We’ve all grown up reading about the exploits of those who
came before us. Recall these famous
quotes:
“Don’t give up the ship”
Capt. James Lawrence, USS Chesapeake, War of 1812
“I have not yet begun to fight”
Capt. John Paul Jones, Bonhomme Richard, Revolutionary War
“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead”
Rear Admiral David Farragut, Battle of Mobile Bay, Civil War
“Before we’re through with ’em, the Japanese language will be spoken
only in hell”
Vice Admiral William Halsey, WWII
“I wish to have no Connection with any Ship that does not Sail fast for
I intend to go in harm's way”
John Paul Jones, Revolutionary War
“It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that
without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, and with it,
everything honorable and glorious”
George Washington
“We have met the enemy and they are ours…”
Oliver Hazard Perry, Battle of Lake Erie, War of 1812
“You may fire when you are ready Gridley”
Commodore George Dewey, Battle of Manila Bay, Spanish-American War
“Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition!”
Lieutenant Howell Maurice Forgy, USS New Orleans, Pearl Harbor, WWII
“Sighted Sub, Sank Same.”
AMM 1/c Donald Francis Mason, WWII
“Take her down!”
Dying command of Commander Howard Walter Gilmore, USS Growler (SS-215), WWII
“Scratch one flattop”
Lieutenant Commander Robert E. Dixon, Battle of the Coral Sea, WWII
Inspiring words, indeed, but they are more than just
words. They reflect the culture and
ethos of our fighting Navy throughout the years. They represent the soul of the Navy. They give us a foundation that we can learn
and grow from and offer us an example that we can aspire to and build upon. In a sense, those words are the Navy.
What words do we have today?
What words have been uttered since WWII that inspire us? It might be the following.
“We Surrender”
Lt. in charge of riverine boats captured by Iran
“Whatever you do, don’t escalate”
Pretty much every operational order issued in the last few decades
“Don’t give up the funding”
Pretty much every admiral
“I have not yet begun to obfuscate”
Every CNO faced with a Congressional order he didn’t agree with
“I’m telling you, we did get shot at.
I don’t know why the Aegis data logs don’t show enemy missiles.”
Captain of the USS Mason off Yemen
Yeah … we haven’t uttered any inspiring words in our
lifetimes. Why is that? Well, in order to utter inspiring words, you
first have to have performed an inspiring deed.
You have to have done something noteworthy. We’ve done nothing. That’s what pursuing a policy of steadfast
appeasement gets you.
Let’s do something noteworthy and then, perhaps, someone
will say something inspiring for future naval generations.
Capt. James Lawrence, USS Chesapeake, War of 1812
Capt. John Paul Jones, Bonhomme Richard, Revolutionary War
Rear Admiral David Farragut, Battle of Mobile Bay, Civil War
Vice Admiral William Halsey, WWII
John Paul Jones, Revolutionary War
George Washington
Oliver Hazard Perry, Battle of Lake Erie, War of 1812
Commodore George Dewey, Battle of Manila Bay, Spanish-American War
Lieutenant Howell Maurice Forgy, USS New Orleans, Pearl Harbor, WWII
AMM 1/c Donald Francis Mason, WWII
Dying command of Commander Howard Walter Gilmore, USS Growler (SS-215), WWII
Lieutenant Commander Robert E. Dixon, Battle of the Coral Sea, WWII
Lt. in charge of riverine boats captured by Iran
Pretty much every operational order issued in the last few decades
Pretty much every admiral
Every CNO faced with a Congressional order he didn’t agree with
Captain of the USS Mason off Yemen
"I'm so tired. Have been doing nothing but studying, staying up late. But twelve tests done, with good grades so far!!"
ReplyDelete-Daughter in A School
Not exactly inspiring like the old days, but for now, I'll take it! ;)
Inspiring words from the First Sea Lord when Argentina invaded the Falklands, 1982.
ReplyDelete“Could we really capture the islands if they were invaded?” Mrs Thatcher buttonholed the admiral.
“Yes, we could – and in my judgment we should.”
“Why do say that?” the Prime Minister snapped back.
“Because if we do not in another few months we shall be living in a different country whose word counts for little.”
