Not against the war. Just against lack of training: "A group of Russian women have appealed to Vladimir Putin to stop sending their husbands and children to the frontline like 'meat' without adequate training." Fear is the beginning of wisdom?
Is the US standing still while Russia and China get closer? If Putin is determined to be Xi's bitch, what can we do? Bribe Russia with territory to get them to pretend to ally with us? That won't work. Putin will just want--and expect--more. Surely, Russians will eventually punish Putin for fiddling while the Far East burns. Right?
Finland is open to sending Ukraine its F-18 fighters as it replaces them with F-35s. Hmm.
Russia sent captured Javelins and Stingers to Iran to reverse engineer? One, losing weapons is the price of using weapons. We've been looking at a lot of Russian stuff as a result of the war. Two, I sincerely doubt these are the first that Russia or Iran have seen. This sounds like Russia trying to reduce American support for arming Ukraine. And it is pretty sad if Russia can't reverse engineer them.
History wars: There is a petition in Ukraine to rename "Russia" back to "Muscovy". Heh. I've wondered if Russia is on that trajectory under Putin.
Huh: "In a groundbreaking ruling, an official Islamic legislative body based in the Arab world declared a 'fatwa,' or a legal opinion, against the Islamist militant group Hamas Thursday, calling its treatment of millions of Palestinians living under its rule in the Gaza Strip 'inhumane' and urging the terrorist organization and its followers to immediately give up arms, sit down and make peace." That's a slap at Iran, too.
I just hope that Poland can maintain troop quality and maintain this expanded military.
Oh? "In the context of America’s conflict with its first true peer rival Schmidt argues that whoever takes the initial lead with AI may never be overtaken, especially if the holy grail of artificial general intelligence is achieved." I see no reason why the cost of being first doesn't still mean those who follow can more cheaply catch up.
Another line from the above piece: "'In China, tests make meritocracy.' Meritocracy creates technology, technology creates power and power serves the Communist Party." BS. In China, CCP connections make tests. So the very foundation of that so-called winning system collapses. Admittedly, DEI here could still hobble us enough for China's flawed system to win.
There are a number of pieces talking about how big a deal the
China-brokered Saudi-Iranian deal is. I don't think it is. Iran will not
stop undermining Saudi Arabia. And I don't think the Saudis will turn
to China as an ally. This is a Saudi shot across America's bow to take
their security concerns seriously. And Iran is desperate for any
engagement with the world that reduces their isolation; and hopeful to
reduce Saudi-Israeli cooperation. Sure, China wants a foot in the door.
A base in Djibouti is useful but diplomatically peripheral. China
already had Iran as a friend. I doubt Saudi Arabia will give much to
China. And really, China's "New Silk Road" initiative indicated China's Eurasian interests.
Taibbi: "Civil liberties have officially gone out of style, a phenomenon on full display at the Weaponization of Government Hearing at which I just testified." Is it a coincidence that our new "we are not amused" royalty that want to rule us for our own good promote the plural they/them for individual people so much?Tip to Instapundit.
I see Democrats are falling back to saying the Russians interfered in our 2016 election. Democrats are now retreating to my position ever since the false/wrong accusations of Russia hacking the 2016 election and Trump-Russia collusion. As I said back then, the Democrats seemingly didn't know the Russians (and Soviets before them) long interfered. Usually in favor of Democrats. In 2016 there was no hacking and no collusion. Just amateurish and minuscule Russian interference.
Unpopular Russia. I've never had a favorable view of Russia (or the USSR). I still retain hope that the Russians will repent from being total bastards. Fingers crossed that the Ukraine clue bat has an effect.
Good: "Britain approved a sharp increase in exports of submarine parts and technology last year to Taiwan as it upgrades its naval forces, a move that could impact British ties with China." And a little revenge for China's suppression of Hong Kong.
Italy is worried its Ariete tank is too old for a modern battlefield. So Italy may buy new tanks--and IFVs--to buy time to upgrade some of the Arietes.
One side effect of Ukraine's kill ratio against the Russian invaders is that Ukrainian troops who survive are being afflicted with combat fatigue (PTSD) now. And civilians exposed to war get it, too.
Hopefully we're returning the favor inside Russia: "As the war continues the financial burden on NATO nations becomes more of a problem for local politicians. Russian Information War efforts keep pressing this angle because in the long run it works. This means planting a lot of false media reports that justify reducing financial support for Ukraine. Some Western media accepts the Russian disinformation without checking to see if it is valid."
