Stan R. Mitchell's Blog, page 36

China encounters a new reality

I can’t help but wonder if China is waking up to some new realities. Frankly, some harsh realities.

Poised in their own minds to dominate Asia, if not the world, for the next fifty to 100 years, China has found that the world gets to have a say in whether such a thing actually comes about. And if recent moves are any indication, then I feel quite confident that the world isn’t signing up for Chinese domination.

In the past few weeks, major moves have been made in what almost seems a new alignment. Except, it’s not a new alignment. It’s just absolutely aimed at countering China now.

It started, of course, at the beginning of the month, when Japan agreed to help defend Taiwan if China ever attacked. And from there, it’s almost like the floodgates opened.

The UK announced that it will permanently station two patrol vessels in the region, even docking them in Asia, making it their perpetual home. They also released plans to deploy a Littoral Response Group in the coming years, centering on amphibious ships. That latter part means ground troops. British ground troops stationed near China. Permanently.

Which means China will need to defend the airstrips it’s throwing up on islands with such glee.

America made several weighty moves as well. First, we sent dozens of F-22 fighter jets to the Pacific.

“We have never had this many Raptors deployed together in the Pacific Air Forces area of operations,” Gen. Ken Wilsbach, Pacific Air Forces commander, told CNN.

From the article:

The F-22s are fifth-generation combat jets, the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft, incorporating stealth technologies and connecting on-board sensor systems with off-board information systems to give their pilots a detailed view of the battle space. US F-35s are another example.

Normal F-22 deployments consist of six to 12 aircraft, said Carl Schuster, a Hawaii-based defense analyst and a former director of operations at the US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center

“The Pacific Air Force is demonstrating that it can deploy as many or more fifth-generation aircraft into the theater on short notice than (China) currently has in its entire inventory,” he said.

The Chinese air force has about 20 to 24 operational fifth-generation fighters, Schuster said.

…

Because of their ability to evade radar detection, F-22s would be expected to be among the first weapons used in any conflict, tasked with taking out an adversary’s air defenses among other missions.

To me, this is literally the United States saying, “We can match your airpower on your own side of the hemisphere.”

Finally, the U.S. is conducting a massive fleet exercise with Australia, Japan, and South Korea. (Images below.)

These nations combined, including countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines (none of whom are friends of China), present a formidable obstacle to China when teamed together.

#USNavy conduct exercise #PacificVanguard 2021 off coast of Australia: go.usa.gov/x6uqA #NavyPartnerships ","username":"USPacificFleet","name":"U.S. Pacific Fleet","date":"Fri Jul 09 20:57:07 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/E54cPp...U.S. Pacific Fleet @USPacificFleetMaritime forces from Australia, Japan, Republic of Korea and #USNavy conduct exercise #PacificVanguard 2021 off coast of Australia: go.usa.gov/x6uqA #NavyPartnerships

July 9th 2021

130 Retweets514 Likes

Of course, nothing is guaranteed.

China still has a strong economic reach, as shown in the chart below. It’s startling how strong that reach is, actually. Take a look at their trade strength.

@gadyepstein \n\neconomist.com/briefing/2021/… ","username":"imkahloon","name":"Idrees Kahloon","date":"Sat Jul 17 15:04:39 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/E6gcm4...Idrees Kahloon @imkahloonOne chart says it all, from our excellent cover story this week by @gadyepstein economist.com/briefing/2021/…

July 17th 2021

160 Retweets337 Likes

But America has increasingly been pointing out China’s human rights abuses and countries seem a little less eager to trust the huge dragon in the East.

This spotlight on China will only grow, it seems. And they will either rein in their abuses and aggressiveness, or face a more determined set of world actors.

Not that I think war is likely. In many ways, neither America nor China can go to war against each other. We’re too interlocked in trade, finance, and other matters. A regional conflict could happen, but local jockeying and shoving seem the more likely course.

And a determined, manifestly strong alliance among smaller countries in the region will help convince China that its military aims in Taiwan and elsewhere are foolhardy at best.

What do you think? Am I right or wrong? Let me know in the comments below,

I wanted to highlight one other quick thing, which absolutely blew my mind and made me feel more optimistic about our world.

In the Middle East, there are drones now making rain. As The Washington Post reports:

United Arab Emirates meteorological officials released a video this week of cars driving through a downpour in Ras al Khaimah in the northern part of the country. The storm was the result of one of the UAE’s newest efforts to increase rainfall in a desert nation that gets about four inches a year on average.

…

officialuaeweatherA post shared by @officialuaeweather

Scientists created rainstorms by launching drones, which then zapped clouds with electricity, the Independent reports. Jolting droplets in the clouds can cause them to clump together, researchers found. The larger raindrops that result then fall to the ground, instead of evaporating midair — which is often the fate of smaller droplets in the UAE, where temperatures are hot and the clouds are high.

You can read more about it at the link above. Or just research it some on Google.

But how cool is that?!

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

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And if you haven’t already, please subscribe for email notifications. (It’s FREE. Unless you don’t want it to be and would like to support what I’m doing.) Every Tuesday and Friday, I write about conflicts and military matters that are happening throughout the world. Such as what’s happening in Afghanistan or Iraq. How we’re aligning ourselves to counter China’s growing influence. Updates on new military technology that we’re fielding.

I also post veteran interviews every Sunday.

And I do all of this from a moderate perspective that focuses on unity in our country.

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Feel free to leave a comment below. I love having conversations on here! (Please be kind in the comments. I’m a proud moderate, who wants to unite the country. So if you attack someone or say something out of line, I will delete your comment.)

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Hill 406 giveaway

Congrats to the winners of the Goodreads giveaway contest. Ten books going out in the mail today.

America won, and achieved the impossible, in Afghanistan.

It reads like a fantastical piece of fiction. A tale of hatred versus love. A tale of barbaric extremists “justifying” their attacks through religion, believing that they will be delivered and forgiven for their actions.

The story began nearly twenty years ago.

From an impoverished, remote country, a deadly attack was planned and funded in complete secrecy. The warriors of this group — fanatical zealots all — plotted, trained, and immersed themselves in a western country that they hated with all their hearts.

