Fall of an Icon

One of America's "boots on the ground" takes on conservative icon William Buckley, and quite effectivley, on the claim that Iraq is lost:

The latest victim of negative news comes from a most unexpected source-the preeminent conservative thinker of the past half century: William F. Buckley. He once eloquently debated Ronald Reagan during the Carter years on the Panama Canal issue, against the wave of conservative thought at that time. However, he now has presented his perception of failure on the Iraq war in less convincing terms.

The sources contributing to his position are quite questionable. He has apparently relied upon the New York Times to provide a ‘man on the street’ quote from an Iraqi businessman. He continued by mentioning the Iranian president’s usual “blame everything on the Zionists” reference. Buckley’s last source came from an inconclusive thought provided by an “anonymous” American soldier.

It is difficult to witness somebody of Buckley’s stature acknowledging defeat in the last sentence of his essay. Has he fallen for the boisterous negativity of the anti-war crowd? Mr. Buckley, say it isn’t so. The title of your piece is wrong. The strategic mission in Iraq has worked and it continues to do so.

Please read the whole thing, by Lt. Colonel John M. Kanaley.

On the same subject of Mr. Buckley's outrageous claim, please read Iraqi People Continue to Disappoint the Pessimists:

Mr. Buckley is of the "realist" school of foreign policy, which believes, in essence, that "freedom and democracy are for me, but not for thee."

Weapons Spree for the Long War

This article from Spacewar asks the question, if the Pentagon is committed to fighting "extemism" in the Long War, why are we still buying expensive legacy weapons?

There are two possible explanations. The first is that big and expensive defense-equipment programs (combat aircraft, naval destroyers and submarines, missile defense) continue to be built at escalating costs -- $84 billion for 2007, 17 percent more than planned, and 15 times the cost of Special Operations Forces -- despite being more suitable for traditional wars than for fighting dispersed terrorists.
The contractors and military services wedded to these huge investments will claim that every dollar is essential for fighting al-Qaida...

And the other reason has a point:

the Defense Department has its eye on one especially formidable potential opponent: China. In fact, China is investing heavily in missiles and submarines, precisely the weapons that would make U.S. forces vulnerable in the Western Pacific.

I guess its the old adage of "better safe than sorry', but how long can we keep this up plus social programs and not end up like the Soviet Union.

Coast Guard: Port Deal No Threat

Contrary to what's been reported ( what else is new?), the US Coast Guard is denying it is against the Dubai Ports deal:

The U.S. Coast Guard in denying a wave of media reports claiming it concluded that having Dubai Ports World run several dozen shipping terminals at U.S. ports poses a national security risk.

A spokesman clarified this:

"The excerpts made public earlier today, when taken out of context, do not reflect the full, classified analysis performed by the Coast Guard. That analysis concludes ‘that DP World's acquisition of P&O, in and of itself, does not pose a significant threat to U.S. assets in [continental United States] ports.’

Gettin' Noticed

We've been quoted by the Washington Post Blog on at least 2 occassions, including this:

New Wars blogger Mike Burleson ends his post with, "If the NYT is reporting good news about the White House, it must be true!"

Which is oddly similiar to another post they review which said:

"If the Washington Post is reporting good news from Iraq, it musy be true!"

Do you think the Post realizes I'm being sarcastic?

Media Exaggerating Iraq Violence

Or "greatly inflating it" as Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch described the reports over recent Mosques attacks:

Iraqi and coalition security forces have stepped up patrols and manned more roadblocks in areas of friction, Lynch said. They are also helping verify reports of violence that Lynch said have proven to be greatly inflated.
These exaggerated reports make the Iraqi people believe the violence is more widespread and severe than it really is, Lynch said. This feeds into terrorists' efforts to incite fear and draw a wedge between the country's sects, he said.

And specifically:

The media reported 51 mosques attacked following the Samarra incident, 23 of them receiving significant damage. But in reality, as of noon Feb. 25, 22 mosques were attacked, with six receiving significant damage, Lynch said...
Civilian murders are up following the incident, Lynch acknowledged, but nowhere near the 200-plus reported in the media, he said. As of Feb. 25, Iraqi and coalition officials had confirmed 119 murders, he said...

Free Health Care for Afghanis

John Kerry should be partly satisfied. This is from CentCom:

Doctors from the Cooperative Medical Assistance/Surgeon Cell of Bagram Airfield teamed up with doctors from the Khost Provincial Health Director and the Khost Provincial Reconstruction Team to provide free health care for residents of Khost City Feb. 11. They also provided medical care for refugees at a camp on the outskirts of the city, Feb. 12.
The Medical Civil Assistance Program in downtown Khowst was held at the women’s affairs clinic, and focused its efforts on treating women and children from the surrounding area. The doctors treated a total of 987 patients, with 378 women, 362 children and even 10 men.
The next day, the team moved on to the Matun refugee camp, where they treated 1,428 people and 197 animals. Of that number, 204 men and 174 women were seen by medics, and 300 men and 227 women were seen by the physicians. Five hundred and sixteen children were de-wormed and given vitamins.

Good job, folks, and thank for for spreading the best of America to the Third World.

Media Pays as it Goes

Strategypage tells how the press works in the Middle East:

...In the Islamic world, media is seen as a tool, not an independent institution dedicated to finding and reporting the truth. Most news media (print and electronic) in the Islamic world cannot survive on advertising revenue. There just isn't enough of it. But there are plenty of "patrons" available to pay for favorable coverage, or a good dig at a rival. In other words, you pay the editors to get your message into circulation. The CIA has been aware of this since World War II, and has played game quietly ever since then. On a slow news day, American media will jump on this and score some points over how un-American it all is.

Maybe the Old Media in the US should try this, and place positive news stories by our military for pay. This would make up for the dramatic decline in subcribers and viewers because of their mostly negative reporting.

Argentines Threaten Falklands

The Argentinians claim the Islands as their own, but Britian thinks otherwise, says the Scotsman:

The sense of threat surrounding the Malvinas islands, regained from the Argentinian military junta in 1982, has been gathering for several months as President Nestor Kirchner's government has presided over an unprecedented revival in the strength of its air force - now at twice the strength it was during the 1982 conflict.

Several planes are believed to have overflown island airspace in a bid to test RAF defences. A number of Falkland vessels have been seized in waters close to Argentina.

And the Islanders aren't standing for it:

Tory MP Andrew Rosindell, chairman of the all-party Falkland Islands Group, said: "It is time the British government told the Argentinians they won't get away with this alarming hostility. I hope the Argentine government is not planning any military action, but we have got to learn the lessons of the past and any actions have to be rebutted. The moment we are seen to be weakening, our resolve is going to be questioned."

Probably won't be an invasion. The Argies like to test British resolve every few decades. But it doesn't mean that one day, they won't be successful, if the British drop their diligence.

Calm in Baghdad

Iraq passed its first major test last week as a newly elected democracy, after terrorist tried to instigate Civil War:

City residents ventured into the streets for the first time in three days yesterday, taking heart in a relative letup in the wave of killing and destruction that has shaken the country since bombers destroyed one of Iraq's most revered Shi'ite mosques.

The Iraq government calmly and effectively reacted to the bombings by imposing a curfew:

An emergency daylight curfew was lifted in Baghdad and three provinces but a 24-hour vehicular ban remained in effect around the capital until this morning...Interior Ministry official Maj. Falah al-Mohammedawi said the ban on private vehicles in Baghdad would end at 6 a.m. today because the crisis is easing and citizens need to purchase food supplies.

President Bush also helped with a plea for unity in the country:

Tensions began to ease after President Bush spoke Saturday with seven leaders of Shi'ite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish political parties, giving new impetus to political moves to resolve the crisis. During a late-night meeting at Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's residence, representatives of Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish parties agreed to renew efforts to form an inclusive government.

