'This is the wild, wild west'

Asia Times ^ | Oct 24, 2003 | Nir Rosen

[patton]

BTTT

[SLB]

The Strykers heading to Iraq will more than likely be replacing these folks. I wonder . . . . . . . .

[Matthew James]

Excellent post -- thanks!

The 3rd ACR is performing in the finest traditions of the U.S. Cavalry!

Fine reporting by a journalist telling what it's really like out there on the ground.

Brave Rifles BUMP!

[FreedomPoster]

You folks are probably in that ping list, but just in case, ping.

[river rat]

"This is the wild wild west,......."

Excuse me?

Chow halls, hot meals, "morale phones", wireless P.C. to keep in touch, vehicles to patrol in, air cover constantly overhead,....

"There are barracks, where soldiers have small gyms, watch satellite TV and compete in board games like Risk, seeking world domination, or football video games on Sony Play Station."

If that is the "Wild West" or "Indian Country".........where were we?.......HELL?

Semper Fi

[theFIRMbss]

> "This is the wild wild west," says Captain Chris Alfeiri

This is the wild west, and this is some weird nightmare girls can't wake up from...

[archy]

The Strykers heading to Iraq will more than likely be replacing these folks. I wonder . . . . . . . .

Or these, from another unit light on heavy armor assets:

[river rat]

This huge and comfortable "presence" - or established routines -- may be one explanation why is appears to be so damned easy to kill American Soldiers...

"Fire Bases" or known concentrations of Marines, almost always attracted more of the wrong kind of attention - than did the killing patrols into the enemy's concentrations...


Something about being in an as yet undefeated enemy's "neighborhood" --- in force ---- and getting "comfortable"..........doesn't sound very intelligent...

Semper Fi

[Thunder 6]

My own two cents: The army needs more ACR's...
regards,

[theFIRMbss]

>Something about being in an as yet undefeated enemy's "neighborhood" --- in force ---- and getting "comfortable"..........doesn't sound very intelligent...

.....The war was going well, thanks in large measure to the strategic hamlets' program. Due to that program the VC enemy was having increasing difficulties in finding food and recruits, and was being steadily forced into increasingly difficult and unrewarding tactical situations. . . . He said that the British had given the Vietnamese government valuable advice at the outset of the program based on British experience in Malaya. He said that for a variety of local reasons, his government had not followed the British advice in all instances. He recalled that the British had advised him to consolidate and hold firmly one area before extending the strategic hamlet program to another. They had also advised him to hold the arterial coastal highway and consolidate the area between it and the seacoast before trying to secure areas further inland. He noted that the British had said that the strategic hamlets' program should be limited at first to the most populus and most productive areas of the country. He remarked in this connection he had made important departures from the British plan but always for good and valid reasons. Outlining his thoughts on maps he explained that if he had disregarded even for a short time the underpopulated and comparatively unproductive highlands, these areas would have become a base for VC attacks and for a VC drive to the sea to cut the highway and split the Republic. He acknowledged their strategic hamlets' program was overextended and that in some areas the VC could attack and overwhelm the poorly garrisoned strategic hamlets. He said that he realized some strategic hamlets were set up before the defense personnel were properly trained or armed, but that on balance both the risks and the losses were acceptable. For example, he said he could push ahead rapidly with the establishment of ten sub-standard strategic hamlets. The VC could attack these and overwhelm, say, two of them, but if two fell eight others would survive and grow stronger. And the area within which the VC could operate with impunity would shrink faster than otherwise would have been the case.

Another reason he gave for making departures from the British plan was that by so doing he could put isolated, strategic hamlets into key crossroads and junction points and force on the VC considerable detours in their supply routes. He said he had taken a calculated risk of opening highways for the areas through which they passed were absolutely secure. ... [Diem, Thuan, Lodge, McNamara, Taylor Parkins, Flott -- The Pentagon Papers, Gravel Edition, Volume 2, pp. 749-751]

[Joe Hadenuf]

Gee... Iraqis can own an AK-47. Legally. I can't. At least, not legally. Land of the Free?

And as our borders have turned into a complete free for all and national time bomb, Iraqs borders have been secured.....

[SLB]

My own two cents: The army needs more ACR's...

We have done some studies that fully support increasing the numbers of ACR's and also giving them a couple of boosts in equipment and manpower. Even leaving them alone and not tweaking them, they fare very well in all of our experiments.

[wardaddy]

You bring up some great counterpoints here.

[Travis McGee]

It was even better, because it came from a NON American with a balanced pair of eyes.

[FreedomPoster]

BTW, Part 2 of this series is up here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1007905/posts

[river rat]

Boy, that post stirred memories....

I'm really concerned that as excellent as the Army, Special Operations folks and Marines executed the assault phase of the war -- that our "Heavy Army" may have now been placed in a near impossible situation in Iraq.....

We did not kill enough or destroy enough of Iraq to totally defeat and humble the "natives" to the point where they DEEPLY DESIRED PEACE enough to turn in the missing bastards or to help us kill the visiting Jihadist bastards immediately after they appear on the scene....

The Islamist militants and misc. lunatics apparently find it easy to "swim with the fishes" an melt into the population, even though it is reported that most are FOREIGNERS....and KNOWN by the people to be FOREIGNERS and COMBATANTS....

Successful ambushes - that are not followed by high enemy bodycount, or high levels of attention, discomfort and grief for the local community will encourage more and larger ambushes...
NO QUESTION about that....History has taught us this - time and time again...
The "locals" must gain a vested interest in PREVENTION......

Every hairy assed Jihadist wannabe, will journey to Iraq to make his bones and earn his manhood ---- by killing an American riding through town on "patrol"......then blend into the population with his photos of the kill...

The most telling and disturbing report I've heard, is the vision of adult villagers celebrating in front of Arab TV cameras at the scene American ambush victim, while Americans soldiers were present to recover the body.

In another time, and another place ----- I would have been sorely tested to avoid killing every damned one of the celebrating bastards.....

Semper Fi

[river rat]

"You bring up some great counterpoints here."

My thoughts were more on the order of verbal moans... The more I hear of the current scenario in Iraq, the more concerned I become....

I don't believe we have reached a legitimate milestone to be focused so much on creature comforts for the grunts -- while at the same time, taking a public stance that presents them as targets in a shooting gallery.......

As much as I despised the "spartan" existance as a Marine grunt - with no "perks" or creature comfort goods --- I will give the Corps credit for getting so many of us home alive.

We should be more focused on finding,killing all combatants and their supporters......and keeping our guys moving, pursuing, kicking in doors, and controlling EVERYTHING that moves over sand or road...

Our guys locations, objectives, strengths and movement should be kept as unpredictable as possible...
That's hard to do, when we build facilities for gyms, phones, barracks, etc.......

I truly fear we have set up our guys for another Beirut......
When following fools,lazy or weak leaders in war, your only sure destination is the grave...

Semper Fi

[Matthew James]

Thanks!

[river rat]

"The Strykers heading to Iraq will more than likely be replacing these folks. I wonder . . "

You can bet a bunch, that the Islamanazies know the Strykers are coming..

You can bet another bunch, that they have already figured out the points they earn in the media if they can whack the first few that show their tires in Baghdad...

Hell, half the media and the 10 dwarfs are ready to surrender to the French --- and just wait until after the first Beirut in Iraq or Afghanistan.

I am now convinced it's going to get a lot uglier, before it gets better...

We haven't bled the bastards enough for them to desire an end to hostilities...

Semper Fi

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Instead of airborne ACR's we are getting Stryker Brigade Combat Teams. Coulda had M8 AGS and M113 or updated Lynx or Americanized BMDs.