Wretchard the Cat, founder of the Belmont Club, is one of the wisest who writes to the blogs. Today he writes:
Now the Republic’s enemies must be asking themselves: where is the bottom to these people’s incompetence? Can they do anything at all? How safe is it to rush ahead? Why don’t we try?
And if they do, what tools will President Obama have left? Diplomacy? Economic incentives or sanctions? Moral authority? Maybe the military. Yes that’s it. But his competence at war is predicted by his incompetence in peace. One would hope he’d have the sense to stay away from truly dangerous tools and that probably means he doesn’t know better.
It's all right, Wretchard. If he turns to war, he turns to us. We are the truly dangerous tools, as swords are dangerous tools. When the time comes, we'll be there to save what needs saving.
We are what we ought to put faith in during dangerous times; therefore, there is nothing to fear. There is only duty, and the oaths we have sworn. When this is all over, we'll have lived -- or died -- as men ought to do.
May God defend the right. Perhaps the right is North Korea, where tyranny lives and all else starves; perhaps it is the madness of Iran's leadership, and not the wise children who want freedom and an honest chance to think for themselves.
Perhaps: but, if it comes to that, let's run the chance.
Easy Company's Wild Bill Guarnere and Edward "Babe" Hefron joined up with film maker Tim Gray and Baseball great Curt Schilling and are trying to raise enough money to build a statue of their commanding officer, Major Dick Winters, at Utah Beach in Normandy. It was there that E Company, under Winters’ leadership (as a Lieutenant), parachuted behind German lines and captured four big German guns above the beach, saving many lives. That short brutal fight was taught as a classic infantry engagement at West Point and in ROTC classrooms (and in my own ROTC class in 1988).
WikiLeaks site beaten down. Assange to face Holder?
Posted By Uncle Jimbo
Well it looks like somebody is beginning to play a little "payback is a medevac" with the Wikiwankers.
NEW YORK (CBS/AP) – The WikiLeaks website says it’s under a forceful Internet-based attack, and content on the site was inaccessible to some users in the U.S. and Europe throughout the morning Tuesday.
About damn time! At this point every time these losers pop their heads up, we ought to be digitally prison raping them. Heck I'd be willing to put a bunch of hackers on parole if they spent at least 10 hours a week, screwing up Julian Assange's world. And did you hear, our Aussie ass clown may have to face the wrath of Eric Holder, oooooooh I bet he is quaking.
Federal authorities are investigating whether WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange violated criminal laws in the group's release of government documents, including possible charges under the Espionage Act, sources familiar with the inquiry said Monday.
They are investigating whether he broke laws, FFS shouldn't they have knocked out that little detail the first time he threw our classified mail out in the street? If for some reason there isn't a law allowing his prosecution, then it's probably time for some of that bi-partisanship we always hear we need. Let's pass the "We really did mean Secret" Act and line up Assange as the case in point.
Or we could just shoot him (cue lefty outrage). Since he has actively attacked our war efforts and has almost certainly cost the lives of innocents, declare him an enemy combatant and rain down some Hellfire and damnation. Instead the government is hijacking web domains for the heinous crime, well heinous bad taste maybe, of stealing Lady Gaga CDs
At a news conference Monday, Attorney General Eric Holder said law enforcement authorities have seized 82 domain names of commercial websites, disrupting the sale of thousands of counterfeit items such as sports equipment and illegal copies of music and software.
Why in the hell haven't they seized every digital footprint of the WikiWankers for exposing classified info stolen on a Lady Gaga CD? Shut these bastards down, NOW!
I will be doing the EMPact Radio show tomorrow at 12 Noon Eastern to talk about North Korea and other security concerns. They even did a video promo, I see the fingerprints of David Bellavia all over this.
Well, damn. John William Steakley Jr. has passed into the light. John was an acquaintance from way back, and one of those people that when you bumped into him it was as if no time had passed at all. A character, in the good sense, he was an author, a speaker, and much more. His book Armor is one of those that most should read but don't. He was a good person to share a panel with, listen to when he spoke, and even better when you just sat and talked with him. He will be missed.
Some friends of mine are helping with casting for a new show on Spike TV called "Most Lethal." They are searching for candidates with extensive special operations experience to compete in a series of mentally and physically challenging events. They are looking for SEALs, SF, Rangers, Force Recon, PJs, as well as our foreign "specl ops" counterparts like SAS or Canada's JTF 2.
Here is the flyer (click it for a larger version):
A can't miss movie about Afghanistan is showing tonight on National Geographic at 9 pm Eastern, Restrepo.
You have heard about it here numerous times, it is the tale of Battle Company, 2nd of the 503rd, 173rd Airborne and their time in the Korengal Valley. When all is said and done the combat tour of the 2nd of the 503rd will go down in the annals of the Airborne with the Battle of the Bulge. don't forget they awarded a certain medal to a gentleman served in Battle Company. Just watch it.
State Department Cables, Wikileaks, and Classification
Posted By Grim
Let's talk about this Wikileaks issue. The State Department cables leaked this week represent, we are told, the greatest diplomatic disaster in the current era. So, considering the list of bombshells disclosed by these documents: was there anything in them you didn't already pretty much know?
