Doctors Might Be Treating Saddam In Bunker

Well, except for the history student part, I don't have your qualifications.

But it is clear to anyone who reads military history and current military events news that Operation Iraq Freedom (even in its name) is, among other things, a trial run for many, many concepts that have been incubating at the Pentagon for twenty years or more.

SecDef is clearly on the RMA, "light", mixed-use expeditionary side of these battles. This has provoked (bureaucratic) conflict between SecDef and (mostly) Army guys who want more heavy armor-sealift type forces. Of this there is no doubt.

It's unclear at present whether the SecDef-approved war plan is proceeding according to expectations, or not (I don't take the press herd seriously).

But if it should not proceed according to expectations, goody points are going to flow to the armor boys and their supporters, and the light-expeditionary advocates are going to have some 'splainin' to do.

The big picture, of course, is that both of these "sides" (and the air-power side, too) are advocating tactics to avoid refighting Gettysburg, for which we really should thank them.

The only potential problem I see with this is that Saddam's hero Stalin actually got his Red Army tactics to work, and that neither the "heavy" guys, the "light-expeditionary" guys, or the air power guys seek or have planned for a battle where we have to catch the bad guys by the hair and cut their hearts out with bayonets.

All American tactics (of whatever Pentagon "side") are in support of a strategy wherein the enemy collapses at some point under unbearable pressure.

If all Saddam has to do to "win" is not collapse, we will have made his task easier.

The theme of "Iraq Freedom" would be better applied after Operation Crush Your Enemies and See them Driven Before You-but we are not barbarians.

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