Edubya
03-12-2013, 03:04 PM
I received this in an email. My first thought was to just pass it on to my regular correspondents then I realized it is relevant to all!
Written by a former SFOD-D operator and controversial author of the book "Kill Bin Laden".
____________________
Choices, By "Dalton Fury"
One of the more unique things about serving the ranks of Delta Force
is that you often find yourself involved in a dog and pony show for
visiting officials, General Officers, or senior administration
officials. During these CAPEXs, or capabilities exercises, you are
given a fast paced intro to the bread and butter tactics, techniques,
and procedures employed by America’s premiere hostage rescue force.
For the assaulters and snipers tagged with CAPEX duty, it’s generally
a pain in the *** as it takes up a good week’s worth of training
having to deal with endless coordination, sequencing, synchronizing,
etc.
Yes, there is a certain training value inherent in the rehearsals as
time is spent strapped on the pods of Little Birds, breaching three
story windows from the sky line, or control pairing the eye orbit of
multiple targets as you move to points of domination.
However, individual and team training isn’t the objective during these
CAPEXs. No, the only objective is to jam pack enough pipe-hitting
commando stuff, refined and synchronized to a nanosecond, into an hour
or so, for one specific reason - to ensure that the VIPs walk away
having never seen anything like it. It has to leave a mark on each
VIP’s psyche. It’s loud – live bullets and breaches - up close, and
entirely educational for senior military and civilian leaders who
likely have heard about Delta Force, but who may not necessarily
understand it. They have to understand that if they ever find
themselves in harm’s way, particularly if their Embassy or US
Consulate is overrun or they are sitting on the runway in a
terrorist-controlled jumbo jet, then they know who to call for help.
I recall vividly standing on a bus addressing the crowd of VIPs when
Crapshoot and his team assaulted the hostage holding tube.
Newly-starred Stan McChrystal was “rescued”, cloaked quickly with
armor and Kevlar, and placed into the belly of a Little Bird in the
middle of the road directly off the nose of the bus. Of course,
McChrystal knew very well the capabilities of the Unit, but the other
two dozen new General Officers not so much.
The secret service detail of then-SECDEF Donald Rumsfeld shied away
from letting us “rescue” the Secretary, but he had a front row seat
when one of his senior staffers was repatriated in under 30 seconds
from X to exfil.
In all those CAPEXs, for all those American General Officers, freshman
Congressmen, or senior administration officials, I don’t recall one
time ever being briefed on what political party they were from, what
their personal stance on hot button issues was, or whether or not they
were even pro-military. As far as we knew, they were all 100%
pure-blooded American citizens that valued our hard fought freedoms
and honored, respected, and protected the Constitution of the United
States of America as much as we were willing to die to rescue them
from someone that would do them harm.
Of course, like every other serviceman or woman, we raised our right
hand and took an oath “to defend the Constitution of the United States
against all enemies, foreign and domestic”. An enlisted service member
takes the oath below. An officer takes about the same oath,
specifically the “enemies, foreign and domestic part”.
“I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and
defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies,
foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to
the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the
United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me,
according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So
help me God.”
When planning a hostage rescue, we didn’t know if the hostage ever ran
around on their spouse, beat their old lady, were dead-beat Dads, or
leaned extreme right or left on the political spectrum. We needed a
name and a simple face pic for PID, any meds he or she might need, and
a few jackpot questions to ensure we had the right precious cargo. If
they were paying attention, they learned back at the CAPEX that if we
ever had the opportunity to run into each other again to not be a
hero, don’t go for a gun, and do as you’re told. We didn’t ask them if
they were pro-2nd Amendment, would ever hypothetically vote to prevent
one of us who might suffer from PTSD in the future from legally owning
a firearm, or might vote to raise our Tricare Premiums one day.
It’s been about eight years since I had the privilege to participate
in those CAPEXs and I can only assume that the current operators feel
the same way we did about those events. Get it done, high standard,
and forget about it. However, given the long list of mind-boggling
issues and events that have captured the attention of our entire
nation, I wonder if they feel the same blind allegiance to the
visiting dignitaries that we did.
When our government secretly provides weapons to Mexican drug cartels
from 2006 to 2011 that end up being used against our own law
enforcement and Border Patrol agents, then hide the facts from the
American people, led by the President declaring Executive Privilege,
for their political survival, I can’t help but wonder.
When our State Department and President blatantly hide the facts, even
six months later, about the terrorist attack in Benghazi on 11
September, 2012 that left four Americans dead, including sitting US
Ambassador Christopher Stevens and two former Navy SEALs, I can’t help
but wonder.
When dozens of elected officials across the country work to limit the
peoples’ right to bear arms and sponsor legislature to dilute our 2nd
Amendment rights, I can’t help but wonder.