And on a fateful day that would come to be known across the world as 9/11, they boarded planes and piloted them into American buildings, felling two of the greatest creations in America. They would take the lives of 2,977 victims, topping even the Japanese, who had killed 2,335 in their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor sixty years earlier in 1941.

Al-Qaeda, under the leadership of Osama bin Laden, killed more innocent people with box cutters, knives, and four commercial aircraft than the Japanese had with a coordinated attack of 353 planes and five submarines.

But like the Japanese before them, al-Qaeda had gone too far this time. The United States might’ve mostly ignored the previous attacks by al-Qaeda that dated back to 1993, but they wouldn’t forgive or forget this one.

As the smoldering heaps darkened the sky over New York, a country united in spirit and grief.

Americans mourned. Americans rallied. Americans reacted.

The response would initially be directed toward a backward country listed on the maps as Afghanistan. The Taliban, a religious order that ruled most of Afghanistan, refused to give up the band of terrorists serving in Al-Qaeda. So America added the Taliban to its list of foes that would feel the harsh wrath of an angry, wounded country.

And in this fight on foreign lands, America brought its richest resource. No, this wasn’t technology, airpower, or superior weapons.

Rather, America brought the one thing that had fed and fueled its expansion since settlers landed at Jamestown, Virginia, more than 400 years ago in 1607: It brought an ample abundance of optimism and can-do spirit.

And it would need it, in this broken and battered country that hadn’t caught a break in decades. Perhaps even in centuries.

Despite the fact that Afghanistan’s massive size rivals that of Texas. Despite the fact that its literacy rate hovers at 20 percent. (Most countries average above 80-plus percent.) And despite the fact that the country had endured a nine-year war with the Russians, followed immediately by a twelve-year civil war, where it tore itself even further apart, America believed it could not only destroy Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, but that it could also create a democracy in one of the poorest, most uneducated countries in the world.

Sadly, America did not rally its full effort for this task, sending less than 1 percent of its population to attempt the impossible. Worse, it mostly ignored the fate of these men and women, quickly losing interest in this grand enterprise, caring more about the Sopranos, Lost, the Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and a dozen other TV shows and movies that dropped the past twenty years.

To this day, most Americans would be hard-pressed to name even three Afghan cities. I doubt many can even name one, to say nothing of the many historic battles, hills, and valleys where we spilled the blood of our people (and theirs), chasing an impossible dream.

The brutal truth is that we sent our professional Roman Legions to a far-flung land to defend us while we laughed and loved and dined on grapes and wine in the shade here at home.

And even in this GREAT unjustness, our U.S. service members never faltered in their duty. They never complained. They never refused orders. Instead, they threw themselves into the task with the vigor and participation that should rival all wars in history.

Of the 800,000 that served in the country known as the “Graveyard of Empires,” almost 30,000 volunteered for more than five tours there. (That number would probably be far higher, but many also served tours in Iraq.)

Twenty-three hundred would die in this harsh land of hills, snow-capped mountains, and sun-baked desert in the south (Helmand). It was actually in the scorching oven of Helmand, where temperatures often topped 120 degrees, that more than four hundred British or American soldiers would be killed; more casualties than any other province.

The price was high — TOO HIGH — but even those Americans who survived the fighting in Afghanistan without physical wounds surrendered years of their lives, thousands of marriages, and their own mental stability.

To this day, most Americans remain blind to this offering and contribution by so many. It is an act that borders upon a crime.

Sadly (incredibly even), suicides among military personnel are 4x higher than deaths from operations, with more than 30,000 service members paying the ultimate price after returning home safely from our two major wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.)

They have laid down their lives, no differently than their brethren and sistren who bled out in the retched poppy fields and maze-like mud compounds of the old world.

The footnotes are ugly; as gruesome as the IEDs favored by the enemy. Let us not dwell on these.

The headlines are prettier:

Osama bin Laden is dead.

Al-Qaeda has been dismembered.

America has been rendered safe.

And Afghanistan is now a mostly functioning democracy, in the fight of its life against a resurgent Taliban.

In a country that whipped men who shaved, forced women to remain covered, and executed offenders in a soccer stadium for amusement, America did the impossible.

We deployed our military more than eight timezones away to a land 7,000 miles distant, and in this unknown land, we chased our foes into the hills with near-reckless courage. Sometimes, even on horseback.

We created a democracy that Afghanistan can preserve, if it does not wilt in its fight.

We created something to behold. Something to cherish. Something we struggle to hold onto here at home, nearly two hundred and forty years after our founding.

In that barren, desolute country, we have created a miracle. We have created a democracy. One that sputters and needs fine-tuning, but a democracy nonetheless.

A place where women can be treated as equals and rise to the highest levers of power. (A place where they already have, in fact. More than 20 percent of parliament are women. Females have even served as ambassadors, in a region where twenty years ago they were property; not even allowed to leave their homes without male escort.)

It’s impossible to know what the fate of Afghanistan will become. But let’s never forget what our courageous and brave American fighting men and women achieved there. (With the help of Allies, of course, but let us never forget who bore the brunt. And who bore the grievous wound that started it all.)

America did not lose Afghanistan. Never believe those words, no matter who speaks them.

America built Afghanistan. And we did it in the span of 20 years.

We showed them courage. We showed them equality. We showed them mercy (far too many times, when calls for fire were canceled for fear we might wound the innocent, while men screamed in terror and died.)

We taught the Afghans how to fight. We taught them how to work hard. We taught them how to believe in something better. Something greater than themselves. Something worth sacrificing for.

Let us never forget this great accomplishment, despite what might happen in the years to come.

If you are a veteran who served in Afghanistan, thank you for your service. I know more Americans wish to thank you for all that you have done than you possibly can know. It’s not as high a number as you wish, nor as high as it should be, but tens of millions of Americans are grateful for your service. (Millions more are children now who will seek to replicate your courage and honor in uniform themselves. I speak from experience on this topic.)

Your experience has inspired untold numbers and literally helped change the world for the better.

My Afghan veterans, I beg you to be proud of what you achieved and do NOT view our withdrawal as a defeat. As something that was a failure.

