Quote Originally Posted by Norfolk View Post
It seems that the original DO gave way to something like conceptual and technological hubris; whatever its reputed effectiveness on the COIN battlefield, it seemed to try to go too far too fast, and for practical purposes may not be applicable to the ground force as a whole. But like I said, DO in principle is too good conceptually to completely let go of. If it is not preserved in some limited form somewhere, it will almost certainly return in the future in another guise.
The more I look at DO, the more I agree with what you said here. I remember getting a hold of a PDF or PowerPoint from MCCDC about a year ago when I first heard of the DO concept, and the amount of kit they were hauling, as well as how expensive it looked, made the whole thing look very outlandish, like the British LRDG on steroids. Or maybe "Starship Troopers" (the Heinlein version). It also looked very cool, and I remember thinking how much I wanted to be a part of that, but I didn't even consider how much it would cost the taxpayers to have even one of those units running around (of course, if we could scrap a few F-22s it might all even out). Having a JTAC to coordinate fires from the air means adding even more sophisticated and sensitive gadgetry. And as was pointed out earlier, a unit that small operating with that degree of "autonomy" still requires a great degree of logistical backing, not to mention a QRF or something on standby in case something bad goes down. Not to mention the experienced officers and NCOs you would have to pull from other units that might need them, and the extensive schooling and training they would need to operative effectively. Like all brand new toys and concepts that sparkle and shine, DO just seemed way too expensive, and was definitely blurring the line between conventional units and spec ops (not that that's necessarily a bad thing).

Maybe once ECO starts to put boots on the ground, MCCDC can start looking for ways to streamline those earlier DO concepts, maybe by not pushing as much gucci gear. Either way, I want to see life breathed back into this beast, partly for the sake of my own fantasies about being a part of it, as well as for the sake of seeing its effects on the battlefield.