COUNTERCOLUMN: All Your Bias Are Belong to Us

I've posted many times here: Amateurs study tactics; professionals study logistics.

And that is the paradigm through which I want to examine the statement made the other day by Howard Dean, in which he says ""Bring the 80,000 National Guard and Reserve troops home immediately. They don't belong in a conflict like this anyway."

That is an utter falsehood, and belies a profound ignorance of the structure and doctrine of the Total Force Concept and the Abrams Doctrine.

In fact, thanks to the Abrams Doctrine and former SecDef Melvin Laird, the active component cannot function without significant commitment from the reserve forces.

This is because, combat formations aside, much of the required medical, transportation, supply, administrative, communications, civil affairs, legal, and combat support needed to conduct a deployment comes from the reserve components.

If you pull reserve forces out, you will rip the heart out of our combat divisions. You may not even be able to fly them home.

Tell the Brigade commander "you know that truck company you rely on to move a battalion of soldiers to and from the fight? Send them home.You know that -30 level maintenance unit you rely on to get your crew-served weapons firing and to repair your damaged and broken vehicles? You don't get them anymore. You know those MPs already working 12 hour shifts guarding your detainees? Say bye-bye. And you really don't need those Arabic linguists do you? We're sending a whole battalion of linguists home, and we're canceling the deployment of another battalion of linguists next year. You're in the dark. Oh, and forget about fueling your vehicles. The petroleum specialists you have are reservists.

Send home your surgeons. They're reservists, too, and reserve forces surgeons don't belong in a war zone. Better to let some troops die."

And yes, Howard Dean, that will be PRECISELY the result if your stupid plan to strip the reserve component from our Army and Marine Corps now forward deployed.

His logistical sense is so lacking it borders on criminality. You don't strip an army of its support while it's committed in the field. To do so is tantamount to murder.

Thank God almighty this cretin did not become President. His decision-making would make Desert One and Clinton's decision to deny an armored QRF in Mogadishu look like strokes of genius in comparison.

Dean is beyond stupid with that plan. Responsible Democrats should rise up and shut him down.

I know Congressman Murtha understands the role the reserve component plays. Where is he? Why doesn't he stand up for our troops?

Splash, out

Jason


P.S.:Can it be this ignorant blowhard was really Commander In Chief of the Vermont National Guard?