Seek help when the monsters in your head are raging. Take it one day at a time. One hour, even.

Do not strip our country, nor your family, of your greatness.

We need you and we love you. And we will need your strength, wisdom, and discipline as our country continues to mend and heal its own democracy.

Find your new mission at home and may God grant you the peace that you so richly deserve. And may the generations that follow, even one hundred years from now, proclaim the heroic, herculean efforts you achieved in that far-away land.

Likewise, let us not forget the local Afghans who are continuing the fight in the new-born democracy. They face dangers and dark nights in the weeks and months to come, but they can hold. They must hold.

Democracy, my friends, is worth fighting for. It’s even, I hesitate to say, worth dying for. Thanks to all who served in that land. May you be richly blessed for your sacrifice.

I hope you enjoyed this post.

Part of it comes from the foreword and words in Hill 406.

a.image2.image-link.image2-149-105 { padding-bottom: 141.643059490085%; padding-bottom: min(141.643059490085%, 148.72521246458925px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-149-105 img { max-width: 105px; max-height: 148.72521246458925px; }

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

Share

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Ode to Afghanistan

It reads like a fantastical piece of fiction. A tale of hatred versus love. A tale of barbaric extremists “justifying” their attacks through religion, believing that they will be delivered and forgiven for their actions.

The story began nearly twenty years ago.

From an impoverished, remote country, a deadly attack was planned and funded in complete secrecy. The warriors of this group — fanatical zealots all — plotted, trained, and immersed themselves in a western country that they hated with all their hearts.

And on a fateful day that would come to be known across the world as 9/11, they boarded planes and piloted them into American buildings, felling two of the greatest creations in America. They would take the lives of 2,977 victims, topping even the Japanese, who had killed 2,335 in their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor sixty years earlier in 1941.

Al-Qaeda, under the leadership of Osama bin Laden, killed more innocent people with box cutters, knives, and four commercial aircraft than the Japanese had with a coordinated attack of 353 planes and five submarines.

But like the Japanese before them, al-Qaeda had gone too far this time. The United States might’ve mostly ignored the previous attacks by al-Qaeda that dated back to 1993, but they wouldn’t forgive or forget this one.

As the smoldering heaps darkened the sky over New York, a country united in spirit and grief.

Americans mourned. Americans rallied. Americans reacted.

The response would initially be directed toward a backward country listed on the maps as Afghanistan. The Taliban, a religious order that ruled most of Afghanistan, refused to give up the band of terrorists serving in Al-Qaeda. So America added the Taliban to its list of foes that would feel the harsh wrath of an angry, wounded country.

And in this fight on foreign lands, America brought its richest resource. No, this wasn’t technology, airpower, or superior weapons.

Rather, America brought the one thing that had fed and fueled its expansion since settlers landed at Jamestown, Virginia, more than 400 years ago in 1607: It brought an ample abundance of optimism and can-do spirit.

And it would need it, in this broken and battered country that hadn’t caught a break in decades. Perhaps even in centuries.

Despite the fact that Afghanistan’s massive size rivals that of Texas. Despite the fact that its literacy rate hovers at 20 percent. (Most countries average above 80-plus percent.) And despite the fact that the country had endured a nine-year war with the Russians, followed immediately by a twelve-year civil war, where it tore itself even further apart, America believed it could not only destroy Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, but that it could also create a democracy in one of the poorest, most uneducated countries in the world.

Sadly, America did not rally its full effort for this task, sending less than 1 percent of its population to attempt the impossible. Worse, it mostly ignored the fate of these men and women, quickly losing interest in this grand enterprise, caring more about the Sopranos, Lost, the Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and a dozen other TV shows and movies that dropped the past twenty years.

To this day, most Americans would be hard-pressed to name even three Afghan cities. I doubt many can even name one, to say nothing of the many historic battles, hills, and valleys where we spilled the blood of our people (and theirs), chasing an impossible dream.

The brutal truth is that we sent our professional Roman Legions to a far-flung land to defend us while we laughed and loved and dined on grapes and wine in the shade here at home.

And even in this GREAT unjustness, our U.S. service members never faltered in their duty. They never complained. They never refused orders. Instead, they threw themselves into the task with the vigor and participation that should rival all wars in history.

Of the 800,000 that served in the country known as the “Graveyard of Empires,” almost 30,000 volunteered for more than five tours there. (That number would probably be far higher, but many also served tours in Iraq.)

Twenty-three hundred would die in this harsh land of hills, snow-capped mountains, and sun-baked desert in the south (Helmand). It was actually in the scorching oven of Helmand, where temperatures often topped 120 degrees, that more than four hundred British or American soldiers would be killed; more casualties than any other province.

The price was high — TOO HIGH — but even those Americans who survived the fighting in Afghanistan without physical wounds surrendered years of their lives, thousands of marriages, and their own mental stability.

To this day, most Americans remain blind to this offering and contribution by so many. It is an act that borders upon a crime.

Sadly (incredibly even), suicides among military personnel are 4x higher than deaths from operations, with more than 30,000 service members paying the ultimate price after returning home safely from our two major wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.)

They have laid down their lives, no differently than their brethren and sistren who bled out in the retched poppy fields and maze-like mud compounds of the old world.

The footnotes are ugly; as gruesome as the IEDs favored by the enemy. Let us not dwell on these.

The headlines are prettier:

Osama bin Laden is dead.

Al-Qaeda has been dismembered.

America has been rendered safe.

And Afghanistan is now a mostly functioning democracy, in the fight of its life against a resurgent Taliban.

In a country that whipped men who shaved, forced women to remain covered, and executed offenders in a soccer stadium for amusement, America did the impossible.

We deployed our military more than eight timezones away to a land 7,000 miles distant, and in this unknown land, we chased our foes into the hills with near-reckless courage. Sometimes, even on horseback.

We created a democracy that Afghanistan can preserve, if it does not wilt in its fight.

We created something to behold. Something to cherish. Something we struggle to hold onto here at home, nearly two hundred and forty years after our founding.

In that barren, desolute country, we have created a miracle. We have created a democracy. One that sputters and needs fine-tuning, but a democracy nonetheless.

