An American destroyer entered the Black Sea. If the Russians make life difficult we'll soak up lots of information with an E-3 and P-8 flying in support.
A NATO China strategy? Why? I don't think NATO, a North Atlantic military alliance, needs a military strategy to deal with China. What America needs NATO to do is increase military capabilities to deal with a hostile Russia, freeing American military capabilities to pivot to China. Basic alliance interoperability standards will be enough to allow some non-America NATO forces (especially Canadian) to deploy to face China if possible. All non-America NATO countries need to do in regard to China is to not strengthen China with trade and technology transfers via agreement or espionage.
Dead cat bounce. Which is why I'm not too worried about Russia's ability to interdict sea lines of communication across the Atlantic. Only our small Merchant Marine and Navy lack of interest in convoys gives me a source of worry.
A summit with Putin just rewards him for bad behavior. Unless we think we see Putin morse code blinking "help me" because he is trapped by Chinese military power and Russian Far East land conquests. Far from thinking a U.S.-Russian alliance is laughable, I've been all for it. But Russia needs it far more than America does so we should not offer concessions that validates Russian bad behavior to get it.
The French war against jihadis in Africa. I'll give France credit for this thankless task. Although the French should be grateful that the American media isn't covering it 24/7 to give it the "Iraq War Treatment". Although the article's pose that killing jihadis isn't bringing lasting peace to the region is wrong. Only the locals can bring lasting peace. And killing jihadis can only hold the line while keeping the jihadis busy "over there"; and give the locals a chance to bring local peace.
"Free" college tuition is an assault on responsible families who save for college. And an assault on responsibility in general. Why be responsible when the government steps in and makes you look like a sucker? Better to spend your money selfishly and plead for taxpayer money--including from people who don't go to college--and have your cake and eat it, too. If aptitude-based and needs-based financial aid aren't enough on top of family savings, colleges themselves should start firing useless and counterproductive administrators and stop making their campuses look like vacation resorts. That would lower costs. Don't reward colleges for their cost-adding decisions that don't apply to their core missions of education and successful sports teams.
South Korea is deciding on a light carrier design. This is a big step to broadening South Korea's defense horizon from the DMZ in the north to the blue waters south of South Korea.
The American Sicilian Drone Expedition.
I think it is insane to imagine we can fight al Qaeda and ISIL in Afghanistan without also helping Afghanistan defeat the Taliban.
From the Media Misinformation Files: "On the fifth anniversary of the PULSE nightclub massacre in Orlando, numerous senators, politicians and activist groups commemorated that tragic event by propagating an absolute falsehood: namely, that the shooter, Omar Mateen, was motivated by anti-LGBT animus. The evidence is definitive and conclusive that this is false — Mateen, like so many others who committed similar acts of violence, was motivated by rage over President Obama's bombing campaigns in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, and chose PULSE at random without even knowing it was a gay club — yet this media-consecrated lie continues to fester." Build the memorial. And let the people who know what happened dominate it by treating the site as what it is--a site for jihadi rage and murder. Tip to Instapundit.
The tip of the mix-up iceberg. To be fair, even experts can mix up words. And in one case it is possible that Biden was referring to rebuilding Syria and Libya rather than mixing them up. It's hard to say, really. But to be real, Biden isn't an expert and judging his lucidiy doesn't rest on this. One reads in history about leaders who were inept, crazy, addled, sickly, or simply too young to be real leaders. To live through such a time is astounding. To be a superpower with this situation is frightening. And to let our allies--and God help us, Putin--confirm their worries by seeing our president in action is horrifyingly stupid. Democrats kept Biden in the basement during the 2020 campaign for a reason, you know. It's one thing to count on our compliant press to prop the man up. Another to expect Europeans to do the same. This trip isn't just an embarrassment. It's a real danger to America.
The level of stupid displayed by that man is astounding. He could have done so many smart things with his windfall of cash. But no, he bought a $20,000 gold chain that was promptly stolen. Even storing his purchase away as a hedge against inflation would have been prudent. Nut no worries. He'll use his next lottery win to move out of Detroit for a safer neighborhood.
