Manila, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – Forget the ‘shock and awe’ that Baghdad experienced when the U.S. launched its first airstrikes that began the war on Iraq. It is no match to what Manila saw on New Year’s eve: widespread ground and air strikes.

‘Shock and awe’ (technically known as rapid dominance) is a military doctrine based on the use of overwhelming power, dominant battlefield awareness and maneuvers, and spectacular displays of force to paralyze the enemy’s perception of the battlefield and destroy its will to fight. The doctrine was written by Harlan K. Ullman and James P. Wade in 1996 and is a product of the National Defense University of the United States.

Filipinos were getting ready to wish family and friends a happy and peaceful New Year when at the strike of midnight, the whole metropolis was hit with shock and awe a hundred times the intensity that Baghdad experienced in 2003.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police were unprepared for the invasion and were unable to pinpoint exactly where the strikes started or who the perpetrators were. But it was a chaotic scene that lit Manila’s sky for seemingly endless minutes.

But as usual, the calm and peace-loving Filipinos took the attack in stride then proceeded to partake of their  Media Noche, the family midnight meal that is the tradition on New Year’s eve.