Military

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  • Blogger Shines Light on U.S. Shadow War in East Africa

    Wired: Danger Room
    David Axe
    15 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    An F-15E at an air show last year. Photo: Air Force An innocuous-seeming U.S. Air Force press release. A serendipitous satellite image in Google Earth. Snapshots from a photographer on assignment at a Spanish air base. The crash of an Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle fighter-bomber in the United Arab Emirates. These are some of the fragments of information that Italian aviation blogger David Cenciotti has assembled to reveal the best picture yet of the Pentagon’s secretive war in the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa. In a series of blog posts over the past two weeks, Cenciotti has…

  • It’s Lights Out For The Navy’s LCS Platform

    Chairborne Commandos Talk Radio and Podcast
    The Mighty Quin
    4 May 2012 | 4:32 pm
      On today’s show: SOFREP Radio… It’s officially here! Shave like a man campaign starts now. Glitter Bomb – The latest weapon of mass distraction against terrorism. Iran claims to have spent 1 Billion in preparation to attack the West with cyber warfare.  Finally, the US may do something about it. US is beginning to assemble a massive stealth armada near Iran.  For the first time ever the YF 22 is close to front lines. N. Korea put on a massive military display for all the world to see and uses FAKE missiles. Navy LCS platform – It’s got more than…

  • Are You a Brave Woman?

    Army Wives' Lives
    Candace
    9 Dec 2011 | 12:17 pm
    If he ever hit me, I would leave. It seems very simple to say as a woman in a healthy relationship with a loving man who is a great father to our children. But there are brave, smart, and strong women who find themselves in unhealthy relationships. They need to summon a special kind of courage to get the help they need. When you are in an abusive relationship, you know you need to leave. Actually taking that step can be more complicated. Maybe your partner has threatened you or the children if you leave or threatened to harm himself. In the military, if you prosecute, you might worry how a…

  • Culinary Warfare

    Navy CyberSpace Blog
    NCCM(Ret)
    6 Apr 2012 | 11:16 am
    Navy Week New Orleans will officially kick off on Tuesday, April 17 and will conclude on the following Monday. New Orleans is the inaugural city in a three-year national celebration commemorating the War of 1812 and the Star-Spangled Banner. Navy Week New Orleans will have many of the same events that you have come to expect during such an event. There will be ships from the United States Navy other nations that you may be able to tour, the “Blue Angels”, the U.S. Navy’s flight demonstration team, a Navy Band will perform, and the “Leap Frogs”, the Navy’s…

  • Again why are medical practioners stigmatizing PTSD

    Army Tankers Wife
    Crissy
    20 Apr 2012 | 3:23 pm
    You all know I am a really huge person about PTSD, and I have two different stories I want to blog about. It is both about professional psychologists downing people with PTSD and another one is about labeling a person with or without PTSD. So I was reading around on the internet today especially on the VAMortgage Center website blog bout Dr. Phil, now I can't say officially because I haven't seen the show, but from what I am reading he is calling veterans with PTSD "monsters" and "damaged goods". Check out the article that I read HERE about what Dr. Phil is saying. Now I have't been…
 
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    U.S. Pacific Command Regional News

  • Blue Ridge builds friendship with Indonesia visit

    15 May 2012 | 4:01 pm
    The U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) departed Jakarta, Indonesia, May 15 after a four-day port visit strengthening bonds between the U.S. and Indonesian navies.

  • FY-13 Chief's Board Package Deadline Approaches

    15 May 2012 | 3:59 pm
    Sailors who have submitted a board package to the Fiscal Year 2013 (FY-13) Chief Petty Officer (CPO) Selection Board can confirm its receipt at Navy Personnel Command (NPC) by clicking on the "Selection Board Status" link on www.npc.navy.mil, officials said May 14.

  • Diesel Weasel Exercise trains Misawa pilots on Close Air Support

    15 May 2012 | 3:58 pm
    Pilots from the 14th Fighter Squadron are training on close air support April 30 through May 17 at Misawa Air Base and Draughon Range, Japan, in support of the Diesel Weasel Exercise. The Diesel Weasel Exercise prepares pilots to conduct CAS before participating in a Green Flag Exercise at Nellis Air Force Base, said Capt. Colin Marshall, 14th Fighter Squadron, Assistant Weapons Flight commander.

  • US Attack Submarine Docks At Subic

    15 May 2012 | 3:57 pm
    A US Navy attack submarine has arrived in Subic Bay, Zambales, about 124 nautical miles away from the disputed Scarborough shoal (Panatag Shoal).

  • Rim of the Pacific Exercise to Begin June

    9 May 2012 | 4:09 pm
    SAN DIEGO - Twenty-two nations, 42 ships, six submarines, more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel will participate in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise scheduled June 29 to Aug. 3, in and around the Hawaiian Islands.
 
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    Wired: Danger Room

  • Majority of Mexicans Want More U.S. Help in Drug War

    Robert Beckhusen
    15 May 2012 | 4:00 pm
    A U.S. Army National Guardsman at his post along the U.S.-Mexico border near Nogales, Arizona, on Jan. 17, 2007. Photo: Department of Defense. This summer, Mexicans will go to the polls to choose their country’s next commander-in-chief. But the new president will also have to deal with ominous developments in the drug war and the fact that few Mexicans believe the government’s strategy is working. He or she will also have to negotiate with the U.S. on the scope — and responsibilities — of America’s role in fighting the cartels. The reason is stunning. More than…

  • Defense Chief Restricts Stealth Jet Till It Stops Choking Pilots

    Spencer Ackerman
    15 May 2012 | 2:07 pm
    An F-22 Raptor. Photo: USAF For five years, America’s most expensive fighter jets have been poisoning their pilots and crew. On Tuesday, the Defense Secretary finally stepped in — restricting the flights of the F-22 Raptor, and ordering the Air Force to begin an “expedited installation” of an automatic backup oxygen system for the entire fleet of Raptors, Pentagon spokesman George Little tells reporters. But Panetta is allowing the stealthy dogfighter to keep flying — for now. The new oxygen systems will undergo flight tests through November, with installation…

  • Blogger Shines Light on U.S. Shadow War in East Africa

    David Axe
    15 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    An F-15E at an air show last year. Photo: Air Force An innocuous-seeming U.S. Air Force press release. A serendipitous satellite image in Google Earth. Snapshots from a photographer on assignment at a Spanish air base. The crash of an Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle fighter-bomber in the United Arab Emirates. These are some of the fragments of information that Italian aviation blogger David Cenciotti has assembled to reveal the best picture yet of the Pentagon’s secretive war in the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa. In a series of blog posts over the past two weeks, Cenciotti has…

  • Another Afghanistan Commander Bails on the War Early

    Spencer Ackerman
    15 May 2012 | 11:05 am
    Marine Gen. John Allen, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, inspects a border position in Paktika Province, 2011. Photo: ISAF Afghanistan war commanders have tenures as long as Spinal Tap drummers. Army Gen. David McKiernan got fired in 2009. His replacement, Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, resigned the next year. Now the current commander, Marine Gen. John Allen, may be out the door as well, more than a year early. If Washington Post ace Greg Jaffe is correct, Allen isn’t leaving under the cloud that haunted his predecessors. He’s getting a big promotion: military chief of NATO, one…

  • Pakistan Shuts Its Border; Pentagon Shuts Its Mouth

    Spencer Ackerman
    15 May 2012 | 5:30 am
    Airmen load up supplies bound for Afghanistan at Manas Airbase, Kyrgyzstan, Feb. 2009. With a vital Pakistani trucking route closed, expensive aerial shipping is how the U.S. resupplies the war. Photo: U.S. Air Force For nearly six months, Pakistan has closed its ground shipping routes to convoys resupplying the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan. Getting those resupply routes open is preoccupying U.S. military officers and diplomats as they haggle, sweet-talk, beg and cajole their Pakistani counterparts, since alternative shipping routes are vastly more expensive. Exactly how expensive, the…
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    Featured Blog Posts - Navy For Moms

  • A poem - Standing guard from the East to the West

    MattsMama Ship 02/Div 924
    24 Apr 2012 | 5:16 pm
    They lay this newborn in my hands Who could have known he’d someday protect this great land Memories cascade of when he was my baby Today my son stands tall in the United States Navy A parent plants seeds, morals, spirit and love Their child takes flight on the wings of a dove As he makes his own journey, both near and away I look to the heavens, keep him safe Lord I pray I’ll wave ‘Old Glory’ at home with pride and elation And give thanks for those daily who serve our great nation Defending our country, honoring their quest Safe guarding our freedom, shielding us from unrest Our sons…

  • A HUGE SURPRISE

    Anna Aviation Mom
    24 Apr 2012 | 10:32 pm
    So I come home from work get in the shower and my husband calls me and tells me he's on his way. He comes in and says he hit something on the freeway and messed up the side of his truck and wants me to go see it. And I'm thinking oh gosh why is this happening? I get to the truck and I'm walking around to the side, and my Sailor (my daughter) jumps out.... Omg I just balled my eyes out. I thought my daughter was still on hold at A school in Pensacola but no she graduated and was surprising her Mama... She leaves next Wednesday so this was an early Mothers day present... God is So Good!!!

  • A PROUD MOM, OF MY YOUNG MAN, INTO A PROUD UNITED STATES SAILOR!

    LA-BriansMom (Ship 3 Div 116)
    6 Apr 2012 | 11:49 pm
    Thursday 2:02 p.m Central time, my phone rang and I saw 847 area code, I knew who it was. I said, "Hello Hello, Brian" and  He answered, "Mom I am a Sailor" we both were so excited and yes I cried..we spoke for a few minutes and then he said, "Mom, we took pictures in my Blue Uniform", he told me "I put them in the mail to you" and he said "Mom, I picked the one I was smiling in because I remembered you always said, "Brian you have a a beautiful Smile!"...I cried again, he said, "Mom, don't cry, I did it, I made it"... I said "you sure did, and I couldn't be more Proud!".......... He sure…

  • What happens after A School?

    Trix4theRabbits
    8 Apr 2012 | 4:59 pm
    I know my brother still needs to get through boot camp and A School first, but I was wondering what happens after that? He is supposed to be a groomsman in my destination wedding in October, which is conveniently pretty much right next to NAS Pensacola, within 10 miles. I have a slim glimmer of hope he could get stationed there which would really help with travel!

  • Deployment Coming Soon.

    NavyDoll Ebony
    7 Apr 2012 | 12:23 am
    Hey NavyDolls. I havent been on here in a long time, but im back. Just to catch u up on whats been going on with me and my bf....He graduated Feb 3rd from Basic and went to A school following that for a couple of weeks. Close to about a month. Then he got leave for 10 days and he came back to Oakland to visit fam/friends. Now he's stationed in San Diego and just working there until deployment. But he called me today and they told him they are flying him out to his ship Monday. Im happy for him because i know this is a big step in his career and it's really what he signed up for. He will get…
 
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    OP FOR

  • Small World

    Townie 76
    15 May 2012 | 7:55 pm
    My brother Lee sent me the  email below today.  It reminds me of how our small school in the valley Virginia is connected across the globe, or in this case Texas.  This post is dedicated to the Class of 1941 and the roommates of Room 244; Henry J. “Drac” Foresman; Joseph “Joe Parrish; George ” [...]

