Article

2008-01-10 Iraq

New tactic in Iraq paying big dividents: anthropology

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Posted by gorb 2008-01-10 06:25|| || Front Page|| [11128 views ] Top
File under: Iraqi Insurgency

#1 soem of the best comments so far this year . the one about shoving the tank barrel up their arse had me in tears

Posted by sinse 2008-01-10 10:35|| 2008-01-10 10:35|| Front Page Top

#2 The Muslim Whisperer?

Hey, if it's stupid and it works, it's not stupid.

Posted by Sleating Bourbon2268 2008-01-10 12:58|| 2008-01-10 12:58|| Front Page Top

#3 Wonderful, 'Wild Kingdom' meets 'Rambo.'

next thing he will be examining tracks in the sand for evidence of Bigfoot.....

Posted by USN,Ret. 2008-01-10 14:09|| 2008-01-10 14:09|| Front Page Top

#4 People I've talked to who've come back from theatre say this sort of info has been incredibly useful to them. Put it in context: under the provisional authority the coalition refused to acknowledge or work with the tribal structure in Iraq, with disastrous results. Matsuda and others like him have given our forces the info needed to size up, negotiate with, peel off or effectively smash the natural force groupings they face. No small value, that.

Posted by lotp 2008-01-10 15:18|| 2008-01-10 15:18|| Front Page Top

#5 Call it "intel" instead of "anthropology".
Everybody feel better now?

Posted by tu3031 2008-01-10 15:24|| 2008-01-10 15:24|| Front Page Top

#6 The American Anthropological Ass'n set up a one-post blog to discuss their formal statement (linked at the blog).

Read the comments and despair:

http://aaanewsinfo.blogspot.com/

Posted by Seafarious 2008-01-10 15:34|| 2008-01-10 15:34|| Front Page Top

#7 Matsuda sounds like a guy who could give a shit what the "board" thinks.

Posted by tu3031 2008-01-10 15:41|| 2008-01-10 15:41|| Front Page Top

#8 Yea, Sea, looking for an idiot? Look no further, in academe you get them dime-a-dozen.

Of course, you'll find there also people with full set of marbles, but, it's a rarity.

Posted by twobyfour 2008-01-10 16:27|| 2008-01-10 16:27|| Front Page Top

#9 Not much different than the Indian Fighters of the West, who observed, learned, and dealt with the local natives, technologies of generations removed from micromanaging Washington. They got to do this stuff locally because no one was around to get in their way. They probably didn't know of, but instinctively understood Sun Tzu's dictum about 'know yourself and your opponent and be successful in a thousand battles'.

Posted by Procopius2k 2008-01-10 16:51|| 2008-01-10 16:51|| Front Page Top

#10 This kind of stuff was somehow known or learned by at least a few units, based on my blogreadings over the past several years, and led to successful relationships with some tribal leaders, which ultimately led to a lot of the success of the 'Surge' (maybe they had an activated reservist who took an Anthropology class before getting called up, or maybe they just had the right combination of personnel skills and common sense.) If an honest liberal academic (boy does that sound like an oxymoron) can expand the number of successful units, then power to him.

Posted by Glenmore">Glenmore 2008-01-10 16:51|| 2008-01-10 16:51|| Front Page Top

#11 It works both ways. Professor Matsuda (Japanese name?) gets to share his expertise and gets useful information he can write up later, and when he goes back home he'll take respect for what our military are doing over there -- sort of a Fifth Columnist for the good guys.

Posted by trailing wife">trailing wife 2008-01-10 17:27|| 2008-01-10 17:27|| Front Page Top

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