Though things are far from rosy, they have become managable, as the brave Iraqi's continue to defy the bombers.

Saudis Defeating Al Qaeda

This surprisingly upbeat story from Reuters tells of the recent attacks on Saudi oil facilities which exposes the terrorist's weakness in the country:

Saudi forces on Monday killed five suspected militants believed to be linked to an al Qaeda attack on the world's biggest oil processing plant, the Interior Ministry said.
A shootout erupted at dawn after security forces besieged suspects in a villa in east Riyadh where several Western residential compounds are located...

The Saudi wing of Osama bin Laden's network has been weakened by a government crackdown in which its leaders have either been killed or arrested.

And they seem to be a dying breed:

Security analyst Faris bin Houzam said only four of the 36 suspects on a most wanted list remained at large in Saudi Arabia. He said many of those on the list were believed to have joined insurgents fighting in Iraq and some may be dead.
The men killed on Monday have not yet been identified.
"This is not a new generation," he said, referring to the latest incidents. "It's clear that these are people the security forces have been tracking over the past two years."

McMaster Comes Home

The legendary commander of 3rd Armored Cavalry is back, and he's missing Iraq already:

Col. H.R. McMaster loves his wife Katie and their children, but the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment commander who arrived home Thursday morning is already missing Iraq. “It’s difficult to leave,” said McMaster, who led his 5,200 soldier regiment in battles that reclaimed the insurgent-held city of Tal Afar. “I don’t think we realized how hard it would be.”

His troops will be remembered as the tamers of Tal Afar:

“Tal Afar is a completely different city now,” McMaster said, noting how his soldiers, who entered the city aboard tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles, were able to patrol on foot by the time they left. “They were swarmed by children,” he said. Schools were reopened, and Iraqis stepped up to govern the city. Najim Abdulla Abid Al-Jibouri, Tal Afar’s mayor, described members of the regiment as “the lion-hearts who liberated our city,” in a recent proclamation. McMaster used similar terms to describe the Iraqis, who shared hardships with the Americans and lived on the same bases. “They’re not going to let these terrorists come back to Tal Afar,” he said.

Welcome home Colonel, and may the troops left behind enjoy equal success!

Thanks for Returning

U.S. Air Force Academy Cadet Joseph R. Tomczak recently came back to school for the reasons given below. From Townhall:

"I come back to the academy because during my freshman year of high school I sat in a geometry class and watched 19 terrorists change the course of history live on television."
- "I come back . . . because I don't want the woman I love to be the one who dials her frantic cell phone call while huddled in the back of an airliner with 100 other people seconds away from slamming into the Capitol building."
- "I come back ... because, if called upon, I want to be the pilot who flies halfway around the world with three midair refuelings to send a bomb from 30,000 feet into a basement housing the enemy - through a ventilation shaft 2 feet wide."
- "I come back to the academy because I want to be the commander who saves lives by negotiating with Arab leaders - in their own language."
- "For becoming an officer in today's modern Air Force is so much more than just command; it is being a diplomat, a strategist, a communicator, a moral compass, but always a warrior first."

Thanks, young man, for giving your service and your life for the country!

Best Quote

This week, came from the Vatican:

“Enough now with this turning the other cheek! It's our duty to protect ourselves.” - Monsignor Velasio De Paolis, secretary of the Vatican's supreme court, on the lack of tolerance of Christians in Islamic countries.

Let the President Run the War

After all, says Tony Snow, its his constitutional duty:

Washington was wracked last week by a spasm of Know-Nothingism, starring Democratic and Republican members of Congress whose hysterics confirmed the Founders' view that the president, and not the legislature, ought to handle matters of national security.
At issue was a takeover of the British shipping firm P&O by a United Arab Emirates holding company, Dubai Ports World. The transaction, first reported in the British press last Oct. 30, should have been routine. P&O leases cargo terminals at a half-dozen U.S. ports, and pays the longshoremen who load and unload ships...

One problem: The United States didn't sell anything. Local port authorities still own the ports, including the cargo terminals rented by firms such as Dubai Ports. The Coast Guard still has exclusive responsibilities for security on the water. The Coast Guard, Customs Service, Border Patrol and local law enforcement still have the duty of maintaining security on the ground. The workforce affected by the change -- fewer than 400 laborers -- by law must have passed federal background checks.

I think the Congress has been more of a hindrance than a help in the War on Terror. Its time the politicians stop cherry-picking everything Bush does to make us safe, and lets get on with winning this struggle.

USS Iwo Jima Remembers Flag Raising

One of the greatest battles in US history is not remember for the casualties, but the glorious raising of the Flag on what was once enemy soil:

The crew of USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) braved the early morning chill Feb. 23 and assembled on the ship’s flight deck to honor a very special morning colors ceremony.The event marked 61 years since the historic flag-raising atop Mt. Suribachi during the epic Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945.“We’ve gathered here to remember the brave sacrifices made by the heroes of Iwo Jima,” remarked Iwo Jima Commanding Officer, Capt. Richard S. Callas. “That very famous image of ‘Old Glory’ going up is instantly recognizable, and serves to remind us of the very proud heritage we strive to be worthy of.”

God bless our troops, and the vets who sacrificed for our freedom!

All Quiet in Iraq

A very tense quiet, says this mil blogger, since the imposition of a curfew:

The situation is violatile. Iraqi security forces are doing the lion’s share of the hard work now. Iraq’s government is under pressure to show that they can perform. I think this storm will pass. What remains to be seen is how long it will take and how well the government will do. In my time here, I’ve never heard it this quiet.

The first big test for the Iraqi Security forces. God speed.

Woodruff Leaves Hospital

Is it just me or has there been a media blackout on this story since the excessive coverage was criticized:

ABC cameraman Doug Vogt, injured with anchorman Bob Woodruff in an Iraqi roadside bombing on Jan. 29, has checked out of Bethesda Medical Center, ABC News said Thursday.
Vogt and his wife, Vivian, are on their way home to France, where he will undergo further treatment.
In a statement, ABC News President David Westin described the couple as being "in good spirits and looking forward to getting back to their children."

Google Bands Spacewar.com

How do you spell Allah out of Spacewar?

Google Inc. has banned SPACEWAR.COM, a news site covering military space. Reasons for the ban by Google are unclear. The company did not communicate with Space.TV Corp., the owner of SPACEWAR.COM, prior to its action, and Google representatives did not respond to requests for comment.
Google Inc.'s preferred method of banning a site is to delist its primary domain URL - www.spacewar.com - from the Google search index. Google also can reduce a site's page rank, or eliminate it entirely, as it has done to SpaceWar.com.
SpaceWar.com is owned and operated by Space.TV Corp., a Delaware registered company that publishes a range of space, science and technology Web sites.
In operation since the mid 1990s, the Space.TV network enjoys a monthly audience of more than 1 million visitors to its sites - with more than 100,000 monthly visitors to SPACEWAR.COM.

Readers of New Wars have read numerous articles from this news site.

Reagan Launches First Air Strike

The fleet's newest attack carrier joins in on the War on Terror says DefenseLink:

F/A-18E Hornets assigned to the "Eagles" of Strike Fighter Attack Squadron 115 on Feb. 22 became the first aircraft launched from the flight deck of USS Ronald Reagan to drop ordnance on enemy targets in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Reagan is the Navy's newest Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and is currently on its maiden deployment. Commissioned in 2003, the San Diego-based aircraft carrier is part of a routine rotation of U.S. maritime forces in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations.
"Our air wing is comprised of the most advanced aircraft in the world and is a key player in deterring aggression from the insurgency within Iraq," Rear Adm. Michael H. Miller, commander of Carrier Strike Group 7, said. "With the speed, agility and persistence of the modern carrier strike group, we intend to make a difference in helping to set the conditions for security and stability."