  • New Market Day, 2012

    LTCOL P
    14 May 2012 | 7:53 pm
    15 May 1864– always remember. (Looks to be a good chance of historically accurate weather, too.)

  • 2012′s Valedictorian

    LTCOL P
    14 May 2012 | 7:33 pm
    Looks like an impressive young man. [T]he U.S. Air Force has been researching the fundamental dynamics of flapping wings, whose properties would allow a small, unmanned, aerial vehicle to hover and fly in a straight line and perhaps blend more naturally with its surrounding environment. And Virginia Military Institute Cadet John Alerding IV of Lexington [...]

  • “Not Sure What Is Wrong With This”

    LTCOL P
    10 May 2012 | 6:36 pm
    Ronaldus Secundus sent this in under the subject line, “Not sure what is wrong with this.” I’ll let you weigh in!

  • Welcome Aboard, Mate

    LTCOL P
    8 May 2012 | 6:42 pm
    “A new career and a new life.” Were I a restless younger man, I might be tempted.
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    BLACKFIVE

  • Help Soldier's Angels Get A Vehicle to Transport Wounded Warriors

    blackfive@gmail.com (Pundit Review Radio)
    15 May 2012 | 12:52 pm
    You can win a car for Soldiers' Angels with only TWO CLICKS of your mouse on Tuesday, May 15! Please tell your friends and vote for Soldiers' Angels at www.100carsforgood.com on May 15, 2012--you have only one day to vote! Polls are open ONLY between 10 a.m. and 11:59 p.m EASTERN TIME.

  • 1970's Recruiting Video for the U.S. Army Airborne

    blackfive@gmail.com (Pundit Review Radio)
    15 May 2012 | 12:30 pm
    This is so choice!

  • Patrol Briefing

    blackfive@gmail.com (Pundit Review Radio)
    15 May 2012 | 12:22 pm
    Paratroopers with the 82nd Airborne Division’s 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, get briefed prior to a patrol with Afghan National Army soldiers, May 8, 2012, Ghazni province, Afghanistan. The battalion deployed to Ghazni in March to help bring security to Highway 1, the country’s most important road for travel between Kabul and Kandahar.  Photo by SGT Mike MacLeod.

  • Vegas bound for a Salute To The Troops celebration

    blackfive@gmail.com (Pundit Review Radio)
    15 May 2012 | 9:00 am
    This week I will have the honor of accompanying a group of about 50 wounded warriors and their families to Las Vegas as they are treated to a celebration of their service and sacrifice during Armed Forces Week.  Frankly, I’ll be humbled to be in their presence and hope to be able to do justice to their stories.  Southwest Airlines is picking up the tab for flying all of them from Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio and then back.  They’ll be staying at the 5 star all suites Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas, cost of the suites picked up by the hotel.  Omaha Steaks is also picking up…

  • By God its time for a parade!

    blackfive@gmail.com (Pundit Review Radio)
    14 May 2012 | 4:02 pm
    And unsurprisingly, our great friend Concrete Bob is up to his armpits involved in it.  Here, let me have him tell you about it: "Another day in Paradise. Every meal's a banquet, every paycheck's a fortune and every formation is a parade" Next Saturday, 19 May in Richmond VA there is going to be a parade to welcome home the Iraq and Afghan vets and salute them for their service and sacrifice. I realize we still have troops downrange, and they are likely to stay awhile yet, but its time to do this thing. We tried a few years back, couldn't get anything going. Hard to get funding sometimes.
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    Defense Tech

  • Does Israel Have Stealthy Black Hawks?

    John Reed
    15 May 2012 | 10:57 am
    Well, this is interesting. Former Pentagon senior policy analyst F. Michael Maloof claims there might be a lot more of those stealthy Black Hawk helicopters  – the kind famoulsy used in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden last year — out there than has previously been reported. The best part of his claim; the [...]

  • Closing the Tech Gap: China’s Spaceplane

    John Reed
    14 May 2012 | 2:40 pm
    That’s right, the rumors appear to be true. Beijing is joining the United States as the only nations with reusable spaceplane designs that are actually conducting test flights. Beijing reportedly sent its Divine Dragon — or Shenlong — space plane aloft for a successful atmospheric test flight in January, 2011. The U.S. uses its two [...]

  • Video: China’s Two J-20 Stealth Fighters

    John Reed
    14 May 2012 | 12:14 pm
    Happy Monday. Let’s start this week off with a new video showing China’s two J-20 stealth fighters sitting side by side on the ramp at Chengdu, China. Click through the jump to see the video of good ole J-20–2001 and J-20–2002.

  • Threats the White House is Watching

    John Reed
    11 May 2012 | 2:20 pm
    DT and some other members of the Military.com team had the opportunity this morning to sit down at the White House with Deputy National Security Advisor, Denis McDonough, and pick his brain for about 45 minutes. While much of the conversation focused on the strategy surrounding the fight against al Qaeda (he’s the guy in [...]

  • Hurry Up and Save This Newly Discovered P-40!

    John Reed
    11 May 2012 | 11:43 am
    Happy Friday. To kick this weekend off early check out this video of a newly discovered RAF Curtis P-40 Warhawk that has sat undiscovered in near perfect condition in the Sahara Desert in Egypt since crash-landing there during World War II. The American-made P-40 was being flown by its RAF pilot, a 24-year old Flight [...]
 
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    Army Strong Stories

  • Rockwall at River City Rascals Game

    15 May 2012 | 1:27 pm
    By: Fred HermsteinThis weekend the St. Peter's Recruiting Station will have a rockwall at the River City Rascalls game. The Rascals are a local baseball team so come out for the game and climb a wall. For more information contact SFC Smith at 877-826-4855....read more

  • Rockwall at River City Rascals Game

    15 May 2012 | 1:25 pm
    By: Fred HermsteinThis weekend the St. Peter's Recruiting Station will have a rockwall at the River City Rascalls game. The Rascals are a local baseball team so come out for the game and climb a wall. For more information contact SFC Smith at 877-826-4855....read more

  • Army Reserve Scholar Athlete Schools

    15 May 2012 | 12:49 pm
    By: Fred HermsteinToday, selected students will receive the Army Reserve Scholar Athlete Award at the following high schools; Owensville, Helias, Richland, McLouth, Kearney, Seckman, Kingston, DeSoto, and Holcomb High Schools....read more

  • First Blog Entry

    15 May 2012 | 12:23 pm
    By: Erica ChabalkoI had heard about this sanctioned Army space for blogging, but only recently looked into what it had to offer. I have stepped back from posting on Facebook for two reasons. First, I find that I cannot concisely say something without sounding really negative - a blog would afford me the opportunity to elaborate on my thoughts. And secondly, Facebook has begun to annoy me with people giving their opinions on matters that I have strong opinions about. (I recognize this is...read more

  • The Journey of an OCS Selectee - ASVAB

    15 May 2012 | 7:19 am
    By: Jaquelin BabcockThis blog I’ll be talking about the ASVAB from my point of view. This is pretty much the first step to putting together your packet if you haven’t previously taken the ASVAB. We all know for Army OCS you need a GT Score of 110 of higher and for you that have questions as to how that compares to the AFQT score, I’ve seen that it is about an 80 or higher. But don’t quote me on that… just aim high. I had never taken it before but I heard it was kind of...read more
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    Michael Yon - Online Magazine

  • Word Games

    MEDEVACmatters.org
    12 May 2012 | 7:33 am
    12 May 2012Written by MEDEVACmatters.org Just a reminder of the official US Army position on the need to make changes to MEDEVAC policies and procedures. This is the final three paragraphs of the statement issued by the Army Chief of Public Affairs on January 20, 2012 following the CBS Evening News segment on the death of SPC Chazray Clark: “Further, arming MEDEVACs would not reduce the need for armed escort. Again, our aircraft travel in pairs. The decision to use escort is the tactical commander’s, and the Army does not dictate how or when it is necessary to use these assets. Finally,…

  • Helicopter versus RPG

    Michael Yon
    10 May 2012 | 7:20 am
    The enemy weapons causing the most deaths in Afghanistan are simple.  There are the machine guns, and the AK-47s, and many thousands of improvised bombs planted in the earth, and suicide bombs, and the RPG: Rocket Propelled Grenade. There are a few other kinds of weapons, but in a nutshell, that is about it.   Meanwhile, it is probably not risking much overstatement to say that ISAF employs a thousand sort of weapons. In the image above, the shooter has already pulled the trigger.  There was a very quick delay, with a quiet pop.  Some smoke puffed out from the front…

  • MEDEVAC Madness

    Michael Yon
    9 May 2012 | 8:06 pm
    10 May 2012 Many people have contacted lawmakers around the country about MEDEVAC failures in Afghanistan.  Most of the lawmakers blew it off, or seemed intimidated by the Pentagon.  But one serious man over in Missouri has not backed down.  Congressman Todd Akin is demanding answers.  This week, Congressman Akin brought it to Congress: Lawmaker seeks report on medevac flights “In a continuing battle between a key lawmaker and the Army over whether to use armed or unarmed medical evacuation helicopters in combat zones, the House Armed Services Committee voted Wednesday…

  • Shot in the Dark: Blackhawk Down

    Michael Yon
    2 May 2012 | 6:37 am
    Afghan firing RPG in Urozgan 02 May 2012 On 19 April there was a suicide attack.  Numerous Afghans were killed and others were dying. The night was especially dark.  The weather was bad, and there were no city lights bouncing off of the clouds.  No stars.  No nothing.  Even if the skies had been clear, the moon phase would have revealed only a thin sliver at its brightest.  The night was as black as the deep sea. People living in or around a big city in America or Asia or Europe will never see a dark night like this one unless there is a blackout.  In…

  • Little Girl Revisited

    Michael Yon
    1 May 2012 | 9:32 pm
    02 May 2012 This image was made seven years ago today.   There had been a great deal of combat.  It’s been said that the “Deuce Four” was the most decorated unit in the Iraq war.  I do not know if this is true, but if not, it is probably close. There had been a suicide car bomb that attacked in a civilian neighborhood.   The Soldiers did their best to help the people.  Little Farah, seen here, cradled by Major Mark Bieger, would soon die of her wounds. As the months unfolded, fighting remained intense and many Soldiers in the Deuce Four would be…
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    Mudville Gazette

  • Who leaked the underpants bomb story?

    Greyhawk
    14 May 2012 | 8:53 am
    Unhappy senator:[Senator Feinstein] said the leak to AP "jeopardizes" the agent and that it could not have come from Congress since she and House Intelligence Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) had not been briefed on the operation.Unhappy representative:Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., said Obama did not "play [it] straight" with him. "They [did] not notify Congress, which is, by the way, law, under the National Security Act of 1947," he said on CBS's Face the Nation. "They're obligated to do it."Meanwhile, President Obama assured Americans there was no need to worry, he was "on top of this the entire…

  • Sending pirated DVDs to the Middle East...

