Mumbai Terrorist incident was MUCH hairier than I thought....MUST SEE Ted Talk!

Many thanks to Kimran for the link!



About the Speaker....

Military and chaos are the two flipping sides of the same coin.
Raghu Raman, former CEO of the Indian National Intelligence
Grid apprises about how planning undertaken by the elite
forces during peacetime aids in bringing the worst of chaotic
situations such as a terrorist attack to order. His belief in an
Indian soldier's momentous decisiveness when in crisis and
strategic preparation when the need be is what he talks about.
Raghu Raman was the former CEO of National Intelligence Grid(India).
Raman joined the Indian Military Academy in 1986.He then left
the army and went on to become the chief of operations of
Mahindra Group’s used car business. Later in 2000, he shifted to
the Mahindra Special Services Group before taking over as the
CEO of the joint venture between Mahindra and British
Aerospace, Mahindra Defence Land System, in 2009.
Raman teaches "leadership" at business schools such as the
Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, Welingkar Institute of
Management Development & Research, Mumbai, and several
other institutes.

My View...

This is without a doubt the best "Ted Talk" I've ever heard. 

Canada goes to the polls on Monday...F-35 purchase hangs in the balance.

via Flight Global.

As Canada heads to the polls on Monday, Lockheed Martin F-35 backers will be quietly hoping for a conservative win after Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau came out against the troubled fighter programme in favour of more spending on ships.
Despite putting the acquisition on hold in 2012, the ruling Conservative Party says it would push forward with the project should it win on 19 October, with leader Stephen Harper saying to exit the programme would “crater” the local aerospace industry and miss out on billions of dollars-worth of future contracts.
Polling posted by CBC News this week shows a tightly contested three-way race, with the Liberals pulling ahead at 35.6% against the Conservatives (30.4%) and New Democrats (23.8%).

Interesting isn't it?  In order to save the Marine Corps from this budget disaster (and the F-35) we find ourselves depending on liberal, hippy, dope smoking hipsters from Canada.

My prediction?

The Liberals win, the F-35 project (for Canada) is canned, they instead buy F-18's, the Congress passes a CR and the death spiral picks up steam.

This is crunch time for the F-35. 

Syrian Army captures an ISIS terrorist (pics)

Thanks to s300V4 for the link!

This is supposedly pics taken of the Syrian Loyalist Army unit named the Tigr Brigade.

I hope that guy said his prayers.  Look at the faces of the men tormenting him.  They're going to enjoy hurting this guy and will probably make it last...no quick end of the pain for this person.

He's in for a real rough ride.

Romania cancels all AK shipments to U.S

OK what gives with this news?  Is this a backdoor move done by the Administration or are arms sales so robust to the Middle East that the gun owner in the US is being placed on the back burner?

I have no idea but if it's really because of demand in the Middle East then DAMN!  There are already enough arms floating around that region to field at least 10 divisions.  How are they burning through all those rifles?

The Russian backed Assault on Aleppo! Need help! Updated!

Hey guys...by now you know that the Russian backed assault on Aleppo has begun.

Info is beyond scarce so if you run across any pass it along!  Looking for casualty figures, estimates of equipment losses, progress of the assault etc...

On a sidenote, has anyone done an assessment of what Hezbollah will look like once this fighting is over?  They're not only getting combat hardened in a semi-traditional fight but they're learning at the feet of the Russians in combined arms tactics.

The next fight between Israel and the terrorist group will look alot different from what we've seen in the past.

With Hezbollah gaining MBTs, Artillery and the knowledge to use them we're watching the birth of an organization that will make ISIS look like small fry in the not too distant future.

via Sputnik..

"As a result of the offensive, we have established control over the towns of Job al-Ahmar, Rabia, and Salma. A total of 34 terrorists, most of them foreign nationals including Chechens, Turks, and Tunisians, have been eliminated," brigade general Ali Maihoub said.

Here.

I don't know the geography and the maps are ... confusing at best .... but the assault seems to be going well.

Gym Rats be aware! MRSA is no joke!

This post isn't for everyone....it's aimed squarely at the gym rats out there and the dangers it poses to anyone that lifts.  First check this out from ESPN...

New York Giants tight end Daniel Fells had another surgery Wednesday as doctors continue to work to fight off the MRSA staph infection in his foot and leg.
It's the sixth surgery Fells has had since being diagnosed with MRSA two weeks ago, and he remains in a New York City hospital while doctors administer antibiotics. More surgeries are likely, but optimism about Fells' long-term prognosis continued Wednesday as his response to the latest course of antibiotic treatment remained positive.
Fells was diagnosed with MRSA while being treated for an ankle injury, and the Giants placed him on season-ending injured reserve because of the treatment that the life-threatening infection requires. As a result of the infection and the surgeries required to treat it, Fells, 32, is unlikely to play football again.