A place where women can be treated as equals and rise to the highest levers of power. (A place where they already have, in fact. More than 20 percent of parliament are women. Females have even served as ambassadors, in a region where twenty years ago they were property; not even allowed to leave their homes without male escort.)

It’s impossible to know what the fate of Afghanistan will become. But let’s never forget what our courageous and brave American fighting men and women achieved there. (With the help of Allies, of course, but let us never forget who bore the brunt. And who bore the grievous wound that started it all.)

America did not lose Afghanistan. Never believe those words, no matter who speaks them.

America built Afghanistan. And we did it in the span of 20 years.

We showed them courage. We showed them equality. We showed them mercy (far too many times, when calls for fire were canceled for fear we might wound the innocent, while men screamed in terror and died.)

We taught the Afghans how to fight. We taught them how to work hard. We taught them how to believe in something better. Something greater than themselves. Something worth sacrificing for.

Let us never forget this great accomplishment, despite what might happen in the years to come.

If you are a veteran who served in Afghanistan, thank you for your service. I know more Americans wish to thank you for all that you have done than you possibly can know. It’s not as high a number as you wish, nor as high as it should be, but tens of millions of Americans are grateful for your service. (Millions more are children now who will seek to replicate your courage and honor in uniform themselves. I speak from experience on this topic.)

Your experience has inspired untold numbers and literally helped change the world for the better.

My Afghan veterans, I beg you to be proud of what you achieved and do NOT view our withdrawal as a defeat. As something that was a failure.

Seek help when the monsters in your head are raging. Take it one day at a time. One hour, even.

Do not strip our country, nor your family, of your greatness.

We need you and we love you. And we will need your strength, wisdom, and discipline as our country continues to mend and heal its own democracy.

Find your new mission at home and may God grant you the peace that you so richly deserve. And may the generations that follow, even one hundred years from now, proclaim the heroic, herculean efforts you achieved in that far-away land.

Likewise, let us not forget the local Afghans who are continuing the fight in the new-born democracy. They face dangers and dark nights in the weeks and months to come, but they can hold. They must hold.

Democracy, my friends, is worth fighting for. It’s even, I hesitate to say, worth dying for. Thanks to all who served in that land. May you be richly blessed for your sacrifice.

I hope you enjoyed this post.

Part of it comes from the foreword and words in Hill 406.

a.image2.image-link.image2-149-105 { padding-bottom: 141.643059490085%; padding-bottom: min(141.643059490085%, 148.72521246458925px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-149-105 img { max-width: 105px; max-height: 148.72521246458925px; }

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

Share

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Veteran spotlight: Navy Chief Warrant Officer (CWO3) A.M. Adair

As part of my continuing efforts to honor veterans, I recently interviewed Navy Chief Warrant Officer (CWO3) A.M. Adair, an active duty Chief Warrant Officer in the United States Navy with over 19 years in the Intelligence Community.

She has been to numerous countries all around the world, to include multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Her answers follow below.

Where were you born? (And/or what was your hometown?)

I was born in Newark, Ohio. Yes, I am a Buckeye fan and attended The Ohio State University as a theater major -- though I didn't graduate.

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When did you serve and where? Also rank attained. 

 I am an active duty Chief Warrant Officer (CWO3) in the U.S. Navy. I will retire on 1 October 2022 after 21 years of service.

Who was your childhood hero?

Growing up I wanted to be either James Bond or Indiana Jones.

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What made you want to join up?

I joined because of September 11, 2001. Up until that moment, I never had any interest in military service. Watching the news coverage throughout the day of the Twin Towers made me realize that I was not only patriotic, but pissed off. I felt compelled to do something. So, I put in my notice with my job, and started Boot Camp on 28 September 2001.

Tell us some of the big lessons you learned from serving. 

There are a lot of misconceptions about what it means to serve, even amongst those who have or are currently serving. Military life and culture takes on a myriad of facets depending on whether we are in peacetime or during a time of war. Through it all, what matters most are the people. Team dynamics are always unique and vitally important. All the tech, toys, and training in the world won't make any difference if you don't have the people to make it all work. It may be mission first, but there is no mission without the professionals that make it happen.

a.image2.image-link.image2-511-383 { padding-bottom: 133.31043956043956%; padding-bottom: min(133.31043956043956%, 510.5789835164835px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-511-383 img { max-width: 383px; max-height: 510.5789835164835px; } Al Anbar Province, Iraq 2007.

So, I think the public doesn’t really know what someone in intelligence work actually does. How would you describe this, if you are allowed to answer such a question?

Intelligence is about as varied as a job gets in the military, so it really depends on the circumstances. In general, the people who work in the intelligence field are the equivalent of “the man behind the curtain” while everything that you can see is “The Great and Powerful Oz.”

Nothing happens without Intel, but most don’t know we’re there. Basically, we have to sort through millions of puzzle pieces, try to figure out what the picture could be based on what we have, and make assessments and recommendations on how to fill the gaps or where to find other puzzles.

It can be a thankless job, since it’s hard to understand the impact. For the most part there are two possible outcomes for any mission: operational success, and Intel failure. When we do our job well attacks are thwarted, bad guys are captured, and lives are saved. But since most of the results of our efforts are intangible: how do you claim success for something that doesn’t happen? Or was carried out by operators on the ground?

It brings whole new meaning to being the gray man.

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What was your most harrowing experience, that you’re willing to share? (This can be a training event, as I think most civilians aren’t aware of how dangerous even peacetime service can be.)

In 2006, I was conducting an interrogation in Fallujah, Iraq. We were in the middle of an intense exchange, and the man had just assured me that my death was imminent when the incoming alarms started blaring. The "room" we were using was a metal shipping container with a hole cut in it to support the cheap air conditioning unit that kept the internal temperature from cooking its occupants. It could barely be considered concealment let alone protection from an attack. When I looked at my watch, I realized it was after midnight and the date was now 11 September. Attacks on Camp Fallujah were commonplace, but given the significance of the date, the hair on the back of my neck stood on end--wondering if this attack would be different to mark the occasion. Luckily, it wasn't. 

What do you wish those who have never served better understood?

