The Maneuver Center's Donovan Research Library...

I was doing my nightly rounds of the internet and decided to try and find out if anyone had written anything about the Saudi performance in Yemen. Specifically I wanted info on why the pro's thought that the M1 Abrams performed so badly in Saudi hands.  I have my own theories but I wanted to hear from the professionals at the Maneuver Center to see what they had to say.

The search resulted in nada.  Zilch.  Nothing.

What I did find was almost as interesting though.  I stumbled across the Donovan Research Library and checked out the hot topics.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Below is a small sample of what they have on hand....

Lost sabers why we need operational Cavalry and how to get it back

 An Army White Paper THE PROFESSION OF ARMS

Heavy metal: arguing the continued need for Abrams in action

This probably isn't for everyone, but if you're even remotely interested in armored warfare then its a must visit part of the internet.

France creates a 7th Commando Marine...via Navy Recognition...

Thanks to Lee for the link!

via NR.

The French Ministry of Defence announced that defence minister Le Drian will lead the inauguration ceremony for the creation of a new "Commando Marine" (Navy Commando) unit on September 11 2015. According to the French Navy, this new special forces unit will be specialized in special operations support. In other words it will be some kind of "logistics" commando.
This new elite unit was created on September 1st this year and is named after Vice Admiral Pierre Ponchardier (1909-1961) , commanding officer of aircraft carrier La Fayette and vice Chief of Navy Staff. He distinguished himself during the Second World War in service of the nation by creating with his brother the resistance network "Sosie".

Hmm.  Special Ops types like to play with the word "support".  I've seen it applied to shooters that don't wear uniforms, all the way to some bubba passing out beans and bullets so I'm not sure what this "logistics" commando will actually be doing till we get a bit more info.

Dawn Blitz 15 amphibious landing vid...filmed by Pfc. Nathaniel Castillo

Note:  Be advised the MiloMonkey found this link.  One Marine was killed and 18 injured in a vehicle roll over.  The spokesperson didn't state what the vehicle was or the extent of the injuries but by the number of personnel it sounds like a MTVR to me.  We'll see but send words up for these guys.  I'm sure they're hurting both physically and mentally.

USMC likely to request to exclude women from the infantry!

Thanks to William for the link!

via Wall Street Journal (sorry guys its behind a paywall)...

In a summary of the findings, the Marines cited a 1992 presidential report that concluded: “Risking the lives of a military unit in combat to provide career opportunities or accommodate the personal desire or interest of an individual, or group of individuals, is more than bad military judgment. It is morally wrong.”

Then this...

“The brutal and extremely physical nature of direct ground combat, often marked by close, interpersonal violence, remains largely unchanged through centuries of warfare, despite technological advancements,” the Marines said in a summary of the research findings.

Want the rest?

Pay the Wall Street Journal or...simply wait.  The report is so provocative that I'm sure other news outlets will be beating down the door to reprint it.

Amazing isn't it.  The wisdom of MARINE CORPS GREATS like Colonel John Walter Ripley hold up through the ages.  Where some (yeah I'm talking about those bastards at USNI Blog) choose to dismiss the wisdom of those that came before, on this blog we will listen to their counsel.  We will read and reflect on their words.

Turkey crosses into Iraq to chase the PKK, not ISIS...US strategy unraveling...

via BBC

Turkish ground forces have crossed into Iraq in pursuit of Kurdish militants for the first time since a ceasefire two years ago.
Government officials said the incursion was a "short-term" measure to hunt down PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) rebels.
Turkish warplanes also launched a wave of airstrikes on PKK bases in northern Iraq on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, at least 14 Turkish police officers died in a bomb attack blamed on Kurdish militants on Tuesday.
The attack in eastern Igdir province came a day after suspected PKK bombs killed at least 16 Turkish soldiers in south-eastern Hakkari region.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the PKK had suffered "serious damage" inside and outside of Turkey and was in a state of "panic".

Ignoring the politics, it's obvious that US strategy is failing and failing badly. There is no unified front against ISIS.  Saudi Arabia/GCC are chasing rebels in Yemen instead of turning their attention to what I would view as the bigger threat.

Additionally we're seeing slow motion airstrikes and a sortie rate that would make LeMay pound the walls in anger.

Now I understand why the intel community is up in arms.  They see the writing on the wall and don't want to be saddled with the blame when the public finally wakes up to how badly things are going over there.

The administration won't take the blame, which leaves the US military to get saddled with another losing war effort.  The administration will say that they followed military advice, the intel community will say that they provided unvarnished intel on the situation and our generals will be left looking slack eyed and silly.  

McMaster...The M2 Bradley is obsolete...

via Defense News.

For support brigade combat teams, McMaster said the Army needs to provide additional lethality to vehicles. "We have a Stryker mounted with a World War II weapon," he said. This means the Army would want half of its Stryker armored personnel carriers to have a 30mm cannon and a machine gun and the other half to be equipped with Javelin anti-tank missiles and a machine gun.