Seriously, leftists are actively seeking to stake out the most stupid positions possible as some sort of game, right? Via Instapundit.
Fascism. Kind of makes Tom Friedman's man-crush even more sickening now that this has a pre-World War II vibe, eh?
China's population bust is here: "The census results were supposed to be released by early April 2021 but that did not happen. There were news leaks that the delay was due to indications that the population decline had accelerated and population had actually declined since 2010." I've been on this. And China may have peaked much earlier than the 2030 expected back then.
Acceptable collateral damage: "The Institute for Palestine Studies published a detailed report on Gaza’s Tunnel Phenomenon in the summer of 2012. It reported that tunnel construction in Gaza has resulted in a large number of child deaths." Back then, the death toll was 120. And this doesn't even touch the human shield angle.
Wow, what an unexpected ratings crash! "In only four years, Nickelodeon has dropped more than two thirds of its audience." Who'd have thought that children's channels airing themes appropriate to leftists who can't or won't have children (because the adults believe America is evil or the planet is doomed) would repulse people who do have children? Mysteries abound.
Well, yes, Biden should keep Belarus in mind when dealing with Putin. Belarus is the most important territory in Europe today.
This is totally how an innocent man responds to an accusation: "'We have been accused of all kinds of things,' [Putin] said. 'Election interference, cyberattacks and so on and so forth. And not once, not once, not one time, did they bother to produce any kind of evidence or proof. Just unfounded accusations.'" Where's the proof? Seriously? If Russia didn't do anything, he'd just deny it.
The Army wants 1,000 km. missiles.
Well, yes, Biden should push NATO states to meet their commitment of spending 2% of GDP on defense by 2024, as they agreed to do in 2014. If it makes Biden's people feel better, they can refuse to use the word "dues" which is not accurate but close enough for government work under the circumstances.
The fruits of Russia's soft Anschluss with Belarus? "Russia and Belarus have agreed to jointly counter 'the West’s destructive activities' aimed at 'destabilizing the situation' in the United State of Russia and Belarus."
Shut down China's propaganda inside America.
The American-led withdrawal from Afghanistan has collateral damage already--it is strengthening our problem-child ally Erdogan: "Turkey confirmed that it will provide peacekeepers to guard Afghanistan’s
capital, Kabul. The Turkish contingent will provide security for the
Afghan government and the main International Airport outside the
capital." Erdogan wants something for this. I find it hard to believe that Turkey only wants direct financial help with the mission. Will Biden accept Turkey's S-400 purchase and let Turkey buy F-35s? Did Biden get played by Erdogan with a deal we haven't been told about?
The Chinese are improving their SSBNs.
American and Japanese ships exercised together in the South China Sea, which China largely claims.
Huh: "The Biden administration is prepared to lift sanctions on the Iranian regime's primary vehicles for terrorism financing, [according to a Republican senator.]" America's humiliating retreat to Smart Diplomacy Nirvana continues.
Is the Air Force plan to defeat China by striking the Chinese mainland with nuclear-capable systems a risk for nuclear war? "If a fight over Taiwan occurs, the Air Force plans to wage conventional
warfare against China by flying nuclear-capable aircraft into its
airspace—or by launching cruise missiles from outside its airspace from
other nuclear-capable aircraft." It is risky to strike the Chinese mainland with weapons that the Chinese can't know aren't nuclear. I do worry about how that could play out. Still, if American weapons avoid political and strategic centers, won't that reduce China's worries? And can we count on China not to attack our homeland? Even if it is not mostly kinetic but cyber in nature?
This is an idea: "The Pentagon is considering establishing a permanent naval task force in the Pacific region as a counter to China’s growing military might, according to two people familiar with internal discussions." Isn't that what Seventh Fleet is?
