DefenseWatch

With combat continuing in Afghanistan and anthrax cases continuing to emerge in the United States, federal authorities issued a strong alert warning on Monday that additional terrorist attacks may occur in the United States or against American targets overseas within the next week. The chilling message from Attorney General John D. Ashcroft sent a rush of adrenalin throughout an already nervous nation, particularly to the 18,000 federal, state and local law enforcement organizations that immediately went on maximum alert (if they weren’t there already).

A number of critics immediately sounded off, complaining that the alert – the second of its type issued since the Sept. 11 terrorist strikes – contained no specifics as to time, place or method of attack, but Ashcroft and other Bush administration officials were candid to say that the intelligence that led them to issue the warning did not indicate such details. Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge admitted that the administration has had to walk “a difficult and fine line” in deciding to issue such a warning based on classified intelligence sources and methods. Left unsaid was that it is imperative for the government to protect those very sources and methods that are vital to defending the nation from a ruthless and sophisticated terrorist enemy.

We have already seen frictions arise over the federal government’s uneven handling of the anthrax scare, particularly in what appears to have been a laggard response to contamination of U.S. Postal Service workers that killed two men. But an even more serious problem demands our attention and response.

What is truly frightening as this conflict enters its seventh week is that a large segment of the U.S. and European news media still fails to recognize that we are in a life-threatening conflict with an enemy skilled at exploiting information to evade detection and to counter our defenses. Too many media outlets recklessly continue to publish and broadcast news reports that betray the very sources and methods that the U.S. intelligence community is so desperately attempting to safeguard.

It took only 48 hours for several news organizations this week to learn – and trumpet worldwide – that the attack warning was based on intercepted satellite telephone calls and e-mails from one or more al Qaeda commanders hiding in Afghanistan. It would be bad enough if this astonishing and dangerous act were an isolated incident as the news media grapples with coverage of the war. It is not. Indeed, this is only one of the more egregious examples of a torrent of spilled secrets by newsgathering organizations more concerned with ratings and circulation increases than by the bloody consequences of their own selfishness.

Indeed, an even more serious incident occurred on Tuesday when the magazine New Yorker published a 4,900-word article by Seymour M. Hersh alleging covert plans by U.S. military specialists – reportedly assisted by Israeli commandos – to seize Pakistan’s inventory of nuclear weapons should the Musharraf regime be threatened by a takeover from radical Islamic militants. Mr. Hersh and the magazine editors clearly failed to understand – or, more likely, consciously chose to ignore – that the act itself of publishing those allegations is extremely dangerous.

At the very least, the Hersh article poses a threat to the fragile partnership between Washington and Islamabad, provides a powerful propaganda weapon to Osama bin Laden and Pakistani militants, and increases the threat of mission failure and extensive American casualties if such a scenario indeed were to occur.

This edition of DefenseWatch addresses the issue of what information American citizens deserve to obtain from their government leaders and agencies, and what secrets the military and intelligence community need to safeguard. I call particular attention to David H. Hackworth’s excellent column on this subject, as well as the Feedback responses from a number of DefenseWatch readers who sounded off about an earlier gaffe where news organizations revealed the presence of American special operations personnel on the ground in Afghanistan – at the same time a large-scale Ranger raid was actually taking place.

Also included for your information is the text of a force protection bulletin reissued by the Pentagon to military bases and defense industry sites providing a template of suspicious activities that may portend a terrorist attack. While many of the specific points may not be directly relevant to ordinary citizens, the warning memorandum does offer a number of tips that we all can use to stay vigilant in the dangerous days ahead.

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Hack’s Target For The Week: ‘People’s Right to Know vs. Soldiers’ Right to Live’

By David H. Hackworth

While watching the tapes of U.S. Army Special Operations warriors parachuting into Afghanistan on a dangerous raid, I felt a great surge of pride for the skill, professionalism and daring of our raiders.

What I didn't know was that before our troopers had completed their mission, The Washington Post and other members of the U.S. press had rushed to tell the world that our Rangers and Green Berets were operating in Afghanistan on a highly secret hit-and-run mission.

Had this happened on June 6, 1944, when the 82d and 101st Airborne Divisions jumped into Normandy, Ike would've pulled the guilty parties' press credentials and put them on the next boat home. In chains.

