registered in Barbados and is a part of Academi Corporation, is a candidate for such a gendarme role. It is a similar and probably an affiliated structure of the Blackwater private army, whose staff have been accused of cruel and systematic violations of human rights in various trouble spots on many occasions. 

This is the first confirmed whiff of bullshit that I've gotten from the RT and to be honest I'm disappointed.

Contracting is a small world.  If Academi had a contract and were running 400 contractors to Ukraine I would have heard about it.  Its too damn big for half the recently retired Army and Marine Corps to have not heard about it...and for the guys that stayed in shape, still shoot etc...to start sorting gear and looking to make a quick buck.

Trust me.

This is pure dee bullshit.

House Republicans bets on armor!

  HMKP-113-AS00-20140507-SD001-U2

The above document is the executive summary of the House Markup of the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act.  The budget that is being proposed for the Pentagon.

If you turn to page 3 you can see a quick rundown of systems that had money added.  Big wins for US Army modernization efforts and the USMC ground combat element.

We see money added for....

*  Amphibious Combat Vehicle
*  Stryker upgrades
*  Abrams upgrades
*  Medium and Heavy Tactical Vehicles
*  Grey Eagle
*  Hercules Vehicle
*  Body Armor

The DoD had wanted a budget that was all about aviation, future combat ships and more aviation.

Like Goure said, the House Republicans are saying not so fast.  The Senate will push forward the Pentagons and Presidents view of things so the conference committee work on this will bear watching.

Sidenote:  The House is trying to push the Marine Corps along the road of getting the Amphibious Combat Vehicle program done.  It will fall to the next Commandant to see that thru.  5 months left for Amos.

Michael Sam annoys the hell outta me!

This is politically incorrect but Michael Sam annoys the hell outta me!  Consider this....

*  Dude played in the SEC and was player of the year.  Seems like that kind of notoriety would be your ticket to the NFL right?  Wrong.  He performed poorly against the powerhouses of the conference.
*  Dude had a piss poor combine.  He's slow.  He can't jump.  He lacks agility.  He lacks strength.  He is small.  All of this is by  NFL standards at the position he wants to play...outside linebacker.
*  I like football, I don't care who this guy is screwing or getting screwed by.  I don't know the sexual orientation of any of the other people drafted and that's for one reason.  They chose to not tell us.  It can be assumed that they're heterosexual but who knows?  WHO FUCKING CARES!  

Which leads me to my beef.

He knew he was a tweener.  I would bet body parts that he knew he would probably not be drafted but would be allowed to attend a NFL training camp and would have to work his way onto a team.

What really gets my goat is that some player out there that is busting his ass, has better numbers, is bigger, faster, more agile but isn't going to get the chance because he didn't say he was gay---Sam took a spot that a more deserving player should have gotten.

This proves something to me.  There are some gays that don't want to be treated fairly but want special treatment because of who they're fucking.

That irks the hell outta me!

Ukraine is about to collapse.

via Russia Times...

The village of Novoaydar in the Lugansk region is being attacked by Ukrainian troops, according to the local self-defense leader.
“Around 15 APCs have come near Novoaydar,” Aleksey Chmilenko said. “Our self-defense guards are trying to stop the attack and prevent the vehicles moving farther in the direction of Lugansk.”
Meanwhile, representatives of another Lugansk region self-defense group, based in Krasny Luch, told RT that they have seen APCs in the region, but have not heard any fighting yet.
Novoaydar election commission is reportedly being evacuated by self-defense activists, after it was attacked by National Guard troops.
Earlier in the day, shooting and artillery fire was heard on the outskirts of Slavyansk, in southeast Ukraine’s Donetsk region, RIA Novosti reported, citing its correspondent in the area.

via Washington Post...

