To All,
Good Friday Morning April 21 2023
I hope that your week has gone well and the weekend gives you some relaxing time.
There is a very good article at the end on China.
Regards,
Skip
If any of you have pictures of Wigs please send them. Especially in flight gear. Or next to the many types of aircraft he flew They are working on a presentation for the services in May.
Skip
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This day in Naval and Marine Corps History April 21 On This Day
1861
Sloop-of-War Saratoga, commanded by Alfred Taylor, captures Nightingale, a clipper slaver, at the mouth of the Congo River at Cabinda, Angola, with 961 slaves on board.
1898
President William McKinley orders the Navy to begin a blockade of Cuba and Spain, the beginning of the Spanish-American War. Congress responds with a formal declaration of war April 25, made retroactive to the start of the blockade.
1914
President Woodrow Wilson orders intervention at Vera Cruz, Mexico, after the Tampico Affair where Sailors from USS Dolphin were detained. The U.S. Atlantic Fleet, under the command of Rear Adm. Frank F. Fletcher, land the first Marines and Sailors from USS Florida and USS Utah and engage in battle.
1944
Task Force 58 begins the bombing of Japanese airfields and defensive positions at Hollandia, Wakde, Sawar, and Sarmi, New Guinea, in preparation for the U.S. Army landing operations Persecution and Reckless.
1972
Navy Capt. John W. Young, commander of Apollo 16, is the ninth man to walk on the moon. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Thomas K. Mattingly II is the command module pilot for the 11-day, 1-hour and 51-minute mission where 213 pounds of lunar material is collected.
1990
USNS John Ericcson (T-AO 194) is launched at Chester, Penn. The Henry J. Kiser-class replenishment oiler is named for John Ericcson who designed USS Monitor.
2001
USS Lassen (DDG 82) is commissioned at Tampa, Fla., prior to sailing for her homeport in San Diego as part of Destroyer Squadron 23. The Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer is named after Lt. Clyde Everett Lassen, a Medal of Honor recipient for rescuing two downed aviators while he was the commander of a search and rescue helicopter in Vietnam.
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This day in World History
April 21
0043 Marcus Antonius is defeated by Octavian near Modena, Italy.
0753 Traditional date of the foundation of Rome.
1526 Mongol Emperor Babur annihilates the Indian Army of Ibrahim Lodi.
1649 The Maryland Toleration Act is passed, allowing all people freedom of worship.
1689 William III and Mary II are crowned joint king and queen of England, Scotland and Ireland.
1836 General Sam Houston defeats Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto. Texas wins independence from Mexico.
1862 Congress establishes the U.S. Mint.
1865 Abraham Lincoln's funeral train leaves Washington.
1898 The Spanish-American War begins.
1910 Mark Twain dies at the age of 75.
1914 U.S. Marines occupy Vera Cruz, Mexico. They will stay six months.
1916 Bill Carlisle, the infamous 'last train robber,' robs a train in Hanna, Wyoming.
1918 German fighter ace Baron von Richthofen, "The Red Baron," is shot down and killed.
1943 President Franklin D. Roosevelt announces that several Doolittle pilots have been executed by Japanese.
1960 Brasilia becomes the capital of Brazil.
1961 The French army revolts in Algeria.
1966 Pfc. Milton Lee Olive is awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously, for bravery during the Vietnam War.
1975 The last South Vietnam president, Nguyen Van Thieu, resigns.
1995 Federal authorities arrest Timothy McVeigh in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing.
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post
Skip… For The List for Friday, 21 April 2023… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 21 April 1968… Clip III of "The Fourth Turning": "Sometime before the year 2025 America will pass through a great gate of history commensurate with the American Revolution, the Civil War, and the twin emergencies of the Great Depression and World War II. The risk of catastrophe will be very high."…
This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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A few bits on AI but the real thing is at the end of this discussion
Thanks to YP
DON'T TRY ANYTHING NEW AT NIGHT!
I listened closely to our fleet 'Sader pilots, who had dicked with it. The autothrottle had three temperature range settings, which on Yankee Station was always HOT. When you engaged it, it did a little throttle messing around, then hopefully settled. Thereafter, if you gave up stick, it added power; if down stick, it sucked some off. Real good, until getting in close, the ball started to rise. Solution was to stop the rising ball, but, in autothrottle, that meant the throttle was gonna try and suck off power. Splatt. Solution was to hold hold your hand BEHIND THE THROTTLE and prevent it retarding.
Some respected squadron mates had used it a lot; others, NEVER. When the F-8J came out, those poor J driving bastids on Yankee Station developed a patch that said, IN GOD WE TRUST—WE NEED THRUST. Turns out that they often dinna have enough thrust to stop a settling ball. They developed a technique called "Pulse Wave-Off" to keep them off the ramp: OVER ROTATE TO THE BUFFET, THEN PITCH THE NOSE OVER.
That power thing finally got worked out, but not until lots of tricks were snucked in by squadrons, who low loaded ammo or left off a port side missile so the Big Dudes in the island couldn't see….
So it went. Boom and mebe Eagle have paddle comments, as well as real fleet dudes.
YP
YP, since you are still amongst us, your assessment obviously is correct!
________________________________________
From: Jack Woodul
Subject: Re: Here's an overview on AI, 60 Minutes, complementary to the Musk interview, of killer interest
Another life saving device that probably won't work when you really need it, after becoming reliant on it.
Personal experience with Crusader autothrottle quickly convinced me that I was better than it was, whatever that meant.
YP
Thanks to Barrett
Reminds me of what might be called an early AI: the F-8 Crusader auto-throttle that corrected a low airspeed approach to the blunt end of USS Boat. My late-great friend and coauthor John Nichols (one of five 'sader aviators with 3k hrs in type) said "Ain't no black box gonna fly the left side of MY airplane..."
BT
________________________________________
From: Tom Atwood
Subject: Here's an overview on AI, 60 Minutes, complementary to the Musk interview, of killer interest
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From the Archives
Thanks to Barrett
Subject: Guadalcanal 2.0 - American Thinker Barrett… Great essay and superb stinger … Xi has arrived to write a new chapter in the "Guadalcanal Diary."…. Bear
April 21, 2022
Guadalcanal 2.0
By Barret Tillman
In Return to Paradise James Michener wrote, "In the South Pacific there is an island, dark and brooding. It is not large as islands go, nor yet so small as to be forgotten when one has seen it."
The island was Guadalcanal.
Nine sweltering degrees above the equator, the 90-mile-long island dominated the Solomons, 600 miles east of New Guinea. With 7,500-foot mountains among its 2,000 square miles, "the Canal" featured beaches, rivers, and a decent harbor at adjacent Tulagi.
Michener's brooding isle occupied the strategic focus of the United States and Japan for six sanguinary months in 1942-43. On July 4, 1942, an American reconnaissance plane noted the Japanese building a bomber-capable airfield on Guadalcanal. The threat was implicit: with long-range aircraft, Japan could interdict Allied sea lanes to Australia and New Zealand.
The timing was providential. In June the U.S. Navy had blunted Japan's six-month string of victories in the climactic Battle of Midway, affording a chance to shift from the defense. Commanding Japan's Combined Fleet was Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who had led the Pearl Harbor and Midway operations.
The Joint Chiefs in Washington seized the opportunity and authorized Operation Watchtower, America's first offensive of the war. The First Marine Division splashed ashore at Guadalcanal (code name Cactus) and nearby Tulagi on August 7, two months to the day after Midway.
America was blessed with experienced, competent leaders. Major General Archer Vandegrift commanded the First Division, including subordinates such as Merritt "Red Mike" Edson and Louis "Chesty" Puller. All had learned the brush fighting trade from the Central American "banana wars."