Ohio's New Maiden Voyage

This excellent article from Soldier Tech details the Navy's converted Ohio SSBN Trident Sub, now tailored to handle Special Forces and cruise missiles:

Externally, the Ohio SSGNs are unchanged. They still retain their 24 Trident-II missile tubes, though now, instead of packing 24 ICBMs 22 of the tubes will be loaded with Tomahawk cruise missile magazines (7 cruise missiles per magazine) while the remaining 2 missile tubes will be converted to dedicated SOF support functions; they can be used as “lock out” chambers for swimmers or for equipment storage. In addition the Ohio will be able to accommodate 2 DDS or ASDS (Advanced SEAL delivery System) modules on the submarine’s deck, which will be accessible through the new lock out chambers.

The three follow on SSGNs, Michigan (SSGN 727), Florida (SSGN 728), and Georgia (SSGN 729), are expected to be completed and in active service by 2007.

And much welcome they will be. Compare them to the Iowa class battleships, converted as missile carriers in the 1980's.

No Civil War in Iraq

Just another knee-jerk Katrina reaction which is becoming so typical in our media and government of late. From Yahoo News:

Major General Rick Lynch, spokesman for the coalition forces in Iraq, said the military had recorded attacks on seven Sunni mosques since the bombing of the revered Shiite shrine in Samarra on Wednesday.
"As of now seven attacks on mosques across Iraq have taken place that resulted in damage to mosques, two Sunni imams (prayer leaders) and one Sunni sheikh were murdered," Lynch told reporters, playing down the sectarian strife.

"We are seeing a confident Iraqi government using capable security forces to calm the storm that was inflammated by a horrendous terrorist attack yesterday against the golden mosque," Lynch added.

Remember the press has been declaring this since we liberated the country in 2003.
Also read Looking for Signs of Civil War in Iraq by Bill Roggio.

Warner Backs Carrier Reduction

In a dramatic about-face, the head of the Senate Armed Services Committee decides to back the Navy's plan for retiring USS Kennedy:

Senate Armed Services Chairman John Warner, R-Va., has introduced legislation repealing language he helped add to the fiscal 2006 defense authorization bill that barred the Navy from moving forward with plans to retire the USS John F. Kennedy and reduce its carrier fleet to 11 ships.
Warner, a former Navy secretary, has explained his abrupt change of position by saying the money needed to overhaul the Kennedy would be better spent growing the size of the overall Navy fleet from 281 to 313 ships.

This is the right thing to do, and will not affect our defense adversly. More important than giant carriers in the new littoral warfare are ships which can track down Al Qaeda pirates on the high seas and in confined waters.

Taiwan Compromises on Arms Deal

Apparently in order to kick start the stalled deal with the US. This is from Taipei Times:

In a major defense policy shift, the government has decided to scrap the "special budget" mechanism to procure advanced arms from the US, and will instead ask for the military's annual budget to be increased to 3 percent of GDP.
"The Ministry of National Defense (MND) has proposed increasing the regular military budget to fund the purchase of eight diesel-electric submarines and 12 P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft from the US, but will delay the proposal to buy three PAC-3 Patriot anti-missile batteries," Minister of National Defense Lee Jye (李傑) told the legislature yesterday.

Sometimes its the only way to get things done. Still not clear who will buidl the diesel submarines. Be great if the US gets back into the conventional sub business, but unlikely.

USS Missouri Defends Mother Russia

Russians are puzzled over a poster bearing the moniker of a famous US battleship in one of its festivals, says this article: Ahead of the Defender of the Motherland Day, celebrated in Russia on Feb. 23, Moscow streets have been decorated with patriotic festive banners containing a picture of the famous American battleship the Missouri, local media reported. Although it was evidently a mistake of a picture editor, Russian officers are angered. "They were going to offend us, were not they?" a captain Vladimir Zakharov said in an interview with Moskovsky Komsomolets daily. "We do not have our own arms any more, they say, look at the foreigners' one! Not so bad congratulation!" Not the first mistake, apparently: However, Moscow was also celebrating the Navy Day last August with banners containing image of the U.S. Nox (Knox) frigate.

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No banners. No pop-ups. No kidding.
Make My Way your home on the Web - http://www.myway.com

US Sends SWORDS to Battle

New Robot soldiers could help minimize casualties in future war, says Spacewar:

The US is also planning to send robot soldiers -- called the Special Weapons Observation Reconnaissance Detection Systems (SWORDS) into the field in Iraq, said John Parmentola, director for research and laboratory management for the US Army.
The robots are fully armed, and when the human operator verifies that a suitable target is within sight, it fires from its powerful guns.

The future is about Urban Warfare:

While the advice of the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu against attacking cities was true in his time, it has become unavoidable in modern warfare, Metz said.
"We will fight in urban terrain and we've got to learn how to do that, and we have to in Iraq," said Metz, who is currently the commanding officer of the US Army's III Corps at Fort Hood

Click here for more on SWORDS.

Recurring Myths

In my new column, 10 Myths of the Iraq Conflict, I discuss some oft repeated falsehoods by the Left, including:

“There were no Weapons of Mass destruction in Iraq.”

“American troops conduct torture”.

“Iraq has nothing to do with the War on Terror”.

“The Army needs more boots on the ground in Iraq”

Among others.

Muslim versus Muslim

It seems to me that more Muslims are suffering, because of their own actions, than the people who created the cartoons. From the NYT:

In a direct challenge to the international uproar over cartoons lampooning the Prophet Muhammad, the Jordanian journalist Jihad Momani wrote: "What brings more prejudice against Islam, these caricatures or pictures of a hostage-taker slashing the throat of his victim in front of the cameras, or a suicide bomber who blows himself up during a wedding ceremony?"
In Yemen, an editorial by Muhammad al-Assadi condemned the cartoons but also lamented the way many Muslims reacted. "Muslims had an opportunity to educate the world about the merits of the Prophet Muhammad and the peacefulness of the religion he had come with," Mr. Assadi wrote. He added, "Muslims know how to lose, better than how to use, opportunities."

It proves a glaring conviction that Islam has an anger problem that is turning the world against them:

Some of the world's most renowned Islamic religious leaders and scholars recently issued a declaration that, though sharply critical of the drawings, sought to rein in the violence and cautioned Muslims against becoming international pariahs. In so doing, they have begun to echo the sentiments of the journalists facing criminal charges.
"We appeal to all Muslims to exercise self-restraint in accordance with the teachings of Islam," the statement said. It added that "violent reactions" can lead to "our isolation from the global dialogue."

Ann Coulter puts it bluntly:

The "offense to Islam" ruse is merely an excuse for Muslims to revert to their default mode: rioting and setting things on fire. These people have a serious anger management problem.

Bush Defends Port Deal

This seems to be another knee-jerk reaction on the part of the press and politicians. The president tried yesterday to calm the rabble:

Bush took the rare step of calling reporters to his conference room on Air Force One after returning from a speech in Colorado. He also stopped to talk before television cameras after he returned to the White House.
"I can understand why some in Congress have raised questions about whether or not our country will be less secure as a result of this transaction," the president said. "But they need to know that our government has looked at this issue and looked at it carefully."

And issued a threat to lawmakers who would attempt to block the deal:

"They ought to listen to what I have to say about this," the president said. "They'll look at the facts and understand the consequences of what they're going to do. But if they pass a law, I'll deal with it with a veto."

Facts and politics? Since when did they go together. Here's what the Attorney General had to say:

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said port security would not be threatened. "This is not a question about port security," Gonzales said. "This is a question about port operation."

Agreed! The Coast Guard and the Treasury Dept. is in charge of port security, not dock workers.

Plus, Michelle Malkin condemns hypocritical Democrats in They are all profilers now

Stryker the Cat's Meow

This interview with Army Chief Gen. Pete Schoomaker discusses the QDR, the FCS, and America's "Amazing Generation":

Critics said the defense review should have pulled the plug on expensive new programs designed for conventional wars, like the Future Combat System, and used the money to address irregular threats.