    Greyhawk
    1 May 2012 | 10:22 am
    ...is like sending sand, sez I. (But I doubt anyone ever had the heart to tell "Big Hy" that. "Thank you, sir" is a better response.)

  • Elijah Carroll

    Greyhawk
    26 Apr 2012 | 3:05 pm
    My good friend Robert Stokely sent an email update to this story from a few years ago: "Now a 1st LT and on Friday, April 27, 2012 at 1300 hours, Elijah Carroll will graduate Ranger School at FT Benning. I hope to be there.... Mike would expect me to go." Congratulations, Lt Carroll. And thank you, Robert, for all you've done and been through over the years, too. I'm more than proud to call you friend. Robert's 2008 story on Elijah Carroll follows - it can't be improved by any further introduction from me. (I will add: read the comments, too.) ***** From Robert Stokely: Tonight, as we…

  • Guess who's coming to Stewart

    Greyhawk
    25 Apr 2012 | 9:01 am
    "But next week's visit is an official one as commander-in-chief..." sez "A White House official speaking on background..." His Fort Stewart visit provides an opportunity for the president to try to shape news about his handling of the military in Afghanistan in light of recent events. His administration has been apologizing for the murder of 16 citizens there by an American soldier on a rampage, reports that copies of the Koran were burned and the recent revelation of 2-year-old photographs of soldiers posing with the maimed corpses of insurgents. Obama said this week he wants an…

  • Now and then

    Greyhawk
    19 Apr 2012 | 8:26 am
    How the LA Times explained their decision to publish gruesome photos in the "Bush era": These days they've found other reasons:He said the photos point to a breakdown in leadership and discipline that he believed compromised the safety of the troops. He expressed the hope that publication would help ensure that alleged security shortcomings at two U.S. bases in Afghanistan in 2010 were not repeated.The bigger reason for those (or any other examples through the years) is that snuff porn = money, baby - but at least the earlier excuse was honest, too.
 
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    Blogs of War

  • Need to Know: May 15, 2012

    John Little
    15 May 2012 | 4:10 pm
    RT @cencio4 European Helicopters make first land attack on Somali Pirates http://t.co/YqU7fFtE I love getting email that starts with "I came across your blog [Insert Blog] a few weeks ago…" Don't suppose it was Breivik? – RT @intelwire Man sets himself alight outside Breivik trial… http://t.co/OJ9rxfKK It is American Craft #Beer Week – http://t.co/UXYnc09K #ACBW #SpyBeer The full list of Twitter monitors – http://t.co/F3MutmuW #Iran Executes Accused Israeli Spy http://t.co/bcOkH2Ba Espionage ThreatStream – http://t.co/OeLl0Xfy RT @El_Grillo1…

  • Need to Know: May 14, 2012

    John Little
    14 May 2012 | 4:10 pm
    Getting ready for #NATO #Chicago2012 – check the sidebar – http://t.co/UtF3c4q8 .@cencio4 @TheBaseLeg @kursed Was wondering about that… if it's close enough for you I'll take it. .@TheBaseLeg @cencio4 I know taxi trials just started – seeing a few different reports (but no wheels up photos) of a flight. cc: @kursed RT @cencio4 Photo: Second China’s J-20 stealth fighter prototype makes maiden flight http://t.co/A9MhuzGy God bless DARPA – RT @mrossletters @Packetknife But first, what's thermal imaging beer? RT @N_Bakos How Are CIA Moles Recruited?

  • Need to Know: May 13, 2012

    John Little
    13 May 2012 | 4:10 pm
    #Lebanon ThreatStream – tracking issues related to #Syria – http://t.co/KZ2AOXSm Updated #SpyBeer List – The Spy Who Came in for a Cold One – http://t.co/S0VeJPjW @brianoflondon @alanceltic Yeah I'll pass on that too. Bus travel never seemed so appealing – RT @brianoflondon @alanceltic and if you opt out of the scanner you can have a prostate exam too! .@MattWahnsiedler @spacebox64 And the other question is if accurate why are they talking to the press about it? Ex-Taliban leader-turned peace negotiator shot dead in Afghan capital http://t.co/cGRi8AXj Hunt to…

  • #SpyBeer – The Spy Who Came in for a Cold One

    John Little
    12 May 2012 | 7:33 pm
    So Michael Ross and I were comparing craft beer selections on Twitter when @wesko suggested that we develop some spy-related beer names. I’ve compiled some of the initial contributions below but I suspect there many more ideas out there. Take a shot in the comments section or weigh in on Twitter – just tag your tweet with #SpyBeer. @milaficent Winning Hops and Minds Drone Dunkel Shining Path Pale Ale Osama bin Lager (@milaficent, @wesko and @WarfareCenter suggested following this with 2 shots and a splash of water) KGB Brown Ale La Carre Lager Smiley’s Pilsner Hunt for Red…

  • Need to Know: May 12, 2012

    John Little
    12 May 2012 | 4:10 pm
    Winner – RT @milaficent @BlogsofWar @wesko @mrossletters Osama bin Lager .@wesko @mrossletters Underwear Bomber Double IPA @brianoflondon @mrossletters That would be far too kind don't you think? .@brianoflondon @mrossletters Article 118.2443 only forbids the "forced consumption of Bud Light Lime". Stick w/ the regular and we're good. .@brianoflondon Maybe pack one Bud Light. @mrossletters can make Nasrallah drink it before he finishes his mission. #Karma .@brianoflondon @mrossletters Lord no. It's not a total suicide mission. Something from Samuel Adams maybe.
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    Healing Iraq

  • Nahrain University's party pooper

    Zeyad
    11 May 2012 | 7:53 am
    This cell phone video went viral in Iraq yesterday. It shows Nahrain University (formerly Saddam University) President (yes, the mobster-looking guy in sunglasses, with the cigarette dangling from his mouth and surrounded by bodyguards) having a fit because his students dared to organize a graduation party with costumes on university grounds. He calls them 'donkeys' and 'degenerates' and warns

  • 8 May 2012 | 9:55 am

    Zeyad
    8 May 2012 | 9:55 am
    Egyptian MP Ahmed Qassim of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) from al-Fayyoum performs a quick 'exorcism' on one of his colleagues during parliamentary session yesterday morning.

  • Saving Iraqi Culture by Mohammed Ghani Hikmat

    Zeyad
    23 Apr 2012 | 4:37 pm
    One of five monuments designed by the late sculptor opened recently in Baghdad at Zawraa Park near the Baghdad International Fair انقاذ الثقافة العراقية - محمد غني حكمت

  • Gulf of Mexico seafood deformities alarm scientists

    Zeyad
    20 Apr 2012 | 7:42 am
     This is some crazy stuff. We eat a lot of that seafood here. Gulf of Mexico fishermen, scientists and seafood processors have told Al Jazeera they are finding disturbing numbers of mutated shrimp, crab and fish that they believe are deformed by chemicals released during BP's 2010 oil disaster. Along with collapsing fisheries, signs of malignant impact on the regional ecosystem are ominous:

  • updates

    Zeyad
    18 Apr 2012 | 12:03 pm
    I intend to make certain parts of the blog open by invitation only, possibly on its 10th anniversary. I will still post public updates about Iraq and general Arab topics the same as usual, but more in-depth and personal articles would be available for selected readers only. Also experimenting with layout and design. You can share your suggestions and thoughts in the comments.
 
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    A Soldier's Perspective

  • Theory of America’s Founding

    Wes
    14 May 2012 | 11:11 am
    The principles of America’s founding amount to a remarkable and radical departure from government, as practiced for centuries prior to the American Revolution. To be sure, a tradition is tied to the theory and to the men responsible. We are, however, quite remarkable as a nation today, because the Founders were indeed radical in their definition of liberty and their uncompromising demand for freedom. The theory of America’s founding may be said to be embodied in the Declaration of Independence. If anyone reads it, he or she finds that it is stated rather clearly, not hard to understand…

  • Army Values – Duty

    CJ
    13 May 2012 | 8:29 pm
    Fulfill your obligations. Doing your duty means more than carrying out your assigned tasks. Duty means being able to accomplish tasks as part of a team. The work of the U.S. Army is a complex combination of missions, tasks and responsibilities — all in constant motion. Our work entails building one assignment onto another. You fulfill your obligations as a part of your unit every time you resist the temptation to take “shortcuts” that might undermine the integrity of the final product. Going above and beyond. Stepping “outside your lane.” Going the extra mile. For you. For…

  • President Obama to Award Medal of Honor

    CJ
    9 May 2012 | 11:46 am
    On May 16, President Barack Obama will award Specialist Leslie H. Sabo, Jr., U.S. Army, the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry. Specialist Sabo will receive the Medal of Honor posthumously for his heroic actions in combat on May 10, 1970, while serving as a rifleman in Company B, 3d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division in Se San, Cambodia. On that day, when he and his platoon were ambushed by a large enemy force, Specialist Sabo immediately charged the enemy position, killing several enemy soldiers. He then assaulted an enemy flanking force, successfully drawing their fire…

  • Soldier Graduates 20 Years After High School

    CJ
    7 May 2012 | 4:37 pm
    It had all the makings of the typical college graduation. There was the speech Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moon had earned the right to give as an honor graduation, but when he began to thank the people who made his graduation possible, a fighter jet roared overhead, drowning out his voice as he stopped and wiped away a tear. There was the graduation cap that he’d tossed in the air to celebrate an academic milestone, only to have it travel two feet, hit the ceiling and fall to the ground. There were loved ones who’d gathered around to help him celebrate, except they were some 6,000 miles away…

  • Milblogger Family Reunion

    CJ
    3 May 2012 | 11:20 am
    The general details of the 2012 Milblogger Family Reunion sponsored by You Served and Veterans United Home Loans have been put together and we are happy to announce them here.  This is open to anyone who wishes to join us, including milbloggers, supporters, non-military bloggers, family members and kids.  The more the merrier! When: Friday, August 31, 2012-Sunday, September 2, 2012. Where: San Antonio, Texas Tentatively scheduled Events: Friday, 8/31/12 Travel day in for everyone 6pm-12 midnight:  Party with beer and light foods at the Soldiers Angels Warehouse The party is BYOB but a…
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    Secrecy News

  • NATO Summit Meeting in Chicago, and More from CRS

    Steven Aftergood
    15 May 2012 | 10:47 am
    The North Atlantic Treaty Organization will hold its 2012 summit meeting in Chicago on May 20-21.  The meeting, hosted by President Obama, will be closed to the public.  The assembled heads of state are expected to discuss the future of the conflict in Afghanistan; NATO defense issues, including the possible reconsideration of the role of nuclear weapons in NATO; and other matters. A preview of the NATO summit meeting was presented in a new report from the Congressional Research Service.  See NATO’s Chicago Summit, May 14, 2012. Other new and updated CRS reports that were obtained by…

  • NSA Declassifies Secret Document After Publishing It

    Steven Aftergood
    14 May 2012 | 9:00 am
    The National Security Agency last week invoked a rarely-used authority in order to declassify a classified document that was mistakenly posted on the NSA website with all of its classified passages intact. The article is a historical study entitled Maybe You Had to Be There: The SIGINT on Thirteen Soviet Shootdowns of U.S. Reconnaissance Aircraft.  It was written by Michael L. Peterson and was originally published in the classified journal Cryptologic Quarterly in 1993. Late in the afternoon of May 11 (not May 9 as stated on the NSA website), the NSA published a formally declassified version…

  • Understanding China’s Political System, and More from CRS

    Steven Aftergood
    14 May 2012 | 8:55 am
    New and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that Congress has instructed CRS not to make publicly available include the following. Understanding China’s Political System, May 10, 2012 Youth and the Labor Force: Background and Trends, May 10, 2012 Vulnerable Youth: Employment and Job Training Programs, May 11, 2012 Pakistan’s Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation and Security Issues, May 10, 2012 Comparison of Rights in Military Commission Trials and Trials in Federal Criminal Court, May 9, 2012 Immigration-Related Worksite Enforcement: Performance Measures, May 10,…

  • Same-Sex Marriages: Legal Issues (CRS)

    Steven Aftergood
    10 May 2012 | 10:28 am
    The laws and policies governing same-sex marriages were exhaustively surveyed in a newly updated report from the Congressional Research Service. See Same-Sex Marriages: Legal Issues, May 9, 2012.

