Relief!

This is coolbert:

"I gotta GO!!"

Here is what Lucas says about bowel movements, constipation and the effect it had on the German soldier fighting in Russia during the winter of 1941 [coldest winter of the century?]:

From the book by Lucas "War on the Eastern Front".

"The more basic requirement to evacuate the food [defecate] was a tiresome procedure. So much so that many men were glad that they were suffering from constipation, even though this brought with it headaches and stomach cramps. Lavatories in rural houses were usually a small shed on the western side of the house so as to shield it from the prevailing east wind. Inside the shed would be a primitive latrine trench, although in some houses the lavatory was actually a room in which there was a bucket Within the shed or room there would be an unpeeling of layers of clothing, then a few agonising minutes and then once again the cocooning process."

THIS ASSUMES OF COURSE THAT THERE IS THE LATRINE SHED AVAILABLE. FOR INSTANCE, IN THE EXTREME CASE OF A SOVIET UNIT TRAPPED IN A MOTTI, THERE WAS NO LATRINE SHED!!!!

AND WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT TEMPERATURES DROPPING TO -40 centigrade AND REMAINING THERE FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD, ALL THE WHILE UNDER FIRE FROM THE ENEMY, ETC., WELL YOU GET IT!

Again, from Lucas:

"even this simple toilet procedure [became] a long and painful business."

C'est le guerre'!

coolbert.

Hogzilla.

This is coolbert:

Read these previous blog entries. Then continue with the rest of the current entry:

http://militarythoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=bambi+wild+deer

http://militarythoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=legion+xx

Thanks to the Chicago Tribune, TODAY:

[with the exception of the headlines, my comments in BOLD!]

"In Texas, a full-bore hog war"

"Some landowners turn to hired guns in uphill run against feral pigs, a growing costly menace"

"Edom, Texas - - It was a cool Saturday night in East Texas. Covered in camouflage and carrying and AR-10 assault rifle, night-vision goggles, and enough ammo to outfit a small battalion, Joe Paddock was wading through weedy bottom-lands, eager to 'get up on some hogs'"

There is a photo of Joe accompanying the Tribune article. Appears that Joe would have fit in well at the Alamo. "Floppy" bush hat, camouflage athletic T-shirt, three AR-10's propped up in front of him. Each rifle having a gun light of the type has become so popular in Iraq. Light co-axially mounted with the barrel. Where ever that light points to is where the round will hit. Makes for a good shoot at night.




[the AR-10 fires the 7.62 mm NATO round. You need a good size caliber when engaging one of the wild hogs. These particular rifles have the collapsible stock.]

Feral pigs [tame domesticated pigs that have reverted to the wild state], are NOW a terrible problem in Texas. Other states as well, but most pronounced in Texas.

"nowhere are the pigs more populous than in Texas. It's home to about 2 million hogs, and growing."

A problem across the board, primarily for ranchers and farmers. Wild pigs of gargantuan size even invading urban areas.

"Mobs of ravenous porkers are munching crops and tearing up hay fields . . . also are eating the eggs of endangered sea turtles."

Read it all at the web site http://www.Texasboars.com

This problem has been "growing" [pigs NEVER attain a full adult size? CAN grow to enormous size, food being available?] since the 1930's.

"it was not until the 1930's that Texas' real trouble started. That is when sportsmen began releasing Russian wild boars into the wild."

Joe Paddock is the proverbial Texan "good ole' boy" who relishes the hunt.

"hunting wild hogs is the ultimate blood sport: a battle of wits against an ugly, wise, and unpredictable foe"

"bringing down an angry , 300 pound boar takes bravery. Wounded hogs can turn vengeful. Men have been gored to death by their razor like tusks"

"Ain't nothing easy about trying to outsmart a pig"

AND, are smart. The pigs has been tested as being at least [?] as smart as a dog or cat, perhaps just slightly less intelligent for the most part. But wily, hard to approach, alert, and DANGEROUS!

At least equal in deadliness to some of the African big game animals [two African wart hogs can easily rout a grown leopard!]. A pack of these beasts represents a even worse danger.

"If you shoot at a hog, you'd better shoot straight, because if you don't kill it, he might try and kill you."

There is a market for the meat too.

"[hunters] earn thousands sating gourmet appetites for wild boar in the U.S. and Europe."

There is an open-season on the beasts. NOT LIKED or WANTED.

"Hunters can shoot as many as they want, anytime."

WELL, IT IS TEXAS!!

What you need here is to apply the adage, "lemons to lemonade". Take advantage of a bad situation.

Give realistic training to troops that need it. Special operations, Rangers, Special Forces, Navy SEAL, select Marine Corps units. Four or five man teams can "hunt" the wild pigs. Training as if you are on patrol for jihadi in Iraq or Afghanistan. You are not only after a wily and elusive creature, you are after an animal that CAN KILL YOU!! The element of danger is present. First-class training that would be the ultimate in preparation for combat. All other forms of training pale in comparison??!!

AND, the meat can be sold or eaten, gutting and quartering the dead boar accustoms those troops not used to blood and gore what they will actually experience on the battlefield, and those heads taken will look good on the wall of a mess hall when stuffed and mounted.

[persons of yesteryear were routinely butchering and preparing animals for consumption. Blood, gore, guts were NOT something "new" and disturbing. Was a normal part of farm life!]

To heighten the excitement, as I have said, the participants could even hunt with single shot black powder weapons. Further good training that instills the soldiery ethic of teamwork and reliance upon one another. YOU MISS OR ONLY WOUND WITH THAT SINGLE SHOT YOU FIRE, YOU ARE IN BIG TROUBLE! WITHOUT YOUR BUDDIES OR OTHERS LENDING A HELPING HAND!! Once again - - good training!!

Any takers!!??

coolbert.

Glide Bomb.

This is coolbert:

During both World War One [WW1] and World War Two [WW2], the U.S. Navy did have a very distinguished record of successfully conveying, almost without loss, troops into combat areas via troops ships.

When you think of the MILLIONS of troops transported across the Atlantic alone during WW1 and WW2, ALMOST none being lost to hostile action, this was a stellar achievement on the part of the U.S. Navy.

Add all those for the Pacific theatre in WW2 also, and the record is even more spectacular.

However - - 26 November 1943: [thanks here to the Chicago Tribune.]

“In 1943 the HMT Rohna, a British troop-transport ship, was hit by a German missile off Algeria; 1,138 were killed, including 1,015 Americans.”

"this still constitutes the largest loss of US troops at sea"

"The blow was so devastating that it was classified until 1967"

In this specific incident, a BRITISH troop transport was sunk after attack from a Luftwaffe advanced weapon. Very large number of American dead!

Sunk by a German anti-ship glide bomb. A HS293.

Dropped from a German bomber, guided to target by a “gunner” aboard the bomber. Guidance “all the way” by one of three methods:

* Radio control.

* Wire guided.

* Television. [developed but not actually deployed in combat.]

German glide-bombs that came in ever more sophisticated and deadly variants.

Variants to include:

* Rocket-powered glide bombs.

* An “aerial torpedo” using the supercavitation principle [HS294].

"the . . . Henschel Hs 294 . . . guided to a point in front of the water line of a ship. At water entry, the warhead would separate from fuselage and wings. Using its remaining kinetic energy, the (unguided) warhead-projectile would then follow an underwater path towards the ship target. The projectile body had a slender conical shape with an ogive nose. The underwater path could be curved slightly upward by means of a small ridge on the upper side of the ogive. The projectile had to be curved upward in order to achieve a nearly horizontal path at the point of impact."

The HS294 became a TORPEDO upon striking the water. Object was to “hole” and defeat the underwater integrity of the target ship. More effective than “merely” striking the ship’s superstructure above the waterline. Supercavitation was possible due to the kinetic energy, forward motion, speed, and DESIGN of the HS294 “aerial torpedo”.

Formidable stuff!! [the HS294 was NOT actually deployed and used in combat?]