The Russians have experienced why they need well-trained officers and trained and experienced NCOs. But losses in the former and the lack of the latter give Russia's intended efforts a high degree of difficulty even above what Russian corruption imposes.
The military recruiting crisis. The authors mention the "clever initiative" to cope called the Future Soldier Preparatory Course. That sounds like what the Army had when I went to basic training. If you could not pass the initial physical fitness test to make sure you had the floor ability to start basic, you were sent to what I believe was a three-week course to get you capable of passing that initial test. I recall one recruit in our company getting sent there. I actually made a suggestion for recruiting outreach in cities nearly six years ago in Army magazine.
North Korea fired two cruise missiles from a sub. I worry about North Korean subs at sea with nuclear weapons. Will any hiccup in communications lead a commander to launch, fearing war has begun?
Massed effects without massing naval assets. Preaching to the TDR naval choir. And this classic. This ship type could contribute. And what about my ASuROC proposal to bypass those ship missile defenses that I mentioned and altered in this post? Also, the Navy is discovering Time on Target.
I've mentioned that Navy logistics are weak. Too reliant on now-vulnerable forward bases to pound on minor countries, the ability to maintain the fleet forward while at sea to battle a peer enemy is completely inadequate. The World War II sea trains are long gone. I recently thought of auxiliary cruisers for this. But forgot that I wrote about that some years ago. Indeed, a logistics role was the first expression of my modularized auxiliary cruiser proposal.
More on the AUKUS plan developing.
The Putin-defense establishment-Wagner triangular death match.
Max Boot gets his analysis of the Iraq War wrong. America didn't replace realpolitik with democracy promotion after 9/11. We have always had that strain in our foreign policy. Liberals used to hammer our Cold War autocrat allies. And we've dealt with plenty of autocrats since 9/11. After 9/11 we realized that supporting autocrats in the Moslem world was counter-productive. Planting rule of law democracy may not be on fertile ground, but what is the alternative? Also, we won the Iraq War. But Boot is not alone in failing to recognize that victory.
A rule of thumb on returning casualties (from battle, sickness, and injuries) to duty. A quarter of casualties are gone because they die or are too severely harmed to serve. Of course, many minor wounds won't even be reported. And that issue is not a constant from World War II to today. I wonder what Russia experiences given reported problems of moving and treating wounded?
Are bank runs obsolete given that younger people think of "money" as numbers in their bank account rather than physical paper money that is the entire basis of a bank run? I think I'd worry more about being robbed of my physical money if I stuffed it under a mattress than I do in a bank. And I'm old ...
When I heard SVB went under, I wondered if this was really a California problem. We'll see if this is a problem for tech companies or if it just disperses tech from Silicon Valley across the country. Or, God forbid, this is a general banking problem. Tip to Instapundit.
Ukrainian partisans blew up a section of railroad track in Russian-occupied Kherson province. It was close enough to the front that it could have been Ukrainian special forces, I suppose. But "partisans" sounds better.
Guam is getting priority attention for missile defenses. Now how about some low-tech, dull, protected aircraft shelters?
US Army-Philippines exercises. And bigger ones planned. It's nice to have friends around when you start openly fighting the enemy subliminal war you had been losing.
The U.S. deployed four Global Hawk drones to operate out of Singapore back in January.
Congo defies efforts to save it.
"Reachback" for technical support in Ukraine. It's broader than that: "Grassroots efforts in the three Baltic states and Poland to support Ukrainian troops in the field. Add this to Ukrainians and the rest of the West and you have my reachback for the camp followers notion."
The only climate lesson we can learn from China is that if you are communist, say the right things, but pollute at will, Western greens will still praise you for your policies and dictatorial powers. Next up: Buttigieg says we can learn lessons from Nazi Germany on highway construction.
The clue bat has an effect on the Biden administration. Good. We need more fossil fuels.
Jesus Christ! Do leftists want to ruin every Goddamn aspect of our lives? Why do they hate us? To be fair, they think of us as revolting, dirty peasants already. Tip to Instapundit.
An advocate for a "porcupine strategy" for Taiwan. It's the latest buzz word-term for a longstanding urge. That is necessary but not sufficient to deter or defeat China by being able to drive the invaders into the sea. FFS, arguing against main battle tanks because they "cannot maneuver easily on beaches" has got to be the dumbest thing I've read this week. Stop looking for cheap silver bullet solutions.