"I will tell you point blank the Future Combat System equipped brigade will be far more capable in the environment that we are now in than the heavy brigade it replaces. The FCS brigade will be 900 soldiers smaller than a heavy brigade, but it will have twice as many infantrymen. For instance, go to western Iraq--this kind of organization not only has the mobility, not only has the long-range precision, but it has the ability to surveil that area 24-7. "

And on the Stryker:

FCS brigades will be the right force to fight both conventional and irregular wars?

"Talk to anyone in Iraq, they think the [armored] Stryker brigade is the cat's meow. Well, the Future Combat System is going to be the Stryker brigade on steroids.
When I rode in the Strykers in December, two patrols I was with got hit by roadside bombs. The Strykers weren't damaged and the soldiers didn't blink--they just went after the triggerman.
Exactly. Think about that with increased lethality and increased survivability."

And our troops:

We had the greatest generation--now it's the amazing generation?

"I am impressed with them. We were over there [in Iraq] at Christmas. We were with the 3rd Infantry Division, just before they left. Staff Sgt. Jason Barr had just returned to his squad. He was wounded in April of last year. Over 130 holes in him. He rehabilitates, comes back to his squad. We re-enlisted the remainder of his squad with him. Four kids, two of whom we put Purple Hearts on. We asked them, "Why are you re-enlisting?" They said they want to be like Sergeant Barr. We've seen times where the armed forces have not been like this. This is an amazing bunch. "

Is the Price Right for the Troops?

This editorial discusses press freedom when it imperils our troops:

It has been a good week for press freedom; an even better one for Andy Coulson, the editor of the News of the World. Following his scoop about the British soldiers beating up Iraqi rioters, he has been clearing space on his shelves for the awards that will surely be coming his way...

But I do wonder whether the decision to run the story was really as noble as Mr Greenslade suggests. An unnamed "whistleblower" approached the News of the World wanting cash for a video.
The editor got out his chequebook and then had to decide whether a few extra sales were worth risking the lives of British soldiers in Iraq. Bravely, he decided they were. He then claimed he was running the story "with regret", as if he had no choice. Of course he had a choice.

So where does freedom of the press draw the line? Always in favor of the troops. Sadly most are more interested in playing "gotcha" with peoples lives.

And may I recommend this from the LA Times Good news is no news

New Wars

This interesting article from the Guardian tells us to steel ourselves for a new type of warfare which older generations may not recognize:

Today's wars are fought by professional armies, not by conscript people's armies. As Dr Reid said, that means that most people now no longer have experience that allows them to apply a wartime or battlefield context to such conflicts. But that is just the start of the changes to which modern societies must all adjust. Today's military personnel may be highly-trained professionals, but they are also empowered adults who inhabit the modern communications age. Today's soldiers can carry cameras or mobile phones on which they bear witness not just to the lighter side of military life - seen in last year's squaddie Amarillo video for example - but also to the darker side - like the US photos from Abu Ghraib and the recent British army beatings video, not one of which was the work of the professional media...

Scandal of the Week

For the Old Media, one or two scandals per presidency used to be enough, but for todays 24 hour cable and internet press, this is clearly not enough. So, last week we had "Quail-gate", and this week "Port-gate" for the planned turnover of US ports to an Arab business.
And this is scary: Jimmy Carter Backs Dubai Ports Deal.

The Other War

This from Townhall tells of one theater of war where Radical Islam has been very successful, the Media War:

During the second intifada, reporters were often called to specified places by "sources" who had staged compelling scenes where young boys were throwing stones at soldiers in armored cars. As soon as the cameramen arrived the fun began. In one iconic photograph, a young Palestinian boy is cradled in his father's arms, and the image became a postmodern Pieta. The death of the boy was of course blamed on the soldiers, but a careful investigation into what really happened cast the received version in deep suspicion. But the image, like Mark Twain's lie that goes halfway around the world before truth gets its boots on, lives. The Belgians even put the image on a postage stamp.

This seems to be a war where the West has already surrendered.

Plus Rumsfeld says US losing web war

Fighting the Long War

In its new strategy "Fighting the Long War -- Military Strategy for the War on Terrorism", the military uses historical analogies to describe the struggle:

It holds up the 1930s as an example of how not to respond to extremism, noting Europe's appeasement of German dictator Adolf Hitler. "The consequences of inaction" in the 1930s, the briefing says, "Lives lost: 300,000; 70 million worldwide. ... War expenditures: $3.1 trillion ... 38 percent of GDP per year. [The Pentagon today is spending 3.8 percent of U.S. GDP.] U.S. reconstruction expenditures: $90 billion over four years."

Though it hesitates to compare the fight to the war on communism:

"We cannot discredit all of Islam as we did with communism," the document says. "It is a divine religion. We can only discredit the violent extremist."

USS Kennedy in Trouble

One of the Navy's last oil-fired aircraft carrier's days are numbered says Navy Times:

The aircraft carrier Kennedy is sailing closer to retirement: The ship is no longer safe for flying. Navy on Friday officials released information that the ship is restricted from conducting carrier flight operations, due to major corrosion in the points where the arresting gear mounts into the ship.
“Naval Sea Systems Command is issuing a message restricting Kennedy from landing fixed-wing aircraft,” said Lt. Trey Brown, Navy spokesman at the Pentagon. “This restriction is the result of a decertifying the arresting gear aboard Kennedy due to structural degradation of the arresting gear sheave foundations.”

...A Navy official said to make Kennedy deployable and fully manned would require $2.1 billion and drydock time, but a drydock is not available until 2008.

Congress however, is trying desperately to delay the inevitable.

F-22 to Japan

In an attempt to expand the Raptor assembly line, the Air Force is contemplating selling the advanced stealth fighter overseas to our allies, says Military.com:

Momentum is building within the Air Force to sell the service's prized F-22A Raptor -- which is loaded with super-secret systems -- to trusted U.S. allies, with Japan viewed as the most likely buyer, service and industry officials tell Inside the Air Force.
A Lockheed Martin official heavily involved in the Raptor program told ITAF Feb. 14 that a proposal to alter course and sell the Raptor to Japan is working its way through the Air Force. Lockheed is leading development and production work on the service's newest fighter.

Not too many out there who could afford the $200 million fighter. Perhaps the Saudis?

ABC Tampered with Saddam Tapes

This according to the original FBI translator who supplied to tapes of the ex-dictator's voice. From NewsMax:

What you heard on ABC News was their translation," former U.N. weapons inspector Bill Tierney told ABC Radio's Sean Hannity on Thursday.
"They came up with something different on a key element regarding terrorism in the United States," Tierney insisted.

In the "Nightline" version of the 1996 recording, Saddam predicts that Washington, D.C., would be hit by terrorists. But he adds that Iraq would have nothing to do with the attack.
Tierney says, however, that what Saddam actually said was much more sinister. "He was discussing his intent to use chemical weapons against the United States and use proxies so it could not be traced back to Iraq," he told Hannity.

What a shock, right. It not about the truth anymore, but an agenda that "Bush lied".

Rumsfeld Rebukes Annan

Defense Sec. Rumsfeld fired back at recent calls from the UN and the EU to close the terrorist detention center:

"We have several hundred terrorists, bad people. If they went back out on the field they would try to kill Americans," said Mr. Rumsfeld. "That is just a fact. To close that place and pretend that there is no problem just is not realistic. Second, he has never been to Guantanamo Bay."

The latter referred to media specualtion that Americans perform torture on prisoners at the prison, though there has been no proof of this:

"I think that it has been examined, officers have been punished, enlisted personnel have been punished," he added. "Some things were done, mistreatment of detainees, which never should have happened. It is a terrible thing that it did. But no, I do not think it would serve our purpose, anyone's purpose to have still one more, instead of 14 have 15 investigations of this and rehash all of this. I think it is harmful to the country. I think it does not serve any purpose."

