Land of Promise

by James Wesley, Rawles

  Ball: A full metal jacket bullet. See also: FMJ.

  Basic: Short for Basic Military Training.

  BATFE: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; a U.S. federal government taxing agency.

  BBC: British Broadcasting Corporation.

  BCC: Blind Carbon Copy. See also: CC.

  BCT: Basic Combat Training. See also: AIT and IADT.

  BDS: Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions.

  BDU: Battle Dress Uniform. Also called “camouflage utilities” by the USMC. Most BDUs were made in the woodland camouflage pattern.

  Beam director: A device, usually tilting and pivoting, designed for directing the projection of directed energy weapons such as high energy lasers and particle beams.

  BeSeder: Israel slang for “okay.” This is a shortened form of the common Hebrew expression: “Ha kol beseder”, meaing “Everything is fine.”

  Biltong: An Afrikaner style of jerky, made with various meats.

  BITE: Built-In Test Equipment.

  Black Rifle/Black Gun: Generic terms for a modern battle rifle—typically equipped with a black plastic stock and forend, giving these guns an “all black” appearance. Functionally, however, they are little different from earlier semiauto designs.

  BTAG: Body Temperature Ambiguity Grayout. The Ilemi-coined acronym for unusual situations where the soil or air temperature is between 98.4 and 98.6 degrees, making it hard to distinguish the heat signature of a human target with a thermal weapons sight. (Predictive.)

  BLM: Bureau of Land Management (a U.S. federal government agency that administers public lands).

  BMG: Browning Machine Gun. Usually refers to .50 BMG, the U.S. military’s standard heavy machinegun cartridge since the early twentieth century. The .50 BMG cartridge is now often used for long-range precision countersniper rifles. See also: M2.

  BMO: Black Moving Object, (U.S. Army slang for a woman wearing a hijab.) see also: Hijab.

  Bobotie: South African sweet curried ground meat dish.

  Body-Cam: A body-mounted camera, typically worn by law enforcement officers.

  Braai: Afrikaans for barbeque.

  Bratva: The Russian mafia.

  BTC: Bitcoin(s).

  Burqa: An enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic traditions to cover their bodies when in public. With a burqa (also transliterated burkha, bourkha, burka or burqu’ and also known as chadri or paranja in Central Asia), the face-veiling portion is usually a rectangular piece of semi-transparent cloth with its top edge attached to a portion of the head-scarf so that the veil hangs down covering the face and can be turned up if the woman wishes to reveal her face. In other styles, the niqāb of the veil is attached by one side, and covers the face only below the eyes, allowing the eyes to be seen. (WP). Also See Hijab, Chador, and Niqab.

  C1: The Canadian Army’s version of the L1A1 FAL variant.

  C2: The Canadian Army’s version of the L2A1 heavy barrel FAL variant.

  C4: Composition 4. A plastic explosive.

  C7: The Canadian Army’s version of the M16A4 rifle. Produced by Diemaco, and later by Colt Canada. Also issued by Denmark, Holland, and Sweden.

  C8: The Canadian Army’s version of the M4 carbine

  Caliph: An Islamic leader who is seen as both a religious and a political leader.

  Caliphate: An Islamic state that is led by a Caliph, who serves as both a religious and a political leader. Sunni Muslims, llike the ones involved with ISIS, believe Caliphs should be elected.

  Calvinism: See Five Points of Calvinism.

  Camo: Slang contraction for camouflage.CAR-15: See M4.

  Cat: Slang contraction for Caterpillar (tracked tractor).

  CAT: Combat Application Tourniquet.

  CB: Citizen’s Band radio. A VHF broadcasting band. No license is required for operation in the United States. Some desirable CB transceivers are capable of SSB operation. Originally twenty-three channels, the Citizen’s Band was later expanded to forty channels.

  CBC: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

  C-Beam: Coherent beam. See also: LINAC and DEW.

  CBO: Community Based Organization(s).

  CBP: Customs & Border Protection.

