tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post1606329552341850274..comments2024-03-22T20:34:13.792-05:00Comments on Indomitable | The online home of Chauncey DeVega: Barack Hussein Obama is Neville Chamberlain in Blackface! The Pentagon Plans to "Shrink" the U.S. Army to Pre-World War 2 LevelsLady Zora, Chauncey DeVega, and Gordon Gartrellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09138154899923808806noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-31316342318802776172014-03-01T04:29:35.820-06:002014-03-01T04:29:35.820-06:00You don't think that Diego and other bases are...You don't think that Diego and other bases are horribly exposed? Beyond the horizon strike can light them up to. As others have discussed, I worry that if a carrier is taken out then "U.S. territory" has been hit. What escalation is next? There are undoubtedly gentleman's understandings about not hitting mainland China or U.S. carriers because the spiral of escalation is just too extreme...I hope. <br /><br /><br />As others have shared too, using repurposed ICBM's for conventional strike is madness.chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-91684298076489242972014-03-01T04:26:45.124-06:002014-03-01T04:26:45.124-06:00Showing my age--and maybe yours too. Remember how ...Showing my age--and maybe yours too. Remember how the F-16 was supposed to be a cheap single purpose fighter?chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-75224812349752751852014-03-01T04:26:16.055-06:002014-03-01T04:26:16.055-06:00Smart point. The roles will evolve. The Chinese ar...Smart point. The roles will evolve. The Chinese are trying to develop that capability as a form of soft power.chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-81086235607080856752014-03-01T04:25:52.795-06:002014-03-01T04:25:52.795-06:00Have to cosign that one. Also the great book and d...Have to cosign that one. Also the great book and documentary "Why We Fight".chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-20536314541534635592014-02-26T18:25:46.375-06:002014-02-26T18:25:46.375-06:00McCain and Obama seem to be on the same page in fo...McCain and Obama seem to be on the same page in fomenting and funding unrest in Syria, the Ukraine and Venezuela.aprescouphttp://mosquitocloud.net/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-51370284901491810272014-02-26T18:21:45.266-06:002014-02-26T18:21:45.266-06:00National security is often over-simplified as the ...<i>National security is often over-simplified as the ability to kill, break things, and impose a country's will on others.</i><br /><br />National security is whatever the elites come up with to distract the peeps from equating National Security with economic security:<br /><br /><i>Preventing Sexual Violence Is a National Security Imperative</i> - John Kerry/William Haque - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/johnkerry/preventing-sexual-violenc_b_4856070.htmlaprescouphttp://mosquitocloud.net/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-50529615576031304452014-02-26T17:10:10.268-06:002014-02-26T17:10:10.268-06:00Carrier groups do come in handy from time to time,...Carrier groups do come in handy from time to time, and not just for chastising misbehaving tropical countries with conveniently long coastlines. Think of the 2004 Banda Aceh tsunami--the Navy, along with the Australians, mounted a relief effort that was a marvel of logistics.The Sanity Inspectorhttp://atlantarofters.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-85715320892700849622014-02-25T22:34:50.027-06:002014-02-25T22:34:50.027-06:00"I have found it interesting that so many Rig..."I have found it interesting that so many Right-wing politicians and talking head types have written crappy historical-military-techno thrillers."<br /><br />Yes, haven't they! There's no corresponding anti-genre on the left. It's entirely its own thing. You also briefly wrote yesterday on the fascination with apocalyptic scenarios, prediction and story-telling and that also connects at the edges with the techno-thriller genre. They're property of the right white mythology and world view. Much of it is a strange romance fiction in which the mightiest civilization, the military, the entire country is struck down in one click. What then commences is a ritual of purification in which the prepared, the just, the real Americans, survive while everyone else perishes.