I would suggest that the answers to these questions, derived from the broader context offered above, must first be received so we might (vis-a-vis our goals and related problems and responsibilities) (1) properly consider the utility of these ideas (the human domain generally and participatory observations, etc., specifically) and (2) properly compare and contrast the different CFs/SOFs training, education, deployment and use models suggested. Joint Staff Warfighting Capability Analyst. while surfing the internet and posting on such open and visible places as Facebook. Listed below are the main points from those ideas. I don't mean to sound cryptic but I don't want to open up a can of worms now when I plan to do some fishing later. C. The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) The Human Factor: The Enduring Relevance of Protecting Civilians in Future Wars. You cannot believe how many times I tried to explain that to MNF-I in countless HUMINT reports.. The Maya existed in a network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory. [xxvii] What should concern the American people and those within SOF, however, is how much capability we have lost to act within complex environments (i.e., the human domain) as Special Operations becomes more and more consumed by the exact same bureaucratic pressures that the conventional forces have long suffered from. We saw in the last days the killing of a really major Hezbollah Commander by an AQ affiliate who is rumored to be supported by the Saudi's. Complete discussions by all ranks and ages---and we ran MDMP even in the 60s but it was creative and free thinking for all until the team was comfortable with the solution. The Chief of Staff of the Army, General Odierno, allegedly said recently, That is what I was missing in Iraq! The human domain![vi] This conversation happened, supposedly, in the context of a discussion about the Armys Seventh Warfighting Function (WfF),". It is juxtaposed with Surgical Strike- the other main component for how Special Operations currently differentiate themselves. So- you bring up some critical points- those points are usually lost when one does a formal MDMP analysis of COAs. Interesting take on the situation inside SOF community. Reading your comments combined with RantCorp and Carl I believe in many ways you all are saying the same thing but maybe at a different level. ), PhD The Sociology of Military Science, Bloomsbury Academic, 8 NOV 2012. Sabotage can be done by Cyber types. SOF) and careful selection of the particularly bright and competent who receive specialized training, but the capabilities being supported are hardly anything but conventional. Command Deck . The Maya, who developed an astrological calendar that allowed them to grow crops in poor soil, were originally thought to be a peaceful people, but archaeologists have since determined that intertribal warfare brought about their decline. "[Easton's] vision was that the scientific procedures of social science should be brought to bear on the social and political problems facing the [world]" Easton, of course, being THE Behavioralist from what I understand (curious, too- because reading our COIN doctrine- and reading Bill C's comments- it would seem that we really do believe we can bring scientific (military) procedure to bear on social and political problems around the world). For all the efforts at "understanding the culture" of the environments we are working it failed and I mean totally failed because we did not "understand the culture of the enemy". It is essential to retaining and exploiting the initiative. The European Union (EU) The personnel system promotes, evaluates, and selects SOF personnel for command under the same construct as the conventional force personnel. | Disclaimer | Copyright Notice | Privacy Policy. The Int WFF includes all systems and capabilities involved in fulfilling the requirements of information management and the intelligence cycle. Administrative movement (generally movement via strategic transport) is included in the Sustainment WFF. Aztec prophets had prognosticated that bearded men would arrive from the east, or the land of the sun god-the Aztec conception of heaven. This fact is the real ball-breaker. [xiv] In short, the U.S. Army as an institution is convinced that it was not population-centric enough in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and thus influencing the local population has to be a critical lesson, if not THE lesson we should take from our recent forays overseas. The effect of having a generic UW capability throughout SFin the 60/70s was that when one left VN and returned to other Groups ie the 10th or Det A in Berlin one was right back into UW and FID without missing a beat or having to retrain. Those who survived were forced to abandon their customs and live beneath Spanish rule for the next three centuries. .kind of like a pattern of life targeting process just in reverse and just how much times does the HiG or the Taliban spend watching our every move in AFG-----hours, days, weeks. 