It seems like Belarus will work on being a gap in sanctions against Russia rather than joining the war and closing that hole.
Russian forces seem to be making gains on the Luhansk front. Are the Russians defeating the Ukrainians and pushing them back? Or are the Ukrainians luring Russians out of prepared defensive lines to make them more vulnerable to a Ukrainian counteroffensive?
Ukraine's proto-dictator Yanukovych was Putin's Plan A for taking over all of Ukraine. Plan B was subversion and overt invasion. The invasion has ended Putin's ability to prop up a compliant local turncoat.
I'm conflicted. I understand the Navy's desire to save money to build new capabilities. But ... hulls! At least tell me the ships will be mothballed and not scrapped.
More on the AUKUS submarine plan that eventually ends with Australia building and maintaining its own boats. I imagine contracts to maintain and resupply similar American boats will follow.
The 2024 proposed defense budget. The Army drops to 452,000 active duty troops. Which I believe gets us to pre-9/11 territory.
Ukraine is resuming production of 125mm tank gun ammunition.
A nice article with maps of China's push in the South China Sea.
The Ukraine-Russia grain export deal is apparently extended.
Germany's rearmament is seemingly in reverse. Who knows what the ef the Germans are doing?
Ukraine may get Polish Mig-29s by the end of April.
This sounds deliberate: "A Russian fighter jet on Tuesday struck the propeller of a U.S. surveillance drone over the Black Sea, causing American forces to bring down the unmanned aerial vehicle in international waters, the U.S. military said[.]" But we're calling it an incompetent accident. That just greased the wheels for longer-range weapons for Ukraine, eh?
Leave enough to take out China's Indian Ocean assets, okay? "The Air Force in 2024 hopes to further shrink its presence in the Middle
East to focus more resources on countering China in the Indo-Pacific." Also, what about Iran? Oh. Right. And that over-the-horizon Afghanistan stuff? Oh. Right. That was awesome!
Finnish F-18s for Ukraine? Um, Emily Litella was unavailable for comment.
Is the U.S. botching research and development for advanced technology?
Russia bombs Ukraine to increase the burden on NATO; while Ukraine prepares a large counteroffensive.
A NATO state orders Israeli tube and rocket artillery.
Ah, under the AUKUS plan Australia's interim boats will be used Virginia-class submarines. I thought it made sense as an "interim" boat that doesn't outlive new boats. And because it might allow America to upgrade with newer boat replacements. But Australia didn't want the payload modules of the newer boats that make them more SSGN than SSN. Is the deal really flawed, however? Strengthening an alliance is surely more important than some production efficiencies, no?
Georgian protesters may have forced Georgia's Russia-leaning government to back off from seeking authoritarian powers over the media. I feel their pain. And I'd hate to think our efforts were a waste.
Twenty years (with only one tragic gap) in Iraq. We won the war. Obama and Biden said so! And America had many reasons to defeat Saddam and hold the win. And as the article notes--Iran.
Russia plotted to destabilize Moldova with a faux insurrection. When we know it is nothing but Russians and have the capacity to resist, Crimea 2.0 is highly unlikely to succeed in the increasingly pro-Western Moldova. Things would change if Russia bordered the country. But we're not that dumb, right?
I've certainly seen the Ukrainian military casualty estimates noted in this article about how the Western media downplays news of Ukrainian casualties.
The U.S. will expand its submarine construction capacity to handle building Australian SSNs. That will pay benefits long after.
Lithuania wants to convert a mechanized infantry battalion into a tank battalion.
Russia's revived espionage in Western Europe.
Well. Have a super sparkly day, I guess.
I'm sure it's nothing to worry about: "Two and a half tonnes of uranium have gone missing from a site in Libya, the UN's nuclear watchdog has said." [LATER: Oops. I hate it when I steal the wrong thing.]
Yes, China, have fun storming the castle: "A new Chinese-brokered restoration of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran is hardly sufficient to overcome those two countries’ longstanding hostilities."
It's a mistake to send Ukraine F-16s because they are no better than existing aircraft for penetrating ground-based air defenses? Maybe they are no better. But for air defense they'd be great. I don't get the objection.
It's possible the Socialist Party doesn't understand what socialism is. It is also possible that they are well aware that accurately describing socialism would not appeal to Americans. Poverty and labor camps are less appealing than you might think.
