I will be putting out a roundup of news, views and analysis of the campaign in Iraq later this evening, but with the heirs of Galula in charge I think starting with the first two parts of Michael Yon’s four part series on the application of counterinsurgency in Iraq,
“The Ghosts of Anbar,” should be a must read. Part one: The Paradox of Counterinsurgency, takes us back to previous campaigns of the British in Anbar and part two: Through the Window, Clearly, takes us into the minds of the commanders and into the field with the troops to see the challenges in this rapidly changing part of Iraq.
In it he discusses COL Simcock, so I think here would be an appropriate place to send you to this discussion (pdf.) he had at a bloggers roundtable:
Q Yeah, if I could just follow up on one quick thing here. If you were, say, commandant for the day or CINC for the day, what one or two capabilities that you may not have or need more of would top your list?
COL. SIMCOCK: That’s an easy question. And the commandant was just out here a couple weeks ago and I told him exactly what I wish I had more of. Engineers and route clearance. Those are the two capabilities. It’s a lowdensity, high-demand type capability that we just — we need more of out here. The engineers, they’re working 24/7, literally. They’re either building something or tearing something down, and that’s something that I wish I had more of. They do a great job for us, but I’m just — I just don’t have enough of them.
About Lance
I want to thank everybody who has encouraged me over the past few years to do this. I doubt it will hold but a few people's interest, but that is okay with me. Special thanks go to Peter over at http://www.liberalcapitalist.com.
I value my privacy a great deal, so I will guess you will have to get to know me over time to find out much. I am in the financial services, wealth management, investing or whatever you want to call it business. I have children, my oldest is entering college.
I have no great or imposing academic background, my grades varied from high enough to get invited to an honors program at my university to frustrating enough to cause my father great grief. My major was history, with a minor in ethics. My main interest towards the end was in the history of economic ideas before life took a turn and I ended up never going on to graduate school. However, I have a fair knowledge of history, economics, investing and would probably be considered well read. My tastes are eclectic and I pretty much find the entire world interesting.
I have an enduring interest in how people learn about and analyze the world; my posts here will examine this topic in detail over time. I make no claims to be above the very biases and errors I see in others, in fact it is my belief that we are incapable of escaping them, only moderating their control over us.
I am a member of no political party, but I would broadly consider myself a man of the right. I am inclined to free market economics, limited government and a fairly narrow view of the role of the state. A small L libertarian if you will. However, if you are looking for broad based "the left believes..." or "wingers are so...." types of attacks on liberals, conservatives, neo-cons or whatever enemy you want to slam, look elsewhere.
Lance
