Fighting ISIS: The Enemy Gets a Vote

USAF Photo by Staff Sgt. Vernon Young Jr.

Gonna fight a war solely from the air? Well, the enemy you fight will adapt to your limitations, as noted in this Bloomberg article, "Islamic State Dispersing Makes U.S Adapt Targets" by which "adapt targets" means it's harder to find and kill them:

Islamic State terrorists are dispersing and changing tactics to make it harder for U.S. airstrikes to target them, the Pentagon’s spokesman said.

“Yes, they’re blending in more” with the population and “yes, they’re dispersing, and yes, they aren’t communicating quite as openly or as boldly as they once were,” Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters yesterday at the Pentagon. “That’s a good thing, because if they aren’t operating as freely, then they aren’t as free to achieve their goals.”

The U.S. is “pretty adaptive,” too, and will be patient in choosing targets, in part to minimize civilian casualties, he said. ***

"Pretty adaptive" ain't going to cut it - the OODA loop is getting away from us because of self-imposed limitations on engagement. Being a "one trick pony" makes it easier on the enemy who gets a vote on how to respond to your threat.

If we are going to "beat" these guys, we need to hear the sound of boots on the ground and see the ISIS logistics flow of people, money and weapons disrupted big time.