Let’s do this!

[Administrator]

The American military has become relatively self-congratulatory of late about our newfound aptitude for counterinsurgency. As the violence in Iraq remains low relative to the charnel house of sectarian cleansing that characterized the peak of their civil war, the military mission in Iraq is shifting decisively toward advising and developing the Iraqi Security Forces. However, just as it took a tremendous shift in mind-set to move from traditional kinetic operations to the more complicated challenges of counterinsurgency, it will take another significant shift to truly master the art of advising.

http://www.armedforcesjournal.com/2009/06/4036672

[ArlyneSharp]

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Thanks.

[sargemack]

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[CAPO06]

Having served on a Military Transition Team in Iraq last year I can agree that a mindset shift is by far the most problematic issue facing the COIN fight. In my opinion its more than simply changing a mindset, its a culture change that will take a couple of generations in any theater of modern armed conflict. Advising is a complex mixture of art and science, applied systematically over a painstakingly long period of time, not in a 16 month drawdown window, and certainly not performed effectively by a 12 man ad hoc MiTT with 3 months of training. Traditionally advising is the job of our Special Forces who, by their very design, have an advantage when working with indigenous populations. The problem facing the U.S. in today's COIN fight is that the SF teams are stretched too thin across too broad a spectrum and the military has had to develop an alternative to meet these demands. The other part of the problem is that many ground commanders don't understand and/or won't accept the mission of a MiTT and often times write off the teams working in their AO as "going native" or siding with their host nation counterparts. Sadly, as I've witnessed first hand, MiTTs don't receive the support they need from the home team, and the foreign military they are trying to train, equip, and advise suffer for it. The bottom line mission for any advisory effort be it MiTT, SF, or other is the success of the host nation's military in providing its own national security, and allowing the U.S. to withdraw with the confidence that it won't need to return. If the military stays the course with the MiTT effort as a replacement of sorts or an augmentation to the SF teams COIN operations then it should entertain a top down approach to mindset change, starting with the ground commanders who will be responsible for supporting the MiTTs and SF teams in their AOs. Additionally, a dedicated MOS or ASI should be created specifically for advisors and the training should be expanded and extended over the course of 8-12 months, with a more dedicated focus on culture, language, and negotiations. Of the three months of MiTT training only 7 days is dedicated to language and culture based events, and only 3 "Key Leader Engagements" take place with a full dress rehearsal with an interpreter. The future of COIN and advisory success most certainly will require a mindset change and the adoption, adaptation, and acceptance of the importance of non-lethal effects on the operational environment in full spectrum operations.

[Alston.Alfred]

I don't think all guys are so mean-minded but some of them definitely are. By the way, it's the time to challenge several well-established social conventions. Have you ever thought what's wrong with two friends having sex? I once had sex with my friend (a guy two months younger than myself) and now we have a good laugh whenever we talk about it.

[CAPO06]

Originally Posted by Alston.Alfred

I don't think all guys are so mean-minded but some of them definitely are. By the way, it's the time to challenge several well-established social conventions. Have you ever thought what's wrong with two friends having sex? I once had sex with my friend (a guy two months younger than myself) and now we have a good laugh whenever we talk about it.

WTF are you babbling about? Your random non-sensical post has absolutely nothing to do with the topic at hand, and quite frankly no one cares that a) you had gay sex or b) the age difference between the two of you. Stop sneaking on your mom's computer after she goes to bed at night and posting randomly pointless discussions in the most inappropriate forum threads. If you have something valuable to add and actually relevant to the topic then please share it, if not quit trolling around the internet late at night when you're reminiscing about your sexual escapades.

[Nensi]

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[avatar]

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[wlsale]

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[Mariemiller02]

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