I'd say the biggest bombshell of the report is realizing that Hillary Clinton would have made a fantastic President of the United States. I have to admit that I voted for her in 2008, in the primaries, mostly on a triage basis. Look at her squarely today, though: that's exactly the combination of guts and devotion to American interests I want to see in a President. We made a terrible mistake as a nation in not putting her forward as the Democratic candidate in 2008.
Let's review the other great revelations; I'll use Drudge's list for ease of reference:
Iran smuggled arms to Hezbollah! C'mon, everyone knows that.
Iran obtained missiles from the DPRK! Surprised? Of course not -- there have been regular reports in the press about such efforts for years.
China is conducting computer sabotage! Their interest in cyber warfare as an asymmetric lever is very well known.
Saudis urge US attack on Iran! Anyone surprised by this?
How about those assessments of foreign leaders? Putin is the real power in Russia! Karzai is weak and paranoid! Kim Jong-Il is a basket case!
It's important to keep diplomatic secrets, but it's also important to recognize how little most of them are secrets. The United States -- and every other nation -- has well known, established interests. Foreign leaders aren't, in general, black boxes. Nobody's really surprised by any of this.
What's the point of this? Diplomatic cables' inclusion in SIPRnet is of real benefit to interagency operations. It would be a mistake to restrict them. I used to read the things every morning in Iraq, to keep visibility on what was happening at the top that might filter its way down to our level. Those 'secrets' won't ever appear in the newspaper because they aren't important to the world, but they were sometimes important to us.
A cable treating, say, the probability of Iraq's federal government enacting new agriculture protections would be of tremendous interest to tribal leaders in the agricultural regions. Knowing about it gave us advance notice and leverage, and the ability to be clued-in when we went out to talk with folks.
Among the first steps, the authors say, is to define an acceptable level of risk.
"As a nation we can afford to lose X secret and Y top secret documents per year. We can afford a Z probability that a particular technical capability or HUMINT source is compromised."
Clearly, X, Y, and Z must be more than zero. Otherwise, "all operations stop, because all operations entail some nonzero risk."
The next step is to *increase* information distribution "all the way up to the acceptable risk level."
They were, I submit, absolutely right about that. This Wikileaks thing is the logical consequence of following that policy. We're going to lose a certain number of classified documents every year; but we're also going to benefit from information sharing between State and the military. We're going to benefit tremendously from pushing information down to the lowest possible level in the military -- to the platoon leaders, the company commanders, the battalion commander and his staff, to the TPTs and Civil Affairs teams going outside the wire.
The more people who see this stuff, the more likely we'll lose some of it. We have to be smart about deciding how to manage that risk. Pushing things to higher levels of classification isn't the answer. Part of the answer is probably better counterintelligence: Manning should have been seen for the obvious security risk that he was. He should not have had the access that he had, but that doesn't mean that soldiers in general shouldn't have access. It means we should be looking for people who have personal reasons to betray our trust. Just as we should be looking for bombers and not bombs in counterterror efforts, we should be looking for traitors in CI, not taking steps that would keep people who need to know this information from having access to it.
The loss of these cables is regrettable, and the traitor who passed them ought to be punished. However, it was the right call to put these things out on SIPRnet: the benefit of having that information available to our forces in the field outweighs the damage done by the release.
The "Great Americans" project has an interview with retired Major General Eldon Bargewell. During his career Bargewell served with MACV-SOG (Reconnaissance Team Viper) as an enlisted man, receiving the Distinguished Service Cross. As an officer he served most notably with the 75th Rangers, as commander of the Delta Force, and as operations officer for MNF-I.
The interview begins with the Vietnam days. It's worth watching for Sergeant Major Billy Waugh's commentary alone. Of course you all know who he is.
He asked to play the heavies for years, as they had the more dramatic and challenging parts, but was finally recognized as the comic genius he had always been. A prankster behind the camera, he always ran with the roles given -- and thankfully they finally went to being a prankster in front of the camera with the timing of comedic sniper.
In part to escape an abusive home, he enlisted in the Canadian Air Force at 17 and trained as an aerial gunner despite being legally deaf. While he never deployed in WWII, he served and apparently gave his best in that role while in it.
Leslie Nielsen has given a lot of entertainment (and good acting) to the world, and a huge amount of much needed laughter. For it all, and especially for the laughter, my thanks. You will be missed.
