Comments on: US Afghan Intel ‘Ignorant’ And ‘Incurious’

By: Mitch Sherman

Mitch Sherman — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 15:58:53 +0000

Greetings Greg,

I just read your article in DOD Buzz and noted the picture with the soldier communicating with the “local” Afghani citizen.
The soldier in the picture is using one of our Kwikpoint Afghanistan Visual Language Translation guides for IED Detection.
We have provided the US Military and Coalition partners nearly 4 million guides for both OEF and OIF. We have received
comments from individual soldiers of discoveries of IED’s, arms caches and other weapons using our communication guides.
I would like to send to your attention a complete set of guides for your review. Thanks again for the most informative article.
Please give me your mailing address.

http://www.kwikpoint.com/

http://www.kwikpoint.com/information/testimonials…

V/R

Mitch

By: BOOMER

BOOMER — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:23:33 +0000

The state department is useless, full of marshmellows that are buddies of someone else who got them thier cushy job. Just like all those ambastards living abroad in mansions throwing weekly parties for foreign lobiest and criminals. They are a useless drain on our economy and should be done away with. This is a combat zone, the military has intellegence personnel in house. They also have specops and recon units trained to infiltrate and blend in. We really dont need any civilian support in this area and would get better real time info doing it directly rather than waiting for the sandcrabs to finnish looking things over and deciding what info they want to pass on. The military would love to go solo but they get too much BS from civies who are mainly interested in ensuring they maintain job security. The military needs civilian support to succed but intel gather is not one of them.

By: William C.

William C. — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 08:21:25 +0000

You think MSNBC is accurate? That liberal kool-aid must be getting to your head. MSNBC has been preaching left wing nonsense for years now. Remember that circle-jerk when Obama was elected? Yep... not biased at all. Those sites you post are unbiased? One of them has a MoveOn.org banner on the side, seriously... http://newsbusters.org/

By: Cwo4 gourley

Cwo4 gourley — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:30:01 +0000

The 3 news site you list and the 100's of others you don't are heads and shoulders above any news corp. owned site . If you don't think that the defense industry hasn't hired lobbyist firms (with tax payers monies) to get the congress to push for and buy equipment that the military doesn't want.... then you have been watching to much faux news.... you might want to look at these web sites http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1067 or http://www.newshounds.us/ but you won't too fair and un balanced

By: William C.

William C. — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:43:48 +0000

Oh and MSNBC, ABC, PBS, and the Daily Show are legitimate news sources? CNN, CBS, and the NYT have a right-wing bias?! You liberals live in such a distorted reality.

There is no evil plot by the defense industry to overthrow Obama or whatever you want to believe. But I suppose to liberals they are naturally evil by making money and using taxpayer dollars on new vehicles and aircraft rather than more global warming studies.

By: guest

guest — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:05:48 +0000

When this ‘lie’ first hit the press there was a response from the ANA General in charge of the area. He asserted that they were insurgents, and he showed pictures of the individuals. No handcuffs, AK’s and other incriminating evidence surrounding the bodies. Yes they were ‘youngish’ males, but the evidence seemed to speak to the lack of innocence. I believe the reason the US has not been openly vocal in denying it, is because, it was an ANA operation.

By: iraqrecall

iraqrecall — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:49:02 +0000

The Army Has Human Terrain people in place already. These groups, made up of both military and civilians are trained to see the exact things that the General is calling.

By: Curt Kastens

Curt Kastens — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:28:29 +0000

BTW,
Just because your squad or platoon is following the law of land warfare does not mean that everyone else in the military industrial complex is.

By: Ruanne

Ruanne — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:13:36 +0000

The article identifies one of the main problems. I could write a book on the subject, but back to the issue at hand:

At the small unit level, the military intelligence company is undersized for its mission. MTOE manning does NOT address the current mission. Line Army units are still manned for conventional force-on-force fights, circa 1970. In country, they have access to technologically advanced equipment which means they have access to a firehose of data. But they do not have the analysts to make sense of it all. Whether it’s the more technical forms of intelligence collection, or good old fashioned human intelligence — Army units rely on “plus-up” detachments from other units and from civilian contractors.

Military intelligence manning needs to be re-invented for the 21st century. Stat.

By: perezd

perezd — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:46:08 +0000

First it does not matter if you are a “SWORN” enemy. To believe that any U.S. Soldier would kill a child is crazy. Where did you read this story? From one of the many radical sites that post “disinformation” about the U.S. and our allies? The media on both sides will say whatever it takes to get thier point or ideas across and out to the masses. If I want someone to hate a certain person/persons I will start rumors as to the things they have done wrong. Now as to the Geneva Convention, if we followed the “tit for tat” rule as you say then we ( the U.S. service member) would kill every terrorist or insurgant we come across. We would cut the heads off of all of them. DO NOT PREACH equality on the battlefield when you (as you are my enemy) do not follow ANY rules or laws of land warfare like we do!

By: Curt Kastens

Curt Kastens — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 09:22:11 +0000

Willliam C.,
Yes but a problem with neo conservatives is that Faux News, CNN, CBS, the NYT, and the Wash. Post, are examples of a legitimate news source.
Another problem is that neo conservatives think that people who think that there is an evil US military industrial complex are to stupid not to trust faux news and their bretheren or to trust what is said by a spokesman for the US government.

By: Tired-Vet

Tired-Vet — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 05:13:12 +0000

In this case…Failure of Intel is the failure of the Commander and Consumers to identify their true requirements.

By: Jay

Jay — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 04:57:04 +0000

I’ll take the job.

