I was very privileged to speak with a 18 year veteran of the war in Rhodesia over the weekend who served in all its primary units including the SAS, RLI, Selous Scouts, etc. We discussed the politics of the final years of the war. The Carter Administration under whom 13 nations fell to Communism and Ronald Reagan's investigation into the Rhodesian question. It became known after the war was ended that Reagan had sent his own investigation team to Rhodesia to fully assess the elections and the transitional government, IE the Full and Free elections of Rhodesia.
England and minions from the Carter Administration hurried the Lancaster House Agreements because they knew that ol' Ronnie would back any democratic government that was fighting Communism. He had determined that we would win the Cold War at each and every opportunity. I found a book called Reagan in his Own Words on Google books where he says
Our government has refused to recognize the new Government of Rhodesia claiming it is bound by UN sanctions against that country..........It seems that we received a gentle warning from General Obasanjo, Ruler of Nigeria that more serious consequences might follow if we recognized Bishop Muzowera who has been elected Prime Minister of Rhodesia legally and Legitamately.......Rhodesia has taken great strides towards toward the kind of democratic values we have always endorsed.......But instead of holding out our hand of friendship we turn our back because of dictator of a country with no democratic values might make due without our oil ( imports )...
http://books.google.com/books?id=CExclJtH1qYC&pg=PT56&lpg=PT56&dq=ronald+reagan+on+zimbabwe&source=bl&ots=YKGDk-2RBl&sig=7Tu8M2ufe1Xg5vvcV2flACiB_6A&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false
It seems to me that the conservative Icon of American politics was planning on sending an expeditionary force to help Rhodesia secure its borders and stave off the Communist hordes. We need only to look at the results of Mugabe's reign to see that the war was not about White Power, it was about freedom and democracy. The Black Africans suffered more than anyone and still do to this day. The treachery of the Carter Administration and the British at this time gets more and more intricate every still.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
An analysis of America's involvement in Africa
www.Smallwarsjournal.com is a must website for people interested in the study of counter insurgency warfare. The following is a detailed account of the US's activities in Africa.
http://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/the-united-states-and-the-lord%E2%80%99s-resistance-army
http://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/the-united-states-and-the-lord%E2%80%99s-resistance-army
Fiction merging with Reality
With the announcement of the Obama Administration's sending spec-ops soldiers to Uganda to help track down and eradicate the Lords Resistance Army, I think they stole a piece of my work. Not really, but I support this endeavor by Obama ( once in a lifetime ) to help build stability in the Great Lakes Region of Central Africa. They are but a small band of thugs but I think it makes more sense to send in capable advisers rather than continue to pour in 30 million dollars a year to Uganda with nothing to show for it. The lines between fiction and reality will be blurred in the Task Force Intrepid Series.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15317684
For more articles on war in Africa, particularly Rhodesia visit my other blog and go to the beginning where I analyzed the life of American/Rhodesian soldier John Coey.
http://theeagleswillgather.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2009-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=6
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15317684
For more articles on war in Africa, particularly Rhodesia visit my other blog and go to the beginning where I analyzed the life of American/Rhodesian soldier John Coey.
http://theeagleswillgather.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2009-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=6
Monday, October 10, 2011
The Cast pt. 5
Blake McGee is an Irishman with an aristocratic upbringing but hasn't kept him from being a Man among men. He is currently the only member on the Team from the U.K. Coming from a long line of wealth, he was groomed to follow his father into investment banking. Boarded at the finest schools England had to offer for young men headed for great things, he participated in Polo and social event the mingled with blue blood on a constant basis. He never thought much of it till he went away to St. Andrews College and like most young people away from home, he 'found himself'. Off came the cuff links and his a suffocating neck tie. Always the athlete, he took up Boxing, Rugby and drinking. He found what he called his 'True Irish Side'.
