What is the correct military operational concept? Any links or original thoughts would be appreciated.
Petreaus seems to have given it a lot of thought. Are there any manuals you have read that are comparable?
fas.org;
Good questions:
Petreaus used conventional military minds to rewrite a field manual (3-24) that was written in the very early 60s by unconventional warfare experts. Other than some acronym changes and some updating, very little is different in the new and improved 3-24.
To comprehend it all, you really should read FMs 3-24-3 and 3-24-5 too. Especially -3.
Put those three together with the SF FMs and you have our complete doctrine for fighting insurgencies. Read them all and you will be sitting here with me wondering why we are failing to follow our own doctrine and why we are ignoring prior congressional mandates.
Then read the first chapter or two of "The War of the Flea" and you will understand the guerrilla/insurgent advantage and how and why they are winning today using the old Mao tactics.
Then read "The Starfish and the Spider" and you will learn how AQ has developed a nearly flat or leaderless organization with real potential to change the world. When you get to the chapter on hybrid organizations you should recognize AQ.
Having made that reading circle, I am back to the three books in the FM 3-24 series, and shaking my head wondering what we are doing and why we are doing it.
Think about this too ~
He who wishes to fight must first count the cost. When you engage in actual fighting, when victory is long in coming, then men’s weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be dampened. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength. If the campaign is protracted, the resources of the state will not be equal to the strain. Now when your weapons are dulled, your ardor dampened, your strength exhausted and your treasure spent, other chieftains will spring up to take advantage of your extremity. Then no man, however wise, will be able to avert the consequences that must ensue…In war then let your great objective be victory, not lengthy campaigns.
Sun Tzu - The Art of War |
