Wanderlust on April 16, 2009 at 12:42 AM

Thanks, Wanderlust; your explication of the whys and wherefores of what’s revealed and what’s not was logical and coherent.

I guess what I still don’t understand is why we let the North Koreans know we weren’t watching. For fear of “provoking” them? This is timidity run rampant!

And yes, it can be useful to let your enemies know you can see a baseball at three thousand miles, but me, I’d rather err on the side of keeping them guessing, both what we can do, and when we’re going to do it.

Then, I don’t expect that rube in the WH to understand any of this.

Personally, I want our enemies to know that SBX can see a baseball at 3,000 miles distance. They know we can watch, whenever we want.

Assuming, of course, we have a POTUS who actually honors the threat…

Wanderlust on April 16, 2009 at 12:42 AM

Very well stated. Thanks.

How is it that anyone, from the North Koreans to American reporters, knows anything about this radar system?

MrLynn on April 15, 2009 at 10:31 PM

Many programs/weapons systems have a portion that is known to the “white world” (unclassified) while keeping the best parts under wraps, in the “black hole” (classified).

There are many reasons for this, ranging from strategic choices to show some of our poker hand (as it were), to that of political blunders and spycraft. The President has the ability to declassify information “on the spot”, without previous authorization. LBJ did this with the SR-71, when he announced that air vehicle to the world.

Note also that although the existence of the SR-71 was declassified in 1964, certain of its abilities have never been declassified, even though the SR-71 was retired from service in the late 1990’s. For example, although there are all kinds of wild speculation flying through the ether regarding the SR-71’s absolute speed and altitude, neither figure has ever been verified.

When the CV-66 America was scuttled in 2005 (after having its hull and superstructure blown to bits from an exercise designed to test its vulnerability to simulated torpedo, cruise missile, and bomb blasts), the sinking was not shown to the public, and not even reported until six days after the fact, due to concerns that a vid of the scuttling could reveal how the current Nimitz class carriers would react to battle damage.

Personally, I want our enemies to know that SBX can see a baseball at 3,000 miles distance. They know we can watch, whenever we want.

Assuming, of course, we have a POTUS who actually honors the threat…

Loxodonta on April 15, 2009 at 11:28 PM

Et vous aussi mon ami.

SINK THE PIRATES OF THE POTOMAC!

Maquis on April 15, 2009

One other thing, and it’s important, so I jope you read this.

I always appreciate the opportunity to have discussions with you. Even when we don’t see, think or feel the same about an issue, you’ve always been patient and a gentleman. Thanks.

How is it that anyone, from the North Koreans to American reporters, knows anything about this radar system?

Are there no such things as military secrets any more? Does the military no longer have the ability to move forces and weapon systems around the world without it showing up on CNN?

And since when is our Defense Department now afraid of ‘provoking’ a tinhorn dictator like Kim just by monitoring a missile launch? Have we truly become, as Mao once claimed (with false bravado, at the time) “a paper tiger”?

Thanks for your analysis. It makes a lot of sense to me.

Obama is indeed a puzzling mixture. I fear the impact his presidency will have on our country and the world.

Fasten you seat belts.

Maquis on April 15, 2009 at 8:36 PM

Je suis désolé, si désolé.

baldilocks on April 15, 2009 at 8:30 PM

I don’t think he’s so ideologically twisted as to risk his own life or his family’s.

I’ll keep saying it: he’s trying to entice our enemies into attacking us.

baldilocks on April 15, 2009 at 8:30 PM

baldilocks, I have been giving this perspective a lot of thought. I don’t believe Obambi is deliberately trying to provoke an attack – that is, any more than Neville Chamberlain deliberately tried to provoke the Germans into attacking Poland.

Instead, I think he’s trying to play a dangerous game, on three fronts:

* He doesn’t believe in the long-standing doctrine of US military strength being required to keep peace in the world (generally). He does seem to believe in endless rounds of talk somehow making the world better, though, a la Chamberlain.