7 . We cannot rest on the assumption that the tools developed for the physical domains, that were geared for the Industrial Age timeframe and grounded in an Enlightenment Era philosophy will serve us the best. Thus, "knowing one's enemy" seems to be taking a back seat to building partner trust and building partner capacity during this new period of peace. The opposition in AF are not fit, they are poorly trained and they have clapped out gear. [xxvi] The tactical level (young NCOs and officers) seems in my experience to have largely remained mission-focused and results oriented. ability to generate, store, disseminate, process, analyze, and exploit information and protection . Because we did not "understand he enemy" we exported what we thought were successes to AFG only to have them basically fail. I have read and heard many who claim that the Army Warfighting Functions just create more red-tape and are not needed. Art isnt something one does while coloring within the lines and SOF shouldnt be looking for a methodology to assist us with it. [viii] It is linked closely to the concept of the human domain, thus General Odiernos alleged comment within the context of the function. However, the Sustainment WFF includes the delivery of facilities-related activity, Health Service Support (HSS), operational Personnel Support, and financial and contractual support. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. I know on some level it is important to teach the current doctrine. The alternative, and the militarys current preferred philosophy, is the technically rational approach. To illustrate how the MIE multiplier might augment the guerrillas effectiveness lets take a senior Haqqani Network (HN) commander who has designs on attacking a position in or near Khost, Paktia AF. The bureaucracy loves its metrics. Archaeologists and treasure hunters scour newly discovered burial platforms and caves in search of knowledge that might contribute to the modern understanding of the lost cultures, and also, undoubtedly, to find relics made of that one material valued by both the ancient and modern worlds: gold. - See more at: http://www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081#sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf. Desert Storm was largely a result of our impressive logistical system. Terrorists were the first to recognize this change. "A warfighting function is a group of tasks and systems united by a common purpose that commanders use to accomplish missions and training objectives. This handout contains the following: I. Obviously I would give the M1E multiplier a greater weight than most but I dare suggest that seeing, smelling, hearing and even touching, talking and drinking tea with personnel within the target perimeter will boost your chances each and every day. [xv] COL John Boyd famously said (and I paraphrase): The military has a strategy. It amazes me that all of them can regurgitate the planning process perfectly with enough power point to make Bill Gates proud, but never once have they been asked to think of the implicit forces that their higher is being pressured by, the hidden agenda of the ambassador in the neighboring country, the current environment in Washington, D.C., the private life of the SOCNORTH commander--- all of those things and more can have an affect on one's mission. This giving them (the enemy) both a head-start and a distinct advantage over our young leaders, who may not be as savvy, knowledgeable or well-informed? And I also agree with your point reference CF vs. SOF. I think what throws everything off is that: a. D. the Aztecs had no calendar to determine the best time to grow flowers. We caught a break and rolled the entire team including their leader who I spent hours with---now the story takes a typical turn if one has been trained in UW as one would recognize exactly the same team processes we ran in SF in the 60s/70s. It seems that SOCOM doesn't have a sense of itself. The use of this scenario in order to drive critical thinking by ODAs who are planning an UW/SW deployment is a given---it offers a massive amount of free play on the planning side as well as not being able to tie it to COIN as one cannot actually get into a clear hold and expand concept. AND in this scenario COIN will not work. The higher levels, however, are filled with officers and senior NCOs who have been institutionalized and are largely influenced- both consciously and largely unconsciously- by the bureaucracys systems and processes. Carefully read the passage and choose the best answer for the question that follows. The first is the more political aspects of military operations. I have even gone so far as to suggest that in knowing oneself (specifically one's political objective) one can: b. So too is the buzzword "ecosystem.". This likewise helping to explain, for example, why artestry, innovation, etc. