The following is another excellent article from Guerrillamerica.com. There will be an increasingly growing number of related posts here at Radio Free Redoubt.
BONUS! More DHS Intel:
Department of Homeland Security recently purchased 2,700 Armored Anti-Insurgency vehicles, known as MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) Vehicle.
http://beforeitsnews.com/alternative/2013/03/dhs-buys-2700-mraps-video-2582678.html
This is in addition to the multi-BILLION rounds of ammunition recently purchased, as well as life-like photo targets depicting armed american men, women (including pregnant), and children, to assist DHS agents in training to engage targets in the ‘homeland.’
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ARTICLE: Qualitative Measurement of Resistance and Revolution Models
by PARTISAN
Brigadier General Samuel Griffith, USMC (Ret.) wrote in-depth about his study of partisan resistance and guerrilla movements. One of the things that I find particularly interesting is how he qualified the execution of guerrilla movements, which I think can also be applied to the modern American revolution. He describes ten factors that determine the outcome of guerrilla and resistance movements. Each factor should be scored for both the resistance movement and the regime in power. Ten factors with ten points each gives you an index of 100. The highest index probably has the better chance of succeeding. These days, ‘success’ could mean so many things so keep in mind that a draw might be the most successful thing a particular resistance movement could achieve.
Before we get into those ten factors, take this into consideration:
Historical experience suggests that there is very little hope of destroying a revolutionary guerrilla movement after it has survived the first phase and has acquired the sympathetic support of a significant segment of the population. The size of this “significant segment” will vary; a decisive figure might range from 15 to 25 per cent.
Movements that don’t gain the support 15 to 25 per cent of the population, regionally if not nationwide, generally result in failure. Further, if a movement reaches that threshold but its tactics or strategy is not supported, the movement is simply doomed to fail. A PEW Research Poll from December 2011 says that while 44% of America supported the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement, 49% disagreed with OWS tactics — and that was a largely ‘peaceful’ movement compared to all out revolution! So what happened to the OWS movement? It was forced to abandon its tactics, due both to the police and failure to maintain popular support. For any movement to create real and permanent change, it needs popular support on all fronts, including popular support for its tactics. That starts with the appeal of program.
Appeal of program.
Does the populace line up behind you? Do you represent ideological and moral values to which people not only subscribe but would be willing to risk their lives to support? Do you have the moral high ground and do the people believe in what you’re doing? These are some of the questions we can ask to satisfy this measurement. The appeal of your program must be internalized by the populace. Therefore the program’s goal is to be both simply understood and dynamic. Liberty is a simple concept. You can sell it easily because nearly everyone wants to be free. When I say dynamic, think think loud, disruptive, explosive, meaningful, and significant. If you want a good illustration of a simple and dynamic appeal of program, just look at the Ron Paul Revolution. It created hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of mini-Ron Pauls. A good appeal to program leads to popular support.
Popular support.
Gaining popular support is the keystone of any resistance or guerrilla movement. Resistance cells must depend on the empathy, hospitality, and refuge of the populace because the guerrilla doesn’t go home; he is home. Popular support is the result of one or more of two things: aggrievement and shared sacrifice, or common goals. Aggrievement and shared sacrifice often creates a deeper and more passionate support than a common goal. For instance, in football, there’s popular support for a team because a goal is shared: a national championship or Superbowl. But no one is expected or willing to die to win the Superbowl. On the other hand, let’s look at the revolution in Egypt for the past two years. While Egyptians had a shared goal of changing their government, they had been deeply aggrieved through the rule of despotism and corruption. To create popular support, find those who are aggrieved and identify a common goal towards the solution (appeal of program). People want revenge and sometimes they get it.
Quality of leadership.
There’s an old saying that the military doesn’t produce leaders, it refines them. Leadership is sometimes developed in team sports, or in the office, or on the battlefield; sometimes it may lay dormant until necessity requires it to be born. Either way, leadership will build out of popular support: as more people support the movement, more leadership is required. Where would US military history be without Washington and Greene? Without Washington, there may not have been Lee and Grant, or Patton, or Eisenhower. Quality of leadership can determine outcomes so if you want your movement to be successful, identify and choose good leaders.
Quality of troops.
Quality of troops includes training and dedication. No amount of equipment can make up for poorly trained weekend warriors or sunshine patriots. Training includes the three basic skills of combat: shooting, moving, communicating. If you aren’t an expert at all three, find someone who can teach you. There are plenty of military manuals on the interwebs but there’s a reason why soldiers and Marines are taught combat skills, step by step, by experts. You need experienced instructors. I remember my first combatives class in the Army. At the end, our instructor told us, “You’ve learned just enough to go into town and get your ass kicked.” And the same goes for basic soldier skills: practice, practice, practice and keep learning. As for dedication, I will refer to part of the Soldier’s Creed:
I will always place the mission first. I will never accept defeat. I will never quit.
Ten years later and the most powerful military in the world is still fighting a bunch of underclassed, outgunned, backwards hillbillies in Afghanistan. We’ve obliterated nearly an entire generation of Afghans yet the war wages on.
More Factor Categories in this article:
– Military efficiency
– Internal unity
– Equipment
– Operational terrain
– Operational area
– Communications
– Sanctuary
A couple of updates:
“Non Traditional Targets” – There was news that the target maker pulled the product because of public outrage. This seemed odd to me, because they were under contract with DHS to provide them. Only the government gets to change contracts after the fact, and DHS did not complain. Then I heard that the target maker had not actually stopped making them, just pulled them from the public website, and is still selling them to DHS. This actually makes sense, and I believe is plausible.
“DHS Purchase of 2,700 MRAP Vehicles” – There may be some confusion on this point. The DHS does own some MRAPs, but apparently the order was through the Navy, to be used by the Marines. I’d give this story a status of “maybe”.
Bear
PS: On some financial website there was a retired general officer giving the opinion that the Feds were not planning to fight insurrection, but getting squared away to keep a lid on social unrest if/when the economy collapses. I think the man is splitting hairs. If the economy collapses, then insurrection is a possibility.