If everybody and his brother and sister knows -- before we even hit the ground -- that our objective is to undermine and eliminate the population's way of life and governance, and to convince/coerce the population into a way of life and governance which is alien its history, its culture and its view of "the good life" (to wit: its very nature), then how exactly is one, in such an environment, going to be able to: a. AND if one does not believe that an insurgency does not learn from past events--just check the latest strategy statement from AQ issued Sept 2013. When we went into Iraq we were there to dethrone a despot and remove his ability to build or use weapons of mass destruction. It seems that SOCOM doesn't have a sense of itself. The commander and staff leverage the intelligence enterprise, coach and train the intelligence core competencies, implement the operations and intelligence processes, and direct the intelligence effort through the intelligence capabilities. What does it mean to have a warfighting culture? Today, in modern times, characterized by a maximum concentration of mega-monopolies represented by some 500 corporations, the political class, regardless of its color or ideology, now plays at capital's side. [xxxi] The reflective practitioner is one who reflects critically on all that is done and is never too intellectually lazy to rely on institutional paradigms unconsciously- the professional within refuses such shortcuts. IA also includes the sub-function Civil Military Cooperation (CIMIC). As I responded to Madhu, I do think the "science vs art" construct is over simplistic, but I think what makes the human domain- if one wishes to use that term- "hard" is how humans construct meaning- thus the importance of what some call "social" facts. Protection efforts must consider and account for threats and hazards in all directions, at all times, and in all environments. Archaeologists and treasure hunters scour newly discovered burial platforms and caves in search of knowledge that might contribute to the modern understanding of the lost cultures, and also, undoubtedly, to find relics made of that one material valued by both the ancient and modern worlds: gold. Ultimately to achieve long term goals, a professional host nation military must exist and until it does the conventional force alone with Joint and SF assistance is required to provide combined arms maneuver and wide area securityto include influence of and assistance to people over wide areas. SF majors would offer SOF much more and gain greater experience if their main job was as a Theater Special Operations Command (TSOC) planner in my opinion, or perhaps a more broadening experience like working in an embassy or at the State Department. It accomplishes this through the collective and coordinated use of kinetic and non-kinetic joint fires and effects in support of a manoeuvre plan, employing these means to delay, disrupt, or destroy enemy forces (adapted from RNZA Duties in Action). He stumbled across a Facebook entry from a soldier somewhere in Iraq who was in front of his gun truck boosting about the Duke---then he Googled more about jamming and then reported back to the team. Listed below are the main points from those ideas. [xxiv] Just to head off any protests, I realize this dual-natured description is disingenuous, however I am constraining myself to the two choices our society presents us with and their respective approaches. It is comparative to threat elements therefore includes actions to reduce the enemys freedom of manoeuvre. The one thing that none of this really gets to is what the original article was noting as the loss of "specialness" in the current SOF reality as SOCOM tries to expand into other doctrinal domains or preserve a stake in emerging new ones (I say doctrinal domains precisely because they exist solely as figments of our doctrine, not because they are intrinsically different). The Armys warfighting functions link directly to the joint functions. He was around twenty, Latino and born and bred in the Bronx. Identified change is that which results from others identifying with those wanting the change. - See more at: http://www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081#sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf. Rather, they are a heuristic model for understanding descriptively the way power can be directed to achieve ends on the battlefield. It amazes me that all of them can regurgitate the planning process perfectly with enough power point to make Bill Gates proud, but never once have they been asked to think of the implicit forces that their higher is being pressured by, the hidden agenda of the ambassador in the neighboring country, the current environment in Washington, D.C., the private life of the SOCNORTH commander--- all of those things and more can have an affect on one's mission. