The Artillery Shell Goes High Tech

"RAUFOSS, Norway -- At a factory in rural Norway, engineers are perfecting an artillery shell they say will be able to travel many times farther than the traditional ammunition currently pounding the battlefield in Ukraine.

The work is part of a broader trend among arms companies to increase the range, precision and lethality of artillery shells that have remained largely unchanged for decades.

The technological advances, giving some shells capabilities similar to missiles but with a lower cost and quicker production time, promise a dramatic change for artillery as it plays its biggest role since the Vietnam War.

Some modern shells -- including those guided to targets using satellite navigation and others propelled by mini-rocket engines -- have already been deployed in Ukraine and Israel. The next frontier for arms manufacturers, including BAE Systems and General Dynamics, is making shells that travel farther while also speeding up production to replace diminishing inventories.

Norway-based Nammo, in partnership with Boeing, is testing shells in Raufoss that use ramjet engines that it says will eventually be able to travel up to about 90 miles -- more than the distance from Philadelphia to New York. Standard-barreled howitzers have a range of around 15 miles with a conventional round, with longer-range cannons reaching just over 30 miles.

"This is a game changer," said Oyvind Lien, program director for advanced tactical propulsion at Nammo. "You are putting a missile into a gun," he said, amid the noise of grinding metal on the factory floor.

The company's ramjet technology works by allowing air to enter through the front of the shell at high speed. The air is compressed and oxidizes the rocket fuel, allowing it to burn. Using outside air means ramjet shells don't need to have oxidizer as part of their propellant, meaning they can cram in more fuel.

Nammo and Boeing said a test in Arizona last month set a new distance record, without disclosing how far the shell was fired.

Nammo has been working on ramjet shells since 2018, and the project won't be ready for serial production for an additional three years, Lien said. The company has already tested the engine some 400 times while fixed statically in a workshop and a further 50 times out of an artillery gun.

One challenge of the push is ensuring that any new components inside the shell can withstand the extreme force that comes from being fired out of a gun, said Camilla Kirkemo Alm, a senior development engineer at Nammo.

BAE Systems is also working on new shells that it says have set distance records, partly thanks to being smaller.

Europe's largest defense company is using shells that are around half the size of the usual 155-millimeter caliber that is used by standard Western howitzers. To fire the new shell out of standard barrels, BAE has encased it with a light metal sheath that falls off as soon as the projectile leaves the gun. Typically, the smaller a shell, the further it will travel.

"Traditionally, if you wanted the shell to fire further you would just extend the barrel or increase the propellant, and armies have not really switched away from the same basic projectile design used since the end of the Second World War," said Jim Miller, vice president of business development at BAE's combat mission systems business.

Miller, a former U.S. artillery officer, said BAE's goal is to double the range of one type of longer-barreled artillery gun, known as a 52-caliber gun. Last year the company fired a version of its new shell around 68 miles from one of these barrels and is working on extending its range even further.

Firing longer distances has become particularly important in Ukraine. The widespread use of drones means it is easy to spot artillery and then target it. The further away a gun can be, the more likely it will be out of the range of drones and counterfire.

"Range is becoming critical for simple survival," Miller said.

Munitions makers are also working to modernize shells in other ways.

Nammo is developing shells fired by tanks where the operator can decide on the type of effect.

For example, the shell could be programmed to explode in the air above a target or to penetrate its armor.

Other companies are exploring the possibility of being able to adjust how much of a shell's warhead detonates at the target, to potentially reduce collateral damage.

And other companies are working to increase manufacturing capacity and speed up production amid higher demand from Ukraine and, more recently, Israel. A shortage of shells in the U.S. and Europe has meant Ukraine has been forced to ration their use at some points.

Both the U.S. and Europe produced about 300,000 artillery shells last year, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The European Union believes its producers can increase production to one million shells by next year and the U.S. is looking at a level of 1.2 million." [1]

More propellant means bigger shock to the brains of the people operating these machines. Later in life these people end up with mental problems and even suicides from repetitive brain damage. Lithuanian elite is enthusiastically dragging all Lithuanian population into training in this Cold War II that we are seeing today. Training to use these shells is enough to get brain damage. You do not have to participate in real action in a war. Stop the madness.

1. The Artillery Shell Goes High Tech. MacDonald, Alistair.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 24 Nov 2023: B.1. 

JAV atliekamas užsieniečių stebėjimas

    "JAV susiduria su grėsmėmis iš visų pasaulio kampelių. Kinijoje pagamintas fentanilis ir jo cheminiai pirmtakai liejasi per pietinę sieną, o Komunistų partija kelia grėsmę Indo-Ramiajame vandenyne. Irano teroristų įgaliotiniai, įskaitant "Hamas" ir "Hezbollah", šaudo į Amerikos sąjungininkus ir karius Artimuosiuose Rytuose. Šiaurės Korėja bando balistines raketas. Įvykiai Ukrainoje tęsiasi. Kiekvienas iš jų kelia pavojų amerikiečiams namuose.

