I hadn't come across that.
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Originally Posted by
Fuchs
The 'backward offensive' thing was actually proposed by Manstein as part of an accusation directed at WW1 generals in his memoirs.
The greatest problem with it was likely that even such an offensive would have bogged down eventually jsut as it happened in 1914 and 1918 when offensives came to a halt.
But I am comfortable with the company!
I was just always taught that the frontal assault was the least favored form of maneuver (though that also, for the lead sqaud, every form of maneuver is a frontal assault).
So if you can go around, over, or under; I guess that leaves the "rearward envelopment" prior to resorting to just putting your shoulder down and pushing.
You'd be absolutely crucified if you tried it and failed though; but if you try a frontal assault for the umpteenth time and fail you get a promotion. Same kind of reward system we use at our training centers. Follow doctrine to the letter, use the "two up, one back" and get thrashed by the OPFOR and you are a "go." Get creative and win, and you "got lucky." Get creative and lose, and you "get fired." Just one more way, along with the senior rater profile, to breed the creative genius out of the officer corps.
Tactical Genius - Hannibal Barca
Sure Hannibal had forgone the besieging of Rome, yet for three years in a row (218-216 BCE) Hannibal earned his rank as one of the Great Captains of History (T.A. Dodge).
218 November - Battle of Ticinus River - Brilliant cavalry engagement which gave Scipio his bloody nose and allowed Hannibal to gain the initiative despite having emerged from the Alps, basically in tatters.
218 December - Battle of Trebia River - After recruiting thousands of Gauls he managed to lure Sempronius across the freezing Trebia in a ill-conceived hasty crossing only to emerge being surprised in his flank and rear losing around 30,000 men.
217 April - Battle of Lake Trasimene - Absolutely brilliant ambush anticipating Sun Tzu's maxim "know your enemy and know yourself.." - Hot-tempered Flaminius threw caution to the wind driving his men forward into a narrow defile under steep cliffs. Hannibal took advantage of the terrain, climate, and his opponent's disposition to deliver a devastating blow. The resulting (needless) slaughter saw some 30,000 Roman dead as well as Flaminius.
216 August - The Battle of Cannae - Tactical Perfection - the epitome of shaping the battlespace - and the blueprint for every battle thereafter.
"A nation that makes a great distinction between its scholars and its warriors will have its laws made by cowards and its wars fought by fools."
— Thucydides
Not really, Bob's World...
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Originally Posted by
Bob's World
This is the strength of the American warfighting Army historically. The Regulars are small in number, steeped in doctrine, and set out the fight the last war.
Not always, though I acknowledge it's true as often as not. There are a lot of things that can be said of all components. Saying them often does more harm than good.
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... dedicated to preserving the Army they needed for the last war, rather than pragmatically reducing the standing army to what is really needed (and when we stop using the Army to force a failed family of policy to work, we will be able to bring 2-300,000 guys home)
Those are both your opinions and you're entitled to them and to state them in an open forum. I'm just as entitled to say you need to stop smoking that stuff.. ;)
Those 'failed policies' are your opinion -- and I suspect I'd agree on some, probably not on others. In any event, that's not going to happen.
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...designing a flexible, adaptive force and doctrine for wars that are likely to emerge.
Couldn't agree more; you're absolutely correct. That's not gonna happen either due to politics and a fear of a truly effective Army; Congress does not want that. Pretty effective or effective enough, yes -- but not truly effective. They'd be dangerous. :wry:
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Quit being jealous of and seeing the Guard as a competitor for scarce resources you need to fulfill your obsolete vision of "correctness," and instead embrace the Guard for what it is: America's historic warfighting, war-winning, force. Just an observation.
As one who had a Guard serial number before you were born, one that was used in three States, allow me to point out that the Army Reserve also was a part of that war winning force until you guys got their combat units dissolved with your superior Congressional clout. So was the Regular Army, so were the Marines. What did not help in any of those wars was parochial B.S. Nor does it help today.
I'll also point out that the Guard, as a war winning force in two World wars got so diluted with Regulars and Reservists during those wars due to senior officer lack of competence plus reservists and draftees added for the duration that they were not really Guard units, they were AUS units. The Guard also was for various dumb political reasons not a big factor in either Korea or Viet Nam. It has been used lately to good effect and the ARMY has benefited from that. So has SOCOM. There have also been some downsides. To both...
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Add "blinded by Cold War experience" to "senior rater profile" and "CTC evaluation focus" for why we are limited today in our ability to produce great generals, but produce a hell of a lot of great, dull, efficient, managers.
You can also add political correctness, diversity, 'One Army' and several other things to the limits. Do not forget the Congress that protects programs that are of marginal total benefit to the defense of the nation but are politically popular. I can think of several such programs...
DOPMA and its followers being beautiful examples.
Parochial B.S. is not beneficial to any component. That Congress which protects the Guard (and to a lesser extent, the USAR) as a counterpoint to the AC is not truly beneficial to any of those components. We're supposed to all be in this thing together...