This is an email that was forwarded to me recently. I am posting this to make a point about the issue of sensitive information, and how the information wars that exist today often compromise the safety and security of our soldiers in places like Iraq.
I can rattle off a list of similar situations... from radio-intercept methods to IED detection methods, how non-secret information that "gets out" can help those trying to kill us. I can tell you for a fact that the gap between enemy adjustments made because of a certain tactic is often less than 6 hours, and is continuous... a tit-for-tat that goes on and on.
In the case of this silly string, the use of this type of gear is NOT new but was kept quiet by the troops for a reason; to give us a leg up in discovering trip wires which might escape being seen. Now thanks to some people, including the friendly press who are amazed that the troops can come up with such a low tech but effective device, and who must have a time in the lime light, EVERYONE, including the people we are fighting and who are utilizing the hidden explosive devices, know what we are doing, how we are doing it and therefore can change their tactics to circumvent our edge.
It was similar to the time when the fact that u/cs were utilizing groin and ankle holsters for their hold out/back up handguns. All I have to say is "thank you " for thinking ahead and being concerned with the safety of our troops. (And yes, the people in theater need to be better briefed on the subject because they are often part of the problem).
-----------------------
FYI and consideration to support.
[?..]
Civilian Test Officer
USAOTC IEWTD
(520) 538-XXXX Voice
(520) 266-XXXX Cell
(520) 538-XXXX FAX
NIPRNET - XXX
SIPRNET - XXX
From: [?.]
Sent: Thursday, December 07, 2006 9:47 AM
To: XXXXX
Subject: Cool idea! (UNCLASSIFIED)
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE
A Stratford woman is collecting Silly String, which can detect trip wires.
By Rebecca Santana, Associated Press
Even in an age of multimillion-dollar high-tech weapons systems, sometimes the simplest ideas can save lives. Which is why a Camden County mother is organizing a drive to send cans of Silly String to Iraq.
American troops use the stuff to detect trip wires around bombs, as Marcelle Shriver learned from her son, a soldier in Iraq.
Before entering a building, troops squirt 10- to 12-foot strands of the plastic goo across a room. If the Silly String falls to the ground, no trip wires. If it hangs in the air, they know they have a problem. The wires are otherwise nearly invisible.
A thousand cans are packed into Shriver's one-car garage in Stratford, ready to be shipped to the Middle East, thanks to two churches and a pilot who heard about the drive.
"If I turn on the TV and see a soldier with a can of this on his vest, that would make this all worth it," said Shriver, 57, an office manager.
Manufacturer Just for Kicks Inc. of Watertown, N.Y., has contacted the family about donating Silly String. Other companies make versions called "party string" or "crazy string."
"Everyone in the entire corporation is very pleased that we can be involved in something like this," said Rob Oram, Just for Kicks product marketing manager. He called the troops' use innovative.
The military, concerned about tipping off insurgents, is reluctant to talk about specific tactics. But Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a military spokesman in Baghdad, said Army soldiers and Marines were not forbidden to come up with new ways to do their jobs, especially in Iraq's ever-evolving battlefield. And commanders are given money to buy nonstandard supplies as needed, he said.
Soldiers in Iraq have bolted scrap metal to humvees in what has become known as "Hillbilly Armor." Medics plug bullet holes with tampons until the wounds can be patched up. Soldiers put condoms and rubber bands around rifle muzzles to keep out sand. And troops have welded old bulletproof windshields to the top of humvees to give gunners extra protection, calling it "Pope's glass," a reference to the barrier on the pontiff's "Popemobile."
In an October call to his mother, Army Spec. Todd Shriver explained how his unit in the insurgent hotbed of Ramadi had learned from Marines to use Silly String to detect booby traps.
After sending some cans to her 28-year-old son, Shriver enlisted the help of two priests and posted notices in her church and its newsletter. Money and Silly String are flowing in.
"There's so much that they can't do, and they're frustrated, but this is something they can do," said the Rev. Joseph Capella of St. Luke's Church in Stratford.
Shriver and her husband said they would not mind seeing the string become standard-issue equipment, but they don't blame the military for not supplying it.
"I don't think that they can think of everything," said Ronald Shriver, 59, a retired salesman. "They're taught to improvise, and this is something that they've thought of."
Because the string comes in an aerosol can, Marcelle Shriver said, the Postal Service will not ship it by air. But a private pilot who heard about her campaign has agreed to fly the cans to Kuwait, most likely in January, and they will then be taken to Iraq.
Shriver said she would continue her campaign as long as her son was overseas and she had Silly String to send.
"I know that he's going come through this. I hope they all do," she said.
How to Help
A Stratford mother is collecting Silly String to send to her son and other troops in Iraq. They sometimes use the substance, which squirts out in a stream about 10 to 12 feet long, to detect wires connected to booby traps.
Donations of Silly String or similar products and money to defray costs are sought.
Checks made out to Marcelle Shriver can be sent to St. Luke's Church, 55 Warwick Rd., Stratford, N.J. 08084.
[??]
