TALOS: Special Operations Powered Armor, or Just Another Boondoggle?

The Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) is an attempt to deliver to the individual Special Operations soldier a powered suit which would essentially give him super-human strength, speed, render him bullet and blast proof, and include a suite of sensory equipment (such as thermals, night vision, ect) which would enhance his ability to identify, […]

How the Pentagon Places SOF Soldier’s Minds in Boxes

Like many organizations, the military sometimes substitutes style over substance, particularly when it concerns systemic problems in training and execution. Despite more than a decade of fighting an unconventional enemy, and an immeasurable amount of lip service paid to out-of-the-box and disruptive thinking, when the rubber meets the road, unique or innovative proposals are almost […]

The Birth of Italy’s First Special Forces Unit

At the outbreak of war in 1915, people went down to the squares of Italy to demonstrate, convinced that it would be an opportunity to change the fortunes of the country for the better. Should they just sit and watch, or take up arms against their former Austro-Hungarian ally in order to recover lost territories and […]

U.S. and Allies Prepare for War Against ISIS

As we head toward November mid-term elections, the writing is on the wall that the United States government is simply waiting out the domestic political situation until they can use military force, including troops on the ground, to battle ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Allied special operations forces are also preparing for this military action […]

Canada Should Send More SOF Against ISIL

The conservative Canadian government announced earlier last week that the Royal Canadian Air Force would send six CF-18s, two CP-140 Auroras, and a C-150 Polaris, alongside approximately 600 personnel—most of them working to support the aircraft. When the decision was made, it was clear that Canada would not engage in ground combat nor have their fighter […]

Empty Chessboards

Military intelligence is a horrible hydra or chimera. Pick your beast. It seeks to stay beholden to the TO&E of traditional (and sometimes non-traditional) Army infrastructure.

Exclusive: USAF PJ Nick Gibson to Summit Mount Everest in 2013

My old pipeline friend Nick Gibson is joining up with the USAF’s Seven Summits team to summit Mount Everest next spring. As soon as I was able to contain my insane jealousy, I thought I’d better get in touch with him to see what it was all about. My fondest memories of Nick, a former […]

Three SOF Phrases That I Hate

The military is full of professional jargon and SOF is certainly no exception.  With the growing interest in Special Operations, I hear a lot of terminology used to describe us that makes me cringe.  The worst part is that some of these terms are thrown around so often that they become an institution in and […]