2nd ACR in Hungary...working the human terrain?

Below are more pics of 2nd ACR in Hungary.  American Mercenary would say that they're working the human terrain.  I say this is just a public relations exercise.  My question is simple.  Has the US Army become so enamored with counter insurgency ops that they're confusing PR with combat power?  We've seen it before.  When the Soviet Union rode into Hungary in 1956 the revolution was halted and the govt returned to the Soviet Orbit (talking about shortly after WW2).  Have things changed so much today that bad PR can deflect a 125mm high explosive shell?  Oh and as far as the captions I attached to the pics...a little tongue in cheek

SFC thinks he's getting laid!

Check out this Major!  He's got the brief on sexual harassment....he's doing the arm around to pose for the pic but I'm not touching you thing!

that guy needs a freaking haircut.

Your society is broken when your sexuality becomes part of your resume' (definitely not politically correct...you were warned)

Read about this guy here.

My thoughts on this?  When your sexuality becomes part of your resume' then something is broken.  Since this is being highlighted by the Obama Administration as a major part of this guys qualifications then I'm gonna say that our society (as represented by the elected leader of this nation) is broken.

I could care less about who this guy likes to screw.  What I do care about is whether he's qualified for the job.

But its obvious that this isn't about qualifications.  This is about the gender that this man has sex with....his sexual preference, identity...whatever you want to call it.

Having said all that I'm happy as hell we don't have a Dept of the Marine Corps.  The President would probably appoint the most flamboyant transexual he could find just to spite us!  Little does he know that we wouldn't give a damn as long as the princess could get the job done.

USMC aircraft on British aircraft carriers....how is that gonna work...

Alot of talk is done about USMC aircraft operating off the new British carriers.  I can see what's in it for the Royal Navy.  They get to hold off criticism that's gonna come anyway about them having built the world's largest helicopter carriers...they get to play with the idea of "ultimate" interoperability...and they get to deal with a massive inferiority complex (sorry, just telling it like it is...the Brits do a whole lot of complaining about US foreign policy/military intervention but they want to be considered the MOST important ally).

But ignoring the fact that I have yet to see the benefit to the USMC...wait lets flesh this out a bit.  How is putting a SPMAGTF aboard a Brit carrier a benefit?  In the real area of concern that the British operate...meaning the Middle East and Africa?  I just don't see it.  The SPMAGTF is busy providing support in case a plane goes down.  Anything bigger and they're gonna be hard pressed.  Could they actually be thinking of inserting the carrier into a Amphibious Ready Group to act as the big deck?  I don't think so....so not only is it a problem of what are the benefits, or how it will work, but you also have to ask if this is worth it!

2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment Dragoon crossing (river crossing op).... Photos by Sgt. Sharmain Burch

What's with the guys playing crossing guard?  I can see a boat in the water but people on the bridge?  Weird.

Chinese Marines. At least they'll be easy to spot and kill....

Provocative title to this blog post huh?

Don't get excited.  I was just piggybacking off a Chinese Defense Blog piece on their Marines uniforms (all pics from his site).

Quite honestly I never paid much attention to their uniforms and have focused more on weapon systems.....but uniforms matter.  Personally I have no problem with the Chinese Marines focusing more on image over substance.  As a matter of fact its quite refreshing to see a threat nation being preoccupied with vanity instead of doing the hard work of prepping to win battles.

Its official. Russia would win a war in the Baltics...

via FP

In June 2014, a month after he had left his force-planning job at the Pentagon, the Air Force asked Ochmanek for advice on Russia’s neighborhood ahead of Obama’s September visit to Tallinn, Estonia. At the same time, the Army had approached another of Ochmanek’s colleagues at Rand, and the two teamed up to run a thought exercise called a “table top,” a sort of war game between two teams: the red team (Russia) and the blue team (NATO). The scenario was similar to the one that played out in Crimea and eastern Ukraine: increasing Russian political pressure on Estonia and Latvia (two NATO countries that share borders with Russia and have sizable Russian-speaking minorities), followed by the appearance of provocateurs, demonstrations, and the seizure of government buildings. “Our question was: Would NATO be able to defend those countries?” Ochmanek recalls.
The results were dispiriting. Given the recent reductions in the defense budgets of NATO member countries and American pullback from the region, Ochmanek says the blue team was outnumbered 2-to-1 in terms of manpower, even if all the U.S. and NATO troops stationed in Europe were dispatched to the Baltics — including the 82nd Airborne, which is supposed to be ready to go on 24 hours’ notice and is based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
“We just don’t have those forces in Europe,” Ochmanek explains. Then there’s the fact that the Russians have the world’s best surface-to-air missiles and are not afraid to use heavy artillery.
After eight hours of gaming out various scenarios, the blue team went home depressed. “The conclusion,” Ochmanek says, “was that we are unable to defend the Baltics.”

Sorry.

I can't even begin to be sympathetic.  This is another instance of "mafias" winning and real life losing.

Why would military professionals suddenly believe that turning the entire military into SOCOM light/wannabe or SOCOM support would actually win wars that determine the fate of nations?

The Russians have taken a better approach to things and to this very day the Administration and Pentagon are playing games.  Do you really believe that the USAF sending 4...yeah that's right..FOUR F-22's to Europe is an actual deterrent?  Do you think that the 2nd ACR in their Strykers is an actual deterrent?  They're at best speed bumps and at worst they're cannon fodder!