Fifty-seven years later, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was all bark and no bite when he blasted the Pentagon types who leaked the story and the reporters who colluded with them. In his tongue-lashing he rightly said that they had violated “federal criminal law” and that they had no regard “for the lives of the people involved in the operation.” But that was as far as it went.

Fortunately, our brave men accomplished their mission without taking any lumps. But the Pentagon snitches, much of the press and the retired brass – recycled as TV rent-a-pundits – are putting our warriors in jeopardy. We don't need loose lips telling our terrorist opponents what's going down. Bet your boots that whether they're hiding in caves in Afghanistan or somewhere in our country, they are tuned to TVs and are working their cell phones.

The war against the Taliban and al Qaeda isn't another Operation Desert Storm. We're not fighting Iraq, where most of the opposing generals attended U.S. military schools and knew the drill, and where almost nightly Stormin' Norman Schwarzkopf could and did tell the world what his troops had done on D plus 1 and what was going down on D plus 42.

The difference between Desert Storm and the War Against Terrorism is that this time around, we're slugging it out with an unconventional opponent, and most of the tactical advantages are his. The terrorist is like the audience in a darkened theater, while we're the actors on the lighted stage. He sits shrouded in darkness, checking out our weaknesses and strengths, and when his attack plan is perfect, as on Sept. 11, he strikes when his target is the most vulnerable and then runs. To help defeat him, both press corps and pundits must shut off the stage lights and stop telegraphing our plans to the enemy.

Not only are they giving classified information to our enemy, the press is too often relaying Taliban propaganda under the guise of, “This is an unconfirmed report, but U.S. bombers struck a hospital in Afghanistan.” If it's unconfirmed, then it must be handled responsibly and not treated as headline news until it's checked out. I find it mind-boggling that the networks and so many reporters are letting Taliban spin masters use them this way.

The mindless hemorrhage of secrets and these propaganda coups are driven, of course, by the insatiable appetite of 24-hour cable TV, which must be constantly fed by reporters and editors desperate for breaking news and bent on scooping the competition and maybe winning an Emmy. But that doesn't make it smart.

The media argues that the First Amendment gives them the right to keep the American people informed. But they need to remember that those brave men and women who defend America – some of whom jumped onto an airfield in the dark of an Afghan night – are the very Americans guaranteeing that right with their very lives, and then censure themselves accordingly.

I talk to hundreds of members of the armed forces every week and usually have a fair idea of the Big Picture. But I keep this info to myself when, in my judgment, I'd be endangering lives or giving away bits and pieces of a complicated game plan. The press needs to show the same common sense and caution and stop aiding and abetting the enemy's spymasters and spin machine.

Retired Col. Ben Willis, a combat-veteran paratrooper, says, “It's the people's right to know versus the soldier's right to live.”

We citizens don't need to know every detail of every military operation in this new kind of war. Nor should the media tell us and hence, our enemy.

http://www.hackworth.com is the address of David Hackworth's home page. Sign in for the free weekly Defending America column at his Web site. Send mail to P.O. Box 11179, Greenwich, CT 06831.

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ARTICLE 1 – Pentagon Warning on Terrorism Indicators

Editor’s note: The following bulletin, originally written on Sept. 27, 2001, was resent by the Defense Security Service to military bases and defense industry sites on Friday, Oct. 26. While many specifics apply to those sites, the general thrust is relevant to all American citizens.

THREAT AWARENESS

WE MUST ALL REMAIN ALERT TO POSSIBILITIES THAT ARE VIRTUALLY LIMITED ONLY BY ONES' IMAGINATION.

WE CANNOT PREDICT WHAT ACTIONS TERRORISM MAY TAKE.

WE CANNOT ACCEPT THE RISK OF COMPLACENCY.

OUR DEFENSE: UNPREDICTABILITY, SITUATIONAL AWARENESS, PATIENCE, AND

VIGILANCE

Force Protection (FP) is a responsibility that must be fully integrated into every unit's mission. It demands personal involvement to ensure the best possible security consistent with the threat to personnel and mission essential resources. Force Protection must ensure our soldiers, civilians, property and military capabilities are properly protected.

Force Protection has many eyes and many voices (to include yours) and is accomplished through combating terrorism, physical security, operations security, and personal protective services. It is supported by intelligence, counterintelligence, and the awareness and support of each individual.

