Sanctuary (or perhaps just area) denial operations at the Afghanistan village level

[Infanteer]

I hope this clarifies my position to some degree.

Roger,

I guess my viewpoint is a bit of a reactionary stance against concepts which seemed to be added to thought models that don't really add much to the model itself but seem to be tacked on because they brief well. Not saying that was your intent and I agree with your points.

I just begin to wonder if concepts lose clarity when more things get stacked onto them like define, shape, enable, etc, etc.

To me, most of the defining and shaping is done during the "Hold" phase - you've sent the bad guys packing (or underground), locals are returning, and a "normal" pattern of life is beginning to occur. This is where you should be able to uncover the grievances of populations and the root causes of local insurgency movements. Little defining and shaping is done when you clear because most locals are keeping their heads down to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

My 2 cents.