The German glide-bombs are just illustrative of how German military technology and engineering prior and during WW2 was SOMETIMES far ahead of whatever the allied nations were able to muster.

Technology and engineering to include: [but not limited to.]

* Rocket powered missiles and aircraft.

* Infrared technology.

* Jet powered aircraft. [as differentiated from the rocket-powered craft such as the Me-163.]

* Research into cold fusion? [German military scientists and engineers while researching high power sonar made the first observations regarding the entire principle of cold fusion.]

AND.

* Supercavitation.

German military advances and developments in atomic research and cryptology during WW2 WERE lacking. Severely so! But NOT in other areas.

coolbert.

Guerrilla!

This is coolbert:

WARNING - - THE MATERIAL IN THIS BLOG ENTRY IS FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY!!!!

This means - - YOU TOO!!

For those devoted readers that fancy themselves to be a "freedom fighter", here is the Freedom Fighter's Manual.

As provided by the CIA to the Nicaraguan "Contras".

"There is an essential economic infrastructure that any government needs to function, which can be disabled and easily paralyzed . . . . These are acts that can be done practically in an improvised way . . . the techniques found in this manual correspond to the stage of individual sabotage."

Right, things the lone wolf jihadi can do as part of a sabotage campaign.

Thinking just casually about it, this is the sort of thing encountered every day in the Chicago Public School system.

Again - - FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY!!

coolbert.

Wannabee.

This is coolbert:

Came across this quite by accident. Very interesting.

Devoted readers will recall that I have posted to the blog a number of entries dealing with the military imposter/poseur'/wannabee war hero.

http://militarythoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=darrow+tulley

http://militarythoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=jesse+macbeth

http://militarythoughts.blogspot.com/search?q=dan+rather+wall+within

It seems that the phenomenon of the military imposter/poseur'/wannabee war hero was present even in ANCIENT TIMES!!??

Consider this: [thanks to Nick B.; RT HABU, through "Tilt"]

"You know the ancient Danes had a group called the House Thralls, those who guarded the King and the JKingdom [Jute Kingdom?]. To falsely claim to be a Thrall was adjudged to be a sin that required having ones tongue cut out and face branded with the rune of Loki. that of the Liar and Trickster, then banished from the land. Any who gave succor to he with this mark were adjudged as guilty also."

"suc·cor

–noun 1. help; relief; aid; assistance.
2. a person or thing that gives help, relief, aid, etc.
–verb (used with object) 3. to help or relieve."

NOW, let me tell you about the time I was on a secret mission in the Philippines for Uncle Sam. Had to fight off stinging wasps the size of helicopters with a chain saw, all the while being assailed by natives firing blowgun darts at me. And at the same time crossing a 1,000 foot chasm via an expedient rope bridge. I would tell you more, but it is strictly TOP SECRET!

Please, NO tongue cutting!!

coolbert.

Buffalo.

This is coolbert:

Here is a combat aircraft from World War Two [WW2[, that when used by American/British/Dutch aviators, fared poorly in combat, BUT, when used by Finnish pilots against Soviet air forces, fared very well.

The Brewster Buffalo.

"All about the Brewster F2A Buffalo fighter of World War II, which fared so poorly against the Japanese in the Pacific but was a star in the hands of Finnish pilots flying against the Russian air force in the 'Continuation War'"

The Brewster F2A 'Buffalo' was an American fighter plane which saw limited service during World War II. In 1939, the F2A became the first monoplane fighter aircraft used by the US Navy. In December 1941, it suffered severe losses with both British Commonwealth and Dutch air forces in South East Asia, for reasons unrelated to the basic design. It also saw action with US Marine Corps squadrons at the Battle of Midway. The F2A was derided by some American servicemen as a 'flying coffin', due to poor construction and perceptions of its general performance.

"US Marine Corps"

"The US Marine Corps flew F2As at the Battle of Midway, and suffered 15 losses out of 25 aircraft. The grim outcome was the primary source for the reputation of the Brewster being one of the worst fighters flown in combat. However, the main reasons for the losses included the obsolescence of F2A-3, inexperience of USMC pilots, who attempted to enter into a World War I-style dogfight with experienced Japanese Mitsubishi Zero fighters, and the fact that the Buffalos were outnumbered and caught at a tactical disadvantage."

[those of you that have seen the movie "Midway" will remember this air battle scene! Tom Selleck is shown witnessing the massacre of the Marine pilots from the ground and remarks to himself, "damned antiques" [referring to the Buffalos]!!]

In Finland, the Brewsters enjoyed their greatest success. The aircraft did not arrive in time for the Winter War, but their impact in the Continuation War (1941-44) was remarkable.

"Despite this reputation, the F2a proved a potent weapon with the Finnish Air Force, against the Soviet Air Forces."

"The poor performance of the USMC in the aerial battle [Midway] sparked Finnish Ace Hans Wind to write his combat manual on Brewster; he analyzed the air combat, the tactical errors the Americans made and proposed tactics which the Finnish Brewster pilots were to use when encountering different types of enemy fighters. They [the tactics proposed by Wind] were later used with remarkable success in 1942-43"

The fighter was never referred to as the Buffalo in Finland; it was known [to the Finns as]:

* "the Brewster"

* "Taivaan helmi ('Sky Pearl')"

* "Pohjoisten taivaiden helmi ("Pearl of the Northern Skies")."

* "Pylly-Valtteri" ('Butt-Walter')"

* "Amerikanrauta ('American hardware' or 'American car')"

* Lentävä kaljapullo ("flying beer-bottle").

The Brewster was regarded [by the Finns] as being an excellent aircraft:

* "very easy to fly"

* "long range and endurance"

* "good maintenance record."

There were many other modifications to the B-239 that were made locally in Finland during its career. To include:

* "installation of pilot seat armor"

* "dispensed with most of the US Navy gear . . . resulting in a considerably lighter aircraft"

* "replacing the single 0.30 in (7.62 mm) machine gun with a 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine gun."

[original versions of the Buffalo had one fifty caliber [.50] and one thirty caliber [.30] machine gun.]

* "Finnish Väisälä T.h.m.40 sights, which were based on the Revi 3c — were installed"

* "metric instruments"

The Finns were able to do with the Brewster as the Israelis were able to do with the American F-4 "Phantom" decades later. Take the basic aircraft and make modifications that "created" a more potent and deadly weapons system.

It is obvious to me why the Buffalo was a success when used by the Finns but not a success when employed by the American/British/Dutch aviators. The Finns maximized the pluses of the aircraft in combat while avoiding the weaknesses. Did NOT engage in aerial battles when the circumstances were to the detriment of the Finns. Use the aircraft [or any other weapons system for that matter] appropriately and you will be victorious.

Is it as simple as that??

coolbert.

The Motti.

This is coolbert:

Here is a web site that tells you everything you need to know about the Finnish motti.

That tactic of the Finns peculiar [?] to the Winter War of 1940 that resulted in repeated catastrophic losses for the attacking Soviet forces.

Of particular interest is the series of entries from a diary of a Soviet officer [?] who found himself trapped with other Soviet soldiers in a besieged motti.

A lot of reference is made to eating horse meat, consuming horse soup, AND NOT BEING ABLE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. Of course, when I say BATHROOM, there was no bathroom. Those trapped Soviet soldiers could not even "relieve" themselves with an ordinary bowel movement. Became constipated. This was and is a serious problem in winter warfare, especially under arctic conditions. Many troops are in the habit of constipating themselves as the very act of "relieving" yourself is painful and requires an arduous effort just to disrobe and find a convenient place "to go".

In a situation such as must have existed WITHIN the motti itself, the difficulty in finding a "place to go" were severely compounded. Pinned down constantly, beset by Finnish snipers, subject at any moment to attack, extreme cold, bad or non-existent diet, all of this contributed to constipate the Soviet troops, reducing their effectiveness that much more.