I encourage you to make use of the threat predictors and precautions below and maintain heightened awareness.

TERRORIST PREDICTORS AND PRECAUTIONS

SURVEILLANCE PREDICTORS:

* Personnel observed near the installation using or carrying video/camera/observation equipment with high magnification lenses;

* Personnel observed with installation maps or facility photos or diagrams with facilities highlighted or notes regarding infrastructure or listing of installation personnel;

* Personnel possessing or observed using night vision devices near the installation perimeter or local area;

* Personnel observed parking, standing, or loitering in the same area over a multiple day period with no apparent reasonable explanation;

* A noted pattern or series of false alarms requiring law enforcement and/or emergency services response;

* Theft of military identification cards or government license plate off-base;

* Reports of military personnel being asked questions off base pertaining to the installation;

* Recent damage to an airport/military installation shared perimeter fence or gate such as significant holes or cuts;

* Computer hackers attempting to access sites with personal information, maps, or other targeting examples.

EXPLOSIVE ATTACK PREDICTORS:

* Explosives thefts or sales of (large amounts of smokeless powder, blasting caps, or high velocity explosives);

* Large amounts of high-nitrate fertilizer sales to non-agricultural purchasers or abnormally large amounts to agricultural purchasers;

* Large theft/sales of combinations of ingredients for explosives (fuel oil, nitrates, etc) beyond normal;

* Theft/sales of containers (propane bottles etc.) or vectors (trucks, cargo vans, etc.) in combination with other indicators;

* Reports of explosions (potential pre-testing);

* Seizures of improvised explosive devices or materials.

WEAPONS ATTACK PREDICTORS:

* Theft/sales of large numbers of semi-automatic weapons;

* Theft/sales of ammunition capable of being used in military weapons;

* Reports of automatic weapons firing;

* Seizures of modified weapons or equipment used to modify weapons (silencers, etc.);

* Theft/loss/sales of large caliber sniper weapons (.50 cal or larger);

* Theft/sales/reported seizure of night vision equipment in combination with other indicators;

* Theft/sales/reported seizure of body armor in combination with other indicators;

* Theft/loss/recovery of large amounts of cash by groups advocating violence against government/civilian sector targets (applies to WMD as well).

WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION PREDICTORS:

* Sales or theft of large quantities of baby formula or an unexplained shortage in the area (medium for growth);

* Break-ins/tampering at water treatment or food processing/warehouse facilities;

* Solicitation for sales of or theft of live agents/toxins/diseases from medical supply companies or testing/experiment facilities;

* Persons stopped or arrested with unexplained lethal amounts of agents/toxins/diseases/explosives;

* Multiple cases of unexplained human or animal illnesses especially those illnesses not native to the area;

* Large number of unexplained human or animal deaths;

* Sales (to non-agricultural users) or thefts of agricultural sprayers or crop-dusting aircraft, foggers, river craft (if applicable), or other dispensing systems;

* Inappropriate inquiries regarding explosives or explosive construction of personnel by unidentified persons;

* Inappropriate inquiries regarding local chemical/biological/nuclear sales/storage/transportation points;

* Inappropriate inquiries regarding heating and ventilation systems for buildings/facilities by persons not associated with service agencies.

PRECAUTION:

* In the event of incidents involving release of chemical or biological materials, personnel should consider the following precautions:

1. Close all exterior windows and doors; close blinds, drapes, curtains, or other window covering.

2. Turn off air-handlers/air-conditioners/heat pumps.

3. If possible, move to the center of the building, shutting interior doors.

4. If in a vehicle, do not leave it. Turn off engine; close all windows; do not use the air conditioner or heater.

5. If outside, move to a building immediately. Do not go to your vehicle (unless a building is not immediately available).

