Old Habits Die Hard: Why Special Operations unit use old-school weapons

Have you ever heard the saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”? Well, this adage comes to mind when I think about the M2 Browning .50 caliber machine gun and the M79 grenade launcher. Both of these weapons have a very long, respected history and are still in service. They have been used by […]

Thinking Before Shooting: Intelligence and Special Operations

The attacks of 9/11, which seem so long ago, caught the United States by surprise. There were some warning signs that were missed by our intelligence and law enforcement agencies but pointing the finger isn’t the purpose here. The last 16 years have seen our forces fighting a different kind of war, with a different […]

Why we should keep deploying troops to South America

The United States has been considering the idea of cutting back troop strengths in both Africa and South America to begin to free-up more troops to counter near-peer potential adversaries in Russia and China.  The opinion here is that this would be a mistake since both Russia and China are actively trying to build their […]

The Pic of the Day: Choke him ou…eh, nevermind!

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Zachary Larsen, a combat graphic specialist with Headquarters and Support Battalion Marine Corps Installations Pacific-Marine Corps Base Camp Butler, attempts to escape a simulated attack during a water survival advanced (WSA) course Jan. 29, 2020, at Fairchild Pool on Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan. WSA is the highest swim qualification […]

How safe are US bases and outposts in Africa?

Benghazi 2012. Niger 2017. Manda Bay 2020. These are just the high-profile cases where American warfighters and diplomats have died in Africa in the last decade. For the most part of the last two decades, the Middle East has captivated the attention of the Pentagon and U.S. media. But Africa has been steadily warming up. […]

No rest for careerists, USMC General Dunford slides into board role at Lockheed

Lockheed Martin, the nation’s largest defense contracting corporation, has added General Joseph “Fighting Joe” Dunford, less than six months after his retirement from the Marine Corps. Dunford will assist with Lockheed’s classified business and security committee and the nominating and corporate governance committee. Dunford served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) from […]

1st Recon Battalion voted the fittest unit in the Marine Corps

The 1st Reconnaissance Battalion was voted the fittest unit in the entire Marine Corps. To achieve this honor, the 1st Recon Marines had to beat not only the other Recon battalions but also the Marine Raider units. This is the second year that the Marine Corps is holding this competition. To win, a unit must […]

Kenya gets attack choppers after deadly attack on US base

Following the deadly attack on a joint American-Kenyan base earlier this month, the Kenyan military just got several light scout attack helicopters. More specifically, the Kenyan military received 12 MD 530F Cayuse Warrior scout attack helicopters. The fuel tanks of the MD 530Fs can withstand direct hits from ammunition up to and including 7.62mm. Also the […]

The Video of the Week: Marine Spec Ops, today will be different

Marine Corps Special Operations Command (MARSOC) train, organize, equip and deploy task-organized, scalable and responsive Marine Corps special operations elements worldwide in support of combatant commanders and other agencies. MARSOC is comprised of roughly 2,500 Marines and sailors. The base unit of MARSOC is the fourteen-man Marine Special Operations Team (MSOT). Each 14-man MSOT is […]

The Pic of the Day: It sucks to be you, Marine Raider

A team of Marines a carry zodiac boat to finish the boat build and breakdown event during the U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Special Operations Command Raider Games aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C. The Raider Games was a 10-mile ruck course with 14 events, including rappelling, pistol slow fire, completion of the obstacle course, […]

Shoot, Move, Communicate: How Special Operations prepares you for the real-world

There is a certain culture found in the special operations community. These guys are considered to be some of the toughest, strongest, smartest, and most capable individuals in the U.S. military. It is common knowledge that if you need to make a bad guy disappear or to rescue someone from a hostile environment, that one […]