"Life in a Motti"

"In order to give some idea how the life in the Motti's (on the Soviet side) was, I [the author of the web site] decided to include some sections of a diary, found after the battles around East Lemetti . . . I have shortened the text considerably from the text I found in a Finnish source "Suomi Taisteli osa 2, p.146-151". Note also that this text is my "own" translation, which is most likely quite different, if compared to any possible more "official" translation. The diary was written on a notebook, so the actions after Feb 8th are unknown.

"February 2nd"

"7.00 am, southern sector. It's particularly cold this morning, nearly -35 °C. It will be a clear sky today. I woke and got up at 0500 hrs, being unable to sleep due to the cold . . . At the evening I sent the arrested and death sentenced Moltskov to ...(the word was too smeared to be read) . . .I haven't shit since Jan 25th."

"February 4th"

"I ate some thin soup, which had a scent of beans. I drank it mixed with tea. It's the food like this, what is responsible to the fact that I haven't been able to shit for days."

"February 6th"

I filled myself with tea, and had to run out to "relieve" myself . . . My health is deteriorating. Dinner is still 2 hours away, so I'm going to get some sleep. I managed to shit today."

A number of years ago, the U.S. Army published a cartoon-like Winter Warfare manual for troops that might find themselves in the Arctic environment. Gave a lot of good tips for surviving and thriving in the winter of the far north. ONE OF THESE TIPS WAS - - "KEEP IN REGULAR!!" Meaning bowel movement on a regular basis!

coolbert.

Fabius VII. [Conclusion]

This is coolbert:

Demographics.

“Israel must be 70 % Jewish to be considered a Jewish state” - - Yitzhak Rabin.

[my paraphrasing.]

And from the comments to the blog:

"Last, demographic trends point to increasing and inevitable weakness of Israel vs. the Palestinians." - - Fabius Maximus.

"Demography... the fact is that slowly Arabs became a minority in this country, and the trend continues... Jewish fertility in Israel is increasing while Arab is decreasing mightily and soon shall be like the Lebanese or Greek or Iranian, that is, negative. Palestinians are a Mediterranean population and the trend is negative, lead by Italians and Greeks. Demography is working for us.
I am very optimist about Israel and even Warren Buffet invests in Israel. We are here for the long term, forever, maybe." - - jaimito.

"d. Jaimito is dreaming about the demographics in and around Israel. Check the numbers (there were links in my article)." - - Fabius Maximus.

The demographics of the Israeli-Palestinian situation MUST be taken in a nuanced, subjective manner to be understood properly.

If you consider the state of Israel, as it existed within the confines of the pre-1967 borders, the demographics for a Jewish state look GOOD!





If you consider the state of Israel, to include the “occupied territories” of Judea and Samaria, the totality comprising a “Greater” Israel, the demographics favoring a Jewish state DO NOT look so promising.





That is considering existing demographics, RIGHT NOW!

Given the fact that the Palestinian people have the HIGHEST BIRTH RATE of any populace on the planet, the long term prospects for a “Greater” Israel that is predominantly [70 % or greater] Jewish is NOT good!

The Palestinians DO SEE demographic shift AS BEING a valid “weapon of war”. Time and numbers are on their side, so the perception is.

“it is not so much reality that counts, it is the perception of reality that counts!!” - - J. Jackson.

[consider Northern Ireland. In 1900, the Catholic population of the six counties comprising Northern Ireland was SMALL. In 100 years, given migration and greater birth rate, Catholics NOW are at least 50 % of the population! The DESPISED MINORITY HAS BECOME THE MAJORITY [or very close to it]!!]

Also consider the comments also of Trevor Dupuy:

"The land of the modern state of Israel . . . during antiquity the Jewish people were frequently the principal inhabitants . . . However, they were neither the first nor the sole inhabitants . . . the Jewish lands were often landlocked, with the coastal areas controlled by the earlier inhabitants: Philistine, Canaanites, and Phoenicians . . . . There were two anomalies in the plan [U.N. plan for the partition of the British Mandate] . . . [one of which was] even though Jewish claim to new national status in Palestine, the partition boundaries gave most of the territory which had been in those ancient states to the Arabs, and to the Jews most of what in ancient times had been non-Jewish."

To make clear, the ancient homeland of the Hebrew people was in the area we now call Judea/Samaria/West Bank of the Jordan/"occupied territories". The Canaanite and Philistine populations during that same ancient time lived primarily along the seacoast. TODAY, we see the Israeli Jews living primarily along the Mediterranean coast, the Palestinians inland. A reversal from what existed 3,000 years ago.

coolbert.

Road to Hell III. [Conclusion]

This is coolbert:

Here is yet another example of how military units, road-bound and without an ability to maneuver, can be defeated by more adept and resourceful opposition.

The Finnish Motti.

"Motti is Finnish military slang for an encircled enemy unit, or the tactic of encircling it."

The Finns, in the Winter War of 1940, had repeated success in defeating road bound Soviet military columns. Soviet troops, lavishly equipped but whose movement was confined, found themselves at the mercy of determined, mobile, well-led Finnish ski troops.

Ponderous Soviet mechanized and armored columns, totally road bound, NO room for maneuver, found themselves beset by Finnish units just much more prepared, able, and proficient for the type of warfare fought in the heavily forested terrain of Finland.

[John Keegan rates the Finns as the best soldiers of World War Two [WW2]. The Finns too were provided with very good intelligence thanks to the cryptanalytic work of the Swede Arne Beurling.]

Trevor Dupuy would have said the Finns excelled over the Soviets because:

* [Finnish] leaders were more flexible, aggressive, and dynamic.

* [Finnish] doctrine, and its execution were better.

* More adaptable [the Finns.

* [AND, performed team tasks better.]

Soviet commanders in all likelihood were just largely inexperienced, inept, bound by inappropriate doctrine, pig-headed and under orders from a higher command [Stalin] totally out of touch with reality.

Extracts from the wiki say it best:

"This tactic of envelopment was used extensively by the Finnish forces in the Winter War . . . A motti is a double envelopment manoeuvre, using the ability of light troops to travel over rough ground to encircle an enemy restricted to open terrain or roads. Heavily outnumbered but mobile forces could easily immobilize an enemy many times more numerous."

[first, the head and tail of the road-bound Soviet column was simultaneously attacked, forward and backward movement becoming impossible.]

"The idea is to cut the enemy columns or units into smaller groups and then encircle them with light and mobile forces - such as ski-troops during winter. This turned out to be especially effective against some of the mechanized units of the Soviet Army, as they were effectively restricted to the roads. The Finnish troops on the other hand could move quickly through the forests and strike weak points. The smaller pockets of enemies could then be dealt with individually by concentrating forces against them."

[Right!! Those Soviet units confined to the roads had to guard against attack from all directions. Could NOT use their manpower or firepower advantage in a concerted manner either for defense or offense. The Finns could concentrate their forces, choosing the time and place for attack.]

"If the encircled enemy unit was too strong, or if attacking it would have entailed an unacceptably high cost, e.g. because of a lack of heavy equipment, the motti was usually left to 'cook' until it ran out of food, fuel, supplies and ammunition and was weakened enough to be eliminated. Some of the larger mottis held out until the end of the war, because they were resupplied by air."

"The largest motti battles in the Winter War occurred at the Battle of Suomussalmi. Three Finnish regiments enveloped and destroyed two Soviet divisions (already in retreat) as well as a tank brigade trapped on a road."



[the Finns in this instance had to be outnumbered at least MORE than two to one, with the firepower advantage overwhelmingly in favor of the Soviets. That did not deter the Finns even in the slightest manner!!]

At Suomussalmi, the opponents had at their disposal:

* Finns - - Three regiments and separate battalions (11,000 men.

* Soviets - - Two divisions, one tank brigade (45,000-50,000 men).

Finland - - si, Soviet - - no!

coolbert.

Nada.

This is coolbert:

"The Beat Goes On"

More on the continuing saga of Nada Prouty. It gets worse and worse the more you find out.

How much more is there? Probably a lot that will never be found out.

Thanks here to the intrepid Debbie Schlussel through Robert Spencer:

"JIHAD JANE'S POISON FAMILY
HER BOMBER COUSIN"

"That's right: It's not just Prouty's links to the terrorists of Hezbollah that got missed, but her ties to a Nazi party."

