Archive for March, 2007
Lt Col P at Op-For: Shoot More, It’s Your Patriotic Duty
Despite some who might say otherwise, be advised that The Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien and edited by Christopher Tolkien is not part of ‘The Lord of the Rings’.
It is, instead, from the earlier mythological history of Middle Earth, of which ‘The Lord of the Rings’ is but a (far later) sequel. Also, be aware that this is not “Lord of the Rings, Episode 1″. In fact, you will find very little in the heroic and sad tale of Hurin’s children that is directly tied to ‘The Lord of the Rings’, particularly if your familiarity with the story comes more from the films than from the books.
It takes place in the First Age of Middle Earth, when Sauron was but the lieutenant of the first Dark Lord Morgoth and the great war to recover the Silmaril jewels from him was waged, literally to the edge of ruin, by the Elves. Men had yet to enter the story, and the Rings of Power had yet to be forged. Hobbits were nowhere to be seen (or at least noticed by anyone), the Istari (wizards) had not arrived, and the lands we see in the ‘Lord of the Rings’, in the last days of the Third Age, are not even on the map.
I’m rather excited about the publication of this work, as I’ve long thought that the stories of Hurin’s children could possibly make an excellent novel and/or film. In some ways, the depth of the tragedies and the triumphs is even greater than that of ‘The Lord of the Rings’, and if approached well could actually make a better movie. An epic adventure with more “epic” than “adventure”, perhaps, maybe along the lines of a ‘Ben-Hur’ or ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ on film, though I suspect a fair amount of ‘Wuthering Heights’ on the page.
If you’re looking for the story, much of it can be found in the poem “The Lay of the Children of Hurin” in Volume III of ‘The History of Middle Earth’, ‘The Lays of Beleriand‘. This is an early and sketchy work by JRR Tolkien, and some things changed by the time the next version of the tale, found in ‘The Silmarillion‘ (Chapter XXI, ‘Of Turin Turambar’), was published after Tolkien’s death. Again, this is an incomplete version of the tale, being more a narrative history than a story. Finally, the most complete and detailed account of the saga is to be found in the pages of ‘Unfinished Tales‘, in what’s the longest and most-finished of those collected works, ‘Narn I Hin Hurin’. Large chunks of the tale are lost or were never completed, but it makes for great reading (if you’re into that sort of thing).
Murdoc’s tempted to refresh his memory by re-digesting the aforementioned pieces, but I think I’ll just wait for the book, which will be released on April 18th and will check in at only 320 pages. ‘Narn I Hin Hurin’ itself, missing several components of the story, runs 110 pages in ‘Unfinished Tales’, so I’m a bit surprised that the new telling isn’t longer.
I expect that about 3.2 bazillion kids are going to buy this thing and quit by page 20. I could be wrong, and I have no idea whatsoever about the style that Christopher Tolkien has chosen to utilize, but despite some grand sequences, heartbreaking love stories, and (yes, my precious) a dragon, I fear that legions of Orlando Bloom fans are going to be disappointed.
Murdoc, on the other hand, believes that he knows what to expect and cannot wait. Available in standard and deluxe hardcover versions.
(NOTE: It’s been a long time since I’ve read any the various versions of the story. If you’re a Tolkien nitpicker who would like to argue about little details I got wrong like the pronunciation of Hurin’s name in High Elven or the combination of Kirk’s safe in ‘This Side of Paradise’, you win. Go somewhere else.)
The NY Times: Army Revises Upward Number of Desertions in ’06
True, but even more accurate is Scrappleface: Army Desertions Rise to Near All-Time Average
Many seem to be trying to make the case that unhappiness over the campaign in Iraq is behind the desertion numbers, but the fact that desertions are down since the invasion just plain doesn’t support that idea.
My installation serves as one of two main collection centers for AWOL returnees and deserters. What this means is that if you go AWOL and are dropped from the rolls as a deserter, you eventually will come to my installation when you’re returned to military control. On top of that, I am the trial counsel for that portion of the installation, so I get to advise the command on what to do with these returnees.
That VAST majority of these people aren’t grizzled veterans coming off their second or third deployments. They are not combat veterans who, because of BushHitlerHalliburtonCo’s ™ incompetence just can’t handle the strain anymore. Quite the contrary, the majority of deserters are kids that enlisted within the past 2 years, have just recently completed basic training and AIT, and have only been with their units for a short time.
Most have not deployed. When they are returned to military control, they routinely give reasons for their AWOL as being “my mom got sick” or “my wife had problems with the kids.” The horrors of war are conspicuously absent from the personal statements or enlisted record briefs (ERBs) of these returnees.
So, to recap, desertions are down since the invasion and those that are deserting are very often not those who have had many (or even any) deployments to the combat zones.
New York Times Gets It Wrong…Again
Iowa Voice:
On March 18, the New York Times published this story about female soldiers who served in Iraq and are now having problems as a result.