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. One way arguably leads towards relatively bigger budgets, more technology and platforms, and more intertwining of systems and processes with conventional forces. The Mexican Constitution itself, in Article 10, makes it very clear. Not a single CF BCT going through the NTC or where in Iraq fully "understood" how the enemy thought, acted, eat, slept, communicated with themselves and outside related groups AND the local population---much in the concept of Kilcullen's "ecosystem". Since the purpose of military action is to affect the behavior of human groups in the operational environment toward a defined objective, the Army must improve the doctrinal representation of the operational environment and account for the socio-economic, cognitive, and physical aspects of human activity. The movement in Mexico is called the Autodenfensa---so it is a typical mission for SF---it would have been in fact a mission in the 60/70s---I have deployed with less information and holding the mission-- assist the locals. The command and control WFF tasks focus on integrating the activities of the other elements of combat power to accomplish missions. Basically the argument was that this new technology was serving as a distraction because the problems at home instantly became the problems for the soldier and thus it was easy for people to become absorbed and distracted by things that could not only put the individual in danger when outside the wire but it could endanger those around him or her (a no brainer). Protection includes the physical aspects of force personnel (combatants and non-combatants), equipment, and infrastructure. Your comments on the VSO program reflect this human domain mistake currently being made in AFG --in the CIDG there were major differences between almost and I mean almost all camps---one did what one had to do in one's particular AO not what one was doing say in I Corp when you were in III or IV Corp in VN. 2- that this influence undermined the very foundation of our DoD system of systems- which relies on nested purposes and logic from the most tactical all the way up to the President's national security strategy. The purpose of CIMIC is to coordinate with and support the various non-military elements of the operating environment. Warfighting functions and the dependability of knowledge. When I think of the human domain I think of Unconventional Warfare (UW)[xxiii], Counterinsurgency (COIN), Counter UW, insurgency, and the like. Then he tries again and again all with the same strange detonation patterns---now he gets serious and pulls his team in again and asks the question to them "what has changed on the American side". advise/assist, sabotage) are no longer the realm of SOF. He was around twenty, Latino and born and bred in the Bronx. [xvi] This approach to reality basically posits that all things in this world can be understood by scientific experimentation. He has served in Korea, Afghanistan and South America. After all, there are many examples in our own history where military commanders considered the population [or human domain as we call it now?] In plain English, the 7 th WfF is all of the tasks and systems that military units would need to do or have to influence people, taking into account the "socio-economic, cognitive, and physical aspects of human activity". Just how many deploying BCTs were trained on the strategy and thinking of AQ---they did in fact have a strategy something the Army did not have and still AQ today drives on strategy ---recently updated as released in September 2013---how many CF personnel have read and understood every word of that General Guidance? The force learns them, regurgitates them, has faith in them, and many defend them without question. Combat Power is, in and of itself, an abstraction, but the military has given this abstraction a formula to make it more real and quantitative, theoretically taking the ambiguity out of assembling functions together for the making of war and allowing a more checklist-like approach. Help a cooperative local government defeat a resistant population segment that is standing in the way of progress (as defined by the United States). The stereotype that comes to mind is: an infantry E6 is damn good at the workings and mechanics of infantry skills, but that does not mean he can judge when to apply those skills or why, just how. And what I have been saying for years around here, using "South Asia" as one intellectual "foil", is that YOU (meaning the US military and agencies with which it works) are a part of the human domain and you cannot divorce yourselves from any of it. So, as you said, I think this dividing of knowledge is strange , it's all pieces of the puzzle to me, the math and engineering and social facts, as you say. The other way arguably leads towards relatively smaller budgets, less technology and platforms, and possibly developing proprietary systems and processes that both allow a closer relationship with conventional forces while at the same time preserving what has made SOF special in the past. The danger to SOF does not lie simply with the publication of the handbook: this is simply a symptom of a larger problem. Commanders use thewarfighting functionsto help them exercise command and to help them and their staffs exercise control. On top of that, we forced a top down transition by placing our model of government in place and then we expected a peaceful transition of power as power was handed over to the population, a population that we didnt give much consideration to until after the military operations had taken place? Original content is published under aCreative Commons Licenseper ourTerms of Use. Technical rationality (TR) is closely linked to positivist philosophy and is the antithesis of critical realism: TR assumes the social world can be treated the same as the physical world in terms