The Japanese Army was tough and capable, but China was poor preparation for professionally led Marines. Time and again Vandegrift's leathernecks gave better than they got.
Not so at sea. In the first clash between the U.S. and Imperial navies around the monolithic Savo Island on the night of August 8-9, Tokyo's practiced torpedo men sank four Allied cruisers without loss.
From Rabaul, New Britain, the Japanese Navy's world-class bombers and fighters routinely flew 1,200-mile round trips to Guadalcanal -- an astonishing feat. The obvious answer was to get U.S. planes on the island, and the first Marine squadrons landed on August 20, "plankowners" in what became the Cactus Air Force. Marine, Navy, and Army squadrons operated from Henderson Field (named for a Marine hero of Midway) plus two other airstrips in the coming weeks. Fliers and mechanics said, "Cactus was the only place you could stand up to your knees in mud and get dust in your eyes."
The late Vice Admiral David Richardson, a Guadalcanal fighter pilot, spoke for many. "I learned that often how much courage a man has depends on how much food and sleep he's had in the last 72 hours."
Thus began a symbiotic relationship among riflemen, airmen, and sailors. Control of the sea and sky frequently changed hands by day and night, and the Japanese perfected the nocturnal "Tokyo express" delivering troops and supplies by ship, then scurrying back north by day. The Americans relied on coastwatchers -- mostly courageous Australian planters and administrators -- to radio warnings about Japanese ships and planes. "Thirty bombers headed yours" became a watchword.
The Americans were strapped for everything; Operation Watchtower became "Operation Shoestring." But the defenders held on. Guadalcanal became a strategic teeter-totter that summer and fall, the balance tipping in either direction. In Hawaii the Pacific Fleet's Admiral Chester Nimitz decided to change horses in Pacific midstream, replacing cautious Vice Admiral Robert Ghormley with an Annapolis football teammate, William F. Halsey. In his splashy memoir "Bull" Halsey exclaimed, "This was the hottest potato they ever handed me." But on the eve of the campaign's second carrier battle, he messaged his command, "Strike, repeat strike."
The Battle of Santa Cruz on October 27 represented a Japanese tactical victory. USS Hornet, which had launched the Doolittle Raiders against Japan in April, was lost. But Yamamoto's elite naval aviation arm sustained grievous personnel losses -- even more than at Midway. It was a long-term deficit that could not be regained.
Japanese battleships and cruisers pasted the Americans that month, concentrating on Henderson Field. At dawn one morning the Cactus Air Force had one dive bomber operational. But the aviators clung to their battered nest.
On the night of November 12-13, Rear Admirals Norman Scott and Daniel Callaghan led 13 U.S. ships against 14 Japanese plus transports intent on landing troops. Scott and Callaghan were killed in the 40-minute nocturnal brawl. Between them, they lost six warships to three Japanese, including the battleship Hiei which succumbed to Navy and Marine aircraft after daylight.
One of the lesser-known heroes of the campaign was Rear Admiral Willis Lee. A brilliant analyst, he was a big-ship gunfighter in search of a gunfight, and he found it the night of November 14-15. Leading the battleships USS Washington and South Dakota, he tackled a superior enemy force and blasted the Japanese Kirishima into sinking rubble. "SoDak" lost power during the 30-minute slugfest, leaving Washington and her four destroyers to handle things. Lee lost three "small boys" but prevented the Marines from sustaining another punishing bombardment, and proved his mastery of radar.
At length, the Japanese recognized the inevitable and began a well-conducted evacuation in early February 1943. Richard B. Frank, the author of the definitive study, concluded that Japan lost 30,000 imperial warriors to all causes on and around "Starvation Island." Meanwhile, victory cost more than 7,000 Allied personnel. Along the way, Guadalcanal produced twenty Medals of Honor -- ten Marine, six Navy, and four Army.
The U.S. and Japan both lost more than 600 aircraft in the campaign. Twenty-nine American ships were sunk and thirty-one Japanese (plus six submarines) in four surface battles plus two aircraft carrier duels and associated operations.
Admiral Yamamoto did not long survive. On April 18, 1943 -- the anniversary of the Doolittle Raid -- his plane was downed by Guadalcanal-based P-38 Lightnings. It was the result of superb intelligence and exquisite timing over a 600-mile dogleg route to avoid detection.
Halsey's command raised its sights thereafter. Allied landings on Bougainville in November put more land-based aircraft within range of the Japanese fleet base at Rabaul, New Britain. Though Allied squadrons began flying from Bougainville before year-end, the aerial siege of Rabaul continued until VJ Day. Australian troops were heavily committed to ground actions on Bougainville during the last ten months of hostilities.
Today, though remaining associated with the British Commonwealth, the Solomons are an independent nation of six major islands and hundreds of lesser ones. The nation eventually achieved independence in the 1970s but fell into decades of instability and violence despite international peacekeeping efforts. Then in March of this year, the Solomons signed a memorandum with China leading to likely military and naval basing.
Beijing is spreading a wide trident's net. Strategically-located Kiribati, retaining ties to the British Commonwealth, governs 32 atolls in the Gilberts. In 2019 Kiribatai dropped its Taiwan relationship in favor of Beijing. Sprawling near the international date line, Kiribatai covers hundreds of nautical miles north and south of the equator, totaling 1.4 million square miles. Considering that Beijing has built islands in the South China Sea, developing bases throughout the Pacific seems assured.
China, not America, will determine if the Guadalcanal legacy remains past or represents prologue.
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Thanks to Brett
Geopolitical Futures:
Keeping the future in focus
https:geopoliticalfutures.com
Daily Memo: The EU's Approach to Russia Sanctions
It appears the push for new sanctions is slowing down.
April 20, 2023
Reaching the limit. Future EU sanctions against Russia will likely not include new sectors of the economy that haven't yet been targeted, according to the Financial Times. Those sectors that have remained off the sanctions list are critical to one or more EU member states, so they likely wouldn't get approval for restrictions. On Friday, the bloc will begin informal talks on an 11th round of sanctions, which will likely be limited to expanding the list of targeted individuals and closing loopholes for existing sanctions. Meanwhile, the European Union is offering a 100 million-euro support package to five member states whose agricultural sectors have been impacted by a glut of Ukrainian food products on local markets. Four of the recipient countries – Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and Slovakia – announced bans on Ukrainian agricultural imports earlier this week.
Change of heart. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Armenia was ready to accept a Collective Security Treaty Organization mission to his country. This comes after Yerevan in January canceled scheduled CSTO drills on its territory, saying the Russian-led group had not done enough to protect the country. The dispute stems from the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. On Thursday, Pashinyan accused Azerbaijan of exuding "provocative behavior."
Focus on the Asia-Pacific. The foreign ministers of the United Kingdom and Papua New Guinea signed a "status of forces" agreement in Port Moresby on Wednesday. The text of the document has not been released, but according to Papua New Guinea's foreign minister, it will help strengthen defense cooperation between the two countries. The agreement is part of the Five Eyes security grouping's renewed focus on the Asia-Pacific region. Papua New Guinea signed a similar deal with Australia earlier this year and is in talks for an agreement with the United States.
South Korea's position. A spokesperson for South Korea's president said any decision on providing lethal aid to Ukraine will depend on Moscow's actions, a day after President Yoon Suk Yeol signaled that Seoul might send weapons to support Kyiv's war effort. A U.S. State Department official said in response to Yoon's comments that the United States will continue to coordinate closely with South Korea on aid for Ukraine. Yoon is set to begin a six-day visit to the U.S. next week, where he will meet with President Joe Biden and address Congress.
