Why SOCOM?

Got brass in pocket
Got bottle I'm gonna use it
Intention I feel inventive
Gonna make you, make you,
make you notice
--Brass in Pocket,
The Pretenders
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Why do we have Special Forces, and why did Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) devolve from this? How did they become 4-Star commands?

Do units that have 68,000 assigned personnel -- along with an unspecified number of civilian personnel -- qualify as “special”? If Special Operations Forces are so special and their missions classified, why do we wear flashy tabs and hats advertising our existence; shouldn’t Special Operations Forces (SOF) be all gash and no flash?

The Unites States Special Forces was modeled upon World War II's Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which was modeled upon the British SOE. The OSS was a theatre asset responsive to the orders of the Allied Supreme Commander. Special Forces was just that: They were assigned missions outside of the traditional force structure.

SF worked with the State Department as part of a “Country Team”, in order to ascertain what was needed to benefit the host nation (HN). In addition to direct action, SF performed Foreign Internal Defense (FID), Internal Defense and Development (IDAD), intelligence functions and unconventional and guerrilla warfare.

The Rangers, Devils Brigade, Marine Raiders and Merrill's Marauders consolidated into United States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance and the Rangers. Both specialized in direct action (DA), while performing some supporting intelligence roles, as well. Both are built on the British WW II commando model and are military in function, pure and simple.

So, how have the Rangers and USMC Force Recon come to be included under the rubric of SOF, which is other than simple DA? Ditto the SEALs, who morphed from the Navy’s Underwater Demolition Teams (UDTs) of WWII. The fleet simply does not need to send hired killers around the world. How did the killing of Osama bin Laden, for example, benefit the Chief of Naval Operations (other than making of him a Mortuary Officer?)

In Vietnam, SF were trained in and performed all the classic WWII OSS functions. The CIDG (Civilian Irregular Defense Groups) A-teams did Population and Resource Control (PRC), IDAD and FID. The Mike Force B-teams were DA, with some focus on intel gathering. All worked for the Theatre and Corps Commanders and were responsive to the maneuver commander’s guidance. All followed the chain of command and had a clearly delineated role.

Special programs like Studies and Observations Group (SOG) were DA, strategic intel and worked directly for the Theatre Commander. All used foreign troops under U.S. command, fulfilling the “force multiplier” SF mission.

All was fine until the failure of Desert Storm I, when it was decided that the Army needed an in-house special Air Force responsive to Special Operations’ needs; thus was created the 1^st Provisional SOCOM. (It should be noted that in VN and before, SF had a prototype of SOCOM with the dedicate aviation units which had habitual relations with SF units like The Green Hornets (20th Special Operations Squadron; 20th SOS with SOG).)

The justification for the creation of SOF – SOCOM was the cry from SF commanders that Regular Army pogues did not understand SF capabilities, and therefore misutilized the assets. While that may be so, the current Special Operations empire has not ensured SF is used any better than it was in the bad old days. Instead of keeping SF special, it is now a miasma of cobbled forces and missions.

What does SOCOM do that any regular U.S. Army unit cannot do? The 10^th Mountain, 24^th and 25^th, 4^th and 3^rd Division all fight just as hard as any SOCOM unit. Any unit can be special trained up for purposes in Iraq or Afghanistan. It appears SOCOM has ceased to be a war fighting organization and instead has become a series of small units focused on non-military operations.

It seems the one new thing for SOCOM is to serve at the beck and call of a president who wishes to order assassination strikes and avoid going through the National Command Structure.

In Ranger’s day, the military distrusted SF as being Central Intelligence Agency lackeys . It looks like the hens have come home to roost as SOCOM is now functioning as the military wing of the CIA.

What is Special Ops?

--Sky and Water, M. C. Escher

I don't wanna do your dirty work
No more
I'm a fool to do your dirty work
Oh yeah
--Dirty Work, Steely Dan

For a fee, I'm happy to be
Your back door man, hey
--Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, AC/DC

Neither fish, nor flesh, nor good red herring
--John Heywood
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Since Osama bin Laden was killed by Special Operations Forces (SOF) earlier this month, Ranger's been mulling over the meaning of Special Operations.

He took a trip down memory lane to 1970, when he was awarded the flash to his Green Beret. It was then an outward sign that we were MOS qualified; today's equivalent is being tabbed-up. Historically, SOF refers to SEALS, SF and Rangers, with supporting air assets. These are usually lumped under SOCOM and JSOC.

Today's focus is Black Operations ("Black Ops"), a sub-specialty of these two organizations. The question is: "How did the U.S, go from snake eaters and Sneaky Petes to hired guns and assassins?"

Seal Team 6 (ST6) is the group credited with killing OBL. They are described as --

"a Special Black Ops unit made up of the top soldiers from each of the other nine SEAL units, operating under a cloak of secrecy outside of military protocol and often international law. . . . The unit's members specialize in targeted assassinations, . . ." (SOF: Elite Killing Commandos, The Week).

While a correct description of Special Ops today, if they do operate outside of military protocol why are they in the military establishment? Militaries operate well when constrained by strict protocol. If these Special Ops members are not bound to international law, how are they upholding their oaths to uphold the Constitution (as treaties and international laws ratified by the U.S. operate at the same level). Extra-legal actions are not military in nature.

Why add another layer of soldiers to the Department of Defense roster when the Army SOF assets are slap-full of specially trained soldiers? Why does the Navy need these special soldiers when they have an entire U.S. Marine Corps to fill the niche?

The answer may be that we want units that conduct illegal activity; if so, why have a Central Intelligence Agency with paramilitary capabilities? The CIA would seem to fit the bill better since they are neither military nor constrained by distracting oaths of fealty to the rule of law.

After the Vietnam War and the Desert Storm I fiasco, there was rightly seen a need for a SOCOM/JSOC type reorganization. However, somewhere along the way these military assets crossed over to the Dark Side, and we cheered, giving our imprimatur to the monstrous conversion. The death of Special Forces came when SF became too comfortable doing CIA dirty work, thereby losing the confidence of the regular Army. After RVN, SF reorganized and tried to lose the stigma by reintegrating into the larger picture by becoming a branch specialty.

Prior to SF's becoming a branch specialty, Ranger's personal experience was one of an Infantry Officer who was shunned by his basic branch for his Sf affiliation. Infantry distrusted his loyalty, and SF had no power to promote or reward his special contributions. The creation of a dedicated SF branch was supposed to alleviate this rift; instead, it created a monster.

Tomorrow: Pt. II, "What is Special Ops?"