Mrs Thatcher nodded. She gave Sir Henry Leach the order to begin assembling his task force.
Of course, Had we had a credible defense, instead of announcing we were withdrawing our only navy asset, the Argentinians would not have invaded. ( The previous government sent 2 Frigates and an SSN in 1977 and they backed off). In 1982, 907 lives were lost during the conflict: 649 Argentinian, 255 British and three Falkland Islanders. 1977 cost no lives. This shows if you are prepared to fight (or a least the opposition believes you will fight) it save lives. End of rant. Sorry for going off topic. Clive F
Delete"the opposition believes you will fight"
DeleteThis is the key. Iran is surrounded by allied forces but does not believe anyone other than Israel will do anything. China has the entire 7th fleet in their region but is confident that we won't do anything. All the forces in the world won't deter someone who doesn't believe you have the will to use those forces.
Not completely sure I agree with you here. Iran is very hard to invade from the South and West. Coastal mountains to the South, Zegros and Taurus mountains to the West. Very few ways across those mountains, and relatively easy to control. I've spent a lot of time in that area on both sides of the border over the years and would not fancy my chances. Nothing like the desert run to Baghdad.
DeleteOr you could take your chances across the Tigris and Euphrates deltas, but the Shat Al Arab has very few bridges and those that exist would be easy to destroy. To the East you have Pakistan and Afghanistan, and a whole lot of pretty inhospitable desert.
The easy path into Iran is from the North, on either side of the Caspian Sea, but that is far from being allied territory as you have Georgia/Azerbaijan on the West Side of the Caspian, and the 'Stans on the East side.
As far as China being scared of 7th Fleet, why would they be? Lot's of Chinese land-based aviation to get in the way, plus a Navy that is getting stronger by the month. A few years ago the situation was a lot different. Now, probably not so much although its hard to say without actually getting down to it.
I get this is not a political blog, but the situation in the Middle East is getting increasingly uncomfortable.
"Not completely sure I agree with you here."
DeleteAssuming that comment is directed at me, what is it you think you disagreed with? I ask because you didn't actually disagree with anything I said.
"As far as China being scared of 7th Fleet, why would they be?"
That was the point. China has no fear of US forces, regardless of how many are in the region, because they know we won't use those forces.
You seem to want to disagree with something but you haven't actually!
"Iran is very hard to invade"
DeleteNote that invading Iran is not the only way of pushing back against them. We have many ways of hurting them short of an invasion.
" Iran is surrounded by allied forces"
DeleteI may have misunderstood you. Whose allies? Israel/US or Iran's allies?
My point about 7th Fleet is that even if there was the will to use it, the correlation of forces with the Chinese are poor. Sure, there are a lot of Tomahawks, but we've never tried to use them against a modern AAW system. They are getting pretty long in the tooth and we don't have nearly enough of them for a protracted engagement.
"We have many ways of hurting them short of an invasion."
DeleteTrue, but that pendulum swings both ways. Their militias and fellow travelers are capable of making life in the Middle East unpleasant. Iran's focus on ballistic missile development was smart.
"Iran is very hard to invade"
DeleteWho suggested invading Iran? That would be foolish. A war with Iran would last all of twelve hours. You don't invade. You don't occupy. You simply decapitate their leadership and vaporize their military.
Besides, the discussion was not about war or invasions. It was about the failure of deterrence. Despite Iran being surrounded by Western (and some Middle East) forces, Iran is completely undeterred. The West has hundreds (thousands?) of aircraft in the region, dozens of ships, untold numbers of troops, countless UAVs and satellites, many hundreds of cruise missiles, etc. and they accomplish nothing because Iran believes - correctly - that we won't use them. THAT'S what the discussion was about.
"that pendulum swings both ways. Their militias and fellow travelers are capable of making life in the Middle East unpleasant."
DeleteThat's not even remotely correct UNLESS WE ALLOW IT - which is exactly what we're doing. If the West had the will, they could completely shut Iran down militarily, financially, trade, raw materials, banking, etc. Iran could do nothing to prevent it. Iran is making trouble ONLY because we lack the courage to take action and put an end to it.
