Posted on 12/30/2002 11:57:16 AM PST by Tailgunner Joe
Sounds like the old "armful of metal clotheshangers thrown from a railroad tressle onto high-tension wires below" trick.
it would be indiscriminate, not just turning off electricity for Iraqs radar stations, but also affecting power to hospitals and schools.
Will the Americans risk using such a weapon?
What risk?
I doubt that Iraqi hospitals have much high tech equipment that would be affected by a loss of power. And if they do have such machines, they will undoubtedly be used exclusively for high-ranking friends and supporters of the regime. Joe "SixPacki" Iraqi aint benefitting.
And any kids in an Iraqi school could only get smarter by being dismissed. Im sure they can find the door without lights.
Wow, shoulder-launched Big BLUs! That's amazing. Those guys must be lifting weights.
Usually that means this is "old technology" the military is willing to expose as "new" technology. You have to feed the fish something if you want them to keep supporting your efforts.
You mean "And any kids in an Iraqi school could only get smarter by being dismantled."
I believe your right, however I worry that if we do get bogged down a bit, or get into street/house fighting, we'll take casualties. When you think about how many people freak out or get upset everytime an American is wounded or killed in Afghanistan and multiply it.....
The worst thing about Iraq, the left will play up that it's about oil, when it's not. If they can parade wounded and dead American boys and girls across the TV screens every night and tie it to oil somehow, Bush will not be elected again. It is not beneath them to use dead soldiers to their benefit.
There's a jaw-dropping depiction of the use of JSOW's in Tom Clancy's book, "The Bear and the Dragon". I'm not sure how acccurate the portrayal is (knowing Clancy, it's probably pretty good), but if the real weapons can perform anywhere near as well as the description in the book, the Iraqis are in for a rude awakening.
Imagine a short-range (if you can call 40 miles "short") cruise missile full of armor-piercing cluster bombs. What's unique about this is that *each* cluster bomblet has its *own* independent guidance system which it can use to autonomously spot a useful target and home in on it. *One* JSOW can conceivably take out a *dozen* or more tanks.
Sounds perfect for North Korea. Their hospitals and schools don't have electricity. Anything with power is something they can't afford to lose.
The US Order of Battle has been carefully concealed. But Global Security reports equipment for 11 mechanized or armored brigades in the Kuwait vicinity, with 5 more afloat in Diego Garcia. To the north, which is Turkey and Kurdistan, nothing is reported but Air Force and Special Forces. Reports suggest that 4 naval and 5 air force wings are deploying.
There are two obvious tasks facing the US. One is to instantly paralyze the Iraqi WMD assets, especially those which may be fired from Scuds, both at Kuwait and Israel, as well as to take possession of any arms which may fall into Al-Qaeda hands. The second is to force a route to Baghdad.
It probable that the decisive missions have been assigned to the light forces: the Rangers, Airborne/Airmobile and Special Forces, who may be expected to seize key installations, swarm over the western desert and capture river crossings. The heavy forces based in Kuwait and the Gulf States can be expected to advance parallel to the Euphrates/Tigris river barrier until they can turn east for their final run to Baghdad. How far north they will go before making their final turn must be one of the most closely guarded planning secrets.
Here the time and distance calculations pose a conundrum. The light forces must achieve their essential objectives in less than 48 hours; but the heavy forces cannot complete the 300 mile approach to the Baghdad through the river barriers in much less than 96 hours. There will be a 48 hour gap in which the light forces and the naval and air forces will be all alone.
Commentators have spoken of the coming campaign as a "piece of cake". It will be baked, but hard in the baking. It will be won; but it will be won by men with greater wit and valor than I.
I wouldn't get my hopes up about this. Remember, Bush 41 had such a great success with his Iraq war (at precisely the same midterm point in his presidency) that his popularity was over 90%. And in November 2002 he lost.
Bush 43 will win a second term, barring any massive screwups, but one such screwup would be for them to think merely winning Iraq will allowing them to coast for the next 18 months+.
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