Could the Independence-class LCS be better used as enhanced surveillance assets for a kill web rather than being upgraded to inferior anti-ship frigates? Perhaps, if capable of being the eyes and ears of modularized auxiliary cruisers armed as missile carriers. But if not in that form, I worry that yet another plan for the LCS would be pouring even more money into inferior ships when the Navy needs every dollar it can scrounge for new and better ships. Let's settle for the good of an LCS platform with anti-ship missiles rather than spend even more money searching for the perfect LCS.
Liberal privilege. Move along. Nothing to see. Can you imagine the endless cries of horror and calls for revenge if a Republican had said that?
So where are the white supremacists? Perhaps the real root cause of anti-Asian violence is the rampant crime that Democratic city governance has promoted.
How "science" is created from what was deemed "deplorable racist conspiracy theories". Only Jon Stewart can go to science?
I'll say it again, Israeli attacks on Hamas and related jihadis in Gaza is not "disproportional" to the Hamas terror attacks on Israeli civilians as long as the terrorists are willing to pay the price to keep trying to kill Israelis: "Hamas reportedly broke the ceasefire with Israel by launching incendiary balloons into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip on Tuesday. Israel responded with air strikes in the early hours of Wednesday, the BBC reported." Until war is Hell for the Palestinians instead of an opportunity to score propaganda points against the hated Jews, this will go on forever. One day the Israelis will need to tightly blockade Gaza, bombard, and when that has done its job move in troops to go house-to-house to capture or kill every important terrorist leader and fighter in the territory. And then imprison the scum "for the duration" until a real peace treaty is signed that requires Palestinians to openly accept Israel within its current borders.
The press conference for Biden has been waiting for over 4 hours now, as I write this. I assume Biden is being briefed on what he did during the meeting with Putin. I'm almost positive that this is what happens when Biden is prepared for speeches or answering questions:
A war with Russia or China won't be over by Christmas.
America won't help Afghan forces fight the Taliban by using air power. That should be great for Afghan morale, eh? Also, I guess the war isn't "ending" with our departure. Fancy that.
European and American industrial capacity would overwhelm Russia. But China has the capacity to fight on--assuming it has the raw materials to use that capacity. And America alone would have problems with war-related industrial capacity. How quickly could we mobilize industry? And would Europe help us with their industrial capacity until we can shift to a war footing? Still, best to direct China away from America at sea than to prepare to win, no?
NATO plans to keep training Afghan security forces after America leaves Afghanistan. Bold strategy Cotton, let's see if that pays off.
I don't have to accept the senator's framing or even respect the senator himself, but he has a point that losing Army weapons seems really bad.
Unless Russia is sharing information with the Chinese, exercising west of Hawaii seems massively pointless. But hey, you go girl.
Matching a stealthy ship with hypersonic missiles seems like a good match: "The Navy is planning to replace the gun system on each Zumwalt-class (DDG-1000) destroyer with the capability to field up to 12 hypersonic weapons as a 'compelling strike platform,' according to the Navy’s fiscal year 2022 budget request." And it is a good test bed for expanding the missile throughout the fleet if necessary. Besides, without ammunition, the ships' guns are just places to hang sailor laundry.
The media went ballistic on the false story that Russia was paying bounties for the lives of American troops in Afghanistan. Yet the media thinks that giving American taxpayer money to Palestinians and Iranians--who then use the money to kill Jews and Americans, among others--is "seeking peace" rather than being far worse and absolutely proven.
Oh great, Biden gave Putin a list of critical infrastructure that should be off limits to cyber attacks. If Putin didn't know our most vulnerable and key sectors, he knows now. Was Biden's "safe word" also communicated?
In case it wasn't obvious, Hamas used the donated material to build civilian structures to build tunnels and other military-related structures. Concrete should not be allowed into Gaza as long as Hamas is in power. As long as killing Jews is more important to Hamas (and the 10-20 smaller terror groups) than living Gazans, to Hell with them. Besides, Hamas has signed up with Iran to be one more group of Iranian cannon fodder willing to die when Iran tells them to.
Droning the resistance in Burma.
Army: We can do unto China what the Chinese are doing to our Navy. Which may accelerate the ability to send the Navy carriers into battle at reasonable risks. Yet somehow the Air Force seems to view the Army as a bigger threat than the PLA.