Just to reinforce CNO here (not that he needs it)
DeleteI believe it was Henry Kissinger who said that deterrence is a product of 3 factors. Note, it's a product, not a sum, so if any one of the factors is zero, there is no deterrence.
Here are the factors:
(1) Your capability
(2) Your willingness to USE your capability
(3) Your adversary's estimate of (1) and (2)
While Mr. Biden is not the first to undermine (2) (and hence also (3), he has certainly taken it to a greater level than others.
"A war with Iran would last all of twelve hours. You don't invade. You don't occupy. You simply decapitate their leadership and vaporize their military."
DeleteNot a hope in hell. Sure, you'll get some of the leadership, but they seem pretty adept at replacing them with hardly a ripple. And they've had lots of practice.
As far as vaporizing the military, Iran is a lot like Switzerland. Very poor terrain even for nuclear weapons. You need too many of them to have any real effect.
And you do realize that the real risk of Iran going nuclear isn't from building an indigenous weapon, its side-loading them from Russia, China or Pakistan, with whom Iran is the best of buddies. As far as Iran being vulnerable to yet more useless sanctions, they largely have nothing to do with SWIFT anymore, all their big transactions are credit swaps with China that are not done in US dollars. They trade with Russia, China, Pakistan and Turkey. Turkey has very clearly warned Israel that if they mess with Southern Lebanon (Hezbollah) then Turkey will intervene. Erdogan is full of hot air usually, but this time he might just mean it.
As far a Iran being surrounded by countries that can actually be counted as US allies, we are obviously not looking at the same map of the region. I t's exactly the opposite. The only counties in the region that have significant militaries that are solidly on the side of the West are Saudi Arabia and their military has a huge question mark next to it. Remember Yemen, even with US support? Even Qatar, which hosts the biggest base in the Middle East at Al Udeid, is also best buddies with Iran because of shared ownership and management of the North Gas Field, one of the biggest in the world and a huge source of income for Qatar. And then you have Israel, who arguably is solidly on the side of Israel and would love nothing more than to suck the US and NATO into a war with Iran.
Turkey wants to be the next Islamic hegemon of the region and isn't going to do anything to screw that up. Decent sized military, and the NATO involvement is hanging by a thread at the moment. They would probably come in alongside Iran depending on what triggered the conflict.
So currently we have an Iran that doesn't want a broad war, particularly under the new President, but Israel clearly does despite the IDF struggling because of Gaza.
I think this is a clear example of the value of sleeping dogs.
"Here are the factors:
Delete(1) Your capability
(2) Your willingness to USE your capability
(3) Your adversary's estimate of (1) and (2)"
Bob, (2) Is too cold war and simplistic. I suggest:
(2A) You willingness to use your capability and create the result you desire.
(2B) The ability of your adversary to push back and create the result they desire.
You might enjoy this if you haven't seen it already. I like Larry Wilkerson, his knowledge of the region dovetails with my firsthand experience.
https://youtu.be/Zq0P0p2u9sM?si=Uv4E2-gH1H_1AMj9
"Not a hope in hell."
DeleteYou don't seem to understand how to fight this type of war. You go after the center(s) of gravity. The prime center of gravity is their leadership. You hit every known place of occupancy and decapitate the top twenty levels of leadership. At the same time, you cruise missile every significant military base. Twelve hours later, you're done. Iran has no leadership and no military. Problem solved. No boots on the ground. No occupation. You just step away and let the remaining citizens do whatever they want. Probably degenerate into tribal warfare.
You also don't seem to be grasping the concept of being surrounded by allied forces. I'm not talking about countries that touch Iran's border. I'm talking about all the hundreds/thousands of aircraft, ships, and weapons within range of Iran. Iran has, as you put it, "not a hope in hell".
Turkey will threaten and bluster but is not going to enter into a war against NATO.
Russia has all it can handle with Ukraine. They aren't going to get involved supporting Iran militarily. Russia won't be in any condition for another war for decades after Ukraine.
China will do what China always does. Sit back, watch, and lend peripheral aid to bleed the West.
NKorea is isolated and helpless.
You need to get over your fear of Iran and see the situation objectively.
"The ability of your adversary to push back and create the result they desire."