Wow.  So the cat is out of the bag and that armor vehicle race that I've been harping on is actually being acknowledged by Army leadership.  Awesome.  The problem?  They're still behind the power curve.

But wait.  It gets worse.  Check this out...

And "what we really need to do is try to hopefully get some additional funding so we can develop the Future Fighting Vehicle" to replace M2 Bradleys "which are really obsolete," McMaster said.

This is interesting.

Everyone is talking about the supposed vulnerability of the M1 Abrams in Yemen, but no one is discussing the performance of the Bradley.  From all indications the US Army is more than satisfied with the Abrams and seem confident that it can handle any upcoming threat (Armata).  But this is the first I've heard it publicly acknowledged that the Bradley is obsolete.

Seems like many of my readers that have said the same were right...it also appears that the idea of simply upgrading the Bradley to bring it inline with the CV90, Puma and Namer was just wishful thinking.

Consider this.  If the US Army Bradley is obsolete, then what about the USMC's AAV?   

Brazil's Gripen NG program begins...

via Defense-Aerospace.

“This important milestone marks the formal start to the Brazilian Gripen NG programme. We will now work full speed ahead to ensure timely deliveries of Gripen NG to Brazil. Our partnership with Brazilian industry strengthens Saab’s position in Latin America and supports our strategy for growth through industrial co-operation,” says Håkan Buskhe, President and CEO of Saab.

The technology transfer programme will further contribute to the development of an independent, advanced defence industrial base in Brazil. Brazilian engineers and technicians will come to Saab for education and on-the job-training in Sweden starting in October 2015.

So I guess the Gripen NG has its first export order?

All Male Infantry Units Outperform Mixed Gender/All Female Teams

Thanks to William for the link!

via USA Today.

All-male ground combat squads proved faster, stronger and more lethal in most cases than units that included women, concludes a Marine Corps study that evaluated the impact of integrating women into all jobs.
The women also suffered higher injury rates during physically demanding training, according to a summary of the study released Thursda

Then this...

Women also struggled with obstacles designed to test upper body strength in simulated combat. "For example, when negotiating the wall obstacle, male Marines threw their packs to the top of the wall, whereas female Marines required regular assistance in getting their packs to the top," the summary said.

Read it here. 

Take that Haynie and the rest of you slack jawed bastards over at USNI Blog.

When does journalism end and citizenship begin?

Take the emotion and the politics out of this one....lets look at it from space and consider the moral dilemma...

via Reuters

A camerawoman for a private television channel in Hungary was fired late on Tuesday after videos of her kicking and tripping up migrants fleeing police, including a man carrying a child, spread in the media and on the internet.
In separate videos, the woman, who was not named by the channel, is seen kicking a girl and tripping up the man carrying a child as hundreds of migrants, many of them Syrian refugees, broke away from police on Hungary's southern border with Serbia.
"An employee of N1TV today showed unacceptable behavior at the Roszke collection point," N1TV, also known as Nemzeti TV, said in a statement. "We have terminated the contract of the camerawoman with immediate effect today."
Szabolcs Kisberk, chief editor at the TV station, told Reuters: "I believe we have done what we had to do in this situation. We don’t understand how this could happen, it is shocking and unacceptable."

If you get hyper emotional, delve into politics or try and play "mightier than thou" then you're gonna miss the issue I'm trying to get discussion on.

First.  Yes this woman was obviously over the top.  Kicking people?  That's uncalled for...but lets consider the circumstances (and no I'm not excusing her actions just pointing out what has been ignored)...these people were fleeing from police.

When does citizenship require you to act?

It can be argued that this camerawoman was simply acting to aid law enforcement.  Additionally it can be argued that the child's parent (I'm assuming that the guy was the parent) is the one that actually endangered the child by fleeing from police.

Why are we talking about this here?  Simple.  Its not heard quite as often now as it once was, but in the prepping community the theme of being a "sheep dog" was all the rage (check out some of the prepping vids and you'll see what I'm talking about).  The idea was that there are times when law enforcement needs the help of citizens.  Active assistance, not just reporting crimes.

Case in point?  A Louisiana State Trooper was killed near Lake Charles.  The assailant shot him and was restrained by passers by.  That's an example of "sheep dog" behavior (if you ask a booster of the concept)....or like it was called before, citizen involvement.

What say you?  If you take out the over the top behavior (kicking) is this camerawoman wrong or did she behave appropriately?  Or even better when does journalism end and citizenship begin?

NOTE:  Well ain't this grand.  Another example of either (a) me not properly explaining the parameters of the debate were OR (b) people being so focused on certain agendas that they can't wrap their heads around a bigger issue.  Fantastic.  I won't be doing this shit again.

I don't understand this...

What am I seeing?

I just don't understand this.....

Naw just kidding.  Its suppose to be a cosplay in reference to a popular show but I haven't seen it....still...creepy as hell.