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This Day in U S Military History…….April 21
1836 – During the Texan War for Independence, the Texas militia under Sam Houston launches a surprise attack against the forces of Mexican General Santa Anna along the San Jacinto River. The Mexicans were thoroughly routed, and hundreds were taken prisoner, including General Santa Anna himself. After gaining independence from Spain in the 1820s, Mexico welcomed foreign settlers to sparsely populated Texas, and a large group of Americans led by Stephen F. Austin settled along the Brazos River. The Americans soon outnumbered the resident Mexicans, and by the 1830s attempts by the Mexican government to regulate these semi-autonomous American communities led to rebellion. In March 1836, in the midst of armed conflict with the Mexican government, Texas declared its independence from Mexico. The Texas volunteers initially suffered defeat against the forces of Santa Anna–Sam Houston's troops were forced into an eastward retreat, and the Alamo fell. However, in late April, Houston's army surprised a Mexican force at San Jacinto, and Santa Anna was captured, bringing an end to Mexico's effort to subdue Texas. In exchange for his freedom, Santa Anna recognized Texas's independence; although the treaty was later abrogated and tensions built up along the Texas-Mexico border. The citizens of the so-called Lone Star Republic elected Sam Houston as president and endorsed the entrance of Texas into the United States. However, the likelihood of Texas joining the Union as a slave state delayed any formal action by the U.S. Congress for more than a decade. Finally, in 1845, President John Tyler orchestrated a compromise in which Texas would join the United States as a slave state. On December 29, 1845, Texas entered the United States as the 28th state, broadening the irrepressible differences in the U.S. over the issue of slavery and igniting the Mexican-American War.
1918 – Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the leading air ace of the war with 80 confirmed kills is shot down and killed. His command is taken by German ace, Hermann Goering.
1934 – Moe Berg, Senators catcher (and later US spy), played an AL record 117th consecutive, errorless game. In 1934, five years before he retired as a player, Berg made a trip to Japan as part of a traveling major league All-Star team. One might wonder what the seldom-used catcher, a .251 hitter that season, was doing playing with the likes of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Berg, who spoke Japanese, took home movies of the Tokyo skyline that were used in the planning of General Jimmy Doolittle's 1942 bombing raids on the Japanese capital. The U.S. government wrote a letter to Berg, thanking him for the movies.
1951 – Carrier-based Marine planes downed three Yaks in the first air-to-air contact of Marine air with the North Korean Air Force.
1951 – U.S. Air Force Captain Robert J. Love, 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing, scored his fifth and sixth aerial victories in his F-86 Sabre "Bernie's Bo" to become the 11th ace of the Korean War.
1972 – Moonwalk in the Descartes Highlands by CAPT John W. Young, USN Commander of Apollo 16 and Charles Duke, Lunar Module Pilot. Young was the ninth man to walk on the moon. LCDR Thomas K. Mattingly II, USN was the Command Module Pilot. During the 11 day, 1 hour and 51 minute mission, 213 lbs. of lunar material was collected. Recovery by HC-1 helicopters from USS Ticonderoga (CVS-14)
1989 – Six days after the death of Hu Yaobang, the deposed reform-minded leader of the Chinese Communist Party, some 100,000 students gather at Beijing's Tiananmen Square to commemorate Hu and voice their discontent with China's authoritative communist government. The next day, an official memorial service for Hu Yaobang was held in Tiananmen's Great Hall of the People, and student representatives carried a petition to the steps of the Great Hall, demanding to meet with Premier Li Peng. The Chinese government refused such a meeting, leading to a general boycott of Chinese universities across the country and widespread calls for democratic reforms. Ignoring government warnings of violent suppression of any mass demonstration, students from more than 40 universities began a march to Tiananmen on April 27. The students were joined by workers, intellectuals, and civil servants, and by mid-May more than a million people filled the square, the site of communist leader's Mao Zedong's proclamation of the People's Republic of China in 1949. On May 20, the government formally declared martial law in Beijing, and troops and tanks were called in to disperse the dissidents. However, large numbers of students and citizens blocked the army's advance, and by May 23 government forces had pulled back to the outskirts of Beijing. On June 3, with negotiations to end the protests stalled and calls for democratic reforms escalating, the troops received orders from the Chinese government to reclaim Tiananmen at all costs. By the end of the next day, Chinese troops had forcibly cleared Tiananmen Square and Beijing's streets, killing hundreds of demonstrators and arresting thousands of protesters and other suspected dissidents. In the weeks after the government crackdown, an unknown number of dissidents were executed, and communist hard-liners took firm control of the country. The international community was outraged at the incident, and economic sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries sent China's economy into decline. However, by late 1990, international trade had resumed, thanks in part to China's release of several hundred imprisoned dissidents.
1995 – The FBI arrested former soldier Timothy McVeigh at an Oklahoma jail where he had spent two days on minor traffic and weapons charges; he was charged in connection with the Oklahoma City bombing two days earlier in which over 200 people were killed by a truck bomb that exploded in front of a Federal building.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
INOUYE, DANIEL K.
Second Lieutenant Daniel K. Inouye distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action on 21 April 1945, in the vicinity of San Terenzo, Italy. While attacking a defended ridge guarding an important road junction, Second Lieutenant Inouye skillfully directed his platoon through a hail of automatic weapon and small arms fire, in a swift enveloping movement that resulted in the capture of an artillery and mortar post and brought his men to within 40 yards of the hostile force. Emplaced in bunkers and rock formations, the enemy halted the advance with crossfire from three machine guns. With complete disregard for his personal safety, Second Lieutenant Inouye crawled up the treacherous slope to within five yards of the nearest machine gun and hurled two grenades, destroying the emplacement. Before the enemy could retaliate, he stood up and neutralized a second machine gun nest. Although wounded by a sniper's bullet, he continued to engage other hostile positions at close range until an exploding grenade shattered his right arm. Despite the intense pain, he refused evacuation and continued to direct his platoon until enemy resistance was broken and his men were again deployed in defensive positions. In the attack, 25 enemy soldiers were killed and eight others captured. By his gallant, aggressive tactics and by his indomitable leadership, Second Lieutenant Inouye enabled his platoon to advance through formidable resistance, and was instrumental in the capture of the ridge. Second Lieutenant Inouye's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.
