FRIDAY FOTO (September 28, 2012)

Harriers Up Close

Defense Dept. photo by Gunnery Sgt. Chad Kiehl, U.S. Marine Corps

Two U.S. Marine Corps AV-8 Harriers fly in formation after conducting aerial refueling training on Sept. 23, 2012. MV-22B Ospreys and AV-8B Harriers are conducting aerial refueling with the KC-130J Hercules planes to practice the skills needed for long-range flight operations. The aircraft are part of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is deployed with the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group.

NOTE:

There will be NO FRIDAY FOTO or THIS WEEK in the WAR of 1812 POSTINGS Next Week. The 4GWAR Blog is going on vacation. Please visit the web sites and blogs listed on the right hand side panel of our OUR HOME PAGE while we’re gone. See you in October!

The 4GWAR Editor

SMART POWER: U.S. Military Seeks to Avoid Costly Cultural Misunderstandings

Know Your Enemies — and Your Friends

(U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jonathan Lovelady)

The U.S. military has been trying to improve cultural sensitivity with classes, training programs, video simulations and rules of conduct to help its troops operate in a foreign environment. In an era of asymmetric warfare – where the enemy may be a small guerrilla band or a criminal network – an armed force can no longer ignore where they are fighting and the society occupying the battlespace space.

The alternative could lead to blunders  like the burning of Korans by clueless U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The process of studying not only your enemy and his tactics but the people around him who could give him shelter or turn him in to the authorities is a big part of the discipline known as human geography. It is cultural awareness – how to avoid social gaffes or breaking taboos – raised to a critical level for intelligence gathering and tactical decision making.

To read more of this story, click here.