We are still short funding for a flight home and other expenses.  If I can't raise the funds very quickly, the embed may be cancelled.  This could be the start of something very good, so if you can, please help.

Thanks, and thanks for putting up with all the pitches. 

LW

I didn't retire to insult General Officers, it seems to be a perk of the status though, and this is the dumbest thing I have EVER heard any General say:

Earlier this year, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey said the sexual assaults might be linked to the longstanding ban on women serving in combat because the disparity between the roles of men and women creates separate classes of personnel — male "warriors" versus the rest of the force.

So you think they will be sexually assaulted LESS OFTEN if we train them to be Army Rangers and Navy SEALS and forward deploy them?  FFS!  Is there no one in on his staff that has the sense or courage to tell him what an asinine thing to say that is?  Or even have the courage to tell the nation and the Administration what an asinine idea this is.

Women may be able to start training as Army Rangers by mid-2015 and as Navy SEALs a year later under plans set to be announced by the Pentagon that would slowly bring women into thousands of combat jobs, including those in elite special operations forces

If you are new to this argument, you can review what some of us think here and here, here and I spoke about it here. 

I am going to try to keep this as PG as possible, but this is what we are talking about.

Evidently, they are going to start with SWCC teams, soon.  If you want to see what your best friends daughter or the babysitter you hired this summer are going to have to make it through if they decide that they truly are warriors at heart, have a look here and see what that looks like and make your own judgement if you think adding women to this career field is going to be a combat multiplier for America's Navy.

I bet Froggy and Uncle Jimbo would have much to say about this, having logged much seat time in the SOF world.  

And this is not something that is just going to involve a time/date stamp and a signature, it involves real world issues:

The military services are also working to determine the cost of opening certain jobs to women, particularly aboard a variety of Navy ships, including certain submarines, frigates, mine warfare and other smaller warships. Dozens of ships do not have adequate berthing or facilities for women to meet privacy needs, and would require design and construction changes

So now we have to build ships and subs around the needs of one gender over another.  Great.  Awesome.  Anyone else hear a cash register just ringing and ringing?  How "private" do these people think a camoflaged hole in the ground holding 2 SF soldiers on a deep recon mission overlooking a terrorist hideout is going to be? Or a Firebase in the Korengal?  How about a Patrol Base in the Shah-E-Kot?

You can call me a misogynist, a chauvinist pig, a he-man woman hater or any other name, but here is the deal:  Infantry Battle and Close Combat is not the realm of women and it never really will be.  If it was, all the other nations of the world, great and small, throughout time would be doing this.  The fact that no nation anywhere on Earth does this should be validation of that statement by itself.

Now some are going to counter with "Deebow, the ladies are flying Apaches and F-16s and dropping bombs on bad guys."  The sarcastic buttmonkey in me says "but yeah, so are drones flown from an air conditioned trailer in Nevada."  The warrior in me can say that there has never been a sweeter sound than a fighter pilot whose call sign was Viper 26 talking to me about gun runs in sweet dulcet tones that pleased the ear. I have seen both sides.

But we aren't talking about reflexes, hand & eye coordination and good eyesight.  We are talking about getting down and dirty with our enemies at bad breath distance where lead, steel, muscle, and bone are going to collide with terminal force after living in the mud for weeks and huddlling together to stay warm and talking about their girlfriend's sexual appetites trying to stay awake while protecting their sleeping friends. 

This idea that we can reshape our force by allowing women to be snake eating Navy SEALS and make us more combat effective is the pinnacle of Libturd thinking.  General Dempsey believes that the US Army can make standards in these unique career fields "gender neutral."  Well General, they already are.  You have to be able to demonstrate for the Blackhats that you can do the buddy-run carrying the man next to you until they say "ENDEX" and not end up with stress fractures in your hips and shoulders. You have to be able to do as much as the man next to you in your boat crew, for as long as the Navy SEAL screaming at you from the top of the berm tells you to do it.  You have to be able to carry your battle rattle, and maybe that of your wounded buddy, for miles and not completely destroy your body doing it.  The battlefield is an unforgiving place and you don't get safety stand downs when you get hot and tired and the fighting doesn't stop just because your needs aren't being met.

So if this is the wave of the future, let's take some more laps around Socially Retarded Park.  I want the NFL, NBA, and NHL to be co-ed and I want the college versions of that co-ed as well.  I want to see what happens when female fullbacks in the NFL crash into Ray Lewis to lead block for a male halfback.  I want the MMA co-ed as well.  I mean, why can't a 135 pound Bantamweight men fight a 135 pound Bantamweight woman? 