One of the women mentioned in the story claims to have been sexually assaulted twice in the last few years and that she suffers severe mental problems as a result of being deployed to, and injured in, Iraq. Her story is gripping because of the vivid details given.
One problem though: she never was sent to Iraq. She was in Guam the whole time.
A lot of people are so desperate to believe bad things that they don’t bother digging too deeply to verify anything. After all, the facts might ruin a perfectly good story. (via Instapundit)
Jay Tea on the Iranian kidnapping of 15 British sailors:
The only problem with this tactic is that while Tony Blair is no Winston Churchill, he’s even less of a Jimmy Carter. And while he’s a “lame duck,” he’s no chicken.
Indeed.
Why Iran would pick on the Brits, possibly ticking them off when the US is already ticked off, is a good question. Perhaps the Brits are getting a bit tougher on some of the Iranian influence-peddlers in the south of Iraq? Maybe they’ve been more than a bit helpful in the operations that have been nabbing Iranian intelligence operatives left and right?
We can only hope.
And is Murdoc the only one who thinks that the Iranians are really bumbling their way through the whole international conflict and intrigue game? They’re really coming off as second-rate amateurs. Who might get nuclear weapons in the very near future.
Compared to the Ahmadinejad and the Mullahs, Saddam and Kim Jong Il were/are positively savvy. I mean, seriously, Iran cannot even get the UN Security Council on their side. That bunch of clowns has backed almost every two-bit tyrant that’s come along in recent memory, yet they just voted unanimously for more sanctions against Iran. Sure, it’s meaningless, but the fact that Iran can’t woo them demonstrates just how pathetic they really are.
Murdoc has been on a bit of a trend lately with books dealing with the smaller ships in the US Navy, and the latest of the sort is No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf by Bradley Peniston.(Official site: www.nohigherhonor.com)
It’s the story of the USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) from her construction through the aftermath of her near-sinking by an Iranian mine in the Persian Gulf during the “Tanker War” in 1988, a late act in the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. For several years, the two opposing sides had been taking potshots at oil tankers in the Gulf in order to deprive the other side of much-needed trade.
Both sides were less than meticulous about identifying their prey; neutral and even friendly ships suffered the consequences. Together they had turned the inland sea into the world’s most hazardous watercourse.
The United States had tried to keep out of the fray–U.S. policy makers would have preferred both sides to lose, if that were possible, but the region’s oil gave it a strategic significance that could not be ignored. Reagan administration officials muddled along at arm’s length, passing battlefield intelligence to Baghdad even as they secretly shipped arms to Tehran, until the Kuwaiti monarchy forced the White House’s hand in late 1986 by extracting a promise to protect its tankers.
In mid-1987 the U.S. Navy launched Operation Earnest Will–its first convoy operation since World War II–and began to dispatch dozens of U.S. warships to the region.
Coming home aboard the Dutch Mighty Servant 2The Roberts was one of those ships and she would nearly be sunk.
The first half of the book details the construction of the ship, an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate, and the assembly and training of her crew. Captained by CDR Paul Rinn, the crew trained as hard or harder than any other in the fleet, with particular attention paid to damage control. The accidental attack on the USS Stark (FFG 31), a sister ship to the Johnson, in the Gulf by Iraqi aircraft underscored the need for top-notch damage control and combat command.
By the time the Stark was towed into Bahrain, a shaken U.S. Navy was already trying to figure out what had gone wrong. Why had the ship failed to defend itself? The service’s formal investigation blamed [Stark commander] Brindel for failing to –provide combat-oriented leadership.” But the investigators also noted that the navy leadership had failed to sound the warning about accidental attacks from Iraqi jets. Instead, Gulf skippers had been told to keep a sharp eye for Iranian mines and admonished not to embarrass the United States by acting precipitously. One contributor to Proceedings wondered whether America’s naval service was breeding leaders who could handle a split-second switch from diplomacy to combat, saying: –The Navy’s natural selection during peacetime mirrors American society. We have always imagined a gulf between war and peace. We have attempted to separate cleanly our values and our behavior accordingly, and this has limited our effectiveness in a world of shadow conflict, or ‘violent peace.’ Even when we bridge that gulf and formally go to war, the mental transformation from gentility to the warrior’s ethic that demands unconditional surrender takes time. How long does it take the warrior to emerge?”
The news of the Stark reached the Roberts at sea as it headed south for some exercises off the Virginia capes. The report shocked the crew. Many had a buddy aboard the Stark; some had acquaintances among the dead. Everyone knew the two frigates shared the same weapons, the
same systems, the same vulnerabilities.
I’ve made a few changes to the layout here at MO. Nothing terribly big, obviously. Just a few tweaks to improve (I hope) the look a bit. Let me know if you have any problems.
Also, no one has posted any comments for a while. I had wondered if it was another issue, but I still seem to be able to post test comments just fine. If you are having troubles, send me an email. Otherwise I guess I’ll just assume no one has anything to say.