*MAY, MARTIN O.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, 307th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division. Place and date: legusuku-Yama, Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands, 19-21 April 1945. Entered service at: Phillipsburg, N.J. Birth: Phillipsburg, N.J. G.O. No: 9, 25 January 1946. Citation: He gallantly maintained a 3-day stand in the face of terrible odds when American troops fought for possession of the rugged slopes of legusuku-Yama on Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands. After placing his heavy machinegun in an advantageous yet vulnerable position on a ridge to support riflemen, he became the target of fierce mortar and small arms fire from counterattacking Japanese. He repulsed this assault by sweeping the enemy with accurate bursts while explosions and ricocheting bullets threw blinding dust and dirt about him. He broke up a second counterattack by hurling grenades into the midst of the enemy forces, and then refused to withdraw, volunteering to maintain his post and cover the movement of American riflemen as they reorganized to meet any further hostile action. The major effort of the enemy did not develop until the morning of 21 April. It found Pfc. May still supporting the rifle company in the face of devastating rifle, machinegun, and mortar fire. While many of the friendly troops about him became casualties, he continued to fire his machinegun until he was severely wounded and his gun rendered useless by the burst of a mortar shell. Refusing to withdraw from the violent action, he blasted fanatical Japanese troops with hand grenades until wounded again, this time mortally. By his intrepidity and the extreme tenacity with which he held firm until death against overwhelming forces, Pfc. May killed at least 16 Japanese, was largely responsible for maintaining the American lines, and inspired his comrades to efforts which later resulted in complete victory and seizure of the mountain stronghold
*MARTINI, GARY W.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps, Company F, 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. place and date: Binh Son, Republic of Vietnam, 21 April 1967. Entered service at: portland, Oreg. Born: 21 September 1948, Lexington, Va. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. On 21 April 1967, during Operation UNION* elements of Company F, conducting offensive operations at Binh Son, encountered a firmly entrenched enemy force and immediately deployed to engage them. The marines in Pfc. Martini's platoon assaulted across an open rice paddy to within 20 meters of the enemy trench line where they were suddenly struck by hand grenades, intense small arms, automatic weapons, and mortar fire. The enemy onslaught killed 14 and wounded 18 marines, pinning the remainder of the platoon down behind a low paddy dike. In the face of imminent danger, Pfc. Martini immediately crawled over the dike to a forward open area within 15 meters of the enemy position where, continuously exposed to the hostile fire, he hurled hand grenades, killing several of the enemy. Crawling back through the intense fire, he rejoined his platoon which had moved to the relative safety of a trench line. From this position he observed several of his wounded comrades Lying helpless in the fire-swept paddy. Although he knew that 1 man had been killed attempting to assist the wounded, Pfc. Martini raced through the open area and dragged a comrade back to a friendly position. In spite of a serious wound received during this first daring rescue, he again braved the unrelenting fury of the enemy fire to aid another companion Lying wounded only 20 meters in front of the enemy trench line. As he reached the fallen marine, he received a mortal wound, but disregarding his own condition, he began to drag the marine toward his platoon's position. Observing men from his unit attempting to leave the security of their position to aid him, concerned only for their safety, he called to them to remain under cover, and through a final supreme effort, moved his injured comrade to where he could be pulled to safety, before he fell, succumbing to his wounds. Stouthearted and indomitable, Pfc. Martini unhesitatingly yielded his life to save 2 of his comrades and insure the safety of the remainder of his platoon. His outstanding courage, valiant fighting spirit and selfless devotion to duty reflected the highest credit upon himself, the Marine Corps, and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for April 21, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
21 April
1911: Lts Thomas DeWitt Milling and Henry H. Arnold received orders to Dayton for flight instruction at the Wright School. (4)
1913: Mr. Boise Penrose of Pennsylvania proposed the first aircraft registration and license bill in the Senate (S.1295). (24)
1933: The Navy's dirigible Macon made its maiden flight. (24)
1948: KEY WEST AGREEMENT. The SECDEF issued a memo to his Secretaries, with a paper defining the functions of the services and the JCS, based on the National Security Act. It was the first functions paper drawn up after the act. The Air Force received responsibility for the air defense of America. (20)
1950: Lt Cmdr R. C. Starkey took off from the USS Coral Sea in a P2V-3C Neptune bomber with a gross weight of 74,688 pounds. This was the heaviest aircraft launched from a carrier to date. (24)
1951: KOREAN WAR. An SA-16 from the 3 ARS tried to pick up a downed enemy YAK pilot near Chinnampo for intelligence purposes. The aircrew landed and put out a raft but had to take off because of intense enemy fire, leaving the YAK pilot behind. (28)
1952: In aerial combat, Capt. Robert J. Love, 335 FIS, destroyed two MiGs to become an ace. (28)
1953: Operation LITTLE SWITCH. Through 15 May, the USAF airlifted more than 150 sick and wounded former prisoners of war from Korea to Japan and from Japan to the US. (21) 1960: The USAF retrieved the instrument capsule from a Titan that had flown 5,000 miles. (24)
1961: Maj Robert White set a speed record in the X-15's first full-throttle flight. At 79,000 feet, he attained 3,074 MPH before coasting upward to 105,100 feet. (9) (24)
1964: The numbers of ICBMs and bombers on alert in SAC were equal. Hereafter, the ICBM became the dominant alert force. (1)
1967: SAC declared its 20th Minuteman squadron, the 564 SMS at Malmstrom AFB, to be operational. When the squadron's last Minuteman IIs went on alert in May, the deployment of a 1,000- missile Minuteman force ended. (1) (6) 1969: SECAF Robert C. Seamans, Jr., and NASA Administrator Thomas O. Paine signed an agreement to establish a joing civilian-military manned space station. (16)
1972: The F-111 Joint Test Force at Edwards AFB flew an F-111A on its longest flight to date—5,400 nautical miles in 12 hours.
1975: Lt Col Fred C. Hartstein of the 1st Combat Evaluation Group at Barksdale AFB flew a operational KC-135 from March AFB to refuel Rockwell's B-1 Lancer for the first time. (1) 1995: Geraldine P. May, first director for Women in the Air Force (WAF), celebrated her 100th birthday at her residence in Menlo Park, Calif. May, who was born in Albany, N.Y., entered the Women's Army Corps in 1942. She became WAF director on 16 June 1948, and held the position for nearly three years before leaving the service in the early-1950s. (AFNEWS, 21 Apr 95)
2003: The last of 546 AMC KC-135 tankers completed the final PACER CRAG modification. Eight program depot maintenance facilities ran 25 production lines to install PACER CRAG upgrades. It took approximately 4,150 man-hours to modify each aircraft. (22)
2005: While offloading 84,000 pounds of JP-8 fuel to three aircraft over Iraq, a KC-135R Stratotanker from the 92 AREFW at Fairchild AFB achieved a historic milestone while assigned to the 340th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron. The tankers exceeded one billion pounds of fuel offloaded in the US Central Command's theater since 30 January 2003. (22)
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Thanks to Eagle for this one
Friends,
While acknowledging that some of the information in this long newsletter may have some inaccuracies and some of the linkages may be exaggerated, if even half are true it is very depressing. China appears to be playing an aggressive game of chess while our feckless government (both political parties) seemingly has forgotten even how to play checkers. We badly need new leadership!!
April 15, 2023
Special Edition
DECLINING U.S. DETERRENCE,
INCREASED VULNERABILITY
AND OUR FUTURE IN
CHINA'S NEW WORLD ORDER.
By: Marvin L. Covault,
Lt. Gen. US Army retired
April 12, 2023
ASSERTION:
China wants to control the world, as in, "To exercise authoritative or dominative influence over." One might even alter this official definition by substituting "and" for "or".
FACTS BEARING ON THE PROBLEM:
What follows is a potpourri of what I believe to be critical issues associated with China's long-range strategic plan to control the world. I further believe they are well past the planning stage and at least into phase 3 of execution. This conclusion becomes more obvious when we take a look at what our four existing enemies, China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are doing.
CHANGE:
Changes in foreign affairs and foreign relations can be good, advantageous, bad, fast, slow, uplifting, dangerous, etc. If it is a combination of fast and bad, we need to recognize it, admit to it, and then do something about it. The U.S. may already be so far behind the power curve that we cannot save ourselves.
WHAT OUR ENEMIES ARE UP TO:
China's Achilles' heel has been the availability of natural gas and oil. They currently import 10-12 million barrels of crude oil per day from two major oil sources, Russia and the Middle East. Included in all of their recent foreign relations are actions that will insure a sustained future supply of oil and gas
2001: For decades during the post-WW II Cold War period, China and Russia were at odds with each other over which one was to be the dominant figure in transitioning the world to communism/socialism. Those days concluded in 2001 when China and Russia signed a long-range friendship and cooperation treaty.
2013: China's Belt and Road Initiative, launched by Xi Jinping, is a multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure program that is intended to link China with more than 100 of the 195 world countries. China has provided funding for roads, railroads, power plants, ports, mining, and energy projects. Some of the projects consist of huge loans to poorer countries that ultimately cannot be paid back to China. China then uses leverage and bartering to gain control over critical natural resources.
CHINA AND RARE EARTH ELEMENTS such as cobalt, nickel, copper, and lithium are essential components in producing renewable energy technology, semiconductors, and other electronics. Access to these resources has never been more important; they will define future economic growth. China has taken the lead in this global "gold rush." China's mining companies are merging with other firms, creating a global force in the extraction of rare elements. Additionally, China holds a monopoly in processing the elements with 80% of U.S. refined rare earth elements imports coming from China. For example, it is reported that China controls about 80% of the mineable lithium deposits in the world. So, what happens when the U.S. has 50 million electric vehicles on the road and we are out of lithium for new batteries?