There's a reason that most who have served are very patriotic. It's not that we've been indoctrinated into a belief system or had preconceived notions that drove us to service in the first place. It's that we KNOW that we are exceptionally fortunate to be Americans. We've been all over the world, and seen what life is like in other places first-hand. And not just the tourist spots, or for vacation trips. Even paradise can start showing you another side when you spend enough time there.

a.image2.image-link.image2-468-351 { padding-bottom: 133.31043956043956%; padding-bottom: min(133.31043956043956%, 467.91964285714283px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-468-351 img { max-width: 351px; max-height: 467.91964285714283px; } Daughters graduation from preschool 2017.

Are there any service members that you know, or served with, that you’d like to honor their sacrifice by naming?

I've said goodbye too many times to brothers and sisters over the years. I will never forget them. Those who had the most impact on me are: Steven Daugherty (2007), Jeremy Wise (2009), David "Blake" McLendon (2010), Jason Workman (2011), Shannon Kent (2019).

What piece of foreign or domestic policy frustrates you to no end? 

Our policies tend to change as quickly as the weather, so you learn to just go with the flow.  That being said, there is a general tone that has been more and more prevalent over the past decade or so that frustrates me to no end. The military is a warfighting entity. Not diplomats, politicians, or a playground for social experiments. Yet our policies and selection of leadership continues to push us away from being warriors. We spend more time worrying about what kind of buttons we should have for our newest uniform designs than preparing for the next fight.

a.image2.image-link.image2-300-225 { padding-bottom: 133.31043956043956%; padding-bottom: min(133.31043956043956%, 299.948489010989px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-300-225 img { max-width: 225px; max-height: 299.948489010989px; }

Tell me the most heroic thing you ever saw, if you can.

Heroism takes many forms, particularly during armed conflict. The one thing that never fails to restore my faith in humanity, is how many times I've watched complete strangers willing to stand up to protect another. And not just those in uniform. There is true evil in the world, and one of the easiest ways to distinguish between the two was summed up in a poster I saw years ago of a U.S. Marine protecting an Afghani father and son by shielding them with his own body. The caption talked about true heroism as being the difference between those who chose to become human shields, instead of using them.

Share with us a story of a leader who inspired you while you served. 

I've been fortunate to serve with a multitude of inspirational leaders. The one thing they all have in common is that they put their people first, and don't hide behind their position. While I never had the pleasure of serving under General Jim Mattis, directly, every time the subject of inspirational leaders comes up--my first thought is of this story: I'm paraphrasing, but over Christmas one year a Marine Master Sergeant went to check on the personnel who had duty over the holiday, and bring them cookies to try and brighten their day. When he got to the building he greeted the young Marine standing watch and then asked who the officer on duty was. When the young Marine replied that it was the General, the Master Sergeant thought it was a mistake. It wasn't. When General Mattis learned that the young Lieutenant who was standing duty over Christmas was married with young children waiting for him at home -- he relieved him of his watch, and stood the duty in his stead. There are no words to express how much that story illustrates the incredible caliber of that man. 

What do you wish for the country?

We can do better, and we will. The American spirit is real, and we've all witnessed it at one time or another. Change always causes turbulence, but that doesn't make it a bad thing. Everything does not have to be an all-or-nothing scenario, and we can find meaningful solutions if we work together.

I just hope that we remember that fact sooner, rather than later. 

Any closing thoughts or anything you’d like to add?

While I am literally counting the days until my retirement next year, I also count myself as being exceptionally lucky to have served. The wealth and breadth of experiences I've had over the last two decades have shaped my life in more ways than I probably even realize. It's something that will always be with me, as will the bonds I've forged.

I wanted to thank Navy Chief Warrant Officer (CWO3) A.M. Adair for sharing just a small slice of her service to our great country.

She didn’t mention it, and I didn’t tell her I’d be doing this, but Adair is also an author. She writes thrillers, which you can learn about here. So be sure to check those out.

As I’ve said before, I really enjoy spotlighting the great sacrifice that so many have made for this country.

And in that line of thinking, I need your help. If you know a veteran you’d like to have honored, then please email me. Veterans seem to NEVER nominate themselves. lol. So, if you have a father, mother, brother, sister, friend, family member, etc, please reach out to me and tell me about them. I would like to spotlight one veteran every single Sunday (from here to eternity, frankly.)

You can reach me at stan@stanrmitchell.com.

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

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And if you haven’t already, please subscribe for email notifications. (It’s FREE. Unless you don’t want it to be and would like to support what I’m doing.) Every Tuesday and Friday, I write about conflicts and military matters that are happening throughout the world. Such as what’s happening in Afghanistan or Iraq. How we’re aligning ourselves to counter China’s growing influence. Updates on new military technology that we’re fielding.

I also post veteran interviews every Sunday.

And I do all of this from a moderate perspective that focuses on unity in our country.

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Feel free to leave a comment below. I love having conversations on here! (Please be kind in the comments. I’m a proud moderate, who wants to unite the country. So if you attack someone or say something out of line, I will delete your comment.)

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Are Afghan villagers beginning to step up in the fight against Taliban?

I promised I would look for any good news that I could find in Afghanistan, and I’ve managed to find a little.

Way up in the northern part of the country, shown in red below, some good things may just be happening.

a.image2.image-link.image2-294-399 { padding-bottom: 73.625%; padding-bottom: min(73.625%, 293.76375px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-294-399 img { max-width: 399px; max-height: 293.76375px; } TUBS, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Here is a wider scale map for reference of the major cities.

a.image2.image-link.image2-353-328 { padding-bottom: 107.6219512195122%; padding-bottom: min(107.6219512195122%, 353px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-353-328 img { max-width: 328px; max-height: 353px; } The World Factbook 2021. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2021.https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/

In this northern part of the country, resistance to fight the Taliban has ballooned considerably, coming from a growing militia movement and desire by civilians living in the city to retain their rights.

