Clark Griswold Posted December 5, 2015 Posted December 5, 2015 Similar from the WSJ on Sirte, Libya; they're exporting their brand and trying to grab oil resources. This is a terrible game of whack-a-molehttps://www.wsj.com/articles/islamic-state-entrenches-in-sirte-libya-1448798153Shifty bastards.Not disengagement but selective direct action is our best tactic, our strategy needs to be money, guns and support for regional allies that meet serious requirements (anti-corruption, human rights, etc...) with a limited footprint in the ME. All of this accompanied by a cultural, moral argument against jihadism; an information campaign larger than our current one and the expansion of a what I would call active allies in this active intellectual confrontation against Islamic Fascism. This argument can not just be fought by the West; other nations, cultures, traditions, religions, etc... need to brought to isolate and confront intellectually the jihadis but their sympathizers and enablers. The civilized world has to call out the Saudis for exporting Wahhabism, the Iranians for support of Hezbollah, the Pakistanis for the assistance to the Taliban, etc... there are a ton of free riders out there enjoying the benefits of the liberal world order that has evolved, it's time to get everyone rowing who enjoys this boat...https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/05/28/the-pitfalls-of-a-whack-a-mole-strategy-against-isis/Easy to say, hard to implement given our current political climate. Pols want to score soundbite points and bumps in the poll numbers with quick shots from the hip and large military actions to project the image of strength and decisiveness. Our political cycles are so short that a careful, well thought strategy requiring years to be effective comes across as weakness because you don't get the immediate high of a major military ground action, seizure of territory but then followed by the hangover of occupation-pacification-nation building. That said, I think if a President (particularly one in their second term) laid out an agenda to contain and confront, offer help to change the nations and societies that produce nihilistic, sociopathic jihadis and be honest that this will take 20+ years because our ultimate goal is a generation of young people in the ME who don't hate us, other religions and want to do something other than blow themselves up on a bus or airplane and that we are gonna get all the Allies on board with this because we all stick together or hang together, this could work, but I'm an optimist...
Masshole Posted December 5, 2015 Posted December 5, 2015 The U.S. is running out of bombs to drop on ISIShttps://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/04/politics/air-force-20000-bombs-missiles-isis/index.html Seems a bit Chicken-Littleish to me, but how accurate is it?
Clark Griswold Posted December 6, 2015 Posted December 6, 2015 sums it up.Reset option as seen from ground level.But Quinn was right, 200k boots on the ground indefinitely with the equal number teachers, doctors, etc.. but that could be low. Just a WAG but 200k boots on the ground and the civil rebuilding teams, logistics, support etc.. would be in the 85+ billion a year range with no end in sight. No thanks.
pawnman Posted December 6, 2015 Posted December 6, 2015 The U.S. is running out of bombs to drop on ISIShttps://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/04/politics/air-force-20000-bombs-missiles-isis/index.html Seems a bit Chicken-Littleish to me, but how accurate is it?We're not running out of bombs. We're running out of tailkits.
Craftsman Posted December 6, 2015 Posted December 6, 2015 Looks like it's time to bring in the buff and clean up WW2 style. Carpet bombs for all my friends. 3
HU&W Posted December 6, 2015 Posted December 6, 2015 2 hours ago, pawnman said: We're not running out of bombs. We're running out of tailkits. Only need a tailkit if you don't trust a ballistic release.
Clark Griswold Posted December 6, 2015 Posted December 6, 2015 37 minutes ago, gearpig said: Looks like Russia is mashing the rest button: https://www.youtube.com/embed/CQpxNA-uku4 CDE not on their 9 line I think. 1
SurelySerious Posted December 7, 2015 Posted December 7, 2015 37 minutes ago, gearpig said: Looks like Russia is mashing the rest button: https://www.youtube.com/embed/CQpxNA-uku4 CDE not on their 9 line I think. CDE numbers exist for unguided munitions. It can be done.