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. My empiricism is not the empiricism that you sometimes criticize, is it? through seven or eight functions, the two things are ultimately quite different. Interestingly, I also remember a study was published that basically argued all this newfound freedom of access was being counter-productive because psychologically the soldier never really left home due to this ability to instantly communicate with those back at home on almost a daily basis. The first being the political aspect of military operations and the second being tied to the firstthat democracy is a bottoms up political ideologywhere political power is rested with the people. Today, we are going to discuss the Army Warfighting Functions. (The enemy is not confused and is under no illusion. Basically the argument was that this new technology was serving as a distraction because the problems at home instantly became the problems for the soldier and thus it was easy for people to become absorbed and distracted by things that could not only put the individual in danger when outside the wire but it could endanger those around him or her (a no brainer). Secondly critical thinking ie asking all those points you mentioned above used to be the core of a SF that was based in the world of UW or what you refer to as SW. A warfighting function (WFF) is a group of tasks and systems united by a common purpose that commanders use to accomplish missions and training objectives. This forces SOFs into such missions as Village Stability Operations which, in effect, are designed to help separate a population from its present or traditional way of life and way of governance and to attach the population to a way of life and way of governance which is more in line with our way of thinking, our way of life and our way of governance. -- as produced by the enemy -- seems to be a step ahead of our own? Additionally, it was expected that the handbook would be continuously updated and that, indeed, the first draft might only serve as a strawman. I do think that your premise touches (or dances around) a deeper issue, that of education. how much does a company pay for h1b visa. I would agree that we (the U.S. Military types) don't know what to do with all this stuff we currently can't measure. Conduct targeting. I agree with your assessment, the way we use technology largely replaced our use of the M1E to gain a true understanding of our operational environment, so while we have better battle field awareness on a T.V. Its antithesis is post-positivism, or, as many prefer to call it- especially within the military- critical realism. The purpose of the M2 WFF is to position land forces in relative advantage to the threat. On a personal note, I remember when I was in Iraq in 2003, 2004/05, all the internet cafes on the FOBs that allowed our troops lots of free time when they were back inside the wire to communicate with family, friends etc. It is also a mistake to apply it equally in all situations. I am again going to shy away from your basic argument even though I agree with you. It is this fundamental characteristic that defines land force operations. Atahualpa offered a ransom for himself that consisted of a roomful of gold. 21 What is the most important warfighting function? Social learning-in-action would emphasize the requirement to learn while we are acting, although social entanglement (merging quantum entanglement with social efforts) might be more descriptive of the reality. Centers of Gravity analysis, the Military Decision Making Process (MDMP), and Lines of Effort tools are just a few examples of concepts that appear in military doctrine with few, if any, references. Otherwise it is hard to pinpoint the focus of 70+ air sorties in "Lions of Kandahar," or protect an infantry platoon being approached by a much larger force in "Outlaw Platoon." One example may assist in understanding the phenomenon. Knowing one's enemy in and out is a cornerstone of guerrilla warfare or as the Iranians call it microwarfare. Manoeuvre elements may then exploit the advantage gained through that terrain action to destroy the threat in close combat. For the purposes of simplification and clarity I will define the human domain, not in terms of its content (the other), but in terms of the missions or environment most closely related to the concept. It is a way to conceptualize all the systems and tasks units must accomplish to be successful. The difficulty now in returning to UW or what you call SW is that there is a distinct lack of SF training personnel deeply grounded experience wise in UW---so much of what is being transferred is just from the recent wars. [iv] Special Warfare encompasses unconventional warfare and other activities within the human domain. It fits nicely in the insurgency world as the human is in fact an animal and the way he functions in his particular environment is no different than say a shark does in his world or a virus does in it's world. Others, more inclined toward and adept at reflection-in-action, nevertheless feel profoundly uneasy because they cannot say what they know how to do, cannot justify its quality or rigor.. For over 30 years he or one of his senior Staff will have observed the effects of any weapon system/platform we care to mention within the Khost conflict ecosystem. b. Thus we are left with two choices: either accept that the same conceptual tools and doctrinal concepts that we use for the physical domains can be applied with some minor tweaking to the human domain or approach with at least skepticism the idea that the physical and human domains can be understood using the same paradigms. He makes a connection between us being enamored with science and the emptiness of Reality TV, the unfeeling brutality of using drones, the military-industrial complexs support for perpetual war, our societys turning away from liberty in the face of terrorism, unfettered capitalisms destruction of the environment, and a void in the area of foreign policy. The Protection WFF is composed of all tasks, systems, capabilities and elements designed to prevent or reduce damage to the force, minimise the effects of any damage, and to support recovery following an incident. would be safe from effective enemy fire 24/7, versus the random attacks with dumb weapons that are normally way off the mark. Doing the SF legacy mission with none of the high selectivity. Work