No slouch in Academics, he steered away from the dreary classes on economics and math after his first year when he discovered his love for Ancient History and the Classics. He soon employed a tutor on top of his regular classes to master Greek and Latin. He found adventure and passion reading the first historians of Greece and Rome. He shunned the philosophy of Aristotle for the History of Thucydides, Epaminodas, and the Boldness of none other than Julius Caesar. He believed that he could always follow his father's business but that he could only soldier as a youth. When he made the decision to join the Royal Marines, his father threatened to disown him and his mother wept.
He however felt freer than he ever had, in spite of the constant military discipline, above and beyond for anyone wishing to be an officer in the Royal Marines. After his first two years of service he went through selection for the Special Boat Service. The most rigorous ordeal of his life, he made it and went on to command a troop. His first taste of action was in Africa during Operation Barrass. He inserted and reconned the area where British soldiers were being held in Sierra Leone. His first taste of Africa resulted in two Advisory missions to the Army of Botswana. His expertise in explosives was well noted and he also found himself doing humanitarian work in Cambodia doing de-mining work.
In 2004 he was selected to join Britains new X Squadron, a mixture of the top performing SAS and SBS operators. The team was formed to hunt High Value Targets in all over the world. Their counter terrorism capabilities led them on secretive missions on 4 continents and left behind many would be threats to Britain's national security. From the Jungles of South America, the Savannah of Africa to the Sandbox of the Middleast, he had experienced things far beyond what he ever thought possible.
After 13 years in the Royal Marines and its high operational tempo, he felt he needed a change. Through contacts of his father's associates, he began to get offers to design and train security personnel for business's worldwide in trouble spots. From South East Asia to the Oil Fields of Nigeria, he found more work and more money than he cared to handle.
Through a chain of people, Blake's name came up to Jim Hadley, the owner of SLE. Hadley made the initial contact to McGee. Thinking that it was nothing more than a no name Security Company trying to find a down and out ex Special Forces soldier, Blake hung up on him. After talking with some of his contacts, he decided to talk more with this 'Mr. Hadley'. When the terms of his employment and pay became clear as well as the type of professional soldier he would be working with, he decided that he would rather go back to soldiering on his own terms rather than run a business and deal with extremely rich and demanding people.
Now a key member of Task Force Intrepid he is back doing what he does best.
No slouch in Academics, he steered away from the dreary classes on economics and math after his first year when he discovered his love for Ancient History and the Classics. He soon employed a tutor on top of his regular classes to master Greek and Latin. He found adventure and passion reading the first historians of Greece and Rome. He shunned the philosophy of Aristotle for the History of Thucydides, Epaminodas, and the Boldness of none other than Julius Caesar. He believed that he could always follow his father's business but that he could only soldier as a youth. When he made the decision to join the Royal Marines, his father threatened to disown him and his mother wept.
He however felt freer than he ever had, in spite of the constant military discipline, above and beyond for anyone wishing to be an officer in the Royal Marines. After his first two years of service he went through selection for the Special Boat Service. The most rigorous ordeal of his life, he made it and went on to command a troop. His first taste of action was in Africa during Operation Barrass. He inserted and reconned the area where British soldiers were being held in Sierra Leone. His first taste of Africa resulted in two Advisory missions to the Army of Botswana. His expertise in explosives was well noted and he also found himself doing humanitarian work in Cambodia doing de-mining work.
In 2004 he was selected to join Britains new X Squadron, a mixture of the top performing SAS and SBS operators. The team was formed to hunt High Value Targets in all over the world. Their counter terrorism capabilities led them on secretive missions on 4 continents and left behind many would be threats to Britain's national security. From the Jungles of South America, the Savannah of Africa to the Sandbox of the Middleast, he had experienced things far beyond what he ever thought possible.
After 13 years in the Royal Marines and its high operational tempo, he felt he needed a change. Through contacts of his father's associates, he began to get offers to design and train security personnel for business's worldwide in trouble spots. From South East Asia to the Oil Fields of Nigeria, he found more work and more money than he cared to handle.