I did not know that moving anti-ship missiles could be enabled by "a C-130 seaplane that is under consideration." My idea was not as original as I thought, but it is great that the idea is further along!
I'm not upset at all that Juneteenth is now a federal holiday, despite leftist approval. Just because woke assholes misuse existing holidays to advance their racist hate doesn't mean we should not embrace this event. Leftists can manage to twist Fiscal New Year's Eve into an attack on America, after all. This new holiday commemorates freedom from government-enforced slavery. Just focus on the freedom for slaves that the Union sacrifice of so much blood and treasure by a Republican administration over Democratic Party objections achieved. Insist on celebrating reality rather than the ravings of critical race theory moron racist haters. My plan going forward is to fly the American flag on this holiday, joining Memorial Day, the Army birthday/Flag Day, Independence Day, Patriots Day, and Veterans Day as my personal list. Democrats react to the American flag the way vampires react to sunlight and Holy Water, so give them reason to recoil in horror on what should be a day for all to celebrate the end of chattel slavery. Embrace freedom won by Lincoln's determination and the sacrifice of Union soldiers. And remember, Trump proposed this.
Good: "Multiple suspects believed to be linked to the Clop ransomware gang have been detained in Ukraine after a joint operation from law enforcement agencies in Ukraine, South Korea and the United States."
Government and "science" have forfeited so much trust over the last year that I have no idea whether I should worry about Xi Jinping Flu variants that are more contagious. I lean to not worrying. But at least if I yell the appropriate approved slogan I will be immune to infection, right?
Army SFAB detachments are spreading out over INDOPACOM to help train allied and friendly troops.
"Mission accomplished", I guess. But I will say that old-style declarations of war had no expiration date. Also, Congress drafted and passed the authorization to use force, so complaints about it rest with them. And Congress always has the power to end war-making authority granted with the power of the purse. Still, it's nice that Congress at least recognizes that we won in Iraq. Maybe Congress will defend the victory, too.
Apparently, this is enough of a decent interval between withdrawing from Afghanistan and obvious defeat: "Top U.S. military leaders said on Thursday that international militant groups like al Qaeda could pose a threat from Afghanistan to the U.S. homeland and American allies in two years." Smart Diplomacy really impresses me. But at least obvious defeat isn't scheduled until after the mid-term elections. So the administration has that going for it. Which is nice.
Portland can burn for all I care now: "Officers who serve on a specialized crowd control unit in Portland, Oregon, who have responded to the city’s ongoing, often violent protests have resigned en masse after criminal charges were filed against a team member." Play stupid games. Get stupid results.
If President Trump had lashed out at a female reporter it would have been a week-long misogyny story across the media.
Evidence that Putin was delighted with the mental state of the man on the other side of the table at Geneva: "Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday praised the outcome of his summit with U.S. President Joe Biden and called him an astute and shrewd negotiator."
Biden's DOJ readies the political witch hunts.
This media commentary deserves some realitysplaining: "Republicans are accusing President Joe Biden of being weak on Russia after his summit with Vladimir Putin, conveniently ignoring four years of Putin flattery from former President Donald Trump." One, Republican attacks highlight the fact that Democrats spent four years explaining that failing to try to stab Putin in the heart with a pen is tantamount to treason. But now Democrats praise being nice to Putin. And two, Trump's actions actually strengthened NATO in opposing Russia; while Putin has already approved a Russian pipeline that weakens NATO by putting European energy at the mercy of Putin's off switch. Significant difference, no? Reporters are just unpaid auxiliaries of the Democratic Party these days.
Huge, if true: "Chinese-language anti-communist media and Twitter are abuzz this week
with rumors that a vice minister of State Security, Dong Jingwei (董经纬)
defected in mid-February, flying from Hong Kong to the United States
with his daughter, Dong Yang. Dong Jingwei supposedly gave the U.S.
information about the Wuhan Institute of Virology that changed the
stance of the Biden Administration concerning the origins of the
COVID-19 pandemic." But I'll hold off on running with this.