By: Drake1

Drake1 — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 04:34:26 +0000

Civilians who do it definitely won’t be doing it for anything the State Department can dole out. This leaves the few that do it for the good of the country…but wouldn’t these people ordinarily join the CIA?

By: Byron Skinner

Byron Skinner — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 03:36:38 +0000

Good Morning Folks,

General Flynn is just expressing the same problem that the US has always had. Intelligence is in the US a top down activity. The bosses both in and out of uniform have predetermined
conclusions and demand evidence to support it. These conclusions are strongly influenced by political and corporate consideration.

Politicians need an answer for the mother who is confronting them on why her son/daughter was wounded/killed by an IED or EFP and what is she/he doing about it. The Corporations are not keen on having the failures of there products (weapons, platforms and systems) made public or even know to the politicians who back and support there malfunctioning equipment. The media, who many members know better generally go along with this sham.

The medias interest her of course is access to the war zones which is strongly controlled by the military and the politicians. The Embed system was thought up by Condi Rice and it would make Joseph Goebbels red with envy. The Germany Army of WWII never had the control over the media that the US has now. Reporters who are looking for the truth need not apply.

Even former critics of the insanity in Iraq such as General Barry McCaffery who was a critic, if timid, of the Bush administration until his first embed trip. He came back a gilding. Now General McCaffery after a few VIP trips into the war zones is a regular cheerleader for the wars.

As Greg said the Soldier/Marine on the ground has a lot of intelligence information, it how he/she survives. They know where the bad guy are, where they have been and most likely where they are going to be next. They know witch roads or foot paths to stay off, where to expect IED’s or EFP’s, who most likely planted them and they know which buildings they can go into unmolested and which one to go in with guns abalzing.

To many enlisted personal have survived to many combat tours not to be hip to this information. This by the way appears to be true in all wars.

Outside of the Lt. who has learned to thrust his men, those that don’t usually end up in body bags, though this information doesn’t go any farther up the chain then the platoon leader or the company commander.

ALLONS,
Byron Skinner

By: William C.

William C. — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 02:50:31 +0000

From combat veterans I know many Afghans and Iraqis lie like mad. Just remember that old woman holding up two complete rifle rounds which she said hit her house. This event probably never happened and is simply propaganda trying to turn unloyal citizens against our own soldiers. I haven’t heard a thing about this on any legitimate news source. Also there is no evil military industrial complex or whatever you conspiracy nuts believe.

By: Curt Kastens

Curt Kastens — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 01:13:15 +0000

This post is off topic but it is about a very important story that has appeared in a newspaper in the UK and is spreading on the internet. The reports say that Afghan villagers have accused, depending on the report that you read either US forces, US led forces, or US paramilitary forces, of executing 7 or 8 handcuffed Afghan children between the ages of 11 and 17 years old.
Now I must say that even a enemy of the US military industrial complex such as myself find it hard to believe such a story. The thing is such stories are not usually complete fabrications. This story is a PR disaster in the making. The US government should get out in front of it and give its side of the story. If this story is true I and I think not only millions of others but even hundreds of millions of other people around the world would be so enraged that if Al Quida carried out a Beslan type raid on a US school we would not feel an ounce of sympathy for anyone in America. The Geneva convention specifically allows tit for tat retaliation when one side breaks the Geneva convention. If these reports are true it describes the action not of a rouge element in US forces but the actions of a deliberate government policy.
Now a questioning thinking objective person such as myself would find this story not probable. Yet there are billions of people on this planet that are not as objective as I am. What might they do at some point if this story is not countered? I could easily believe that US forces were operating in the area with the forces of some Afghan warlord and that is was the forces of the Afghan warlord that executed some children, to get back at this village or someone in the village, without the knowledge or consent of the US forces that they were operating with.
What has anyone else heard about this incident?
Perhaps no one will want to answer me because I am after all your sworn enemy. But do you want an enemy that thinks you are scum, in the sense of lets say of Tony Soprano, or an enemy that thinks at least some among you would sink so low as to execute handcuffed children.

By: Interested Observer

Interested Observer — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 00:37:31 +0000

Who said these civilian intel specialists have to belong to State? Given the way State approaches things, wouldn’t it be easier for Defense to employ them directly? Or better still, use contractors who have the necessary clearances etc and embed them in the units they are supporting? Use of a nominal chain of command to manage the organisation so these specialists are working to, not for, the unit CO? The Government already uses armed contractors for “security” and support roles, what would be the difference apart from the different skill set? Just a thought.….

By: Gizz

Gizz — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 21:20:52 +0000

Perhaps you are right that civilians are unwilling to enter war zones, but I’d guess that there is a ready pool of civilian talent to be tapped by DOD and State. For one thing, there are a lot of struggling journalists out there. It’s possible that State needs to develop a new line of service, to create the opportunities and training that would draw a new type of talent in. The analysts need to understand the big picture, to know the context and environment in which the smaller pieces of the puzzle fit, heavens, the author of this article, Greg Grant, would make an incredible intelligence analyst. I think there are hugely promising possibilities for a more rugged civilian corps to support our military and foreign policy objectives.

By: atacms

atacms — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:27:19 +0000

Drake, you hit the nail on its head. The issue is most people who join the State dept. aren’t as committed or gung ho enough to lay down their lives for the mission whereas soldiers/Marines aren’t happy to die, but they’re more willing to die in order to achieve the objective.

I had hopes for the State dept. pushing this and recruiting folks who would go there in droves, but the truth is, most probably want a cushy job in an embassy rubbing elbows with foreign dignitaries in cosmopolitan cities, not barren mountainsides.