US Army General Martin Dempsey...symbol of a generation of failed leadership...

Thanks to Joe for the link!

via Politico Magazine (here)...

This was his final trip as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the last act of a Zelig-like military career that began over here more than 40 years earlier in a small German village, then proceeded to his personal involvement in every major war since, starting with the famed “left hook” in the first Iraq War and then command of the 1st Armored Division in the second. Forty long years of effort—and yet now at the end Dempsey is blunt in admitting that some things are actually worse than when he started his unusually long four-year tenure as a member of the Joint Chiefs.
By Dempsey’s reckoning today’s complex array of threats presents NATO with its greatest challenge since the end of the Cold War, and a refugee exodus from war zones the like of which hasn’t been seen in Europe since World War II. “As recently as four years ago, most of the strategic white papers and plans within the alliance began with some version of the following sentence: `Europe is experiencing an age of prosperity and peace unlike any in its history,’” Dempsey said in an interview on his aircraft. “My challenge to my NATO colleagues now is, ‘If you can still write that sentence with candor and a straight face, please give me a call. Because I just don’t see it that way.”

Of course it isn't all Dempsey's fault.

But he will be the symbol of a failed generation of military leadership.  The melancholy is obvious.  The idea that he should have taken a different path is easy to see...if you have the courage to look for it that is.

My guess.

He needed the moral courage to tell his boss that his idea was half baked.  That it wouldn't work and we needed to do something different.  Instead he thought that he was doing the "military" thing by nodding and saying yes sir instead of calling bullshit - bullshit.

History will use him as the posterchild for failure.  That's a shame but I'm betting that he will be harder on himself for what we now face than any historian.

My view on the ACV contenders and how they rank...

All pics via Soldier Systems Blog...

Well we now have seen all the contenders for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle downselect and I'll give my rankings based on open source material, rumors and gut instinct.

Water Speed.

This was suppose to be addressed in increment 1.2 but the manufacturers demonstrated that they were able to meet the requirements in 1.1.  Having said that some of these vehicles will swim better than others.  My rankings....

1.  BAE/Iveco SuperAV
2.  ST Kinetics/SAIC Terrex 2 Advanced
3.  (Tie) General Dynamics ACV & Lockheed Martin ACV

This started out as a clear SuperAV advantage.  I think that the gap has closed.  I believe that the Terrex 2 Advanced will push it hard but not overtake it.  The General Dynamics & Lockheed Martin candidates seem more optimized to land performance, although work done to improve water speed seem obvious.

       Mobility.

We're talking 8x8's and despite what we've heard from HQMC I still have doubts about their ability to "go anywhere a tracked vehicle can"....having said that I'm sure we've seen improvements in the state of the art.  I don't think they're equal to tracked vehicles but I do think that except in the roughest of terrain (probably areas you wouldn't want to take your track anyway) they can keep up.  What do I base that on?  The performance of the MTVR 7-ton Truck.  That's the real workhorse of the Marine Corps and will continue that role into the future.  But to my rankings...

1.  (Tie) BAE Super/Iveco SuperAV & General Dynamics ACV
2.  Lockheed Martin ACV
3.  SAIC/ST Kinetics Terrex 2 Advanced.

Quite honestly, I could be all wrong on this one, but the General Dynamics ACV and BAE SuperAV (especially the GD ACV) have the pedigree on this one.  The vehicles have the height, big wheels, the ability to skid steer that will make them monsters on roads, extremely capable on land and definitely will be a step forward from the AAV.  While being larger than an LAV-25, I view the LM candidate to offer similar land performance.  Our LAV Battalions are often the forgotten part of our maneuver element but  while great on on roads and decent in the desert, they struggle in other conditions.  I'm a fan, but they have limitations.  I see those same limitations in the LM setup.  Are those tool boxes between the 2nd and 3rd road wheels?  As far as the ST Kinetics/SAIC candidate I think the work done to make it swim better will hurt it in land mobility.

The other categories...blast protection, troop carriage, and weapons fit will all be to standard...consider those portions go or no go areas and rankings will be immaterial.  For example, they'll all be able to fit a 30-40mm RWS if requested by the Marine Corps.

Which leaves us with the 900 pound gorilla in the room.

Cost.

I think this will turn into a price shootout.  How low will a manufacturer go to grab one of the few contracts that the DoD will put out for a new armored vehicle in the next few years?  The USMC is finally in the catbird's seat after so much pain and humiliation over an AAV replacement.

Let's hope HQMC doesn't screw this up.  Amos was wrong.  We've had far more than "one time to get this right"...we've had over a decade.  Let's not fuck it up at the 1 yard line.