* He needs to shun US hegemony over the world because the more people feel safe and secure, the less they will feel like they need a huge government to “protect” them (this point goes equally towards financial strength, as it does to military strength). Defunding the military and using the money to grow the size of the federal government go hand in hand here.

* But he cannot be seen to be *too* weak, in that his failure to act can be directly attributed to an attack on CONUS during his tenure. So if/when he is challenged, look for him to appease and then respond militarily, albeit weakly, just enough to stave off any threat to CONUS. And if (God forbid) there is an attack during TOTUS’ reign, look for him to blame BOOOOOSH for it.

BillyJeff played a much weaker version of this game during his two terms in office back in the 1990’s, with the major difference being that he took advantage of the collapse of the former USSR and rode on the back of a strong economy to keep himself to be perceived as “above the fray”. For example, try to imagine Obama espousing NAFTA in Clinton’s place, back in 1993. He’d never do it.

This time, though, Obama has raised the stakes on this game by several orders of magnitude, because the Russians are much stronger now than they were in 1993 (thanks to our refusal to drill to meet our own oil needs), and the same for Iran. In 1993, the Khan nuclear bazaar was just getting its legs, whereas now both NoKo and Iran have had years of experience under their belts.

Oh, and don’t forget, both India and Pakistan went nuclear under BillyJeff’s watch. Imagine Iran going nuclear under Obama’s.

And hold onto your butt…

In the spirit of revenge, I give you this.

Loxodonta on April 15, 2009 at 6:00 PM

That did make my head hurt!

And the worst part about it is that Barack held the chair whilst they sawed.

When the damn french react with shock & awe at the levels to which America now intends to appease rogue regimes you know you are in trouble..

Compare and contrast: Obambi’s refusal to move the X-Band Radar into position to track the NoKo missile, versus fleet movements in this situation back in 1986 (emphasis mine):

Operations near Libya began at the end of January. These evolutions, collectively named “Attain Document”, were carried out between 24 January and 31 January 1986 and between 10 February and 15 February, by surface ships and aircraft. America, with CVW-1 embarked, and her accompanying battle group departed Norfolk on 10 March 1986, and arrived in the Mediterranean in time to participate in the third phase of “Attain Document”, a freedom of navigation (FON) exercise in the Gulf of Sidra.

Late on 23 March, American planes flew south of latitude 32-30 N. – the “Line of Death” proclaimed by Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi. On 24 March, Ticonderoga, accompanied by two destroyers, Scott and Caron, moved south of the “Line”, covered by fighter aircraft, at 0600.

A Libyan missile installation near Surt (Sirte) launched two Soviet-made SA-5 “Gammon” surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) at 0752, toward F-14A “Tomcats” of America’s VF-102. Later that afternoon, the installation at Surt (Sirte) fired additional SAMs at American planes, but, like the first pair, went wide of their mark. About 1430, a Libyan missile-equipped Combattante II G-type patrol craft sortied from Misratah, Libya, and approached Ticonderoga and her consorts. Two Grumman A-6E Intruders from America’s Attack Squadron (VA) 34 fired AGM-84 Harpoon missiles at the craft and sank her in the first use of the Harpoon in combat. Shortly afterwards, when American radars detected the Libyan installation at Sirte activating its target acquisition radars, two A-7 Corsairs from Saratoga’s VA-81 put the site out of action with AGM-88 HARMs (high-speed anti-radiation missiles).

Once upon a time, a “rogue dictator” threatened the operation of US Naval assets in international waters.

And once upon a time, a President called the “rogue dictator”’s bluff, and bloodied his nose in return.

But now, we have a pantywaist who wants so badly for outside threats to “just go away and let me eat my waffle” that he’ll suck up to anyone.

Ronald Reagan, we miss you…

Hey Lox, check out the Obamateurism thread, I appear to be the current thread-killer with an item I’d like your take on. :)

Maquis on April 15, 2009 at 4:05 PM

Hé saumon fumé:

I hate it when people make me think. My heads hurts now. Can’t I just eat my waffle?

I’ve posted my response there. Bet I can kill more threads than you can.

In the spirit of revenge, I give you this.