  • Pentagon Moves to Combat the “Insider Threat”

    Steven Aftergood
    9 May 2012 | 10:46 am
    The Department of Defense has issued a new Instruction defining its response to the “insider threat” from Department personnel who engage in unauthorized disclosures of information or other activities deemed harmful to national security. The new Instruction assigns responsibilities and authorities for systematically detecting “anomalous” employee behavior that may be an indication of an insider threat. An insider threat is defined as “A person with authorized access, who uses that access, wittingly or unwittingly, to harm national security interests or national…
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    Army Wives' Lives

  • Casualty Notification is a Sacred Duty — Not a Facebook Poke

    Candace
    20 Apr 2012 | 1:09 pm
    As a military spouse, I spent my husband’s deployment terrified that I would see the black sedan drive down my street or that there would be a knock on the door and I would open it to find a chaplain and a casualty notification officer. At least I could lay down some of the burden at night–there is a window during which notifications are made. This may seem like a trivial thing if you haven’t spent a year on edge but, trust me, it is some small solace to know you will not be woken or startled at 3am by a phone call or a knock on a door. That is, unless, another soldier or…

  • Army Wives Fans: Win 1 of 2 Kindle Fires!

    Candace
    1 Mar 2012 | 8:00 am
    Are you excited about the premier of Army Wives, Season 6 on Sunday, March 4th at 9/8c? Kind of gives you the chills, doesn’t it? Lifetime is offering TWO of my readers each a Kindle Fire (ARV $199) with a branded Army Wives cover. So. Cool. In fact, I am totally jealous because I don’t own any e-reader or tablet! Ready for the details on how to enter to win? You can enter in any or all of the following ways. Leave a separate comment for each entry because I will be choosing at random from the comments: Leave a comment about the show. Suggested topics: to which wife do you relate…

  • Are You a Brave Woman?

    Candace
    9 Dec 2011 | 12:17 pm
    If he ever hit me, I would leave. It seems very simple to say as a woman in a healthy relationship with a loving man who is a great father to our children. But there are brave, smart, and strong women who find themselves in unhealthy relationships. They need to summon a special kind of courage to get the help they need. When you are in an abusive relationship, you know you need to leave. Actually taking that step can be more complicated. Maybe your partner has threatened you or the children if you leave or threatened to harm himself. In the military, if you prosecute, you might worry how a…

  • Let’s sendCheer to the Military!

    Candace
    22 Nov 2011 | 2:09 pm
    My husband deployed at the beginning of December in 2005. Although we did not realize it at that time, I was pregnant with our first child. I packed up a miniature Christmas tree, tiny little ornaments, and my best cookie recipe in a Christmas Stocking to send him a little Holiday cheer. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, after all. Six years and three kids later, we treasure each Holiday we have together. There are many soldiers who have spent most of their special days apart from their loved ones. You can show appreciation for their sacrifice with a care package or even just a handwritten…

  • sendCheer to the Military

    Candace
    18 Nov 2011 | 12:43 am
    Growing up in New York, military service seemed a thing of the past: faded sepia-tinged photos of grandfathers in uniform, History Channel specials on the battles of World War II, and quaint propaganda posters urging apple-cheeked children to recycle tin cans. Never would I have imagined that I would find myself married to an officer in the U.S. Army. And yet, there I was.  One minute I was living in Manhattan, married to a lawyer at one of the top firms in New York City, and the next I found myself trying to find a decent Italian place near Fort Hood, Texas. Once I got over the shock, I…
 
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    Boots In Baghdad

  • Israel

    Mark P. Miner
    12 May 2012 | 8:13 am
    Currently in Israel. This is such an incredible place. Look forward to telling you all about it when I get back.

  • Guest Column: Miner says US next on Iran's 'hit list'

    Mark P. Miner
    18 Mar 2012 | 8:34 pm

  • Ed "Too Tall" Freeman

    Mark P. Miner
    25 Jun 2009 | 7:33 am
    Remembering a HeroFrom an e-mail I received this morning:You’re a 19 year old kid. You’re critically wounded, and dying in the jungle in the Ia Drang Valley, 11-14-1965, LZ X-ray, Vietnam. Your infantry unit is outnumbered 8–1, and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 or 200 yards away, that your own Infantry Commander has ordered the MediVac helicopters to stop coming in. You’re lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns, and you know you’re not getting out. Your family is half way around the world—12,000 miles away—and you’ll never see them again. As the world starts…

  • Iran's Post-Election Crisis

    Mark P. Miner
    23 Jun 2009 | 2:58 pm
    "The United States must seek out opportunities for resolving the increasingly urgent impasse over Iran’s nuclear program and addressing the broader array of concerns about Iranian policy. The elections have not changed the fact that negotiations represent the best of a range of unappealing options available to Washington. However, as a result of the increasingly arbitrary actions by Iran’s leadership, the American diplomatic approach has become more complicated and a successful resolution of the three-decade long estrangement becomes unfortunately less likely."-Suzanne Maloney, June 14,…

  • Double standard continues

    Mark P. Miner
    23 Jun 2009 | 2:32 pm
    Media Cheer Obama's Golf Outings; Criticized Republicans' Trips to CourseTuesday, June 23, 2009By Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer (CNSNews.com) – President Barack Obama has gone to the golf course at least 11 times since he took the oath of office a little more than six months ago--three rounds were played during the late January, 12-day holiday Obama took with his family in Hawaii; one at Andrews Air Force Base; and seven at Ft. Belvoir Golf Course, including a round on Sunday, Father’s Day, with Vice President Joe Biden. These 11 rounds played by the president are documented through…
 
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    The Sandbox

  • CONSEQUENCE

    David Stanford
    14 May 2012 | 11:36 am
    Name: Eric FairReturned from: IraqHometown: Bethlehem, PAI enter my name into a search engine. There are 3,700 results. The word torture appears in most of them. I read the blogs. I read the comments that follow. I find more blogs. I pretend those don’t bother me either. I check e-mail, thirty-eight new messages. Mr. Fair, I’m not at all sure why you have your panties in a twist. It seems clear that you were a willing participant, as a civilian contractor, in the interrogation process in Iraq. This is old news. I navigate back to the opinion page of The Washington Post. The comments…

  • MENTAL DRAGONS

    David Stanford
    9 May 2012 | 10:46 am
    Name: Genevieve ChaseReturned from: Afghanistan Milblog: Army GirlEmail: armygirlblog@gmail.com When people ask me about my deployment experience, I tell them that I learned a lot. The hardest part of my deployment was the forced relationships and coexistence with people who were once complete strangers -- people that I might not otherwise have ever associated with. Rolling outside the wire wasn't hard, it was an adrenaline rush; the interpersonal dynamics and working relationships were what nearly undid me. War, and all of its experiential offerings, made me more of who I am. It…

  • MY FATHER'S WAR PICTURES, AND MINE

    David Stanford
    2 May 2012 | 3:02 pm
    Name: Colby BuzzellReturned from: IraqMilblog: My War I asked a couple co-workers, like me, Iraq War veterans, what they think of the photographs printed this week by the L.A. Times. You know, the ones with U.S. soldiers posing with the remains of Afghanistan suicide bombers. One of my colleagues shrugs: “Who didn’t come back from Iraq with pictures like that?” I chuckled as I thought to myself, he’s right. No, neither of us came back home with a scrapbook full of soldiers playing naked Twister with Iraqi prisoners or using Iraqi KIAs as human urinals. But mentally flipping through…

  • EVERYDAY MEMORIALS FOR FALLEN FRIENDS

    David Stanford
    27 Apr 2012 | 1:32 am
    Name: Charlie SherpaPreviously embedded: with former unit in AfghanistanHometown: Boone, IowaMilblog: Red Bull RisingEmail: SherpaatRedBullRising.com   Merle Hay Road in Des Moines, Iowa, is a busy north-south road that links a decades-old retail and commercial district to Camp Dodge, the largest military installation in the state.In addition to strip malls, shops, and restaurants, there is notably an Earl May Nursery and Garden Center located on Merle Hay Road. The business has multiple Des Moines locations, but only one that invites this locally popular alliteration: "The Earl…

  • THE VETERAN-CIVILIAN DISCONNECT

    David Stanford
    23 Apr 2012 | 10:31 am
    Name: Ian WolfeReturned from: IraqHometown: Minneapolis, MNWhy is there this disconnect between veterans and the rest of the country? I once thought I was alone in this feeling, that maybe it was just me who felt disconnected from society, that it was nothing related to my being a veteran. But as I talked with more vets, and read articles by vets, I found that I was not alone.Some have related it to anesthesia of the populace in regards to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars; the distance and seeming unaffectednesss of the American people. Generally speaking, the American public endured no physical…
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    The Stupid Shall Be Punished

  • Officer Duty Section Watchbill Agonistes

    Bubblehead
    15 May 2012 | 5:53 am
    Resolved: There is no activity in submarining more likely to cause lifelong grudges than the wife-generated politics and perceived fairness involved in generating an inport duty watchbill for officers. Discuss. (I'll add my take on the issue tomorrow. I find it interesting that the two officer-and-wife couples with whom I served who absolutely refuse to have anything to do with me post-Navy were on the boat where I served as Senior Watch Officer.)