Playing Fallout 3 waiting for Fallout 4

Been playing Fallout 3 (son has me checking it out cause he's going bonkers over the release of Fallout 4 on the Marine Corps Birthday...).

Well long story short I just made it to GNR (if you don't understand what I'm talking about then let me tell ya...it's been a journey!) and ran across a 20ft tall supermutant.

It doesn't seem like an immersive game, at least on the surface, but this part...this part got me hooked.  Well done on Bethesda's part.  Check it out if you haven't already!

SIDENOTE:  I am really digging this game!

Ukraine seems to be spiraling out of control....internally....

via Defense 24...

Peter Nisztor, Polish daily newspaper, "Purge counterintelligence": Standing at the head of the Military Counterintelligence Service - gene. Brig. Peter Pytel - made ​​surprising personnel changes in managerial positions before the upcoming parliamentary elections. Case surprising not only because of the time in which the counter-espionage has his hands full because tenders for the modernization of the Polish Armed Forces, but also that the victims of these changes are officers coming from the Internal Security Agency.
Kamil Szewczyk, Sylvester Ruszkiewicz, Super Express, "The attack onDigger": Super Express reveals assassination attempt on Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz.For the failed assassination attempt had come on 17 September. during a ceremony in Bykivnya, Ukraine. BOR and the Ukrainian ministry discovered along the route of the column hidden government grenade launcher RPG - 26. The route was immediately changed.
Newspaper Polish daily, "Ukraine. The new military doctrine approved": "On Thursday, President of Petro Poroshenko approved the text of a new military doctrine of the country. For the first time in history a threat was Russia. On the other hand, one of the main strategic objectives announced cooperation with NATO countries."
Eve Siedlecka, Gazeta Wyborcza, "a Surveillance heap of stones": On 6 February 2016 the year enter into force on the Constitutional Court's judgment, which recognizes the current rules pull the data retention by service unconstitutional. The government nor parliament can not legally sort out this matter, which may result in the absence of effective actions by the date indicated in the Tribunal's judgment.

Ukraine seems to be teetering on the brink.

I wonder if NATO has any contingency plans for a Ukrainian collapse?  What happens if in addition to millions of people streaming up from the Middle East you also have an economic, humanitarian and military crisis in Ukraine?

I'm not talking about what we've seen to this point but something a couple of magnitudes greater?  If the current govt falls and we see refugees start pouring from that country would we see moves by Poland to annex a portion and would we BEG Russia to annex the rest?

Sidenote:  Notice all the reorganizations and initiatives that the govt is involved in.  Its been my observation that when bureaucrats and their staff idiots want to attempt to assert control, they do stuff like this.  Its mainly the refuge of desperate men that don't know how to directly deal with situations so they revert to pushing paper.

HYENA ROAD Trailer...Canada's Afghan War Movie...

So its American Sniper, Zero Dark Thirty, a couple of other films rolled into one and sprinkled with Canadian flavor.

Might be worth checking out on NetFlix.

Saudi Army Commander killed in cross border raid by Houthi Rebels.

via FARS News Agency.

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Saudi army acknowledged that an army commander perished in Yemen's retaliatory attack in the Persian Gulf kingdom's Southwestern province of Jizan.
On Sunday, the army announced that Deputy Commander of the 8th Brigade in Jizan Brigadier General Ibrahim Hamzi was killed in clashes with the Yemeni forces.
Saudi Arabia’s official news agency, the SPA, said the general died of his injuries after being taken to hospital.
There has been no information on the exact date of the incident that led to the death of the general.
Yemeni forces have killed dozens of Saudi forces in retaliation for the Saudi aggression against their nation.
On Friday, Yemeni forces killed a Saudi border guard commander and two other military staff in the kingdom's province of Jizan.
The Saudi colonel and two other military staff, including a high-ranking officer, were killed in the al-Khubah region in Jizan during clashes with the Yemeni Ansarullah fighters backed by army units that had penetrated into the Saudi territory, Yemen’s al-Masirah TV reported on Friday.
The Saudi media have also confirmed the death of the commander, identified as Hassan Ghashoum Aqili.
On Saturday, the Yemeni forces killed at least 13 Saudi soldiers, and brought down a Saudi Apache chopper in Jizan province.
The Yemeni forces also gained control of buildings behind the Hathirah military camp in the region.
Saudi Arabia has been striking Yemen for 186 days now to restore power to Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh. The Saudi-led aggression has so far killed at least 6,225 Yemenis, including hundreds of women and children.
Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by Ansarullah revolutionaries of the Houthi movement.

Two things stood out to me.  First.  Is it just me or does it seem like the number of incursions into Saudi territory is increasing?  Its almost like the Rebels have complete freedom of movement.  The vaunted Saudi Air Force seems unable to help control the border and the Saudi Army is obviously spread thin or camping close to the Royal family.

