Shock & Awe

efreedomnews ^ | 6 MArch 2003 | Jonathan Rhodes

[efnwriter]

efreedomnews         WAR ON TERRORISM - AN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE

Shock & Awe
Jonathan Rhodes
6 March 2003

Shock & Awe: This is not a sound bite invented by yellow journalists seeking larger than life headlines - but they do love to use it that way.

 Shock & Awe is the military operational doctrine to be applied in Iraq.

Based upon Shock and Awe: Achieving Rapid Dominance, published by National Defense University in 1996, and Rapid Dominance: A Force for All Seasons, published by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies in 1998, this doctrine is a construct and concept for applying force with the principal and overriding objective of affecting, influencing, and controlling the will and perception of a potential adversary through the use - or threat of use - of shock and awe. Shock and awe arises from the successful application of Rapid Dominance, a concept that has four characteristics: total knowledge, control of the environment, rapidity, and brilliance in execution.

From Defense Group Inc., Warfighting Systems and Concepts; Rapid Dominance Strategy of War

Rapid Dominance Concepts

Rapid Dominance is an integrated political and military construct for applying lethal and non-lethal force, at the strategic, operation and tactical levels. Its purpose is to affect, influence, and control the will and perception of an adversary by imposing a regime of unrelenting and ever increasing stress through the mechanisms of shock and awe.

Rapid Dominance is defined by four chief characteristics: total knowledge of self, adversary and environment; rapidity; brilliance in execution; and control of environment. It is based on exploiting the entrepreneurial nature of the American character and the extraordinary advances in technology. Moreover, Rapid Dominance is designed to apply across the entire spectrum of peace, crisis and war, and may be brought to bear at any time either before or after hostilities have begun, within minutes of the attack order being issued. Finally it is designed to be employed in a series of (decisive) waves that will affect and influence an adversary will and perception, irrespective of whether or not U.S. and friendly forces are pre or forward deployed, and includes the capacity for physical occupation of territory.

From GlobalSecurity.org

The aim of Rapid Dominance is to affect the perception, ability, and will of an adversary to respond to a coordinated attack led by the United States. The purpose of the plan is to induce sufficient "shock and awe" to render Iraq impotent.

Rapid Dominance would therefore provide the ability to control, on an immediate basis, the entire region of operational interest and the environment, broadly defined, in and around that area of interest. Beyond achieving decisive force and dominant battlefield awareness, the strategy's authors envisage Rapid Dominance producing a capability that can more effectively and efficiently achieve the stated political or military objectives underwriting the use of force by rendering the adversary completely impotent.

In Rapid Dominance, "rapid" means the ability to move quickly before an adversary can react. This notion of rapidity applies throughout the spectrum of combat from pre-conflict deployment to all stages of battle and conflict resolution.
 

efreedomnews.com - facts, analysis.

Subscribe to the efn newsletter

 

[efnwriter]

efn PING list. To subscribe/unsubscribe from list send freep email to efnwriter

[Travis McGee]

BTTT! There is so much disinformation and psyops fodder floating around that it's hard to know what to believe, but this is impressive. Expect far more friendly fire than enemy originating casualties as we apply this buzz saw to Iraq. But that is acceptable, if the total number of casualties (on both sides) is kept below what would result from a protracted conflict.

[illumini]

OK!

[estjohn]

Interesting post...I found these...

Shock and Awe: Achieving Rapid Dominance

1 Background and Basis
2 Shock and Awe
3 Strategic, Policy, and Operational Application
4 An Outline for System Innovation and Technological Integration
5 Future Directions

[estjohn]

Ahh, never mind, I see my links I just posted above are the same as on the bottom of the page linked on the book image in the original post ;) Well maybe it will be easier for people to find :)

[efnwriter]

Thank you for your help. I added the link to the text on the efn website.
Jonathan

[Squantos]

I was just listening to a Senator from Carolina N/S ?? on FNC's H&C show that stated sadly the troops in the field were calling this Operation Justice as in Just-Us.........

I will be packing up a dozen care packages between now and monday to send to those guys and gals over there with a message that I am 100% behind em and would be standing with em "there" if Uncle Sugar had'nt put me out to pasture after 26 years and a wakeup.

I'd take my turn in the barrel again in a heartbeat. This is a job that needs doing . God help em do it well and bring every single one of them home safe and sound to their friends and families.......

March 14th ....D-Day.....Stay Safe !

[Teacher317]

So you want assymetrical warfare, do ya Hassan? We got us a little somethin' for ya right here!

[Travis McGee]

History is being made on the big stage, and we are stuck over here. Oh well, at least we can wave the flags and buy their drinks when they get home.

Hey, I heard that an old VN vet in New England went ballistic today and waded into a group of mangy Saddamite Appeasenik student protestors and beat up a few of them.

[George W. Bush]

The 'shock & awe' approach will work well. With the new MOABs as impressive as small nukes, this will make for some great video to be broadcast worldwide.

Oh, and those 500 jounalists travelling with out military will make sure the whole world gets to see up close what a superpower can really do. Since most of them are younger journalists, we also have a chance to introduce a generation of journalists to the reality of war so that they grasp just what a military really is. In addition, since it will be a quick and pyrotechnic war, everyone around the world will be too busy watching the TV to go hold a peace protest.

Team Bush is really shrewd. I'm more impressed all the time with how they handle the details, make all the elements work together toward a single end.

[hellinahandcart]

Hey, I heard that an old VN vet in New England went ballistic today and waded into a group of mangy Saddamite Appeasenik student protestors and beat up a few of them.

I will not smile, I will not smile, I will NOT smile...got a link to this story? :D

[harpseal]

I am living in New England and I did not hear about the incident. Do you have any details?

[Ides of March]

This notion of rapidity applies throughout the spectrum of combat from pre-conflict deployment to all stages of battle and conflict resolution.

We failed this one, thanks to our "allies" (and the U.N.)

[VRWC_minion]

Sounds like Bush's political plans.

[CholeraJoe]

Hey, I heard that an old VN vet in New England went ballistic today and waded into a group of mangy Saddamite Appeasenik student protestors and beat up a few of them.

What's that man drinking? I'm buying.

[SuziQ]

The purpose of the plan is to induce sufficient "shock and awe" to render Iraq impotent.

Yeahh!! I like it!

[Polybius]

There is so much disinformation and psyops fodder floating around that it's hard to know what to believe..... ...History is being made on the big stage, and we are stuck over here......

Your days of SEAL teams and my days of RDMF's are over.

But we can still do our duty by shovelling the disinformation and psyops over the Internet. :-)

[Squantos]

Well Harp in yer eyes it wasn't an incident......hope ya kicked some socialist butt !!

Just funnin ya....let me know if ya find out anything and STAY SAFE !!

[Travis McGee]

No details, I just heard somebody call in the report to a talk show (Savage I think) last night.