Compass Points - Cognitive Dissonance
Time to get aligned.
Compass Points - Cognitive Dissonance
Time to get aligned.
May 7, 2024
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What is the biggest threat to the United States right now? China? Russia? Iran? North Korea? Perhaps the biggest threat is something much different. Perhaps the US is threatened by cognitive dissonance. It is not a new weapon system. It is a very old and very dangerous psychological condition. Cognitive dissonance is the psychological distress and discomfort that occurs when actions conflict with values.
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For example, one strong US value is freedom of navigation. Over the decades the US has gone to extraordinary lengths to maintain the freedom of the seas. The Houthis have reduced commercial ship traffic in the Red Sea by 70%. The Houthis could be completely defeated, but the US has chosen not to do so. The result? USNI news is reporting the Houthis are threatening to expand their operations.
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Houthi Brig. Gen. Yahya Sare’e said via a post on social media site X.
“If the Israeli enemy intends to launch an aggressive military operation against Rafah, the Yemeni Armed forces will impose comprehensive sanctions on all ships and companies that are related to supplying and entering the occupied Palestinian ports of any nationality and will prevent all ships of these companies from passing through the armed forces’ operation zone regardless of their destination.”
-- USNI News
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In reply, USNI news quoted a DOD spokesperson.
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“The Houthis continue to endanger commercial shipping that goes through that region, continue to put at risk U.S. forces, other countries’ forces in the region who want to see commerce continue to flow in a very crucial area in the Middle East,” a Department of Defense spokesperson told USNI News in an email Monday.
The spokesperson did not respond to USNI News’ questions asking how Central Command might restructure in order to counter the Houthi threat in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. Nor did they answer a question about reorganization in the Med in response to the Houthi claim the group could target ships heading to Israel.
--USNI News
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The DOD spokesperson cannot respond because of cognitive dissonance. The US values freedom of navigation but is not acting in alignment with that value. Cognitive dissonance.
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There is significant cognitive dissonance among senior Marine Corps leadership. In his recent testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Commandant said,
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The Marine Corps is, first and foremost, a warfighting organization. We exist to fight and win our country’s battles. Everything we do is with that one goal in mind. The character of war may change, but its essence never will – it is the violent struggle between two irreconcilable wills. That struggle is where Marines thrive. We ask for nothing more than the chance to be First to Fight.
-- CMC testimony SAC
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The Commandant makes clear the Marine Corps is at its very soul a warfigting force. Strangely, other senior Marine Corps leaders were recently quoted advocating a much different view of the Marine Corps. Two Marine General Officers speaking at the Modern Day Marine Expo 2024 explained that there is a new focus in the Marine Corps and "blowing stuff up" is now considered out of fashion.
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That new Marine focus, sensing threats and passing data, has been part of how force design has evolved, Heckl said. “As we went on this force design journey, we started out we initially thought of blowing stuff up, very kinetically oriented, now we realize through the stand in force it’s really the capability of sensing and making sense,” Heckl said.
-- Marine Times
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Freedom of navigation? Or, let Houthi do as they please? Cognitive dissonance.
Sit and sense? Or, fire and maneuver? Cognitive dissonance.
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Instead of cognitive dissonance the US and the Marine Corps need to align values and actions. For the Marine Corps, "locate, close with, and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver" can never be replaced with, "sit, sense, make sense, and pass data." What does the Marine Corps value? What does the US value the Marine Corps for?
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The Marine Corps can never be primarily a "sit and sense" organization, while at the same time primarily being a "fire and maneuver" force. Values and actions must align. Otherwise, all that is left is hollow words and cognitive dissonance. The Marine Corps is better than that. As the Commandant has made clear, the Marine Corps is a fighting force. Now, is the time to align Marine Corps actions in units, training, equipment, and capabilities with Marine Corps values. No more cognitive dissonance.
