Black Horse Regiment to Iraq
How thin is the Army stretched by its current military obligations? Consider that the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (the "Black Horse") is being shipped out to Iraq. The Black Horse is the unit that serves as the opposing force ("OPFOR" in military speak) at the Army's National Training Center. They're the ones responsible for making the fresh meat feel what war is like, giving new recruits the most realistic simulation and challenging training possible, to prepare them for actual combat.
The specialist Black Horse Regiment will be replaced by a National Guard unit in their OPFOR duties while in Iraq.
As the INTEL DUMP blog points out:
And it's little things like this that lead people to think that no matter how truly Bush may not want to reinstate a draft, the policy's he's committed this country to may well make conscription inevitable.
The scary part? Not only would future draftees frequently be disgruntled and unmotivated, but with the Guardsmen pinch hitting for Black Horse, the new conscripts sent off to fight would be far less capably trained.
This is an issue to watch.
The specialist Black Horse Regiment will be replaced by a National Guard unit in their OPFOR duties while in Iraq.
As the INTEL DUMP blog points out:
That's like replacing the Dodgers with a high school baseball team. Sure, they can both play baseball and wear the uniform — but one is a whole lot more proficient and experienced at its job. The OPFOR has a reputation as a tough enemy, and that's a good thing because it forces units training at the NTC to become better themselves. By replacing this unit with National Guard troops, the Army has hurt its ability to produce good units for Iraq in the future. Suffice to say, National Guard and active units that go through Fort Irwin aren't going to get the same tough experience they would have with the Blackhorse regiment as OPFOR — and that means they'll be less ready for combat when they get to Iraq.
And it's little things like this that lead people to think that no matter how truly Bush may not want to reinstate a draft, the policy's he's committed this country to may well make conscription inevitable.
The scary part? Not only would future draftees frequently be disgruntled and unmotivated, but with the Guardsmen pinch hitting for Black Horse, the new conscripts sent off to fight would be far less capably trained.
This is an issue to watch.
posted by Bob at
12:07 PM
1 Comments:
My son is attached to the 25 Stryker Bgd, which is the combat formation the 11 ACR now largely comprises. That the 11 ACR would eventually be rotated out of the OPFOR role is less surprising than that a Guard Regiment would replace it.
That would have to be one hell of a Guard Regiment.
I do not think the neo-cons will ever re-institute conscription. It is not consistent with their core doctrine and beliefs.
What I find surprising is that nobody by Gary Hart seems to even recall what the armed forces of a republic actually are. They are not those of the First or Second British empire.
Today, we have a long-term hire military hardly distinguishable from that of Britain, save for the fact that Britain's forces are not as bloated as ours and Britain does have a parliamentary democracy in which elected officials are, for better or worse, held to account for their actions.
We have a responsibility-diffusing system in which we, militarily, no longer have "a republic, if you can keep it", to wit a "universal franchise" backed by a "universal military obligation", to wit, a "well regulated militia" and "no quartering".
We have "a world turned upside down", it seems.
By
John Robert BEHRMAN, at 8:44 AM
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home