Here's hoping the government will not give into pressure from overseas, while our nation is at risk from radical Islam.

Midwest Heroes

A strirring new ad about the fallen in Iraq. See video here.

No NSA Investigation

As I posted the other day, it seems there will be no Senate investigation of the President's terror surveillance. Score another for the good guys.

Defending the QDR

Finally came across a mostly pro-QDR review, from the Washington Times:

The most frequent complaints are that the review fails to make tough decisions on canceling weapons or increasing U.S. ground forces facing the most severe strain since the all-volunteer military was created in the 1970s...

On insufficient ground forces, several points need to be made. I believe we have badly overstrained the Army and Marine Corps, and should have increased their ranks substantially. But this decision was needed in 2003 or 2004 at the latest. It is getting very late to introduce such a policy, at least on a major scale, for two reasons:

(1) There is good reason to hope the Iraq deployment will begin to wind down soon.

(2) Even if we started a crash effort now to expand the size of the ground forces, little could be accomplished before 2008, when the U.S. presence in Iraq will almost certainly have been dramatically scaled back.

And on weapon systems:

(1) There is a serious military argument, even in today's world, for every weapon listed above. For example, while the F22 is often described as a fighter designed to combat Soviet combat aircraft and air defenses that no longer exist, it is insurance against a rapidly improving Chinese military that may someday wind up in conflict with Taiwan (and thus, quite likely, America). And the F35 provides stealthy attack options for carrier-based operations, as well as operability from land-based runways that may be damaged by accurate enemy missiles in future war. In my view, the latter program could still have been cut in half -- but then something else, costing at least half as much (like new F16s) would have had to be bought to replace aging fighter inventory, reducing theoretical savings more than half.

(2) While it is no excuse, Mr. Rumsfeld's unwillingness to cancel more procurement programs fits within a long, proud tradition of U.S. defense planners. This QDR was the fifth major defense review since the Soviet Union collapsed (the first four were Dick Cheney's base force concept of 1992, Les Aspin's bottom-up review of 1993, William Cohen's QDR of 1997, and Mr. Rumsfeld's QDR of 2001). None of these canceled any of the above weapons either, with the exception of Mr. Cheney's cancellation of the V22, which was later restored.

Change never happens overnight, or as quickly as we wish. The transformation of our armed forces might not be complete for several decades.

Rumsfeld Blasts Murtha

Again the so called Democrat "Hawk" Jack Murtha called for surrender in Iraq:

At a hearing on the Pentagon budget before the House Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on defense, Mr. Murtha, the panel's top Democrat, renewed his November call for a pullout. "Where I disagree is fighting terrorism in Iraq," Mr. Murtha said. "I think that we're inciting terrorism, and that's my personal opinion. ... When you go in ... with the tactics we have to use to protect American lives, you're going to create enemies. And that's what we've done."

I personally believe the anti-war Left is inciting terrorism, but here's Rumsfeld's answer:

"The idea that you should paint a picture and hang crepe over it, that everything's horrible in Iraq, is not true," Mr. Rumsfeld said, citing three elections last year that created an Iraqi constitution and parliament. "Now, is it a pretty picture? Has it been done instantaneously? No. Is there a lot of tugging and hauling and politicking? You bet there is over there," he said. "And are we gong to end up with something that we stand back and look at it and say, 'Gee, that's a pretty picture?' No. It's going to be an Iraqi picture. It's not going to be an American picture. But it's going to get done."

Amen. With or without the Democratic Party.

Population and Power

This article by Mark Steyn absolutely floored me. Steyn uses demographics to illustrate how the West is breeding itself out of existence, while Muslims are having babies:

What country today has half of its population under the age of 15? Italy has 14 per cent, the UK 18 per cent, Australia 20 per cent - and Saudi Arabia has 39 per cent, Pakistan 40 per cent and Yemen 47 per cent. Little Yemen, like little Britain 200 years ago, will send its surplus youth around the world - one way or another...

* Is abortion in society's interest?
* Can a society become more Muslim in its demographic character without also becoming more Muslim in its political and civil character?

He concludes with a striking irony:

In the '70s and '80, Muslims had children - those self-detonating Islamists in London and Gaza and Bali are a literal baby boom - while westerners took all those silly books about overpopulation seriously. A people that won't multiply can't go forth or go anywhere. Those who do will shape the world we live in.

3rd Cav Leads the Way

We've been keeping track of the commander of 3rd Armored Cavalry Brigade in Iraq, Col. H.R. McMaster. The brigade is leaving Iraq this month but the Washington Post says its lessons learned will not be forgotten:

U.S. military experts conducting an internal review of the three dozen major U.S. brigades, battalions and similar units operating in Iraq in 2005 privately concluded that of all those units, the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment performed the best at counterinsurgency, according to a source familiar with the review's findings.

The regiment's campaign began in Colorado in June 2004, when Col. H. R. McMaster took command and began to train the unit to return to Iraq. As he described it, his approach was like that of a football coach who knows he has a group of able and dedicated athletes, but needs to retrain them to play soccer.

An Iraqi "Cheese" Moment

From CentCom:

Local Iraqi teenage boys smile at soldiers from the 1st Platoon, Delta Company, 2nd Infantry, 22nd Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, Ft. Drum, N.Y., during a cordon and search in the outskirts of Baghdad, Iraq, February 7, 2006.

Heartless Hillary

Via NewsDay, Hillary Clinton shares a laugh over a wounded hunter, with a man who recently made a judge's wife cry before Congress:

...Clinton stopped by the Senate Armed Services Committee to grill Army brass about body armor supplies and to listen to Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) ask questions about Humvee safety. During the session, both shared a public chuckle at Cheney's expense.When one general used the expression "shooting ourselves in the gut," Kennedy interrupted to say, "I'm not sure that's a good analogy today."Clinton threw back her head and laughed so heartily it echoed through the cavernous committee room.

Here's Tom Barnett's view, which I agree with:

If it was your dad or husband who suffered the shot, how would you like this horrible situation turned into a joke, right down to the Washington Post printing pretend buckshot holes in its Style section’s coverage, which was just too crass for words.
But worse was the grotesque crowing and jokes from representatives of the Dem Party--again, a level of crudity and insensitivity I haven’t seen since the same was witnessed with GOP operatives over Vince Foster.
Maybe this poor guy’s heart attack will remove some of the glee, but I doubt it.

Then I read this: Man Shot In Accident After Laughing At Cheney

Students versus War Hero

The plan to create a memorial statue for a legendary Marine came under fire from the students, and created a backlash of Patriotism:

The student government of the University of Washington has come under attack from talk radio and the Internet after recently deciding not to support the creation of a campus memorial to alumnus and World War II veteran Col. Gregory "Pappy" Boyington.

Some students say they have received scores of angry e-mails and phone calls -- some from as far away as Texas, Georgia and New York. What drew the wrath were such comments from students questioning why the university should honor a person who killed others or honor a Marine. One student leader questioned why another rich white man should be honored on campus.

Andrew Everett, a UW senior and former Air Force weather forecaster, wanted to recognize UW alumni who had received the Medal of Honor and thought he would start with the most famous, Boyington, whose time as a pilot was portrayed in the TV series "Baa Baa Black Sheep."

Students debated the resolution, according to the minutes posted on the Internet. The resolution, which received support from 45 students, failed by one vote.

There's nothing sacred anymore, and our kids aren't learning the true history of America.

Cheney Speaks!

Many have been wondering why Cheney took so long to report the shooting of his friend on Saturday. For myself, I assumed it was a deserved contempt for the Old media, who has been none too nice to the VP, but I was wrong, according to Cheney:

"...it was important to be accurate. I do think, from what I've experienced over the years here in Washington has been the media outlets have proliferated, speed has become sort of a driving force, lots of times at the expense of accuracy, and I wanted to make sure we got it as accurate as possible."