Is the SR-71 replacement real? When the SR-71 was retired I assumed there must be a replacement. But as time has gone on I've accepted it is gone. Time to change my mind again? Or is the replacement just taking more time? Or is it all just making enemies worry about a non-capability?
The Russians claim America's drone that Russia downed was operating in a self-claimed air zone and that it was helping Ukraine target Russian assets. One, it's still international air space. And two, Russia invaded a friend of ours illegally so you're damned right America is helping Ukraine.
I'm so old I remember when if was proof of racism to question whether downtown Chicago in the middle of a cold winter, late at night, was in fact "MAGA country." Tip to Instapundit.
I assume Poland arrested "a" Russian spy network and not "the" network.
Australia put out their view on the AUKUS path to Australian SSNs.
I'm not sure why DeSantis is taking grief for saying Ukraine isn't a vital American interest. It isn't right now. And I say that as someone totally on board helping Ukraine defeat Russia. But I'm not willing to go to war with Russia over Ukraine east of the Dnieper River. If Russia take territory west of that, then I think we need to reconsider the level of interest in Ukraine.
Newark established a sister city relationship with the non-existent country of Kailasa. As if New Jersey doesn't have enough of an image problem. Nobody in the city government had the general knowledge or simple research skills to see through this?
Could America deploy the Black Sea Queen as an intelligence-gathering ship in the Black Sea to avoid giving Russia easy drone targets?
"NASA finally got comfier spacesuits, but astronauts still have to poop in them[.]" NASA sure defines "comfier" way differently than I do. Tip to Instapundit.
From the "Well, Duh" files: "[The U.S. CENTCOM commander] acknowledged the quality of U.S. intelligence has degraded since the
pullout from Afghanistan, with the U.S. being able to see the 'broad
counters' of an attack but lacking the 'granularity to see the full
picture.'" No! Way!
Not gonna lie. I have no objection to removing battle streamers earned for Confederate units in the Civil War from regimental flags. There were reasons to do so to reintegrate the defeated South back into the United States. That need is in the past.
The Russians were hoping to sabotage NATO supply efforts for Ukraine through Poland.
China slowly wins the border war with India: "If the Indians fire on the unarmed Chinese troops, then India is the aggressor and China can shoot back. Often China does not and shames India into backing off." India is losing because it doesn't define China taking Indian territory as aggression. That seems to be the important part and not whether the Chinese troops carry firearms. Shoot the invaders! Make China work for its tiny conquests that could demoralize Indian troops. Yes, China has a more powerful military. But how much can China deploy to the remote border? And how much can China afford to divert from other enemies? China certainly can beat India. But would it be worth the effort?
Russia has an ICBM problem: "This failure to procure reliable ICBMs is a major problem for Russia because the strategic missile forces are Russia’s ultimate defense." Indeed.
The Black Sea was a Soviet lake in the Cold War and not much of an area of interest: "Now, though, the sea between Europe and Asia finds itself bathed in the spotlight of global attention." I think it is a potential distraction for NATO.
It would be bad if NATO allies Greece and Turkey went to war. Greece is doing a much better job than Turkey under Erdogan to earn NATO's sympathy and help. But we really don't want Turkey to turn to Russia--or China. So it is wise to court Turkey anticipating a post-Erdogan period of rethinking. Still, the suggested solution of NATO refocusing on fundamentals ignores that Greece and Turkey teetered on the brink of war when the USSR was an obvious threat to all. Work the problems.
"Wokeness" has become so toxic for much of the public that the woke who once embraced the label now say it is a term planted by a vast right-wing conspiracy. Face it, Democratic Party fingerprints are all over a cornucopia of stupid leftist policies reliant on the triple foundational nonsense of a victim hierarchy, authoritarian "equity" enforcement based on that hierarchy, and an inherently evil America that built that hierarchy which requires woke authoritarianism to "fix". F**k them all.
The climate faithful try to make our lives miserable. There's a bright side to this doomsday cult: "The only upside to all of this is that a lot of the younger climate cultists don’t want to breed because they’re convinced that we’re doomed, so a voluntary culling of the herd is under way." Heh.
Saying Iran gained influence in Iraq because we overthrew Saddam in 2003 is misleading. Shia Iran had influence because of Saddam's brutal suppression of his Shia subjects. That's one reason Iraq invaded Iran in 1980. Also, we battled and defeated Iran's armed militia proxies in Baghdad and then helped Iraqis defeat them in Basra, before we left. America's departure in 2011 led to the rise of ISIL and a new opportunity in 2014 for Iran to create pro-Iran militias inside Iraq. A problem we are still working on solving. So who enabled Iran? And are you really saying the brutal and aggressive Saddam should have been left in power to contain Iran? And an exit question: if you believe America is at fault, do you also support a new Iran nuclear deal when the first one enriched Iran and served as a shield for Iran's nuclear weapons drive?