<br /><br />Hollywood chooses to duplicate some of this but they smooth off the problematical edges. The zombie movies, World War Z, the remake of Dawn of the Dead, others, are pretty benign compared to the grass roots. The Walking Dead isn't filled with toxic ideological survivalists. It even paints one of the rednecks, the biker, as someone gone through redemption. The old techno-thriller and alt-history genres -- well, let's just say there were generally no progressives, Democrats or anyone with less than white skin in the bunkers. <br /><br />As for any military strategy versus the Chinese. Hmm, the US is an economic symbiosis with that country the like of which hasn't really existed before when other major wars erupted. It's difficult for me to imagine a conflict but I can't say it absolutely would not happen given today's leadership. I would think the Chinese military, as would any other nation, would not look forward to a war with the US juggernaut because of any perceived advantage in counter strategy or tactics. The big carrier battle group is vulnerable, it's time is almost past. But we've also moved beyond that. DoD spent a lot of the war on terror preparing to wage global war from big forward operating bases, distant from foes but still convenient for US strategic forces: Diego Garcia, Guam, a couple others, the build-ups were remarkable. That indicated the development of a strategy that was going to depend a lot on global strike by strategic bomber forces for which no conventional enemy would have a counter, other than nuclear weapons, after their national air defense had been destroyed in peel-the-onion operations. B-2s and B-52s have remote strike, so does the submarine force, and they're largely invulnerable. Once your air defense is gone, your conventional military, or at least the visible hardware, is lost, given time.<br /><br />I think the adversarial key may be in figuring out how not to fight any component of the US military.George Smithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-10620721040960876402014-02-25T16:16:22.512-06:002014-02-25T16:16:22.512-06:00Uh, yeah. And all under the authority of the execu...Uh, yeah. And all under the authority of the executive branch.kokaneehttp://www.byebyedemocracy.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-8004356895926824892014-02-25T15:58:17.764-06:002014-02-25T15:58:17.764-06:00Much of the military's services are being priv...Much of the military's services are being privatized. Thus, there is no accountability on the part of elected officials because those forces operate outside of the system, very often in the "black world" and if they are private contractors they do not have to be supported by the VA and the public can say "they asked for it".<br /><br /><br />Once you add in the drones, and the outsourcing of essential State services we take several more steps toward Inverted Totalitarianism and the open mating of the Corporate and Military State.chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-38222520393202862302014-02-25T15:54:57.073-06:002014-02-25T15:54:57.073-06:00The F-35 is simply insane. What's more, these ...The F-35 is simply insane. What's more, these costs were predicted by people within the military. Here's an article from Air Force Magazine in 1986 discussing the ever-increasing costs of fighter craft coinciding with the decrease in variety: http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Documents/1986/December%201986/1286dive.pdf <br /><br />The "Advanced Tactical Fighter" that is spoken of in the article was supposed to break the cost curve and come in at $40m a plane, but ended up only reinforcing the model with yet-another-data point. Just like the F-35. We'll get to the point where we're spending the same for one fighter jet that we do for a carrier group.<br /><br />Like my wife always tells me, "Knowing and not doing is the same as not knowing."DanFnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-18474053752165620262014-02-25T15:50:03.451-06:002014-02-25T15:50:03.451-06:00damn, how could I forget about the anti christ one...damn, how could I forget about the anti christ one?!Myshkin the Idiotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-1841334027131774902014-02-25T15:49:30.767-06:002014-02-25T15:49:30.767-06:00"privatized national security state... accoun..."privatized national security state... accountability?"<br /><br /><br />but the free market is self regulating. if the citizens rights are trampled they can take it up with the security firm ;)Myshkin the Idiotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-19694811368338737372014-02-25T15:30:29.104-06:002014-02-25T15:30:29.104-06:00I do not understand what you mean. Please elaborat...I do not understand what you mean. Please elaborate.kokaneehttp://www.byebyedemocracy.