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USNI News - 05/06/2024
Houthis Threaten to Expand Range of Targets in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden
By Heather Mongilio
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SAC - 29 Apr 2024
STATEMENT OF GENERAL ERIC M. SMITH COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS ON THE POSTURE OF THE UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS BEFORE THE SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
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Marine Times - 05/02/2024
Marine Corps’ new Force Design approaches are paying off in operations
By Todd South
Waste of time effort and money
I want to take exception to this article.
https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2024/05/marine-corps-set-field-resupply-drones-all-logistics-battalions-2028/396353/?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mil-ebb
US Military’s “bright shinny object” attention is on the drone (Strategically, Operationally and Tactically). Why is the Marine Corps spending time, effort, and money on developing a Tactical Resupply Unmanned Aircraft System (TRUAS) drone that can carry a whopping 150 pounds for nine miles?…Wow! Pardon me for thinking like a rifle company commander here but one of the issues I was always concerned about during training (back in the day) was first actions after a fire fight (besides continuing the attack). I knew I would need to get a resupply of ammo in and causalities out. Let’s think about the fact that a 500 round can of linked machine gun ammo weighs just under 40 lbs. The “Wow factor” here is the TRUAS can carry four cans of machine gun ammo for a 6 machine gun rifle company on a single trip.
The other item I am going to need, for example, is water. Water weighs 8 pounds per gallon, therefore, a 5 gallon water can weights 40 lbs. The TRUAS might be able to carry 4 water cans (one per each platoon) for 20 gallons or 80 canteen quarts (20 per platoon). My point is with this small pay load, you are going to need a “swarm” of these just to resupply a single rifle company (with beans, bullets and bandages). In addition, I don’t believe that the TRUAS is going to fix the support problem of the MLR and neither is submersible drones.
I also came across this article: https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/04/here-is-our-first-look-at-the-usmcs-nmesis-nsm-being-launched-from-an-unmanned-jltv/
“With the NMESIS and ROGUE Fires, the US Marine Corps is looking at stepping up its Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) solutions, fielding a number of unmanned launchers which can be easily forward deployed on islands, with the Indo-Pacific zone in mind. The NMESIS (land based) coastal defense batteries, with the Naval Strike Missiles, will add more punch to the US Navy’s anti-ship capabilities.”
It looks like we are still chasing the failed WW2 Defense Battalion strategy. Note that the range of the NMESIS is just over 100 miles. IMHO that range ain’t going to cut it for a land based anti-ship missile in the Pacific or any other Ocean. In addition, the anti-missile technology is already here with the Arleigh-Burk Destroyer and the Iron Dome.
Strategically, I would like to know what is the recon gap between satellites and drones? At the operational level of war the anti-drone technology is also here and getting better. The Houthis have reportedly shot down 3 US Air Force Reaper Drones. Tactically there is a need for drones, providing they are small, light weigh, man packable, inexpensive, and can be passed out to every tactical leader from the Battalion CO to the Squad Leader.
Where should the focus be? The Marine Corps should be putting its time, effort and money into JOINT Command, Control and Coordination (CCC). If we fight a global war with the CCP it will take all the different strengths that each of the Military Services can muster. Marine MEBs and MEFs, since they are AIR/Ground MAGTFs and they can and should be the “first in”, should have the ability to plan and coordinate a JOINT strike. This includes Army land based missiles, Air Force squadrons including flights of B-52s (x3) loaded with anti-ship missiles, Navy ship and air launched missiles (the Navy P8 squadron has six aircraft each with has 11 launch stations). Now we are talking about winning a war quickly.
Let’s leave the development of logistic drones to the US Army and Amazon. Seems like the TURAS is only good for delivery of hot coffee and breakfast to the General Officer mess. Land based missiles develop seems like it belongs to the US Army Missile Command along with anti-missile defense. The Navy needs to concentrate on ship building and maintenance of amphibs and Alleigh-Burk Destroyers. It would be nice if the US Navy could throw in a couple Joint Strike CCC capable LCCs. They are going to need at least two for the Combatant Commanders; one East and one West of the Malaccan Straits.
As the old saying goes, “those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it.”
Compass Points - Cognitive Dissonance (CG) makes a great argument. CG is real and has led to military failure in the past.
Here’s an abstract written by Kurtis D. Lohide - Army Command and General Staff College which speaks to “How cognitive dissonance led to tragic surprise in the Persian Gulf War.” Strategic surprise affected both sides in the conflict. This is something for our current leadership to keep at the forefront in their thinking.
https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/citations/ADA273933