Special Operations, Special Achievements

(How the U.S. Military needs success in expanding its elite forces)

By R.J. Godlewski*

©Monday, June 11, 2007, All Rights Reserved

 

 

            Some would call it quite sad that the terrorists and insurgents fighting our brave men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan are the ones that receive a great deal of attention from the global media. I call it despicable. Whereas before these terrorists seemed inclined merely to send innocent women and children to do their dirty work in the guise of suicide bombers, they have since opened a whole new shield to protect themselves from facing our forces one on one – improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. Allah must be damn proud of them.

            Because mainstream media is decidedly against our efforts in the global war on terror (to include, obviously, our efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Philippines, Somalia, as well as other places far too numerous to mention within the context of a brief article), it is therefore not very surprising that you should not hear of our successes in the war. While I could – and would very much want to – keep on the offensive against these offensive persons masquerading as journalists, I want to take this opportunity to write about those forces that are doing a damn good job at taking out the terrorists and insurgents – specifically those within our special operations and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) communities.

            Our present special operations forces (SOF) – Army Green Berets and Rangers; Navy SEALS; Air Force Special Operations; Marine Corps Forces Special Operations; CIA paramilitaries; etc. – are doing an extraordinarily great job in an extraordinarily brutal environment. Counterinsurgency warfare (COIN) is the kind of “up close and personal” combat that you’ll only find addressed in Hollywood action flicks, but with one slight adaptation – it’s real. Insurgencies are not only long-lived (Colombia has been fighting theirs for more than forty years and the Philippines has been fighting theirs for at least thirty-five years), but exceptionally low-tech in nature.

            While our own military and political leadership immersed itself within the orgasmic net-centric movement to replace warriors with sensors during the 1990’s – I’ll spare you the details of who was in power during this period – our terrorist enemies shifted towards the decidedly archaic but still effective approach of Sun-tzu. While we spent billions on developing ‘stand off’ weapons, the Islamists trained to sacrifice themselves by flying crowded airliners into crowded buildings. Our post-Cold War military trained itself to engage in limited strikes telegraphed in from air-conditioned offices while our enemies lived in caves to learn how to blow themselves apart. In short, our military was one of industrialization while our enemy became one of institutionalization – a manufactured and materialistic belief versus one inherently religious in nature.

            Once the dust from “Shock and Awe” settled down, our side began to realize – pathetically slowly – that we spent the billions on the wrong aspect of our military. Our enemy retreated to the hills, mosques, hospitals, schools, and the ‘dark alleys’ of the netherworld of low-intensity conflicts (LIC). While our leaders planned for a quick and decisive victory to be followed by the requisite ticker tape parades of admiring ‘free Iraqis’, our terrorist adversaries planned for a long, drawn out, and inhumanly vicious war where the only rules that existed were the ones that our side was obligated to follow.

            What’s saving our side from a humiliating rout is that our special operations community is the best in the business. They’re trained to literally fight anywhere, any time, and with pretty much whatever they can carry along. They’re pushed to such extreme levels of endurance that would make any mere contestant on Survivor soil their underwear during the first few minutes. Navy SEALS, for example, begin their training by being immersed into frigid water for a duration longer than that which would kill the more timid through hyperthermia. Then their training becomes difficult. They don’t call the Spec Ops community “snake eaters” for nothing.

            Sadly, however, the need to dump so much responsibility upon our SOF units has stretched their resources and taxed their personnel. Our leaders have finally realized this and are pushing the largest expansion ever for the U.S. Special Operations Command – 13,000 people joining by the end of 2012. This equates to a 57% growth for the Army; 19% for the Marine Corps; 9% for the Air Force; 8% for the Navy; and 7% for Government Civilian personnel. And, friends, we’re going to need every one of them. Herein lays a problem, however. Warriors are needed – not bodies. Just as “any decent soldier” is not necessarily a match for a guerrilla, any “decent” candidate is not equipped – mentally or physically – to become a Spec Ops soldier.

            It takes a very special breed of person to be able to determine the cologne preference of those they kill. Most soldiers consider fifty yards ‘close’; Spec Ops soldiers consider anything “beyond arms reach” as long range. It’s a shame that we rely upon these brave men to bear so much, but it’s an operational necessity – at the present. Our military and political leaders are slowly beginning to open their eyes as to the true nature of counterinsurgency warfare. They are beginning to understand that ‘Modern Warfare’ is anything but. The insurgents are waging a battle that began when Cain terminated his brother out of religious jealousy. The only thing remotely modern about this war is the level in which the conflict can be transmitted directly into our living rooms via a questionable media. Even this convenience is manipulated for effect: what you get is what they want you to see.

            As we rely upon our brave Spec Ops forces for our very survival – the Islamists view the coming “Clash of Civilizations” as the end, not the means – each of us holds a very important part in their future. Our political and military leaders need to end their departmental rivalries and spread SOF responsibilities evenly across the board. They also need to segregate requirements for the different units – just because a candidate can’t stomach 28°F water doesn’t mean they can’t be vicious warriors in the desert. Next, they need to give our forces the equipment that they need not what some politician needs to keep their constituents happy. What good are jobs if we lose one of our cities to a WMD attack? Military hardware should benefit military operations not local communities exclusive of protecting our freedom as a whole.

            For the rest of us, we can do many things to aid and support our SOF community. First of all, we can keep our political leaders – both Democrat and Republican – on their toes. Most of them will be retired and living the easy life off of our hard-earned tax dollars long before the war ends. We can’t permit their transitory careers to stand in the way of our posterity. Every action that every American makes should be thought of as affecting countless generations into the future because they do. We can also help by aiding in recruiting SOF personnel. If people within our society are motivated enough to make complete asses of themselves on national television for a few thousand dollars, just imagine what they’d do if they knew how relatively little value money has when we’re under attack. So, let’s get everyone to know it.

            Others can use whatever talent they have – be it creative, analytical, participative, or just supportive – to aid our military in the COIN effort. I, myself, am pursing my degree with an area of concentration in Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflicts. This is most decidedly a very long way from my original major in Astrophysics and I’ll probably never hold a weapon in anger in my entire life. However, what chance would I have of peacefully studying active galactic nuclei, as an example, while there are people out there who want me dead? By changing my academic studies – for the time being – I can perhaps adapt my own creative/analytical talents for the benefit of all. The SOF community may not want my services – as a civilian – but I sure as hell want theirs.

            The Islamist radicals who want a ‘final showdown’ between Muslim East and Christian West fully understand the seriousness of this brutal and inhumane war. They also understand that we’re timid, hate being inconvenienced, and have no stomach for things that last longer than a thirty second sound bite. Our Spec Ops forces are working their heart out to prove the enemy wrong. Isn’t it time that we do too?

 

Watch for my next article: Integrated Counterinsurgency (excerpted from the forthcoming book Integrated Counterinsurgency PSYOPS By R.J. Godlewski. “When the ‘hearts and minds’ approach fails…”).