Drunken mobs roamed the otherwise deserted center of this eastern port city Saturday a day after clashes between pro-Russian militants and Ukrainian security forces left at least seven people dead and the region as a whole continued to seethe on the eve of referendum to secede.
A deadly firefight Friday broke the calm of a patriotic holiday and heightened tensions ahead of Sunday’s hastily organized plebiscite to break with the interim government in Kiev. Late Friday, a group of unidentified assailants attacked and briefly detained several Red Cross volunteers, including a French citizen, at an office in Donetsk

This is the type of social collapse that many see coming to the United States.

Remember that this all started over matters of the Ukrainian economy...some wanted to move closer to the EU but the price to be paid was going to be severe.  

It is obvious to all but the most strident globalization disciples that the current system has failed.  Ukraine is simply the latest victim of a system gone wild.

Lexington Institute turns on the Pentagon.

Dr. Goure doesn't usually surprise me but when I read his latest today it absolutely floored me!  Read the whole thing but check this out...

The Republicans believe, although some may be reluctant to say so publicly, that the nation is facing a tide of threats for which the administration’s proposed force structure will be inadequate. This week alone, Russia advanced its plan to dismember Ukraine, China sought to extend its control of the South China Sea, North Korea continued preparations for another nuclear test, Al Qaeda and its affiliates demonstrated that they are not on the run but rather resurgent and Iran continued to prepare for conflict in the Persian Gulf.
The likelihood that the United States will have to fight multiple major theater conflicts (MRCs) at the same time is increasing. Moreover, these won’t be the kind of MRCs planned for after the Cold War. Our prospective adversaries have gone to school on the American way of war. They have been acquiring advanced offensive and defensive capabilities designed to counter longstanding U.S. technological and operational advantages. HASC Republicans understand that the measure of the United States as a superpower is a force structure of sufficient quantity and quality to fight and win these new types of high-end conflicts in multiple theaters.

Wow.  I'm still taking it in.

We were presented two rather stark choices.  Either we prepare for future challenges or we maintain our current force.

Goure is arguing that the choice the Pentagon made is wrong.  That current challenges are so dangerous that we can't risk gutting our forces.

This is probably the most meaningful article on defense spending (wish he would have gone into greater detail on whats actually needed) I've read this year.

Training the Chinese to fight us!

Before I get to the article, let be clear about China....

1.  The Chinese are a communist nation and they consider themselves to be our number one adversary.
2.  The Chinese have embarked on a campaign of intimidation when it comes to our allies in the region.  From basically rubbing ships with us to setting up oil derricks and fishing in disputed water to even an intrusive Air Identification Zone, they are bullies of the first tier.
3.  We must not make the mistake of thinking that what motivates our leadership will motivate theirs.  We must admit that we do not understand them.

Now check this out from Tactical Gear and Military Clothing....

Over 300 special operations personnel from nearly 40 teams and 19 countries competed in 11 rigorous events this year. Contenders included members of elite police tactical units and top tier military units from around the globe......Overall top scoring teams included: In first place, the Chinese People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF) ‘Snow Leopards’. In second place, the Special Operations Unit of the PAPF Sichuan Corps; in third the Jordanian Royal Guard; in fourth the Special Operations Unit of the PAPF Xinjiang Corps and fifth the Special Forces of the Armed Forces of the Lebanese Republic.

What has me scratching my head and ALMOST punching walls is this outreach to the Chinese.

Why?

Not only are they participating in events like that listed above, but we've also attempted the same with the Russians.

The Pentagon would like everyone to forget that Russian paratroopers trained with their US counterparts in 2012!  Now we're about to do the same thing for the Chinese Navy at RIMPAC!

We are building capacity in the very force that our allies are getting ready to fight, even if we insist on fooling ourselves.

Time for the Pentagon to get out of the training the enemy mission and revert to the old skool idea of preparing to kill them on the battlefield. 

LAPD went hardcore! MUST SEE VID!

Is this real?  Ok.  I think this is from "End of Watch"....never saw the movie but I'm guessing.  A real deal shootout like this would have been front page news.