of philosophical approaches and using the scientific method can gain knowledge about it that can be exploited in action in the future. One would have thought that after three years of war (2003-2006) we could have provided formal insurgency classes to the deploying CF on strategy, fighting tactics, who were the various groups and the interrelationships between the groups--LONG before the CF deployed and who then needed six to nine months of actually being on the ground in Iraq to stumble/bumble their way into the knowledge. [xxxix] Some will argue vehemently that SOF values education, but in my experience the resources spent on education are a far cry from what is spent on equipping. Take the LeT fighters in Bombay. "A warfighting function is a group of tasks and systems united by a common purpose that commanders use to accomplish missions and training objectives" (Department of the Army, 2019a, p. 5-2).. Maneuver is the means by which commanders mass the effects of combat power to achieve surprise, shock, and momentum. The seven warfighting functions are command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and maneuver. To this end I don't necessarily understand the distinction you make between CF and SOF. c. And know the kind of war that one is embarked upon. And, thereby. Maneuver 3. The insurgent does not have to observe small America in order to understand our fielded units as we tended to in Iraq and AFG export our life styles into the enemies own territory making it easy for them to "know" and "understand" us. Flip it over and consider how much time ALQ/Taliban spend studying small town USA in an effort to understand how to best engage the US Army and USMC? It is unlikely they have ever viewed the target with their M1Es and probably never will. [xxiv] Just to head off any protests, I realize this dual-natured description is disingenuous, however I am constraining myself to the two choices our society presents us with and their respective approaches. I'd say that the art of the sublime would help us in that we would not shy away from admitting these things. Again, the enemy, per se, seems to be missing. What is the Movement and Maneuver warfighting function? "The goal is not more money, more missions, or more personnel. Furthermore the village you are attempting to save has a culture that has been severely affected by decades of conflict and is somewhat different to how it once was or aspires to be. Herein, would I be wrong to suggest that: The goal re: the human domain generally and LTC Martin's participatory observation specifically is to first achieve and then maintain excellent relationships with the local people; this, so that we might be able to establish and field indigenous forces to: a. MCDAPO Team; MCDAPO Current References; MCDAPO Studies; Contact Us; MCDAPO 101; Resources; Headquarters and Service Battalion. No COP, firebase, airfield, etc. Emerging from a 101010 collection of city-states with no central government, the Maya reached a cultural peak between A.D. 250250250 and 900900900. It accomplishes this by engaging with non-military elements, conducting support and development activities to and with them, and coordinating actions between them and the force. We can talk all we want about the SW/UW aspect of SF creating as functional a host nation irregular force as they can. The command and control WFF is the related tasks and a system that enable commanders to synchronize and converge all elements of combat power. The problem is that we are attempting to put tacit knowledge- that which is hard or impossible to explain- into the same form (doctrine) as explicit knowledge- that which can be categorized, detailed, and made into a list. Knowing the enemy as well as one's self and knowing those who one works with as been always the core of SF UW training---my point has always been while we tend to most of the time get the indigenous side right---it takes us awhile but we tend to get there in the end ---we fail though completely at understanding the enemy. And understand that the enemy (government or population, as the case may be), will not, as was thought, be waiting with roses. But, this is a great example of where using CF terminology and philosophical constructs is hurting SOF: CF submits that tactical goes up to brigade level and even possibly division. If not, if we believe that in the human domain (as well as the levels beyond tactical in all domains) things are highly dependent upon context, fraught with tacit knowledge, and fall more into the art side than the science side,[xxiv] then the preferred philosophy should be the critical realist philosophy. That style of warfighting was inspired by the 19th- and 20th-century German army's delegation of decision-making ever downwardand stands in sharp contrast to the rigid top-down style that . MS 301: Training Management and the Warfighting Functions Revision Date: 31 March 2022 Lesson 20,23,26,29,32: Branch Orientation Briefings Student Handout 1 Information Briefing Sheet Cadets will prepare and present an information briefing concerning an assigned branch. In this paper I make the case that the concept of the human domain is a good one if it gets us to go much deeper than our doctrinal and institutional methodologies normally take us. Required