The continuing issue seems to be a disconnect between a “National Strategy” and what the five branches of the military can deliver to meet the aims and interests of the United States. We have nearly a trillion dollar defense budget but to the jaundiced eye it really doesn’t support much, and when it does provide support the end results are generally poor or worse tragic. The latest example is the $300 million dollar “humanitarian relief” pier that was supposed be more or less anchored and attached to shore on the south Gaza coast. A nasty storm lashed the coast line and the pier was severely damaged and US military personnel by some accounts were in a pretty good spot of bother for a few days. The pier has been pretty useless until repairs are made, what if that pier was necessary to provide military logistics support to forward MEU, MAB, MEF units? Strictly relying on air dominance might not be enough or what if air superiority is not completely on our side. Force Design denuded the Corps of engineers, would our engineers even bother with a $300M self licking ice cream cone that falls apart in a storm? One highly doubts it, now the Corps is left with whomever can provide the logistical support beyond that integral to the expeditionary units? That doesn’t seem too bright a plan.
No doubt the war gaming center will have its value, but sometimes a rifle platoon commander confronted with the immediacy of a hostile action needs to be able to communicate with a KBar, sticks and rocks what he and his Marines need to do. Flip it on its ear, can FD deliver a straight forward and simple way to conduct operations that is better than the tried and true MAGTF? Which in turn ought to allow the Marine Corps to meet Title X mandates? No amount of war gaming changes hard facts. FD was a pivot away from reality, expensive, demoralizing and as it unwinds a disaster waiting to happen if the effort to continue the implementation keeps wasting, time, manpower and resources. Clear thinking….We had some the other day. “ Grab a book, and get busy.”
Agree 100%. When it comes to money, there is no accountability. The government, like any beuracracy, is not spending money as if it was theirs. Just throw more money at a problem. Too much neglect and fraud=cost overruns, equipment that doesn't work or worse.
The U.S. had better technology than our adversaries in the more recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. But better technology did not result in victory. Perhaps we should put more resources toward "muscle" and less toward fancy machines and eyeglass lenses.
Who will audit the results of the war games? Will Combatant Commanders set the scenarios for the Marine Forces they require? Will there be transparency of the results? Will 2 Combatant Command War Games be executed simultaneously? Will wargaming experts external to the Center be invited to observe? What will happen when these war games provide the evidence that Force Design is a massive failure and that immediate remediation by the Commandant, who as a Service Chief and responsible to train and equip Marine Forces to be provided to the Combatant Commander has failed? To be repetitive The Commandant has no Command of Combat Forces. Will the results of these War Games be classified ? Will the participants be forced to sign NonDisclosure Agreements. Finally where can I get some of the day vision/night vision glasses and are they transitional and progressive lenses. Amazon?
Regarding Operation Forager, You Tube Channel “Unauthorized History of the Pacific War Podcast “ on Saipan is an exceptional analysis of how well prepared the 30,000 Japanese Defenders were yet they failed to stop approximately 150,000 USN/USMC and US Army Amphibious Assaulters almost 80 years ago. So how will tiny MLRs w no artillery, tanks, etc etc…stop hordes of PRC Invaders. It should be a great battle to load into the General Neller War Simulation Center as a demonstration of its capabilities.
Will the new day/night glasses allow you to see the past and know how to avoid making the same catastrophic errors that led to 50 million dead in WWII?
Concur with Tom’s perspective. Perhaps we should also press hard on our civilian counterparts to conceive of, & promulgate, a sound achievable STRATEGY!
The continuing issue seems to be a disconnect between a “National Strategy” and what the five branches of the military can deliver to meet the aims and interests of the United States. We have nearly a trillion dollar defense budget but to the jaundiced eye it really doesn’t support much, and when it does provide support the end results are generally poor or worse tragic. The latest example is the $300 million dollar “humanitarian relief” pier that was supposed be more or less anchored and attached to shore on the south Gaza coast. A nasty storm lashed the coast line and the pier was severely damaged and US military personnel by some accounts were in a pretty good spot of bother for a few days. The pier has been pretty useless until repairs are made, what if that pier was necessary to provide military logistics support to forward MEU, MAB, MEF units? Strictly relying on air dominance might not be enough or what if air superiority is not completely on our side. Force Design denuded the Corps of engineers, would our engineers even bother with a $300M self licking ice cream cone that falls apart in a storm? One highly doubts it, now the Corps is left with whomever can provide the logistical support beyond that integral to the expeditionary units? That doesn’t seem too bright a plan.
No doubt the war gaming center will have its value, but sometimes a rifle platoon commander confronted with the immediacy of a hostile action needs to be able to communicate with a KBar, sticks and rocks what he and his Marines need to do. Flip it on its ear, can FD deliver a straight forward and simple way to conduct operations that is better than the tried and true MAGTF? Which in turn ought to allow the Marine Corps to meet Title X mandates? No amount of war gaming changes hard facts. FD was a pivot away from reality, expensive, demoralizing and as it unwinds a disaster waiting to happen if the effort to continue the implementation keeps wasting, time, manpower and resources. Clear thinking….We had some the other day. “ Grab a book, and get busy.”
Agree 100%. When it comes to money, there is no accountability. The government, like any beuracracy, is not spending money as if it was theirs. Just throw more money at a problem. Too much neglect and fraud=cost overruns, equipment that doesn't work or worse.
The U.S. had better technology than our adversaries in the more recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. But better technology did not result in victory. Perhaps we should put more resources toward "muscle" and less toward fancy machines and eyeglass lenses.
Who will audit the results of the war games? Will Combatant Commanders set the scenarios for the Marine Forces they require? Will there be transparency of the results? Will 2 Combatant Command War Games be executed simultaneously? Will wargaming experts external to the Center be invited to observe? What will happen when these war games provide the evidence that Force Design is a massive failure and that immediate remediation by the Commandant, who as a Service Chief and responsible to train and equip Marine Forces to be provided to the Combatant Commander has failed? To be repetitive The Commandant has no Command of Combat Forces. Will the results of these War Games be classified ? Will the participants be forced to sign NonDisclosure Agreements. Finally where can I get some of the day vision/night vision glasses and are they transitional and progressive lenses. Amazon?
Regarding Operation Forager, You Tube Channel “Unauthorized History of the Pacific War Podcast “ on Saipan is an exceptional analysis of how well prepared the 30,000 Japanese Defenders were yet they failed to stop approximately 150,000 USN/USMC and US Army Amphibious Assaulters almost 80 years ago. So how will tiny MLRs w no artillery, tanks, etc etc…stop hordes of PRC Invaders. It should be a great battle to load into the General Neller War Simulation Center as a demonstration of its capabilities.
Will the new day/night glasses allow you to see the past and know how to avoid making the same catastrophic errors that led to 50 million dead in WWII?
Concur with Tom’s perspective. Perhaps we should also press hard on our civilian counterparts to conceive of, & promulgate, a sound achievable STRATEGY!