Nada is NOT only an illegal alien, with "ties" to a jihadi financier, but her family in Lebanon are dues paying members of Syrian fascist party?? All of this of course, was MISSED by the persons doing background checks for the FBI and the CIA??!!

There is some sort of fascist party in Syria!? NOT sure of the details! We have the example of the infamous ex-German SS officer, Alois Brunner, fleeing to Syria after World War Two [WW2]. And the distinguished German tank commander Hyazinth von Strachwitz, also living in Syria in the aftermath of WW2 - - teaching tank tactics to the Syrian Army!!

"Then came reports that her sister, now a commissioned Marine officer, pulled a similar sham-marriage scam to gain US citizenship."

Now, we have to be crystal clear about this! The sister of Nada - - also an illegal alien - - IS NOW - - a commissioned officer in the U.S. Marines!! I guess she too cannot be deported!!??

"they are members of Lebanon's Druze minority"

[Nada, her sister, her cousin. All Druze?]

Druze, that enigmatic group living in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, are aligned with? I am sure the Israeli and their associates the now-long-gone South Lebanese Army, are being asked to dig up what they can dig up on Nada. Maybe have already done so and found out a lot!!??

"Prouty's cousin, Nidal Al-Aouar, was a terrorist - one who trained in North Korea and the old USSR and went on to set roadside car bombs in Lebanon on behalf of Syria."

Nidal is the type of person so favored for a long time by the communists. EVEN IF NOT a communist, trained to foment violence and maybe do espionage, on behalf of - - whom!!

Gentlemen!! Take a long hard look at that picture of Nada! Commit that face to memory! Please, this is not the type of mail-order bride you want to marry and bring home to meet mother!! Or need I say that!!??

coolbert.

Incident?

This is coolbert:

Here is a web site you need to make as a favorite or a bookmark.

http://www.globalincidentmap.com/home.php

You can follow, with a few strokes of the mouse, access:

"Terrorism Events and Other Suspicious Activity"

Covers:

* Airport/Aviation Incidents.
* Arson/Fire Incident.
* Biological Incidents/ Threats/ Anthrax Hoaxes etc.
* Bomb Incidents/Explosives/ Hoax Devices.
* Chemical Incident.
* Dam Incident.
* Radiation Incidents/ Smuggling/ Proliferation.
* Chemical Attack.
* Other Suspicious Activity.
* Shipping/Maritime/Ports/ Cargo/Waterways Security.
* Assassination/ Assassination Attempt.
* Railways/Train Stations.
* Bus Stations/ Bus Security/ Bus Related Incidents.
* Bridge / Tunnel Incidents and Security.
* Shootings / Sniper Incidents/ Etc.
* Terrorist Arrests/Captured/Killed Locations.
* General Terrorism News.
* Oil Gas Infrastructure - Incidents/Threats/ News.

Just a few years ago, this is something that would have been strictly within the purview of the CIA [U.S.] or the GRU [Russia]!

NOW, is available to anyone that has a computer, modem and a connection to the outside world. You can tailor for your specific needs. And all for FREE!

Want to be informed on world events? This is the way. Very outstanding. Cannot say enough about it.

A must!! Really!!

coolbert.

Prouty.

This is coolbert:

Here is more on Nada Prouty. Illegal alien working for the FBI and CIA in very sensitive positions.

Thanks here to Robert Spencer and JihadWatch.

[http://www.jihadwatch.org]

"she was so good that some in the agency [CIA] want to hire Prouty back one day, the source said."

"Officials again yesterday insisted Prouty is not suspected of espionage or of being a mole for the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah. 'there is no indication at this point that she was engaged in espionage' for Hezbollah while at the CIA, said a senior U.S. official familiar with the case."

"Nada Nadim Prouty, 37 . . . worked in the CIA's Baghdad station sometime between 2003 and 2006 and had a knack for passing as a local."

"She also demonstrated a talent for breaking captured Al Qaeda 'high-value targets,' an intelligence source told the Daily News".

"'She was not only good at debriefing HVTs [high-value targets], she was able to pose as a native Arab and easily blend in," said the source.'"

Right!! The Arab, especially a jihadi, has a strong aversion to interrogation by a woman. And if the woman is a native Arab, so much the worse!! This technique HAS been used on captured jihadis with success then!! The psychological is worse than the physical to the jihadi!

"In fact, the CIA fears she'll be assassinated for her U.S. spy work if she's ever deported to Beirut, two sources said."

Dig that!! Her status as an illegal alien in the U.S. notwithstanding, she CANNOT be deported because of danger to her life!! What the hell!! She gets to stay here - - regardless of her criminal background and duplicitous behavior??

I must be getting old!!

coolbert.

Supercavitation.

This is coolbert:

Supercavitation.

From a comment to the blog:

"Fascinating stuff. If a torpedo can be created that can reach 200mph, why not an entire submarine? A few attack submarines that could go that fast could destroy an enemy navy very quickly or deposit troops/equipment on an enemy shoreline with noo warning."

This idea has been thought of. Some sort of power source must be required to get the vehicle to initial speed, then the rest is "duck soup"!

This could be done with an unmanned undersea vehicle [UUV]? I would think that is the way to go.

A jet sub was purportedly made some decades ago? Was evidently a hoax. But was thought of and research has been done.

"Josef Papp claimed in 1966 to have built an underwater propulsion system which took advantage of supercavitation to achieve incredibly high speeds. However this is generally regarded as a hoax, due to circumstances surrounding his claim."

"Papp, a Hungarian-Canadian engineer, claimed to have built a special high-speed submarine in his garage that was propelled by a special underwater jet engine. However, on his maiden voyage across the Atlantic he encountered a stability problem and the submarine sank."

Is right now the subject of resarch? Yes!?

coolbert.

Missile?

This is coolbert:

Add this one to your daily TOP SECRET briefing.

Thanks to KTB "Sharkhunters" [http://www.sharkhunters.com]

"Germany has perfected their BARRACUDA underwater missile with enhanced speed up to 800 km/h! This will be normal armament on the 212 Alpha Class submarines on the Bundesmarine. The fuel cell for this high speed torpedo is being built by Diehl BGT Defense, Atlas Elektronik and TMS. This torpedo created a vacuum forward of the nose and that allows for the very high speed. Remember, the Russian designed SQVALL torpedo, released a few years ago, is rocket propelled and some of the exhaust goes out the nose thereby allowing the torpedo to run at 200 mph or better in this sheath of bubbles. These new torpedoes are formidable indeed, and would be difficult indeed to evade."

From the Diehl BGT web site:

"Underwater Missile

The supercavitating underwater missile is a technology demonstration program for close-in defence against underwater targets. It is equipped with a solid-propellant rocket motor, inertial measurement unit, autopilot and a conical tip which can be moved by means of an actuator system. The rocket motor provides the missile with a submerged speed of more than 400km/hr . . . The flexible nose cone provides steering just as a missile's fins do . . . To date, around a dozen test models of the underwater missile have been built and tested successfully."



These underwater missiles [torpedoes [??]] are useful only in limited circumstances??

Does not have long range and are intended to be used ONLY in certain particular situations. Such as from what is described on the wiki site for the Squall:

"the Shkval is designed as a countermeasure against torpedoes launched by undetected enemy submarines. It may also be used as a counter to incoming torpedoes whereby it is launched at the enemy submarine, forcing it to evade, and hopefully cutting the guidance wire to its own torpedo in the process."

The latest German torpedo [underwater missile] is formidable, but only in a very limited way??

coolbert.

Delmar.

This is coolbert: .

From the comments of Ambassador Bolton:

"Another huge shoe dropped in the espionage dept.: George Koval has been unmasked as a major Manhattan project spy (NYT 12th Nov '07), ~60 years after he fled to Russia. This agent of the GRU had access to several major bomb material production facilities"

Here is the whole story [from the New Duranty Times of all places]. Thanks also to the Steve Sailer blog.