Equality in opportunity doesn't make us better warriors.  The 5'4" 150 pound 18 year old high school volleyball player who decides to be an Infantrywoman is never going to be the same caliber of soldier that the 5'10" 180 pound high school football player is.  That ain't me talking fat crap out my bunghole, that is undeniable observed fact from my quarter century of military service.

Let me tell you how this plays out on the battlefield:  Because little Suzie Infantry isn't physically strong enough to overpower the Taliban man and stab him in the guts while wearing 70 pounds of equipment, the MAN next to her now has to fight one more enemy combatant.  Because Little Suzie Weapons Sergeant will have to carry the same amount of ammunition as the MAN next to her, the entire ODA will move slower (and get shot more) in battle.  Because Little Suzie SWCC operator will be wearing half her body weight in equipment instead of a quarter of her body weight in equipment like the MAN next to her, she will swim slower to rescue the MAN next to her.

In all of this debate about the roles of women in our armed forces, not one person in power from either party, nor any person who is making decisions on policy has explained to me, or any of my comrades, or the nation for that matter; how putting women in these positions ENHANCES or MULTIPLIES our nation's combat power. 

I am not afraid to say it:  I value what women provide to our society more than I value their equality in opportunity to face our nation's enemies in close mortal combat.  If that makes me a misogynist, I am OK with that.

General Dempsey's dumbass theory aside (but not too far aside; it is still f'ing dumb), this is the most dangerous and backwards thinking and implementation of an idea in human history and is going to cost the lives of many of our young men and women before being assigned to the ash heap of history.

The defense budget for 2014 is starting to take shape and we are going to be taking a good look at some of the items in it. Money is obviously tight, so we need to make certain that it is spent wisely and for the right reasons. All too often politics, lobbying and factors that have nothing to do with national security push programs and spending. In an era of austerity we simply can’t afford this.

The Chairman’s mark of the Defense Authorization Act is out and there are many good things in there. Rep. Buck McKeon is a solid advocate for a strong defense and this is his chance to comment on priorities and goals for defense funding. Most of the relatively short document relates to policy and has some requirements for explanations of debacles like Benghazi. But there are also some funding items that don’t make much sense.

One of these is a requirement to buy F-18 aircraft, which is a bit of a head scratcher. We cancelled the F-22 program before we bought anywhere near as many true air superiority fighters as we should have. We have cut back severely the number of F-35s that we plan to buy, but somehow we can find the money to buy a completely different and significantly less capable bird. That smells distressingly like some corporate welfare for Boeing, who makes the F-18.

I am unaware of any purely tactical or strategic military argument for splitting the funding for our fighter aircraft. There was a time back in the day where we had the F-14, 15 & 16 birds with different mission profiles and we let Northrop, Boeing and Lockheed duke it out to see how many of each we were going to buy. But we came to the logical conclusion that too often led to a contest between retired generals to feather their own company’s nest.

Now we have gone to an up front competitive model, where the mission profiles required are determined and then the contractors compete to see who can build the best bird. You can question whether this limits the strength of our defense industrial base with a winner takes almost all approach, but it makes more sense than trying to build, field and support multiple platforms that all require separate design, manufacture and support infrastructures.

We had a competition for the Joint Strike Fighter and Boeing lost. I am sure that was a very sad day in Washington state, but that is the way the game is played. The question then is why we are buying another of their older and nowhere near as survivable aircraft, the F-18. Fielding two birds with essentially the same mission means we have to train two sets of maintenance folks, build two separate supply chains and take resources away from the aircraft we are counting on to keep us in control of the skies. Maybe Sen. Durbin can shed some light on that.

The Senate Appropriations Defense subcommittee is bringing in two service chiefs and the Pentagon’s top weapons buyer to testify on the F-35 program next week.
The panel, chaired by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), announced the hearing on Friday.

Running a defense company is complicated and damned hard, but that doesn’t mean tax payers should be on the hook for keeping it afloat. Boeing has tens of billions of dollars in contracts and paid less than zero dollars in taxes. They actually got a $124M refund in 2010. Seriously?

