Souris,

I’ll tell you what worries me – all these people who are incapable of evaluating an issue on its individual merits but, rather, are quite willing to incorporate whatever comes along as yet another strand in a rope to hang the US with. It says more about peoples desire to further there own agenda’s than it does about any kind of appreciation for the actual topic being discussed.

You are a great case in point I’m afraid – the actual story here is about heavy-handed law-enforcement at one US airport. For which, incidentally, we only have one journalists point of view of it (the poor helpless victim of our tragedy), and utterly no objective information or evidence as corroboration. Now, completely in absentia of this, you start up with the whole “but it worries me sick that some folk are so myopic about the present government in the US and its highly dubious policies both at home and abroad, “

For all you and anyone else here knows our poor little victim here may have gotten off the plane, having not done her homework as to what is necessary to work in the US, and been aggressive and confrontational to customs staff to try and bull her way through without the right paperwork?. I’m a fairly regular traveller to the US and I’ve certainly seen some fine old performances at various desks over the past few years. If she has been misbehaving, and conveniently omitted that from her report, it puts a slightly different slant on the customs reaction doesnt it?.

There is also the, very obvious, fact that a hell of a lot more than just 12 journalists passed though the hallowed portals of LAX in 2003 and the majority don’t seem to have been treated to the full gulag experience. This would indicate the possibility thst there was some other factor involved in her treatment or there may be a disciplinary issue with some of the staff at that airport. Neither of which should be an issue tht brings the whole of US foreign and domestic policy into question!.

Arthur,

But it does give insight that at least SOME of the people working in the uniform of the US Immigraton System are a draconian bunch of jackbooted fascists, and considering these incidents have been occuring for some time now suggests that not much is done to take away these (rather prominent i might add) immigration-thugs.

Fair, but, a long way from a problem that justifies “Ahhh….the Land of the Free”. Of course making a title and implication that was closer to the actual truth in the paragraph than the easy potshot at the US above isnt quite as snappy or fashionable is it?

Steve so your suggesting that the poor, doubtless inexcusable, handling of a dozen journalists at LAX over the course of 2003 equates to proof that the entire US Immigration system is staffed by a draconian bunch of jackbooted fascists?.

You think this is an honest statement do you?.

Oh and at every port of entry you get the exact same treatment because all Americans are nasty like that.

Any idea how stupid some of you gents sound buying into this gross generalisation?

So let me get this right you want us to play the machiavellian dictator sort of role here?. OK sounds fun!. Interesting timing on this one too Ja. Now that the developed world has, in the main, proved that its more interested in trying to dilute US hegemony than facing up to its obligations dealing with a hard man the environment now exists where such a man, with a significant arsenal at his disposal, could be forgiven for thinking he could profit by extreme adventurism!.

The key to this is, somewhat ironically, shock-and-awe played against its major proponents. With the resources of a resurgent Russia that shock and awe, where I playing the cards, would be every bit that.

The key to a successful operation like this is to split the likely opposition forces and prevent them focussing overwhelming resources against you. The political gulf between the US and Europe that exists now, and is not likely to improve in the short to mid term, is just too good not to exploit. In order to do this you have to give each a problem more urgent to it than the events going on in the other’s sphere of influence.

To that end I’d be looking at landing heavy forces by air and sea in Venezuela preceeded by a low-yield nuclear strike against Puerto Cabello delivered by SLCM. Simultaneously with this an SSN blockade line formed off the Brazillian Naval base at Rio with orders to sink any warship sortieing on sight and a priority on tagging the Sao Paulo. The threat being made that Brazil should not interfere with operations over its northern border, this being reinforced by a carbon-copy nuclear cruise strike on the port town of Sao Luis in northern Brazil, just for shock value.