November 2020: There was a signing ceremony in which 15 Asian nations, led by China, agreed to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership which casts China as a champion of globalization and multilateral cooperation in a multi-nation effort towards freer trade and future prosperity. It is the world's largest free trade bloc. The U.S. is not included.
March 2021: China and Iran signed a strategic cooperation agreement that includes oil and mining rights for China, military cooperation, and China's $400 billion economic investment. China is Iran's leading trade partner. This is a significant step in reducing U.S. influence in the Middle East, crippling the U.S. sanctions on Iran and firming up China's future supply of imported oil.
June 2021: Putin and Xi Jinping announced the extension of the 20-year-old friendship and cooperation treaty.
February 2022: Putin and Xi Jinping signed a new statement that outlines a bold New World Order and a partnership between the two states without any limitations. It openly declares against NATO and its concern over AUKUS, a security partnership between the U.S., Australia, and the United Kingdom. The most crucial element of the joint declaration was their alliance against the U.S. Additionally, they signed a new deal under which Russia will deliver gas to China via the Far Eastern route strengthening their energy cooperation.
June 2022: China's crude oil imports from Russia soared 55% from a year earlier, surpassing Saudi Arabia as China's top supplier. This happened despite sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
September 2022: Putin, Xi, and the president of Mongolia agreed to a plan for a new pipeline capable of delivering 50 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia to China via Mongolia.
December 2022: China and Saudi Arabia released a statement agreeing to a range of issues including energy, security, Iran's nuclear program, the crisis in Yemen, and Russia's war in Ukraine.
January 2023: Notwithstanding the three-year Covid bump in the road, China's economy is on track for a resurgence. China's Gross Domestic Product growth over the last 10 years was 6% or better annually until Covid hit in 2020. Their target GDP growth for 2023 is 5% while defense spending is 7.2%. By the way, the U.S. GDP growth in 2023 is projected to be south of 2%.
March 2023: China and Brazil, the largest economy in Latin America, have agreed to stop trading with the U.S. dollar and use their own currencies instead. They will carry out their immense economic dealings without use of the dollar as a medium of exchange. Twenty-three countries representing about 60% of the world's GDP are setting up swap lines that bypass the U.S. dollar as the medium of exchange. Included in the 23 are Russia, China, India, Germany, France, and the UK.
23 March 2023: China and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement granting Saudi Arabia the status of a "dialogue partner" in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a club of mostly ex-Soviet states as well as other major economic players such as India and Pakistan. This agreement is a step towards full membership for Saudi Arabia. As Ali Shihabi, a Saudi analyst put it, "The traditional monogamous relationship with the U.S. is now over."
1984: Iran was designated a State Sponsor of Terrorism. Since 2005 EU, UN, and U.S. sanctions have targeted Iran for violating treaties under which it promised not to pursue nuclear weapons. By 2015 the sanctions resulted in unemployment and high inflation rates thereby devastating Iran's economy.
When was the last time you saw a product that was "made in Iran?" The point is, Iran's economic highs and lows are directly tied to the export of oil. It follows that Iran's support of terrorism and its nuclear program are therefore also tied to oil export income. President Trump tightened down the sanctions on Iran and crushed their economy. Oil exports plummeted from 2.1 million barrels a day in 2017 to 404,000 in 2020. President Biden relaxed the sanctions to get back the failed nuclear agreement with Iran and their oil exports nearly doubled in 2021 and continues to rise every day since.
2016: Russia agreed with Iran to build nuclear power capabilities inside Iran which has obviously been advantageous as their nuclear production capability is now imminent.
March 2021: Iran and China signed a 25-year cooperation agreement that will strengthen their relationship concerning political, strategic, military, and economic components. China has contracts totaling hundreds of billions of dollars in Iran's gas and oil industry including exclusive rights to several Iranian oil and natural gas fields. It is not lost on China planners that Iran ranks as the fourth-largest reserve of oil and the second-largest reserve of natural gas in the world. Iran has signed on to China's One Belt and Road program as a key part of China's geopolitical ambitions in central Asia and the Middle East. They are also linked militarily with China providing advanced systems to include control technology for long-range missile development.
January 2022: Iran, China, and Russia held their third joint naval drills in the northern Indian Ocean. There also continue to be Chinese nuclear experts, scientists, and technicians present in Iran.
20 July 2022: On his first trip abroad since the invasion of Ukraine, Putin visited Iran to, "Strengthen our cooperation on international security issues, making a significant contribution to the settlement of the Syrian conflict." The same day Iran's oil ministry signed a $40 billion deal with Russia which includes developing Iranian gas fields and building new gas export pipelines.
1 March 2023: Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Colin Kahl reported to Congress that, "Iran can produce enough fissile material for one nuclear bomb in about 12 days."
11 March 2023: After years of hostility, China brokered a deal whereby Saudi Arabia and Iran will reestablish relations; reopening embassies in Tehran and Riyadh within the next two months.
February 2023: CIA Director says Russia is offering Iran help with its missile program in exchange for military aid; and says the partnership is, "growing in a very dangerous direction." Now that Russia is struggling through a war in Ukraine, Iran can reciprocate in their relationship by providing hundreds of attack drones to Russia thereby further strengthening their cooperation.
NORTH KOREA, RECENT HEADLINES:
North Korea has conducted 270 missile launches and nuclear tests since 1984; well over 100 of those since Biden took office.
2018, 2019: President Trump made three trips to Asia to meet with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un. We do not know what Trump said, but nuclear and missile testing stopped. They resumed a month after Biden took office and have continued at a torrid pace since.
In February 2023; North Korea fired four strategic cruise missiles demonstrating its ability to conduct a nuclear counterattack.
9 March 2023: North Korea launched six short-range ballistic missiles; describing their ability to attack military airfields in South Korea.
12 March 2023: While North Korea has been launching ballistic missiles from a submarine since 2016, the latest launch, 12 March 2023, is proof-of-concept of a more capable missile.
2023: North Korea launches a test missile with the range to hit the U.S. The White House says President Biden was briefed on the situation and will continue to consult with allies. OK, and………?
North Korea's growing nuclear arsenal and provocations have raised the urgency for South Korea and Japan to strengthen their defense postures.
China is considered North Korea's closest ally; they have had a mutual aid and cooperation treaty since 1961. Their relationship declined earlier this century over North Korea's nuclear weapons program. However, relations have been increasingly close since 2018.
U.S./SAUDI ARABIA RELATIONSHIPS THEN AND NOW:
Bilateral agreements, particularly in the energy and security sectors have endured between the U.S. and Saudi for decades. Saudi Arabia is one of the U.S.'s largest trading partners in the Middle East. The U.S. has been instrumental over the decades in organizing, training, and equipping the Saudi military.
The Obama/Biden and now the Biden administration's bungling of the nuclear issues as they apply to Iran have created a deep mistrust between Saudi Arabia in particular and other Middle East nations in general towards the U.S. They do not want a nuclear Iran and believe Biden has facilitated it.
In 2017, President Trump's first overseas trip was to Saudi Arabia which was described as, "A pro-American extravaganza" where Trump and the King signed a $110 billion arms deal.
Saudi Arabia is engaged in a war with their southern neighbor, Yemen. The terrorist group, Houthi, engaged the Yemen government forces in 2014 and succeeded in capturing most of the country. The ousted Yemen president asked Saudi Arabia for assistance. The Saudis put together a coalition of nine Middle East nations to assist. During the conflict, the U.S. provided intelligence and logistical support as well as the sale of arms to coalition states. The Houthi terrorist group is sponsored by and equipped by Iran. They routinely attack Saudi oil-producing areas and oil refineries. Because of all that, President Trump put the Houthis on the international terrorist list.
