Balancing the Leviathan and SysAdmin

POST: Will the Petraeus Strategy Be the Last?

DISCUSSION: Eating Soup with a Spoon

Worth perusing.

The balance question between Leviathan and SysAdmin is always going to be crucial and tricky. Reasonable discussions on the subject are relatively rare.

Comments

[Robert Pietrafesa]

Do you see this article as supporting your position in A Blueprint for Action that the SysAdmin must not only have the 'right' skills but show up in overwhelmingly large numbers? Lack of troops is why the author cites the failure of outpost tactics and leads to a regressionism into a force-protection centric approach to winning the peace.

[John G. Mooney]

The 'Spoon' author is WAY off the mark. He cites the importance of tactical succcess and the importance of impenetrable super-bases in his unit's efforts here in Iraq. I say, Where's the Beef?

At LTC Gentile's unit's departure, the situation both in Iraq and in his area of operation (where I am now) was less secure, not more. Sectarian murders were so common that platoons here developed a standard drill to execute when finding a dead body. Since we have developed combat outposts in every major neighborhood and supported the creation of volunteer security guard forces, attacks on coalition forces, Iraqi security forces, and local nationals are at the lowest levels since November. And, I would venture to say that probably have killed or captured fewer suspected insurgents than LTC Gentile did. There are markets and people where there were none when we arrived. A recent IP recruiting drive produced 400+ volunteer candidates in the space of 12 hours.

Tactical success is essential to overall success--but does not guarantee it. Tactics must nest into overall strategic goals. A running back who breaks a 60 yard run succeeds tactically; but if it's at the end of the game, his team is down, and he lets the clock run out without scoring, he's an idiot.