Instrumentation Engineer
Intelligence Electronic Warfare Test Directorate
Ft. Huachuca AZ
520-538-XXXX (DSN prefix: XXX)
I can rattle off a list of similar situations... from radio-intercept methods to IED detection methods, how non-secret information that "gets out" can help those trying to kill us. I can tell you for a fact that the gap between enemy adjustments made because of a certain tactic is often less than 6 hours, and is continuous... a tit-for-tat that goes on and on.
In the case of this silly string, the use of this type of gear is NOT new but was kept quiet by the troops for a reason; to give us a leg up in discovering trip wires which might escape being seen. Now thanks to some people, including the friendly press who are amazed that the troops can come up with such a low tech but effective device, and who must have a time in the lime light, EVERYONE, including the people we are fighting and who are utilizing the hidden explosive devices, know what we are doing, how we are doing it and therefore can change their tactics to circumvent our edge.
It was similar to the time when the fact that u/cs were utilizing groin and ankle holsters for their hold out/back up handguns. All I have to say is "thank you " for thinking ahead and being concerned with the safety of our troops. (And yes, the people in theater need to be better briefed on the subject because they are often part of the problem).
-----------------------
FYI and consideration to support.
[?..]
Civilian Test Officer
USAOTC IEWTD
(520) 538-XXXX Voice
(520) 266-XXXX Cell
(520) 538-XXXX FAX
NIPRNET - XXX
SIPRNET - XXX
From: [?.]
Sent: Thursday, December 07, 2006 9:47 AM
To: XXXXX
Subject: Cool idea! (UNCLASSIFIED)
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE
A Stratford woman is collecting Silly String, which can detect trip wires.
By Rebecca Santana, Associated Press
Even in an age of multimillion-dollar high-tech weapons systems, sometimes the simplest ideas can save lives. Which is why a Camden County mother is organizing a drive to send cans of Silly String to Iraq.
American troops use the stuff to detect trip wires around bombs, as Marcelle Shriver learned from her son, a soldier in Iraq.
Before entering a building, troops squirt 10- to 12-foot strands of the plastic goo across a room. If the Silly String falls to the ground, no trip wires. If it hangs in the air, they know they have a problem. The wires are otherwise nearly invisible.
A thousand cans are packed into Shriver's one-car garage in Stratford, ready to be shipped to the Middle East, thanks to two churches and a pilot who heard about the drive.
"If I turn on the TV and see a soldier with a can of this on his vest, that would make this all worth it," said Shriver, 57, an office manager.
Manufacturer Just for Kicks Inc. of Watertown, N.Y., has contacted the family about donating Silly String. Other companies make versions called "party string" or "crazy string."
"Everyone in the entire corporation is very pleased that we can be involved in something like this," said Rob Oram, Just for Kicks product marketing manager. He called the troops' use innovative.
The military, concerned about tipping off insurgents, is reluctant to talk about specific tactics. But Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a military spokesman in Baghdad, said Army soldiers and Marines were not forbidden to come up with new ways to do their jobs, especially in Iraq's ever-evolving battlefield. And commanders are given money to buy nonstandard supplies as needed, he said.
Soldiers in Iraq have bolted scrap metal to humvees in what has become known as "Hillbilly Armor." Medics plug bullet holes with tampons until the wounds can be patched up. Soldiers put condoms and rubber bands around rifle muzzles to keep out sand. And troops have welded old bulletproof windshields to the top of humvees to give gunners extra protection, calling it "Pope's glass," a reference to the barrier on the pontiff's "Popemobile."
In an October call to his mother, Army Spec. Todd Shriver explained how his unit in the insurgent hotbed of Ramadi had learned from Marines to use Silly String to detect booby traps.
After sending some cans to her 28-year-old son, Shriver enlisted the help of two priests and posted notices in her church and its newsletter. Money and Silly String are flowing in.
"There's so much that they can't do, and they're frustrated, but this is something they can do," said the Rev. Joseph Capella of St. Luke's Church in Stratford.
Shriver and her husband said they would not mind seeing the string become standard-issue equipment, but they don't blame the military for not supplying it.
"I don't think that they can think of everything," said Ronald Shriver, 59, a retired salesman. "They're taught to improvise, and this is something that they've thought of."
Because the string comes in an aerosol can, Marcelle Shriver said, the Postal Service will not ship it by air. But a private pilot who heard about her campaign has agreed to fly the cans to Kuwait, most likely in January, and they will then be taken to Iraq.
Shriver said she would continue her campaign as long as her son was overseas and she had Silly String to send.
"I know that he's going come through this. I hope they all do," she said.
How to Help
A Stratford mother is collecting Silly String to send to her son and other troops in Iraq. They sometimes use the substance, which squirts out in a stream about 10 to 12 feet long, to detect wires connected to booby traps.
Donations of Silly String or similar products and money to defray costs are sought.
Checks made out to Marcelle Shriver can be sent to St. Luke's Church, 55 Warwick Rd., Stratford, N.J. 08084.
[??]
Instrumentation Engineer
Intelligence Electronic Warfare Test Directorate
Ft. Huachuca AZ
520-538-XXXX (DSN prefix: XXX)
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