Center for a New American Security

From the National Journal:

As the Pentagon's internal budget negotiations begin to wind down, the future looks bleak for the Army's Future Combat Systems, the service's ambitious $160 billion modernization effort that is widely expected to become a casualty of the FY10 budget.

Defense Secretary Gates is weighing everything from dramatically scaling back FCS ground vehicles to canceling the program, according to several sources closely tracking the budget negotiations. He has said he will withhold making any final decisions until the end of the internal budget process.

This was surprising. Ashton Carter, I thought, was a "nukes and strategy" guy. AT&L, as I discussed with my friend "Abu Comptroller" yesterday, is the job where it pays to a) know the acquisitions process inside and out and b) be prepared to be a real jerk to everyone. "You're certainly not going to win Prom Queen in that job," Abu Comptroller said. Here's Carter's bio. Here's his predecessor's. Compare. Does this not seem like an awkward fit?

I just went for a 30-minute run. It is 15 degrees (F) at the moment, so that was a very bad idea. My ears are still numb, and I have no idea how I am typing.

You should stay in tonight and read this article from Ha'aretz by ... [wait for it] ... Amira Hass. Yes, yes, I know Amira Hass is Robert Fisk's favorite journalist. But if you can sneak past the journalistic agenda, this article by her is basically an interview with Human Rights Watch weapons nerd Marc Garlasco. Garlasco used to serve in the Pentagon and was chief of high value targeting during the opening stages of the Iraq War. Now he travels the world for HRW making sure countries (and non-state actors) are only using the weapons international law says they are allowed to use. Garlasco is such a dork he's fascinating:

Gazans have noticed that there are bombs that produce mushroom clouds in various shades of red. Here, Garlasco admits, "I can only speculate. It looks like Israel is maybe using a new weapon that it was not using before: DIME - the dense inert metal explosive, consisting of 25 percent TNT and 75 percent tungsten, a heavy metal. You mix the two, in a fine grain, like pepper, and when the bomb hits the ground it aerosolizes. In less than a second, the mist dissipates and explodes."

He says the advantage of DIME is that "it strikes a very small area, 10 to 20 meters, and the fire it ignites burns out very quickly; if it hits us now, we will die, but no one around us will be hurt. The problem is that when you are killed - you are ripped to shreds and there is nothing left."

And he doesn't give a flip whether you're Israeli or Palestinian:

Garlasco and Human Rights Watch also examine the other side, and he says, "We believe that the Grad and Qassam are illegal weapons because they are not accurate enough to be used in this situation." He adds that Hamas makes frequent use of land mines and explosive charges that are liable to injure civilians. ...

In 2005, Garlasco met with a political representative of Hamas and told him that use of Grads is a contravention of the Geneva Convention. The reply he got from the Hamas man was: "'All Israelis are military.' And I explained to them that their reading of international law is wrong."

Raise a glass to this man. He's doing the Lord's work in a land God has given up on.

By the way, here's a question for the class: the Arabic-speaking world and everyone else is freaking out about the fact that Israel has been using white phosphorus and denying it. Fair enough. But where was all the outrage when the Lebanese Armed Forces were using white phosphorus rounds against Fatah al-Islam in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in 2007?

Update: There is a really nerdy discussion taking place in the comments. Which is good. Check out this article from the Christian Science Monitor that also interviews Garlasco but places the use of these weapons in a more historical context in the theater. (Nick chimes in with memories of the fighting in southern Lebanon, in other words.)