 

     Amerikos saugumas priklauso nuo mūsų gebėjimo suprasti šias grėsmes ir į jas reaguoti. Tačiau Užsienio žvalgybos stebėjimo įstatymo (FISA) 702 skirsnis, pagrindinis būdas rinkti informaciją apie tokias grėsmes, nustoja galioti gruodžio 31 d.

 

     Leisti jam pasibaigti dėl netinkamo susirūpinimo amerikiečių privatumu būtų didžiulė klaida.

 

     Pirmą kartą priimtas 2008 m., siekiant atkurti ilgalaikius pajėgumus, o vėliau du kartus patvirtintas dviejų partijų daugumos, 702 skirsnis leidžia federalinei vyriausybei vykdyti elektroninį užsieniečių, esančių už šalies ribų, stebėjimą.

 

     Statutas aiškiai draudžia nusitaikyti į bet kurį amerikietį be federalinio teisėjo įsakymo ir taip pat draudžia „atvirkštinį taikymą“ arba užsieniečio stebėjimą užsienyje, kaip pretekstą nusitaikyti į amerikietį.

 

     Tačiau kai vyriausybė renka ne amerikiečio ryšius užsienyje, tai taip pat yra sužino jo bendravimo su amerikiečiais detales. Tai funkcija, o ne klaida. Užsienio taikiniai gali būti teroristai arba žvalgybos pareigūnai, todėl būtų visiškai pagrįsta ištirti jų bendravimą su amerikiečiais, kurie gali būti patys blogi veikėjai, bendrininkai ar numatytos aukos. Toks tyrimas atliekamas, pateikiant užklausą Federalinio tyrimų biuro 702 skirsnio duomenų bazėje – teisėtai surinktos žvalgybos informacijos apie ne amerikiečius užsienyje pogrupyje.

 

     Be abejo, FISA daugelį metų išgyveno nemažą kritikos dalį dėl blogų FTB veikėjų piktnaudžiavimo. Dalį tos kritikos nusipelnė. Agentūra retkarčiais atlikdavo pernelyg plačias paieškas, daugiausia dėl nekaltų klaidų arba pastangų identifikuoti amerikiečių aukas nuo užsienio išpuolių.

 

     Tačiau kitais atvejais piktnaudžiavimas įstatymu buvo tyčinis. Bene žinomiausias pavyzdys buvo FTB vykdomas Carterio Page, Donaldo Trumpo patarėjo rinkiminėje kampanijoje, stebėjimas 2016 m., kaip dalis agentūros ilgus metus trunkančio tyrimo dėl D. Trumpo ryšių su Rusija rinkimų kampanijos metu. Vyriausybė klaidingai pasiūlė, kad ponas Peidžas yra Rusijos agentas; FTB advokatas tada tyčia suklaidino teismą, leisdamas toliau sekti p. Page. Tačiau šis piktybinis elgesys kilo dėl melo FISA teismui, o ne dėl 702 skirsnio naudojimo ar netinkamo naudojimo.

 

     Žvalgybos duomenys, surinkti, taikant į ne amerikiečius užsienyje, yra labai svarbūs nacionaliniam saugumui. Remiantis JAV žvalgybos bendruomenės ataskaita, pagal 702 skyrių surinkta informacija prisidėjo prie daugiau, nei pusės, įslaptintų elementų prezidento kasdieniame didelio prioriteto žvalgybos ir grėsmių instruktaže 2022 m.

 

     Tačiau Kongreso kritikai, tokie, kaip senatorius Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) ir Rep. Andy Biggs (R., Ariz.), deda pastangas, kad iš naujo nepatvirtintų 702 skyrių. Jie teigia, kad reikalavimas orderio jau teisėtai kratai tarp surinktų duomenų yra būtinas, siekiant apsaugoti paprastų amerikiečių privatumą, o tokio orderio reikalavimas nesudaro didelės naštos tyrėjams.

 

     Tačiau toks reikalavimas kiekvienai užklausai, susijusiai su amerikiečiais, FTB 702 skirsnio duomenų bazėje, būtų ir beprasmiška, ir pernelyg apsunkintų. Pasak Teisingumo departamento, FTB ieškoma informacija apie amerikiečius sudaro mažiau, nei 4% visos 702 skyriaus duomenų bazės taikinių, o visa tai jau buvo surinkta teisėtomis priemonėmis. Be to, reikalauti, kad vyriausybė parodytų tikėtiną nusikaltimo įrodymų egzistavimo priežastį, prieš pradedant ištirti duomenų bazėje esančius įrodymus, pats savaime yra nelogiškas. Vyriausybė atlieka tyrimus, įskaitant 702 skyriaus duomenų bazės užklausas, siekdama nustatyti, ar yra galimos priežasties įrodymų, o ne po to, kai tokie įrodymai jau yra surasti.

