Did I miss something? What form is this going to take?
There may be some problems from Y2K that require a gov't response, especially in the major cities.
And about the Texas exercise, no one knows what Delta Force was practicing for. These guys are tasked with a variety of mission taskings, including counter-terrorism, hostage rescue (domestic and foreign), and capture or elimination of targeted individuals. I personally didn't believe SOCOM (special operations command) would sign off on such an operation without better preparation of the population. Very poor PR effort, and I hope someone finds that their OER (officer eval report) reflects this SNAFU accordingly.
I know from my personal military experience and the interaction I had with some folks from SpecOps units, MOUT (military operations/Urban Terrain) training facilities are extremely poor and unimaginative. They simply don't reflect the environment the troops find themselves operating in.
As for the live ammunition, I have some doubts about that. There are two possibilities from my perspective. They either used blanks or they used frangible subsonic rounds that turn to powder upon impact with a hard surface. I also understand that a fire was started either through the use of a portable torch used for taking the lock or hinges of the door off, or from a "flash-bang" concussion device.
If I were the range safety officer (and I can almost guarantee you that there was one since it is military SOP for all operations), there is no way I would risk my career by permitting the use of full-power ammunition that might penetrate a wall and hit an innocent civilian. (imagine the publicity then!!)
But Y2K may really present the necessity to bring out the troops in urban areas to maintain order.
Regards,
Ron |