6. Do not attempt to move outside until an “all clear” is announced.

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ARTICLE 2 – Feedback: Readers Respond on SOF Media Coverage

Endangering the Troops

I do believe that any news reports about Special Forces puts these men in extreme danger. --Thomas J. Devereaux

Don’t Put Rangers at Risk

I am a veteran of the U.S. Army and served my four years in the 1st Ranger Battalion. I think it is a very bad idea to put Ranger missions or any other special operations missions on TV. Why does the whole world have to know where and when these missions take place? I am sure that future airfields will need to be seized (e.g. Baghdad International Airport) and the enemy doesn’t need to be tipped off from our stupidity. So please don’t put my friends and Ranger brothers at risk. --Chris Jordan

Think Before You Report

Absolutely, these leaks put our troops at increased risk, and perhaps raised the price of our objectives in Afghanistan. I want to see new government posters at bus stations, in airports, and on street corners across America like those of World War II. The phrase, “Loose lips sink ships” should be updated such as, “Deep in a cave, someone is plotting to take your life, your liberty, and your happiness. Think before your report on military actions in progress, terrorist threats, or target lists. The life you save may be your own.” --Mark W. Lemmons

‘Loose Lips’ Still Relevant

These leaks can easily get myself, or my fellow service members killed. I'm all for freedom of the press, after the operation is over, and after it has been sanitized enough to protect inadvertent classified compromise. Not everything that we do needs to be published, nor does the public necessarily have a “need to know,” for both their safety and ours. I take this personal, as I was a member of the 352 Special Operations Group during Desert Shield/Storm, and subsequent operations through 1993. Many of my former classmates and best friends are flying officers in frontline combat units, or enlisted jumpers with the Rangers, Combat Controllers, and Para Rescue. My own wife is active duty. I really don't need to see my wife or former high school classmates blown out of the sky on international television, due to a press scoop that the Saddam's of the world watched on CNN. I highly respect journalists and appreciate what they do for us. The dangers they place themselves in sometimes is incomprehensible to me, yet, they manage to get the job done. The old axiom still applies today: “Loose Lips Sink Ships.” --Staff Sgt John E. Booth

Supports Media Blackout

I believe there should be a media blackout: No daily briefings, maybe one a week. Bring professionally trained media to the front lines and have them swear the same oath that a soldier takes to defend his or her country. Bring all of the left-wing media punks to the World Trade Center site and rub their noses in it. Show them body parts in the morgues and rub their faces in burnt flesh. I don't want to hear of a goat being blown up in Afghanistan by a million dollar missile. I am here for the long haul, what ever it takes; but someone please show the left-wing media the right door to enter. --David Coleman

Afghan War and Ratings War

There should be a total blackout of any movements of special operations forces. Armchair soldiers who do nothing but say the public needs this information are full of bull. I know nothing about the decisions being made over in the war zone, but this I know – the decision is not mine to make or criticize. They have been trained and are experienced and are able to make a more intelligent assessment of what is needed than I ever will be. The newscasters are fighting for ratings. Who do they think they are kidding? They would blab any secret they could get their hands on. --Eileen Fichter

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ARTICLE 3 – Nuclear Weapons Should Not Be Ruled Out

By Robert G. Williscroft

We have bombed, we have strafed, we have infiltrated, and it is all beginning to sound familiar. Our early optimism is giving way to a cautious pessimism and careful evaluations concerning how long this conflict may take, and how difficult it may be to effect our ultimate goal: to rid the world of meaningful terrorism.

I recently watched a television special on Vietnam. Certainly, Afghanistan is radically different, but descriptions of what we are doing sound hauntingly familiar.

In Afghanistan, we are dealing with an enemy that understands exactly how to use a boulder for cover during an aerial attack. A seasoned Taliban fighter knows every cave and hole in the ground within a square kilometer of his current position. When we hit a convoy of these guys, they take cover in seconds, salvage what equipment they can after our planes depart, and carry on.

We are consuming a great deal of ordnance (and money) to destroy lot of obsolete, barely useable equipment. We are expending a lot of effort, yet new Taliban recruits are crossing into Afghanistan from Pakistan by the thousands. Clerics and other militant Muslim leaders throughout the Middle East harangue against the United States, openly advocate killing Americans wherever they may be found, and actively recruit fighters to their cause.

As the Walrus in “Alice in Wonderland” once said, “The time has come to speak of other things .… ”

Basically, we are dealing with two problems: We are creating an environment that encourages open opposition to our goals, and our bombing campaign is proving ineffective.

We have clearly told the world that we will seek out terrorism wherever it resides. Why, then are we tolerating the militant clerics and other haranguers? We have the means to stop this kind of behavior in its tracks, no matter where it originates. Our Special Operations Forces are uniquely trained for exactly this kind of operation.

