29 May 2009

On The Road (to 9/11) Again!

Yesterday the LA Times reported that in a stunning reversal of the recent, successful, strategy against Al-Quaeda and it’s associated terror network worldwide the Obama administration has decided to restore the FBI, as the lead “worldwide” counter-terror agency, relegating the CIA and the military to supporting roles in the Global War on Terror.

“Under the ‘global justice’ initiative, which has been in the works for several months, FBI agents will have a central role in overseas counter-terrorism cases. They will expand their questioning of suspects and evidence-gathering to try to ensure that criminal prosecutions are an option, officials said.

Though the initiative is a work in progress, some senior counter-terrorism officials and administration policy-makers envision it as key to the national security strategy President Obama laid out last week -- one that presumes most accused terrorists have the right to
contest the charges against them in a ‘legitimate" setting.’

The approach effectively reverses a mainstay of the Bush administration's war on terrorism, in which global counter-terrorism was treated primarily as an intelligence and military problem, not a law enforcement one. That policy led to the establishment of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; harsh interrogations; and detentions without
trials.

The ‘global justice’ initiative starts out with the premise that virtually all suspects will end up in a U.S. or foreign court of law.”

Here are just a few of the reasons why this is a recipe for disaster.

The FBI was ineffective at dealing with Al-Quaeda in the 1990’s. From 1993- 2001 we saw the first attack on the Trade Center, the bombing of the Khobar Towers, the attacks on the US in Kenya and Tanzania, the USS Cole, and the 9/11 attacks. All these attacks were perpetrated by al-Quaeda affiliates. Until 9/11 the FBI investigated these incidents and prosecuted a few identified individuals. This approach encouraged rather than deterred the attacks of September 11, 2001.

The FBI is so mistrusted as an intelligence source regarding the global network of Islamist extremism that the New York City Police department has posted its own police officers abroad as intelligence gathering agents to enable New York to detect and prevent another attack on the city.

At its roots, the FBI is a police agency. This creates problems for it as an intelligence gathering agency. The FBI primarily exists to make cases that can be successfully prosecuted by US Attorneys. The institutional culture is reactive and investigative, not preventive.

The FBI, until 2001, was a full partner with the DEA in the “War and Drugs.”
Its track record against loosely organized foreign adversaries is hardly encouraging

The new Obama approach puts Eric Holder in charge as America’s top anti-terror official. This is the same Eric Holder who has a record of supporting pardons for members of home grown terrorist groups like the BLA and FALN. Today Fox News reports:

“Charges brought against three members of the New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense under the Bush administration have been dropped by the Obama Justice Dept.
The charges stemmed from an incident at a Philadelphia polling place, Election Day 2008 when three black panthers were accused of trying to threaten voters and block poll and campaign workers by the threat of force -- one even brandishing what prosecutors call a deadly weapon.

The three, Minister King Samir Shabazz, Malik Zulu Shabazz and Jerry Jackson were charged in a civil complaint with violating the voter rights act by using coercion, threats and intimidation. Shabazz allegedly held a nightstick that prosecutors said he pointed at people and menacingly tapped it. Prosecutors also say he ‘supports racially motivated violence against non-blacks and Jews."

Eric Holder just let three more domestic terrorists off the hook.

According to the LA Time’s sources, any terror suspect, caught by any US agency, anywhere in the world will be directed to FBI custody. For soldiers and Marines operating on the battlefield this means capturing an enemy is now a law enforcement operation.

This creates several problems. Many of my friends in law enforcement call their badge a ‘license to be sued.’ While soldiers are competent at taking and securing detainees, they now will be in a position to be second guessed by everyone from non-military federal agents, to Justice Dept. lawyers, federal judges and juries.

We will now be assigning all terrorists, including those captured on the battlefield with an equivalent set of rights of US citizens arrested for crimes and misdemeanors here at home. Imagine a Taliban insurgent captured in Afghanistan will now have rights never accorded to those American enemies who abided by the ‘laws of war.’ We’ll treat al-Quaeda better than German POWs of WWII.

In fact the next set of detainees will be afforded better legal protections than most American criminal suspects because white shoe, elite, liberal law firms will be climbing all over each other to represent al-Quaeda suspects arrested by the FBI. If OJ Simpson got off because he hired a dream team imagine what will happen if Osama bin Laden is “arrested” instead of just shot by Special Forces.


His lawyers will argue everything from lack of jurisdiction, to cultural insensitivity, to the twinkie defense if it will prolong his trial their moment in the spotlight. If bin Laden was not a true extremist right about now he would be calling a lawyer and arranging to turn himself in, his chances would be so good.

Well America, get ready for more terror!


See Also:

TheLocke

Narcisstic Views

26 May 2009

Mourning Memorial Day Pt 2

For the record, in Wake County yesterday, app. 13,000 students, a full 40% of the student body were absent. I hope the school administrators who disrespected our nation's fallen take notice. Because there is something wrong in America these days. Something that the new president cannot cure with "Hope" or "Change," because he is a symptom of the malady.

