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2005-09-02 Home Front: Tech

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Posted by Steve 2005-09-02 09:23|| || Front Page|| [2 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 What gets even less attention (and the âgeeks with gunsâ prefer it that way), is the many types of analyses that information is subjected to, and the insights that produces for American commanders. Data Mining the battlefield.

Posted by phil_b 2005-09-02 09:39|| 2005-09-02 09:39|| Front Page Top

#2 Its often said (too damn much IMO) that history is written by the winners. But the study of history is too often defined by the prejudices and preconceptions of the student. The example of WWI is a good one. The British deployment of early tanks was an attempt to break the stalemate but the unreliability of the early models was self defeating. But they did succeed in staging a breekthrough the first time out. The BEF just couldn't exploit it (this is one of few occasions where the calvary units being held in the rear could of been effective in being used to exploit a breakthrough and get into the German rear areas). In contrast the Germans developed infantry tactics to an art form. The first Storm Toopers were not Nazis but highly trained German soldiers on the Western Front engaging in raids across the lines. Also the conventional wisdom is that the Machine Gun was the major killer in WWI. Wrong. It was artillery just as it was in WWII. At least on the battlefield that is. The depiction of the American Army using overwhelming force to beat the Germans is in some ways true. Americans have an aversion to un-nessecary casualties and prefer to expend firepower rather than explosives. But there were of course glaring examples of American deficentcies. Perhaps the glaring example is in armor. Equipping armored units with the Sherman proved to be a disastar. But newer models were entering combat in Europe by the winter of '44/45. Plus the Sherman was designed as an infantry support tank. But in artillery the US Army had no equal in the war. True the German 88MM was probably the most versitle weapon of the war but the US Army's artillery tactics involving massed time on target fires was unsupassed. Plus the 155MM was IMO the best artillery piece of the time when employed as such.

Posted by Cheaderhead 2005-09-02 14:02|| 2005-09-02 14:02|| Front Page Top

#3 American artillery has had no equal since the Mexican-American War.

Posted by Mona Gorilla 2005-09-02 15:38|| 2005-09-02 15:38|| Front Page Top

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