Military Ring Info

The good news for us is that our combat mission in Iraq has officially ended. Although our government says that all of our combat forces have left the country there is no doubt that we have some contingency troops there as a fighting reserve if necessary, but for the most part our combat mission in that country has ended.

This is the end of an era for our Operation Iraqi Freedom ring customers and the beginning of an era for the people of Iraq. Al-Qaeda has really ramped up their violent attacks in that country because if they want to topple the government now is the best time. The US departure is bittersweet for the Iraqis because they didn’t want us in their country for the most part and I don’t blame them, but they will have to fiend for themselves now that we are gone and it is a fearful proposition for them.

I believe that they can make it but it definitely not be easy. They are in unfamiliar territory and al-Qaeda will definitely use every trick in their power to trip them up. They will have to learn quickly if they are to survive this super critical stage in their history.

The cost of this campaign to the Iraqi people, the US economy, and our military ring customers has been phenomenal. I don’t know if the cost has been worth the effort but the good thing is that it is over.

Lets chalk up another boneheaded move for the Somali pirates who roam the Gulf of Aden. This is the second time that I remember that they have erroneously attacked a US Navy ship thinking it to be a defenseless merchant ship. The pirates who did were severely dealt with and I bet the ones who lived won’t make that mistake again.

They trailed they USS Ashland and attacked it in the predawn hours which is their usual method of operation. Since the Ashland is not an attack ship they had to mistake it for a merchant vessel in the dark. When they opened fire they were fired upon which set their kiff on fire. The Ashland had to quickly rescue them after the incident. They were transported back to the United States where they will stand trial.

Their story is that they were ferrying refugees to Yemen and got lost in the Sea. Get this one here. They claim that they opened fire on our navy ring customers in order to get their attention.

I guess I’ll tell them the same thing that any defense lawyer would which is to stick to that story. Do you know what scares me? It’s possible that they will be acquitted of piracy charges and allowed to return to Somalia. With some of the decisions that I have heard of in our courts by judges and jury alike it is possible that they will get off. The last pirate’s lawyer argued that he couldn’t be accused of piracy since he didn’t complete the act.

Richard Lowry’s New Dawn: The Battles for Fallujah is the first comprehensive history of two major U.S. combat operations in Fallujah in 2004. This ancient city in Al Anbar province forty miles west of Baghdad was the scene for both Operation Vigilant Resolve and Operation Phantom Fury.
Lowry spent years researching and writing his new campaign history. In addition to archival research, New Dawn is based upon the personal recollections of nearly 200 soldiers and Marines who participated in the battles for Fallujah, from the commanding generals who planned the operations to the privates who kicked in the doors. The result is a gripping, page-turning narrative of individual sacrifice and valor that also documents the battles for future military historians. You can read more about the book on the author’s website here http://richardslowry.com/
The following link is for the newly released book trailer for New Dawn: The Battles for Fallujah. Please check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnC1ONEm3OU.

I will have to admit that this is another ballsy move by the North Korean government. If you follow this blog you will remember that I have been saying for a while that South Korea needs to make some kind of move to put them in their place. I really believe that you have to deal with them in the way that they will understand. Diplomacy, talk, and rhetoric won’t work with them. They sank the Cheonan not very long ago and have never owned up to it.

Despite their transgressions they continue to spit out propaganda and empty threats. They obviously need to be cut down to size because they show no regard for South Korea, the United States, and the world community. The US and South Korea conducted a joint naval exercise and dropped submarine killer bombs but so what. As you can see just like I told you in previous posts this meant absolutely nothing to the North Koreans. Our military ring customers in the navy need to be able to do something to convince the North Korean government that we are nothing to be trifled with.

We try so hard to be politically correct but I say lets forget about that. The world did absolutely nothing to North Korea so we need to answer back in like manner. Sometimes you just need to deal with people in the way that they understand.

President Obama has wisely scaled back objectives in the ongoing military operation in Afghanistan. If you have been following this blog you will remember that I have done many posts on the subject and suggested that we do the same. At this point in the operation this is the wise thing to do. We didn’t seem to have a realistic goal before this. I have said time and time again that our goal should not be to kill off al-Qaeda, or the Taliban because that just isn’t possible. We should work on degrading their operation as much as we can and seek to protect our national borders rather than seek them out and destroy them. We should continue to use our special ops ring customers to perform snatches and assasinations as necessary. We should continue to develop our intelligence to the utmost degree, and we should continue to smash their traning camps at every opportunity.

If we want to be honest thats just about all that we can do. Let’s be real about this.
The President basically agreed with my assesment and stated our war aims as: Not allowing terrorists to operate freely from the region, not allowing them to create large training camps, and not allowing them to plan attacks with impunity. If we are to be realistic that is just about what we are doing right now. If we left the country right now we could say that we have met our objectives.

