The Adventurist Gut Punches HTS... Shades Of Meo? (Edited To Clarify Personal Opinion On A Matter Of Public Interest)

"This post has been modified in order to clarify what, in my opinion, are facts of questionable reliability or assertions that are, in my opinion, distortions of actual events. Any expressions on my part that something is questionable or unbelievable are my opinion, informed by my experience on the ground in that specific area, my experience in dealing with military organizations, and correspondence with individuals who were either involved or are currently present in the area.

I would rather be discussing GEN Petraeus' encouraging speech last week at the 45th Munich Security Conference and how it relates to Ann Marlow's excellent article in the WSJ, but the metaphorical cat threw up on the carpet right at my feet and I've got a little work to do.

The HTS (Human Terrain System) has been the subject of much controversy in certain circles, not least of which is among anthropologists. Since Afghanistan has been back in the news in the past year, many people have become amateur social anthropologists. It has become all the vogue to demonstrate how intelligent one is by spouting off about the various tribes of Afghanistan, prognosticating about the Pashtuns and Tajiks and whatnots. Hey, it's cheap, it's easy, and someone who has done nothing more than read a few articles can suddenly sound like they understand the vast impenetrables of Afghanistan. "
Bill and Bob's Adventure