When our political leaders on both sides can’t come to an agreement
before Sequestration kicks in that, among other things, furloughs our
Armed Services civilian employees (while giving the Muslim Brotherhood
controlled Egyptian government $450 million dollars) and, most
recently, ended Tuition Assistance for our service members (while
Illegal Aliens can apply for state financial aid), I can’t help but
wonder.
When 9/11 happened, I was halfway through my Master’s Degree using
Military Tuition Assistance. I never felt the military owed it to me,
but simply sacrificed my down time and took advantage of it. When I
deployed, I knew my wife and kids were prepared to legally protect
themselves with a firearm should some whack job try to harm them or if
he simply decided he had to have something he didn’t currently own.
The studying could wait, but things have certainly changed.
Is it outrageous to consider that a Tier One operator might be called
upon to risk his life to save a US government official who may have
voted to eliminate his wife’s ability, or the wives of his mates, to
own an AR-15 rifle to protect herself and her children when her
husband is deployed?
I talked to a former member of SEAL Team 6 the other day that used the
term “self-preservation” when discussing the current mind set of many
Tier One operators. Generally, it struck me as odd, as that term never
entered our thought process in my time. But after discussing it some
more, and understanding how the two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
validated, or corrected, many of our long held assumptions about war
fighting, I could see his point. Very clearly, in fact.
Ten plus years of war and it just doesn’t make much sense to be in too
big of a hurry when clearing a target. Unless it’s a hostage situation
where the principles of surprise, speed, and violence of action still
hold true, what’s the hurry? Why lead with a nine banger when you’ve
humped all those mini-frags to the target?
But, the change in tactics wasn’t what struck me; it’s the change in
mind set. Like anything controversial, self-preservation cuts both
ways. Of course, I can’t speak for any other operator, but I
personally wonder about my thought process if I happened to still be
operational, faced with a hostage rescue of an elected official who
thumbed his or her nose at our Constitution that we both swore to
protect, and put my family or my mates’ families in potential danger.
Certainly these elected officials, prime targets for terrorists around
the world, make their decisions with their own political
self-preservation in mind or based on their personal opinion. I hope,
should the unthinkable happen, that these officials will remember, no
later than thirty seconds out, what they were told back at the CAPEX.
It’s the most assurance they’ll get about self-preservation when the
boys arrive.
As for me, after seeing our country and principles deteriorate and our
Constitution stepped on over the last six years or so, I now know that
I am definitely not the operator that a few of our elected officials
should be depending on for repatriation.
--
"So look up ahead at times to come, despair is not for us. We have a
world and more to see, while this remains behind."
~ Col. James N. ''Nick'' Rowe
Written by a former SFOD-D operator and controversial author of the book "Kill Bin Laden".
____________________
Choices, By "Dalton Fury"
One of the more unique things about serving the ranks of Delta Force
is that you often find yourself involved in a dog and pony show for
visiting officials, General Officers, or senior administration
officials. During these CAPEXs, or capabilities exercises, you are
given a fast paced intro to the bread and butter tactics, techniques,
and procedures employed by America’s premiere hostage rescue force.
For the assaulters and snipers tagged with CAPEX duty, it’s generally
a pain in the *** as it takes up a good week’s worth of training
having to deal with endless coordination, sequencing, synchronizing,
etc.
Yes, there is a certain training value inherent in the rehearsals as
time is spent strapped on the pods of Little Birds, breaching three
story windows from the sky line, or control pairing the eye orbit of
multiple targets as you move to points of domination.
However, individual and team training isn’t the objective during these
CAPEXs. No, the only objective is to jam pack enough pipe-hitting
commando stuff, refined and synchronized to a nanosecond, into an hour
or so, for one specific reason - to ensure that the VIPs walk away
having never seen anything like it. It has to leave a mark on each
VIP’s psyche. It’s loud – live bullets and breaches - up close, and
entirely educational for senior military and civilian leaders who
likely have heard about Delta Force, but who may not necessarily
understand it. They have to understand that if they ever find
themselves in harm’s way, particularly if their Embassy or US
Consulate is overrun or they are sitting on the runway in a
terrorist-controlled jumbo jet, then they know who to call for help.
I recall vividly standing on a bus addressing the crowd of VIPs when
Crapshoot and his team assaulted the hostage holding tube.
Newly-starred Stan McChrystal was “rescued”, cloaked quickly with
armor and Kevlar, and placed into the belly of a Little Bird in the
middle of the road directly off the nose of the bus. Of course,
McChrystal knew very well the capabilities of the Unit, but the other
two dozen new General Officers not so much.
The secret service detail of then-SECDEF Donald Rumsfeld shied away
from letting us “rescue” the Secretary, but he had a front row seat
when one of his senior staffers was repatriated in under 30 seconds
from X to exfil.
