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From: sampson@attctc.Dallas.TX.US (Steve Sampson)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Lessons Learned
Keywords: lessons, grenada, panama
Message-ID: <12761@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 4 Jan 90 04:24:50 GMT
References: <12601@cbnews.ATT.COM> <12694@cbnews.ATT.COM>
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From: sampson@attctc.Dallas.TX.US (Steve Sampson)

In article <12694@cbnews.ATT.COM>, terryr@ogicse.ogc.edu (Terry Rooker) writes:
>
>There is already information leaking that Panama may have been as much
>as a fiasco as Grenada, we just made different mistakes.  The biggest
>failing once again was the lack of good intelligence.  All the
>satellites and recon pictures in the world can only tell you so much.

Bull.  What does anyone from Oregon know about the military, they don't
even have any active-duty bases :-)  I long for Keno...

>It appears that the Panamanians had better intelligence than the US
>forces.  For example apparently 20 Navy SEALs landed at a supposedly
>lightly or not defended airfield.  There were at least 3 APCs waiting
>at the airfield.  Needless to say the SEAL platoon was shot up badly

You're saying then that the guys in the APC knew a SEAL platoon was coming.
Somehow this sounds funny.  You can't blame the nation for an operational
failure.  I'm always ashamed when the President forgives a commander for
his failure, and takes responsibility.  Hogwash, Court Marshal them and take
their pension away (USS Stark comes to mind).

>Apparently Noriega stayed just ahead of the American troops trying to
>capture him because he got word of the troops movements.

Yea, he saw them orbiting overhead :-)

>Another indication of the lack of planning and/or foresight.  The US
>went in and conducted a good military operation.  Appaerntly none of
>the planning even considered any measures to control the political and
>social chaos that would be caused by an abrupt removal of the de facto
>government.  

Are you kidding? That's what war is! Soldiers don't give one hoot about
politics or social behavior.  That's the job for the diplomats and lawyers.
A military operation is usually planned to secure certain objectives.  What
the locals do behind the lines is of no concern to a soldier.  If we were
invading a totally hostile country, I would think that looters would be shot
on site.  The fact we don't want to alienate these people requires that we
let them run around for awhile.  You only have to starve once during war to
learn that food received under any method is appropriate.  They didn't know
how long this was going to last.  Hell, Vietnam took 30 years.

>In addition it seems that it is yet another failure of the US intelligence
>community.

What Intelligence community?  Carter had them all killed years ago.  Nobody
wants to join the CIA anymore.

One thing I like about this operation is the news media was kept out and they
didn't even complain.  Also the stories that did make the press show how well
the security lid has been kept on the whole operation.  I had to laugh actually
when some parents told of their sons calling home and releasing information
about where they were going.  I feel sorry for them when I get ahold of their
neck.

MSgt Sampson A.K.A. "drool"