DeleteThis is a statement born of fear and timidity. Consider an example. Iran is harassing (well, seizing and mining) shipping. If the US were to sink every Iranian ship/boat that left port, there's not a thing Iran could do about it to "push back and create the result they desire."
In case you're considering arguing that we haven't got the right to do something like that, you're dead wrong. Iran, by it's piratical actions and declarations of war (seizing another country's ship in international waters IS an act of war), has forfeited all rights and protections. Iran has, essentially, declared war on the rest of the world. But, I digress.
The point is that Iran can do nothing to prevent our actions and nothing to achieve their aims unless we allow it ... which we're doing much to our and the world's detriment. But, again, this is getting into the realm of geopolitics so I'll stop there.
"Just to reinforce CNO here (not that he needs it)"
DeleteOkay, that was a good one! LOL
""The ability of your adversary to push back and create the result they desire."
DeleteThis is a statement born of fear and timidity."
I'm quite sure you recall MAD that kept us out of a thermonuclear war ever since WW II ended. It was entirely based on making sure you were aware of the capability of your opponent vs your own capabilities. Its also common sense in that you don't take on more than you can chew.
US forces now are not at the same level they were at the peak of the Cold War, and has been discussed here at some length, the armaments supply chain is in horrible condition. NATO beyond the US is fast becoming a paper tiger as the European economies slide into the gutter.
You are saying that the Russian military is in trouble and will take a long time to recover. I don't think so. They have effectively ramped up military production way beyond what I ever thought was possible, and they aren't having any serious recruiting and training problems.
"I'm quite sure you recall MAD that kept us out of a thermonuclear war"
DeleteThat's exactly why we are free to enforce our will on Iran. They are assured of total obliteration if they resist or escalate. You have a grasp of the data but are drawing all the wrong conclusions.
"They have effectively ramped up military production"
They have lost the heart and soul of their professional soldier ranks. Their weapon systems, except for artillery and possibly EW (we don't have hard data on EW), have been largely proven ineffective. They've lost thousands of armored vehicles. Their economy has been badly hurt by both sanctions and a myopic focus on military production. Their navy has lost dozens of ships and been proven ineffective. Their service age population has been depleted. And the list goes on. They are not going to recover from this for decades.
Here's a quote from a website documenting Russia's draft woes:
"Kremlin officials and lawmakers have made clear they see the law as a response to problems carrying out Putin's "partial mobilization" decree last fall to call up 300,000 troops to fight in Ukraine."
It provided reinforcements for the front line, but also drove hundreds of thousands of Russians to flee the country to avoid the draft. Many other citizens dodged service within the country by changing their address or simply claiming not to have seen the draft notice."
You need to broaden your reading horizons a bit.
"You need to broaden your reading horizons a bit."
DeleteYou would probably be surprised to know what I read and watch. I try very hard to avoid confirmation bias.
It looks like things are warming up with Lebanon and Iran judging by the events of the last couple of days, so we may unfortunately find out who is right pretty quickly.
"A war with Iran would last all of twelve hours"
DeleteI have to agree here IF, and big if... IF we abandon the stupid ROEs and political interference, and just simply send the military to do their job in the quickest way possible, and come home. It would incidentally be the most brutal way, but avoiding it is what has created this string of "losses" going back to Vietnam. Until we readopt the mentality about war we had in WWII, it will continue, and the Irans of the world will continue to pursue their goals and misdeeds without fear or limit...
"You don't seem to understand how to fight this type of war. You go after the center(s) of gravity. The prime center of gravity is their leadership. You hit every known place of occupancy and decapitate the top twenty levels of leadership. At the same time, you cruise missile every significant military base. Twelve hours later, you're done. Iran has no leadership and no military. Problem solved. No boots on the ground. No occupation. You just step away and let the remaining citizens do whatever they want. Probably degenerate into tribal warfare."
DeleteProblem is, does the USA understand how to fight this kind of war?
CDR Chip
All they have to do is ask CNO!
DeleteThey can just read the blog. The answers are all there!
DeleteWe should probably make a distinction about words (and deeds) made in wartime and those in peacetime. The former usually presents more opportunities for inspiring words (and actions).