Second are we seeing a slight turn in Iranian propaganda?  Before, these stories were US-Saudi aggression.  Now its just Saudi aggression.

Do the Iranians see an opportunity to separate the US from Saudi Arabia?  Do they see an opening to exploit the quiet hatred in the region for the Saudi Royal family?

Lastly the beat goes on in this war.  Saudi Arabia is getting its ass kicked...at home and abroad.

Sidenote:  Did you hear about the Saudi Princess that was arrested for sexual assault in the US and released on 300K bond?  How much do you want to bet that he's already out of the country?  via Yahoo.

- A Saudi prince has been arrested in Los Angeles for allegedly trying to force a woman to perform oral sex on him at a Beverly Hills mansion.
Prince Majed Abdulaziz Al-Saud was arrested in the early afternoon Wednesday after police were called to the gated compound, Officer Drake Madison, of the Los Angeles police department, told AFP.
He said the 28-year-old prince was arrested on suspicion of forced oral copulation of an adult and spent the night in jail before posting a $300,000 (268,000 euros) bail on Thursday.
Witnesses reported seeing a bleeding woman scream for help as she tried to scale the wall of the property, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The prince, who was also detained for false imprisonment, battery and criminal threats, is due to appear in court on October 19.
If convicted, he faces up to eight years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The State Department said there was no information indicating that the prince enjoys diplomatic immunity.

Fucking animals.

The Bellingcat Ukraine Conflict Vehicle Tracking Project!

From what I can tell, Veli-Pekka Kivimäki runs the Bellingcat Ukraine Conflict Vehicle Tracking Project.

I personally consider it a must see, especially if you're like me and spinning like a top trying to keep up with events but making solid identification of the vehicles participating.  You can check out the site here or follow his Twitter page here.

In the UK wearing a military uniform is culturally insensitive!

Thanks to Dracae for the link!

via Daily Mail

An RAF sergeant who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan was moved out of a hospital waiting room because staff feared his uniform would upset people from different cultures, it was reported.
Aircraft engineer Mark Prendeville’s treatment was condemned as ‘horrifying’ by military figures and Air Force veterans – but follows a string of incidents in recent years where service personnel were snubbed because of their uniform.
Sergeant Prendeville, 38, was taken to the A&E department at Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate, Kent, after chemicals from a fire extinguisher got in to his eyes during a training exercise.
He was then taken to an empty corner of the waiting room before being moved behind a corner by hospital staff, The Sun reported.
In an explanation to his family, hospital workers were said to have claimed ‘they didn’t want to upset people’ because they ‘have lots of different cultures coming in’.
Sergeant Prendeville’s father, Jim, said: ‘Mark was moved because of his uniform – he was told that twice.
The words they used were: “We’ve lots of cultures coming in”.
‘Mark was quite annoyed, but he’s a quiet lad and didn’t want to cause a fuss.’
Mr Prendeville added: ‘He didn’t care about the burns, he felt worse about how he was treated. I was absolutely disgusted when I heard. I don’t know what is so offensive about a uniform.’
Veterans and military figures condemned Sergeant Prendeville’s treatment. Former Chief of the Air Staff Sir Michael Graydon described the incident as ‘disappointing’.

Here. 

No words.  Just a question.  Could this kind of nonsense eventually make it across the pond?

This is subjugation of the citizenry instead of assimilation by immigrants.

I never would have predicted that the British people could become so docile in the face of extreme (bordering on idiotic) political correctness.

Ok Refs which Syracuse booster paid you off to keep the game close?

The boys from Bayou Land took a trip up north and predictably we're kicking that ass.

Not only are we beating Syracuse, but also the Refs.  I HAVE NEVER SEEN SO MANY PENALTIES CALLED AGAINST ONE TEAM IN .... EVER!

I wonder which Syracuse booster paid those bastards off?

Feminization of the Marine Corps. Recruiters face GENDER QUOTAS!

via Marine Corps Times.

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — Marine recruiters will face new challenges in the year ahead as the service sets out to attract more female enlistees and the Pentagon considers revolutionary plans that would allow civilians with highly specialized skills to enter the Corps at advanced ranks.
With the military on the brink of possibly opening more jobs to women, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus recently announced a Navy Department-wide mandate to boost the number of female enlisted recruits to one-in-four starting in 2016.

THE WORST FUCKING SECDEF IN HISTORY!

We're not looking for recruits that might be good Marines regardless of Race, Sex, or National Heritage...no.  We must now fill a quota for females.  Can't wait to see when the quota for transgenders comes out!

This NEW Marine Corps (and yeah...the color is intentional) will be interesting to watch.  I want to see their performance in a real fight.  God knows that seems like the last thing on their minds.