 If someone can articulate an actual case for why we need these birds, I will listen. But corporate welfare for a company that seems to be able to avoid paying any taxes doesn’t seem like one to me. The Russians are sending some pretty advanced surface to air missiles to Syria and have basically told us a no fly zone is a no go for them. We can’t assume that we will have unopposed air superiority anywhere we decide to fly. That means we need to be spending our money on the most effective aircraft to achieve that mission.

The Juno Beach Centre

Today we arrive at Courseulles-sur-Mer and Juno Beach, and what I regard as the single best museum on all the beaches -- the Juno Beach Centre. 

A tank with a difference

Arriving under a grey sky (if you don't like the weather in Normandy, wait an hour), a tank caught my eye.  Now, there are lots of tanks on display up and down the beaches, but this one is different. 

Land or sea drive

This was one of the few surviving amphibious tanks from the landing.  The idea was to add in a propeller propulsion system, an inflatable skirt, and have the tanks sail in to the landing on their own.  Once they hit sand, the propellers could be disengaged, and the skirts cast off as they moved forward.  It was a great idea -- on paper.  In practice, the sad truth is that many (if not most) sank on the way in. 

A 2-inch anti-tank gun

Many of those that did make it ashore found guns like this waiting for them in what were called "Tobruks" armored turrets that could swing and fire 360.  You've seen photos of the basic mounts for them in previous posts. 

The guns ultimately lost the duel

In fact, this gun (mounted close to where it stood on D-Day) was one of about ten guns in a linked position designed to protect the harbor. 

In front of the centre

The Juno Beach Centre catches your eye from a ways off, not merely for all the flags out front, but because the exterior is made of titanium scales and glass.  When the sun is out, there is no way to miss it.  Even when cloudy, it does tend to stand out a bit. 

A memorial to the troops, coming out of the waves

I've done a study of the statue in front, which will go up at Laughing Wolf one day soon.  I'm trying to keep all the "art" photos there.   The statue is enigmatic, and one of the better ones out there in my opinion, at least for the non-realistic ones. 

Once inside...

Walking inside plunges you into warm woods and a very friendly staff.  Given my experiences the day before with the Bunker museum, it was a true delight to be greeted with warmth to match the tones.  In fact, I want to commend both Kelly and Emily for the wonderful experience.  They made me welcome, arranged for me to talk with some senior staff, and provided service I had not experienced to date in any museum. 

Images of war time

While waiting to enter the museum proper, I spent time in a temporary exhibit detailing bits of wartime life, at home and overseas.  To get into the museum, you enter through a chamber that provides screens on all sides, where you hear recordings, see photos and movies, and go through some of what may have been going through the heads of the Canadians coming ashore at Juno. 

Once the door opens

Once the door opens at the end of the surround-experience, you enter to find out what Canada was like in the early 1930s and on up to wartime.  The progression as you go is to move through the years up to and through wartime, and in the end up to modern Canada. 

Moving towards the war

While every museum I visited used dioramas, this museum was designed to be interactive and make use of the latest in sound, video/movies, and images.  In fact, the figure you see in the front right of the photo indicates to children that they can use sets given at the ticket counter to do interactive activities and learn more. 

Movies and more relating to the war years

In fact, the use of multi-media was almost overwhelming at one point.  One thing done by the Centre and those behind it was an effort to interview what seems to have been as many survivors of Juno as possible, and to present a variety of stories about life.  Where video wasn't possible, audio was done.  Where there was no audio, there were opportunities to hear letters being read by others, to share as much as possible. 

Modern Canada, looking out to the future

One thing I truly loved to see was a continuous scroll of those lost to the war as one moved out into modern Canada.  They took the time to set up an area that provided a quiet contemplation of the losses experienced. 

Emily conducting a guided tour

I had signed up to be part of a guided tour, and Emily did a very good job.  Sadly, I don't think much of the video I shot will be usable thanks to strong winds making a hash of the audio.  Here, you see her explaining the anti-ship obstacles, and how they were also designed not to provide cover to infantry. 

A nasty surprise

On the bunker we toured, Emily also showed us a nasty trick designed to protect the bunker.  What looks like a standard ventilation hole up top in fact loops down to the opening below.  When/if someone drops a grenade into the ventilation hole to try to kill those inside, it comes right back out at their feet, and the trench was designed to maximize the effect as much as possible. 

The cut to the beach

The cut to the beach uses artwork to protect and remind.  There are several nice touches, and I urge you to check them out. 

So the Inuit who fell can find their way home

For those interested, the museum was the idea of a veteran of Juno who came back to visit, and was not happy with the lack of a Canadian memorial and information on Canada's participation.  So, he and others worked to create this non-profit non-governmental centre to fill that void. 