Every time a cleric lifts his voice in opposition to the United States, our guys should pay him a nighttime visit – quiet, quick, deadly and permanent. Every time a militant invites new recruits to the cause, every time he espouses the virtue of martyrdom, our guys should help him fulfill his own martyrdom. We should do this without publicity or fanfare. The leaders will simply disappear one by one.

President Bush clearly stated that you are “ … either with us or you are with them.”

This leaves no quarter for tolerance, no room for opposition. It is time we make sure that those who are not with us understand exactly what that means. We have always known that traditional bombing is ineffective against a dug-in enemy in mountainous terrain.

Since Vietnam, we have developed several remarkable weapons, and have refined others to increase their effectiveness significantly. We have a weapon that burrows into the ground as much as one or two hundred feet before exploding. This is fine, if we happen to hit an underground complex or are able to shake loose the supporting structure of such a nearby complex. In the mountains, however, these weapons have limited effectiveness, unless we arm them with low-yield nuclear warheads.

Before you react to the “N” word, examine the big picture. In the last quarter of a century, we have developed small tactical nukes with essentially no residual radioactivity. Their primary advantage is their ability to deliver a very large explosion in a very small package – like a burrowing bomb. We are under biological attack at home. I don't really care who is directly responsible for this: It is terrorism, the Taliban are terrorists, and that's all I need to know. We need to use whatever effective means we have to eradicate them.

Another weapon in our arsenal is the tactical neutron warhead. This little fellow can be fired from a field cannon or an appropriately equipped aircraft. It explodes several hundred feet above a concentration of enemy troops, producing an intense pulse of neutrons. Anything living within a few hundred yards of the burst dies either immediately or shortly thereafter.

There is essentially no blast damage, and friendly troops can enter the area within minutes of the burst. We should use these tactical neutron devices to eliminate Taliban troop concentrations wherever we find them.

For those opposition troops hiding underground and in cave complexes that are not effective targets for the burrowing tactical nukes, we have the non-nuclear ABM – Air Burst Munitions. In its simplest form, an ABM works by spraying the air with fuel and exploding it. Done correctly, however, an ABM can be as effective as a small nuclear device. By saturating the air in and around an underground complex with an explosive mixture, the entire complex and everything it contains can be totally obliterated. Because the mixture contains both fuel and oxidizer, the explosion happens everywhere the mixture exists. Every nook and cranny of a cave or complex, every spot on a craggy surface will be blasted. There is no safe spot, no boulder to hide behind, no hole to crouch in.

It is time we pulled out the stops at both ends of the problem. Let's give the enemy all the martyrs it can handle at the front end, and let's use every available means to stop them in the field, including tactical nukes.

Robert G. Williscroft is DefenseWatch Navy Editor

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ARTICLE 4 – Revisiting Women in Combat

By J. David Galland

One of the concrete and positive results of the new war in which we are fighting is a long-overdue correction in the Pentagon’s policies toward women in combat.

The future role of women in today's military is going to be redefined, refined, and implemented with a dash of common sense. As one Pentagon official, speaking anonymously, put it: “Frontline units won't involve women … in Afghanistan or anywhere else.” Under the leadership of the Bush Administration, and the less than “touchy-feely” convictions of Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, the role of women in the military is going to change – for the betterment of our combat capability.

Prepare to ignore the emotional ranting of the special-interest group liberals who know nothing about soldiering. Clinton-era proposals and fashionable policies that have shoehorned female soldiers into just about every career field except the infantry and armor are going to get a healthy re-evaluation. If we are lucky, military service will revert back into the detested “your father's Army” mode. Many of us in uniform look forward to the change with the administration's goal to repair and reconstitute a demoralized and emasculated military.

The need for reform and common sense in the military burst into the foreground with the unfolding events in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. While the Army and Air Force activated reserve organizations, the issue of pregnant servicewomen surfaced again. Military planners who were holdovers from the Clinton administration recommended calling up both male and female soldiers. I have learned that Secretary Rumsfeld's team was astounded and stunned when they learned that part of the Reserve callup included pregnant soldiers. Wisely, the Pentagon leadership decided to activate no pregnant reservists for the ongoing war against terrorism

The decision to exclude female soldiers from warfighter units serves as a victory for many military leaders. To be sure, the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in The Services, commonly known as DACOWITS, will eventually be heard from on this issue. It was largely their politically motivated recommendations that force-fed female soldiers into units that put them in harms way.

