Roguedinosaur.com

Greetings Readers,

The latest Asian News for the busiest person to be read in two minutes or less, followed by brief Mosul, Iraq operation’s commentary .

• China lunches longest manned space exploratory mission.
• Philippines open to joint China-Russia China Sea WarGames.
• UN severely condemns North Korea for missile launch failure.
• Floods in Vietnam kill 27 amid new storms.
• General Prem becomes Thailand Regent in wake of King’s death.
• Myanmar: At least 36 dead in central Burma ferry-boat sinking.
• Erdogon, ‘out of the question’ Turkey is part of Mosul operation.
• Coalition operations aims to take Mosul City Center in days
• Iraq PM says he waits for ‘Great Victory Moment’ in Mosul campaign.
• Kurdish forces announce no retaliation for Mosul residents.
• U. S., Britain mull additional sanctions over Syria-Aleppo siege.
• Russia, Syria say Aleppo bombings may be only “WarGames.”
• Pro-Russian commander killed in East Ukraine bombing.
• Japan PM sends ritual donations to sacred Yesukuni Shine.
• Japan broods over strategy to regain islands in Russia dispute.
• Trump maintains presidential election rigged in favor of Clinton.
• Indonesia announces seizure of tiger skins and animal genitals.
• Indonesia will raise cigarette tax by 10% to curb production.

With more than 100 thousand crack mechanized troops deployed, full air support, and over two years in preparation against 17,500 ISIS fighters the capture of Mosul should have been, should be, a Coalition piece of cake. As mentioned in emails and Blog, ISIS will either defend the city with determination or leave a near token suicide force and fight another day as instructed in the guerrilla manual Tze’s The Art of War. No matter, ISIS is on the road to defeat, until next time, next year, or within the next decade.

•  So as the Art of War story goes, of which I am fond, is of a Chinese Warlord having difficulty with his two dozen consorts. The kept women were fighting amongst themselves, bullying, and attempted poisoning. They were undisciplined and flaunting.
• The Warlord appealed to Sun Tze for a solution. The Lord vowed  he would follow’ instructions faithfully. Tze gathered the women and attempted to form them into a military formation. The women laughed at him. Next he asked the women to form three small informal groups, elect one in each group to be a spokesperson and to step forward. Three women stepped forward, and Tze, with the Warlord’s promised consent, had them beheaded immediately on the spot.  The Warlord had little difficulty with his harm thereafter, and particularly when Sun Tze was travelling in the province.
• As an added note, in the most active-alert CIA departments it is mandatory members must initial or sign-off each year as having read the classic tome.

• Among the many gems in the book ‘always allow a route of escape for the enemy.’ The objective is to reduce casualties in extreme confrontational battles, massacres, and martydom. This may be in accordance to the announcement by ISIS a few days before the battle to allow wounded, the incapacitated, and vital soldiers to leave Mosul by ‘selected routes.’ U. S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter is no fool.

All the Best.

Ron Miller