So, what can I say.  A museum that makes full use of multi-media and immersion; that makes things as interactive as possible, especially for children; that takes the time to lay the groundwork so that any visitor of any age can gain a better understanding of history and culture; and, that leaves room for the future.  I would say that the void is filled, and there is more filling to come.  WIth the help of volunteers, a section of tunnel is being cleared so that those on guided tours can add that to the experience. 

It was a large regret of mine that I could not be there on D-Day for the 10-year commemoration of the Centre.  Trust me, it would have been a much better and more professional experience that where I was stuck at the time.  Here, the Canadians have done it right, and this is one of the true don't-miss stops in visiting the D-Day beaches. 

LW

This trip and other embeds sponsored by MilitaryLuggage.Com and B.N. Shape Clothing.  Normandy coverage also made possible by Enterprise Rent A Car Caen Railway Office.   My thanks to them and to everyone who has contributed to make this and other trips possible. Be sure to check out my Facebook Page and Laughing Wolf for other photos, stories, and more. 

A variety of advertising sponsorships are available, and you can contribute to this trip and other embeds at GoFundMe. 

Our dear friends the Russians are pushing the reset button on plans to help out the rebels in Syria. I guess someone missed the fact that they happen to be very good friends w/ Mr. Assad.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia, a veto-wielding member of the U.N. Security Council, will not permit no-fly zones to be imposed over Syria, Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said on Monday.

"I think we fundamentally will not allow this scenario," Lukashevich told a news briefing, adding that calls for a no-fly zone showed disrespect for international law.

I wonder how they will feel when we are arming the folks fighting their allies? My guess is they will not be tickled.

A restored Churchill on display

As you travel along the D-Day beaches, particularly along Sword, there really are monuments and memorials every few hundred meters, if not closer.  Part of this has to do with the large number of small towns and villages that line what is now Sword Beach, and part to do with the intense fighting that took place that day. 

Military and civilian casualties

The fighting took a toll on troops, buildings, and civilians in the area.  Many of these memorials list all those killed in battle, which is a good thing in my book.  Note the bunker just behind and to the right. 

This was (is) a 50mm German anti-tank gun, and this particular one has a nasty history.  As you can see, it was protected from direct fire from the sea by a very thick wall, yet it had clear shots up towards Juno and down along Sword.  If my notes are correct, it is located in or near Luc-sur-Mer. 

The view down Sword

This particular gun took out the first tanks ashore in the area.  It's fire was devastating. 

Fire into the town

In addition to sweeping the beaches, it was sited so that it could fire down the streets of the town at anything trying to swing around and come in behind.  It did so, to great effect. 

Looking back up at the bunker

It was a tough nut to crack, but an assault by three tanks finally took the gun out that morning. 

Honoring those who fell

There are more, of course.

Lion sur Mer

Tomorrow, we reach Courseulles-sur-Mer and Juno Beach proper.  In addition, I will get to introduce you to what I think is the best museum on the beaches, bar none. 

LW

This trip and other embeds sponsored by MilitaryLuggage.Com and B.N. Shape Clothing.  Normandy coverage also made possible by Enterprise Rent A Car Caen Railway Office.   My thanks to them and to everyone who has contributed to make this and other trips possible. Be sure to check out my Facebook Page and Laughing Wolf for other photos, stories, and more. 

A variety of advertising sponsorships are available, and you can contribute to this trip and other embeds at GoFundMe. 

Posted this last year and it seems appropriate again. Thanks for all of it Dad.

A couple of pics of my Dad from his days in uniform.

Vietnam 1st tour w/ the Big Red One

And 2nd tour w/ 11th ACR

Happy Father's Day and thanks for everything.

At the American Cemetery, 6 June 2013

Today marks the 238th birthday of the U.S. Army.  It is also Flag Day, and I would ask you to proudly fly our flag this day, to honor both occasions.  For many, they will celebrate by wearing the green they stood up and volunteered for.  To all who serve and have served wearing the green, my thanks.

LW

Even as I work on the video and some 2,500 photos from Normandy, I'm also preparing for a short embed to Central America.  A very kind gentleman has gotten me my ticket down, is there anyone with some American Airlines miles who would be willing to get me a ticket back?  Meantime, funds are needed to cover expenses.  If you can help, please hit my GoFundMe page. Thanks!