  CC: Carbon Copy for paper communication or e-mail with multiple addressees are said to be “CCed” or “CCd/cc’d”. See also: BCC.

  CCC: Caron Caves Construction. (Fictional.)

  Centime: An Ilemi coin re-minted from existing U.S. Nickel (5 cent) coins. Centime coins were used for small transactions and to make change for Silmo coin transactions. 100 Centimes equaled 1/10th ounce of silver, and 1,000 Centimes could be exchanged for a full Silmo. (Fictional.) See also: Silmo.

  CEO: Chief Executive Officer.

  CFO: Chief Financial Officer.

  CG: Center of Gravity.

  Chador: An outer garment or open cloak worn by many Iranian women and female teenagers in public spaces. (WP)

  Chan: Short for Channel. (Tor Internet discussion forums.)

  CHINO: Christian in Name Only.

  Chopper: Slang for helicopter.

  CHU: Containerized Housing Unit.

  CI: Counterintelligence. Also See HUMINT.

  CIA: Central Intelligence Agency.

  Class A - Citizens who were born in Ilemi territory, who lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, and who own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement. Jury eligible. Eligible to vote and assigned 10 votes. If they sell their land that results in a holding of less than one hectare then their Citizenship will automatically revert to Class E.

  Class B - Citizens who were born in Ilemi territory, but who do not lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, and who own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. No Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement, but allowed to travel to the Ilemi Republic for annual service, if they wish. Not jury eligible. Eligible to vote and assigned 2 votes. Upon returning and residing in the country continuously for 30 weeks, they are eligible to demand a change to their Citizenship Class.

  Class C - Citizens who were born in Ilemi territory, and who do not lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, and who do not own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. No Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement, but allowed to travel to the Ilemi Republic for IADT and annual service, if they wish. Not jury eligible. Eligible to vote and assigned 1 vote.

  Class D - Citizens who were not born in Ilemi territory, and who do not lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, and who do not own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. No Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement, but allowed to travel to the Ilemi Republic for annual service, if they wish. Not jury eligible. Not eligible to vote. If they buy at least one hectare of freeheld land, their Citizenship status automatically changes to Class G.

  Class E - Citizens who were born in Ilemi territory, and who lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, but who do not own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement. Jury eligible. Eligible to vote and assigned 3 votes. If they lawfully gain title to at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory then they are eligible to demand a change to their Citizenship Class A.

  Class F - Citizens who were not born in Ilemi territory, and who lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, but who do not own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement. Jury eligible. Not eligible to vote. If they lawfully gain title to at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory then they are eligible to demand a change to their Citizenship Class.

  Class G – Citizens who were not born in Ilemi territory, and who do not lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each. No Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement, but they are allowed to travel to th
e Ilemi Republic for IADT and annual service, if they wish. Not jury eligible. Not eligible to vote. Eligible to hold a bank account. Eligible to keep and bear arms whenever they visit Ilemi territory. Upon residing in the country continuously for 181 days, they are eligible to demand a change to their Citizenship Class. By definition, a Class G Citizen is the owner of at least 1 hectare of land, but limited to owning no more than 10 hectares of land inside of Ilemi territory, and only if they pay in full at the time of purchase. (No mortgaged land ownership allowed.) If they sell their land to a holding of less than one hectare, their Citizenship automatically reverts to Class D.

  Class H - Citizens who were not born in Ilemi territory, and who lawfully reside in the country for at least 181 days of each year, and who own at least one hectare of land inside Ilemi territory. Ilemi Republic Defense Force service requirement. Jury eligible. Eligible to vote and assigned 1 vote. Eligible to hold a bank account.

  Note: The aforementioned 181-day requirements are waived for diplomatic personnel and for any Citizens in the transportation industry with a company headquartered in the Ilemi Republic and who maintain a home inside of Ilemi territory, and who are resident for at least 45 non-consecutive days of each year.

  CLP: Cleaner, Lubricant, Protectant. A Mil-Spec lubricant, sold under the trade name “Break Free CLP.”

  CLVRA: Christian Libertarian Virtual Roundtable of Africa. (Fictional.)

