Asymmetric Military

Blogging buddy Gazing at the Flag invites us to write letters to the U.S.S. Russell, one of the boats in our Navy. You can ship your response here.

Taliban in body armor. Who wants to use that junk?

There's nothing more ridiculous than saying that American soldiers use enemy equipment, as Barack insisted today in his debate with Hillary Clinton.

First, what does the enemy have: AK-47s and old, dangerous (to soldiers and civilians) RPGs? Bringing up the lack of "body armor" (Did American's have "body armor" in any other war?) was a stretch, but no rifles? Even basic trainees have rifles.
Second, AK-47s use 7.62mm ammunition. American M-4s use 5.56mm. The quality's different too. I can't imagine soldiers using it.

This may be a good way to bring up Barack's inexperience, mendaciousness, or credulity. It would make a good laugh line at a stump speech, anyways.

I bet at the next debate, Barack will say that American teachers have to use the students' chalk.

My blogging buddy, Flag Gazer, lost a friend of hers last week, SGT James Craig, in Mosul Iraq. R.I.P. God keep him.

Uncle Sam needs you. It's for the 63rd RRC in Los Alamitos, Ca. A direct commission means that you go strait from the enlisted branch or even from civilian life to commissioned officer in the Army reserve- no need for basic training or OCS. It used to be exclusive to legal or medical personnel, but the Army has a shortage of officers right now for reasons that you can imagine.

The Dutch Army in Afghanistan

I'm not qualified to answer whether they're effective fighters or not. I think effective insurgency fighting is mostly a matter of learning a new set of fighting skills for soldiers and tactics for leaders. A more interesting question is: If the previous sentence is true and some of our allies are still ineffective fighters, are the United States and Great Britain the only Western nations willing to risk the lives of their soldiers, outside of their own soil, to fight their enemies or pursue their interests.

**update. I didn't know about the Canadian sacrifices. God bless them.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has unleashed a storm by criticising NATO forces in southern Afghanistan, saying they are ill-prepared to fight an insurgency.

"I'm worried we have some military forces that don't know how to do counter-insurgency operations," Mr Gates told the Los Angeles Times.

"Most of the European forces, NATO forces, are not trained in counter-insurgency."

Troops mainly from Britain, Canada and the Netherlands are deployed in southern Afghanistan bearing the brunt of a fierce resurgence by the Taliban Islamic militia, which left around 6000 people dead, including some 220 international soldiers.

Whenever Flag Gazer emails me, I know it's either something very sweet or very important. This one is both. Those of us in the military know that beautiful female soldiers aren't rare. We should let the rest of the world know by helping Jill Stevens into the Miss USA finals. You can vote here.

Jill Stevens and her rifle. I wonder what she named it?

Maj. Gen. Jeffery W. Hammond (left), incoming Multinational Division Baghdad commanding general, and Command Sgt. Maj. John Gioia, incoming MND-B command sergeant major, uncase the “Ironhorse” colors during the MND-B transfer-of-authority ceremony Dec. 19, 2007, at Camp Liberty, Iraq. Photo by Staff Sgt. Luis Orengo, USA.

Multinational Division Baghdad Transfers Authority

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Photo - Sgt. 1st Class Jason Sealey, Kohe Safi Police Mentor Team, holds a calf still while Lt. Col. Richard Probst, 413th Civil Affairs Battalion, gives it a shot during a medical outreach visit, Nov. 27, 2007, in Afghanistan’s Parwan province. Coalition doctors and veterinarians saw more than 450 people and 330 animals during the two-day visit. Photo by Senior Airman James Bolinger, USAF.

Coalition Forces Treat 450 Afghans During Medical Outreach

30 November 2007

By Senior Airman James Bolinger, USAF

Combined Joint Task Force 82 Public Affairs

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan – The towns of Eskandareh and Pacha Khak hide deep within the mountains of the Kohe Safid district in Afghanitan’s Parwan province.

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But now, troops gain an average of 10 pounds on deployment, Brooks said, and a recent study that has not yet been released showed that troops’ cholesterol levels are going up after just 12 months in the war zone.

Once again, I'm above average. I gained about fifteen pounds during my deployment. Before I make my point, let me say that some soldiers do take advantage of their time and hit the usually readily accessible weights (some take time to improve oneself mentally or spiritually as well.). The food's actually pretty good and probably healthier than back in the states, although many buy (or, receive from home) junk food.

In addition to the article's reasons ("looking forward" to food, stress, etc. which are all very valid), I'd say, like almost anything else, weight gain during deployment occurs because of a lack of motivation. This may be offensive to some, but here it is:

Being deployed is like being happily married. No, I'm not saying running down "bad guys" is equivalent to being with your better half; I'm saying that when I was deployed, the last thing on my mind was staying in shape, and, consequently, I let myself go. I didn't have to impress anybody (with my thin waist, at least). I wasn't going to parties. I just did my "job," and engaged in some hobbies (movies, Stargate, and reading were mine. If I knew what blogging was in 2005, I would have done that.). It helped that I worked on the airfield and didn't have to engage in strenuous activity day in and day out.

In addition, many commanders, recognizing the soldiers' stresses and preferring to concentrate on the tasks at hand, choose not to nag soldiers on their weight, etc. I figure that that's most of it.

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