"Just this weekend, we poor dumb Americans finally learned for the first time about one of the most important Soviet atomic bomb spies: George Koval [code name Delmar], a GRU-trained agent who penetrated the Oak Ridge and Dayton atomic bomb manufacturing plants, then fled back to the Soviet Union in, apparently, 1948"

Some comments about the Manhattan Project and the degree to which the Soviets were ABLE to penetrate the most secret weapons program of the war:

* The Manhattan Project had a dire and drastic need for capable manpower. Persons who could perform were needed, and NOW! Persons taken into the project were often done so by recommendation of a sponsor or mentor.

* At the time, being a communist did NOT exclude one from government service or being employed in "war work".

* A bureaucratic apparatus to conduct background checks and issue security clearances of the type done NOW was only in the infancy stage.

* Polygraph exams WERE NEVER DONE. NO such means was available and would not have been availed of even if it did exist.

Also:

* Persons such as Richard Feynman [21 years old] and Theodore Hall [19 years old] found themselves in relatively important positions, their youth not being a barrier.

* Persons such as Koval obtained access to facilities that were vital to PRODUCING WEAPONS ON AN INDUSTRIAL LEVEL. NOT just atomic bombs that were devices or gadgets. Mass produced, elegantly designed deliverable weapons. NOT merely toys.

[processing uranium ore to obtain the fissionable material necessary to achieve a nuclear detonation WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT TASK facing the Manhattan Project? Neither the theoretical physics or obtaining the necessary amounts of yellow cake presented any difficulties?]

The man that was head of security for the atomic bomb project, Peer da Silva, often expressed an opinion that the Manhattan Project was penetrated and compromised in an excess number of ways, and all simultaneously.

I guess he was right!!

OH, and I hope Delmar and his parents enjoyed their communist paradise.

coolbert.

O'Hare.

This is coolbert:

“it takes only a quarter [1/4] pound of C4 explosive to bring down a commercial jet airliner! - - Bert.

From the Chicago Tribune today:

“Bill focuses on airport security”

Congressman Mark Kirk has introduced legislation to allow only U.S. citizens to work at airports jobs involving access to planes and baggage.

“The federal agency would take-over background checks on people seeking airport security credentials as well as verify their identity and legal status, Kirk said.”

[if they do take over, I hope they do a better job on background checks than the FBI and CIA did with Nada Prouty.]

All this as a result of the latest fiasco involving Chicago’s O’Hare airport.

“Federal immigration officials last week arrested more than 30 O’Hare workers who used fraudulent airport identification cards. Many of those arrested were working in the country illegally."

“The phony ID’s were used to gain access to airplanes and other secure areas.”

[ID cards passed out by the temporary hiring agency, NOT the city of Chicago!!]

These persons caught were temporary workers working for companies that provide housekeeping and food service for the various airlines.

Some further comments and clarification:

“Many of those arrested”

NO! Perhaps ALL of those arrested were illegal aliens. NOT in the country legally, seeking and gaining employment with the full knowledge that what they were doing was criminal. This temporary agency hiring the illegals is owned by a NATURALIZED CITIZEN who had ILLEGAL ALIENS ON HIS HIRING STAFF!! ILLEGALS HIRING ILLEGALS!! AND PASSING OUT ID CARDS ALLOWING ACCESS WHERE NO ACCESS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED!!

“Fraudulent airport identification cards”

“Phony ID’s”

NO! NOT phony or fraudulent. DEACTIVATED ID CARDS ACTUALLY NOT DEACTIVATED. The city of Chicago operates the airport and issues the ID cards. These were ID cards taken from previous no-longer-employed airport workers and supposedly DEACTIVATED!

Questions to be asked:

* Why were these ID’s NOT DEACTIVATED when everyone thought they had been!!??

* HOW did these ID’s get into the hands of the temporary hiring agency!!??

I hope someone can get answers to these questions. It has been over six years now since 9/11. MORE than plenty time to sort things out and provide solutions to the airport security problem. If this incident is an indication of the work being done to secure the airports of the U.S., all concerned parties get a really big, circled in RED - - F minus!!!

[further personal comment. This sort of thing just pisses me off big time!!!]

coolbert.

Mole?

This is coolbert:

"A penetrated secret service is just not a bad one: it is an appalling liability" - - John Le Carre.

“This man is a spy, an undercover agent for the FBI, sent down here to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan!”- - Charlie Daniels - - “Uneasy Rider”.

"A Hizbullah Mole?
Case against CIA spy shocks counterintelligence community"

[please note the "question mark". "A Hizbullah Mole?" Question mark and the Mysterians!! I am being sarcastic.]

In this case, NOT a man, and NOT send to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan!

NOT only was this person able to obtain employment as a FBI special agent working on counter-terrorism cases, BUT ALSO OBTAINED FURTHER EMPLOYMENT WITH THE CIA IN THE CLANDESTINE SERVICES!!!

ALL THE WHILE BEING AN ILLEGAL ALIEN, IN THE U.S. ILLEGALLY!!

AND - - ALSO - - ALL THE WHILE - - BEING A MOLE FOR HEZBOLLAH??!!

Place this one in the OH SHIT, OH DAMN category!!

NO TELLING the amount of damage done here!!?? Perhaps of mind-boggling proportions!!??

Just to obtain a position as a Special Agent for the FBI requires a rigorous background check! At least I would think! A security clearance of the highest level. With access to sensitive information in some instances requiring polygraph checks, etc. And for employment in the clandestine services of the CIA, another totally-new-started-from-scratch background check would be required, perhaps even more detailed and exhaustive. The CIA of course DOES make extensive use of polygraphs.

AND AT NO TIME IT WAS UNCOVERED THAT THIS WOMAN WAS IN THE U.S. ILLEGALLY, AND HAD “CONNECTIONS” [EMPLOYMENT] TO A MAN LONG SUSPECTED OF HAVING TERRORIST AFFILIATION!!??

None of this even sounds plausible! Even remotely so! But, there it is.

And what does this villain plead guilty to:

"she pleaded guilty to naturalization fraud; unlawfully accessing a federal computer system; and conspiracy to defraud the United States."

NO death sentence for espionage in time of war or anything like that. Sounds to me like she was a SENT agent and is getting off very easy. Perhaps she is cooperating??? Ha-ha-ha!

Please understand too, that has been the pattern U.S. intelligence agencies have found themselves in for the last sixty years. Infiltrated, tricked, bamboozled by the opposition. Once again with gusto it seems!!

coolbert.

Fabius VI.

This is coolbert:

Demographics?

First read my previous blog entry on the Russian "Legion of Death".

Then consider, this current blog entry. The Israeli military, while not admitting it publicly, is responding to a long-term, unfavorable demographic shift??

From the September 18, 2007 issue of the Chicago Tribune:

“Equal opportunity for combat”

“An Israeli army panel is expected to urge opening all front line positions to women”

“JERUSALEM - - An Israeli arm committee is recommending that ALL combat jobs be opened to women, a security officials said Monday, a change that would dramatically remake the front line infantry, tank, and special forces that are the military’s last male bastions.”

“Israeli’s army has drafted men and woman since 1948, when some women fought alongside men in irregular units during the war with Arab countries that tried to block the formation of the Jewish state.”

“The commission, formed by the army’s human resources department and made up of officers and academics, proposes that women no longer be barred from any unit because of their sex”

“a small number of Israeli women fired artillery, served on naval vessels and flew combat sorties as pilots and weapons system operators” [during the 2006 fighting in Lebanon!]

“in recent years the army also integrated women in Border Police and anti-aircraft units as well as some field intelligence detachments.”

“About 1,500 women have combat jobs” [at this exact moment!]

“Some Orthodox Jews protest the mixing of the sexes, saying it flies in the face of religious rules on chaste behavior.”

NO real details of how this “noble” experiment is to be carried out are given.

* Are there to be combat arms units mixed by gender?

* Are there to be combat arms units segregated by gender?

* Is assignment of women into combat arms units to be voluntary or compulsory?