Through a chain of people, Blake's name came up to Jim Hadley, the owner of SLE. Hadley made the initial contact to McGee. Thinking that it was nothing more than a no name Security Company trying to find a down and out ex Special Forces soldier, Blake hung up on him. After talking with some of his contacts, he decided to talk more with this 'Mr. Hadley'. When the terms of his employment and pay became clear as well as the type of professional soldier he would be working with, he decided that he would rather go back to soldiering on his own terms rather than run a business and deal with extremely rich and demanding people.
Now a key member of Task Force Intrepid he is back doing what he does best.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
The Cast pt. 4
Mike Simmons has a long and winding path to Security and Logistics Enterprises, Worldwide. A standout swimmer and wrestler in high school, he was headed towards a blue chip scholarship in Wrestling. Scouts from Iowa and Oklahoma began watching him as a sophomore and by his junior year were courting him. Everything changed in his senior year halfway through the wrestling season. His biggest supporters and fans, his parents, died in a car accident on a frozen Nebraska road. He pulled out of wrestling and stopped attending school regularly. The only comfort he found was in his girlfriend of two years. He moved in with her family and threw away the idea of going to college.
With a totally changed outlook on life, he decided to join the Navy. Like his father before him, he intended on becoming a Navy Seal. After graduation he married his high school sweetheart and moved to San Diego. With his background in swimming and PT scores, he secured a slot for BUD/S after he finished his A school as a Hospital Corpsman. The total immersion and suffering was bliss for him. Here his losses in life meant nothing. He was forging a new existence. On the last day of Hell Week, he broke an ankle during an evolution. Devastated and disgusted, he rejected the offer to roll over to a new class and took a billet as a FMF Corpsman. He quickly moved into Battalion Recon and after two years of service, made the cut for Force Reconnaisance.
He had found a home in the Marine Corps and a new life. After 9/11 he found himself attached to a SEAL team in Afghanistan due to shortages of medics. He found that he enjoyed his role as a life taker and a life saver. Reattached to the Marine Corps for the invasion of Iraq, he found himself on as many Direct Action missions as Reconnaisance. During one of his short rotations home, his wife conceived and they had a son. He was torn but found his life's work crowding out his family.
Once again back in Iraq in 2005 he knew his home life was falling apart. One day he sat down at the computer after a day that scented him with gunpowder and blood, he opened an e-mail that said, Dear Mike. His wife had found another man to be with. A Marine. He sat stunned, once again losing the only family he had. That day he lost his faith in God, Country, the Corps, the Navy and apple pie.
Around that time, the Marine Corps were folding their Force companies into the newly created Marine Special Operations Command. They would be operating under Joint Special Operations Command. Huge political games ensued and he decided that his time in the Corps and the Navy was done. He would fight for himself alone.
After his departure from the Navy in 2006 he easily found work with a PMC operating in Colombia hunting Naro-Terrorists. The pay was excellent and he found time to enjoy the nightlife of Bogota. On a mission that ended in the death of one of his teammates, he tracked the guerillas across the border into Venezuela, vowing that their small band would die. He counted his bullets and made sure that if captured, the last one was for himself. Exacting revenge, he wandered back across the border and into Juan Salvador who threatened to have him fired, expelled from Colombia and blackball him from working for any PMC, then Juan congratulated him and became his right hand man and soon an employee of SLE.
With a totally changed outlook on life, he decided to join the Navy. Like his father before him, he intended on becoming a Navy Seal. After graduation he married his high school sweetheart and moved to San Diego. With his background in swimming and PT scores, he secured a slot for BUD/S after he finished his A school as a Hospital Corpsman. The total immersion and suffering was bliss for him. Here his losses in life meant nothing. He was forging a new existence. On the last day of Hell Week, he broke an ankle during an evolution. Devastated and disgusted, he rejected the offer to roll over to a new class and took a billet as a FMF Corpsman. He quickly moved into Battalion Recon and after two years of service, made the cut for Force Reconnaisance.
