Backtalk: Precision ground-pounding

[unhappycamper]

Precision ground-pounding
By Lt. Gen. Michael Vane

The meanings of war and a state of war have taken on new dimensions in the 21st century. Unlike the bipolar Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, we are in a period of persistent conflict characterized by nation-states, non-nation-states and nonstate actors that increasingly choose violence to achieve their philosophical ideals.

Defense budgets must continue to provide a hedge for the nuclear defense of America and deterrence against a peer competitor but also must evolve to place greater resources on land power.

Nonstate actors in particular operate in environments characterized by networks in cyberspace, independent cellular organizations, caves in isolated outlying regions and urban backstreets. We are already seeing examples of rogue states and shadow governments with conventional military forces partnering with irregular forces to achieve overwhelming synergistic effects.

In southern Lebanon, Hezbollah recently demonstrated this adaptability by establishing a force that was trained, organized, funded and equipped like an army.

This operational environment, exacerbated by globalization, population growth, resource competition, urbanization and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, has created the need for more intensive human intelligence, more proactive international police agencies and more dependence on the armies of the world.

Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/community/opinion/army_backtalk_pounding_061608/

[icnorth]

1. Describes bushco to a T doesn't it

"...actors in particular operate in environments characterized by networks in cyberspace, independent cellular organizations, caves in isolated outlying regions and urban backstreets. We are already seeing examples of rogue states and shadow governments with conventional military forces partnering with irregular forces to achieve overwhelming synergistic effects.