I want you to ask me something you think you should know about me. Something that should be obvious, but you have no idea about.
Ask away. Then post this in your LJ and find out what people don’t know about you.
The Battle of Fallujah is going… hmm.
It’s hard to tell from this distance what is going on. Apparently the insurgents are communicating by black flags, instead of radio. The sight of a black flag is apparently quite alarming to the troops because it means that they’re about to be opened fire upon. The insurgents have set up booby traps in some buildings, and they’ve tunneled between many others. Snipers are firing lone bullets at Americans from time to time, particularly at officers (John Poole: “Snipers are particularly effective against American squads because they signal the location of the sniper’s enemy to his allies [when the rest of the US squad opens fire], and take out the principal decision maker all at once.”) The insurgents are preregistering their mortars to hit buildings that make likely “safe houses” for troops on the move; US troops attack during the day, but the insurgents regularly attack at night, particularly now when it’s moonless. Buried machine-gun nests sweep the streets from more than one angle, creating confusion when the Marines reach the crossfire areas — they aren’t able to determine easily where the fire is coming from.
When the GPS systems of US troops stop working, their advance is delayed for nearly an hour. Meanwhile, the insurgents know the city without having to consult a map. Some tanks get disabled by RPG rounds, others mysteriously stop working in the dust. The Iraqi National Guard is only being brought in to search and protect mosques, some of which are already rubble, anyway. One of the photos from the NYT today is a US soldier standing in front of a mosque with a chopped-off minaret.
Actually, you can read the US Army MOUT guide directly online; pretty much all the Army guide texts are digital, these days. Google around for stuff; you’ll find it quick.
Not all the latest MOUT stuff is accessible, but enough you can start seeing context for what you hear. (For a truly old-school grounding, Google for “Duffer’s Drift”.)
As an additional note on Poole: US mil regs have officers in the field neither wearing rank insignia, nor being saluted by their men. How, then, are snipers supposed to be targeting them? This isn’t new protocol; its been the case since Generals stopped riding around on big target-bearing horses.
Just a thought.
I don’t have much to go on besides Poole at this point. I don’t play tactical-level video games, and Poole is the first book I’ve read on the subject of tactical combat. So I’m not entirely buying him, but… having just finished reading his book… it’s the only lens I have to look through at the moment.
If you want to recommend a couple of other books I can read, in order to have some other lenses, I’ll happily consider them. Frankly, the subject fascinates me right now, and I want to learn more.
i don’t buy poole’s analysis.
proper mout for entering a crossfire area is bounded withdrawal, then pound all possible sources of fire flat with cap or mortar fire. maybe even organic artillery, if its available.
that will end up reducing possible crossfire areas very quickly, and if it becomes too common, they’ll just start the arty first. the terrs may can trp safe-house stops the days before, but we have laser-guided arty; we don’t have to.
i don’t buy poole’s analysis.
proper mout for entering a crossfire area is bounded withdrawal, then pound all possible sources of fire flat with cap or mortar fire. maybe even organic artillery, if its available.
that will end up reducing possible crossfire areas very quickly, and if it becomes too common, they’ll just start the arty first. the terrs may can trp safe-house stops the days before, but we have laser-guided arty; we don’t have to.
I don’t have much to go on besides Poole at this point. I don’t play tactical-level video games, and Poole is the first book I’ve read on the subject of tactical combat. So I’m not entirely buying him, but… having just finished reading his book… it’s the only lens I have to look through at the moment.
If you want to recommend a couple of other books I can read, in order to have some other lenses, I’ll happily consider them. Frankly, the subject fascinates me right now, and I want to learn more.
Actually, you can read the US Army MOUT guide directly online; pretty much all the Army guide texts are digital, these days. Google around for stuff; you’ll find it quick.
Not all the latest MOUT stuff is accessible, but enough you can start seeing context for what you hear. (For a truly old-school grounding, Google for “Duffer’s Drift”.)
As an additional note on Poole: US mil regs have officers in the field neither wearing rank insignia, nor being saluted by their men. How, then, are snipers supposed to be targeting them? This isn’t new protocol; its been the case since Generals stopped riding around on big target-bearing horses.
Just a thought.
whats really scaring me is…..
Fallujah got like 30 seconds on the morning news….I gotta stop watching TV and get my news from other sources….
As for a question……what drew you to the priesthood? Where did your path diverge?
whats really scaring me is…..
Fallujah got like 30 seconds on the morning news….I gotta stop watching TV and get my news from other sources….
As for a question……what drew you to the priesthood? Where did your path diverge?
Re: your obvious to my oblivion:
My bachelors degree is in philosophy, my 1st master’s degree is in theology, and my 2nd masters degree is in ancient and classical studies.
your obvious to my oblivion:
what is your degree in?
your obvious to my oblivion:
what is your degree in?
Re: your obvious to my oblivion:
My bachelors degree is in philosophy, my 1st master’s degree is in theology, and my 2nd masters degree is in ancient and classical studies.