He had found a home in the Marine Corps and a new life. After 9/11 he found himself attached to a SEAL team in Afghanistan due to shortages of medics. He found that he enjoyed his role as a life taker and a life saver. Reattached to the Marine Corps for the invasion of Iraq, he found himself on as many Direct Action missions as Reconnaisance. During one of his short rotations home, his wife conceived and they had a son. He was torn but found his life's work crowding out his family.
Once again back in Iraq in 2005 he knew his home life was falling apart. One day he sat down at the computer after a day that scented him with gunpowder and blood, he opened an e-mail that said, Dear Mike. His wife had found another man to be with. A Marine. He sat stunned, once again losing the only family he had. That day he lost his faith in God, Country, the Corps, the Navy and apple pie.
Around that time, the Marine Corps were folding their Force companies into the newly created Marine Special Operations Command. They would be operating under Joint Special Operations Command. Huge political games ensued and he decided that his time in the Corps and the Navy was done. He would fight for himself alone.
After his departure from the Navy in 2006 he easily found work with a PMC operating in Colombia hunting Naro-Terrorists. The pay was excellent and he found time to enjoy the nightlife of Bogota. On a mission that ended in the death of one of his teammates, he tracked the guerillas across the border into Venezuela, vowing that their small band would die. He counted his bullets and made sure that if captured, the last one was for himself. Exacting revenge, he wandered back across the border and into Juan Salvador who threatened to have him fired, expelled from Colombia and blackball him from working for any PMC, then Juan congratulated him and became his right hand man and soon an employee of SLE.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
The Cast pt. 3
Colin Taylor is the sole Australian on Task Force Intrepid. An extreme adrenaline junkie and extrovert, very little can rattle him. In his early 30's, he has the opposing qualities of the serious, attention to detail Special Air Service Regiment Operator and the footloose laid back 20 something surfer boy. Coming from Perth, Western Australia, there wasn't much to do besides surf, explore the outback and surf. He spent his summers with his mates travelling up and down the coast in 4x4 vehicles looking for the ultimate wave churning beach. Sometimes gone for weeks at a stretch, he developed a love for the outdoors and survival.
After completing his schooling, he decided to join the Army and become a Digger. He chose the infantry over the high tech jobs he was offered due to his aptitude tests. After much protest by the recruiters, he won and began learning the skills of the infantryman. Australia offered some of the finest training ground in the world for desert and jungle warfare. After his initial tour, he decided that he wanted to take things to the extreme. Just like his search for perfection of the waves and living with nature, the SASR provided him all the adrenaline he could handle. His ability to do an activity over and over till it was impossible to make a mistake served him well.
Though Australia is not known fo sticking its nose in the worlds business, his unit was deployed to Afghanistan shortly after the Americans first arrived. Specialists in Reconnaissance, the provided detailed information on suspected Al Qaeda and Taliban strongholds and passageways. Australians had proved their patience and ability in counter insurgency warfare from the Malayan Emergency to Vietnam. Though small in numbers in the Vietnam war, they had done more damage than American units the same size with fewer casualties. Rather than sending a battalion hacking through the jungle and walking into an ambush, they patiently patrolled and stalked their enemy. Gathering intel on their habits and supply, they were able to add precision blows to the enemy. A small sized unit could make contact with the enemy and then bring in reinforcements rather than the other way around.
He spent up to 10 days at a time without resupply in hides watching the enemy and providing intel to the Americans. Due to their small numbers and a desire for American glory, they were treated as lowly partners and their work was put in the slush pile. The Americans paid dearly for their lack of attention to detail in Operation Anaconda. Colin and the other Australians were surprised when working with legendary American Special Forces whose idea of a good recon was a 48 hour hide and then calling for an evac.