"[The CENTCOM COMMANDER] said CENTCOM has shrunk by 85% since its peak in 2008, when the U.S. was at war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The command’s size was reduced by 15% after the 20-year war in Afghanistan ended." The first big waves of reduction were because of victories in Iraq and Afghanistan that let us stand up local allies to fight. We almost lost in Iraq until Iraq War 2.0 starting in 2014. And we reduced out strength even more after the Skeddadle Debacle in Afghanistan in 2021.
Indeed: "20 years after U.S. invasion, young Iraqis see signs of hope[.]" Iraq experienced decades of oppression, wars, and jihadi and Iranian terrorism. It takes time to recover from that. Ask Europeans. If we don't blow it as we did in Afghanistan and as we almost did in Iraq by withdrawing too soon in 2011, my observation of the effects of time will be recognized.
China asserted its claim to islands in the East China Sea that Japan claims and controls.
Australia will buy Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Huh: "The United States Air Force is looking to hire people for several
diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) positions, offering a minimum
salary of $82,830, but as much as $183,500 annually for the top
position." Our enemies quake. With laughter and disbelief. As I noted earlier:
Ukraine's air force. And then a lengthy but interesting semi-digression.
Apparently the Black Sea grain export deal extension isn't a done deal, as I thought.
It's like getting a serial killing on tax fraud charges: "The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin over the abduction of Ukrainian children." Although the kidnapping is a particularly cruel evil.
Politely arguing against the notion that supporting Ukraine is not in America's interest. I especially enjoyed the dismissal of the charge that America pushed Russia and China together--for whatever that is worth. We can't bribe a predatory Russia with unwilling victims to get them to join the West in opposing China. I reject the "let the Wookie win" strategy. Of course, the author ruins the ride with his nonsense about the Iraq War. But I guess I can't have everything.
What would we do without professors? "If you ditched cereal boxes for uniform glass containers and opted for
Plexiglas storage bins in your fridge, you may be engaging in classist,
racist and sexist behaviors, one Chicago professor contends." So let me take this opportunity to highlight my super, ultra, mega, blue collar, women-affirming, anti-racist credentials:
Good grief, how long was China sending intelligence-gathering balloons over America?
So, Today New York is enjoying its Green virtue by promising Green energy nirvana. Dealing with the expensive failure to reach that goal is Tomorrow New York's problem.
If they strike him down, it will only make him stronger. As J6 fake insurrection porn loses its thrill--and credibility--for Democrats, I'm sure they need a new hit of Orange Man Badanyl. And the Dems pray for Deplorable unrest even a fraction of BLM riots. Which the media will compliantly twist all the way through the 2024 election. Remember, if the charges take two years to dismiss, this corrupt nonsense will have worked. Yet Hillary and Joe still walk freely. This is banana republic territory. I've been eager to move on from Trump for 2024. But I'd totally vote for him if he is nominated because of this outrage. If true, of course.
The beatings will continue until Islamic faith improves.
This is exactly what I've been saying:
It is a bit concerning that Ukraine hasn't struck the Kerch Strait Bridge again. But at least the single attack is still causing problems: "Russian forces continue to struggle with logistics across the Kerch Strait Bridge despite claiming to have fully repaired the bridge’s road spans. Russian news outlet Vesti Crimea posted footage of a large traffic jam on the bridge on March 17 and claimed that waiting time to pass through the checkpoint to Russia is over an hour."
"To Serve Children" ... is a woke book!! And now for something completely different:
Why does the Left hate children so much? Tip to Instapundit.
I can't say I agree with many isolationist Republican positions on Ukraine. But what I will say is that we flipped from "dissent is the highest form of patriotism" during Bush 43's tenure to "dissent is treason" awfully darned fast. Tip to Instapundit.
European Leopard IIs are starting to trickle into Ukraine. Europeans discovered their tanks weren't really in shape to fight and are scrambling to get them in shape. Another useful wake up call to NATO from Russia.
Someone got exactly what she wanted--and now doesn't like it one bit. Enjoy, you dumbass. I feel sorry for her constituents. But they voted for her. Learn.