  CNA: Computer Network Attack.

  CNE: Computer Network Exploitation.

  CO: Depending on context: Conscientious Objector, Commanding Officer, or Carbon Monoxide.

  CO2: Carbon Dioxide.

  CODESA: Convention for Democratic South Africa.

  COIN: Counterinsurgency.

  COMINT: Communications Intelligence.

  Comp: Slang contraction for computer.

  COMSEC: Communications Security. The measures used to protect both classified and unclassified traffic on military communications and computing networks.

  CONEX: CONtinental EXpress. The ubiquitous twenty-, thirty-, and forty-foot-long steel cargo containers used in multiple transportation modes. Also commonly called Cargo Containers.

  CONUS: Continental United States.

  COPD: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

  Copter: Slang for helicopter.

  Cougar: An MRAP and infantry mobility vehicle structured to be resistant to landmines and improvised munitions. It is a family of armored vehicles produced by Force Protection Industries Inc., which manufactures ballistic and mine-protected vehicles. The vehicles are integrated by Spartan Motors. These vehicles are protected against small arms, land mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) using a combination of design features and materials to protect both the crew and engine compartment against a wide range of attacks. A Monocoque type, V-shaped hull extends to the engine bay and serves to direct the blast away from under the vehicle. The dual air-conditioners help keep heavily dressed troops from overheating in temperatures over 100 °F (38 °C) in Iraq. (WP.) See also: MRAP.

  CP: Command Post.

  CPR: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.

  CPX: Command Post Exercise. See also: FTX.

  CR1M: Combat Ration, One Man. (Spoken “Crim.”) The Australian equivalent of the U.S. MRE field ration. (See also: MRE and IMP.) CR5M: Combat Ration, Five Man (CR5M).

  CRIT: Catholic Refugees in Transit. (Fictional.)

  CRKT: Columbia River Knife & Tool.

  Crunchies: Tanker slang for dismounted infantry.

  CSFN: Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth.

  CT: Counterterrorism.

  CTF: Capture the Flag. See also: DEFCON.

  CTO: Chief Technical Officer.

  CUT: Coordinated Universal Time. See also: GMT.

  DAC: Department of the Army Civilian.

  Daʿish: See ISIL.

  Darknet: In most uses: A private computer network with traffic only between each computer within a peer to peer network.

  Dashika: See DsHK.

  Datamining: An interdisciplinary subfield of computer science, datamining is the computational process of discovering patterns in large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics, and database systems. The overall goal of the data mining process is to extract information from a data set and transform it into an understandable structure for further use. (WP.)

  Dati: The generic Hebrew term for observant Jews. See also: Masorati and Non-Observant.)

  DB: Database

  Db: Decibel. A measurement unit of sound intensity.

  D&C: Drill and Ceremonies.

  DC: Depending on context, Direct Current or District of Columbia (D.C.).

  DCI: Director of Central Intelligence.

  DC-SOC: Direct Commissioning Selectee Orientation Course. (Fictional.)

  DD: Department of Defense (typically used as a prefix for form numbers.) See also: DOD.

  Deepnet: See Deep Web.

  Deep Web: The portion of World Wide Web content that is not indexed by standard search engines. The Deep Web is also called the Deepnet, Invisible Web, or Hidden Web. Traditional search engines cannot see nor retrieve content in the deep web. The portion of the web that is indexed by standard search engines is known as the surface web. The deep web is several orders of magnitude larger than the surface web.

  The deep web is a separate entity from the dark internet, which is made up of computers that can no longer be reached via the internet. Also, the Darknet—ambiguously known as Dark Web—which consists of various anonymizing networks like Tor and the resources that they provide access to, is not synonymous with the deep web, but is a subsection of it. (WP.) See also: Tor.

