John Weisman: Dear Mr. Rumsfeld - Are You Listening?
John Weisman: Dear Mr. Rumsfeld
- Are You Listening?
John Weisman: Black Ops
John Weisman is one of a select company of writers to have had books on both the New York Times fiction and nonfiction best-seller lists. His best-sellers include Rogue Warrior (written with Richard Marcinko) and Rogue Warrior's eight fictional sequels. A former journalist, Weisman has worked in more than three dozen countries. His latest work, the Black Ops novel SOAR, is now available through HarperCollins/William Morrow. He is currently completing the second Black Ops novel, Jack in the Box, for release in 2004. He can be emailed at: blackops@johnweisman.com
Special Event: John Weisman will be appearing to sign autographed copies of his latest thriller, Soar, at the following locations:
August 15: Fort Bragg
11:00-11:30 a.m. - Bldg 80-5050 (2nd street and Buckner Rd)
2:00-4:00 p.m. - Bldg 1017 on Canopy Lane
August 19 & 20: TREXPO EAST (Chantilly, VA)
10:00 a.m.-5::00 p.m. - TEAM ONE NETWORK booth, at Dulles Exposition Center, Chantilly, VA. Official ID credentials required.
August 30: Quantico
12:00-2:00 p.m. - Marine Corps Post Exchange
September 6: Horse Shoe Curve Restaurant (Pine Grove, VA),
6:00-9:00 p.m. at Horse Shoe Curve Restaurant
Pine Grove Road
Pine Grove, VA
Pine Grove Road [Rt 679] runs off Rt.7, just west of the Blue Ridge, and 2 mi. east of the Shenandoah River.
Roy Boehm, to whom I like to refer as the Godfather of all SEALs, tells the following story about the military procurement process.
At one point early in the SEAL program Roy was tasked with obtaining a re-breather unit for his SEALs. The self-contained device would allow SEAL elements to make a clandestine underwater approach to the target without the tell-tale bubbles left by conventional compressed air regulators.
Roy wanted to buy the German Draeger-the best unit available at that point in time. The Navy had other ideas.
After being told that the re-breather contract had already been awarded
and the gear was being delivered, Roy was introduced to an engineer
who handed him a cumbersome device that looked like an ice chest with
straps and hoses.
Somehow, Roy attached himself to the unit. Then he tested it in the Little Creek Amphibious Base swimming pool. He quickly realized it wouldn't be worth a damn under combat conditions.
When Roy clambered out of the pool he dropped the useless apparatus at the engineer's cap-toed feet. "It's not swimmable," said Roy.
"Oh, yes it is," insisted the engineer. "I designed it to be swimmable."
"Well, it's not--it's like swimming with a *&^%$# refrigerator strapped to your chest," Roy growled. "Have you swum with it?"
"Well," said the engineer, "It so happens I don't actually swim. But…" And that's when Roy threw the engineer in the pool.
Sound familiar? Well, that guy is probably the father of the non-shooting engineers who designed the current sidearm holster, non-marching engineers who designed the current Army boot soles, socks, and much of the other equipment our troops have been saddled with of late.
But there may be improvements in store. According to a draft report of lessons learned from Operation Iraqi Freedom, the military is actually talking to the folks who use equipment in the field to get a sense of what works and what doesn't.
One obvious result of the report, written by LTC Jim Smith, is that it says in black and white what Warriors have known for years: if you want GREAT equipment, you pay your own money and order it from battle-savvy manufacturers like Blackhawk (tactical holsters, HellStorm gloves, rigger's belts, ammo bandoleers, and rucksacks, all made by former SEAL Mike Noell, BUD/S Class 156) Oakley (shooting glasses and eye protection favored by SRT units and SpecWarriors), Camelback (hydrating devices) and SureFire (the world's best tactical flashlights and weapons lights).
What one hopes, is that under SECDEF Rumsfeld's reorganization, the military will be able to buy a lot more equipment off the shelf from these and other manufacturers who understand what Warriors in the field really need, and design their goods with comfort, safety, and survivability as first priorities.
Speaking of survivability, weapon lethality was another problem. There is, the report says, "general dissatisfaction" with the current 9mm sidearm because most Warriors don't believe it has sufficient stopping power. Incredibly, the standard issue sidearm does not even come equipped with night sights-a basic necessity if you want to hit what you shoot after dark.
Another lesson learned was that the magazines supplied with those 9mm pistols may have 15-round capacity, but our Soldiers are instructed not to load more than 10 rounds in them, because the mag springs tend to stretch out.
Earth to Procurement: get better springs. And think about using a bigger caliber weapon.
Sure, there's a weight/lethality ration. But there's a reason that more and more SWAT teams and SpecOps units are using either 40 S&W, or 45 ACP weapons these days. The reason is simple: it is knock-down power.
In the knock down power department, there was universal positive reaction
to the Barrett 50-Cal. Sniper rifle. "Soldiers," said the report,
"not only appreciated the range and accuracy but also the target effect.
Leaders and scouts viewed the effect of the 50-Cal. Round as a combat
multiplier due to the psychological impact on other combatants that
viewed the destruction of the target."
Let me translate that into English for you courtesy of a sniper from the 325 PIR: "My spotter positively identified a target at 1400 meters carrying an RPG on a water tower. I engaged the target. The top half of the torso fell forward out of the tower and the lower portion remained in the tower."
That's what I call a nice hit.
So what's the bottom line? "Soldiers, " the report concludes, "still spend too much of their own money to purchase the quality packs pouches belts underwear socks and gloves they believe they need for mission success and comfort."
Amen to that. HOOAH, LTC Smith.
It is time for a change in procurement policy. SECDEF Rumsfeld: Are You Listening?