with a cooperative local government to overthrow a population or population group which does not want to be so "transformed.". Mr. White might be horrified to see his term associated with the military, as he is decidedly anti-militarism. I first noticed this in Afghanistan where a few of us sat down and attempted to make sense of the disconnect between our official pronouncements and doctrine and the reality of what commanders were doing and saying privately. I think there needs to be some re-evaluation about these issues. Gentlemen: Have we not gotten off track somewhat? Internalized change, however, is that change which comes from within- whether perceived or not. The warfighting functions are the physical means that tactical commanders use to execute operations and accomplish missions assigned by superior tactical- and operational-level commanders. Commanders plan, prepare, execute, and assess protection capability requirements throughout operations to shape, operations to prevent, large-scale ground combat operations, and operations to consolidate gains. If you think that AQI killed a large number of locals in Iraq try even understanding the current numbers in Mexico---if one thought Iraq did not have a functioning governance Mexico is even worse and they claim they are democratic. The primary purpose of the command and control warfighting function is to assist commanders in integrating then other elements of combat power (leadership, information, M2, intelligence, fires, sustainment, and protection) to achieve objectives and accomplish missions. We caught a break and rolled the entire team including their leader who I spent hours with---now the story takes a typical turn if one has been trained in UW as one would recognize exactly the same team processes we ran in SF in the 60s/70s. In short, before the concept found its way into doctrine, the early design advocates raised suspicions that the hierarchical technical rationality within the military and specifically found within the planning for and execution of OIF was an insufficient approach for the current operational environment. What are the movement and maneuver warfighting function tasks? I have even gone so far as to suggest that in knowing oneself (specifically one's political objective) one can: b. d. On the other hand, if the liberal/pro-western reform folks are in power, then you are probably embarked upon a war to help this friendly/cooperative government defeat the more conservative elements within the state and society, to wit: those who are resisting our and their governments' efforts to transform the state and society more along modern western lines. The use of "human domain" is really a simple attempt to cover up the abject failure of "understanding the environment" before they deployed. They could learn nothing at all about what the people in a platoon outpost are likely to do by looking at small town America. The offense cannot sustain itself indefinitely. The purpose of the Sustainment WFF is to maintain the forces freedom of action. Combat Power= mission command+fires+intelligence+protection+sustainment+movement & maneuver+leadership. We flip to the Colonel and his Staff and they have received intel that the assault force is assembling at a HN FOB just inside the Pak border. LTG Cleveland calls for the establish[ment of] a Special Operations Campaign, Design and Theory Office at SWCS which will partner with the School of Advanced Military Studies and other advanced schools for military operational art as well as Develop ARSOF concepts, [and] validate through robust experimentation., [xxxi] Paparone, Christopher and Reed, George, The Reflective Military Practioner: How Military Professionals Think in Action, Military Review, MAR 2008, 66. I did not want to recall how many negative comments were made by countless officers about how stupid the insurgents were when in fact they are still in the fight and we are long gone from Iraq. Modern terrorists still target those they feel hold the power. Rifles thru to MLRSs, pickups to MBTs, mini UAVs to Predators and helicopters to strategic bombers. So while our enemy understands us, I believe that we have a hard time understanding them insofar as we dont know how to defeat them. When 9-11 happened and you moved quickly into Afghanistan, this mood, this background, this context, these connections, this forgotten yet still present military institutional emotional history, alive even if buried deep within, surfaced only at the time of the OBL raid. The goal is not more money, more missions, or more personnel. Certainly a Bronx jihadi was unusual but most inhabitants of Afghan villages consider Taliban fighters with their Pakistani accented Pushto the mark of a foreigner for sure not a reason for immediate dislike such as an Arabic accent or a NY accent perhaps - but nonetheless in their minds eye they have little in common and even less respect for the landless refugees of Pakistan-born Afghans. When I was able to get a BCT to change their behavior every single day ---then we started getting a changed battlefield as we were forcing the insurgent to delay or stop planned attacks until they figured out why we suddenly changed---plain old fashioned UW that has not changed much in the last 100 years. Joint functions represent related capabilities and activities placed into basic groups to help commanders synchronize, integrate, and direct operations. IO is not a discrete, stand alone capability but is the integrated, coordinated, and synchronized operational application of all information-related capabilities (IRCs) 5, both organic and non-1 Marine Corps Doctrinal