Bill,Originally Posted by Bill Moore
It's a start point. For example, let's say that your wife sends you to the grocery store for some ice cream. While at the store, you decided you want some popcorn. After leaving the store, you decide to stop and get a movie. Initially, you had one task (get ice cream), and you ended up conducting three (ice cream, popcorn, movie).
When guys get real good, they'll actually start telling the commander what they're going to do IOT answer the CCIR. We'd just huddle at night and discuss it.
The reason that I was a bit adament about this is b/c there are some foolish ideas out there. Here's the worst example. Operation Snakehunter (or snakebite). Division Commander wanted to solve IED problem in AO-North. Solution- For 72 hours, every unit would go sit at the Division's top 100 or so IED hot spot to show a presence. Seriously. Task- sit and show a presence.
The only memoriable event for us was our opportunity to visit Kurdistan.
In 2005, during my second tour, I was trying to figure out what was going on so I asked a bunch of units a bunch of questions. In particular, I asked, "what do you do on a daily basis?" Over 50% of the answers were, "we drive around for a couple of hours to show a presence and wait to get hit by IEDs." I thought that was dumb, and I tried never to have my guys do that.
So, I don't like the term presence patrol.
At our peak, we had six maneuver units (3 US, 3 Iraqi) conducting 24 patrols a day (4 each for duration of 1-4 hours) all leaving out of the same patrol base. In order to manage the schedule, my IA counterpart, my first sergeant, and I would plan together. At that point, we were simply trying to ensure start points/end points and patrol locations varied and did not repeat. That's an art in itself, and I'd submit that one can't do it alone.
Mike
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