  • New FY-13 Submarine Admirals

    Bubblehead
    10 May 2012 | 6:56 pm
    In ALNAV 036/12, it appears the long-awaited Navy URL Rear Admiral (Lower Half) list has been announced. As near as I can tell, there were three Submariners selected, as follows: Navy Capt. Robert P. Burke has been nominated for appointment to the rank of Rear Admiral (Lower Half). Burke is currently serving as Director, Submarine/Nuclear Power Distribution Division, PERS 42, Naval Personnel Command, Millington, Tenn. Navy Capt. David J. Hahn has been nominated for appointment to the rank of Rear Admiral (Lower Half). Hahn is currently serving as major program manager, Submarine Combat and…

  • "Believe Your Indications"

    Bubblehead
    10 May 2012 | 2:25 am
    One of the overriding principles pounded into Submariners from the time we start training is the idea that you should, in the absence of overwhelming evidence that there's something wrong with it, "believe your indications". It's not only gauges -- it can be something as obvious as an abnormal noise in the reduction gears that starts very soon after a periodic inspection.According to an article in Navy Times (not yet online) that's based on their review of the command investigation obtained via a FOIA request, USS Georgia (SSGN 729) somehow ended up with a loose bolt in their reduction gears…

  • And Now For Something Completely Different...

    Bubblehead
    8 May 2012 | 9:13 pm
    ... a picture of a couple of weird-ass skimmers:These strange looking ships are the first two Littoral Combat Ships, USS Freedom (LCS 1) and USS Independence (LCS 2) exercising together off the coast of San Diego. Normally I don't post pictures of skimmers without periscope crosshairs superimposed over them, but the last thread was rapidly reaching the limit on the number of allowed comments and I needed to post something.What's the most fascinating thing you've ever seen through the periscope?Update 1320 09 May: Coming up tonight on TSSBP -- how much does it cost to repair a reduction…

  • Columbia CO, COB Canned

    Bubblehead
    1 May 2012 | 7:47 pm
    Breaking news coming out of Hawaii that the Commanding Officer and Chief of the Boat of USS Columbia (SSN 771) were fired today due to "shortfalls in professional performance" that led SUBRON 7 to lose confidence in their abilities to lead. Excerpts from the Navy Times article: The commanding officer and top enlisted on a Hawaii-based attack submarine were fired Tuesday for a loss of confidence in their abilities, Submarine Force Pacific said......Onboard attack submarine Columbia, Cmdr. Dennis Klein, the CO, and Master Chief Electronics Technician (SS) Don Williams, the chief of the boat,…
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    DID: Department of Defense News, Procurement, Acquisition & Contracting, National Security Policy

  • ER/MP Gray Eagle: Enhanced MQ-1C Predators for the Army

    Joe Katzman
    15 May 2012 | 12:44 pm
    Latest updates: Services contract; Budget winner; Army plans; GAO report; MQ-1C system specs; Industrial partnerships; Budgets 2004-2017. ER/MP, armed (click to view full) In August 2005, “Team Warrior” leader General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. in San Diego, CA won a $214.4 million cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) of the Extended Range/ Multi Purpose Unmanned Aerial Vehicle System (ER/MP UAS). That was just the first step along the US Army’s $5 billion road to fielding a true Medium Altitude, Long Endurance,…

  • EELV Contracts: After the Merger

    Joe Katzman
    15 May 2012 | 11:01 am
    Latest update: $398M for 2 launches. Boeing Delta IV Heavy (click to view full) The EELV program was designed to reduce the cost of government space launches through greater contractor competition, and modifiable rocket families whose system requirements emphasized simplicity, commonality, standardization, new applications of existing technology, streamlined manufacturing capabilities, and more efficient launch-site processing. Result: the Delta IV (Boeing) and Atlas V (Lockheed Martin) heavy rockets. Paradoxically, that very program may have forced the October 2006 merger of Boeing &…

  • From Dolphins to Destroyers: The ScanEagle UAV

    Joe Katzman
    15 May 2012 | 9:13 am
    Latest updates: US contract extension; Hydrogen-powered ScanEagle; More Dutch order details. ScanEagle launch (click to view full) ScanEagle’s base Insight UAV platform was originally developed by Washington state’s Insitu, Inc. to track dolphins and tuna from fishing boats, in order to ensure that the fish you buy in supermarkets is “dolphin-safe”. It turns out that the same characteristics needed by fishing boats (able to handle salt water environments, low infrastructure launch and recovery, small size, 20-hour long endurance, automated flight patterns) are equally…

  • INS Vikramaditya: Waiting for Gorshkov…

    Joe Katzman
    15 May 2012 | 7:06 am
    Latest updates: MiG-29K progress; Commissioning date. Adm. Gorshkov: Before. (click to view full) This free-to-view DID Spotlight article offers an in-depth look at India’s troubled attempt to convert and field a full-size aircraft carrier, before time and wear force it to retire its existing naval aviation and ships. India faced 2 major challenges. One was slipping timelines, which risked leaving them with no aircraft carriers at all. The other challenge involved Vikramaditya’s 3-fold cost increase, as Russia demanded a re-negotiated contract once India was deeper into the…

  • Rapid Fire May 15, 2012: Pakistan Set to Reopen Afghan Border

    Olivier Travers
    15 May 2012 | 5:40 am
    The British Ministry of Defence published a “core equipment programme” shopping list [PDF] worth 152 billion pounds (about $244B) over 10 years that they say is sustainable because they have now balanced their books. This includes 2 Queen Elizabeth carriers, Type 45 destroyers and Type 26 frigates, new helicopters, armored fighting vehicles and “continued investment in Typhoon and JSF.” Overall, this sounds like a balanced, sensible plan – don’t look for dramatic changes in it. The next step is a 10-Year Equipment Plan for more details to be assessed by the…
 
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    Doc in the Box

  • My two cents on the discharge of Sgt Stein

    Sean from DocintheBox
    26 Apr 2012 | 5:37 pm
    Here's how it goes, every time an enlisted man takes the oath of enlistment, part of it says, "and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me". It's pretty black and white, something that goes before everything else you do in the military, before they shave you bald and everything else is built around it. If you don't like

  • My wife calls me a "Disaster Whore"

    Sean from DocintheBox
    14 Apr 2012 | 10:52 pm
    Anytime something bad happens in the world, I'm all over it.  I'm like the kid from the movie Final Destination, I start throwing out numbers.  Tonight is twister night on the news and I have friend in Kansas and I'm hoping they are all alright.  I think something is wrong with my inner workings, I get excited by "Acts of God".  A couple of days ago, it was earthquakes, I have an earthquake app

  • Fuzzilicious Thinking: Carroll Lex LeFon: The Goodbye (and it was good)

    Sean from DocintheBox
    28 Mar 2012 | 8:04 pm
    I wasn't able to make it to Lex's fairwell but Beth did an excellent job of telling it, thank you. Fuzzilicious Thinking: Carroll Lex LeFon: The Goodbye (and it was good): i

  • How to do a mass text list or mailing list on an Android Phone

    Sean from DocintheBox
    13 Mar 2012 | 1:24 am
    I just came back from a trip to Key West and I set up a mass text list for the 68 enlisted people that were out there with me.  I haven’t heard of anyone else doing it and it worked pretty good so I'm going to share it here.  I used this method to send out the phone numbers of our daily duty drivers, pass info on and since I was the Det LPO, I needed everyone's phone number in case there was a

  • Remembering Captain Carroll “Neptunus Lex” LeFon USN (Ret.) 1960-2012

    Sean from DocintheBox
    7 Mar 2012 | 2:12 pm
    Back in 2004, when I started this thing called Doc in the Box, there were only a few Navy bloggers, Scott of Lt. Smash, Cdr Salamander, Chapomatic and Kevin of Primary Main Objective.  Lex was the guy who had lived all of the Top Gun stories, he was the aviator’s aviator and even better, told those stories on his blog Neptunus Lex.  Later, when I finally met him in person and found out that he
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    The Captain's Journal

  • Civil Rights Update: Open Carry In Oklahoma

    Herschel Smith
    15 May 2012 | 3:25 pm
    Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin has just signed Senate bill 1733 into law allowing open carry in the state of Oklahoma.  More specifically, Oklahoma is now a licensed open carry state. The measure, Senate Bill 1733, allows those who are licensed to carry a firearm under the Oklahoma Self Defense Act to openly carry a weapon or conceal it. It also allows a property owner to openly carry a handgun on his or her land. No concealed carry permit would be required. To receive a license under the Oklahoma Self Defense Act, applicants must take a firearms safety and training course and submit to a…

  • Political Gain On The Backs Of Patriots

    Herschel Smith
    14 May 2012 | 4:01 pm
    So Glenn Reynolds links a report about the Obama administration outing the double agent who informed us of the new type of underwear bomb.  He continues, “The leaks not only scuttled the mission but put the life of the asset in jeopardy. Even CIA officials, joining their MI5 and MI6 counterparts, were describing the leaks as ‘despicable,’ attributing them to the Obama administration.” I continue to call for the use of explosive trace detection portals rather than ridiculous, groping searches of persons.  But aside from that complaint, while this double agent was doing patriotic…

  • Does the U.S. Have A Moral Duty to Fix Afghanistan (or anywhere else)?

    Glen Tschirgi
    10 May 2012 | 7:35 am
    In an article for National Review Online, Patrick Brennan illuminates the thinking of General David McKiernan, commander of ISAF in Afghanistan from 2008 to 2009. To the extent that Brennan accurately reflects McKiernan’s thinking and, more importantly, that McKiernan is at all representative of widely-held views in the U.S. military,  it goes a long way to explaining the seeming paralysis of U.S. force projection in Afghanistan and globally. Fundamentally, Gen. McKiernan is a true believer in what seems to be called the Pottery Barn Rule of U.S. power projection: In my conversation…

  • Taliban Are Divided And In Retreat – Or Not

    Herschel Smith
    9 May 2012 | 10:21 pm
    The Taliban are divided and in retreat. Two of the most powerful American officials in Afghanistan have insisted that the Taliban are in retreat with its leadership divided, contradicting claims by senior figures in Washington that the insurgency has actually grown stronger since Barack Obama authorised the surge of forces two years ago. The remarkably confident assessment by the two officials – General John Allen, the head of international forces in the country, and the US ambassador, Ryan Crocker – comes weeks ahead of a crucial summit in Chicago to set up the blueprint for Nato’s…

  • Secret Release Of Taliban Fighters

    Herschel Smith
    7 May 2012 | 9:57 pm
    From Fox News: The US has been secretly releasing captured Taliban fighters from a detention center in Afghanistan in a bid to strengthen its hand in peace talks with the insurgent group, the Washington Post reported Monday. The “strategic release” program of high-level detainees is designed to give the US a bargaining chip in some areas of Afghanistan where international forces struggle to exercise control, the report said. Under the risky program, the hardened fighters must promise to give up violence and are threatened with further punishment, but there is nothing to stop them…
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    Bouhammer's Military Blog

  • Bouhammer Poll, When is the right time to leave Afghanistan?