Etc. “Noble” experiments period for some reason are quite often difficult to implement, even with the best of intentions and effort!!??

Israeli women ALREADY DO SERVE IN SOME COMBAT UNITS, IN A VERY LIMITED MANNER!!

Serving in:

* Air defense units.

* Artillery units.

* Military aviation [combat??]

With regard to the incorporation of women into air defense and artillery units, these are combat arms assignments WITH A DEFENSIVE COMBAT ROLE!! Combat units operating from a FIXED POSITION, NOT MOBILE, NOT INTENDED OR CAPABLE OF OFFENSIVE ACTION.

[those artillery units appear to be 155 mm self-propelled howitzers operating out of a fixed-fire-base, NOT mobile!! I have to hand it to those young women, the shell for a 155 mm howitzer weights nearly 100 pounds!!]

Some major mis-conceptions DO EXIST concerning the role of women in the Israeli military. Major mis-conceptions such as:

* Israeli women have ALWAYS served in a combat role.

[NOT, according to the Israeli military historian, Martin van Creveld, since the SECOND DAY of the Arab-Israeli war, 1948. After the massacre/mutilation of a mixed gender platoon on the FIRST DAY of the Israeli War of Independence, the order was given, “NO women into combat!!”]

* Military conscription in Israeli is total. 100 % of draft age youth, men and women, are conscripted into military service. NO shirking, exemptions, draft-dodging period!! ALL serve, willingly, MAYBE even eagerly.

[this too is no longer correct. It may have been true in 1948, but NOT in 2007. An ever growing percentage of Israeli youth desire and GET religious exemption from military service. Young men and women from the ultra-orthodox segment [haredim] of the Israeli populace DO NOT feel an overwhelming obligation to perform military service as does the rest of SECULAR Israeli youth!!]

Could it be that the recommendation of this commission to allow women to serve in combat arms units is in part a recognition that the available manpower pool of HIGHLY CAPABLE Israeli young men willing to perform military service is dwindling??!!

[recall that the Israeli military takes the top 10 % [top 10% physically and mentally] of draftees and places them in tank battalions. The most capable draft age youth is put into combat arms positions where they can contribute the most where it counts the most!!]

Demographic numbers alone do not tell the story? A more nuanced understanding of the demographic numbers is required.

coolbert.

“Legion of Death”

This is coolbert:

Sounds like something from a video game. Teenage X-Box warriors fighting it out on a video monitor!

NO!

Russian Women's Legion of Death.

Actually did exist. AN ALL-WOMAN COMBAT ARMS RUSSIAN ARMY BATTALION. Originally organized under the regime of the Czar [?], deployed to the Eastern Front during World War One [WW1] and seeing COMBAT against good German troops!!

Some comments required:

* Was NOT a battalion as normally understood. WAS a company [plus] sized unit, 300 troops total, not counting the men who manned the machine guns!

* "issued cavalry carbine variants of the Mosin rifle". A cut-down version of the larger size rifle. A carbine smaller in weight than the rifle the men carried, but firing the same cartridge. Must have had a good wallop to it!

* Shaved heads for all the women and train 14 hours a day. Sounds like American Army basic training to me.

I can recall previously reading something about this matter before. Thought it was ONLY a bodyguard unit for the Czar. Did see action during the Winter Palace Uprising!! But not as a combat line unit vis-à-vis the Germans! I must have been wrong.

Kerensky asked for three platoons (about 140 soldiers) to remain as part of the Winter Palace's garrison. It was these women soldiers who defended the palace . . . during the October Revolution [Soviet Red rebellion] . . . the women largely [left] alone as the last protectors of the government.

Russian women bricklayers hoisting heavy packs and doing duty for GOD, the Czar, and the motherland??!!

Dig this stuff too:

"Some sources state that the colors of the unit were saved from capture by an attached male officer who wore them wrapped around his body under his uniform and promised to protect them."




[traditionally, the highest act of heroism on the battlefield was protecting and saving from capture the unit colors.]

And also:

"Sworn to never surrender (hence the term "Legion of Death) it was published in the press that each woman soldier carried a ration of potassium cyanide to be used to commit suicide in the event of capture."

[JUST EXACTLY - - AS IS DONE - - BY THE EELAM TAMIL REBELS TODAY!!!]

Colonel "Yashka" Bochkareva, putative commander of the battalion, met a bad end after the October Revolution:

"at the end of 1919 Bochkareva was captured by the Reds and executed. She has often been referred to as the Russian Joan D’Arc and was declared to be “Martyr Maria the Soldier” by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1994."

[in the photograph of the two women "Yashka" is on the left, Emmeline Pankhurst, the foremost British suffragette, on the right!]

This Suite 101 Military History web site is pretty good. I recommend it highly.

coolbert.

Seafighter.

This is coolbert:

First there was X-Craft, now there is "Seafighter".

Good program this evening on the cable "Military Channel"

The U.S. Navy has now deployed the latest of a series of newly designed and radically different naval craft.

Was part of the once experimental X-Craft project. NOW has come to fruition with the "Seafighter".

MOST impressive! Very much so!

This is the weapon the U.S. Navy needs badly. For fighting in littoral waters and providing fleet and homeland security protection.

It does appear the U.S. Navy has very carefully thought things through with the "Seafighter" and come up with a winner! A big time winner! A markedly innovative design using technology with common sense.

First of all, the "Seafighter" is INEXPENSIVE compared with other naval vessels. You can build and deploy fifteen of these craft for the cost of one modern naval destroyer! AND are quickly built too. The first deployed vessel was up and going only 20 months from start to finish. That too is unheard of!

Has the appearance from the outside of a box atop a catamaran hull. Dual hull of an almost science-fiction-like design. The inside of the ship looks like a big warehouse. NOT something the U.S. Navy would have previously thought of as looking "sexy"!

"Its hull is of a SWATH design, providing exceptional stability, even in high seas. The ship can operate in both blue and littoral waters"



"travel at least 50 knots in calm seas and more than 40 knots in sea state four."

Powered by:

* Two water-jet engines for combat operations. High speed and incredible maneuverability is possible utilizing this type of propulsion.

* Dual diesel engines for long-range, slow speed, loiter-like cruising!

Seems to be a vessel with the reconnaissance, surveillance, anti-submarine, anti-mine, special operations/commando type of mission!

Requires a very small crew of highly-trained personnel the U.S. Navy favors.

"The ship will have a crew of 26 comprised of four Navy officers and 12 enlisted Sailors working alongside a Coast Guard officer and nine Coast Guard enlisted personnel"

Can accommodate:

* Helicopters of the normal variety [H-60] .

* Unmanned vehicles, both aerial [UAV] and underwater [UUV].

* Zodiac-type rigid hull rubber boats.

Does not possess a gun or an integral missile firing capability? If available, NOT shown on TV!

Can be mission task tailored! That warehouse like inner-part of the ship can hold up to twelve shipping container sized modules that carry the workings for various missions. Modules that ARE shipping containers and contain war-making material. One container for the zodiac-type boats, another for the unmanned underwater vehicles [UUV], yet another for the special operations type of mission, etc.

[these DO appear to be shipping containers EXACTLY as you would find on an ordinary civilian shipping container vessel.]

Even the crew berthing is found in shipping containers! Specially modified sleeping quarters, cramped but not offended!

For each distinct type of mission, a discrete and pertinent set of modules that are mission tailored can be loaded on the ship prior to sailing. Perhaps even helicoptered to the ship when at sea? Each module equipped with gear that is off-the-shelf. The "Seafighters" are intended to be built and deployed NOW!

"[able to]meet a variety of mission requirements, including mine warfare, anti-submarine operations, amphibious assault support, surface warfare, transport and logistical missions, cruise missile launch, and special forces interdiction operations."

In conclusion:

"very high speed, high payload capability vessel which can cross oceans quickly, and operate in shallow coastal waters on missions which include mine counter measures and antisubmarine warfare."