ReplyDeleteAs a reader of this blog, I can safely assume that you study history. As you know from that study, the US has been in a nearly constant state of war/conflict since the end of WWII. Do you really need me to list all the wars and combat actions we've engaged in? We have had more than ample opportunity for inspiring words and deeds.
DeleteI think it also says something about the type of person our military structure promotes to the highest positions. Our military does not incentivize creativity and independent thought, courage, and confidence. Instead, it values political connectivity, non-offensiveness, and social conformity.
ReplyDeleteA high position is not a prerequisite for inspiring words or deeds. You'll note that some of the quotes in the post came from enlisted men or lieutenants.
DeleteNow, serving in military doesn't bring in honor and fulfillment but been sent to wars far from homeland which they don't agree.
ReplyDeleteWorse, politicians never served tell them to die for their ideologies.
"sent to wars far from homeland which they don't agree."
DeleteYou have an extremely narrow perspective ... your own. Many people support our worldwide involvements and see valid geopolitical rationales.
You also seem not to understand how a military works. You don't serve only when you agree. If you opt to join and serve, you serve where your country needs you and, occasionally, you might not agree with the specific objective but that's part of military service.
"Worse, politicians never served tell them to die for their ideologies."
This is just plain false and a vapid generality at that. We have many representatives who have served. I wish there were more. In fact, I'd like to see some sort of national service be a prerequisite for Congress but that's a separate topic.
Improve the quality of your comments.
Hello CNO. I have spent too much time to read some of all your bests posts. You are an intlligent expert in all naval matters. Also I was surprised when I'd read your post Fleet Structure. Here is the link https://navy-matters.blogspot.com/p/fleet-structure.html
ReplyDeleteSure this post is outdated and needs rewriting. Why? - You recall too many times about warship designs, its armor, sensors and weapons number parameters. For example "Armoured Fleet", "The Passive Warship", "Atlanta/Juneau Anti-Aircraft Cruiser", "Armored Sensors", "Essex vs. Ford Comparison", "Drone Wars", "Base Defense", "Second Unmanned Squadron", "Deadly Fish", "UAV Carrier", "Assault Carrier" and so forth.
Please, rewrite your outdated Fleet Structure and present new Navy Forces with sea and airbases defenses, anti-mine sweeper forces, replenishment Navy, port tugboats, Landing ship Assault like these https://www.g2mil.com/Landing%20Ship%20Assault.htm, all type of surface combat warships (from corvette to aircraft carrier), all types of submarines, amphibious Navy, Special Warfare Forces, Marine Corps, Navy Bomber like these https://www.g2mil.com/bm747.htm.
Sure everyone will be glad reading your post. It may be too long, but it will be fascinating.
"I have spent too much time to read some of all your bests posts."
DeleteWhat??! There's no such thing as too much time spent reading the posts! They contain the wisdom of the ages!
Current events are of interest to US Navy followers. It looks like the Middle East will soon explode, something our Navy has prepared for three decades. I await the surge of four carrier strike groups to this region this month.
ReplyDeleteGiven recent performance, I doubt any will sail soon.
I fear the quote coming out of such a conflict will be,
Delete"There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships to-day,"
David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty
When you look at the times of those great naval quotes you also realize that not only were they great leaders but they served under great civilian leaders as well.
ReplyDeleteDuring the War of 1812, then Secretary of State James Monroe--a position meant for peaceful negotiation mind you--rode a troop of Calvary out of DC to scout for British troops. Granted DC was in danger at the time but can you see many current leaders in Congress doing that, let alone a cabinet secretary?
And we need strong civilian leaders strong enough to challenge weak military leadership. The moment Lincoln saw that he had a real leader in "Unconditional Surrender" Grant he fired McClellan who was constantly losing to a very overrated Lee. There were several generals fired during WW2 for failing to be aggressive or poor leadership with Roosevelt's blessing. (There's a great book about it by Thomas Ricks called the Generals I'd heartily recommend)
Today, our civilian leadership won't challenge anyone be it enemies of the nation or weak military leaders, and that empowers the politicians in uniform to lead the military down the road of mediocrity. If whoever the next president is wants to really improve the military and prepare for a war with China, they need to clean house at the top of the Pentagon on both the civilian and military side.