The purpose of these landings is to occupy the northern Venezuelan coastal plains, secure Venezuela’s oil resources, and punch west across the north of Colombia to a stop line on the Pananamanian border. That achieved I’d reinforce, then, swing south and east to consolidate my grip on both countries. A swift courting of Cuba might see my forces being able to exert considerable control over the Carribean Sea which would be a useful buffer against naval incursion from the north.

The threat to the US is the obvious one. The Panama Canal is at risk and, most importantly, the only thing seperating this force from their southern border is the combat power and, more importantly, terrain of the states between Panama and Mexico.

Simultaneously with this I will be borrowing from the strategic planning of Tovarisch Burger and pushing an amoured spearhead through the Ukraine linking up with an amphibious invasion into Romania pushing south of the Carpathians with the ultimate aim of occupying Serbia and Albania and establishing a presence on the Adriatic. These will, again, be punctuated by low-yield nuke strikes against Khurdzhali, Bulgaria to make the point to the Greeks and Turks that they really should stay put and Novi Sad, Serbia to get the message across to the Western Europeans that real shock and awe glows in the dark and that, if they dont want to save lots of cash in streetlighting their cities, they should mind their own business.

This, with a Russian military threat to the Med trade routes implicit in the occupation of Albania and the near-isolation of Greece and Turkey from the rest of Europe, will give the EU PLENTY to chew over and, hopefully, so stupefy the naieve pacifistic citizenry of those nations that they simply accept the fait accompli that those forces are going nowhere without unrestricted warfare being pursued against them. Something that would never be sanctioned by the EU governments!.

So, up to here, what do we have?. We have the US Navy trying to race its carriers into a position where it can try to blockade the eastern and western South American coast whilst concerning themselves mightily about the Russian first-use of nuclear weapons. We have every CONUS based strategic air asset focusing in on the Carribean Sea and, probably, a few wings of tactical aircraft heading for hastily arranged staging bases south of the border. The blockade being a relatively simple thing to circumvent with a bit of deft, clandestine, prepositioning of merchies. The air threat is extreme, but, providing I stay in Columbia it forces the US into taking the offensive directly if it wants to achieve anything….something they would be wise to consider at length before committing. Either way it serves my purpose as the US armed forces, and its political attention is heavily focussed in its own backyard and not elsewhere.

In Europe we have NATO seriously in a flap with aggressive forces just a few tens of miles off the Italian coast, Aviano is stacking up with tactical air power and the US 6th Fleet and NATO Standing Naval Force Med is split between trying to keep a weather eye on the Russian dispositions in Albania and trying to cover a mass break out of the Russian Black Sea Fleet through the Aegean. Europeans focussed on purely European problems which is, again, just what I’m after as theyre not looking anywhere else.

These elements in place we’re now free to hop over onto the African continent to do pretty much whatever we wish. Personally I’d push some forces into Azerbaijan, get my hands on their resources and then start making threatening noises at the Iranians before going to Africa, but, hey…..?

Resources that would be required? – simple. A good chief of staff to delegate the working out of the details to!.

That Machiavellian enough for you Ja?. I’m just off to find some small fluffy animals to beat up now!

Sure it can. But Russians and Indians are working on a CAT to launch it.

Doubt it because its unlikely to be able to launch PJ-10’s! 😀 . Second thoughts though can you imagine how effective such a setup would be as a short-range surface to surface weapon?. How many FAC’s would be able to survive a sustained barrage of 40 ton MBTs being shot at them??? :rolleyes:

It’s probably meant to support the SA-N-12s as well. While the Front Domes give fire control, the Positiv can provide air-surface volume search. The same Positiv dome can also provide search coverage for the rear while the Bandstand dome on the front covers the front area.

Concur absolutely. Plus you have to remember the Russian near-obsession with system redundancy. The Positiv-ME provides a competent backup to the primary search/track set for SSM, gun and SAM target indication whilst providing dedicated coverage for the critical last-ditch defence systems. Bit belt-and-braces perhaps, but, good conservative design to my way of thinking!.