Sunday, January 27, 2019

On Midrats 27 January 2019 - Episode 473: The Fort Report on the FITZGERALD Collision with Geoff Ziezulewicz

Please join us at 5pm (EST) for Midrats Episode 473: The Fort Report on the FITZGERALD Collision with Geoff Ziezulewicz
Over 18-months after the deadly collision of the USS FITZGERALD with the
Philippine-flagged merchant ship ACX Crystal off the Sea of Japan, from the courtroom to the fleet, we still have not come to terms with latent causes, accountability, or even a full understanding about what happened from a human and machine perspective.

Earlier this year, journalist Geoff Ziezulewicz received a copy of the Fort Report made shortly after the collision by Rear Admiral Brian P. Fort, USN.

Geoff will be our guest for the full hour to review the findings, the reactions to it, and further developments.

Geoff is a senior staff reporter for Military Times, focusing on the Navy. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was most recently a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.
If you can't listen at the regular time, you can also pick the show up later by visiting either our iTunes page or our Stitcher page.

Friday, January 25, 2019

Friday Film: Effects Of An Atomic Blast On Electric Power Facilities

EMP?

Recently released report dated 2017 (released to public in July 2018) NUCLEAR EMP ATTACK SCENARIOS AND COMBINED-ARMS CYBER WARFARE (pdf), leading to this piece by Bill Gertz China, Russia Building Super-EMP Bombs for ‘Blackout Warfare’:
"Nuclear EMP attack is part of the military doctrines, plans, and exercises of Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran for a revolutionary new way of warfare against military forces and civilian critical infrastructures by cyber, sabotage, and EMP," the report states.
***
The latest EMP commission report, "Nuclear EMP Attack Scenarios and Combined-Arms Cyber Warfare," is the 13th and final report of the commission. It is dated July 2017. However, as a result of a lengthy security review the report was made public last week.
Well, it's not like we haven't known of this potential threat and more - here's a film based on 1955 "Civil Effects Tests" -



And an 2016 interview with the author of the report -

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Time Again for this: "Men Without Chests"

Nice piece of work from the Acton Institute. You can acquire C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man, of which this is the first chapter, for free here.


Monday, January 21, 2019

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report 17 December 2018 - 16 January 2019 and HORN OF AFRICA/GULF OF GUINEA/ SOUTHEAST ASIA: Piracy Analysis and Warning Weekly (PAWW) Report for 10 - 16 January 2019

Of special interest:
MEXICO On 9 January, illegal fishermen attacked and boarded a ship from an environmental NGO which was conducting a patrol in the Vaquita Refuge in the Upper Gulf of California.
More here:
More than 35 skiffs attacked a vessel belonging to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, the international maritime wildlife conservation organization, in the upper Gulf of California on Wednesday, hurling “lead weights, dead fish, and even Tabasco sauce” at the ship.

According to Sea Shepherd, poachers aboard the skiffs also threatened the organization’s M/V Farley Mowat with Molotov cocktails, sprayed gasoline at the ship and poured it in the water around the vessel.




Saturday, January 19, 2019

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: Suspense "The House in Cypress Canyon" (1946)

Considered a classic in terrifying radio shows. Starring Robert Taylor, Cathy Lewis, Hans Conried and Howard Duff (as Sam Spade).





Thursday, January 17, 2019

Reading Eisenhower

Reading Eisenhower's Crusade in Europe, which is a pretty amazing book.

These days it's hard to believe how poor (in nearly every sense except leadership) our military was in the late 1930's and how rapidly it grew. The planning and logistics - an incredible effort. This is a great book for those people who know virtually nothing about what it takes to put major forces, fully equipped and trained, into the field.

General Eisenhower was a straight shooter who greatly admired General George Marshall and his leadership - this excerpt is from when the future President was chief of OPD on Marshall's staff:


Recommended reading.

Sunday, January 13, 2019

On Midrats 13 January 2019 - Episode 471: Over the horizon, under the radar, & in your MEZ: ASCM & ASBM

Please join us at 5pm (EST) on 13 January 2019 for Midrats Episode 471: Over the horizon, under the radar, & in your MEZ: ASCM & ASBM
This Sunday we're going to focus on the things of nightmares; Anti-
 Ship Cruise Missiles and Anti-Ship Ballistic Missiles with fellow paleo-milblogger SteelJawScribe.


In a wide ranging discussion, for the hour we'll cover ASCM history, Cold War tales, and what present day Russia and Crimea are bringing to the game.

SJS is a retired Navy Captain with multiple operational tours, including command of the VAW-122 Steeljaws, flying the E-2C Hawkeye as a Naval Flight Officer. With over 3500 hrs in type and 525 carrier arrested landings he was a designated Mission Commander, NATOPS and PMCF check flight NFO, a NATOPS qualified NFO copilot and the first CVW strike lead from the VAW community. He also was navigator on the USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69).

Shore tours included time at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA where he earned a Masters (with honours)in National Security Studies (Russia) and multiple joint penance tours working operational/technical intelligence, collection management and strategy/policy. Following retirement he worked in industry, first in BMD supporting the Missile Defense Agency and then helping establish the Navy Air and Missile Defense Command in Dahlgren VA. As the Navy’s premiere center for all things associated with ballistic and fleet air defense, NAMDC became the IAMD division (Dahlgren) of the Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center (SMWDC) in 2015, where SJS works today after transitioning to govt work.

An honours graduate of the Naval War College, SJS also teaches 2of 3 JPME-1 courses as a Fleet Seminar Program professor and is a published author. Together with his wife Sharon and their fearless dachshund, Jake, they live in Chancellorsville, VA

If you can't listen at the regular time, you can pick the show up later by clicking here. Or you can also pick the show up later by visiting either our iTunes page or our Stitcher page.

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Friday, January 11, 2019

Friday Film: "Admirals in the Making" (1956)



Some background - a study here, reported:
Although service academy graduates have historically attained flag rank at a much higher percentage rate than ROTC and OCS
graduates, the significant shift occurred between 1972 and 1990. In 1972, only about 20% of flag officers were from ROTC and OCS combined, whereas in 1990 over 50% of general/flag officers were from ROTC and OCS commissioning sources. Differences in
career progression between the three main commissioning sources were indistinguishable in the GAO Report.

On Midrats 6 January 2019 - Episode 470: Ninth Anniversary Midrats Show

Please join us at 5pm EST on 6 January 2019 for Midrats Episode 470: Ninth Anniversary Midrats Show
Nine years of Midrats. 


That’s right, CDR Salamander and Eagle1 have had the pleasure of
talking to you and our guests for nine years.

This Sunday we’re going to have just the two of us on to talk about not just the last nine years, but the general growth of podcasting the last decade. We’ll also review what we have top-of-mind for 2019.

As always on our free-for-all shows, you’re invited to call in or ask questions in the chat room.

Join us!