The report by Voice of America below was actually quite heartening. If you have one minute and fifty-three seconds, give it a quick viewing. I think it will encourage you.

a.image2.image-link.image2-352-744 { padding-bottom: 47.25274725274725%; padding-bottom: min(47.25274725274725%, 351.56043956043953px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-352-744 img { max-width: 744px; max-height: 351.56043956043953px; } View video here: https://www.voanews.com/episode/afghan-locals-seek-join-military-defend-against-taliban-4745476

I continue to think that women should be armed and locals organized into defense groups. And perhaps as Taliban forces draw closer to urban areas, the Afghan forces will fight harder. Perhaps even buttressed by local militias.

As a reminder, we saw this happen in Iraq. ISIS made huge territorial gains that almost defied description. Remember when two divisions of Iraqi soldiers — roughly 30,000 men, including tanks — surrendered to 800 ISIS fighters?

But as ISIS neared Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, their advances faltered.

Local militias joined the Iraqi units defending the capital and interior of Iraq. They did so by the hundreds, much like the video above.

And, not to make too much of an overstatement, but after this local reinforcing, the Iraqi forces began holding off (and even defeating) ISIS.

True, that was with our help and airpower, but Afghanistan continues to field a capable air force. (You can see many of their recent air strikes against the Taliban here, if you’re on Twitter.)

Back to the broader point, there’s just something about having locals nearby that strengthens and encourages military units. It’s one thing to surrender without firing a shot hundreds of miles from home, as many Afghan forces have done.

It’s quite another to surrender when your family, that girl you love, and that younger brother that looks up to you, are just a few miles down the road.

Let’s continue to hope the Afghan forces find their footing.

In other matters, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley provided a heck of a speech recently on the importance of alliances. (In a future post, I may explore this more and my own shifting views on it.)

But let’s not waste time with my thoughts on the matter. General Milley said America must have strong alliances to prevent a future, massive war.

Here are just a few of the words of Milley, whose father served as a Navy corpsman alongside the Marines that landed on Iwo Jima.

“In my view, the world is entering a period of potential instability, as some nations – not all, but some – and clearly terrorist groups and perhaps some rogue actors are seeking to undermine and challenge the existing international order. And they seek to weaken the system of cooperation and collective security that has been in existence for some time. The dynamic nature of today’s current environment is counterbalanced by an order that was put in place 76 years ago at the end of World War II. ... It was the bloodiest war in human history – there were almost 7,000 Marines killed in action, 21,000 Japanese killed in action on the island of Iwo Jima where my dad landed, and that was only in 19 days. In the short period of 31 years, from 1914 to 1945, World Wars I and II were fought among the great powers of the day, and 150 million people – 150 million around the world – were killed in the conduct of great power war.”

Milley spoke of some of the low points of the wars – a six-week period in the fall of 1918 when American expeditionary forces fought in the Battle of Meuse-Argonne and saw 26,000 Marines and soldiers killed; an eight week period in the summer of 1944 when 425,000 soldiers on both sides of the war were wounded or killed from the beaches of Normandy inland to Paris, including 37,000 allied warfighters killed in those weeks alone.

“That is the butcher’s bill of great power war. That’s what this international order that’s been in existence for seven and a half decades is designed to prevent.”

It’s pretty hard to argue with those words, so I’ll let them speak for themselves.

Finally, let’s end with a motivating quote.

#NT4S","username":"Martin_Dempsey","name":"GEN(R) Martin E. Dempsey","date":"Fri Jul 16 11:40:36 +0000 2021","photos":[],"quoted_tweet":{},"retweet_count":32,"like_count":118,"expanded_url":{}}">GEN(R) Martin E. Dempsey @Martin_Dempsey“To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift.” Steve Prefontaine. Pretty good definition of will power. Starts with knowing yourself and then making it a habit to never settle. In high performing organizations it becomes contagious. #NT4S

July 16th 2021

32 Retweets118 Likes

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

Share

And if you haven’t already, please subscribe. (It’s FREE. Unless you don’t want it to be and would like to support what I’m doing.) My goal is to post articles every Tuesday and Friday, as well as to post a veteran interview every Sunday.

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Feel free to leave a comment below. I love having conversations on here! (Please be kind in the comments. I’m a proud moderate, who wants to unite the country. So if you attack someone or say something out of line, I will delete your comment.)

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Why not arm Afghan women?

Western media has published very little about Afghanistan since Friday’s newsletter (Taliban begins choking off Afghan government.)

The assassination in Haiti and the unrest in Cuba have shoved the despair and terror in Afghanistan straight off the front pages of American newspapers and cable news.

Besides other news overpowering the war happening, it’s also extremely difficult to discern the truth of the fighting between the Taliban and Afghan armed forces in the rural provinces.

In many ways, the Taliban threat torments the mind of Afghan residents as much as it presents a physical menace. That’s not to say that the real threat doesn’t exist. It certainly does.

But from news reports and twitter accounts of those who live there, it seems a kind of fear runs through Afghanistan as its military forces either melt away or surrender in mass.

Women are already paying the price as territory is lost. CNN reports that areas taken over by the Taliban have had postings put up with new, harsh rules for women. (Or I suppose you could call them “old” harsh rules.)

“Women must stay home,” said CNN reporter Anna Coren, broadcasting from Kabul, Afghanistan.

Coren added that a journalist had witnessed a female in a burqa (full head covering/dress) on the phone, who was whipped as punishment for being outdoors and using the phone. (See her reporting below.)

The Taliban has also been caught on video executing surrendering Afghan Commandos. (Also in video below.)

@amcoren reports ","username":"TheLeadCNN","name":"The Lead CNN","date":"Tue Jul 13 00:09:09 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://cdn.substack.com/image/upload...The Lead CNN @TheLeadCNNVideos show 22 Afghan commandos murdered by the Taliban after surrendering @amcoren reports

July 13th 2021

68 Retweets118 Likes

All of this has me thinking that the Afghan Army, and possibly local leaders in towns and villages, should seriously consider arming and training women to take up the fight in much greater numbers. (Or at least be prepared to defend themselves.)

The Kurds in Northern Iraq have used women in their army for almost forty years, and the women there recently distinguished themselves in fighting against ISIS. (Let’s not forget that these ISIS forces were so terrifying and blood-curdling at the time that Iraq had two divisions of Iraqi soldiers — roughly 30,000 men, including tanks — surrender and lose hundreds of prisoners and nearly $500 million in Mosul.)

