Shek

[quote=vetsforkerry]1. Don't speak the language. True, we have limited linguists, which is a liability. But, we do have a host of interpreters - I had 12 in my company which gave pretty good coverage
2. Don't interact with local political structures. Completely false - I went to city hall or local ministries on a weekly basis to work issues with/for leaders of neighborhoods in my zone. Local governments/councils/neighborhood advisory committees were set up by the military. These didn't happen spontaneously thanks to the encouragement and knowledge taught by Saddam! Read the news, there's weekly articles on civil affairs operations conducted by the millitary.
3. Don't know who the enemy is. Counterinsurgency is difficult. Because of its cell structure, dismantling one cell usually doesn't lead to discovery of other cells. We dismantled plenty of cells; the issue is developing intel on cells before they rise to the level of committing attacks - this is something that the fledgling ISF will have a better ability to do.
4. They don't get warning for roadside bombs. False. Check out www.strykernews.com and you'll find press releases on daily tips that led to the discovery of caches, IEDs, or VBIEDs. My most successful raids/missions were based on walk up sources that led my platoons/company to a target. Not all IEDs are discovered prior to detonation, but between current technologies, TTPs, and tips, somewhere between 75-90% and discovered prior to detonation based on the figures I've seen.
5. They don't have aerial recon with drones (like IDF). Wrong again. BDEs have TUAVs (tactical UAVs). BNs and COs have SUAVs (small UAVs). These have been used with great success. Try a google search on Shadow, Dragon Eye, and Raven, and you'll be much better educated on US UAV capabilities. Read the news (read some on the Nov assault on Fallujah) and you'll see how they're being employed.
6. They don't have 100% APC rides (the damn Humvees and trucks, not IDF). Bradleys (IFV) have protection against 30mm and reactive armor protection against RPGs. Strykers (APC with medium armor) have protection against 14.5mm and passive slat armor protection against RPGs. Both have extremely resilient against enemy fire. Strykers have participated in ops in Najaf, Fallujah, Mosul, Samarra, Tal Afar, Babil province, secured the ground LOCs south/north of Baghdad. Sounds like a who's who of major ops over the past year. If you have doubts, check out strykernews.com. Check out this account about "Kiowa Down", an OH-58D that was brought down by RPG in Tal Afar. A much different result than 11 years before in Mogadishu. http://www.armytimes.com/print.php?f...PER-452676.php
7. They don't really have a mission.......Last time I checked, we were establishing democracy. It definitely hasn't been a smooth path, but it is creeping towards the end state. You're pro-Iranian theocracy argument is very weak. al-Sistani has been the engine driving the Shia train, and he has explicity stated that there will not be a theocracy. Check out this article from yesterday for more info destroying your theocracy argument. http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion...3-peters_x.htm

Anon

Welcome aboard Sir.