Clark Griswold Posted December 7, 2015 Posted December 7, 2015 30 minutes ago, SurelySerious said: CDE numbers exist for unguided munitions. It can be done. True but our strategy (for lack of a better word) requires restraint, if it comes to needing cluster bombs, MOABs and napalm I'm ok with it but until then shoot carefully 1
SurelySerious Posted December 7, 2015 Posted December 7, 2015 30 minutes ago, SurelySerious said: CDE numbers exist for unguided munitions. It can be done. True but our strategy (for lack of a better word) requires restraint, if it comes to needing cluster bombs, MOABs and napalm I'm ok with it but until then shoot carefully 2
Clark Griswold Posted December 8, 2015 Posted December 8, 2015 22 hours ago, SurelySerious said: Touche' mon ami Per usual, The Onion has the finest commentary on the situation: https://www.theonion.com/article/new-evidence-suggests-middle-east-conflict-predate-38428
Sim Posted December 8, 2015 Posted December 8, 2015 On 12/7/2015, 6:14:12, gearpig said: Looks like Russia is mashing the rest button: https://www.youtube.com/embed/CQpxNA-uku4 Rocket artillery is beautiful. Looks like TOS-1. Iraqi appears to like theirs as well https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvQDIBlJ9KQ
pawnman Posted December 16, 2015 Posted December 16, 2015 On 12/7/2015 at 9:55 PM, busdriver said: 45 HADB rip 6 mk82 for all my friends 45? Bones are already out there...let's release 82 of those bad Johnnies.
schokie Posted December 17, 2015 Posted December 17, 2015 45 degree High Altitude Dive Bomb. Release a stick of 6 Mk-82s. Not anywhere near as many bombs as the B-1 brings to the fight, but the attack is a hell of a lot of fun.
HossHarris Posted December 17, 2015 Posted December 17, 2015 VLDs while listening to smooth jazz. (Did I win the queer delivery argument?) 1
sqwatch Posted December 22, 2015 Posted December 22, 2015 Mystifying https://www.lrb.co.uk/v38/n01/seymour-m-hersh/military-to-military 5
deaddebate Posted December 22, 2015 Posted December 22, 2015 This is worth 7 minutes of your time. https://homebrave.com/home-of-the-brave//on-the-ferry-from-lesbos-to-athens The host used to work for NPR, and is now independent. He spent some time in Afghanistan and other places.
MD Posted December 23, 2015 Posted December 23, 2015 22 hours ago, gearpig said: Woah. Mind-blowing and infuriating. He certainly did his homework. Great post. Yet again, we're betting on the wrong horse with out politics. Turkey uses us and takes advantage of our need for a base, and we still take their crap? When Israel is siding with Russia, that should tell us something.
Clark Griswold Posted December 23, 2015 Posted December 23, 2015 7 hours ago, MD said: Yet again, we're betting on the wrong horse with out politics. Turkey uses us and takes advantage of our need for a base, and we still take their crap? When Israel is siding with Russia, that should tell us something. 2 While it might be a pain in the arse, operating out of Greece is possible, numerous bases and put another carrier on station. Cut the need for Incirlik and send a message to the new Sultan. Greece will let us operate there for some euros (a lot of euros) and set up a massive refugee relief operation there for humanitarian and PA purposes, making the point that Erdogan sucks and is not needed, not that he actually does shit to stop ISIS anyway. He and the rest of the "Freedom and Justice" party cronies are looking for an Ottoman Empire 2.0 including putting their tentacles into the Balkans, Europe should be wise and start to put him into check. Turkey's further integration while they flirt with quasi Islamism at the expense classic liberal values needs to be paused.
Clark Griswold Posted December 24, 2015 Posted December 24, 2015 33 minutes ago, BADFNZ said: You had me at "operating out of Greece". Yup 5
Lawman Posted December 24, 2015 Posted December 24, 2015 You had me at "operating out of Greece". Yup She's dressed pretty conservatively from what I saw in Crete and rest of the Islands. I'd go to Greece in a heartbeat.
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