NOSI will not be updated again until next Monday. So, I’ve added some additional reading material today to tide you over the weekend.

US Navy – The USS Nimitz is taking a port call in Victoria, Canada.

• Toronto Globe and Mail: Huge U.S. warship anchors off Victoria
  

Background – Iraq – William Arkin describes the important role that JDAM will play in a war with Iraq???and how the current shortage of JDAMs will affect war planning.

• Washington Post Dot Mil: The Smart Bomb That Is Shaping U.S. Iraq Strategy
  

Background – Iraq – James F. Dunnigan on what an attack on Iraq may look like???and what tricks the US may try.

• Strategy Page: Invading Iraq, When and How

History – Two interesting essays that debate: is America the new Roman Empire or the new British Empire — and what role does the US Navy play in this empire?

• The Guardian: Rome, AD ??? Rome, DC?
  

• The Guardian: What Britannia taught Bush
  

US Marines – A fascinating series of 4 articles by a US Army officer that uses military science fiction novels to try to discern what the army of the future should look like, in an organizational sense. Substitute “Marine Corps” for army, and you’ll enjoy the articles even more. Seems that the author feels the US Army should be organized more along the lines of the British army’s regimental system???how could the Marines be organized along this system as well?

• Strategy Page: Military Science Fiction and the Army Transformation

Background – Army Transformation – A detailed look at the organization and firepower of the new US Army Interim Brigade Combat Teams (IBCTs) – what their flaws are and how they can be improved. The lessons learned here are certainly applicable to US Marine infantry units, which like the IBCTs can be seen to be a form of motorized infantry.

• StrategyPage: The Evolution and Relative Effectiveness of the Interim Brigade Combat Team
• StrategyPage: Medium Brigade Flaws, and the Cure: The IBCT Revisited

???see you on Monday with more naval news???