Near the end of their rotation, the SASR went aggro during Operation Anaconda and Colin's expertise in the Long Rifle was let loose and he began racking up kill after kill due to his patience and knowledge of the trails and habits of the Taliban.
Once again in 2003 the Aussies sidled up with the Americans in the Invasion of Iraq. They were tasked with securing vital objectives in Western Iraq. In the tradition of the Long Range Desert Group, they marauded the barren land of Western Iraq in their souped up LRPV's. Once again, Colin was constantly on overwatch, dropping hostiles like indignant flies. The SASR packed it in after President Bush declared an end to hostilities and went back home.
Colin's enlistment was up in 2005 and he desired to regain some of the freedom of his youth. Offers galore came in to do work in the world of PMC's. He could pick when and where he wanted to work. With the money being offered, he could work half of the year and surf the other half and start a path to retirement by the age of 45.
Having never worked in Africa, he took on a contract in Liberia where he met Willem Kruger. Kruger noticed his keen sense of adventure tempered with extreme professionalism and invited him to work for SLE, Worldwide. His SASR training was second to no one and under the tutelage of men like Kruger and Salvo, he has become a key operator on Task Force Intrepid.
After completing his schooling, he decided to join the Army and become a Digger. He chose the infantry over the high tech jobs he was offered due to his aptitude tests. After much protest by the recruiters, he won and began learning the skills of the infantryman. Australia offered some of the finest training ground in the world for desert and jungle warfare. After his initial tour, he decided that he wanted to take things to the extreme. Just like his search for perfection of the waves and living with nature, the SASR provided him all the adrenaline he could handle. His ability to do an activity over and over till it was impossible to make a mistake served him well.
Though Australia is not known fo sticking its nose in the worlds business, his unit was deployed to Afghanistan shortly after the Americans first arrived. Specialists in Reconnaissance, the provided detailed information on suspected Al Qaeda and Taliban strongholds and passageways. Australians had proved their patience and ability in counter insurgency warfare from the Malayan Emergency to Vietnam. Though small in numbers in the Vietnam war, they had done more damage than American units the same size with fewer casualties. Rather than sending a battalion hacking through the jungle and walking into an ambush, they patiently patrolled and stalked their enemy. Gathering intel on their habits and supply, they were able to add precision blows to the enemy. A small sized unit could make contact with the enemy and then bring in reinforcements rather than the other way around.
He spent up to 10 days at a time without resupply in hides watching the enemy and providing intel to the Americans. Due to their small numbers and a desire for American glory, they were treated as lowly partners and their work was put in the slush pile. The Americans paid dearly for their lack of attention to detail in Operation Anaconda. Colin and the other Australians were surprised when working with legendary American Special Forces whose idea of a good recon was a 48 hour hide and then calling for an evac.
Near the end of their rotation, the SASR went aggro during Operation Anaconda and Colin's expertise in the Long Rifle was let loose and he began racking up kill after kill due to his patience and knowledge of the trails and habits of the Taliban.
Once again in 2003 the Aussies sidled up with the Americans in the Invasion of Iraq. They were tasked with securing vital objectives in Western Iraq. In the tradition of the Long Range Desert Group, they marauded the barren land of Western Iraq in their souped up LRPV's. Once again, Colin was constantly on overwatch, dropping hostiles like indignant flies. The SASR packed it in after President Bush declared an end to hostilities and went back home.
Colin's enlistment was up in 2005 and he desired to regain some of the freedom of his youth. Offers galore came in to do work in the world of PMC's. He could pick when and where he wanted to work. With the money being offered, he could work half of the year and surf the other half and start a path to retirement by the age of 45.
Having never worked in Africa, he took on a contract in Liberia where he met Willem Kruger. Kruger noticed his keen sense of adventure tempered with extreme professionalism and invited him to work for SLE, Worldwide. His SASR training was second to no one and under the tutelage of men like Kruger and Salvo, he has become a key operator on Task Force Intrepid.
