Archive for November, 2008
Astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper (out of frame) continued the process of removing debris and applying lubrication around the starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint (SARJ), replaced four more of the SARJ's 12 trundle bearing assemblies, relocated two equipment carts and applied lubrication to the station's robotic Canadarm2 during the STS-126 mission's second spacewalk. Image Credit: NASA
Murdoc continues to slack off in the space blogging department.
Though I’m not a strong supporter of the ISS and a bit critical of the Shuttle, it is fascinating watching the station construction progress.
From Contractors: The New Element of Military Force Structure:
It is the bodyguards, or personal security details (PSDs), that have attracted the most attention and engendered the greatest controversy. Although comprising only one percent of all contractors, they are responsible for virtually all of the violent incidents appearing in the media. These PSDs come from a handful of specialized companies—Triple Canopy, DynCorp International, Aegis Security, and the now-infamous Blackwater, USA. Frequently portrayed as “rogue mercenaries” they are, in fact, highly professional. Nevertheless, the nature of their function is problematic.
A key issue is that most of these PSDs work for the State Department and have been, until recently, outside military control. Historically, the State Department has had three layers of security for its personnel. The outer layer is the host nation, which is responsible for the protection of all diplomats and diplomatic facilities in its territory. The inner layer is the Marine detachment, which guards the core of the fixed facility. Between these two layers has always been a layer of contract guards. The State Department’s security arm, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, coordinates, plans, and trains but does not, with a few exceptions, provide security forces. Thus, in Iraq this contractor layer expanded as diplomats required protection whenever they left the diplomatic facility. These large groups of armed personnel operated independently, with almost no coordination with the military. The 2004 ambush of Blackwater guards in Fallujah, where four guards were killed and their bodies hung from a bridge, occurred in part because Blackwater had not coordinated with local military authorities.
Another major concern is what many refer to as the bodyguard mindset. To a bodyguard the mission is to protect the principal at all costs. “At all costs” means just that; costs to the local populace, to the broader counterinsurgency effort, to relations with the host government all appear to be irrelevant. If the principal’s car is stuck in traffic and that delay poses a risk, then these contractor bodyguards will smash their way through the intervening cars of local civilians in an effort to escape the danger. If traffic is too slow and that poses a risk, the bodyguards will often switch into the oncoming lanes and open a way by threatening cars with their weapons. Blackwater, for example, prides itself on never having lost a principal. For bodyguards this is the only measure of effectiveness.
The lack of coordination and the bodyguard mindset led to the shooting incident of 16 September 2007 in which a number of Iraqi citizens were killed and wounded. In response, Congress held hearings, and Blackwater was vilified in op-eds across the country. The Department of Defense (DOD) and the State Department finally issued new guidelines that brought contractors under military control, required State Department security officials to accompany every convoy, installed video cameras in contractor vehicles, and clarified the rules on the use of force.
Lots of great info, including the observation that virtually all of the Army’s expansion is going toward combat troops. This will only increase the dependence upon contractors.
26 Nov 2008 Piracy Map from the International Maritime Bureau
2nd CEB tests new line charges
Marines with 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion launch a line charge from an Assault Breacher Vehicle here for the first time in the fleet, Nov. 23. The line charge, a long string of C4 explosives attached to a rocket, is used to clear a lane of all mines or improvised explosive devices so that tanks and other large equipment have a safe path to navigate on. (Official Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Brian M. Woodruff)
On Nov. 23, the Marines with 2nd Combat Engineers Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, fired the M58 A3 line charge from the Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV) for the first time since the ABV hit the fleet.
The line charge, a 350 foot long string of C4 explosives, is launched by an MK 22 Mod 4 rocket mounted on the ABV. The rocket’s purpose is to stretch the charge to its full length. Once the charge is stretched out, Marines detonate it, creating a lane eight meters wide and 100 meters long.
After the charge is detonated, the lane is free of any mines, improvised explosive devices, or other hazards the Marines may face…
Besides the ability to launch line charges, it has a full width mine plow, a lane marking system, remote control system and a protective weapon system…
The vehicle is run by a two man crew but has the option to be remotely operated.
Insurgents sent only 250 attackers to ambush a group of 30 Marines in Afghanistan. It wasn’t enough.
One Marine designated marksman held off a company-sized force after a Humvee was disabled, killing attackers 20 with 20 shots.
Also note this bit:
Shewan had been a thorn in the side of Task Force 2d Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force Afghanistan throughout the Marines’ deployment here in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, because it controls an important supply route into the Bala Baluk district. Opening the route was key to continuing combat operations in the area. [emphasis Murdoc's]
Logistics has always been a limiting factor in large scale operations in most of Afghanistan. I expect that much of our effort in the coming months will be to better secure existing lines and open up new ones in preparation of additional forces.
Sources: Indian navy destroyed wrong ship
It was reportedly a hijacked fishing trawler, not the floating pirate headquarters.
One of the coolest things around is GasBuddy.com. Here’s their current US price temperature map:
By way of comparison, here’s a map from the AP showing state-by-state gasoline tax (including federal tax):
There is some noticeable correlation between the two maps. The red (higher tax) states on the tax map tend to be orange or yellow (higher price) on the price map. Blue states (lower tax) on the tax map tend to be green states (lower price) on the price map. But it isn’t absolute. For instance, Arizona and New Mexico have lower taxes but higher relative prices. The same goes for Vermont and New Hampshire. On the flip side, Michigan seems to be the only state with higher taxes and lower prices right now. For which Murdoc is thankful.
Compare this price map to two previous versions posted on MO, one from June 2007 and one from November 2006. Note that the price range varies over time and green in 2006 is not the same as green in 2008.
Meanwhile: Venezuela’s Chavez calls for fix oil price
CARACAS, Venezuela, Nov. 25 (UPI) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said crude oil prices should be set at a fixed price in the wake of recent oil price decreases.
Chavez said that prices should be set between $80 and $100 a barrel, El Universal reported Tuesday. Prices closed Monday at less than $54 a barrel.
Chavez said that price fixing would stabilize the market and prevent the sharp spikes and declines in the petroleum market that marked the last year.
Especially the declines is what he’s thinking, I’d guess. Oil is currently uner $51, and the head of the China National Offshore Oil Corporation thinks it will go down to $40.
I would have never guessed it would drop this far. I doubt it’s going to stay for long.
I wonder if we’ll see an effort to push through gas tax increases while prices are down in an effort to get rate hikes in while they don’t seem so bad.
There were thousands of men, mostly acting alone or in small groups without much in the way of a chain of command, who kept Omaha Beach from turning into a total disaster and complete loss. When everything fell apart it was the grit and determination of the individual American fighting man who saved the day.
One of those men was Brickmuppet’s great uncle John. He served with an underwater demolition team assigned to clear beach obstacles on Easy Red. Their boat bottomed out and they had to swim a half mile to short. After planting his charges, he puled some wounded guys out of the water and then picked up a rifle and headed toward the fight. He was the only member of his team not killed or wounded during the invasion.
Defense Tech has more on the lack of direct ties between a collapse of the major US auto makers and national security.
In the comments section, the argument is made that the supply base would fall apart and this would have an effect on military production. I mentioned this last week, and it’s a fair point.
Iraqi bomber was mentally disabled woman
One of two bombers who struck in Baghdad Monday was a mentally disabled woman whose explosives were detonated by remote control, officials said.
It appears that the bad guys continue to have recruiting problems. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a story like this, and it won’t be the last.
Also, the retention numbers in the suicide bomber units is abysmal. No one re-ups for another term.