MAYPORT, Fla. (March 23, 2007) – Distinguished visitors and guests attend the historical decommissioning ceremony of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67). Kennedy served its country with more than 38 years of service and 18 official deployments. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Susan Cornell (RELEASED)
Kitty Hawk will be next, shortly after the George HW Bush (CVN 77) joins the fleet.
I remain concerned that 11 carriers might not be enough.
In an earlier post (which was apparently lost during struggles with my previous web host, a fact which I only discovered this morning) I had asked what the move down to 11 is going to do to the Fleet Response Plan. With 12 carriers, the FRP dictated that 6 carriers be deployed or ready to deploy within 30 days, and an additional 2 carriers be ready within 90 days (6+2).
Is the FRP still 6+2? Or does it drop to 5+2 or 6+1? Would 5+3 be a reasonable alternative?
Speaking of old carriers, Steeljaw Scribe wonders if India’s plans to extend the life of the INS Viraat (formerly HMS Hermes) until 2012, mentioned on MO on Monday, aren’t asking for a bit much out of the old lady. With Pictures.
Finally, don’t think we can just snap our fingers and ramp up aircraft carrier (or any other ship) production if we need too. Right now we basically have too few ships being built in too many shipyards, but that situation is changing and will change even more in the next few years, according to the president of Northrop Grumman Newport News:
By the end of the year, we expect to sign a multi-billion dollar contract with the government to begin construction of the Ford in 2008 with delivery in 2015. Yet today one third of my work force is over 45 years of age and many of these employees will retire by the time we fully engage in building this carrier.
The fact that an entity called “Northrop Grumman Newport News” even exists is maybe part of the problem in the first place, but because of the massive slowdown in shipbuilding that’s where we are and we need to maintain what we have left.
Murdoc fears that nothing demonstrates America’s slide as much as the continuing degradation of our once-mighty industrial base.
The Tank
The NRO’s new military blog by W. Thomas Smith Jr. and company.
Two UK Sailors Killed, One Injured in Arctic Submarine Explosion
An oxygen generator aboard HMS Tireless exploded while the nuclear attack boat was under the Arctic ice cap. Official release on the incident here.
2007 e-Postal Handgun Match Schedule
It’s a new season and Mr. Completely has the goods.
Catherine Seipp, 49; critic took on Times
I found a lot of her stuff to be pretty good.
Bill Approved to Reduce Trash Coming Into Michigan
250 truckloads of trash per day into the Wolverine State from Canada. There are a lot of jokes about this that I just don’t have the time to make, and I wouldn’t dream of saying anything about the governor. Anyway, one of the co-sponsors is Mike ‘Blood on his Hands’ Rogers.
ABL has first in-flight firing
Don’t get all excited…it’s not the anti-missile laser but only a targeting laser. An important step, but they’ve got a long ways to go.
GPS, heat-sensing hardware helped in Boy Scout rescue
The 12-year-old boy was found in N.C. woods after three days
How to Salvage Army’s “Future”
David Axe on the future of FCS.
What is a “Wondernine”?
Wasn’t that Roy Hobbs’ baseball bat? [Ed. - No]
Medal of Honor Heroes Set the Standard, England Says
March 25 has been named National Medal of Honor Day.
Jury awards man $122K for bite from sister’s cat
This story says he was a Vietnam Vet.
Capt. Coulson in Ramadi: Progress
Heartening.
Islamic Courts Union Returns to Somalia
Sigh.
SpaceX Confirms Stage Bump On Demoflight 2
Stages 1 and 2 collided on the second flight of the company’s Falcon 1 small launch vehicle this week.
The Tank Builders Blues
The good old days it ain’t.
When Frogs Fly
Murdoc wonders if we’ll ever have a new tanker aircraft.
Air Force Budget Challenge
Speaking of the Air Force…
As you all know (and are probably sick of hearing about), I simply cannot accept the way that the media, in general, has decided to cover the campaign in Iraq. That being said, I also happen to think that the military is blowing it big-time when it comes to scoring points in the public opinion game because they just don’t make it easy to get the stories out.
Case in point: Michael Yon’s latest:
We are into the fifth year of the war Iraq, yet no comprehensive system exists to help media communicate to people at home. Raw information only trickles back from Iraq because the flow is strangled. That we are into the fifth year of war here, yet there is no filing center on even the larger bases is telling. Telling, perhaps, that information flow to America has never been a priority, or perhaps the priority has been to squelch it…
Generally it’s a huge waste of time and money to come here, and the hassle and risk to reward ratio is very bad. I’ve spent more than a year embedded in Iraq, and numerous times public affairs people have made snide remarks that journalists should be happy they get to eat –their chow” for free. Of course, they don’t mention that –their chow” belongs to American taxpayers, the same taxpayers they hurt when they squelch journalism from the war. Whether they do it directly, intentionally indirectly, or just by plain bungling the simplest stuff, like making sure writers have a surface to write on, whatever the case, I haven’t met anyone yet who knows how to write or hold a camera who comes to Iraq for free food.
You really should go read the whole thing.
