DISCLAIMER: Some of you readers of the fairer sex are probably going to be slightly offended at some of the things I am about to say. Please realize that I will try as much as possible to keep you guessing about what is "tongue in cheek" and what actually my opinion, thereby hopefully inducing humor instead of pointed death threats... Has it come to the point that I have to point out the obvious (no, not the changes in the ROE or the Jane's Defense Afghan Air Shows that the USAF is doing now), and that when you get to the point that you have to get the girls to go and ask the questions, that perhaps your warfighting strategy team is running out of fresh ideas? KHAWJA JAMAL, Afghanistan – Put on body armor, check weapons, cover head and shoulders with a scarf. That was the drill for female American Marines who set out on patrol this week with a mission to make friends with Afghan women in a war zone by showing respect for Muslim standards of modesty. The all-female unit of 46 Marines is the military's latest innovation in its rivalry with the Taliban for the populace's loyalty. Afghan women are viewed as good intelligence sources, and more open to the basics of the military's hearts-and-minds effort — hygiene, education and an end to the violence. "It's part of the effort to show we're sensitive to local culture," said Capt. Jennifer Gregoire, of East Strasburg, Pa. She leads the Female Engagement Team in the Now Zad Valley of Helmand province, the heartland of the Taliban insurgency. OK, to lead this off, I would suggest that someone at high echelons of command look seriously at changing the name of this team immediately because F.E.T is only one letter away from F.A.T.and the last time I called a Female Marine F..A..T.. there were a lot of things near her that began to take flight by being violently hurled through the air (chairs, tables, glasses, MP's), then the place somehow caught fire and I woke up to the sound of a velcro mouthed hangover and a jail door being opened with my 1SG casting a shadow across the gray concrete floor... I distinctly remembered later that she had a rather shapely caboose and that my reference to it using the letters F, A and T was a life lesson I should probably take to heart. And she didn't even give me her number... Imagine that... I am certain that this meets some commanders intent of using engagement with the local populace to encourage the women to be more open and to give us intelligence that can save lives. I understand the idea that this fosters in our COIN strategy. I think personally it is like shouting into the wind hoping that someone hears the message, because I can tell you that the message is getting pretty muddled. And I can truly say that these brave 21st Century Amazons are either crazy brave or terminally stupid; because I would not wrap my head in anything that could be labeled as a "brightly colored head scarf" anywhere near Helmand Province, or Kapisa, or Paktika unless it had some magical ballistic quality that enhanced the protection offered from my helmet and did not place a large "shoot here" spot on me. I am not certain what help these Marines can really offer though, as the article points out, when they rolled into the town, there were no women to speak of there. I spoke to 3 Afghan women in the entire time I spent in Afghanistan, and they were no more than arms length from a male member of their family, who I know was monitoring everything that they were saying to me. Because as was explained to me by all of my terps, this was so that if the man later decided he did not approve or appreciate the interactions that took place, he would express his dissatisfaction by beating said woman Uhh.. BTW... Deebow's Handy Combat Tip Number 3: If you roll into a village anywhere and you don't see any women or children running around, and the few military age men you see as you pull in suddenly disappear; that feeling you have that you are being watched is real. Be prepared to seek cover and return fire and maneuver, because this is an indicator that the poo-poo is about to strike the ventilator. I know the idea is to be sensitive to their culture, and we should be respectful; but the men don't respect the women in their own culture, so I know that when they talk to American Women (who happen to be toting around guns), the Afghan men get confused. The Afghan soldiers I served with took about 6 months of convincing for them to believe that these female soldiers at our FOB were there for our "pleasure" and made no other connection other than that was what their purpose was. Can you imagine what the women must think of these Marines when they meet them if this is their lot in life? I don't know how much effect this strategy will have, given what I know about the Afghan culture and their unfamiliarity with how the whole "carrot and stick" thing works when applying COIN principles. I put the effectiveness of a resource like this to (1) give me meaningful information that shapes the battlefield and (2) help me accomplish my mission right up there with Air Force air show fly-bys and reflective belt patrols at Bagram Air Base. It sure looks good, but overall a waste and an inconvenience. I would like a balance of carrots and sticks, and I would rather have these magnificent American women who, as Female United States Marines, demonstrate the god-like power to both give life and take life; to have their guns in the fight, taking it to an enemy who gives them no more respect than they would...
Read the complete post at http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Blackfive/~3/UVdphh6K9BE/so-this-is-what-it-has-come-to.html
Posted
Aug 18 2009, 05:06 PM
by
BLACKFIVE