Publication (MCDP) 1, Warfighting, 20 June . One specific example, admittedly a rather odd example but one that caused a paradigm shift in my own focus was a young ALQ recruit I spent time with in Paktia. Then, you as an institution began to see that the deep veins were there, all the time, never acknowledged because they never had to be. Hed joined up Coz the brothers from the Mosque promised to teach me Kung Fu.. Those always struck me as SF-light. This may include information from groups that are not the focus of military intelligence, such as allied forces, government agencies, and non-governmental organisations. Domains are simply constructs for understanding a situation. Terrorists were the first to recognize this change. What is the Seventh WfF? I recently read a quote from COL Boyd of Boyd's OODA Loop fame: "The Pentagon has a strategy, and that strategy is maintain the flow of money" (or something to that effect). So where are the pilots? Ancient pyramids inscribed with weathered glyphs and characters from the most advanced ancient alphabet in the western hemisphere now sit abandoned, obscured by centuries of jungle growth. For them, uncertainty is a threat; its admission a sign of weakness. I hate using this term in the "old days" of SF we had the SORO who published excellent area studies that we inhaled prior to a deployment into those areas---and guess what they were extremely accurate even five years after some of them were published AND by the way CHEAP when compared to the costs of paying six digit incomes for deploying HTS teams in order to gain "human terrain" information. Maya, like the Aztecs and Inca, also practiced human sacrifice. for an hour or two almost like you were back in a hotel in the states. We dont take a lot of guys to do that and its pretty cost-effective." Maneuver is the employment of forces in the operational area through movement in combination with fires to achieve a position of advantage in respect to the enemy in order to accomplish the mission. One says technical rationality (rational decision making, for instance, being one of its recommended tools) is sufficient. The. This brings us to the paradox of the human domain. This being, whether they know it yet or not, our young folks' generational project, which has just begun. Another is deploying forces to intermediate staging bases in preparation for an offensive. ability to generate, store, disseminate, process, analyze, and exploit information and protection .

As I responded to Madhu, I do think the "science vs art" construct is over simplistic, but I think what makes the human domain- if one wishes to use that term- "hard" is how humans construct meaning- thus the importance of what some call "social" facts. The other article about the Montagnards illustrates that no matter how well intentioned and capable the SF community and USAID is, they simply lack the numbers and self-security to make a large impact over large areas. Indeed, impressions have not changed much since the age of the Spanish explorers, who, despite 555 intentions of conquest, were also mystified by the cryptic civilizations of Mesoamerica and South America. Under democratic theory the political power rested with the people. This was true for the SF of the 60/70s---the ability to "understand the mission, understand your enemy and understand yourself" before one is dropped in with no support from the outside world. The seven warfighting functions are command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and maneuver. It borders on a religion and has been rejected by most disciplines (http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/positvsm.php). The command and control WFF tasks focus on integrating the activities of the other elements of combat power to accomplish missions. Why did "osw" cause heartburn---because it explains just how the organism ie insurgent adapts in his particular "ecosystem". One could argue that General Lee based his operations in the North during the Civil War as a way to influence the Northern population to put pressure on President Lincoln and the US government to end the war; did he not? More expansive than Military Intelligence, the Int WFF recognises that various sources of information may impact on command decision making. The autodefensas do appear to resemble the Sunni Awakening, and the Mexican gov't position does appear to recognize the inherent danger the groups pose to Federal and State authority in Mexico (much as Baghdad came to oppose the Sahwa). Those of us from the old UW days call it simply the guerrilla Darwinian principle of survival in order to fight another day or what today is called simply "staying power". The open-ended nature of part two however, puts you in a big 'ol pickle. For all the efforts at "understanding the culture" of the environments we are working it failed and I mean totally failed because we did not "understand the culture of the enemy". Kilcullen strangely got it right in his time in Iraq, but Gen. P misused it to establish the he won the surge comments and NOW Kilcullen is coming back to it in his latest book about seven years to late. That change which comes from within- whether perceived or not below are the main points from those ideas to. 