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-15557321235909945682014-02-25T15:08:33.595-06:002014-02-25T15:08:33.595-06:00Duh. All of this is pure talk now. Will the Senato...Duh. All of this is pure talk now. Will the Senators and Congress people ever let the budget be closed and a plane retired?chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-20493100048421793452014-02-25T15:07:59.405-06:002014-02-25T15:07:59.405-06:00Neoliberal privatized national security state w. m...Neoliberal privatized national security state w. mercs and drones. Accountability? Please...chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-72122818253998154352014-02-25T15:07:58.578-06:002014-02-25T15:07:58.578-06:00The machine needs to be justified. You have outlin...The machine needs to be justified. You have outlined many sci-fi military thriller novels in your post. If anyone is so inclined I have found it interesting that so many Right-wing politicians and talking head types have written crappy historical-military-techno thrillers. <br /><br /><br />The U.S. cannot be matched per se, but it can certainly be defeated in battle. I hope we do not see it come to fruition, but the Chinese sea denial strategy could give the U.S. and its heavyweight fighting approach real headaches. Then again, the U.S. can use the same strategy to bottle up the Chinese.chauncey devegahttp://wearerespectablenegroes.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-43433241739980519992014-02-25T11:51:48.598-06:002014-02-25T11:51:48.598-06:00PS: I've always wondered what McCain Palin wou...PS: I've always wondered what McCain Palin would have done during the Arab Spring back in 2011. <br /><br /><br />At the 2012 RNC, McCain stated that Obama had missed an opportunity to support an internal rebellion in Iran and overthrow the current regime. Could you imagine being embroiled with a war in Iran at the same time as being mired in Iraq and Afghanistan?Myshkin the Idiotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-33552174271130483802014-02-25T11:20:05.249-06:002014-02-25T11:20:05.249-06:00" Barack Obama is and has always been a Commu..." Barack Obama is and has always been a Communist Socialist Fascist Anti-white Black Christian hating Muslim subhuman mongrel who is also really French and was not born in the United States and was imposed on the American people as part of the New World Order with the help of ACORN and the New Black Panthers in order to take our, i.e. white folks', guns away."<br /><br />I'm having a hard time keeping up with the many personas of Mr. Barack Obama. I suppose hating America is the overall theme and the only fact of importance ;)<br /><br /><br />Wish I could say something effective and intelligent about the Defense Budget, all I can add is the federal bureaucracy is a behemoth, killing us slowly, and the right is focused on a few small welfare programs, please.Myshkin the Idiotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-19376849102432079642014-02-25T11:00:23.255-06:002014-02-25T11:00:23.255-06:00I seem to recall there were the usual types callin...I seem to recall there were the usual types calling him Neville Chamberlain re Syria. And, of course, with Iran. Neville Chamberlain seems to be the only "name" they use. Why not Quisling? Too hard to remember and not quite the same meaning, probably. How many from the right do you think could locate the Sudetenland on a map?<br /><br />I'm not sold on the idea that Hagel can downsize the military to any significant degree regardless of budget cuts/sequester. The national security megaplex is overwhelmingly powerful and slipped beyond real control and oversight after 9/11. We'll see but I expect it to be the same old same old next year. The ability to fight a war with China and Iran simultaneously could easily be used as a regular talking point. <br /><br />The US military strategy and spending has been boiled down to using total superiority in weight of resources and technology in bombing paupers. And compared to US military spending, everyone else is a pauper. This led to the fraud called asymmetric threat assessment. It's now a decades old mythology, one that has a life of its own in the general staff and advisory types, one where the relative weakling, the David, always has a way to bring down the Goliath of the US military, very simply, by exploiting some strange Achilles' heel vulnerability, usually involving magical technology. Al Qaeda has asymmetric talent -- they were always said to be easily capable of biological weapons, making any kind of WMD really, from scratch. Cyberwar has been another. Little backward and impoverished countries, or hermit kingdoms, can strike down the US with cyberwar or electromagnetic pulse attacks. <br /><br />It's gone on for over 20 years. I've seen it. It exists as an elaborate interlocking, self-reinforcing and Byzantine mythology that is the military and security complex's world view. Nothing dents it. Nothing. <br /><br />It doesn't matter that other nations have almost given up completely trying to rival the US military structure.George Smithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-78223585019776290482014-02-25T06:59:40.768-06:002014-02-25T06:59:40.768-06:00Good post, Chauncey. A small correction, though--...Good post, Chauncey. A small correction, though--I think you're referring to the F-35 Lighting II, not the F-23.<br />And I think the A-10 Warthog is a fantastic aircraft--and unlike the F-35, it's actually tough and reliable.Scopedognoreply@blogger.com