What can you do?  Add a few things to your gym bag.  Make your own solution of bleach/water to take with you and wipe down machines (if you use them).  wear protective gear .... yeah to include warm-up pants .... trust me on this one!  I cut nicked my leg on a bench, thought nothing of it and next thing you know I'm in the hospital on antibiotics with doctors wondering if they should go in (luckily I responded well and surgery wasn't required).  Gloves are a must

and I use Mechanix M-Pact (fingerless is out of the question...remember small cuts can lead to big consequences) and you need to be aware of others.

Check out your fellow patrons...no I'm not talking about the chick in the corner with daisy dukes on and shirt so short you see underboob...I'm talking about the other gym rat that has more than acne going on (strange rashes are the giveaway).

Long story short?  I thought this MRSA thing was a flash in the pan.  It's not.  Be careful in the gym.

Turkish military claims to have shot down an airplane near Syria...UPDATED~

Thanks to William for the heads up!

via Press TV

The Turkish military says it has shot down aircraft, of an unidentified nationality, in its airspace after warning it three times.
The Turkish military said in a statement on Friday that that the aircraft was shot down by Turkish fighter jets near the Syrian border.
The Turkish military said in the statement that, following the warnings, the aircraft was “downed by fire from our aircraft on patrol, according to the rules of engagement.”
While the military statement did not elaborate on the type of the downed aircraft, a Reuters report cited an unnamed senior Turkish official as saying that it was a drone.
Reports also said that the drone was downed around three kilometers inside Turkish airspace near the Syrian border.

Bet ya a case that it was only a drone and not a manned fighter.

It was a freaking drone.  I'm almost wondering what kind of drugs the Turks are smoking to put out such a vague announcement and then have it discovered that it was only a drone.  I mean really?  Seriously?  The whole world is watching, praying and hoping that some idiotic mistake doesn't happen that has this thing in Syria blow up even more and they make it seem like a manned airplane was shot down.

Not cool.

Turkish Military Press Office gets a "fuck you" for being stupid.

Have we ever experienced this in US military history?

Just watched the President's press conference announcing that US forces will remain engaged in combat in Afghanistan.  The question and answer is playing in the background while I'm typing this up.

Question.  Have we ever experienced this in US military history?  Have we ever had a battle plan for more than a DECADE, not seen significant progress and instead of stopping, reassessing, firing those that promoted the failed battle plan and figuring out a better way...the Pentagon instead tells the public and policy makers that this will take a long time and the public and policy makers accept that as ok?

I'm not a writing genius at the best of times but this has me spinning so I hope you can get what I'm trying to say.

We're failing, no one is being held responsible for that failure and we're in for more of the same and no is calling bullshit on this!

What kills me even more is the fact that all the military think tanks, military blogs and even members of the military family accept this as the way its suppose to be!

Here's the bad news people.  We're not accomplishing a thing in the Middle East.  Afghanistan is a shit hole just like Iraq and there is nothing we can do to change it.  I'm not saying pullout...IF THERE ARE REAL REASONS TO REMAIN THEN SO BE IT!  But we need a better plan than this bullshit "stay the course fuckery".

The Russians love the Syrian intervention!

Thanks to Robert for the link!



The Russians love the Syrian intervention.  Why do I say that?  I've been attempting to monitor Russian social media and the chest thumping, pride in standing beside an ally etc...is off the charts.  It doesn't hurt that American/European leadership appears to be totally clueless at this time.

Long story short?  From what I can tell they view us as being totally impotent.

But back to the loving this intervention.  Washington should not confuse the action in Syria with the feelings that came with Ukraine.  I really get the impression that many view that as a family fight.  The Ukrainians were going to side with someone outside the family and it was a shame they had to fight at all.  In Syria, it's viewed as Russia saving the civilized world from a terrorist horde.

The Admin, State Dept and Pentagon better consider this part of the equation when determining how they will respond.  In my opinion it will be almost impossible to muster support against Russia.

US Marines photo of the week...pic by Cpl. Summer Dowding

A UH-1Y Venom lifts off of an expeditionary airfield during an air ground defense exercise at Landing Zone Bull at Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range, California, Oct. 10, 2015. This training evolution is apart of a seven week training event, hosted by Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron One.

They have a pretty good Combat Camera Crew out at MAWTS.  They're had some pretty impressive pics come out over the last year or so...