A cautionary tale:

In a traditional middle class neighborhood in Staten Island New York, aging veterans donned their gear, American Legion and VFW jackets and garrison caps. So attired, they moved, some with considerable effort, to stand in formation with current National Guard soldiers. Warriors past and present saluted the flag and laid a wreath, on a local memorial. The old vets had tears in their eyes, as they approached the younger versions of themselves thanking them for fighting for our country since 9/11.

The older generation guys didn’t fight in theater with nightly ice cream, 9-month tours, Internet, Private rooms with modern AC, two weeks’ leave, $25k in individual protective and fighting gear, extra pay for housing, etc.

They just fought bloody attrition warfare on the ground against the Emperor’s children and Nazis; with aircraft made of wood and gas tanks and engines; ships loaded with electrical gear, huge boilers, ammo and diesel all ready to blow at any time, and weapons aimed with a Mark 1 eyeball alone.

“And these guys are thanking us—thanking me?” My friend recounted of his day

A few hours later. A few miles north of NYC, in one of the nicer northern Suburbs. He was at an annual Memorial Day carnival to raise money for the town’s public school (which doesn’t really need any money).

The scene: several hundred families milling about, mostly graying yuppies and captains-of-the-universe hedge fund and white-shoe law firm types, trooping their Ivy League bound spawn around from ride to ride.

The US Army officer arrives in uniform. Not one person – not one – thanks him for serving. No one asks why he is in uniform. On Memorial Day.

“You could just tell from the glances and eyes turned away that some of these folks were quite uncomfortable with me there, for whatever their reasons: afraid that I’m a vet ready to snap, or scream at them for electing BHO, or yell at them for being greedy and selfish or, most painfully, ask them what branch of the service they were in . . . who knows.”

One guy, a scout troop leader – himself in “uniform” – managed to decline an offered $1.00 for a bottle of water, but even he couldn’t make eye contact with the recent veteran of two deployments. At least it was a gesture.

There was one old lady: “She had to be in her 90s, parked under a tree by her lousy preppy grandkids; with a huge sun hat and the kooky white-rimmed sunglasses. She looked over here glasses, smiled and waved. I waved back. I appreciated that.”

My friend went straight to the nearest American Legion post, ordered a beer, and toasted the Greatest Generation.

Welcome to Obamastan!

25 May 2009

Mourning Memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day. This American holiday, first celebrated in 1865, was begun so that communities could commemorate their own fallen, amongst the hundreds of thousands of young Americans who gave their lives during our bloodiest war. Over time those local memorial services at the end of May grew into a great national tradition.

After over a hundred years of community memorials, the US congress finally acted. In 1967 they federalized the holiday, and one year later it legislated the now familiar ‘last Monday in May’ calendar placement. By the early seventies, all US states recognized the federal holiday.

Somewhere on the order of one million American soldiers have died in the nearly two and a half centuries of our national history. These men and women, define diversity. Immigrants from all four corners of the globe have served and died in our armed forces. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard, have all sacrificed their members, Active, Reserve, National Guard and Militia. Christian, Jew, Atheist, Buddhist, and Muslim; Gay and Straight; Democrat, Republican, Whig and Socialist; liberal, conservative, moderate. There have been restrictions on military service over the years, but our war dead represent every part of our great national constituency.

Among those who have fallen recently are many that I called comrade, friend, or brother. Not blood brothers, but “Band of Brothers;” Chris, Segun, Kevin, Casey, Wil, are a few of the names that I can’t summon to mind without a lingering sadness. This is the burden of service in our current military. Wherever one’s politics lie, these men and four thousand other Americans who have recently made the ultimate sacrifice deserve our respect and a moment of our time. They deserve a day.

Recently, some factions, however, have shown a desire to dismantle Memorial Day. In the middle of a war, however unpopular, what does it say about us that we are unwilling to honor those who defended us with their lives?

In Wake County, North Carolina, where I currently live, the School Board has classes running today. This is part of a year round classroom initiative. I understand the need to “think outside the box” to effect better education at cost. But when schools are closed the day before Thanksgiving, but not on Memorial Day, there is an indication that we as a society have lost our way.

This morning, as I began to research some statistics for this article, I turned to Google, of course. I was immediately dismayed when I saw that the Google banner was just their generic icon. I may not have noticed, but only two days ago their banner was reworked in an impressionist style for the entire day. They were “celebrating” the birthday of Mary Cassat, a 19th century American Artist. I have noticed similar themes on Google for Charles Darwin, Earth Day and even Dr. Seuss.

Apparently celebrating Memorial Day, even in America, does not comply with Google’s corporate image, or approximate the importance of clever children’s literature.. Google, a company, based in California, owned and staffed in America, would rather pursue a globalist agenda, than acknowledge the true strength of the nation that allowed it to dominate its market.

I don’t know how many Wake County parents pulled their children from class today. I know that many intended to. I don’t have children yet. I do know that there is a flag flying in my yard. I will stop by my local veteran’s memorial today. I will give a few moments in honor of my fallen brothers; and to the million more who have given me my freedom. And from now on I will be searching the internet with a search engine that recognizes American Holidays.

