Wargaming VA Tech

Several people, including myself, have suggested that an armed citizen -- whether a veteran or a civilian who had trained in defensive combat -- might have been of some use in lessening the impact of the VA Tech killer. The evidence seems strong, between the Appalachian Law School events and other events across the country where just such things have happened.

Nevertheless, a skeptic (and friend of mine) suggested a wargame. I think that's a worthy exercise, given that we ought to want to build the skills and expertise necessary to prevent such atrocities in the future.

Anyone with military, law enforcement or other relevant experience is invited to respond. I would like to tap this good community to help strengthen our country against future tragedies of this type. Please follow the link and offer your thoughts; feel free either to criticise my suggested tactics, or to offer examples and scenarios of your own.

Re: The Extension

Or "Leaking on the Troops"...

For those who weren't aware: someone leaked the story:

Q Could you just clarify, you're changing the policy establishing an upper limit of a deployment. But does that mean that all the units that are deployed to Iraq are now extended -- all the Army units are now extended to 15 months?

And can you also tell us why you're making this announcement publicly now at the same time that the troops and their families are hearing it, because normally that's done -- they get notified first.

SEC. GATES: All the units that are there and all the units that will deploy are now extended -- will be extended to 15 months...

In terms of why we're announcing it simultaneously with the unit commanders, I'll be very blunt. Some very thoughtless person in this building made the unilateral decision yesterday to deny the Army the opportunity to notify unit commanders who could then talk to their troops 48 hours before we made a public announcement. And I can't tell you how angry it makes many of us that one individual would create potentially so much hardship not only for our service men and women, but their families, by giving -- by letting them read about something like this in the newspapers.

Anger and dark humor as U.S. troops learn of longer tours

Word of the extension arrived shortly after midnight at the rambling, two-story country villa near the Euphrates River that the soldiers from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, have turned into a joint American-Iraqi military base.

The news landed almost by accident - First Sergeant Jody Heikkinen spotted a story about it on the Internet - and the company officers were caught off guard. "We're trying to figure out what it means," said Captain Chris Calihan, 31, commander of Bravo Company.

"I was praying for a year" deployment, said Audrey Frohnhoefer, whose husband, Capt. Tom Frohnhoefer, is serving his third tour in Iraq with the 3rd Infantry Division, based in Fort Stewart, Ga. "The worst part about the whole thing is that we know what to expect, and we don't want to do it," she said in a telephone interview from her home in Savannah, Ga., as her infant and toddler daughters cried in the background.
<...>
Congressional Democrats railed yesterday against the decision to extend Army tours, calling it a further buildup of a war that has no end in sight. They called on Bush to change what they termed a "failed strategy" in Iraq that continues to stress U.S. forces to the breaking point.

General Petraeus wrote this letter to military family members.

And you won't read about it in the papers, but deployed GIs are now finding out what really happened.

Duty in the Desert

This milblogger seems to know his business:

An active-duty U.S. Air Force pilot; flown mostly C-130s during my career at numerous locations, to include a tour as instructor pilot at the C-130 schoolhouse at Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, teaching new pilots how to fly the Hercules. Did a stint as Director of Operations, Chief Pilot, and Chief of Stan-Eval at a rapid-response C-130 unit specializing in high-priority, sensitive projects and test flights. Also served as an advance agent for Air Force One directly supporting the President of the United States. Married my best friend and we have 3 children that keep us very busy.

Herky driver LtCol Patrick writes Duty in the Desert, an excellent new milblog. Bookmark him, read him daily, and be sure to check out his remembrance of downed F16 pilot Major Troy Gilbert.

From the Front

Reflecting on great milblog posts from years gone by reminds me once again that I've done a pretty piss-poor job of linking fellow GI Joes lately. Fortunately, Mrs G has been keeping up. Via her running of the Milblogs Ring and construction of the Daily Dawn Patrol, here are a couple bloggers currently in Iraq.

SSG Thul, new MilBlog Ring member, writes from Iraq:

On the main highway running through Al Anbar, the Iraqi Police are now seen daily.

When I got into country a year ago, this road was very dangerous, and the US military was the law. Now the Iraqi's are starting to police themselves. And you have to give them credit for courage. The military wont let any soldier outside the wire without full body armor and a fully armored vehicle. The IP's travel in commercial grade Chevy's and Ford's. Minimal body armor and little to none on the truck. They get paid less than us and face more risk than us. But they are standing up for their country, and for their own safety and freedom. Marine and Army units are constantly coming into Iraq to replace other units and take up the mission. But these guys are the last replacements. They are the ones we will eventually turn the country over to.

Outlaw 13, on the exension:

I found out earlier this week via AFN (Armed Forces Radio Network) (thanks to some WEASEL, who I will discuss below) that I may have to stay in Iraq up to fifteen months instead of the twelve that was usual. As you might imagine the news was disappointing to most if not everyone around here. Philosophically and militarily, I can understand the reasoning behind the move, but it doesn't make it any more palatable to the soldiers that are affected by it.

While I was home on leave the disconnect between our society at large and what is going on over here and in Afghanistan couldn't have been more apparent to me. It is no wonder that people are "tired" of the war. Every day they are fed news about nothing but car bombings, bridges being blown up, Iraqi politicians threatening to leave the government...bla bla bla etc etc. Unless one digs for it you can never find the success stories only the obituaries. So it doesn't surprise me that this announcement of extension was met by a rousing Bronx cheer announcing how this is somehow symbolic of our impending doom, how the chickens are coming home to roost and we are committed to failure. The only thing the extension is symbolic of is the fact that our Army is a LOT smaller than it was in 1991 and to be able to accomplish what needs to occur to ensure success and still allow Soldiers time with their families this move needed to be made.

More later.

Re: Crossroads

Men in Black:

Taking Chance:

Re: PBS Crossroads Series

I've heard some controversy about the series because of an episode that was yanked. Frank Gaffney thinks that's for political reasons.

Anybody else watching America at the Crossroads?

It’s series of 11 two hour independently produced documentaries about the War on Terror on PBS, it will be showing two hours each night all week long.

Last nights episode was titled “Jihad: The Men and Ideas Behind Al Qaeda”, I missed the first half last night because I was watching Drive. The hour I did watch definitely caught my interest, the series went back though the entire history of the main players and dove in the reasoning. Spooky stuff.

Tonight’s first hour is titled “Warriors”. The film crew caught an IED attack during filming and the attack that followed; you could feel the fear and adrenalin through the screen, after the attack and evacuating their casualties, the same guys go back out on patrol. It’s quite a statement about what our guys are going through.

War Criminals

via ABC

KABUL, Afghanistan Apr 16, 2007 (AP)— The Taliban and other militant groups are committing war crimes by targeting Afghan civilians, killing nearly 700 last year, according to a report issued Monday by Human Rights Watch

It only took HRW 5 years to figure it out...credit where credit is due.