Media failures in this respect comes to mind, including the report of 10,000 deaths in New Orleans, Bush's National Guard record, the "stetched-thin" Military, and how we are supposed to be losing in Iraq.

The Changing Winds

The changing winds which are currently blowing through the Middle East and into Europe, is sounding the death knell of Liberalism, I think. This is by James Atticus Bowden:

This is worth writing about. The Liberals, like the trail company in line, will be the last to turn their faces into the wet wind and march. European Liberals may not fall into ranks until it’s too late. Their failure to stop Muslim immigration, reproduce their own European populations and confront Islam in the market place of ideas with Christian Faith and Evangelism means the Muslim population bomb will cloak Europe in burkhas by the end of this century. The Dark Ages won’t be as black as the coming night of Western Civilization in Europe.

Multi-culturalism is bunk. No two cultures have ever co-existed in the same time and place to guide a civilization. Ever. Muslims must renounce the Koran’s calls for Sharia law and submit to secular civil law, based on Judeo-Christian thought and Western tradition, to live as citizens in the West. Muslims must accept the full freedom of thought, speech and religion for others, including conversion from Islam – and especially from those who insult them. Muslims have to grasp individual rights that are God-given, not defined by Allah, to live as equals, not enemies, in our civilization.

No NSA Probe Expected

Some good news from the Washington Post. We should be probing the leakers, not those who protect us from terrorists:

Congress appeared ready to launch an investigation into the Bush administration's warrantless domestic surveillance program last week, but an all-out White House lobbying campaign has dramatically slowed the effort and may kill it, key Republican and Democratic sources said yesterday.
The Senate intelligence committee is scheduled to vote tomorrow on a Democratic-sponsored motion to start an inquiry into the recently revealed program in which the National Security Agency eavesdrops on an undisclosed number of phone calls and e-mails involving U.S. residents without obtaining warrants from a secret court. Two committee Democrats said the panel -- made up of eight Republicans and seven Democrats -- was clearly leaning in favor of the motion last week but now is closely divided and possibly inclined against it.

The Post sounds really depressed over this.

Saddam's Secret Tapes

Verifying what we on the Right knew already, and what the Left won't admit:

Secret audiotapes of Saddam Hussein discussing ways to attack America with weapons of mass destruction will be the subject of an ABC "Nightline" program Wednesday night, a former federal prosecutor told Cybercast News Service.

The tapes are being called the "smoking gun" of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq. The New York Sun reported that the tapes have been authenticated and currently are being reviewed by the U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

On Tuesday night, Loftus told Cybercast News Service that ABC's "Nightline" would air an "extensive report" on the tapes Wednesday night. Loftus also described an ABC News "teaser," which reportedly contains audio of Saddam Hussein discussing ways to attack America with WMD. "Nightline will have a lot more," said Loftus.

QDR is Panned

Almost universally. I'm not so sure China is our new buddy in the era of globalisation as some think, but I do agree with this statement:

The F-22 and the Virginia-class submarines were, quite literally, initially devised over a decade ago with the Soviet Union in mind. American planners, quite sensibly, tried to anticipate the next generation of Soviet weaponry and design new systems of our own to counter those weapons. But the Soviet threat vanished a long time ago, the next-generation Russian equipment never materialized. But the American weapons, instead of dying, were merely equipped with a new set of thin rationalizations.

The DD(X) isn't quite as useless. Its shore-bombardment capabilities would be genuinely useful if we had a few on hand. But the ships are ludicrously expensive. Another new kind of boat, the Littoral Combat Ship, is almost as useful and costs just a fraction of a DD(X). The more expensive ship would be justifiable if there were some chance America would find itself engaged in large-scale blue-ocean combat, but there isn't.

The LCS is a few hundred million higher than its prototype, the Joint Venture class of catamarans, which run about $50-100 million each, and can carry most every weapons being designed for the costlier ship.

Vets Raise Funds For WW2 Museum ship

They are near their goal says Navy Times:

A group of World War II veterans has raised three-quarters of the money needed to return a tiny warship used in the invasion of Okinawa to San Francisco Bay as a museum.
The “mighty midget,” which measures 158 feet long and had a top speed of 14 knots, is now in Bangkok where it is about to end a long career in the Royal Thai navy.
The Thai navy has agreed to give the 61-year-old ship back to the United States, but it will cost about $200,000 to tow to California, where supporters are trying to dock it as a museum ship at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo...

The ship, known as the LCS (L) 86, was one of a fleet of 130 gunnery support ships that served in the Pacific in the last days of the war. They were slower than modern-day commuter ferries but were loaded with anti-aircraft guns and 10 rocket launchers.

This is the only photo I could find of a LCS (L). If anyone has a different one, please let me know.

Honest News

Positive stories from the War on Terror:

Iraq's Army Builds Up

Sixth Graders Send Valentines to Vets

Military's New Equipment Reimbursement Policy

Troops see families via satellite

Soldiers renew vows on Valentines Day

Iragi Elections Certified

Al Gore's Disgrace-Updated

From Investor's Business Daily:

What possesses a former vice president of the U.S. to travel to the birthplace of Islamist terrorism and denounce his country? Only a special breed of demons, apparently, can explain Al Gore.
The chief demon, of course, surely must be Gore's continuing quest for the presidency. Embittered he may well be by his loss of the highest office six years ago. But showing such supreme disloyalty to his country, as he did in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, cannot be condoned as an honorable means of pursuing the prize once more.

...his calculated comments came at the height of the cartoon intifada, much of it stoked by Saudi-controlled media.
That uprising, aimed at freedom and democracy, indeed at Western civilization itself, just last week left many non-Arabs dead, European diplomatic quarters torched and journalists' lives threatened. Unconscionably, Gore poured gasoline over the global flames.

The Angry Left gets angrier, it seems.

Tip to USS Neverdock.

Update-Remember yesterday where I said, Gore went to Saudi with his handout? Well, today I read this from NewsMax: Al Gore Event Funded by Bin Laden's Family

France Gets Tough on Immigration

And very few are complaining, says the Times:

Under the new rules, highly skilled immigrants will be favoured over those coming to France to join family. The government will also have greater powers to expel illegal immigrants. “We no longer want immigration that is inflicted on us,” said Sarkozy, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, whose “zero tolerance” policing and American campaigning techniques have shaken up French politics.
Muslim groups were infuriated, interpreting it as a blow to north Africans in favour of Asian job seekers.
The relatively mild response from the left, however, suggested a change of mood in France...

French opinion really is changing,” said Nicolas Baverez, an economist and author. “People understand that we must make radical changes if we are to continue to have an influence in the world.”

Same thing needs to happen on our own borders: radical change!
Tip to USS Neverdock.

New Manned Bomber

Aviation Now has a vague glimpse into what a new manned bomber, called for in the Pentagon's QDR, might look like:

a manned bomber with the range for 4-5 hr. of loiter, but with a heavier payload, Mach 2 speed and very low observability so it can penetrate deep and strike heavily defended targets. They also believe it must be nuclear-capable to replace the B-2, and that means a crew. They want each bomber to be capable of hitting 100 individual targets. Hypersonics and space launch are not players."

I still like the idea of a conventional ballistic missile. The ICBM has actually been replacing the manned bomber since the 1960's, only the USAF doesn't realize this.

Tip to Defense Tech.