We are left at the mercy of our "enemy" (I still marvel at the idea that we talk to China, but consider Russia an enemy...someone explain that to me).  I don't think Putin is going to push into the Baltics but if he does then NATO/US/EU won't be able to stop them.

Type 26 Global Combat Ship Simulation

Interesting.  BAE is usually very careful when making this type of vid.  Was the launching of a Sea Ceptor against an air to air missile simply a mistake or do the missiles have new capabilities?

Courage under fire is easy. Dealing with uncomfortable truths is hard.

Why is it easier to risk your life by engaging in mortal combat, but its hard to take a stand on an uncomfortable truth?

I really don't know the answer to the question but it explains everything that is wrong with our defense department.  The dept is filled with people that will dazzle you with combat records that would make warriors of old blush with envy.  But when it comes to taking stands on moral issues or uncomfortable truths those same men lose their voices.

We had two examples of it this week.  The first involved the SgtMajor that called the SecNav on his bullshit but then quickly took down the post on his facebook page.  Disappointing but not knowing the particulars I can't say that I'm surprised.  Commands can reach into the social network of just about anyone in uniform so a "come to Jesus" moment probably occurred.

The second case IS disappointing.  Remember the dustup between the American and Chinese Admiral at DSEI?  I was disgusted by the weak response that our guy gave to such a provocative statement.  I wasn't alone.  McGrath and Hendricks responded on the pages of Defense One...a tidbit...

This represents yet another iteration of the “Let’s be the gracious power in the room” approach to authoritarian regimes, a tactic that has been utterly discredited. Offered as a sign of benevolent humility, a posture presented by the current administration as an alternative to previous foreign-policy statements grounded in American Exceptionalism, these statements are increasingly received as signs of U.S. weakness and decline. From the Middle East to Europe and Asia to Africa, the reputation of the United States and the global system of governance based upon the rule of law, individual liberty, and free trade is under challenge.

McGrath and Hendrix had it absolutely right.  So I was a bit peeved to read this today.

Jerry Hendrix and I wrote a piece yesterday in Defense One in which we raised objections to reports of remarks RADM Harley made in London earlier this week. Admiral Harley has defended himself in the comments section of the piece, and in a meeting he held earlier today with Jerry.
Jerry and I were inappropriate in our wording, specifically "Let us be clear: military officers, especially flag and general officers, are not political appointees. Their oath and duty is to the Constitution and the people whose sovereignty it embodies. The rising unwillingness to provide realistic assessments and strategies to protect American national interests is truly disturbing." We have no reason to believe that RADM Harley has been anything but faithful to his Oath of Office, and the implication that he has is regrettable and unfortunate. I apologize for this. Jerry has similarly apologized to the Admiral in the comment section of the original piece.

So Hendrix and McGrath decide they need to apologize.

Amazing.

You want to know why the F-35 has survived this long?  You want to know why the USMC is SOOOO late to the party when it comes to dealing with the 'women in combat' issue?  You want to know why the DoD procurement is a joke and our strategy all around the world is a travesty?

Simple.

We have a generation of guys that will literally charge a machinegun nest without question, but shrink from the idea of MAYBE having to stand alone and tell their colleagues and the world uncomfortable truths.

We can't fix a thing till we fix this.

Canadian National Defense Dept says the F-35 unaffordable...

via National Post.com

Here’s the bottom line: the total cost of the F-35 program is now $49 billion — an increase of $3.2 billion from the projections provided by KPMG in 2012 and DND in 2014. This includes all acquisition, sustainment and operating costs and assumes that development, disposal and attrition costs have not changed.
Is it any wonder that Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has avoided mentioning the need for new fighter jets recently? For this $3.2 billion in additional costs will require a tough decision by any prime minister committed to balanced budgets.
One option is to purchase only 54 F-35s, which is all that $9 billion can now buy. The problem is, the RCAF has stated that it requires a minimum of 65 fighter jets.
Another option is to divert the $3.2 billion from other military projects. But the Harper government has already cut defence spending to one per cent of GDP, the lowest level in half a century.

I told you to watch that exchange rate.

I told you to watch the total numbers bought and to ignore projections.

I told you that I sensed desperation within this program.

I was right.

The amazing thing?  The Canadians are going thru the same thing that our own DoD is experiencing.  A reduction in the number of fighters they can buy?  We're looking at numbers too.  The problem?  That will accelerate the classic death spiral.  You can't afford to buy the numbers planned which increases the cost, the cost increases which means you can't buy the NEW number planned, which increases the cost, which means you can't buy the REVISED number planned and so on.

But the biggest bear in the room is the Global Dollar War.

The US started this game and others have engaged (on this one I will say its our fault).  What does that mean?  It means that even though the FED FAILED IN ITS RESPONSIBILITY TO RAISE RATES, it won't help the emerging markets, will allow others to further devalue their dollars and will cause OUR DOLLAR TO RISE EVEN MORE!

That basically locks in a strong US dollar thru 2016.  Which means that the F-35 won't see any relief before a new administration comes onboard.

The Death Spiral is here to stay.  The USMC should IMMEDIATELY begin to look at options to cover for the fact that a full allotment of F-35's WILL NOT BE funded.

Hmm. Lockheed Martin already has its Amphibious Combat Vehicle at MDM?

Birdy is telling me that Lockheed Martin already has its vehicle at its display tent at Modern Day Marine.

Interesting.

Definitely need to take a good look at their Amphibious Combat Vehicle candidate.