China's extensive move into the affairs of Middle East countries has been alarmingly rapid and extensive. Why? Because Biden facilitated it. During his 2020 campaign Biden frequently referred to Saudi Arabia as a "pariah" nation.
January 2021: Enter the Biden Administration. They immediately removed the Houthis from the terrorist list and canceled a Saudi order for military equipment needed to fight the Houthis. Biden went on to announce an end to American support for Saudi-led offensive operations against the Houthis. A perfect lesson on how not to treat friends and valued allies.
Additionally, during his 2020 campaign Biden labeled Saudi Arabia a "pariah state" over the murder of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Given those underpinnings, Biden's trip in July 2022 to Saudi Arabia to beg for oil ended up being all about a fist bump and was a national disgrace.
BIDEN AND ISRAEL:
It began with the Obama/Biden administration and has been exacerbated in the Biden administration; that is, they simply abandoned the U.S. decades-old policy of uncompromising support to Israel, our most valued friend, and ally in the Middle East.
March 2023: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was engaged in Israel's proposed judicial reform. On 23 March, Biden spoke publicly on the issue making it clear that Netanyahu is still not on his schedule for a White House visit, "Not in the near term", he said. This breaks precedent with every U.S. president for decades.
6 April 2023: Dozens of rockets were fired into Israel from Lebanon and Gaza by Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists. The response from President Biden, as he departed for a long Easter weekend, "My expectation and hope is that this will be closing down sooner than later." Wow, tough talk from the supposed-to-be leader of the free world and decades-old close and valued ally, Israel. Mr. President, "hope" is not a process.
U.S. LEADERSHIP IN LATIN AMERICA:
March 2023: Honduras recently cut ties with Taiwan and established diplomatic ties with China.
The opposition in Paraguay recently announced that if it wins the elections in April, it will do the same. In the past four years, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Panama have each switched their recognition from Taiwan to China.
March 2022: China has extended its Belt and Road infrastructure investment program into Latin America; there are 26 projects in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. Additionally, China has strengthened its military ties, especially with Venezuela. China has replaced the U.S. as Latin America's leading trade partner.
This is all happening despite President Biden's 2020 campaign pledge that he would restore American leadership to Latin America and counter China's growing influence there.
8 March 2023: "What concerns me as a Combatant Commander is the myriad of ways in which the PRC is spreading its malign influence, wielding its economic might, and conducting gray zone activities to expand its military and political access and influence."; testimony by General Laura Jane Richardson, Commander, US Southern Command, to the House Armed Services Committee.
The dominoes in Latin America are falling at an ever-increasing pace while the U.S. remains passively standing on the sidelines, politically and economically, watching as China turns the continent into its subject.
LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD:
The U.S. emerged on the world stage during World War I, that accelerated during WW II and through the Cold War. As a result, for decades the U.S. president has been referred to as, "The leader of the free world." That title was not ceremonial, it existed because the free world believed it. But President Biden's actions over the past two years have disappointed and disillusioned world leaders. For example:
The embarrassing and unnecessary military/political collapse in Afghanistan.
Disrespect for a leader who would instantly squander his nation's energy independence to make a trite political point.
Astonishment that President Biden would willingly and deliberately threaten our national security by opening our borders to millions of unvetted, untested criminals, gang members, terrorists, drug dealers, human traffickers, hundreds of thousands of unaccompanied minors, and millions of common folks with no known skillsets from over 170 countries.
Inability to admit to or deal with growing lawlessness across the U.S.
Obvious disinterest and/or inability to deal with North Korea's ramped-up nuclear and long-range missile testing.
His inability to speak to difficult and demanding world issues without a prepared script and/or staged Q and A.
His propensity to blame every, I mean EVERY, issue that is not going well for the American people on President Trump. No, zero, accountability.
And finally, the icing on the cake. The world watched the Russian buildup of an invasion force on the border with Ukraine from October 2021 through 24 February 2022. While China and North Korea refused to condemn the invasion, the remainder of the world thought otherwise. But the shockwave instantaneously hit the world when President Biden, in a rare extemporaneous moment, said, "Russia will be held accountable if it invades. It depends on what it does. It's one thing if it's a minor incursion and then we end up fighting about what to do and not do, et cetera." The world's interpretation of that statement is, a little invasion will be OK. Biden's minions moved quickly to issue a what-the-president-meant-to-say statement but the irrevocable damage had been done. Suspicions confirmed: the president of the United States can no longer be trusted or respected as the leader of the free world.
Our allies and enemies alike are wondering who is in charge. There are obvious global doubts about President Biden's physical and cognitive capacity to deal with the rigorous demands of a "leader of the free world."
U.S. MILITARY DETERRENCE:
Deterrence is a mindset outside the U.S. Simply stated, our allies trust us to have their back in international affairs and our enemies fear our military capabilities and willingness to take them on.
Here is a summary of an unclassified online U.S. military operation that definitively illustrates deterrence on today's battlefields and the connection between small unit operations to the military's most senior leaders.
June 2014: U.S. Launched Operation Inherent Resolve to destroy the Islamic State Group in Iraq and Syria, ISIS. Russia had committed military forces to Syria. The U.S. was allied with Kurdish and Syrian Democratic Forces against ISIS. Russia and the U.S. had opened a communications hotline to avoid direct conflict with each other.
February 2018: During one afternoon a small group of 30 U.S. Special Operations Forces plus their local forces watched a surveillance drone feed as an enemy force of about 500 troops, 27 vehicles, and Russian tanks and armored personnel carriers, about 20 miles away, positioned itself to attack the small U.S. outpost. The Russian element consisted of Wagner Group personnel. Wagner Group is a private military company of mercenaries that operates beyond the law under the control of President Putin. The U.S. higher headquarters in Qatar was alerted and air support was placed on strip alert. At 8:30 p.m. the enemy force moved out and a nearby U.S. ground quick-reaction force launched in support with anti-tank missiles. The enemy opened fire at 10:30. By then, former General Jim Mattis, then Secretary of Defense, was on the hotline with his Russian counterpart who declared the attackers were not Russians. Mattis, later testified before Congress, saying he immediately called the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and told him to take out the enemy force.
Waves of F-22 fighters, F-15E strike fighters, AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, AC-130 gunships, B-52 bombers, MQ-9 Reaper drones, and Marine artillery relentlessly attacked the enemy force. An enemy Russian mercenary survivor later said, "We should never have been there; our leadership messed up. The Americans knew exactly where we were." At about 1:00 a.m. the surviving enemy force fled the area leaving behind 200-300 KIA. One Syrian soldier at the outpost was wounded. There were no U.S. casualties.
A month later, a group of Syrian fighters and Russian mercenaries began a similar buildup, also near an American outpost. This time when Sec Def called his Russian counterpart the enemy forces immediately dispersed. That is deterrence in action on today's battlefields in today's ugly world where enemy countries, led by thugs, only understand power or the lack thereof.
January 2021- April 2023: Within the last two years, the Biden administration has dictated that the U.S. military, as an organization, sign up for diversity, equity, and inclusion, (DEI). This flies in the face of everything a capable military force must be and do. "Equity" is pure poison to any military organization. A new generation of leaders is being DEI indoctrinated. The force can no longer recruit America's best and brightest. Across the board, military standards are being lowered. Meritocracy, the foundation of every military organization from the squad to Army-level commands, is dying or already dead; mediocracy rules the day and the future is bleak.