Oh, and these 30,000 Iraqis ran from only 800 fighters. (See previous link to Guardian article.) Yeah, I’m not making that up. Insane, right?

But back to my point.

Not only did the Kurds use women to fight ISIS, but Yazidi women picked up weapons, as well, following the Sinjar massacre in 2014. After ISIS executed hundreds of men and forced their wives to marry ISIS fighters, female Yazidis who had escaped capture decided to fight back. They formed a battalion of women to help fight ISIS.  

But I don’t want to overplay my hand. Even in Iraq, however, it was never large-scale forces of women actually fighting (or even being armed).

Nonetheless, the ISIS fighters were afraid of female fighters, largely because of long-term religious customs that they believed in.

“They think they're fighting in the name of Islam,” said 21-year-old Telhelden. “They believe if someone from Daesh [Isis] is killed by a girl, a Kurdish girl, they won't go to heaven. They're afraid of girls.”

I’m no expert on Islam or even the Taliban who are fighting in Afghanistan, but I’m betting the Taliban have their own superstitions that would affect them if they ever had to fight women. After all, if the Taliban loses its mind at a woman being outside a home or on a cell phone, then I’m pretty sure an armed woman firing at them would have quite an effect. (Even in America, men have a stigma about being beaten in physical contests by a woman. See Billie Jean King vs Bobbie Riggs; the infamous woman vs man tennis match in 1973.)

No matter how you spin it, I think we can all agree that women will likely pay the highest price should the Taliban continue to gain territory.

As such, I think the Afghan government would be wise to arm and train more women to prepare for what will likely be the Taliban advance on Afghanistan’s cities. Currently, they’re only doing so at less than 1 percent in their army.1

Could anyone make a compelling argument, given recent results, that women would do worse than the Afghan men have to date?

Stan R. Mitchell, USMC @StanRMitchellAfghanistan needs to think about training some of its women, who wish to volunteer. Women stand to lose the most from a Taliban victory, and so far, the men of the Afghan army have shown limited grit. Kurdish women join the Peshmerga forces | Pictures | ReutersA group of Iranian Kurdish women, who have joined Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, take part in a training session in a military camp in Erbil, Iraq July 9, 2019. REUTERS/Ako Rasheedreuters.com

July 13th 2021

Okay, this was a heavy and not-very pleasant post today, so I thought I’d leave you with two great quotes below!

#Motivation","username":"IMQuotes_Videos","name":"Inspired Motivation Quotes","date":"Tue Jul 13 13:00:12 +0000 2021","photos":[],"quoted_tweet":{},"retweet_count":50,"like_count":99,"expanded_url":{}}">Inspired Motivation Quotes @IMQuotes_VideosYour brain like other organs has a job to do. Don’t eat for a long time, your stomach will make noises, just doing its job. If your brain doesn't have work to focus on, it worries about problems that don't exist. Focus on success. Put your powerful mind to work.#Motivation

July 13th 2021

50 Retweets99 Likes#NT4S","username":"Martin_Dempsey","name":"GEN(R) Martin E. Dempsey","date":"Tue Jul 13 15:02:06 +0000 2021","photos":[],"quoted_tweet":{},"retweet_count":7,"like_count":37,"expanded_url":{}}">GEN(R) Martin E. Dempsey @Martin_Dempsey“Men in general are quick to believe what they wish to be true.” Julius Caesar born today in 100 B.C. A tendency made exponentially more worrisome in the digital age. Argues for a bit of skepticism, for an open mind, and for inclusion to gain and consider diverse views. #NT4S

July 13th 2021

7 Retweets37 Likes

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

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And if you haven’t already, please subscribe. (It’s FREE. Unless you don’t want it to be and would like to support what I’m doing.) My goal is to post articles every Tuesday and Friday, as well as to post a veteran interview every Sunday.

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Feel free to leave a comment below. I love having conversations on here! (Please be kind in the comments. I’m a proud moderate, who wants to unite the country. So if you attack someone or say something out of line, I will delete your comment.)

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write really fast-paced military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

1

As of 2020, 3.25% of uniformed Afghan police and less than 1% of the uniformed Afghan army were women, according to VOA News.

Taliban begins choking off Afghan government

The Taliban has captured a major border crossing in Afghanistan, as they continue to make gains across the country.

This border crossing of Islam Qala is crucial to the country, bringing in by itself $20 million of monthly revenue for the country.

a.image2.image-link.image2-819-1456 { padding-bottom: 56.25%; padding-bottom: min(56.25%, 819px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-819-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 819px; } Image source – BBC News. Link here.

Other reports said Taliban fighters had seized five districts in Herat without a fight.

For those who missed it, this follows more than 1,600 Afghan security forces fleeing into Tajikistan. (Also without a fight.)

In short, things appear terrible in Afghanistan.

Barry R McCaffrey, a retired Four-Star US Army General, provided a solid summary of the situation in an interview. See below. (In short, it’s probably going to be terrible.)

@mccaffreyr3: “We’re probably going to see a tragedy erupt on television as millions flee to surrounding countries … women go back to conditions of servitude, the institutions of the state come apart.” ","username":"ZerlinaShow","name":"Zerlina on Peacock","date":"Thu Jul 08 23:01:42 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://cdn.substack.com/image/upload...Zerlina on Peacock @ZerlinaShowWhat happens to the Afghan people when U.S. troops are gone?@mccaffreyr3: “We’re probably going to see a tragedy erupt on television as millions flee to surrounding countries … women go back to conditions of servitude, the institutions of the state come apart.”

July 8th 2021

23 Retweets54 Likes

Some Afghan officials continue to tout their army of 300,000, and their Air Force as well, but so far, that army has shown a distinct gift for surrendering and fleeing.

If you’ve seen ANY good news out of Afghanistan (and I meany any), please let me know in the comments below.

In lighter news, robots and drones continue to be integrated into our armed forces, now reaching the ground level with even troops. (See below.)