Best to the "Seafighter" and bon voyage!! With this class of vessel, the U.S. Navy has hit the nail right on the head!! Again, I must say I am impressed with what I see!

coolbert.

Castration!

This is coolbert:

"Janjaweed - - the weed that needs pulling!!"

Previously, I have blogged on the topic of "rape as a weapon of war".

Here, however, is a new one on me.

Castration as a weapon of war. As currently being practiced by the janjaweed militia upon unfortunates in Darfur.

"In Darfur, My Camera Was Not Nearly Enough"

"men castrated and left to bleed to death"

Mass rape of woman in Darfur, along with branding, has been reported from that "conflict" for some time now. Woman are mass raped, and then branded. This the media has carried and reported upon.

But not castration. Men, castrated, left to die a slow, agonizing, humiliating and prolonged death from uncontrolled bleeding. I have yet to see this very "topic" carried by the mainstream media. Maybe it is too "sensitive" a subject.

"Castration has also been used in modern conflicts, as the Janjaweed militiamen currently (as of 2005) attacking citizens of the Darfur region in Sudan often castrate villagers and leave them to bleed to death as part of a campaign of terror."

Historically, castration of vanquished enemies found dead on the battlefield has been practiced. Thought to be an act of "barbarians" NO LONGER DONE? Darfur says otherwise.

"After battles, winners castrated their captives or bodies of the defeated to symbolise their victory and 'seize' their power."

Castration here represents a weapon of terror. NO DOUBT about it! Both physically and psychologically. The janjaweed are saying to the folks of Darfur, "we not only kill you, and do so in a grotesque manner, but also prevent your very essence from ever being created again!"

The Genocide Convention specially defines the action of "preventing births" within a culture or society as an egregious violation.

"imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group"

AND PEOPLE ARE STILL ARGUING IF THE "CONFLICT" IN DARFUR CONSTITUTES GENOCIDE!!??

American celebrities such as George Clooney endlessly talk about "ending" - - "somehow", the atrocities in Darfur. OK George, here is how to do it! Have AC-130 gunships from the USAF patrol at 8,000 feet. Target the janjaweed "militias" for destruction. Locate the miscreants using American Special Forces [SF] cavalry organized and led by Major "Mad Mike" Williams. ONLY that will do the trick!! All the rest is mere pap!

coolbert.

The Rising Sun??

This is coolbert:

Here is the latest intelligence from KTB "Sharkhunters" [http://www.sharkhunters.com]

"A destroyer? One of Japan's newest acquisitions for the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force. Incorporates a AEGIS radar suite. Though it describes a full length flight deck, I would assume it has vertical missile tubes before and aft of superstructure. Offensive or defensive.....depends on your point of view, doesn't it since other paperwork says it has hangar space for 16 helicopters and once the VSTOL F-35 is operational, all the other Asian countries may start rumblings about Japanese militarism - something that has never left their minds since WW II."

Combat systems to include:

* AEGIS radar suite.

[remember, a "suite" is the radar plus all the electronics and computer systems that goes with it!! An ENTIRE system!]

* Full length flight deck. [with (an offset superstructure)]

* Vertical missile tubes? "VLS tubes - her MK 41 VLS not only gives her the capability to launch standard air defense missiles, but also TOMAHAWK cruise missiles"

* Can accommodate sixteen helicoptes.

* Appropriate for STOVL F-35?

Described as a Japanese destroyer-helicopter ship. But MUCH more than that!!??

Banzai!!

coolbert.

The Road to Hell II.

This is coolbert:

Braddock's approach to Ft. Duquesne [Pittsburgh] is another example of how a "road" can become a death trap for a military unit. A combination of negative factors all coming together at once to spell disaster.

This is of course the Braddock Expedition [French and Indian War]. Conventional European military commander, attempting to use conventional European tactics in the American wilderness. NOT using tactics appropriate for the terrain or the enemy.

"The Braddock expedition (also called "Braddock's campaign") was a failed British attempt to capture the French Fort Duquesne in the summer of 1755 during the French and Indian War. The expedition takes its name from General Edward Braddock, who led the British forces and died in the effort."

Even when warned, Braddock was not flexible and responsive to the conditions he faced! What worked well for a career officer like Braddock in Europe DID NOT WORK in the Allegheny Mountains of North America!

"Benjamin Franklin's autobiography includes an account of helping General Braddock garner supplies and carriages for the general's troops. He also describes a conversation with Braddock in which he explicitly warned the General that his plan to march troops to the fort through a narrow valley would be dangerous because of the possibility of an ambush."

"Braddock's Road - - Setting out from Fort Cumberland in Maryland . . . the expedition faced an enormous logistical challenge: moving a large body of men with equipment, provisions, and (most importantly for the task ahead) heavy cannon, across the densely wooded Allegheny Mountains and into western Pennsylvania, a journey of about 110 miles."

Move 110 miles to the west, BUT, where there was NO road at all. Those cannon, felt to be decisive, NEEDED a road, as would be present in the European environment. NO ROAD existed in the Allegheny Mountains that would accommodate the Braddock Expedition. A ROAD THAT HAD TO BE BUILT BY A PIONEER [QUASI-MILITARY ENGINEER UNIT] UNIT AS THE EXPEDITION MOVED FORWARD!!

"The expedition progressed slowly, in some cases moving as few as two miles a day, creating Braddock's Road—an important vestige of the march—as they went."

A march culminating in the Battle of the Monongahela.

What occurred was an absolute rout of the British forces and colonial militia. Road bound, attempting to use European-style tactics in unfriendly and hostile terrain, proved to be futile in the extreme.

"After an initial defense, Gage's [Gage - - colonial militia commander] advance group fell back. In the narrow confines of the road, they collided with the main body of Braddock's force, which had advanced rapidly when the shots were heard. The entire column dissolved in disorder as the Canadian militiamen and Indians enveloped them and continued to snipe at the British from the woods and ravines on the sides of the road."

NO ROOM to maneuver, CONFINED to the road and beset from all sides simultaneously, this must have been just absolute chaos!

These two items from the wiki entry catch my attention instantly:

* "Also, of the 50 or so women that accompanied the British column as maids and cooks, only 4 survived."

The wagon train, the baggage and "impedimenta", had fifty or so women present! ONLY made things worse. I bet the French and their American Indian allies had a field day with them.

* "the French commander Liénard de Beaujeu, who dressed himself in full war regalia complete with war paint, convinced them to follow his lead."

Here is an excellent example of a commander who rallies his men, inspires them, and leads them into combat IN A MANNER APPROPRIATE!! Lienard also perished in the combat??!!

An inflexible, stubborn commander [Braddock], using tactics not commensurate, his command road-bound, faced by an enemy that knew the terrain and how fight in same, was a recipe for British disaster from the start!

coolbert.

The Road to Hell I.

This is coolbert:

Roads, as I have blogged about in previous entries, can be a tremendous BOON to the military. Allow supplies to flow where before NONE could!

Roads too, can also be a BANE to a military force.

Military units, devoted to movement by road, commanded by inexperienced or inept commanders, using inflexible or inappropriate tactics, can find themselves in precarious circumstances where OBLITERATION may be a consequence.

[a situation that can be made EVEN MORE precarious when confronted by an enemy who is more adept, flexible, responsive, using tactics suited for the situation.]

Perhaps from current history Mang Yang Pass is the archetype in this regard. Distinguished French troops, road-bound, almost totally annihilated by Viet Minh forces [First Indo-China War].

From ancient history, we have the destruction of three Roman Legions under the command of the consul Varus at the Battle of the Teutoburger Wald. Generally accepted to a major point in world history. NO further expansion of Roman power into Germania was EVER possible after this Roman debacle.

Excessive dependency upon roads combined with inclement weather [several days of continuous downpour!] placed the Roman legionnaires at great disadvantage. Inability to move forward or backward, no open terrain within which to maneuver, placed the Romans in great peril. Circumstances taken advantage of by the barbarians [Germanii]!

From the television series "I Claudius":

[a surviving Centurion reporting to Augustus Caesar what occurred on the battlefield.]