The Cast pt. 2
Juan 'Salvo' Salvador is the enigmatic 2IC of Task Force Intrepid. Brought to America from Southern Mexico by his parents in the 1970's, he crossed the Rio Grande, holding his father's hand, who hoped for a better life in America. Living a life of secrets began early on. They made it to Houston to live with Family members while Mom and Dad worked low wage jobs and hoping to one day become Americans. He spoke no English and learned English the hard way. He had a cover story that went with him everywhere. The family got by living lies and buying false documents. Though the hardships were numerous, he fought on.
Then in his senior year of high school, 1986, the inspiring President Ronald Reagan declared amnesty for illegal aliens. The family waited in lines for days to get their documents from INS. They no longer lived the lie. The first thing that Salvo did after becoming a Legal Permanent Resident was walk into a US Army recruiting office. He wanted to show his appreciation and dedication to his country. It was all he knew. He was determined to become an Airborne Ranger. With his superior athletic ability and raw determination to prove that he loved his country he dedicated himself to the Army on duty and off.
He saw action in Panama, Desert Storm, and Somalia. Moving up the chain he volunteered to for the Special Forces. With his language abilities and aptitude for all things military, he found his calling in life. He was heavily utilized as an advisor to the growing war against Narco Terrorism in Colombia and other South American countries. He was encouraged to try out for the elite of the elite. Delta Force.
He became part of a compartmentalized section of Delta whose sole purpose was to hunt down and kill Drug Lords and their associates all over the world. The mountains and jungles of South America became his home for 10 years. Often times working out of uniform, he risked it all to take down enemies of the United States.
After his retirement in 2006 he was offered a position as an officer in the CIA's Special Activites Division. Still mindful of his family, he decided that it was more lucrative to join the world of Private Military Companies. A company called Security and Logistics Enterprises recruited him to continue his services to the Government of Colombia for training and hunting Narco Terrorists and Left Wing guerrillas like FARC. This job allowed him more freedom and alot more money than being on the US governments payroll.
Although in his 40's, Salvo, is married to his work half of the year and the other half is spent breaking the hearts of Latino women worldwide. He is as comfortable in a club as he is chasing armed men through the jungle.
Then in his senior year of high school, 1986, the inspiring President Ronald Reagan declared amnesty for illegal aliens. The family waited in lines for days to get their documents from INS. They no longer lived the lie. The first thing that Salvo did after becoming a Legal Permanent Resident was walk into a US Army recruiting office. He wanted to show his appreciation and dedication to his country. It was all he knew. He was determined to become an Airborne Ranger. With his superior athletic ability and raw determination to prove that he loved his country he dedicated himself to the Army on duty and off.
He saw action in Panama, Desert Storm, and Somalia. Moving up the chain he volunteered to for the Special Forces. With his language abilities and aptitude for all things military, he found his calling in life. He was heavily utilized as an advisor to the growing war against Narco Terrorism in Colombia and other South American countries. He was encouraged to try out for the elite of the elite. Delta Force.
He became part of a compartmentalized section of Delta whose sole purpose was to hunt down and kill Drug Lords and their associates all over the world. The mountains and jungles of South America became his home for 10 years. Often times working out of uniform, he risked it all to take down enemies of the United States.
After his retirement in 2006 he was offered a position as an officer in the CIA's Special Activites Division. Still mindful of his family, he decided that it was more lucrative to join the world of Private Military Companies. A company called Security and Logistics Enterprises recruited him to continue his services to the Government of Colombia for training and hunting Narco Terrorists and Left Wing guerrillas like FARC. This job allowed him more freedom and alot more money than being on the US governments payroll.
Although in his 40's, Salvo, is married to his work half of the year and the other half is spent breaking the hearts of Latino women worldwide. He is as comfortable in a club as he is chasing armed men through the jungle.
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