LW

Memorial to Royal, Merchant, and Allied Navies

At times it seemed you could not walk or drive 100 meters without coming across a monumnet of some sort.  In some stretches, walking was the only way you didn't miss any.  They are well worth seeking out, because each can unlock stories not well known. 

Some really don't need much in the way of translation, or explanation.  Walking down the beach one evening, a memorial caught my eye. 

5th Battalion Remembered

I realized that there was a larger group there, and went to explore. 

The entire group can be seen below

This was where a major push had come ashore, and the monuments tell the tale.  Being that this was in the Sword/Gold area, it is no surprise that there were several memorials to British units.

And the centerpiece is fairly plain

But one part told a bit more, a different tale, and a bit of history that I would venture is not well known to many Americans. 

An anchor lost, now found

A tribute to the sailors and ships of Norway

The Germans sent in torpedo boats, their equivalent of PT boats, and they did much more damage than most know.  One bit of that damage was the Norwegian destroyer Svenner.  It was sunk by torpedo attack that day. The anchor was found and recovered in 2003.

Just a bit of history to be found walking down the beach in Normandy 

LW

This trip and other embeds sponsored by MilitaryLuggage.Com and B.N. Shape Clothing.  Normandy coverage also made possible by Enterprise Rent A Car Caen Railway Office.   My thanks to them and to everyone who has contributed to make this and other trips possible. 

A variety of advertising sponsorships are available, and you can contribute to this trip and other embeds at GoFundMe. 

Un-Freakin'-Believable.

The Obama administration has concluded that Syrian President Bashar Assad's government used chemical weapons against the rebels seeking to overthrow him and, in a major policy shift, President Obama has decided to supply military support to the rebels, the White House announced Thursday.

Scandalabra has been kicking his regime's butt and dragging him down, but hey nothing a good war can't cure. I mean Syria-ously what has changed since this was well known months and months ago. If there was ever a time to support the rebels, it was a year and about 100,000 dead Syrians ago. Now the Islamists have firm control of the rebel groups and so we are trading a bad guy for equally bad guys.

Just out of curiousity, what do we get out of a proxy war with Putin's client state? That is quite a reset.

Okay, the Germans built a few thousand bunkers as part of the Atlantic Wall.  Some were log and sandbag; some were reinforced concrete; some were rock and brick; and, a few others made good use of available resources.  However, they lost and the French were left with thousands that were built such that taking them out could/would take out whole neighborhoods.  So, what to do? 

Secure Apartment

In this case, someone built a home/apartments into the bunker.  A storm might flood them, but otherwise it is unlikely to take out the core.  Just one of the imaginative uses to which I saw used bunkers put. 

There is more to come, but I apparently shot some 2,500 photos that now need to be processed.  I also shot video, and in addition to needing to upgrade software ($$) I need to learn new software to process it since a computer upgrade took out the easy options (no longer supported, of course).  So, there is more to come, and I will be flooding here and over at LaughingWolf.net in the days ahead.  In fact, if you would like to see some photos of Montmartre, Paris in the early morning, click here.  Also, a tribute to a good man who left us about the time I returned, go here. 

I can't wait to share more of Normandy with you, and hope you will enjoy it.

LW

This trip and other embeds sponsored by MilitaryLuggage.Com and B.N. Shape Clothing.  Normandy coverage also made possible by Enterprise Rent A Car Caen Railway Office.   My thanks to them and to everyone who has contributed to make this and other trips possible. 

A variety of advertising sponsorships are available, and you can contribute to this trip and other embeds at GoFundMe. 

Sadly yes.

 Rep. Jeff Duncan wants to know why IRS law enforcement agents are training  with AR-15 rifles.

As chairman of the House Homeland Security oversight subcommittee, Duncan  (R-S.C.) toured a federal law enforcement facility in late May and noticed  agents training with the semi-automatic weapons at a firing range. They  identified themselves as IRS, he said.

“When I left there, it’s been bugging me for weeks now, why IRS agents are  training with a semi-automatic rifle AR-15, which has stand-off capability,”  Duncan told POLITICO. “Are Americans that much of a target that you need that  kind of capability?”

I can say that I didn't do anywhere near as good a job training the IRS folks as I could have. Mainly it involved trying to get them to stop forming the semi-circle of death and shooting each other. Plus stopping all of them from yelling conflicting instructions at the same time to the people they were trying to arrest. I also audited their gear and levied a tax on several items I had a better use for than they did. Fair is fair.