I have a difficult time understanding that equality can be achieved by dying for one's country. Nor do I think that the military should even be experimenting with this concept. The Bush administration intends to slowly minimize and marginalize DACOWITS. In effect it will sideline the organization, which is largely made up of women with no history of military experience.

While there is no question that women have a valid role in military service to the country, there is valid debate as to whether they should be in combat. Those of us who have experienced the demands of war are rather unanimous on this issue. There are no alibis in combat and no special dispensation can be allowed or given.

The recent accusation of sexual harassment by a female officer at U.S. Southern Command headquarters is a good example. The officer apparently could not hack the early morning three-mile runs, so she organized a gender-related revolt and insisted that the run was “demeaning to women.” As idiotic as her complaint was, in reality, the crux of the issue is that many senior officials in the Defense Department pay attention to such drivel. As a result of the officer’s flippant allegations, the morning run was stopped until it could be determined that women were not being oppressed or harassed.

Disclosure of the Bush administration's new stance toward women in combat is a timely and positive signal to all American military personnel that the time for liberal social experimentation in the military is finally going to be replaced by the ultimate requirement that combat readiness comes first. And not a day too soon.

J. David Galland, Deputy Editor of DefenseWatch, is the pen name of a career U.S. Army senior Non-Commissioned Officer currently serving in Germany.

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ARTICLE 5 – America’s Response Lifts Our Spirits

By Matthew Dodd

For most people who work here, the Pentagon is a special place. Prior to Sept. 11, the Pentagon was a symbolic and historic building of mystique and American military might. It was a living and working museum that attracted tourists and visitors all year long. The Pentagon was also a distant entity for many Americans who knew it as a common setting for Defense Department briefings and news reports.

But the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 forever changed not only the lives of all Americans, but also how Americans think and feel about the Pentagon itself.

Besides the charred exterior surrounding the crash site and the closed interior sections, the Pentagon today is full of even more powerful images that pay tribute to the victims and survivors of the attack.

The most emotional image for me is a display simply and appropriately titled, “America's Heroes.” It is an alphabetical collection of pictures and personal vignettes of all those who died here on Sept. 11. It is a quiet spot in a busy, high-traffic location to reflect on and learn about lost friends and colleagues. It is here that you can read and be moved by the stories of ordinary folks like you and me who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our great nation. It is an honor to have known,

worked with, and been around such heroes.

The most uplifting and inspiring images come from the countless Americans who took the time and effort to share their thoughts about what happened here to the victims and survivors of Sept. 11. Their creative expressions of grief, hope, love, and sorrow clearly show the strength and unity of all Americans as we deal with recent events and prepare for a dynamic future.

Many walls and partitions inside the Pentagon are now adorned with cards, names, pictures, phrases, letters, signatures, and collages that come from all over this great nation, such as the Alameda Elementary School in Albuquerque, N.M.; Northwest High School in Omaha, Neb.; the Southwestern Oregon Medical Society Alliance (Coos Bay/North Bend, Oregon); the Christian Life Academy in Baton Rouge, La., the Francis Scott Key Middle School in Springfield, Va. (just a few miles from the Pentagon); and the school students and faculty in St. Michael, Alaska. It is an honor

to take a few moments each day to read and experience these patriotic citizens' heart-felt comments.

Finally, the words and symbols most frequently seen in these images constitute a visual celebration of our American spirit and heritage. Perhaps the most effective images, and ultimately the most powerful are the handprints and paper hand cutouts of children, who are dependent upon us for their futures.

I am proud to be an American, and proud to be here in the Pentagon. It is truly a privilege to honor all those patriotic Americans who have done much more than they realize to help the Pentagon recover from probably the darkest day in our nation's history.

Lt. Col. Dodd is the pen name of an active-duty Marine Corps officer stationed at the Pentagon.

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ARTICLE 6 – Letter from an SOF Officer

By John Haywood

This expresses only my opinion and I do not profess to speak for the U.S. Army, but I have 19 years of service of which 14 have been in special operations. I am a Special Forces soldier assigned at Ft. Bragg, N.C. As I watch the news and see all the rhetoric on Special Operations Forces (SOF) and our military readiness in general, I would remind everyone of a few things.

