The future of SOF: Exclusive interview with SOCOM commander Richard Clarke

After 20 years of constant deployment as a key element of U.S. military response around the globe, special operations forces are at an inflection point. There are fewer commandos deployed, spending less time downrange that at any point in years. Yet the force continues to be plagued by incidents like the December slaying of a Delta Force NCO at Fort Bragg. And with President Joe Biden ordering all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan by Sept. 11, the question becomes: What now for special operations forces in an era of increasing tension with China and Russia?

On Wednesday, during the annual Special Operations Forces Industry Conference, Military Times sat down with Army Gen. Richard Clarke, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command and talked about the future of SOCOM and SOF.

During the 30-minute interview in his office at SOCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, Clarke talked about the state of the special operators in the ranks — op-tempo, the threat of extremism, mental health during the COVID-era, and high-profile incidents of misconduct. He also talked about SOF’s role in a potential conflict with Russia and China and, possibly, in Afghanistan after the troop withdrawal later this year.

Some questions and answers have been edited for clarity and brevity.

MT: What do you anticipate the role of SOF will be when it comes to challenges from both China and Russia?

RC: Access. Placement. Influence. And the ability to influence because of that access and placement of ours is critical. And so today, while you and I are sitting here, we’ve got about 5,000 members of SOCOM that are deployed globally in 60 nations around the world. Because we have great allies and partners that we work with, that’s providing us influence, and so that’s our asymmetric advantage.

MT: Will SOF return to doing the kinds of things the 10th Special Forces Group did back in Europe during the Cold War?

RC: Security force assistance. Foreign internal defense. We’re working with allies and partners. But today’s environment is a little bit different. And I think the other part that I put in there is the informational space. We have military information support operations professionals, that, 20 years ago, worked in radio and print. And today, they still work in radio and print as it’s appropriate in the environment that they may be operating. But they also work on the internet. They work and use the social media platforms that exist in the countries and work with the embassies in specific regions to help with that.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2021/05/20/the-future-of-sof-exclusive-interview-with-socom-commander-richard-clarke/

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from yesterday

Collier County officials accused of running child prostitution ring out of Naples Airport

COLLIER COUNTY, Fla.– The mayor of Naples has accused some Collier County officials of operating a child prostitution ring out of the Naples Airport, according to a city employee.

NBC-2 has obtained an ethics complaint that was filed by the employee. According to the 7-page complaint, the current Naples Mayor believes the former mayor and the sheriff were running a child sex ring out of the Naples Airport.

Naples Mayor Teresa Heitmann has also accused city employees and law firms of hacking her devices in an attempt to track her, the complaint states.

“The allegations made by Mayor Heitmann against me are untrue, irresponsible, unethical and defamatory. The allegations made by a sitting elected leader are outrageous.” said Sheriff Rambosk.

Former Mayor Bill Barnett said he was enraged after reading the complaint.

The ethics report states Mayor Heitmann said she had evidence of aircraft tail numbers and arrival times of planes being used in the alleged child prostitution ring.

Mayor Heitmann responded to NBC2 on Friday morning, denying the complaint’s claims.

https://nbc-2.com/news/2021/05/20/collier-county-officials-accused-of-running-child-prostitution-ring-out-of-naples-airport/

Singapore orders Facebook and Twitter to delete references to a “Singapore variant”

A censorship order.

Singapore’s Ministry of Health has ordered Facebook and Twitter, as well as SPH Magazines, to correct what it claims to be online falsehoods suggesting that a new coronavirus mutation originated in the country. The supposed “falsehoods” seem to have been fueled by an Indian politician.

“There is no new ‘Singapore’ variant of COVID-19,” the ministry said in a statement. “Neither is there evidence of any COVID-19 variant that is ‘extremely dangerous for kids’. The strain that is prevalent in many of the COVID-19 cases detected in Singapore in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant, which originated from India.”

The correction orders were issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act. The platforms that received the orders will have to include a correction notice on all posts to their users in Singapore.

The correction orders came shortly after a clash between the Singapore government and India, after New Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called for the suspension of flights to the Southeast Asian nation, claiming there was a new variant of COVID-19 originating from Singapore.

In an attempt to not damage relations with Singapore, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar insisted that Kejriwal “does not speak for India,” adding that “irresponsible comments from those who should know better can damage long-standing partnerships.”

https://reclaimthenet.org/singapore-orders-facebook-and-twitter-to-delete-references-to-a-singapore-variant/