  DEF CON (also written as DEFCON or Defcon): One of the world’s largest annual hacker conventions, held every year in Las Vegas, Nevada. The first DEF CON took place in June 1993. Many of the attendees at DEF CON include computer security professionals, journalists, lawyers, federal government employees, security researchers, and hackers with a general interest in software, computer architecture, phone phreaking, hardware modification, and anything else that can be “cracked.” The event consists of several tracks of speakers about computer- and cracking-related subjects, as well as social events and contests in everything from creating the longest Wi-Fi connection and cracking computer systems to who can most effectively cool a beer in the Nevada heat. Other contests include lockpicking, art, slogan, scavenger hunt and Capture the Flag. Capture the Flag (CTF) is perhaps the best known of these contests. It is a hacking competition where teams of crackers attempt to attack and defend computers and networks using certain software and network structures. CTF has been emulated at other cracking conferences as well as in academic and military contexts. (WP)

  Denel Land Systems: A South African arms and military vehicle maker. See also: G5 and G6.

  Discrim: Slang contraction for discriminate.

  Det Cord: Short for detonating cord—a plastic tube filled with PETN. It is typically used for connecting multiple explosive charges, so that they detonate almost simultaneously.

  DEW: Directed Energy Weapon. See also: C-Beam and LINAC.

  DF: Direction Finding.

  DHS: Department of Homeland Security.

  DIA: Defense Intelligence Agency.

  DMV: Department of Motor Vehicles.

  DNA: Deoxyribonucleic acid.

  DOD or DoD: Department of Defense. See also: DD.

  Dog and Pony Show: Military slang expression for any exercise or briefing put on simply to impress senior staff officers and commanders. See also: Goat Rope.

  DoKa: Dopple Kabine. The European truck world’s term for a crew cab pickup.

  DPI: Deep Packet Inspection.

  DPM: Disruptive Pattern Material. A British military camouflage pattern, with colors similar to the U.S. Army’s defunct woodland BDU pattern.

  Dragunov: See SVD.

  DRC: Democratic Republic of the Congo.

  Drone: An unmanned
aircraft. See also: RPV, UAV, and UAVIED.

  Dry-EX: An annual IRDF training exercise, held the first two weeks of February. (Land navigation, maneuver training, and blank fire only.) (Fictional.) See also: Wet-EX.

  DSArms: An American gunmaking company, founded by Dave Selvaggio. (“D.S.”)

  DShK: Degtyaryova-Shpagina Krupnokaliberny, or “Degtyaryov-Shpagin Large-Caliber”—a 12.7mm Russian machinegun, later produced in several other communist countries. Informally called a “Dashika”, by some users. Used in roles similar to the M2 Browning .50 Caliber.

  Dual Use: See” End User/End Use Certificate .

  Dustoff: U.S. military slang for an aeromedical evacuation flight—usually by helicopter.

  EA: Export Authorization.

  EAR: Export Administration Regulations. See also: ITAR.

  EBB: Equatorial Bivouac Bag. (Fictional.)

  EBO: Hellenic Arms Industry (Greek: Ελληνική Βιομηχανία Όπλων, abbreviated EBO, spoken Elliniki Viomichania Oplon), a licensed manufacturer of HK G3 rifles and parts, in Greece.

  Ebola DRC: (Ebola – Democratic Republic of the Congo.) The pandemic originating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the 2030s that depleted the world’s population by 20% overall, and 70% in Africa. (Fictional.)

  ECCN: Export Control Classification Number (ECCN).

  EDR: Event Data Recorder. Commonly called a “black box.”

  E&E: Escape and Evasion.

  EFSS: Expeditionary Fire Support System.

  ELINT: Electronic Intelligence.

  ELT: Emergency Locator Transmitter.

  End User/End Use Certificate: A document issued by a national government that guarantees that the end user of a piece of military equipment is a qualified military or police organization. These certificates are required in the 41 countries that are signatories to the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies. Per this agreement, the certificate must clearly identify both the end use and the end user. The exporting country government’s limitation on the end user and/or end use, must be expressed as a negative assurance (for example prohibiting transfer or re-export without the exporting country government’s prior consent), or alternatively as a positive assurance (for example “for national military use”, or “for integration” into a specified aircraft, vessel, or weapon system.)