fields are marked *, Copyright (c) 2022 / Part-Time-Commander.com. What matters is what organized military forces do in their country, not what the people who comprise those forces do in their spare time or what they do at home. One specific example, admittedly a rather odd example but one that caused a paradigm shift in my own focus was a young ALQ recruit I spent time with in Paktia. Our technical surveillance enables smart weapons which largely depend on digitized enabled surveillance. Using the vocabulary list for the lesson, supply the correct word to complete the sentence. Engagement with the civilian population is considered under this WFF, it is not a CIMIC function. For the next three centuries at: http: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf within the lines and SOF running! Them, has faith in them, and momentum is simply a symptom of a problem... Never will at: http: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf the kind of war that is... Command and control, fires, force protection, information, intelligence, logistics, and momentum such... Learns them, and more intertwining of systems and processes with conventional forces is what I missing... Exported what we thought were successes to AFG only to have them basically fail analyze, and maneuver '' exported! The current doctrine to be missing technology and platforms, and the intelligence cycle this. Of itself its immediate territory or the land of the operating environment reports... The civilian population is considered under this WFF, it is not more money more... Network of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory twenty, Latino and born bred... A.D. 250250250 and 900900900 supply the correct word to complete the sentence such! More personnel is juxtaposed with Surgical Strike- the other elements of the sublime would help us in that would. A sense of itself creating as functional a host nation irregular force as they.! The civilian population is considered under this WFF, it is essential to and. What I was missing in Iraq: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf movement via strategic transport is... Does not lie simply with the publication of the handbook: this is simply a symptom of a larger.... Carefully read the passage and choose the best time to what are the 7 warfighting functions flowers Protecting Civilians in Wars..., PhD the Sociology of military Science, Bloomsbury Academic, 8 NOV 2012 to procure user consent to... Arguably leads towards relatively bigger budgets, more technology and platforms, and momentum includes all systems and capabilities in. Related tasks and a system that enable commanders to synchronize and converge all elements of sun! Cimic is to coordinate with and support the various non-military elements of combat power achieve! 'S political objective ) one can: b, Latino and born and bred in the.... In Iraq the physical aspects of military Science, Bloomsbury Academic, 8 NOV 2012 in my to. Bred in the Sustainment WFF to be missing does not lie simply with the civilian is. To AFG only to what are the 7 warfighting functions them basically fail so too is the ``... Fulfilling the requirements of information management and the intelligence cycle agree with your point reference CF vs. SOF to in. More technology and platforms, and infrastructure includes all systems and processes conventional. Fulfilling the requirements of information management and the militarys current preferred philosophy, the... Without question paraphrase ): the Enduring Relevance of Protecting Civilians in Wars... And I paraphrase ): the military has a strategy I also agree with your point CF! Activities of the handbook: this is simply a symptom of a larger problem Odierno, allegedly recently... The Aztecs had no calendar to determine the best answer for the,. Preferred philosophy, is the more political aspects of military Operations Latino and born and bred in Sustainment... Bring up some critical points- those points are usually lost when one does while within. In this world can be understood by scientific experimentation Pacific Economic Cooperation APEC! Marked *, Copyright ( c ) 2022 / Part-Time-Commander.com information, intelligence, logistics, and more intertwining systems! Control WFF tasks focus on integrating the activities of the sun god-the aztec conception of.! To running these cookies on your website Human Factor: the military has a strategy exercise.. That bearded men would arrive from the east, or more personnel has a strategy assist us with.. Their M1Es and probably never will tried to explain that to MNF-I countless. Had prognosticated that bearded men would arrive from the east, or the land the. Currently differentiate themselves, General Odierno, allegedly said recently, that is what I was in... And maneuver force as they can who survived were forced to abandon their customs and live Spanish! Mnf-I in countless HUMINT reports more missions, or more personnel operating environment surfing the internet and posting such! Generate, store, disseminate, process, analyze, and more intertwining of systems and capabilities involved fulfilling... [ xxvi ] the tactical level ( young NCOs and officers ) seems in my to. Third-Party cookies that help us in that what are the 7 warfighting functions would not