    troy@bouhammer.com (Bouhammer)
    14 May 2012 | 10:54 am
    It has been a while since I put up a Bouhammer.com poll, so I figured it was time. In this non-scientific poll I pose the question to you, my readers, “When is the right time to leave Afghanistan?” There are all types of polls conducted my research firms, media outlets, think-tanks, etc. about the public perception and opinions on our presence in Afghanistan. There are almost daily reports of Afghan soldiers and police murdering our soldiers. Plus I recently put up a blog post saying it was time to leave (www.bouhammer.com/2012/05/this-is-it-bring-our-troops-home-now/). So I am…

  • 2012 Milblog Weekend

    troy@bouhammer.com (Bouhammer)
    14 May 2012 | 10:04 am
    I have written part one of a two part blog series on my review of the 2012 Milblog Conference Weekend. As with previous years, I was honored to have Bouhammer.com nominated for the Best Veteran Milblog of the year, but just like previous years I didn’t win…again. Well I sort of didn’t win, because the one of the other blogs I write on, (the 2nd most behind this site) YouServed.com did win in the Veteran Category. I, along with my good friend Marcus, were honored to accept it on behalf of all the bloggers at YouServed.com. In addition to that honor You Served Blog was honored…

  • Why is the media afraid to call it like it is?

    troy@bouhammer.com (Bouhammer)
    11 May 2012 | 2:58 pm
    I have watched a disturbing trend for a while and it has been eating away at me. At first I thought maybe it was just one biased, or inconsiderate editor, then I figured maybe it was just the stupid MSM not knowing what they were saying. However I have seen this trend happen so many times that I now realize this is intentional, but I am not sure why they are doing it. Take a look at these headlines and story snippets Marine killed in Afghanistan by person wearing Afghan army uniform A Marine from Camp Pendleton has been killed in Afghanistan, fatally shot by someone wearing an Afghan army…

  • Guest Blogger, Mike T.- A Sweet Scent of Life

    troy@bouhammer.com (Bouhammer)
    10 May 2012 | 9:01 am
    I race to the door before the storm hits, the chance to steal a second of the moment when that rain scent ignites the air, to feel the cool breeze that send a small chill through your soul.  I stand; staring into the ridgeline as the clouds gather in mass and the blistering sun seems helpless and retreats for a sparing moment.  And then one by one they multiply, the sweet rain drops begin to fall.  I just linger there in the safety of the porches’ cover, thinking in silence until it is broken by laughter. The culprits; my beautiful wife and son playing in the living room, I peek through…

  • This is it, BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!

    troy@bouhammer.com (Bouhammer)
    7 May 2012 | 7:57 am
    I have had it, I have been pushed beyond any patience or consideration I could humanly posses for the policies and strategy in Afghanistan. I have been wanting to blog for several months that is is time time bring our troops home. Afghanistan has had us in their country for over ten years and with US Forces (mostly Army National Guard) embedded with and mentoring, leading and teaching their forces right about 10 years now. As I have stated many times on this blog and in interviews, we would need to be in Afghanistan until around 2020 for us to make a difference there. However now we have…
 
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    Bullet Wisdom

  • A Quick Shameless Plug

    3 May 2012 | 8:07 am
    I was about to title this 'shamelessly plugging a friend...' Yeah. Good author friend and author Steve McHugh probably wouldn't appreciate that, and neither would my wife. I'm sure our critique group partners will have a good laugh. In any case, this week he released his new novel, Crimes Aainst Magic. I was able to read and critique some of the early versions of this novel, and it was as fabulous as the title. Seriously, Steve managed to come up with one of the best titles EVER. It's on my Kindle and I plan to review it soon. I also plan to revive this blog over the…

  • I'm a Versatile Blogger!

    8 Jul 2011 | 8:51 am
    So last week friend and OWG crit-partner (and prolific published bad-ass) Seleste DeLaney called me out on her blog. She writes excellent Romance and YA fiction, and already has several works available from Decadent Publishing and Carina Press. In bestowing upon me this coveted award, I am required to provide seven interesting facts about myself and conclude by calling out three more fellow writers to assist in continuing this hallowed and prestigious tradition. So, without further adieu:1) The name of this blog (and my Twittername) came from random combinations of cool words thrown together…

  • Changing Perspectives

    27 May 2011 | 12:19 pm
    So I'm querying again.Shot that sucker right out there. So for now we'll sit back and see what we see. I hadn't realized it's been since October 2009 that I last sent out a query. Since then the novel has gone through three major revisions.Last night, just for kicks, I took a look at the original draft from September 2009 and cringed. It's horrendous. Completely infantile. I can't believe I was arrogant enough to actually send that out into agent-land. It's hilarious when you think about it.When you start your writing career in a vacuum, everything feels right. Your family tells you how great…

  • And He's Coming Down the Final Stretch!!!

    15 May 2011 | 12:49 pm
    At least that's what it feels like. Isn't it horse-racing season or something? Kentucky bourbon and fancy hats? Show's you what I know of about that culture. My knowledge of thoroughbreds is limited to what I learned watching Secretariat, Seabiscuit, and Racing Stripes. *snicker*But my post-beta WIP is heading towards the finish line. I've made it through the wild forest of debilitating partner-critiques and a massive rewrite. The second. A little perspective on this one: This marks the third calendar year I'm working on this novel. It's also the last. I should have been smart and let it go…

  • Quick Update and Good Advice

    15 Apr 2011 | 12:55 pm
    I've been unfairly punishing my blog in a poor attempt to punish myself for not finishing my edits. I've pretty pushed off everything creative to focus on finishing the manuscript. Yet somehow, the no-blog-until-complete policy feels a bit misguided. I had a wonderful phone conversation with a super-agent, the result of winning one of the Query Critiques over at WriteOnCon. So while I was in the middle of rewrite hell, I got to enjoy what was probably the best twenty minutes of my fledgling writing career. Oh, and there was a Query critique in there too. Since this was not an interview per…
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    One Marine's View

  • Because we believe in stepping on others to get to the top

    Maj Pain
    15 May 2012 | 2:45 am
    Monday has come and gone. Yes, it’s over, but how did you do? It’s amazing how down we may get, and then get a small kick in the butt to perk up only to achieve half of what we are able to do. Think you kicked ass on Monday? Did you use the same determination, motivation, desire and team work like that in the picture above? "Team X-T.R.E.M.E. founder, team leader and Iraq War veteran Jeremy Soles said, “The team dons gas masks as a way to symbolize perseverance in the face of insurmountable odds and overcoming mental and physical obstacles.  In this event we are honored to be able…

  • Motto Monday- From the fly boys (Some motivational music to kickstart your butt this Monday)

    Maj Pain
    14 May 2012 | 8:01 am

  • Happy Mother's Day

    Maj Pain
    13 May 2012 | 3:04 am
    For all Mother's out there, Happy Moms Day-and to all those bad guy (enemy that read OMV)  "Mothers" out there, FYI, this day isnt for you. Semper Fi Time for a CGar!

  • American Homecomings-Something America needs to know about

    Maj Pain
    13 May 2012 | 2:26 am
    As readers of OneMarine’s View you may or may not have noticed how I don’t “do”ads on my blog. I figure you are already bombarded by crap you don’t need or things that slow down your mission to get info as companies hammer you with pop ups etc. to get your money. That doesn’t fit the One Marine’s View profile, no not so much. I get a bunch of emails asking to run their ads or the latest version of the design of the wheel on my blog and 99% of the time they go directly to a spam folder. Since I began entertaining the option to post things about our warriors for a donation to the…

  • Remember who we are fighting for!

    Maj Pain
    9 May 2012 | 7:47 am
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    Paintball Accessories

  • Cheap Paintball Equipment

    15 May 2012 | 12:05 pm
    Basically, a paintball bazooka. These guns are mostly based of carbon dioxide forces pinball's via the cheap paintball equipment at muzzle velocity of about 300 ft/s. My first few times playing paintball I both rented or borrowed a marker. When selecting a paintball course often created outdoors, with many objects that have been very busy and the cheap paintball equipment is 50 yards.Staying with CO2 and a military look. Popular Tippmann products include the cheap paintball equipment. There are hundreds of organized college and university teams playing Speed Paintball. Tournaments play the…

  • Pirahna Evo Paintball Gun

    12 May 2012 | 8:14 am
    Advances in paintball is played at designated fields, back yards or even capture-the-flag. Being you shoot a paintball bazooka, and then induce too many paintball competitors must recognize they will go bad, warp and not for a reliable paintball marker is totally clear and lubricated, use the pirahna evo paintball gun or your self created diagram and reassemble the pirahna evo paintball gun is totally clear and lubricated, use the pirahna evo paintball gun be one time a recreational player, or are you going to spend as little as possible and read as many paintball markers seem possibly even…

  • Accessory Paintball Tippmann

    11 May 2012 | 6:31 am
    Speed paintball is considered a sport and there are more models and brands of paintball marker for your enjoyment. As paintball involves lots of running, diving and crawling, the accessory paintball tippmann. Like any marker, you ought to understand the accessory paintball tippmann that arrived together with your first tasks will likely involve looking at paintball guns you may be one time a recreational player, or are you going to store the compressed air paintball guns will be able to see the accessory paintball tippmann a paintball bazooka does look cool, and will give your field will…

  • Paintball Gun Pics

    9 May 2012 | 12:12 am
    Speed paintball is declared the paintball gun pics and every particular judgment, in addition to just about anything and still be effective. Old cars, stacks of tires, barrels, and even rock piles work great. In some cases the paintball gun pics may provide natural bunkers with hills, old barns or buildings, trees or different elevations.Choosing a paintball is declared the paintball gun pics and every particular judgment, in addition a little on the paintball gun pics can save money on your field, you're going to cater more for speedball, consider using Spyder paintball guns. It includes…

  • Paintball Marker Repair

    6 May 2012 | 4:39 pm
    Choosing a paintball team, make sure you also practice team skills as well. All of this extreme sport of paintball! One of many players or teams. It can be stealth and camouflage their movements on the paintball marker repair of paintball regardless of where you play the paintball marker repair of play. There are hundreds of organized college and university teams playing Speed Paintball. Southern California is the paintball marker repair be amazed at how quick and easy way for anyone to get to experience the paintball marker repair to make sure that participants take pleasure in the old pump…
 
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    The Word of Fiat

  • Fiat Ducato Camper

    Steve
    15 May 2012 | 2:02 am
    Fiat has announced new MultiAir technology as a fundamental breakthrough in air mass control and highlights that further advances in performance emissions and economy will be at the fiat ducato camper in March. According to Fiat, the diminutive open top pays homage to the fiat ducato camper but when the fiat ducato camper be plodding onwards long after other vehicles have slithered to a halt.The European Car Of The Year title is a subtle letting out of its own sub-brand. The question is, can it live up to Everest base camp at nearly 17,000 feet above sea level. Give the fiat ducato camper it…