Reason's for Thanks

This Desert Storm vet is speaking his mind to those who disparge our military, and take their freedoms so lightly:

I wish for just one moment that the organizations that complain would spend just a week in the countries that we, the United States, "interfere" with. In most countries you could be executed just for voicing your opinion, and to speak badly about your country, you could be shot on sight, without a trial or the opportunity to defend yourself. To stand on a street corner and protest anything could get you shot with the protest sign still in your hand. The next day your name wouldn't be in the paper. To make mention about your military forces would get you and your family executed--in public! Furthermore, if you are "famous or well-to-do" and you denounce government policy or go against the leaders (whoever controls the government), you will find the soup line will be your next place to eat

Dems Dump Iraq War Vet

My advice to other war vets working for the Democrats: expect this alot:

Iraq war veteran Paul Hackett, a Bush administration critic who had been recruited by top Democrats to run for U.S. Senate, said Tuesday he was dropping his campaign and declared his political career over.
Hackett said he was pressured by party leaders to drop out of the Senate primary and run for the House instead.
National Democratic leaders, especially Sen. Charles Schumer, chairman of the Senate campaign committee, had told Hackett's top fundraisers to stop sending money, Hackett told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
"My donor base and host base on both coasts was contacted by elected officials and asked to stop giving," Hackett said. "The original promise to me from Schumer was that I would have no financial concerns. It went from that to Senator Schumer actually working against my ability to raise money."

Thanks for nothing, right?

Batman Kicks Al Qaeda "Butt"!

During World War 2, comic book creators mobilized our favorites heroes to fight the Axis menace. Such patriotism has been lacking in one of my favorite hobbies for decades, but looks like famed comic artist Frank Miller will remedy this in part:

Once again, Miller returns to the world of the Batman, this time with Holy Terror, Batman!. Though the title plays with Robin's classic catchphrase, the book deals with a serious subject. Gotham has been attacked by Al Qaeda and Batman sets out to defend the city he loves.

...The reason for this work, Miller said, was "an explosion from my gut reaction of what's happening now." He can't stand entertainers who lack the moxie of their '40s counterparts who stood up to Hitler. Holy Terror is "a reminder to people who seem to have forgotten who we're up against."

..."These are our folk heroes," Miller said. "It just seems silly to chase around the Riddler when you've got Al Qaeda out there."

I'm reserving my copy now! Tip to Michelle Malkin.

House Democrat Would Prosecute Times

This is a stunning call from the House Intelligence Committee, and with a growing consensus of Americans:

In a stunning break with her party, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said Sunday that the New York Times should be prosecuted for damaging national security by revealing the National Security Agency's top secret terrorist surveillance program authorized by President Bush.
"If the press was part of the process of delivering classified information, there have to be some limits on press immunity," Rep. Jane Harman told NBC's "Meet the Press."
Moderator Tim Russert then pressed: "But if [the NSA leak] came from a whistleblower, should the New York Times reporter be prosecuted?"
Harman countered: "Well, it's not clear it was a whistleblower. You have to prove that first."

Too much is being leaked to justify the term "whistleblower". When you endanger American lives with the information you divulge, you are not a patriot and not a whistleblower. You are a traitor.

Daschle: Don't Stop Wiretaps

Some liberal Democrats are braking ranks and urging the President to continue terrorist surveillance:

Former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, along with the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Jane Harman, said emphatically yesterday that President Bush should continue his controversial terrorist wiretapping program.
Daschle was asked by NBC "Meet the Press" moderator Tim Russert: "Knowing what we know now, should the president stop this program?"
The former top Senate Democrat responded: "No, absolutely not. I think it’s a very valuable program."

This is encouraging, but is he just trying to get reelected?

We Need More Troops

So says the Christian Science Monitor, and a lot other folks these days. Instead, we are funding more gadgets:

...the Pentagon is continuing to fund three ruinously expensive short-range fighters - the F/A-22 Raptor, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter - even though we already have total dominance in the air. The entire budget for language and cultural training - $181 million - comes to less than the cost of one F-35.

Also being funded is the Virginia-class nuclear attack submarine, with the QDR calling for an eventual increase in its procurement from one sub a year to two. These $2.4-billion subs are now being sold as great tools for gathering intelligence, firing Tomahawk missiles, and inserting Special Forces units into enemy waters, but they were designed to fight Soviet subs and surface ships, and that's still what they're best suited for.

Even more ill-suited for irregular warfare are two other ships whose development will eat up untold billions: the CVN-21 and the DD(X), a next-generation aircraft carrier and destroyer, respectively.

Have patience, change is coming. Even if the Pentagon doesn't see its mistake, the price itself will be the death of the high-tech dinosaurs, or regretably some future enemy will show us the folly of our ways.

America Wants a "Prompt" First Strike

Recieving little coverage in the Old Media. From Spacewar:

The new program, FlightInternational.com said, is already scheduled to take 14 years to develop: Its goal is to develop a non-nuclear, conventional explosives weapons system that could hit a heavily defended major target such as a weapons of mass destruction launch site within hours or minutes of being ordered to do so.
"Dubbed the Prompt Global Strike (PGS) concept, the initiative will open new opportunities for ballistic or hypersonic vehicle technologies," the article said.
As previously reported in UPI's BMD Watch column, the U.S. Navy is already working on converting several of its Lockheed Martin Trident II D-5 submarine-launched nuclear missiles to carry conventional warheads.

The ultimate quick strike, a conventional ballistic missile. Only if we alert the Russian and Chinese first!

No Chocolate City

This is from a Sci-Fi newsletter I subscribe to. The author is a resident of New Orleans and describes Race there as more complicated than its portrayed in the OLd Media. It usually is:

There are no "black" or "white" neighborhoods in New Orleans in the way that the media mean it. Here, a "black neighborhood" often refers to a single block, or just a part of a block. I'm white, and my neighbors to either side are black, and there's a white couple behind my house, and then Section 8 housing (primarily black, but not all) down the street. And then there are a couple of wonderfully restored houses, but I don't know the racial make-up of the owners, and I don't care. Black and white people live together in New Orleans.

Are some neighborhoods "blacker" or "whiter" than others? Sure, but New Orleans has a rich and complicated racial history which cannot be summed up with "whites live uptown" and "blacks live downtown." New Orleans began as a French colony, not a British one. The French did participate in slavery, but their rules and regulations (the Code Noire) were different from the British's, which led to New Orleans having the largest population of "free people of color" in the country.

Visa's for Terrorists

Is this what Al Gore wants, considering his bizzare statements recently in Saudi Arabia?

Gore said Arabs had been "indiscriminately rounded up" and held in "unforgivable" conditions. The former vice president said the Bush administration was playing into al-Qaida's hands by routinely blocking Saudi visa applications.

"The thoughtless way in which visas are now handled, that is a mistake," Gore said during the Jiddah Economic Forum. "The worst thing we can possibly do is to cut off the channels of friendship and mutual understanding between Saudi Arabia and the United States."

Most of the 9/11 attackers were from Saudi Arabia. So does he want to make it easier for these people to get into the country? Actually, I believe he was just pandering to this Arab audience, something the Dems do so well, and probably hoping for a hand-out.

Beanies for Baghdad

Winning the hearts and minds, one child at a time. This is from Army news:

What started as an attempt to get one child to smile turned into a project that helps Soldiers build positive bonds with the Iraqi people as well as the children who are Iraq’s future.“This helps form the beginning of friendships between the children and the Soldiers,” said Donna Ward, Beanies for Baghdad project manager. “The hope for a better tomorrow is found in the children of Iraq.”“We’re hoping to see an entire new generation of Iraqis who trust that we are their friends and that we’re here to help them.” said Capt. Darrell Retheford, C-490th CA Batt.

More information about Beanies for Baghdad and how you can help may be found at their Web site, www.beaniesforbaghdad.com.