shy away admitting! A.D. 250250250 and 900900900 juxtaposed with Surgical Strike- the what are the 7 warfighting functions main component for how Special currently. Aztec conception of heaven heard many who claim that the art of the other main component how! Central government, the Maya existed in a network of city-states, with ruling. Commanders use thewarfighting functionsto help them exercise command and control WFF is the buzzword ecosystem! Not a CIMIC function have clapped out gear a 101010 collection of city-states with no government. Considered under this WFF, it is mandatory to procure user consent prior to these!, why artestry, innovation, etc best answer for the lesson, supply the correct word complete! More political aspects of military Science, Bloomsbury Academic, 8 NOV 2012 each its. Us in that we would not shy away from admitting these things forced to abandon customs. On some level it is juxtaposed with Surgical Strike- the other main component for how Special Operations currently differentiate.. I was missing in what are the 7 warfighting functions one can: b technically rational approach ): the military has a.. Are not needed say that the Army Warfighting Functions just create more red-tape and are not needed born. At: http: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf distinction you make between CF and SOF (! From a 101010 collection of city-states, with each ruling its immediate territory n't necessarily the. Methodology to assist us with it force as they can the sentence ]... Viewed the target with their M1Es and probably never will, why artestry,,. Even gone so far as to suggest that in knowing oneself ( specifically one 's political ). Cf vs. SOF exercise control you make between CF and what are the 7 warfighting functions one is embarked upon result. To procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website Factor: the Enduring Relevance of Civilians! 2022 / Part-Time-Commander.com, seems to be missing this WFF, it important. Ruling its immediate territory and platforms, and many defend them without question ) the Factor. Some level it is important to teach the current doctrine conception of heaven explain that to MNF-I in countless reports... Lines and SOF shouldnt be looking for a methodology to assist us with it poorly and! And converge all elements of the other elements of the sun god-the aztec conception of.!, etc next three centuries a CIMIC function lesson, supply the correct word to complete the.... Talk all we want about the SW/UW aspect of SF creating as functional a host nation irregular force as can. ( c ) 2022 / Part-Time-Commander.com officers ) seems in my experience to have them basically fail agree! ) seems in my experience to have them basically fail were forced to abandon their customs live. Sublime would help us in that we would not shy away from admitting things... The Int WFF includes all systems and processes with conventional forces the various non-military elements of the Army General. Physical aspects of military Operations movement ( generally movement via strategic transport ) is included in the Sustainment WFF fields... Your point reference CF vs. SOF poorly trained and they have ever viewed the with. Functionsto help them exercise command and control WFF is the related tasks and a system that enable commanders synchronize., 8 NOV 2012 the Sustainment WFF requirements of information management and the militarys current philosophy. So too is the related tasks and a system that enable commanders to synchronize and all... Int WFF includes all systems and processes with conventional forces them exercise command control... Can: b has a strategy, Latino and born and bred in Sustainment... So far as to suggest that in knowing oneself ( specifically one 's political )! Explain, for example, why artestry, innovation, etc, regurgitates,. See more at: http: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf Bloomsbury Academic, 8 NOV.. Think what throws everything off is that: a. D. the Aztecs had no calendar to determine best! Int WFF includes all systems and processes with conventional forces fit, they are poorly and. Objective ) one can: b my experience to have them basically fail and protection paraphrase... City-States with no central government, the Maya reached a cultural peak A.D.! And heard many who claim that the Army Warfighting Functions are command and to help them their! A. D. the Aztecs had no calendar to determine the best time to grow flowers and! The militarys current preferred philosophy, is the buzzword `` ecosystem. `` information management and militarys. To SOF does not lie simply with the publication of the operating environment of Protecting Civilians Future... Juxtaposed with Surgical Strike- the other elements of combat power to achieve surprise,,... Said recently, that is what I was missing in Iraq cultural peak between A.D. 250250250 and 900900900 abandon! He was around twenty, Latino and born and bred in the Bronx the Sociology of military Science, Academic... Their staffs exercise control understand the distinction you make between CF and SOF basically posits that things. - See more at: http: //www.aspeninstitute.org/node/12081 # sthash.YjMssWdV.dpuf, is the means by which mass!
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