This is what pissed me off about lockdowns: "The findings reveal that government lockdown orders devastated workers at the bottom of the financial food chain but left the upper-tier actually better off." It was easy for those who could work from home to claim those who couldn't were "anti-science" in their desperation. Tip to Instapundit.
An actual point-of-no-return looms: "The latest inflation numbers are a blaring red warning sign that is both valuable and honest — it is the last point in which President Biden can put the brakes on before the specter of 10 percent (or higher) inflation." There is no economic reason for the proposed spending. Only the 2020 pandemic stimulus was arguably justified. But I guess political reasons are enough reason to wage war on the middle class. Some price increases over last year may just be the result of depressed prices last year. That's what the administration wants us to think is true for all of it, but even it is thinking of interest rate hikes in response to the numbers. Tip to Instapundit.
China's military isn't as good as its shiny weapons indicate: "The truth, as Chinese leaders describe it, is more depressing. It's all about corruption among the military leadership and low standards for training and discipline. In short, Chinese military power is more fraud than fact and three decades of trying to change that have not produced as much change as befits the most technology advanced and well-equipped military China has ever produced." I fully accept this. And actually, a big problem is that the primary task of the PLA is to protect the Chinese Communist Party. But there are two problems. One, we don't know how much less effective the PLA is as opposed to how it appears. And two, we are sufficiently unsure about how much less effective our military is as opposed to how it appears (and from its historic record) to make it unclear what the real forward balance is. At least in the first month of war. So don't panic. But don't dismiss the PLA, either.
Iran's war on the Middle East, using Arabs as cannon fodder. But all Iran has to do is deny responsibility and many Westerners eagerly believe the lies.
Wow is this editor gullible: "Russia's pro-Kremlin media no longer views [Biden] as a dotard." Putin was able to confirm beyond his wildest dreams that Biden is in fact a dotard. He wants to keep that advantage over America as long as possible. So of freaking course the pro-Kremlin media is going to assert Biden is a "shrewd statesman" in alliance with the American pro-Biden media. To be fair to the editor, he might be a partisan hack rather than gullible.
I feel like I'm in a time warp: "Daniel Ortega Must (And Can) Be Stopped[.]" Yes, he must be stopped. Apparently he isn't an "ex-Marxist" after all this time.
Ships will need electricity. Lots of it. I've been on that for a while.
The first clue is when she built a cold fusion reactor with her wooden blocks. But really, no pressure on the rest of your life. Tip to The Morning Briefing.
The Biden war on domestic terrorists will have simple rules. One, any white man who disagrees publicly with a leftist position on race issues is a racist terrorist. Two, any white man who is completely silent on leftist positions on race issues is a well-disciplined racist terrorist.
Hmmm: "US Navy Punts on Building a Fleet to Compete with China[.]" To be fair, it may be that the first order of business is dramatically expanding air- and ground-launched anti-ship missiles. Plus attack submarines. Then the surface fleet deserves attention. I'm all in favor of a larger fleet but the fact that Biden is not doing that now does not mean I should automatically condemn the decision. We'll see.
Goodthink Hero of the Revolution versus Badthink Enemy of the State: Pandemic Front.
The Marines are eager to get the light amphibious warship (LAW) program in the water. I don't want to rush to a mistaken design. Although in that article link the LAW at least has a roof for the helicopter deck. And could amphibious planes replace some of the ships?
The "new normal" in Minneapolis.
Well, I keep telling myself that the woke leftist monsters who dominate Twitter and who are amplified by the media do not reflect most liberals. So could actual liberals finally be repulsed by what the leftist monsters are doing in their name? Good, if true. Although perhaps that rejection of the left by actual liberals who value civil rights and freedom of speech could be weakened. If the media-amplified Biden war on mythical white supremacist terrorist groups actually creates some white supremacist terrorists, enough liberals won't finish that rejection. Tip to Instapundit.
San Francisco leftists: Thank Gaia for Baltimore! Tip to Instapundit.