 

     Be to, Konstitucija neįpareigoja teisėsaugos pateikti prašymą teisėjui atlikti teisėtai surinktos informacijos paiešką. Taip yra dėl geros priežasties: procesas paprasčiausiai užtruks laiko, kurį geriau praleisti renkant informaciją, svarbią tautos saugumui.

 

     Vietoj to Kongresas turėtų apsvarstyti būdus, kaip užkirsti kelią žvalgybos agentūrų nesėkmėms. Įstatymų leidėjai galėtų reikalauti, kad FTB agentai gautų aukštesnio rango patvirtinimus jautriems klausimams, įskaitant pareigūno, kuris tiesiogiai atskaitingas FTB direktoriui. Taip pat gali būti taikomos griežtos drausminės nuobaudos tiems, kurie tyčia atliko netinkamas kratas. Tokios apsaugos priemonės kartu geriau apsaugotų amerikiečių privatumą ir saugumą.

 

     Daugiau, nei prieš du dešimtmečius, vyriausybė neteisingai suprato įstatymą reikalavimą, kad žvalgybos duomenų rinkimas ir teisėsauga būtų griežtai atskirti, todėl atsirado tai, kas tapo žinoma, kaip „siena“. CŽV nepasidalijo svarbia informacija apie du teroristus Nawafą al-Hazmi ir Khalidą al-Mihdharą, kurie 2000 m. sausį išvyko į JAV ir anksčiau buvo nufotografuoti „al Qaeda“ susitikime Malaizijoje. Jie buvo tarp teroristų, kurie užgrobė 77-ąjį skrydį, kuris smogė Pentagonui rugsėjo 11 d. FISA peržiūros teismas vėliau padarys išvadą, kad statutas nereikalauja tokios sienos.

 

     Hipotetiniai rūpesčiai dėl privatumo neturėtų nukreipti Kongreso nuo pareigos apsaugoti amerikiečius. Nepriimtina leisti nustoti galioti įstatymui arba suvaržyti mūsų nacionalinės saugumo agentūras nereikalingais reglamentais. Jei Kongresas tai padarys ir grįš prie mąstysenos, buvusios prieš rugsėjo 11-ąją, mes visi žinosime, kas kaltas.

     --

     M. Mukasey ėjo JAV generalinio prokuroro pareigas 2007–2009 m., o 1988–2006 m. – dirbo JAV apygardos teisėju. P. Jafferis yra George'o Masono universiteto Scalia teisės mokyklos Nacionalinio saugumo instituto įkūrėjas ir vykdomasis direktorius.“ [1]

 

1. We Can't Return to a Pre-9/11 Mindset on Foreign Surveillance. Mukasey, Michael B; Jaffer, Jamil N.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 24 Nov 2023: A.17.

U.S. Foreign Surveillance

"The U.S. faces threats from every corner of the globe. Chinese-made fentanyl and its chemical precursors pour through the southern border, and the Communist Party menaces in the Indo-Pacific. Iran's terrorist proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah, fire on American allies and troops in the Mideast. North Korea tests ballistic missiles. Events in Ukraine continue. Each of them endangers Americans at home to boot.

America's security depends on our ability to understand and respond to these threats. Yet Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, the primary method for gathering intel against such threats, expires Dec. 31. 

Letting it lapse over misplaced concerns about Americans' privacy would be an egregious mistake.

First enacted in 2008 to restore longstanding capabilities -- and subsequently reauthorized twice by bipartisan majorities -- Section 702 permits the federal government to conduct electronic surveillance of foreigners located outside the country. 

The statute explicitly prohibits targeting any American without an order from a federal judge and likewise prohibits "reverse targeting," or surveilling a foreigner abroad as a pretext for targeting an American.

Yet when the government gathers a non-American's communications abroad, it's also privy to his communications with Americans. This is a feature, not a bug. Foreign targets could be terrorists or intelligence officers, making it wholly reasonable to examine their communications with Americans, who could be bad actors themselves, accomplices or intended victims. Such examination is done by querying the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Section 702 database, a subset of lawfully collected intelligence on non-Americans abroad.

To be sure, FISA has endured its fair share of criticism over the years owing to abuse by bad actors within the FBI. Some of that criticism has been deserved. The agency has occasionally conducted overbroad searches, largely as a result of innocent errors or efforts to identify American victims of foreign attacks.