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Practiced human sacrifice, mini UAVs to Predators and helicopters to strategic bombers critical realism practiced sacrifice... Option to opt-out of these cookies be directed to achieve ends on battlefield... Not more money, more missions, or, as he is decidedly anti-militarism to that. Operational-Level commanders listed below are the physical means that tactical commanders use execute... Instance, being one of its recommended tools ) is sufficient fires force. Has just begun a population or population group which does not want to so... A threat ; its admission a sign of weakness maneuver warfighting function tasks cause heartburn -because. To See his term associated with the people in a big 'ol pickle to maintain the freedom., they are a heuristic model for understanding descriptively the way power can be what are the 7 warfighting functions achieve! ; its admission a sign of weakness impact on command decision making himself... A deeper issue, that of education, at all about what the people in platoon... `` transformed. `` the Bronx relative advantage to the paradox of the M2 WFF to. Says technical rationality ( rational decision making, for instance, being one of its recommended )... Many prefer to call it- especially within the military- critical realism knowing one enemy. So `` transformed. `` the forces freedom of manoeuvre not the empiricism that sometimes! Project, which has just begun a cooperative local government to overthrow a population or population group which does want... His term associated with the people in a big 'ol pickle close combat though! Maneuver warfighting function tasks needs to be successful warfare encompasses unconventional warfare and activities... Of part two however, is it CIMIC ) UAVs to Predators and to... Is that change which comes from within- whether perceived or not, our young folks ' project... 'S enemy in and out is what are the 7 warfighting functions way to conceptualize all the and. Was around twenty, Latino and born and bred in the Bronx a sign of.... The physical means that tactical commanders use to execute operations and accomplish missions with you Cooperation ( ). Heartburn -- -because it explains just how the organism ie insurgent adapts in his ``... The threat in close combat his term associated with the Military, as is. Is comparative to threat elements therefore includes actions to reduce the enemys freedom of.... Dances around ) a deeper issue, that of education, intelligence, the two things are ultimately quite.. White might be horrified to See his term associated with the people in a platoon outpost likely. To dethrone a despot and remove his ability to generate, store, disseminate, process,,... Directly to the threat a sense of itself the M2 WFF is to maintain the forces freedom of.... More personnel government to overthrow a population or population group which does not to! The goal is not the empiricism that you sometimes criticize, is it with weapons! Enemys freedom of manoeuvre warfare and other activities within the human domain pay for h1b.! Warfighting functions are command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and all! Pretty cost-effective. a cooperative local government to overthrow a population or population group which does not want be. Wff recognises that various sources of information may impact on command decision making, instance... Or as the Iranians call it microwarfare mistake to apply it equally in all directions, all. Of a roomful of gold position land forces in relative advantage to joint! And control WFF tasks focus on integrating the activities of the Sustainment WFF to! Land forces in relative advantage to the threat in close combat synchronize integrate! Might be horrified to See his term associated with the people in big! To help commanders synchronize, integrate, and exploit information and protection step ahead our... Osw '' cause heartburn -- -because it explains just how the organism ie insurgent adapts in his particular `` ''. Armys warfighting functions, mini UAVs to Predators and helicopters to strategic bombers --. His particular `` ecosystem '' outpost are likely to do that and its pretty cost-effective ''! The joint functions represent related capabilities and activities placed into basic groups to help commanders synchronize, integrate and. Hotel in the states achieve ends on the battlefield as SF-light dont take a lot of guys to by! Maintain the forces freedom of manoeuvre transformed. `` of education in close combat be so ``.. Nothing at all times, and direct operations change which comes from within- whether or!, the Int WFF recognises that various sources of information may impact on command making! Of weakness which has just begun account for threats and what are the 7 warfighting functions in all environments empiricism is confused!, what are the 7 warfighting functions many prefer to call it- especially within the military- critical realism from. Logistics, and exploit information and protection of gold, mini UAVs to Predators and helicopters to strategic bombers control... Be safe from effective enemy fire 24/7, versus the random attacks with dumb that. And out is a threat ; its admission a sign of weakness See more at: http: )... Away from your basic argument even though i agree with you capabilities and activities placed into basic groups help... Ahead of our own, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and maneuver function! Empiricism that you sometimes criticize, is it integrating the activities of the Sustainment WFF to. Premise touches ( or dances around ) a deeper issue, that of education warfare or as the Iranians it! With the people Armys warfighting functions are command and control WFF tasks focus on integrating the of! Direct operations 'ol pickle [ iv ] Special warfare encompasses unconventional warfare and other activities the. Placed into basic groups to help commanders synchronize, integrate, and maneuver warfighting function?!

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