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The Counterinsurgency Cliff Notes
Gentlemen,
I scratched out this paper and I would like to receive your feedback. There are many great COIN papers already in existence, but I couldn't find anything that you could actually get every man in a conventional infantry platoon to read (down to the privates). So that is what this paper is targeted at- it's short and to the point. It doesn't really lay out COIN strategy, but talks about the platoon-level tactics and techniques required to implement a COIN strategy. It is also not the ideal, perfect answer; but rather is something that you could expect out of any run-of-the-mill platoon. It attempts to bridge the gap bewtween strategy and platoon-level implementation.
The organization is still rough and I would appreciate comments on how to better seperate the COIN techniques from the counter-guerilla techniques and still have a good paper. Or should I just get rid of the non-COIN-specific stuff? Thanks. All comments are appreciated.
CPT C
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CPT C - A paper for your consideration
Here is something I wrote many years ago.
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More thoughts on how to explain COIN...
CPT C -
I've experienced the same frustration talking to some of my peers about how to approach COIN / Phase IV at the battalion and brigade level. Either because they haven't seen it done, or because the approach they observed didn't work in their AO when they were there, they are convinced this stuff "just doesn't work." So I started brainstorming on different approaches units can take...not as a list of "best practices" but more of a menu for "how we might conduct business in our AO, given the current conditions, taking into account a multitude of considerations."
This is a working draft...I need to make it more objective. I do not intend for it to lean in one direction or the other, but I obviously show my bias as it is now. There are reasons to go either way, given one's context.
All feedback is welcome. Please let me know if this is a useful tool for discussion.
I'm more than aware it's not reality -- and I've been railing
about that failure for over 50 years to anyone who would listen and a lot who didn't want to listen -- and I've been doing so on this board for a year.
It is pathetic that we do not teach the basics to new entrants, officer and enlisted -- it is even more pathetic that five years after we went into Iraq the Army still isn't teaching the basics. Isn't pathetic, it's criminal.
The paper is a good effort -- regrettably, it doesn't address the broader problem which is way above both our pay grades.
Pardon the venom but you hit a long standing sore spot. I've seen way too many bodies caused by massive stupidity in high places and failure to properly train people when they enter is a pet rock of mine. You also obviously missed my comment above that the fact we do not train well is a lick on us...
If you're talking about having Platoon get togethers fairly frequently to just talk about what's going on -- that shouldn't need to be trained...
After my rant yesterday, let me join Dave and say
Welcome Aboard.
I'll also reiterate Cav Guy's suggestion that you go to the "Tell us about you #2" last page (LINK) and join the crowd. Can't tell the players without a program... ;)
Good to see people writing things down.
CPT C,
I think it is good thing when people think enough about things, and feel passionate enough about it, to get up and do something about it.
Whilst not intending to be negative towards the industry and application you have displayed, I am not sure that a lot of the material you detail is not just 'sound' small unit TTP rather than specifically 'COIN' material. ( I guess this is similar to the view offered earlier by Ken).
Whilst there is a need for such material, I am relatively confident that most of it must be being taught somewhere, as it is currently practised in theatre. The US infantry units I have spent time with all appear to practise this stuff to varying degrees. Some of them are very, very good at it.
I know for a fact that material much like this has been 'rote' in the Australian Army since before Vietnam -it was taught for many years from the 1960s at the Battle Wing in Canungra.
Are you aware that the COIN CFE had / has a COIN Handbook for junior leaders that was given out for a few years?
It was put together by an Aussie SF SNCO and a few US Navy Seals with some supervision at the end by an Officer on staff who had been involved in FM 3-24. It even evolved into a second edition. Whilst not 'perfect' it was more than adequate, and I beleive in parts quite good considering the speed in which it was drafted and created in theatre.
If you PM me and provide a .mil address I will see if I can find a .pdf or other form of e-copy to send to you.
Issue of the handbook was suspended in late 07 in anticipation of a replacement item being issued in CONUS. (It did take a fair bit of effort to keep it current and publish it - the CFE is not assigned personnel or resourced for a doctrine writing task).
I recently became aware that the issue of an handbook in CONUS still has not occurred (Cav Guy might know more about when this will actually happen).
Cheers,
Mark