August 2021: U.S. deterrence died when Commander in Chief Biden directed the cut-and-run operation from Afghanistan. Our in-country allies were left dumb-founded and in harm's way from the immediate Taliban takeover. U.S. citizens were left stranded in Afghanistan. Our long-time loyal individual Afghan supporters on the ground were abandoned and left to be hunted down and killed by the Taliban. All of this unfolded on the world stage within a few days.
6 April 2023: The White House released a 12-page after-action review of the Afghanistan withdrawal. A National Security Council spokesperson took questions as the President shuffled off to his helicopter for a long weekend at Camp David. The bottom line is that the Biden Administration, true to form, blamed the whole thing on President Trump. The report actually named Trump 14 times and uses the word "accountability" once. A fact-checked review of key actions tells a very different story. This was, pure and simple, Biden's withdrawal; here's why:
February 2020: The U.S. negotiated a withdrawal agreement with the Taliban that included many requirements and concessions from both sides. The date set for final withdrawal was 1 May 2021.
2020: Negotiations continued throughout the year with the Taliban continuously failing to meet their end of the agreement.
15 January 2021: U.S. force levels reached 2500 as required by the agreement.
19 February 2021: Biden, "My administration strongly supports the diplomatic process that's underway and to bring an end to this war that is closing out 20 years." at that point, Biden owned it, period.
7 March 2021: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he is "concerned that the security situation will worsen and the Taliban could make rapid territorial gains." Biden is aware of the tenuous situation.
25 March 2021: Gen. Richard Clarke, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command, testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee that "it is clear that the Taliban have not upheld what they said they would do and reduce the violence." More input to Biden.
14 April 2021: Biden announces that all troops will be removed by 11 September 2021.
18 May 2021 The Defense Department IG reports that during the first three months of 2021, "The Taliban initiated 37% more attacks than during the same period in 2020," More input to the President.
6 July 2021: The U.S. military has pulled out of Bagram Airfield. Why? Because the command could not simultaneously secure/operate Bagram Airbase and the U.S. Embassy (Biden's priority for security) in Kabul with only 2,500 troops.
8 July 2021: Biden moves up the timeline for full troop withdrawal to Aug. 31, saying, "The likelihood there's going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely."
6 August 2021: The Taliban takes control of its first province despite the agreement it signed with the U.S.
15 August 2021: Taliban fighters enter the capital; the Afghan president flees the country; the U.S. evacuates the embassy by helicopter.
Note: during the critical days of the collapse, Biden was at Camp David instead of in the White House situation room with his National Security team.
16 August 2021: In a speech to the nation, Biden said, "I do not regret my decision to end America's warfighting in Afghanistan," and deflected blame for the government's swift collapse.
26 August. 2021: 13 U.S. service members were killed by a suicide bomber at the Kabul airport. Why? Because the Bagram Airbase had been closed prematurely to meet troop constraint numbers. All air operations could have/should have been conducted out of a secure Bagram, not the unsecured Kabul airport. At any time during the chaotic early hours of the withdrawal, additional U.S./NATO troops could have/should have been brought in to renew Bagram operations.
31 August.2021: In a speech to the nation, Biden calls the Afghan withdrawal an, "extraordinary success."
6 April 2023: Following the release of the withdrawal after action review, the White House spokesperson said the administration is "proud" of the Afghanistan withdrawal. Tell that to the families of the 13 dead service members, Mr. President. But the president did not hear that statement because he snuck out of the White House, avoided reporters by not using the South Lawn helipad, motored to Fort McNair, and took his helicopter to Camp David for an extended Easter vacation. Pathetic leadership /accountability.
U.S. VULNERABILITIES:
Given that our deterrent posture has been shattered, that a New World Order led by China is rapidly emerging, that our reliance on decades-old alliances is suspect or nonexistent and, given the status of current U.S. leadership, where does the U.S. stand on the issue of vulnerability? let's take a look at some of what our enemies may be capable of doing to us.
6 May 2021, CYBER-ATTACK: A cyber-attack, believed to have been initiated in Russia, shut down one of the US' largest (5,500 miles) pipelines, highlighting heightened concerns over the vulnerability of the nation's critical infrastructure. The attack shut down the flow of gasoline and jet fuel across the South and up to New York for about a week. This is an example of our vulnerability to cyber-attacks. It was only an inconvenience but was certainly proof-of-concept success for Russia.
Biden's response: Biden and Putin met a month later at a scheduled international conference where Biden told reporters, "I gave him a list of 16 specific entities defined a critical infrastructure under U.S. policy from the energy sector to our water systems." This ridiculous response simply raised the question, is everything that is not on the list fair game for attack? A different response might have been a phone call; something like this:
"Vlad, this is Joe. I just shut down your gas and oil pipeline to China. I'm sure you will soon be hearing from our friend Xi. My people tell me that no matter what your techies do, we can keep it down for at least a month. I see three alternatives. One, you do nothing. Two, you retaliate with another cyberattack on the U.S. Keep in mind that we have all of your other pipelines queued up to also be immediately shut down. Or three, you and I can agree, today, that neither of us will ever again initiate a cyberattack on the other. I need your answer by this afternoon. Have a nice day, goodbye."
China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran all have sophisticated cyber-attack capabilities. Imagine if they ganged up under guidance from China and shut down all of the major gasoline pipelines for a month? We would likely see massive lawlessness and the beginnings of anarchy throughout the nation.
3 December 2022, POWER GRID: I was home in North Carolina when the lights went out. We were soon informed by Duke Energy that shooters had taken out two nearby electrical distribution substations leaving about 40,000 residents without electrical power for several days.
How vulnerable is our power grid? At least 6 such attacks occurred across the nation in 2021 and 20 in 2022.
Power Grid Facts: The power grid is a distribution system of power plants, substations, transformers, and power lines with about 55,000 substations like the one near my home in NC. The systems are increasingly decrepit, poorly maintained, and frightfully vulnerable to accidents, disasters, and enemy action including cyber warfare. Most of the system is unguarded. Low-tech in nature, these attacks can be highly organized and professionally executed.
Because the entire grid is so complex, any failure in the system has the possibility of creating a "cascading failure effect". When that happens, shutdowns can cascade like dominoes, and the entire grid can be subject to shutting down.
How vulnerable are we? Of the 55,000 substations, there are 30 that are most critical for the interconnection of the entire grid. Furthermore, by initiating a coordinated attack and destroying only 9 of those 30 interconnected substations, studies estimate the entire U.S. grid could be down for, "at least 18 months, probably longer."
Instantly it would not be 2023, it would be like 1823 or perhaps 1723 and we are not prepared for that. Consider this short list of what would no longer be available:
water supply,
telecommunications,
food production and delivery,
fuel extraction, refining, and distribution,
law enforcement,
emergency services,
hospitals, and
the reality that you may never hear from family and loved ones again; ever.
Immediate anarchy would prevail and tens of millions of Americans would be dead in the first month.
Could this happen? Yes, consider just this one scenario: Iran is the world's leading sponsor of terrorism with access to and some control over most terrorist organizations. Iran's leadership is morally corrupt and would like nothing more than to achieve their long-term and frequently stated goal of "Death to America."
The above information leads one to believe that a dozen 3-4-person terrorist teams of marksmen could simultaneously take down the 9 critical substations out of the existing 55,000 and thereby take America into darkness. Where would the terrorist teams come from? They may already be here after coming across our open border. Were the 20 attacks last year simply a series of proof-of-concept operations?
2023, UNPREPARED FOR WAR:
Results from recent war-game simulations with the U.S. vs China in the South China Sea, conclude the U.S. would run out of some types of critical guided missiles within a week. This is all unclassified information available to anyone including China.
Military equipment and munitions to Ukraine have reduced war reserves to such dangerously low levels that, under current production capabilities, some will not be renewed for 5-8 years. For example, there is one U.S. production facility for 155mm howitzer shells and The U.S. is capable of producing about 14,000 per month. On average Ukraine is firing 7,700 each day. You do the math.