I heard a little bit about this a while back but I came across some more information recently. This pact was agreed on in 1946 and both countries have been operating under it ever since.

Under the terms of this agreement both countries agreed not to spy on each other and to share all intercepted radio traffic. Under the agreement intelligence sharing was a matter of routine and intercepted communications information was shared automatically without request.

The two countries had to share intelligence initially because they were both allies in the fight against Nazi Germany. Immediately after WWII Russia began to flex its muscles so they continued to work together and share intelligence. Canada, Australia, and New Zealand eventually came on line with the agreement and were included.

When I read about the agreement I couldn’t help but wonder at the impact that it had to have on history. Just sit back my venerable military ring customer, and think about all of the possible scenarios that it had to touch on. It seems to me that this agreement would give the US and Britain the greatest intelligence machine in the free world. I am sure that it has a great deal to do with our superpower status. We will keep our ear to the ground on this one and let you know of any future developments.

This is obiviously another attempt by the United States to shore up damage done by the remarks by General McChrystal in his interview. Admiral Mike Mullen the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (the highest ranking military man in the nation) had to fly to Afghanistan to verbally assure the Afghans and our allies that we are united behind their cause and dedicated to seeing this thing through. He also assured them that the mission would not change and said that McChrystal remarks were unacceptable.

Now once again and I don’t think for the last time to you all who say that McChrystal had the right to speak freely. Do you see the damage that his right to speak freely has caused? Sometimes we who at the top of the flag pole have to forfeit our own rights for the good of the cause. Now when we should be going forward we are wasting time trying to repair a multitude of damage which was done in a few quick moments.

Let me let you in on a secret my little military ring customer. The plan is seldom the problem with any operation. The problem is in the execution of the plan. Did you notice how he made sure to say that we are sticking with the plan. The plan will work if we vigorously execute it. Any decent plan is sure to work with the support of those who plan and execute it. Have you ever heard a football coach say of his team after a successful season that they understood what we wanted to do and bought into the plan? If you haven’t then I have many times by several different coaches. We can win if those charged with executing the plan will buy into it and vigorously execute it.

I don’t know for sure but it looks like the greatest spy swap in history for the United States is about to take place. Now this is not proven but is information pieced together by circumstances and recent developments.

Much information is coming from the brother of Igor Sutyagin who is tracking his movements. For those of you who may know who Mr Sutyagin is he is the Russian Arms Control Researcher who was accused by the Russians of spying for the west and imprisoned. He is claiming his innocence but he signed a confession recently. You may ask why is this important, but it seems that this is a prequisite to being released. Mr Sutyagin and an undisclosed number of people will be exchanged for the ten Russian spies who were recently captured in the United States. Mr Sutyagin was recently and abruptly moved from his place of imprisonment to Moscow where he could be released.

All of the ten captured Russian spies are being kept in New York where a few were hurriedly moved very recently.

I have a question for you my military ring customer and I want you to think about it. If Mr Sutyagin is not a spy why is he being traded for other spies. Like they say, whatever you do stick to your story.

The US Army Signal Corps was established in 1860 due to the efforts of Major Albert J Myer. Major Myer’s efforts resulted in our modern day Signal Corps. This branch of the military has evolved into our modern Signal Corps which is responsible for all aspects of designing, maintaining, and managing all types of information networks used by the Army. When the Signal Corps was initially established Major Myers was the only officer. The Corps has evolved to the point now that there is a signal contingent attached to every battalion sized unit in the Army.

Technology has advanced to the point where it is necessary to have this expertise on hand at all times to assist with problems and to make sure that the technology is utilized to its best advantage.

The original Signal Corps used a system of flags and torches for visual signalling in a system called wig wag. When you look at the crest for the Signal Corps this is what you see. It definitely is nothing like it was when it started out. Command and control of combined arms forces has gotten to be a very complex job nowadays because of the advanced technology which modern warfare requires. Our Signal Corps ring customers have to be technically proficient to keep our modern army communicating efficiently.

The Obama administration is adamant that the US troop pullout from Afghanistan will begin next summer despite the hesitation of some of the top military leaders to concur. The good thing about setting a deadline is that it serves to amp up the activity of the troops stationed there because they know that there is only a limited amount of time to accomplish mission objectives. commanders don’t like this type of deadline because they know very well that anything can happen at any time to upset the process. The average commander will take every bit of the time that he can get to accomplish his mission because he or she wants to get it right.

I think it is important that we set a semi rigid timeline for our military ring customers because it gives them goals to shoot for. I believe at the same time that we need to maintain the option that there could be a change in plans which may cause us to have to readjust our decision. The problem comes in when you are constantly readjusting your timeline. That indicates a lack of committment on your part.