In all those CAPEXs, for all those American General Officers, freshman
Congressmen, or senior administration officials, I don’t recall one
time ever being briefed on what political party they were from, what
their personal stance on hot button issues was, or whether or not they
were even pro-military. As far as we knew, they were all 100%
pure-blooded American citizens that valued our hard fought freedoms
and honored, respected, and protected the Constitution of the United
States of America as much as we were willing to die to rescue them
from someone that would do them harm.
Of course, like every other serviceman or woman, we raised our right
hand and took an oath “to defend the Constitution of the United States
against all enemies, foreign and domestic”. An enlisted service member
takes the oath below. An officer takes about the same oath,
specifically the “enemies, foreign and domestic part”.
“I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and
defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies,
foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to
the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the
United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me,
according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So
help me God.”
When planning a hostage rescue, we didn’t know if the hostage ever ran
around on their spouse, beat their old lady, were dead-beat Dads, or
leaned extreme right or left on the political spectrum. We needed a
name and a simple face pic for PID, any meds he or she might need, and
a few jackpot questions to ensure we had the right precious cargo. If
they were paying attention, they learned back at the CAPEX that if we
ever had the opportunity to run into each other again to not be a
hero, don’t go for a gun, and do as you’re told. We didn’t ask them if
they were pro-2nd Amendment, would ever hypothetically vote to prevent
one of us who might suffer from PTSD in the future from legally owning
a firearm, or might vote to raise our Tricare Premiums one day.
It’s been about eight years since I had the privilege to participate
in those CAPEXs and I can only assume that the current operators feel
the same way we did about those events. Get it done, high standard,
and forget about it. However, given the long list of mind-boggling
issues and events that have captured the attention of our entire
nation, I wonder if they feel the same blind allegiance to the
visiting dignitaries that we did.
When our government secretly provides weapons to Mexican drug cartels
from 2006 to 2011 that end up being used against our own law
enforcement and Border Patrol agents, then hide the facts from the
American people, led by the President declaring Executive Privilege,
for their political survival, I can’t help but wonder.
When our State Department and President blatantly hide the facts, even
six months later, about the terrorist attack in Benghazi on 11
September, 2012 that left four Americans dead, including sitting US
Ambassador Christopher Stevens and two former Navy SEALs, I can’t help
but wonder.
When dozens of elected officials across the country work to limit the
peoples’ right to bear arms and sponsor legislature to dilute our 2nd
Amendment rights, I can’t help but wonder.
When our political leaders on both sides can’t come to an agreement
before Sequestration kicks in that, among other things, furloughs our
Armed Services civilian employees (while giving the Muslim Brotherhood
controlled Egyptian government $450 million dollars) and, most
recently, ended Tuition Assistance for our service members (while
Illegal Aliens can apply for state financial aid), I can’t help but
wonder.
When 9/11 happened, I was halfway through my Master’s Degree using
Military Tuition Assistance. I never felt the military owed it to me,
but simply sacrificed my down time and took advantage of it. When I
deployed, I knew my wife and kids were prepared to legally protect
themselves with a firearm should some whack job try to harm them or if
he simply decided he had to have something he didn’t currently own.
The studying could wait, but things have certainly changed.
Is it outrageous to consider that a Tier One operator might be called
upon to risk his life to save a US government official who may have
voted to eliminate his wife’s ability, or the wives of his mates, to
own an AR-15 rifle to protect herself and her children when her
husband is deployed?
I talked to a former member of SEAL Team 6 the other day that used the
term “self-preservation” when discussing the current mind set of many
Tier One operators. Generally, it struck me as odd, as that term never
entered our thought process in my time. But after discussing it some
more, and understanding how the two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
validated, or corrected, many of our long held assumptions about war
fighting, I could see his point. Very clearly, in fact.
Ten plus years of war and it just doesn’t make much sense to be in too
big of a hurry when clearing a target. Unless it’s a hostage situation
where the principles of surprise, speed, and violence of action still
hold true, what’s the hurry? Why lead with a nine banger when you’ve
humped all those mini-frags to the target?
But, the change in tactics wasn’t what struck me; it’s the change in
mind set. Like anything controversial, self-preservation cuts both
ways. Of course, I can’t speak for any other operator, but I
personally wonder about my thought process if I happened to still be
operational, faced with a hostage rescue of an elected official who
thumbed his or her nose at our Constitution that we both swore to
protect, and put my family or my mates’ families in potential danger.
Certainly these elected officials, prime targets for terrorists around
the world, make their decisions with their own political
self-preservation in mind or based on their personal opinion. I hope,
should the unthinkable happen, that these officials will remember, no
later than thirty seconds out, what they were told back at the CAPEX.
It’s the most assurance they’ll get about self-preservation when the
boys arrive.
As for me, after seeing our country and principles deteriorate and our
Constitution stepped on over the last six years or so, I now know that
I am definitely not the operator that a few of our elected officials
should be depending on for repatriation.
--
"So look up ahead at times to come, despair is not for us. We have a
world and more to see, while this remains behind."
~ Col. James N. ''Nick'' Rowe