Recent testimony in a Congressional committee revealed that the U.S. is currently dependent on imports of certain rare metals from China and Russia for the production of bullets, explosives, nuclear weapons, and an array of military equipment. For example, there is no domestic mine for antimony, a rare metal required in the production of ammunition. The U.S. currently relies almost entirely on China for antimony to be able to produce a single bullet.
ENERGY DEPENDENCE:
3 April 2023: Saudi-led oil producers announced they will cut oil production by one million barrels a day beginning in May. Since Biden's assault on the U.S. fossil-fuel production, we are continuously vulnerable to oil production abroad. This is a serious national security issue that the president will not even address.
STRATEGIC OIL RESERVES:
Strategic reserves are dangerously low. One year ago, we had 577 million barrels and today it is 371 million; down 36% in one year. Why? Biden sold off reserves to reduce U.S. gas prices before the 2022 election. The U.S. consumption rate is about 20 million barrels per day. Another serious national security issue.
ONE OF MANY EXAMPLES OF OUR OVER-DEPENDENCE ON CHINA:
Medicine: Chinese firms supply more than 90% of U.S. antibiotics, and 70% of Tylenol and recent studies found that about 80% of the basic ingredients in U.S.-produced drugs come from China. Imagine a call from Xi Jinping to Biden: " I have just ordered the cancelation of all shipments of pharmaceuticals to the U.S. unless you do (or don't do) "X". I need to know your decision this afternoon." You get the picture, that's leverage that would impact the life of every American. Leverage we do not have.
LEADERSHIP WEAKNESS:
28 January 2023: The Chinese spy balloon entered Alaska air space, collected data for seven days, and was shot down. What did Biden do? Nothing.
14 March 2023: A Russian fighter jet shot down a U.S. drone over the Black Sea. What did Biden do? Nothing.
SOUTH CHINA SEA:
1988: I was the deputy plans officer for the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions at U.S. Pacific Command Headquarters in Hawaii. I recall discussions about and seeing photos of habitable shacks on stilts being placed on reefs in the South China Sea by the Chinese. They would raise a flag, somehow provide provisions to the inhabitants and declare it was Chinese sovereign territory. Today structures at three of the man-made islands have been fully militarized with anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems, laser and jamming equipment, and long runways for fighter jets to be capable of controlling any nation utilizing those shipping lanes. It's important to note that one-third of all global shipping transits the South China Sea lanes. Additionally, Japan and South Korea together import about 5 million barrels of oil per day on that sea lane which can now be controlled by China. Without massive oil imports our two principal allies in that region, Japan and Korea, would be powerless within a few weeks. Another example of control resulted from brilliant long-range strategic planning and execution by China.
CHINA'S NAVAL FORCES:
2023: To control the world, China needs a world-class navy. In the past few years, China has concentrated on building modern surface combatants, submarines, aircraft carriers, fighter jets, amphibious assault ships, ballistic nuclear missile submarines, large coast guard cutters, and polar icebreakers. Its Navy has more than tripled in size in only two decades and has become the world's largest naval force, and there is no end in sight.
ELECCTROMAGNETIC PULSE (EMP):
An EMP occurs naturally in space but can also be a burst of electromagnetic energy produced by a nuclear explosion in the atmosphere. It is the ultimate weapon capable of completely destroying America in seconds. The size of the nuclear weapon and the altitude at which it is detonated determines the size of the destruction area. We will not see any damage but the electronic pulse will simply take out the electric grid and every object that has an electric component. For example, every vehicle would die in place and never move again. Every gadget in our homes would be worthless. No communications, water pumps, transportation, production, emergency services, nothing would work. U.S. nuclear retaliation would not be possible. Lawlessness would prevail; ammunition would become the operative currency. We would be a nation of hunter-gatherers and within weeks die by the tens of millions. Only a few would survive.
China and Russia have this capability. North Korea may have it. Iran wants it.
CONCLUSIONS:
Organizations that are great long-range strategic planners, like China, also tend towards agility and are capable of capitalizing on an unforeseen occurrence and accelerating their timeline to achieve their end state. That unforeseen occurrence was the self-inflicted wound suffered by the U.S.' despicable cut-and-run from Afghanistan in August 2021. Look at China's aggressive global activities toward control over the past 18 months; it's staggering. The Afghanistan withdrawal instantly created a circumstance that could lead to a rapid change toward a New World Order. U.S. leadership took a nose-dive in the minds of our enemies and allies. It created a vacuum that would/could be filled and China was ready, willing, and able to do so.
We are moving towards an increasingly polarized world.
We have forfeited our decades-old military deterrent status.
What has commonly been known as the "West" for decades is without a leader.
While NATO continues to grow in numbers, it does not appear to be a force to be reckoned with by any adversary beyond Russia.
The do-nothing United Nations will remain powerless because of the one-veto power of China and Russia in the UN Security Council.
The U.S. must take immediate steps to regain our energy independence or risk being leveraged by the China-led Middle East.
This president and this Congress need to take immediate steps to energize our military-industrial complex that can more rapidly refill depleted war reserves.
China is executing a plan to control the world and this administration has either chosen to not acknowledge it or we are aware but are clueless as to what to do about it.
"Woke warrior" is a contradiction. A woke military is a national security liability.
GLOBAL SUMMARY:
Asian nations are generally aligned economically with China. Latin American dominoes are falling fast and aligning with China. Russia has an energy stranglehold on Europe. Africa's strategic value is its minerals; China has massive control. Irrational Iran will very soon join the nuclear club. The Middle East is a mess and China now has greater influence than the U.S. Right now, India is a wild card in alignment with the U.S. or China. U.S. strength in Asia is our alliance with Japan and South Korea; can we protect their sea lanes? North Korea is in a very scary situation; rapidly advancing missile capability to deliver nuclear strikes and their leader, Kim Jong Un is an unpredictable nut-case. The depth and breadth of the alliances among China, Russia, and Iran do not bode well for the free world.
Just wondering; what are the chances that Xi Jinping has a thick file in his lower right-hand desk drawer entitled, Hunter Biden?
President of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, tweeted: "Sadly, it'll be very hard for US Foreign Policy to use arguments such as 'democracy' and 'free and fair elections' or try to condemn 'political prosecution' in other countries, from now on."
In my decades of watching change, deterrence, and vulnerability I have never seen anything as scary as what the United States of America is experiencing right now. I take no pleasure in depicting President Biden as a poor leader with questionable judgment and abilities. But don't just take it from me: Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense for the Obama/Biden administration, "Biden has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades."
BOTTOM LINE:
A couple of weeks ago a current video appeared on TV news showing a small child alone on a very small raft drifting down the center of the Rio Grande River on our open southern border with a border patrol agent running along the Texas river bank seeking to somehow rescue the child from an impending disastrous conclusion. The child was, rudderless, leaderless, fearful, vulnerable, and completely without control of his/her environment. What struck me as I watched that video was that I was watching an analogy of the United States of America at this moment in our history; rudderless, leaderless, fearful, vulnerable, and completely without control of the world we live in. The difference is, we do not, figuratively speaking, have a border patrol agent watching over us.
While the United States of America is the only nation that can counter China's relentless march towards control of the world, we are rapidly degenerating into an uneducated, lawless, tribal, woke nation mired in mediocracy.
Marvin L. Covault, Lt Gen US Army, retired, is the author of VISION TO EXECUTION, a book for leaders, and a new book May 2022, FIX THE SYSTEMS, TRANSFORM AMERICA as well as the author of a blog WeThePeopleSpeaking.com.
If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government,
then you are doomed to live under the rule of fools.
Plato
©2022 Rip McIntosh Enterprises. All rights reserved.
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