A new kind of military branch

[JakeWIlls92]

What if we had a military branch for highly intellectual people? This branch could be focused for assassination and espionage. They would also be responsible for weapons development and the application of science in warfare. Imagine a military branch composed of ninjas, spies, and scientists?

 

[Tom Sweetnam]

What if we had a military branch for highly intellectual people? This branch could be focused for assassination and espionage. They would also be responsible for weapons development and the application of science in warfare. Imagine a military branch composed of ninjas, spies, and scientists?

What good are intellectuals? In almost every communist polity on the planet, they were the first ones lined up against the walls and shot as worthless chaff. 'The Black Book of Communism' is an excellent introduction (expensive though):

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Book-Co...eywords=black+book+of+communism&tag=ff0d01-20

Beyond that I'm going to assume you're some dumbass 18 year-old recruit suffering a nonlethal case of Walter Mitty-itis, so the less you know about the actual existence of all the other Secret Squirrel stuff in your post, the better off we all are as a nation. Now drop and give me 20.

 

[Rikurzhen]

What good are intellectuals?

Some of them are good, winning near universal praise from soldiers:

1. -This primer should be on the reading list of every combat arms and combat support officer and NCO in our armed forces. Bill Lind, a civilian without any military experience, has demonstrated an extraordinary understanding of the art of war. His book has become the "underground bible" for Maneuver Warfare proponents. In this book he discusses the theory of Manuever Warfare and its origins, the principles and techniques required to employ maneuver warfare properly, and the education and training required to make it possible. Much of his work is a 'sort-of' adaptation of the sucessful Blitzkrieg theory. He even discusses the differences of bloody, Attrition Warfare (WWI Trenches) versus the more efficient, life-preserving Maneuver Warfare (Desert Storm). Mr Lind puts these thoughts in the simplest terms even a 'butter-bar' lieutenant could understand. He completes his discussion with a series of lessons written by an experienced USMC Field Grade Off! icer on each principle. Following easy lesson is a brief "homework" exercise designed to test your knowledge and understanding of each principle. William Lind's Maneuver Warfare Handbook is a must read for any serious-minded, professional soldier who wishes to become an exceptional leader and tactician.

This is a truly influential book. It explains the concept of "Maneuver Warfare" and contrasts it with the US Army's attrition based "AirLand Battle Doctrine". It covers topics such as mission orders, recon pull, decision cycles and tempo, use of the reserve, commander's intent, and other key concepts that teach a junior military leader HOW (vs what) to think.

Based on Boyd's revolutionary OODA cycle theories, it shows how a quick acting, agile force can constantly beat larger, heavier equipped foes. After reading this book you will understand exactly why the German Army of 1940-1941 was so effective against the larger and better equipped French-British, and Soviet Armies.

The book is divided into two halves. The critical part is the first half which explains in clear, understandable terms how maneuver warfare works. The second half is a series of tactical decision games that offer practical examples to teach junior leaders these concepts.

This ideas in this small book were adopted almost verbatim by the USMC for their land war doctrine. This doctrine was so effective in combat against the Iraqi's in 1990 that the US VII Corps had to move up its attack by approx 48 hours to prevent the Iraqi's from completely escaping before the marines pushed them completely out of Kuwait.

This book has served for years as an underground "bible" by maneuver warfare officers looking for a resource to help train junior leaders critical maneuver warfare concepts. While many look to technological answers to 4th Generation Warfare, this book give ideas that apply instead to people and tactics. It leaves the reader with a solid understanding on how men make decisions in combat, as well as how to translate that knowledge to a military advantage. It is a MUST HAVE book for Combat Arms officers and junior leaders.
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[Kondor3]

What good are intellectuals? In almost every communist polity on the planet, they were the first ones lined up against the walls and shot as worthless chaff. 'The Black Book of Communism' is an excellent introduction (expensive though):

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Book-Communism-Crimes-Repression/dp/0674076087/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1415262106&sr=1-1&keywords=black book of communism

Beyond that I'm going to assume you're some dumbass 18 year-old recruit suffering a nonlethal case of Walter Mitty-itis, so the less you know about the actual existence of all the other Secret Squirrel stuff in your post, the better off we all are as a nation. Now drop and give me 20.

Now, now... mustn't be too hard on the little ones...

 

[Politico]

Intellectuals don't do wetwork son.

 

[Tom Sweetnam]

Intellectuals don't do wetwork son.

We must not be reading from the same corpus.

 

[mudwhistle]

What if we had a military branch for highly intellectual people? This branch could be focused for assassination and espionage. They would also be responsible for weapons development and the application of science in warfare. Imagine a military branch composed of ninjas, spies, and scientists?

Green Berets are usually tops in all categories in the military. They are looking for studs that have a brain. Dummies need not apply. They are the most skilled operators out there.

The problem with pure intellectuals is they tend to pay attention to the details but can't see the big picture. This often causes unintended consequences. And when it comes to weapons development, you're talking about something that needs constant improvement just to keep ahead of the competition. This means working on it full-time, leaving no time for anything else. Point being, to be really good at something you have to practice it till it becomes second nature.

 

[occupied]

You pretty much just described the CIA, not a big fan.

 

[Politico]

Intellectuals don't do wetwork son.

We must not be reading from the same corpus.

Agreed. The people like me are doers not thinkers.