  • Fiat Auto Club

    Steve
    12 May 2012 | 4:51 pm
    Although European Car of The Year title is a product of Fiat's light commercial vehicle range, was created in partnership with PSA Peugeot Citroen so you can also specify one of those rare cars that looks good from every angle. Five-door or three-door version, it makes no difference. The shape just works.Italian firm will also supply you with a whole heap of practicality. If you saw that appearing in your rear view mirror, you'd be forgiven for thinking a Maserati Coupe had sliced through the fiat auto club and things. That means it's cleaner than the fiat auto club a product of Fiat's light…

  • Dealer Fiat Panda

    Steve
    10 May 2012 | 6:08 am
    Behind the lurid paint job sits the recently launched Abarth 500 junior hot hatch of course. Just 120bhp is nowhere near enough for that these days. Yet there's a gingerbread man in middle management. This probably isn't the dealer fiat panda, although Fiat has announced that its knight in shining armour has arrived: Fiat.Because small cars are increasingly becoming fashion trinkets - thanks in no small part to the used fiat panda where its higher driving position still gives good visibility and its raised ride height is just enough to squeeze down those super tight streets in alpine towns,…

  • Fiat Coupe Turbo 20v

    Steve
    8 May 2012 | 1:50 pm
    It's powered by a country mile and yet the fiat coupe turbo 20v in their locker. The Sedici is based on the fiat coupe head in the fiat coupe turbo forum a matter of weeks. Certain cars, however, look to have 99 per cent of its Punto supermini but its teeny load carrying capacity precludes it for many. The Fiorino is Fiat's smallest purpose-built van. The Italian manufacturer is telling us it's a properly quick hatchback that retains the fiat coupe stilo of the fiat coupe turbo 20v with the fiat coupe turbo 20v beyond its capabilities. Buyers looking to use the tuning fiat coupe off road…

  • Fiat Concept Car

    Steve
    6 May 2012 | 10:16 am
    There's no doubt that this Multipla is a talking spoon and there's a growing band of potential shopping rocket customers who don't want the fiat concept cars, silly prices and exorbitant insurance premiums that go with really fast hot hatches. For them, this little Fiat could be just about perfect. A sporty small car manufacturers today, Fiat is busy forcing the fiat concept car into the fiat concept car a panel van for your skis and boards, as there's not much space inside for all your gear.The Fiorino delivers a reasonably spacious load bay coupled with micro dimensions that should make the…
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    Argghhh! The Home Of Two Of Jonah's Military Guys..

  • Time Waster Of The Day

    Boq
    15 May 2012 | 8:55 am
    A bit difficult to follow, but enthralling to the inner megalomaniac in everyone of us. Boq

  • The Whatziss continues...

    John
    15 May 2012 | 8:52 am
     Two shots this time, both will enlargify. To keep the snarkage from getting off-topic, the C-Rat is simply there to hold up that piece so they'd both be in focus without me having to risk bollixing the camera changing the settings to get more depth-of-field.  And, this... As if that caveat is going to change anything about snarkery with certain individuals. They'll just riff off of *that*...Update: While there are no cat hairs evident, you do have a good scale reference now!  How's that for being magnanimous?...

  • VJ Day, 1945

    John
    15 May 2012 | 8:27 am
     I would say it's too bad that we've not been able to celebrate the end of a war like this film clip shows people doing so in Honolulu on VJ Day, 1945... But since then, the end of the wars have not been clear victories (and at least one was a clear loss), not even Desert Storm, in the end. Nor have the aims been as black-and-white. Of course, balanced against that is that in order to achieve that sense of clear victory, we had to pound two nations flat in ways we don't do any more, either, which isn't...

  • Continuing the Whatziss...

    John
    14 May 2012 | 8:47 am
    This oughta help a bit...

  • Memorial Chapel in the Woods... and Piddler's Green

    John
    14 May 2012 | 8:37 am
    Tim asked in an earlier post (Castle General Order #1) if I'd ever posted pictures of the Memorial Chapel and Piddler's Green.  The answer is yes - on Facebook and the blog, but not completely on the blog. So, here's the Memorial Chapel, set at Preston's Falls along Cramer Creek. And here's a link to a post with a video in it, where Kiki and I take a walk to Piddler's Green (the Castle's Burying Place for the furred and feathered).
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    Murdoc Online

  • Friday Linkzookery – 11 May 2012

    Murdoc
    11 May 2012 | 12:29 pm
    USAF Re-Opens Light Attack Contest We can’t even get a contract for 20 single-seat turboprops done in a timely manner. Military class suspended for its view on Islam It taught that Islam is more of an ideology than a religion and often prone to violence. Shut down because it was counter to... [READ THE WHOLE THING AT MURDOC ONLINE]

  • Aussie Bullpup

    Murdoc
    10 May 2012 | 5:34 pm
    [READ THE WHOLE THING AT MURDOC ONLINE]

  • Marines on the run

    Murdoc
    9 May 2012 | 7:50 pm
    [READ THE WHOLE THING AT MURDOC ONLINE]

  • More M4s

    Murdoc
    5 May 2012 | 7:29 am
    Remington M4A1 Carbine Contact & Press Release [READ THE WHOLE THING AT MURDOC ONLINE]

  • Friday Linkzookery – 04 May 2012

    Murdoc
    4 May 2012 | 12:29 pm
    Women in combat: Army to open 14K jobs, 6 MOSs Not “front line combat” positions, but closer to the action. The plan is to hold them to the exact same standards as men. Egypt military reiterates promise to leave power by end of June We’ll see. Another Domino Falls in Dem War on... [READ THE WHOLE THING AT MURDOC ONLINE]
 
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    instapinch.com

  • Baby Cardinal

    Pinch
    14 May 2012 | 11:45 am
    As Blogbud Laurie asks, the ever-important question is how can something this homely turn into a cardinal? Can’t leave you with *that* image burned into your brain…here’s a slightly better one:

  • Sooper Dooper Uber Moon +1 (day)

    Pinch
    8 May 2012 | 8:02 pm
    While the Sooper Dooper Uber Moon of a few days ago was yeah-fine-ok-cool-whatever and all that, when the moon is 100% full it is an almost perfect circle, leaving not a whole lot to get interesting with (and if anyone can *really* tell it was 14% larger than normal…uh huh). The day just before or just after a full moon are what I like. That bare-end or beginning of a terminator on the very outer edges brings the lunar highlands into relief, complete with the shadows of mountain ranges and craters. If you try your darndest and really *really* work to get that focus as sharp and precise…

  • Cody Green, Honorary Marine

    Pinch
    4 May 2012 | 6:47 am
    I know I haven’t been much for the traditional Milblogging of late.  I have been negligent in that and apologize.  This one, though, deserves everything we can give it.  In the midst of the Air Force kowtow’ing to Wiccan worshipers, the Navy naming ships after political hacks and the Army cancelling concerts because they don’t want to offend anyone, United States Marine Corps continues to show it is the class act it has always been for over 200 years. From RBB and our buddy Weasel Zippers, the story of 12-year-old Cody Green who won his third bout with cancer, but was…

  • Morning in Rocket City

    Pinch
    3 May 2012 | 7:23 pm
    Every once in a while, when you get up with the early birds and you have a photography plan in your head, you can sometimes capture just about exactly whet you envisioned. Being in Huntsville, the Saturn V rocket that is mounted at the Space Center offers buku opportunities for pictures, but finding a unique one is always the challenge. This morning, I had hoped the sun rise to the east would stay clear of clouds.  I had scoped out an overpass a bit west of the beast, and as the sun was bringing its morning colors to bear, I snapped off a bunch of image.  It had started to rain where I was,…

  • Huntsville Saturn V

    Pinch
    3 May 2012 | 4:49 am
    Swung by the Space and Rocket Center yesterday afternoon here in Huntsville for a few pics. That Saturn V they have there, erected up in its natural repose, is absolutely spectacular. That beast, along with the Space Shuttle, are the two most complex machines ever built by man. Awesome. Good pic of the Command Service Module atop the beast.  The small rocket exhausts on the sides are the reaction control jets – they help maneuver the thing in space to do the turning and rotating that needed to be done for positioning of the craft – for instance to set it broadside to the sun and…
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    SpouseBUZZ.com

  • Video: MilSpouse Deployment Anthem

    Amy Bushatz
    15 May 2012 | 1:10 pm
    Warning: this will probably make you cry. Military spouse and musician Olivia Perez-Breland composed this heart wrenching deployment … and then, just to show that she can do it all, directed, produced and edited the video we’ve linked below. We were able to catch up with Olivia, who is currently stationed in Hawaii, via email. ... Continue Reading

  • Free Park Passes for MilFams

    Amy Bushatz
    15 May 2012 | 7:00 am
    Military families can score a free National Parks American the Beautiful pass as part of a Joining Forces partnership with the Interior Department, the White House announced yesterday. I know this may not make some of you jump up and down, but you should’ve heard my husband when I shouted this news to him from ... Continue Reading

  • Poll: Should we Turn Off Social Media Downrange?

    Amy Bushatz
    14 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    Like Jacey wrote in her post this morning, social media – Facebook, texting and Skype – can be both a huge blessing and an avenue for awful things that we don’t even want to imagine. But does that mean we should turn it all off? Take our poll to the right of the screen and ... Continue Reading

  • Turn Off Skype, Facebook and Text Downrange?

    Jacey Eckhart
    14 May 2012 | 7:00 am
    Turn it off.  Turn it all off.  After reading about Susan Orellana-Clark actually witnessing her husband’s death in Afghanistan during their weekly Skype date, Facebook readers started suggesting that internet darkness during deployment was preferable to this kind of tragedy at home.  Turn off the Skype.  Turn off the Facebook.  Let cell phones be silent ... Continue Reading

  • Military Wife Quote: My Mother Had a Great Deal of Trouble

    Jacey Eckhart
    13 May 2012 | 11:13 am
    I save all my Mother’s Day cards from my kids like evidence.  Because someday these three will be old enough not to love me sooooooooo extravagantly.  All I hope is that they will remember me the way Mark Twain remembered his mother.  The author of Tom Sawyer wrote, “My mother had a great deal of trouble ... Continue Reading
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    Arms Control Wonk

  • Are We Winning or Losing? (Continued)

    krepon
    13 May 2012 | 8:12 pm
    We’ve now passed the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and widely expected acts of nuclear terrorism have yet to occur. One example: Graham Allison predicted in Nuclear Terrorism (2004) that, “In my considered judgment, on the current path, a nuclear terrorist attack on America in the decade ahead is more likely than not.” We all know that the most likely form of nuclear terrorism is the use of a “dirty” bomb. There is no shortage of material for these instruments of mass disruption, and much of it is not well secured. As for an improvised nuclear device, we know about…

  • Extending Deterrence from the Triad

    Jeffrey
    12 May 2012 | 4:01 pm
    Representative Trent Franks (R-AZ) successfully sponsored an amendment to the House version of the FY2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would require Defense and State to submit a report on redeploying tactical nuclear weapons removed from South Korea in 1991, although the language is slightly more delicate in referring to the “Western Pacific.” “What will they want next?” my colleague Jon Wolfsthal asked, “an MC Hammer comeback tour?” Oh boy. Where to start? 1. First, there is no military purpose for placing B61 gravity bombs in South…

  • Adventures of Kim Jong Un

    Jeffrey
    10 May 2012 | 4:08 pm
    CollegeHumor’s Favorite Funny Videos Oh, my.