The senior officers who say we are ready for anything have been saying that for years, even when it was evident during the Clinton administration that this was not the case. While our military is extremely capable when compared to most other nations, it is a shadow of its former self (the Reagan/Bush I era). I would like to offer a few points for your consideration.

The U.S. Army is rampant with political correctness. Case in point: the Department of the Navy’s apologetic response to a homosexual organization complaint of a message scrawled on a carrier aircraft’s bomb. The U.S. military (I can only speak for the Army) is thoroughly “feminized.” I would consider the army socially engineered. We have gone through almost a decade of “morphing” the U.S. armed services into a kinder, gentler military. The problem associated with this mentality is that, no matter what anyone says, Armies are designed to break things and kill people.

Would you rather have an Army where the soldiers studied hand-to-hand combat, how to survive on the battlefield and how to shoot people, yet were crass, brutish and politically incorrect? Or do you want defending you a force that spends most of its time on conducting training in consideration for others, homosexuality awareness and equal opportunity, but only fires its weapons once or twice a year and never would consider training in survival or hand-to-hand combat as these concepts promote violence? You can't have both. I have been in the Army 19 years (almost all of it in special operations) and I have never seen a soldier that was adept at both concepts.

The officer corps is full of political careerists. Eight years of the Clinton administration has produced an entire generation of self-serving officers. The ranks are flooded with these career-minded politicians. The majority of today's military officer make decisions by consensus. They ensure that no minority group is offended and that all their lawyers are in agreement with them before reaching a decision. This way of “managing” is fatal to a military. The services need leadership, decisiveness and moral courage. Yet our “leaders” have been cultivated to avoid risk at all cost. Any accidents or fatalities in today's military are death to an officers career

The news media continues to err on “Special Forces.” News reports are constantly misrepresenting special operations forces. One report said: “Special Forces in Afghanistan.” I read the article and it was about the use of the AC-130 gunship. AC-130's are not "Special Forces,” which consist of Army Rangers, a light infantry strike force; the Army Special Forces, which consist of older, more mature operators whose primary purpose is to conduct warfare with indigenous forces. These two units make up about 75 percent of the ground special operations forces. Other units include the Army “Delta Force,” Air Force special tactics squadrons, and the Navy SEAL commandos. There are also psychological operations and civil affairs units that are officially considered special operations forces but they rarely go in harms way and are not considered ground combatants.

The Clinton administration and Army have misused special operations units. The Clinton administration overused SOF – particularly Army Special Forces – to conduct “peacetime engagement” missions (peacekeeping, counter-drug operations, humanitarian assistance, etc). Now, the U.S. Army (including USASOC, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command) acts as if “peacetime engagement” is all we are designed for.

Army Special Forces are the largest contingent of ground special operations forces, yet the least employed (among the ground combatants). Our own command has a “cycle” system established for us: (1) a three-month support cycle where no training is conducted and the unit must be available to do administrative details for USASOC and installations; (2) an “intensive” training cycle (actually, anything but intensive as A-teams are recovering from the previous three months of atrophy while in support cycle, and (3) deployment cycle (typically when A-teams deploy overseas to conduct their “peacetime engagement” missions.

There is no other ground combatant within the USASOC community that must spend one-third of its time doing nothing at all. For whatever reason, our own commanders have decided that it is appropriate to use highly-trained units to conduct menial, administrative tasks instead of to train for warfare. This is a mindset that was firmly established during the money "vacuum" of the Clinton era.

The Army Research Institute conducted surveys on behalf of the U.S. Army Special Forces Command in 1996 and again in 2000, in which these and many other problems were addressed by soldiers. Significantly, the command has done almost nothing to fix the problems addressed most often (support cycle, leadership failures, combat focus) and have instead concentrated on trying to increase pay and benefits. While more pay is good, it is not the underlying problem. More pay will never keep soldiers from getting out or help recruit more into SOF.

We are all patriots here and look forward to the moment that we will be called upon to serve our nation as we were trained to do. Sadly I, like most Special Forces soldiers, will likely retire when I complete 20 years of service. The only way I would stay in is if we are fully and appropriately utilized in the war on terrorism. I am more than willing to give President Bush the benefit of the doubt as he did not cause these problems and I still have two more years before I can retire.

Haywood is a Chief Warrant Officer 3 assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C.