@USMC Marines. ","username":"DeptofDefense","name":"Department of Defense 🇺🇸","date":"Thu Jul 08 22:00:17 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://cdn.substack.com/image/upload...Department of Defense 🇺🇸 @DeptofDefenseOn the battlefield of tomorrow, learning to maneuver expeditionary modular autonomous vehicles will be a crucial skill. Today, the skill provides a tremendous advantage for @USMC Marines.

July 8th 2021

78 Retweets237 Likes

You can see the Marines in the video above using video game controllers, and I joked to a friend, “If war becomes a thing involving video game controllers, then we need to drop the draft age. Pronto. Because I’m pretty sure my 11-year-old stepson could smoke me about 99 times out of 100 on any game he currently has!” hahaha

But on a more serious note, robots and drones will reduce casualties in future conflicts and they’ll also give us a decisive edge. (They may even reduce civilian casualties.)

See just two examples below.

Reuters @ReutersMilitary training became high-tech for 80 French cadets who took part in drills alongside robots

April 14th 2021

81 Retweets149 LikesJohn Robb @johnrobb"the robot is a semi-autonomous machine, with 7.62-millimeter machine guns, called the Jaguar.. it utilizes ... high-resolution cameras, transmitters, powerful headlights, and a remote-controlled PA system. "Military artifact export industry on the way.Israel’s Semi-Autonomous Robot With Machine Guns is Heading to the Gaza BorderThe new military robot is called the Jaguar and it can actually navigate its way to a designated area and even spot obstacles on the way.interestingengineering.com

July 6th 2021

3 Retweets14 Likes

That’s it for this post. Please share this post if you enjoyed it.

Share

And if you haven’t already, please subscribe. (It’s FREE. Unless you don’t want it to be and would like to support what I’m doing.)

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Feel free to leave a comment below. I love having conversations on here! (One quick note on this, though. I’m a proud moderate, who wants to unite the country. So if you attack someone, say something stupid, etc, I will delete your comment with a quickness. Sorry. My bar. My rules.)

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Japan flexes its muscles; agrees to help defend Taiwan

I hadn’t planned to publish a post today, but in a bit of surprising news, Japan has come out and said that the country must assist the United States in defending the island of Taiwan, should China invade.

The comments were made by the Deputy Premier and they fall in line with Japanese sentiment toward China.

A poll from last November shows a staggering 89.7% of Japanese respondents have an unfavorable or relatively unfavorable view of China, according to the Japan Broadcasting Corporation.

The comments by the Deputy Premier follow an increasingly aggressive defensive posture by Japan.

In February of this year, Japan stated that it had performed 25 missions in 2020 in defense of US ships or planes. (This honestly surprised me, but I came across it while researching this post.)

The less-defensive posture goes back to 2014 when Japan expanded its defense policy to go beyond merely responding to an attack on Japan.

These policies are clearly popular. Sixty percent of those polled in Japan stated their animosity to China results from “China's frequent violations of Japan's territorial waters and airspace around the Senkaku Islands.”

The same article states that Chinese government ships have sailed just outside Japan's territorial waters around the islands for a record 300 days this year.

This is clearly GREAT news for America as it tries to balance the rising power of China. As I read somewhere else, throw in India, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand, and other Asian countries, and China can be much more easily controlled.

That’s it from a news perspective.

One housekeeping matter, for those who missed yesterday’s post, you’ll see things look a bit different. (Including the hosting address, if you’re super observant.)

As I mentioned yesterday, WordPress has become too clunky for me to effectively — and quickly — use anymore. This site will allow me to post things more quickly and effectively. (Too technical to try to explain, but believe me, it’s a big difference.)

Additionally, this site will allow my followers to support me if they choose. (No pressure on that.) You can learn more about that here: https://stanrmitchell.substack.com/p/coming-soon.

If you want to skip reading that, I basically plan to post about military matters, some politics, and other cool things I happen across. I also plan to continue to honor veterans with interviews, which as you know, is something I love to do.

Finally, on a lighter note, let’s end this entry with some pretty cool pics of BIG ships crossing through the Suez Canal.

I thought these photos were incredible.

Here’s a couple of pictures of the UK’s carrier moving through the Suez, which is honestly bigger and wider than I thought:

#CSG21 deployment has begun! 🎉\n\nA hazy day as we pass through the Suez Canal 🇪🇬, next the Red Sea and then onto the Indian Ocean. #GlobalBritain @UKinEgypt 🇬🇧🌍 ","username":"HMSQNLZ","name":"HMS Queen Elizabeth🇬🇧","date":"Tue Jul 06 12:20:39 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/E5nMka...HMS Queen Elizabeth🇬🇧 @HMSQNLZPhase 2 of our #CSG21 deployment has begun! 🎉A hazy day as we pass through the Suez Canal 🇪🇬, next the Red Sea and then onto the Indian Ocean. #GlobalBritain @UKinEgypt 🇬🇧🌍

July 6th 2021

223 Retweets935 Likes

And here’s our own carrier making the crossing:

#MediterraneanSea. U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. Sixth Fleet. ","username":"USFleetForces","name":"U.S. Fleet Forces","date":"Mon Jul 05 20:30:00 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/E5jEYd...U.S. Fleet Forces @USFleetForcesDemonstrating the inherent flexibility of the U.S. Navy, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) carrier strike group recently transited the Suez Canal and entered the #MediterraneanSea. U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. Sixth Fleet.

July 5th 2021

9 Retweets40 Likes

Please make sure you share the post if you enjoyed it!

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell

P.S. If you enjoyed this post, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. It’s only $5 per month and you can stop at any time. Another way to help support the channel is to share or tell a friend about it. Finally, don’t forget to check out my books. I write military and mystery thrillers. You can find all ten books here: amazon.com.

Darkness closes in on Afghanistan

I wrote about the current situation in Afghanistan over on a new site that I’m going to start posting at. (WordPress has become too clunky for me to effectively — and quickly — use anymore.)

You can read the article here: Darkness closes in on Afghanistan.

And I’ll explain more about the move at a later date, most likely. No, I won’t be charging there any time soon. But yes, you can sign up to support me there if you’d like.

Semper Fidelis,

Stan R. Mitchell