In other instances, however, the statute's misuse has been intentional. Perhaps the most notorious example was the FBI's surveillance of Carter Page, Donald Trump's campaign adviser in 2016, as part of the agency's yearslong probe into Mr. Trump's campaign ties with Russia. The government erroneously suggested Mr. Page was a Russian asset; an FBI lawyer then intentionally misled the court, permitting continued surveillance of Mr. Page. That malign conduct, however, arose from a lie to the FISA court, not from any use or misuse of Section 702.

Intelligence gathered by targeting non-Americans abroad is essential to national security. According to a U.S. intelligence community report, the information collected through Section 702 contributed to more than half the classified items in the president's daily high-priority intelligence and threat briefing in 2022. 

Yet congressional critics, such as Sen. Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) and Rep. Andy Biggs (R., Ariz.), are holding up efforts to reauthorize Section 702. They argue that requiring a warrant for searches of already lawfully collected data is necessary to protect the privacy of ordinary Americans, and that requiring such a warrant imposes no substantial burden on investigators.

Yet such a requirement for every query involving Americans in the FBI's Section 702 database would be both nonsensical and unduly burdensome. According to the Justice Department, FBI-searchable information on Americans amounts to less than 4% of the targets in the overall Section 702 database, all of which has already been gathered by lawful means. Moreover, requiring the government to show probable cause that evidence of a crime exists before the evidence in the database can be examined is itself illogical. The government conducts investigations, including queries of the Section 702 database, to determine whether there is evidence of probable cause -- not after such evidence is already in hand.

Further, the Constitution doesn't mandate that law enforcement present an application to a judge to search lawfully collected information. That's for good reason: The process would simply take up time better spent gathering intel critical to the nation's security.

Congress should instead consider ways to prevent intelligence agency failures. Legislators could require FBI agents to get more senior approvals for sensitive inquiries, including from an official that directly reports to the FBI director. It likewise could impose strict disciplinary actions on those found to have willfully conducted improper searches. Such safeguards would simultaneously better protect Americans' privacy and security.

More than two decades ago, the government misread into the law a requirement that intelligence gathering and law enforcement be strictly separated, resulting in what became known as "the wall." This led to the CIA failing to share critical information it had on two terrorists, Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar, who had traveled to the U.S. in January 2000 and previously been photographed at an al Qaeda meeting in Malaysia. They were among the terrorists who hijacked Flight 77, which struck the Pentagon on Sept. 11. The FISA Court of Review would later conclude the statute required no such wall.

Hypothetical concerns over privacy shouldn't divert Congress from its duty to protect Americans. Allowing the law to expire or hamstringing our national-security agencies with needless regulations is unacceptable. If Congress does so and returns to a pre-9/11 mindset, we will all know who is to blame.

---

Mr. Mukasey served as U.S. attorney general, 2007-09, and as a U.S. district judge, 1988-2006. Mr. Jaffer is the founder and executive director of the National Security Institute at the Scalia Law School of George Mason University." [1]

1. We Can't Return to a Pre-9/11 Mindset on Foreign Surveillance. Mukasey, Michael B; Jaffer, Jamil N.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 24 Nov 2023: A.17.

Kaip investuoti į įmones ir žmones

  "Ponas Mungeris dažnai buvo laikomas Berkshire Hathaway moraliniu kompasu, patarinėjo Buffettui personalo ir investicijų klausimais. Jo samdymo politika: "Pirmiausia pasitikėjimas, o antroje vietoje gebėjimai."

 

     Buffettas jį apibūdino, kaip Berkshire Hathaway investavimo metodo pradininką. „Jo man duotas planas buvo paprastas: pamirškite tai, ką žinote apie padorių įmonių pirkimą nuostabiomis kainomis; vietoj to pirkite nuostabias įmones padoriomis kainomis“, – kartą metinėje ataskaitoje rašė ponas Buffettas." [1]

1. Charles T. Munger, Buffett's One-of-a-Kind No. 2, Is Dead at 99: [Biography]. Andrew Ross Sorkin; Hershey, Robert D, Jr.  New York Times, Late Edition (East Coast); New York, N.Y.. 30 Nov 2023: B.12.

How to invest in companies and people

"Mr. Munger was often viewed as the moral compass of Berkshire Hathaway, advising Mr. Buffett on personnel issues as well as investments. His hiring policy: "Trust first, ability second."

Mr. Buffett has described him as the originator of Berkshire Hathaway's investing approach. "The blueprint he gave me was simple: Forget what you know about buying fair businesses at wonderful prices; instead, buy wonderful businesses at fair prices," Mr. Buffett once wrote in an annual report." [1]

1. Charles T. Munger, Buffett's One-of-a-Kind No. 2, Is Dead at 99: [Biography]. Andrew Ross Sorkin; Hershey, Robert D, Jr.  New York Times, Late Edition (East Coast); New York, N.Y.. 30 Nov 2023: B.12.