* "The wagons became mired in the mud and could not forward or backward."

* "The bow strings became wet, the archers being unable to fire their arrows."

* "The ox-hide shields were so sodden with water they could not be lifted."

* "The barbarians first attacked in small groups, then in ever increasing numbers."

* "Those Romans taken prisoner were placed in wicker baskets and burned ALIVE!!"

And from the history of Cassius Dio:

"They [Romans] had with them many waggons and many beasts of burden as in time of peace; moreover, not a few women and children and a large retinue of servants were following them"

[this impedimenta [Roman term] disallowed any possibility of inspired defense or maneuver. The Romans would have hesitated before abandoing the wagons and baggage train and civilians present!!]

"again a heavy downpour and violent wind assailed them [Romans] . . . they [Romans] could not handle their bows or their javelins with any success, nor, for that matter, their shields, which were thoroughly soaked."

FORTY YEARS AFTER THE ROMAN DISASTER, SURVIVORS BEING HELD AS SLAVES BY THE GERMANII WERE STILL BEING FOUND. ROMAN STANDARDS CAPTURED DURING THE BATTLE WERE RECOVERED, DECADES AFTER BEING LOST IN SOME INSTANCE!

coolbert.

Genghis II. [Conclusion]

This is coolbert:

And here is the full dope on the search for the grave site of Genghis Khan.

Digger's May Have Found Genghis Khan's Tomb .

"'We plan to explore this site further with additional experts from the US and Mongolia,' said history professor John Woods of the University of Chicago, who directed the summertime expedition organised by former Chicago commodities trader and lawyer Maury Kravitz, an amateur explorer who has studied Khan for 40 years."

"Legend has it that Khan, whose conquests created an empire spanning two-thirds of the 'civilised' world from the Caspian Sea to present-day Hong Kong, was buried in 1227 by 2,000 servants who were slaughtered by 800 soldiers, who in turn were killed upon their return to the capital to preserve the secrecy of his resting place."

[witnesses were killed by the bodyguard, who in turn were "killed"! I had said previously the bodyguard committed suicide! Whatever way, all persons knowing of the exact location of the grave site were done away with!]

coolbert.

Genghis I.

This is coolbert:

From a comment to the blog:

"Biologists would like to find the grave of Genghiz, to get samples of any DNA, as he or his brothers, have been determined to be the founders of a lineage with over one million living descendants."

16 million descendants it is believed!! This has to be verified. Such is what can be done with DNA analysis.

Here is the full dope:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Descent_from_Genghis_Khan

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/02/0214_030214_genghis.html

“The greatest happiness is to scatter your enemy, to drive him before you, to see his cities reduced to ashes, to see those who love him shrouded in tears, and to gather into your bosom his wives and daughters.” - - G. Khan.

“The greatest happiness is to vanquish your enemies, to chase them before you, to rob them of their wealth, to see those dear to them bathed in tears, to clasp to your bosom their wives and daughters.” - - G. Khan.

Genghis - - practiced - - what he preached!!??

coolbert.

Roads VI. [Conclusion]

This is coolbert:

"For hours, infinity to right, infinity to left, infinity behind us, infinity before us...the motor roaring in our ears…The boys on the convoy are over-whelmed by the vastness of their country. The nearing tropical north goes through them, impregnates, frightens, exalts, inspires them."

Stuart Overland Highway.

Australian route connecting Alice Springs with Darwin.

"Before WW2, the ‘road’ south from Darwin was an unsealed track that became a quagmire in the wet and a dust bowl in the dry. With the escalation of the Japanese threat to Northern Australia and surrounding sea lanes the authorities realised a road linking Darwin with the south had to be constructed to supply the top end in the event of a prolonged attack by the Japanese"

Guaranteed the Australian military a secure overland supply route to the beleaguered Northern Territories during WW2. 1000-mile road pushed through and completed in record time.

"The construction of the Alice Springs-Darwin Road constituted an engineering feat of considerable magnitude and of great military importance. As sections of the 1000 mile all-weather road was completed, convoys moved supplies between Alice Springs and Darwin."

A paved route unheard of in that part of the world! [Australians refer to a blacktopped, surfaced road as “sealed”] Was made deliberately wide to allow for the passage of military convoys. As with most of these World War Two [WW2] era roads, WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED OTHER THAN DURING A WARTIME EMERGENCY!

The Overland highway was vital to the Australian war effort. Japanese bombing raids against the northern areas of Australia were more extensive than what I had realized.

If you are able to find a copy of the movie, “The Overlanders”, please rent and view. A semi-documentary filmed in 1946. Australian stock men [ranchers], moving their cattle south, away from the danger posed by a Japanese invasion of the Northern Territories. 1 million cattle were moved south in the traditional manner, a cattle drive as you would have seen in the American West, circa 1870.

"drovers droving a large herd of cattle 1600 miles overland from the Northern Territory outback of Australia to pastures north of Brisbane, Queensland during World War II."

[during the movement south, the Overland Highway is encountered by one group of stock men. Paved with “bitumen” is the remark heard!!]

coolbert.

“Voice of the People”.

This is coolbert:

It was not only me that read the obituary of Paul Tibbets the other day. As carried in the Chicago Tribune.

Many others obviously did also. The passing of Paul Tibbets did strike a chord with folks. NO DOUBT about it!

From the op-ed page of the Tribune, yesterday:

“Thank you to Truman.”
“Thank you to Tibbets.”

- Jean K.

“GOD bless Paul Tibbets”

- Dave R.

“Thanks to Paul Tibbets”

AND, this very surprising comment:

“In passing, Paul Tibbets Jr. requested no funeral and an unmarked grave so as not to provide a site for anti-war protesters to gather” . . . It’s sad that . . . he is denied a military funeral that he so deserved”

- Jerome M.

An unmarked grave and no funeral for Tibbets?

This I had not read. But it does make sense. Unfortunately, Tibbets probably is right in assuming that some idiots and persons who are just sad cases period would use his grave site for “anti-war” protests and demonstrations. YOU JUST KNOW SOMEONE WOULD WANT TO DO THAT!! Even DESECRATE THE GRAVE SITE PROBABLY TOO!!

[this is a hot button topic among bloggers. Right now!!]

Historically speaking, the MOST EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES have been taken to hide and protect the grave site of prominent military commanders. To prevent desecration for the most part. Including:

* Quintilius Varus. The Roman soldiers at the Teutoburger Wald, seeking to protect the body of their fallen commander, hastened a burial of Varus while the fighting raged, without success!

"The body too of the consul [Varus] himself, which the dutiful affection of the soldiers had buried, was disinterred."

"The body of Varus, partially burned, was mangled by the enemy [Germanii] in their barbarity"

* Alaric of the Visigoths.

"A large number of Roman slaves were set to work to dig a channel and turn the water of the Busento [Po] into it. They made the grave in the bed of the river [Po], put Alaric’s body into and closed it up. Then the river was turned back to its old channel. As soon as the grave was covered up, and the water flowed over it, the slaves who had done the work were put to death by the Visigoth chiefs."

* Genghis Khan. Buried in a secret grave site near where he had roamed as a boy. The bodyguards [??] of Genghis killed the witnesses to the burial and then committed suicide!!

* Edward Braddock.

"In an expedition that included George Washington, Braddock was ambushed by French soldiers and Indians as they widened the road to fit their artillery. Massive casualties included General Braddock, and he was buried on the side of the road. His whole troop marched over his grave to eliminate any trace of it and preserve his body from mutilation."

* Oliver Cromwell. As with Varus, Cromwell was not treated well even in death!

"In 1661, Oliver Cromwell's body was exhumed [he had been dead for three years!!] from Westminster Abbey, and was subjected to the ritual of a posthumous execution . . . His body was hanged in chains at Tyburn. Finally, his disinterred body was thrown into a pit, while his severed head was displayed on a pole outside Westminster Abbey until 1685."

As with Alaric - - as with Genghis - - as with Braddock, the same with Tibbets? I am sad to say - - it is so!!

coolbert.