Opposing force
20
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9
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5
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Search complete. 20 mentions across 9 episodes found for "Opposing force".
Sep 28, 2026
Steve RussellGUEST
I, I was a captain and, uh, and then I ended up commanding a rifle company for a couple of years, and, uh, had, uh, but it was awesome.
Steve RussellGUEST
Uh, I was, uh, i- in the, uh, OpFOR battalion, opposing forces battalion.
Steve RussellGUEST
I had 50 to 60 combat vehicles as a captain.
AJ PasciutiHOST
[laughs]
Steve RussellGUEST
And, and here I am, this 26, 27-year-old captain, I got 6, 700 troops under me-
AJ PasciutiHOST
Mm-hmm
Steve RussellGUEST
... fighting lieutenant colonels as a part of the OpFOR.
AJ PasciutiHOST
Love that.
speaker_2VOICE_ACTOR
Probably just another Marine.
speaker_2VOICE_ACTOR
Maybe OPFOR, one of the Eval guys.
speaker_2VOICE_ACTOR
Then why the hell aren't they moving? Hey.
speaker_2VOICE_ACTOR
You good? Oh,
Luke LamanaHOST
I didn't have an MDO sight on the gun, machine gun, day optic, so I didn't have any magnification, but I was absolutely sure there was someone out there.
Luke LamanaHOST
I wasn't told about any OPFOR, any role players, you know, role playing enemies out there.
Luke LamanaHOST
So I didn't want to start engaging this guy, you know, start shooting at him or something and then look like a moron, you know, because I'm a boot and I'm trying not to embarrass myself.
Luke LamanaHOST
Well, pretty sure I ended up looking like an idiot anyway, because when I called my team leader to come over and have a look, well, whatever I was looking at, it was gone.
Luke LamanaHOST
It turns out he was off taking care of some urgent family issue while we were in the field.
Luke LamanaHOST
And to make matters worse, we were the only unit training in that area that night.
Luke LamanaHOST
There was no OPFOR, there were no other observers, just us.
Luke LamanaHOST
Since then, I have never spoken to anybody about this experience, but after reading through my notes and writing it all out, I ended up reaching out to my old team leader to ask if he remembered that field op and the figure we saw observing us from off in the brush.
Thomas777GUEST
But, um, also it's, um, you know, uh, it opens the door to negotiation.
Thomas777GUEST
And negotiation is, despite what Mr. Zelensky might claim, or despite what the Israelis claim about terrorists, or despite what America claims about whoever it's angry with at any given day, if you just claim you refuse to negotiate with OPFOR, you're pissing under the wind.
Thomas777GUEST
You can't just sit about to resolve all political questions militarily or by threat of force.
Thomas777GUEST
That's asinine.
ThomasGUEST
But also, it opens the door to negotiation.
ThomasGUEST
Okay, and negotiation is, I mean, despite what Mr. Zelensky might claim, or despite what the Israelis claim about terrorists, or despite what America claims about, you know, whoever it's angry with at any given day, if you just claim you refuse to negotiate with OPFOR, like you're pissing under the wind, you know, you can't just sit about to resolve all political questions, like militarily, or by, like, threat of force that's asinine.
ThomasGUEST
But there has to be some sort of equality of status, if not full equality.
ThomasGUEST
You've got to be treated as existing, if not on sovereign footing, at least on legitimate terms as a political actor.
Thomas777GUEST
And this is very important.
Thomas777GUEST
Now, interestingly, and perhaps this won't surprise anybody, you know, really the pioneers of political warfare as, you know, from the side of, you know, the colonialist power or kind of perspective of, you know, the more powerful combatant, or if you will, you know, the party combatant who, like America, who was, you know, perpetually returning to serve when OPFOR decided to act, you know, the United Kingdom really kind of perfected what became asymmetrical warfare doctrine and political warfare doctrine.
Thomas777GUEST
Okay.
Thomas777GUEST
We're talking about Operation Banner and how Frank Kitson, you know, in Northern Ireland, especially owing to our viewing of Resurrection Man, Frank Kitson, one of his, I mean, basically the key takeaway from his kind of operational theory, if it can be distilled down to one kind of core principle on how to wage war against an insurgency, is you've got to create a counter gang.
8 MINS LATER
Thomas777GUEST
You know, they'll disappear literally into the ether and then they'll like lob a satchel charge into like the turret hatch, you know, like when one of your people like pops his head out for a smoke, you know.
Thomas777GUEST
And that's something that's kind of understated.
Thomas777GUEST
Needing to mirror what OPFOR is in order to annihilate him in kind of like the post-conventional Westphalian landscape.
Thomas777GUEST
Now, what was Gladio and how does that have to do with like anything I was just talking about? Well, around 1952, America and the UK, this is when they became really truly kind of like fully indexed in military terms, not just at the operational and kind of command and control level and drilling with one another, you know, like in the inner German border, you know, be it the North German plains, which is primarily the British and Benelux states responsibility and like the Fulda Gap, which is primarily American armored cavalries area of operation.
ThomasGUEST
And then they'll like lob a satchel charge into like the turret hatch, you know, like when you're, when one of your people like pops his head out for a smoke, you know, and that's something that's kind of understated.
ThomasGUEST
Needing to mirror what OPFOR is in order to annihilate him, um, in kind of like a post-conventional Westphalian, uh, landscape.
ThomasGUEST
Now, what was Gladio and how does that have to do with like anything I was just talking about? Well, around 1952, America and the UK, this is when they became really, truly kind of like fully indexed in military terms, not, not, not just at the operational and kind of command and control level and, and drilling with one another, you know, like, uh, in the inner German border, you know, um, be it the North German, North German plains, which is primarily the British and the Benelux state's responsibility and like the Fulda Gap, which is primarily American armored cavalries area of operation.
ThomasGUEST
But they like, like a conceptual indexing like took root.
Luke LamanaHOST
Two men fighting positions.
Luke LamanaHOST
Expecting OPFOR role players, enemy operational forces, to hassle us all night.
Luke LamanaHOST
What time is it?
speaker_6VOICE_ACTOR
it?Hold up.
speaker_6VOICE_ACTOR
What was that? I don't know.
speaker_6VOICE_ACTOR
Whatever it was, it had a face.
speaker_6VOICE_ACTOR
You, you mean it was- No, that was not OPFOR.
speaker_6VOICE_ACTOR
Was it an animal? Bro, it had a face.
Mike GriffinGUEST
Or something, you know, your op for comes in on a tax and like, well, I don't have...
Mike GriffinGUEST
Like I dumped my food because we had to repel OPFOR.
Mike GriffinGUEST
And now I lost a thousand calories versus like, hey, you know, I grab a couple of salami bites and eat them and eat half a pack of crackers.
Mike GriffinGUEST
And I pack my stuff and I get back to doing what I'm doing.