THE PAST

I see from Task and Purpose that Russia is firing up to 60,000 rounds of artillery or rockets every day in its war in Ukraine. I think it is safe to say that none of our NATO allies could match that number for more than a couple of days at the most. I suspect most of our NATO allies have a few thousand rounds buried in some bunker somewhere and that's it. They also lack the means to actually make more of them. As usual, their plan is to rely on the U.S. to furnish them with ammunition and replenish their stocks just as they did when they fired off all their long range missiles in Libya and had to turn to Hillary and grovel for some more in their glorious victory over Qaddafi.

I once lived at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey. One of the things that struck me as I rode or ran around the installation was the preserved buildings that were in lay-up just in case we ever needed to make a massive number of artillery projectiles again. They'd been laid up either since the Korean War or World War I. They were old. I realize this is not how we produce our artillery ammunition anymore but it does weigh on my mind. I don't think the United States could begin to match 60,000 artillery rounds and missile/day.

It's easy to say that artillery is no longer the King of Battle and point to aviation and cruise missiles. I honestly don't know what happens when bomblets blanket an artillery position. I imagine it would shred the tires and ding the tube but I don't know if they would outright destroy modern Russian artillery or not. The cannon cockers will be dead but the tubes may well keep going. There is also a not inconsiderable air defense network. I think the Russians have studied our employment of the Air/Land Battle techniques over the last 30 years and have probably come up with some ideas for mitigating or even defeating it. The defeat might take a simple form that we won't expect in a million years. Yep, they'll rain Kalibre and other missiles down on the airfields a thousand miles away and destroy all those aircraft right there on the ground where it's easy.

I have to admit,I keep waiting for the retaliation any country would and can deliver to allies of its enemy. It's one thing to covertly pass along weapons and intel but to boast about doing both in public in a press conference, well, your position has been established. You are now a combatant.