"Grab it before the Pentagon orders it burned..." - Vanity Fair
"...nonpartisan patriotism is the common thread tying together these reflections, love letters and stories of combat. They make for riveting reading." - The Washington Post
Winner of the 2006 Gold Medal for Anthologies - Military Writer's Society of America
"This collection is an excellent introduction to an emerging form of war reporting." - Booklist
"...there is much to tell, and celebrate, in the tough, day-to-day work that our soldiers are doing in one of the most challenging environments any army has ever faced..." - The Philadelphia Inquirer
"...the collection is riveting...a worthy tribute." - The American Prospect
Click here
for more information and list of blogger/authors
Former Paratrooper and Army Officer, "Blackfive" started this blog upon learning of the valorous sacrifice of a friend that was not reported by the journalist whose life he saved. Email: blackfive AT gmail DOT com
Retired Special Operations Master Sergeant, Jim Hanson ("Uncle Jimbo") is now focused on writing about the military, politics, intelligence operations and foreign policy. Email: jimbo AT unclejimbo DOT com
Writer, photographer, and raconteur C. Blake Powers is the Laughing Wolf. He is independent in politics and covers topics including journalism, military, weapons, preparedness, space, science, cooking, food and wine, product and book reviews, and even spirituality. Email: wolf1 AT laughingwolf DOT net Laughing Wolf's Amazon Wish List
Grim -- an Old Norse name that means 'one who wears a mask' -- blogs on issues of intelligence, information operations, and foreign relations. Email: grimbeornr AT yahoo DOT com
Instapinch
Bill Paisley, otherwise known as Pinch, is a 22 year (ongoing) active and
reserve naval aviator. He blogs over at www.instapinch.com on a veritable
cornucopia of various and sundry items and will bring a tactical naval
aviator's perspective to Blackfive. Readers be warned: any comments of or
about the F-14 Tomcat will be reverential and spoken in low, hushed tones.
Email: wpaisley AT comcast DOT net
Mr. Wolf has over 26 years in the Army, Army NG, and USAR. He’s Airborne with 5 years as an NCO, before becoming an officer. Mr. Wolf has had 4 company commands. Signal Corp is his basic branch, and Public Affairs is his functional area. He recently served 22 straight months in Kuwait and Iraq, in Intel, PA, and senior staff of MNF-I. Mr. Wolf is now an IT executive. He is currently working on a book on media and the Iraq war. Functional gearhead.
In Iraq, he received the moniker of Mr. Wolf after the Harvey Kietel character in Pulp Fiction, when "challenges" arose, they called on Mr. Wolf...
Email: TheDOTMrDOTWolfAT gmail DOT com
Deebow is a Staff Sergeant and a Military Police Squad Leader in the Army National Guard. In a previous life, he served in the US Navy. He has over 19 years of experience in both the Maritime and Land Warfare; including deployments to Southwest Asia, Thailand, the South Pacific, South America and Egypt. He has served as a Military Police Team Leader and Protective Services Team Leader and he has served on assignments with the US State Department, US Air Force Security Police, US Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. He recently spent time in Afghanistan working with, training and fighting alongside Afghan Soldiers and is now focused on putting his 4 year Political Science degree to work by writing about foreign policy, military security policy and politics.
McQ has 28 years active and reserve service. Retired. Infantry officer. Airborne and Ranger. Consider my 3 years with the 82nd as the most fun I ever had with my clothes on. Interests include military issues and policy and veteran's affairs.
Email: mcq51 -at - bellsouth -dot- net
Chris Carter is a former USAF firefighter and now civilian firefighter who covers military history, national security, and baseball. Find out more at his website.
Twitter: @CrushingChris EMAIL: crushnik AT yahoo DOT com
Tantor is a former USAF navigator/weapon system officer (WSO) in F-4E Phantoms who served in the US, Asia, and Europe. He is now a curmudgeonly computer geek in Washington, DC, picking the taxpayers pocket. His avocations are current events, aviation, history, and conservative politics.
Twenty-three years of Active and Reserve service in the US Army in SF (18B), Infantry and SOF Signal jobs with operational deployments to Bosnia and Africa. Since retiring he's worked as Senior Defense Analyst on SOF and Irregular Warfare projects and currently ensconced in the emerging world of Cyberspace.
Major Pain --
A Marine who began his blog in Iraq and reflects back on what he learned there and in Afghanistan. To the point opinions, ideas and thoughts on military, political and the media from One Marine’s View. Email: onemarinesview AT yahoo DOT com
Uber Pig was an Infantryman from late 1991 until early 1996, serving with Second Ranger Battalion, I Corps, and then 25th Infantry Division. At the time, the Army discriminated against enlisted soldiers who wanted use the "Green to Gold" program to become officers, so he left to attend Stanford University. There, he became expert in detecting, avoiding, and surviving L-shaped ambushes, before dropping out to be as entrepreneurial as he could be. He is now the founder of a software startup serving the insurance and construction industries, and splits time between Lake Tahoe, Boonville, and San Francisco, CA.
Uber Pig writes for Blackfive a) because he's the proud brother of an enlisted Civil Affairs Reservist who currently serves in Iraq, b) because he looks unkindly on people who make it harder for the military in general, and for his brother in particular, to succeed at their missions and come home in victory, and c) because the Blackfive readers and commenters help keep him sane.
COB6 spent 24 years in the active duty Army that included 5 combat tours with service in the 1st Ranger Battalion and 1st Special Forces Group . COB6 was enlisted (E-7) and took the OCS route to a commission. COB6 retired a few years back as a field grade Infantry officer.
Currently COB6 has a son in the 82nd Airborne that just returned from his third tour and has a newly commissioned daughter in the 4th Infantry Division.