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ARTICLE 07 – Feedback: Security Improving in Germany

Weapons Loaded in Germany

I am writing in regards to David H. Hackworth’s column, “Time to Lock and Load” (DefenseWatch, Oct. 17). I currently live in Heidelberg, Germany in U.S. housing. I believe that your truthful and scathing remarks directed at Gen. Montgomery Meigs and his CYA actions here have now helped to deliver results. Conditions here have improved somewhat. We are making progress toward actual physical security for our people. Although most weapons are still not charged at least they are now loaded! Thank you very much for helping to expose this ridiculous situation. God Bless and keep up the fight! --Mark P. Mathison

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ARTICLE 08 – Medal of Honor Recipient – MILLER, FRANKLIN D., Staff Sgt. USA

Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces.

Place and date: Kontum province, Republic of Vietnam, 5 January 1970.

Entered service at: Albuquerque, N. Mex.

Born: 27 January 1945, Elizabeth City, N.C.

Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Staff Sgt. Miller, 5th Special Forces Group, distinguished himself while serving as team leader of an American-Vietnamese long-range reconnaissance patrol operating deep within enemy controlled territory.

Leaving the helicopter insertion point, the patrol moved forward on its mission. Suddenly, one of the team members tripped a hostile booby trap which wounded four soldiers. Staff Sgt. Miller, knowing that the explosion would alert the enemy, quickly administered first aid to the wounded and directed the team into positions across a small streambed at the base of a steep hill. Within a few minutes, Staff Sgt. Miller saw the lead element of what he estimated to be a platoon-size enemy force moving toward his location.

Concerned for the safety of his men, he directed the small team to move up the hill to a more secure position. He remained alone, separated from the patrol, to meet the attack. Staff Sgt. Miller single-handedly repulsed two determined attacks by the numerically superior enemy force and caused them to withdraw in disorder. He rejoined his team, established contact with a forward air controller and arranged the evacuation of his patrol.

However, the only suitable extraction location in the heavy jungle was a bomb crater some 150 meters from the team location. Staff Sgt. Miller reconnoitered the route to the crater and led his men through the enemy-controlled jungle to the extraction site. As the evacuation helicopter hovered over the crater to pick up the patrol, the enemy launched a savage automatic weapon and rocket-propelled grenade attack against the beleaguered team, driving off the rescue helicopter.

Staff Sgt. Miller led the team in a valiant defense which drove back the enemy in its attempt to overrun the small patrol. Although seriously wounded and with every man in his patrol a casualty, Staff Sgt. Miller moved forward to again single-handedly meet the hostile attackers. From his forward exposed position, Staff Sgt. Miller gallantly repelled two attacks by the enemy before a friendly relief force reached the patrol location.

Staff Sgt. Miller's gallantry, intrepidity in action, and selfless devotion to the welfare of his comrades are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the U.S. Army.

Editor’s Note: If you know of any MOH recipient who is hospitalized or has passed away recently, please email MOH Correspondent James H. Also, if you would like more info on MOH recipients and their stories, please email James H at bulldogleader@mindspring.com.

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Article Submission Procedures/Subject Editors Sought

1. Try to keep articles to 1000 words or less. SUBMIT IN MS WORD FORMAT, if possible!

2. Submit your piece to one of the following editors:

Ed Offley, Editor

defensewatch@aol.com

J. David Galland, Deputy Editor

defensewatch02@hotmail.com

DefenseWatch is looking for volunteer subject editors willing to assist in screening and editing article submissions. We are looking for experts in the following areas: U.S. Army, U.S. Coast Guard, Special Operations forces/counter-terrorism, weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and veterans affairs. If interested in joining the DefenseWatch team, please contact Ed Offley at defensewatch@aol.com.

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GLOSSARY OF MILITARY ACRONYMS:

We've had numerous requests from troops in different branches of the
military to establish this link so that we will all know how "all you
others" talk that talk. The DoD site is not working but the nonprofit Federation of American Scientists has an excellent online acronym roster. Please see below:

http://www.fas.org/news/reference/lexicon/acronym.htm

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HACK BOOK SALES

Hack's books, About Face, Hazardous Duty, The Price of Honor and The Vietnam Primer can be found at www.hackworth.com. They make a great addition to any library. Hack is offering them at a special SFTT price.

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