12 May 2009

A NEW HOPE

Obama is finally doing something right, a result of his remarkable decision to keep Gates as Sec-Def. He is listening to Petraeus, the head of Centcom. This week in Afghanistan General McChrystal an SF bred leader who is perfect for this type of WARFARE took over from General McKiernan an Armor officer who was pining for a good old maneuver battle. Here is the stream of consciousness approbation of one Army officer who served as a mentor, advising the Afghan police last year under McKiernan.



McKiernan was a tank officer. Not a good mindset for A-stan. Likes vehicles. Typical response to successful IED attack vs. a US mounted patrol in A-stan was a new mandate for even more vehicles (i.e. targets)in future convoys, and if you didn't have enough vehicles on your base due to maintenance issues to support scheduled patrols, then cancel patrols: a horrible climate, not the US Army/USMC of the Battle of theBulge or Iwo Jima at all, a repudation of the warrior ethos (mission first, never accept defeat, never quit, never leave a fallen comrade).

McKiernan didn't get that, didn't get counterinsurgency (COIN), though he paid it a lot of lip service. Risk averse. Liked making rules. Liked briefings. Liked being briefed. Lusted after PowerPoint slides.(I once received a compliment via e-mail from ISAF/HQ that my slides on how to train a province police swat team were appreciated by "the Boss".. . the SLIDES were appreciated, mind you, no commentary or feedback on the swat team concept (first in the country for regular police), no questions about numbers of arrests or dead terrorists as a result of deploying the swat team.)

McKiernan liked painted rocks, haircuts and parade formations. Hated SF mindset; certainly hated the idea of raggamuffin National Guardsmen going native and living in villages unsupervised. A Cold War, ground maneuver, conventional, NATOcommander.

McChrystal, is a light infantry officer, a paratrooper, a Ranger, a Special Forces officer, a Delta Force-commandingAbu-Musab-al-Zarqawi-killer. Not only not risk averse: likes risk, enjoys risk, thinks what sets Soldiers and Marines apart from other,normal people is a desire to (1) kill bad guys and break their shit and (2) take risks. Will have little tolerance for NATO's bullshit. Will have little tolerance for Obama's bullshit.

Will let Soldiers and Marines do their job: kill bad guys and protect everyone else. Will send US special forces into Pakistan and Iran covertly to do their job. Prediction: US forces will begin to get off of the large bases across the theater (not just in those particular places where the local commander gets COIN) and takes risk. Lots of dismounted patrolling. Lots of living with the locals. Lots of money spread around at grass-roots levels. Less bombing from the air; better bombing from the air.

Yes, more US casualties. BUT: Lots of HUMINT. Lots, lots, lots more AQ andTB casualties. Being a jihadist, an opium trafficker, a corrupt police officer working both sides, etc. in A-stan will become a very dangerous thing; this climate will deter fence-sitters, opportunists and those who fight for the hell of it, separating the hard-core enemy from the common schlubs. Al Qaeda already knows McChrystal by name: he killed Zarqawi,he personally inspected the remains, and they fear him. When the enemy reacts with mortal fear, with terror, to your presence, when he knowsthat you are crazier than he is, then you have the initiative.

McKiernan never had the initiative. No one feared him, not even his own men. McKiernan was a nice guy. McChyrstal is not a nice guy.McChyrstal may be the William Tecumseh Sherman of this war. NATO will complain to Obama that this new commander is too aggressive. In fact you will start to hear that when the Senate confirmation and debate process begins to make McC a 4-star, based on allegations that McChrystal's Rangers were mean to terrorists in Iraq.

Obama will succeed as a wartime commander-in-chief if he resists his own apologetic intincts and tells the Germans and French and Italians and the UN and Doctors without Borders and Karzai to go to hell, suppresses his wildly-inflated self image and lets McChrystal fight the war, while supporting him and otherwise staying out of it. McChrystal will ask for another 30,000 troops, beyond the 21,00 going in now, and a redefinition of ISAF's role in the war.

If Obama supports him in these things, then we will win: in five years, Afghanistan will be secure, ont he road to development and good governance at every level, able to defend itself internally and externally, and a contributer to the war against global Islamist terrorism. If Obama does not supportMcChrystal, then we will loose, and the signpost for that will be a movement for us to withdraw in a Vietnam-style "peace with honor"mode,with Taliban accomodated and appeased with "a province or two" inPakistan. And then both Pakistan and Afghanistan will fall. And then we will really need McKiernan's tanks and bombing missions.

Obama and Gates will take and get credit for this bold move. They should not. Petraeus did this. When we were overseas, as soon as we heard that Petraeus was getting CENTCOM, having ourselves seen how badly the theater was being commanded, we knew that McKiernan's days were numbered, no matter who the President was. Look at the attached picture from last week. The SecDef is in a suit,nothing else. The Afghans are in regular clothing. McKiernan is wearing his body armor. I guarantee that the US officer on the rightwho was not wearing his body armor had his ass chewed out after this fornot showing "good leadership" and concern for "soldier welfare" by wearing all of his gear to this photo op with "the Boss."




I have to concur here, McKiernan didn't want to offend anyone, including the enemy. He handcuffed the most effective, professional military force on the planet, due to career driven risk aversion. GOOD RIDDANCE, now let's kill some bad guys.