Darling of the Ward

This touching story if from Alaska e-post:

The smile on the face of the little Iraqi girl in the Intensive Care Ward of the U.S. Army’s 47th Combat Surgical Hospital has an uplifting effect on the otherwise somber mood of the hospital.
Samah Arajy is a precocious 12-year-old girl recovering from wounds she sustained when she was caught in the crossfire between coalition forces and insurgents last September in her home town of Tal Afar.
Initially, she was treated at a local Iraqi hospital and released shortly after. Because her family was unable to get follow up medical care, her wounded leg became infected.
It was obvious to her father, Mohammed Arajy, that his daughter needed medical treatment soon.
Help came in the form of 2nd Platoon, B Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment. While in Mosul, where Samah’s family was staying temporarily, her father sent her brother running outside their residence to flag down a Stryker vehicle on patrol to ask for some anti-bacterial ointment. Capt. Brent Irish, 2nd Platoon leader stopped the Stryker and asked to see the girl...

Since she was admitted to the CSH, Samah has undergone several operations and six weeks of intensive antibiotic treatments. Her condition has improved dramatically and her leg is healing.
The staff and doctors treat her like one of their own children; pushing her up and down the corridors of the hospital in her wheelchair, joking, and playing games. They call her “The Darling of the Ward.”

Brown Bloviates

Did you see the coverage of former FEMA director Michael Brown before yet-another Hurricane Katrina committee? I thought he was very forceful in defending himself against charges of incompetence. If only he had been equally effective in saving New Orleans when the levees broke.

Sidewinders for Sub Launch

Strategypage reports on a new role for the vintage anti-aircraft missile:

The purpose of the test is to supply American submarines with an ability to take down aircraft, particularly helicopters, that are hunting them. U.S. nuclear attack subs have sensors that can detect a helicopter up there, but lack a weapon to respond with. Anti-submarine helicopters carry sensors (usually sonobuoys) that can get a more precise fix on a sub, and torpedoes, with which to destroy the sub below. The sub cannot outrun the helicopter. Actually, attempting to do that would just make more noise for the sonobuoys to pick up. Diving deeper won't work against the more modern torpedoes carried by helicopters. Thus the need for a weapon that can bring down the helicopter, before the sub takes a fatal torpedo hit.

The Russians were reported to have such a weapon on their own subs during the Cold War.

What Happened to Democrats?

A hilarious video of the rise and fall of the Democratic Party, from Rightwinged.com.

Patriot Act Just "Kills" Harry Reid

As he throws his support behind it. From the Washington Times:

Speaker J. Dennis Hastert said yesterday that House Republicans can accept the USA Patriot Act deal struck Thursday, and key Senate Democrats also endorsed the proposed changes as a good compromise. "I think they were enough to make sure we can protect the American people," Mr. Hastert, Illinois Republican, told reporters as House Republicans were meeting on Maryland's Eastern Shore for their annual retreat. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who in December led a filibuster of the bill and boasted he had "killed" the last version, supports the new compromise, a spokesman for the Nevada Democrat said.

You think Reid's original comments will ever be used in future GOP campaign ads? Nawwww...

Mehlman Rallies the Troops

Ken Mehlman, GOP national chairman spoke about the War on Terror at this week's CPAC Conference:

"For a generation, terrorists learned they could make war on free nations without fear of war in return," Mehlman said, adding that Bush understood how to respond. "On Sept. 12, the terrorists got war in return."

Mehlman said the US under George Bush has a strategy for victory, but Democrats aren't so certain:

The fight against terrorism is centered in Iraq, Mehlman said, and the only way to prevent terrorists from taking charge there is to stick it out and win.
He quoted Democratic chairman Howard Dean saying that the idea the United States can win in Iraq is wrong and reminded that Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., accused American soldiers of "terrorizing women and children."
"Democratic leaders always seem to blame America first," Mehlman said, "especially when a Republican is in the White House."

For Want of Frigates

In a series of dispatches, Admiral Nelson once lamented for lack of small warships in his fleet. This article from the Sun says history repeats itself:

THE Royal Navy is being forced to stop drug-busting for nine months of the year because of cutbacks...
... after seven frigates and destroyers were axed, admirals have decided they can no longer spare a full-time presence in the US-led Caribbean operation...

The retreat spells great news for international smugglers whose path from the cocaine fields of South America will now be far clearer.
And it follows retiring First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Alan West’s broadside to ministers in The Sun this week, in which he warned the Navy no longer has enough ships to deal with any major new crisis.

What a shame this is occuring so soon after the terrorists attacks on our big ships with small craft, such as the attack on USS Cole in 2000!

A Cartoon Conspiracy

The NYT claims the the Muslims riots over Danish cartoons was planned months ago by anti-democracy radicals:

The meeting in Mecca, a Saudi city from which non-Muslims are barred, drew minimal international press coverage even though such leaders as President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran were in attendance. But on the road from quiet outrage in a small Muslim community in northern Europe to a set of international brush fires, the summit meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference — and the role its member governments played in the outrage — was something of a turning point.

After that meeting, anger at the Danish caricatures, especially at an official government level, became more public. In some countries, like Syria and Iran, that meant heavy press coverage in official news media and virtual government approval of demonstrations that ended with Danish embassies in flames...

But the pressure began building as early as October, when Danish Islamists were lobbying Arab ambassadors and Arab ambassadors lobbied Arab governments.

"It was no big deal until the Islamic conference when the O.I.C. took a stance against it," said Muhammad el-Sayed Said, deputy director of the Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo.

Read the whole thing!

Aircraft Carriers On the Way Out?

Still studying the Navy's new expansion plan, I came across this comment by the Navy Chief ( thanks to Phelps Hobart of the SeaPower group):

Mullen said he may have to reduce spending on new Navy aircraft in the future to find the extra money for ships, which he described as the biggest challenge he faces as his service's uniformed leader.

This is a profound statement from a Navy guy! Such talk even a few years ago would've gotten him the boot, I think. As recently as the late 1997 the intruiging new Arsenal Ship concept was cancelled for fear it would compete with new aircraft carrier production.

Fighting With Our Hands Tied

This is from a review of the new book War Footing by Frank Gaffney:

“America is fighting this war, as the saying goes, with one hand tied behind its back,” writes Gaffney, who goes on to explain that – unlike our use of our superior military forces and high-tech battlefield wizardry – we have failed to make use of our superior economic and financial power against our enemies. “We need to adopt a War Footing stance that includes measures that use our money to punish our enemies while rewarding the responsible – and profitable companies – that are on our side,” he says.

It concludes with a statement very relevent seeing the Muslim riots ongoing world wide:

“To be sure, it is a global war,” he says. “But what we have established is that, given its complexities and stakes, this conflict should be called what it plainly is – the War for the Free World.”

Wheels Rule!

Remember all the doomsaying from veterans of what a disaster the Stryker Combat Vehicle was going to be? This strategypage article says they have become the vehicle of choice worldwide:

Yet another European nation is replacing its Cold War era armored vehicles, with wheeled vehicles similar to the American Stryker. Belgium has ordered 241 Piranha IIIC vehicles. This vehicle is based on the Piranha III LAV, long used by the U.S. Marines...

These vehicles cost about a million dollars each. This is much cheaper than the U.S. Stryker (which go for about $1.8 million each), and has raised questions if the additional features (sensors and computers) in the Stryker are worth the cost.

Of course, the Army always has to have its extras!

USS Ohio Re-Ups!

A former Trident ballistic missile submarine returns for a new era of warfare: The first of four Ohio-class Trident missile submarines being converted to carry guided missiles and Special Operations Forces (SOF) rejoined the fleet in a return to service ceremony at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor Feb. 7. In December, USS Ohio (SSGN 726) completed conversion to a guided-missile submarine capable of carrying more than 150 Tomahawk cruise missiles and more than 60 SOF members for extended periods. This conversion is a major step forward in the Navy�s ability to fight the global war on terrorism... USS Michigan (SSGN 727), USS Florida (SSGN 728), and USS Georgia (SSGN 729) are also undergoing conversion to SSGN and are scheduled to return to service over the next two years. Look out terrorists, and China! http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=22240

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