Yes, critical race theory is itself ignorant racist evil.
There is no Russian-Chines alliance. There is a Russian-Chinese non-aggression pact that allows each to face their favored enemy without worrying about the other pact partner. I think that explains a lot. But I think you have to consider that Russia is essentially appeasing China to avoid a Chinese effort to restore Chinese control of territory that Russia took in the 19th century. How much longer does that Russian policy and Chinese restraint last?
The F-35 is going to allow NATO to dominate the air and kill targets on the ground at will. Russia's bet that NATO is a safer target to rage against to appease China will be lost as the plane enters NATO inventories in sufficient numbers.
France is not getting the help it wanted from Biden for supporting French efforts to escape the long war in Mali. Which is fair given how France stiff-armed us in Iraq since 2003. The French should at least be grateful that we are offering support for the French front against jihadis. Especially since France was in the lead of the 2011 Libya War whose fallout created the jihadi-infested Mali that France struggles with today. Still, the trend of Westerners tiring of a war against jihadis who don't seem tired of killing us in the most horrible ways is discouraging.
Biden would only get upset if Ben and Jerry denied him ice cream.
If Portland's mayor and prosecutor's office don't care about public safety, why should the police? And why should I?
I'm sure Biden's oddly pro-mullah people will welcome the election of such a committed peace partner in Iran: "Mr Raisi would be the first serving Iranian president sanctioned by the
U.S. government even before entering office over his involvement in the
mass execution of political prisoners in 1988, as well as his time as
the head of Iran's internationally criticized judiciary _ one of the
world's top executioners." Biden's people will totally trust this man to refrain from building nuclear weapons. This will work out swell, eh? OMG, what is wrong with the Biden administration?! "The Biden administration wants to finalize a deal with Iran to return to
the 2015 nuclear deal in the six weeks remaining before a new Iranian
president is inaugurated, a U.S. official tells Axios." That's Biden's solution to a murderous nutball taking charge in Iran? And sadly, Biden is trying to appease Iran by pulling forces out of the Middle East intended to guard against Iranian aggression. We're so screwed.
This is true: "'Europe is a priority theater for the United States Army,' Gen. James McConville, the Army’s chief of staff, told reporters by phone from U.S. Army Europe and Africa headquarters in Wiesbaden after holding three days of talks with European allies." Which doesn't mean it is the only potential theater for the Army's core competency, as I addressed in Military Review.
Taiwan signed deals for $1.75 billion worth of American missiles and rockets.
The authors have a point that small tripwire forces can just prompt an enemy to overrun them and win quickly. But the West Berlin garrison in the Cold War was not a tripwire force. It was the equivalent of a division defending the city. It would lose eventually. But it was a combat force. That is why the Soviets didn't have plans to attack it. A tripwire force certainly would have tempted the USSR to overrun West Berlin quickly. Nor was the American force of 2,500 in Afghanistan a tripwire. It was a key force multiplier supporting the Afghan security forces. As for the tripwire NATO forces in the Baltic states, Heaven forbid we put enough forces there to stop a Russian offensive.
India is finally taking steps to reorganize how it leads its military in the face of China's rise that keeps putting distance between the PLA and the Indian military. In theory this heightens the risk of unlawful military rule as so many other countries have suffered. Hopefully India's democracy is established enough to reduce that risk. But without taking that risk, India is screwed unless China simply collapses and spins apart, as it has so many times in the past.
It really pisses me off that Iran's predictable lurch to even more intensively mullah-run theocracy is described as "veering right." Iran is veering not to the right but to even more government control. Call it socialist. Call it theocracy. Or call it fascist. But it is all part of more state control of people's lives. Plus exporting hate and Iranian dominance.
I get annoyed that Democrats and their media allies speak with disdain and contempt of Trump-supporter "conspiracy theories" about losing the 2020 election given the four years (and counting) of Democratic/media belief that the Russians hacked our election and conspired with Trump to defeat Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Better (somebody else) dead than rude.
Monday the 21st is the birthday of the Army Signal Corps. I was a signal troop.