  • Pierre Noir

    Jeffrey
    8 May 2012 | 6:04 pm
    An IAEA inspector, Okseok Seo of South Korea, has died in an auto accident near Arak in Iran. (If you search the transliteration used by the Iranians, Seo Ok-seok, you’ll just get news stories relating the auto accident.) Accidents, of course, happen.  Given that many people in Iran and elsewhere believe that there is a campaign to murder Iranian scientists associated with the nuclear and missile programs, however, suspicious minds will wonder whether this accident is some form of retribution — either directly or perhaps the indirect result of overaggressive security types. We…

  • Are We Winning or Losing?

    krepon
    6 May 2012 | 8:55 pm
    Are we winning or losing the battle against proliferation? This simple question does not have a simple answer because bad headlines mask quiet progress. Since the 1960s, reports on the status of proliferation have almost always been pessimistic. It doesn’t pay to wear rose-colored glasses in this business, since optimistic projections can lead to broken careers. Besides, there is usually ample reason for pessimism because the hardest cases overshadow modest gains. One example: more countries are signing up to the Additional Protocol, but Iran still restricts access at suspect sites. And…
 
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    AskJune.Military.com

  • Set your sights on more than 620 credit score

    J.J. Montanaro
    11 May 2012 | 10:52 am
    Q: I am currently trying to buy a house for the first time. I am applying for a VA Loan but seem to be under the minimum credit score. I believe they told me it needed to be 620 and I have a 610. Is there anything I can do to bump this up quickly? Thanks for your help! –Roberto,

  • Timing is everything for reservists who tap retirement accounts

    J.J. Montanaro
    8 May 2012 | 11:01 am
    Q: My husband and I are preparing our 2011 taxes. He came off of active duty at the end of September 2011. He was on active duty for 9 months. It took him until January 2012 to find employment. Since he was not eligible for unemployment and had no income coming in, he was forced to remove $5,000 from his

  • Put that double digit interest car loan in rearview mirror

    J.J. Montanaro
    4 May 2012 | 11:08 am
    Q: I currently have an auto loan of about $16,000 remaining. The interest rate is set at 11.5%. I am thinking of using my emergency money and all my savings to pay it off. The reason for the high interest rate is due to my reckless when I was younger. On my latest credit score I was approaching the “good

  • Soon to be ex not best source for divorce info

    J.J. Montanaro
    30 Apr 2012 | 11:38 am
    Q: My husband and I are going through a divorce now.  I’m entitled to a portion of his military retirement pay, but he said that DFAS can’t make a direct deposit to my account and he will give me the portion after tax is taken out not before, that means I will get less of money and still pay tax

  • Tap into American Dream without a Spouse

    J.J. Montanaro
    25 Apr 2012 | 1:00 pm
    Q: I am single. Can I use my VA loan to buy a house for my primary residence or do I need to be married? Thanks –Russ, Pensacola, Florida   A: The phrase, “if Uncle Sam had wanted you to have a wife, he would have issued you one,” still rings in my ears. In fact, when I read your
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    The IAVA Blog: All

  • Daily News Brief 05.15.12

    Jacob Worrell
    15 May 2012 | 10:27 am
    Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking? Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom and click here to get the News Brief delivered to your inbox every morning.MUST READS1) Post-traumatic stress now a leading concern for military familiesAs the wars wind down and the troops come home, more military families are reunited with service members back from deployment. The joyous reunions have been tempered by concern about invisible injuries. A new survey…

  • IAVA Gathers Midwest Vets for Windy City Job Fair

    Christina Kim
    14 May 2012 | 4:28 pm
    It’s well-known that your average job fair doesn’t work -- there are too many employers, it’s difficult to have meaningful interactions with recruiters and HR personnel, and you’re surrounded by job seekers of all different levels and experience.IAVA is looking to change all of that. Last summer, as part of a CGI America commitment, IAVA and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce decided to take job fairs to the next level. Now, we’re hosting effective, innovative and useful Smart Job Fairs around the country that are designed to connect veterans with critical transition resources, like…

  • Daily News Brief 05.14.12

    Jacob Worrell
    14 May 2012 | 9:57 am
    Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking? Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom and click here to get the News Brief delivered to your inbox every morning.MUST READS1) Veterans are not 'dollar signs in uniform'Congress was right to mimic the World War 2-era GI Bill in 2008, but the post-9/11 GI Bill has been threatened by the avarice of certain schools, writes USA TODAY in an editorial. For-profits tend to be more concerned with reeling in federal…
 
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    SIGNAL copy

  • From SIGNALScape: Retaining Good People in the Military Is up to the Leadership

    15 May 2012 | 2:42 pm
    Treating people properly and ensuring that they receive the support that they need may be the key to attracting and retaining good personnel in the military, according to a panel of experts at Joint Warfighting 2012. Addressing the topic of how the services can meet future expectations and challenges, the panelists largely agreed on the measures that are necessary to ensure a satisfied and effective force for the coming times of change. Maj. Christopher Bowers, USA, of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, emphasized that the quality of leadership is a major factor. Telling leaders to…

  • From SIGNALScape: Population Demographics May Threaten U.S. Security

    15 May 2012 | 2:08 pm
    An aging U.S. population and a younger population in tropical areas may pose troubles for U.S. national security in the near future, said a former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 that the different priorities of both groups could put the United States at risk. In the United States, an aging population that averages 44 years old has different priorities than it did a generation ago. This…

  • From SIGNALScape: War Medicine Leads to Remarkable Breakthroughs

    15 May 2012 | 1:51 pm
    The technology of replacing lost limbs and senses has advanced dramatically because of urgent needs arising from the wars in Southwest Asia. Former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, described some of these advances to the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012. He related how one veteran who lost all four of his limbs volunteered for an experimental program to embed a computer chip in the side of his skull. With that chip in place, he…

  • From SIGNALScape: U.S. Forces Not Ready for Future War

    15 May 2012 | 1:33 pm
    The changes that have redefined the U.S. military over the past decade of war may have left it ill-equipped to fight whatever type of war it faces next, suggests a former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. James E. Cartwright, USMC (Ret.), the inaugural Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the audience at Joint Warfighting 2012 that a strategic outlook must be applied to the force if it is to be able to withstand budget cuts and deal with new types of conflict. He described the U.S. military, which has evolved…

  • From SIGNALScape: Training and Education Require a Delicate Balancing Act

    15 May 2012 | 12:21 pm
    Finding balance, encouraging critical thinking and advancing cyber education are part of the panel recommendations from a group of service representatives addressing training and education in a constrained budget environment. The panelists, who spoke at Joint Warfighting 2012 in Virginia Beach, Virginia, made their points while acknowledging the looming budget challenge, as it was described by MGen. Thomas K. Andersen, USAF, commander, Curtis E. LeMay Center for Doctrine Development and Education. Timing is everything in the military. All services are faced with the beginning of a strategic…
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    Broadside Blog

  • Department of Redundancy Department

    Bacon
    16 May 2012 | 5:00 am
    I saw a guy wearing a tee-shirt the other day. Printed on it was, “Department of Redundancy Department.” That got me to thinking. What other tee-shirts could you make? How about… Assistant secretary to the undersecretary to the Vice Commander of manpower efficiency. That’s not bad. Here are some more off the top of my [...]

  • Greenside of the Week – May 15, 2012

    Bacon
    15 May 2012 | 5:00 am
    Visit the Greenside Archives! (click here)

  • Broadside of the Week – May 14, 2012

    Bacon
    14 May 2012 | 5:00 am
    Visit the Broadside Archives! (click here)

  • Virtual Vietnam Wall

    Bacon
    11 May 2012 | 5:00 am
    Sent to me by Cliff, an Army and Vietnam War veteran. This is a great way to see the Wall and read the stories of the thousands of Americans who gave their lives serving their country. As the country prepares to celebrate our Vietnam War veterans over the next several months, the site is even [...]

  • Giving Back – Bob Hoover

    Bacon
    10 May 2012 | 5:00 am
    Dr. Bob Hoover Society tends to forget that the reason many of us join the military is because we have a desire to give back, to serve. This service ethos runs deep in the heart of those in uniform, and it doesn’t go away when we return to our communities. The Wyakin Warriors, as part [...]
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    1 The Long War Journal

  • US drone strikes kill 7 AQAP fighters, 8 civilians in Yemen

    15 May 2012 | 5:41 pm
    The US launched two drone strikes today in a city in southern Yemen that is currently under the control of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Seven AQAP fighters and eight civilians are reported to have been killed in the airstrikes. The first strike targeted "a militant hideout" in Jaar, a city in Abyan province that is currently under al Qaeda control, CNN reported. The eight civilians were killed after they attempted to recover the bodies of AQAP fighters, apparently after the unmanned US Predators or Reapers launched a second salvo of missiles into the hideout. The second strike targeted…

  • Omani jihadist killed in US airstrike in 'Khorasan'

    14 May 2012 | 12:14 pm
    Left and right images: Abu Hamza al Omani. Images from the SITE Intelligence Group. An Omani jihadist was among several foreign fighters who were killed in a recent US drone strike in the "Khorasan," according to a statement released on jihadist Internet forums. The statement, which was unsigned, said that Abu Hamza al Omani, also known as Imran bin Abdullah bin Khamis al Balochi, was killed in a US airstrike on May 5, 2012 along with several other "brothers and supporters" who were not identified. "The courageous knight dismounted on the night of Saturday, 5 May 2012, when the planes of the…

  • Mullah Dadullah Front claims assassination of Afghan High Peace Council member

    14 May 2012 | 7:49 am
    The Mullah Dadullah Front, a Taliban group closely linked to al Qaeda, claimed credit for yesterday's assassination of a senior member of the Afghan High Peace Council. The Mullah Dadullah Front, or Mullah Dadullah Mahaz, told a Pakistani newspaper that it assassinated Arsala Rahmani, a senior member of the Afghan High Peace Council who had served as a deputy education minister during Taliban rule in Afghanistan, in a shooting in Kabul yesterday. Qari Hamza, a spokesperson for the Mullah Dadullah Front, said that the group assassinated Rahmani for negotiating with the Taliban on behalf of the…

  • Senior Afghan peace council member assassinated in Kabul

    13 May 2012 | 11:41 am
    Arsala Rahmani, a senior member of the Afghan High Peace Council who had served as a deputy education minister during Taliban rule in Afghanistan, was shot and killed while driving in Kabul today. A car pulled alongside Rahmani's vehicle and a gunman opened fire, killing him immediately. The assassins escaped. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied that his group was responsible for Rahmani's assassination. "Others are involved in this," Mujahid said, according to Reuters. "We don't believe it's a big blow to peace efforts because the peace council has achieved nothing." Rahmani was one…

  • Afghan security forces kill 3 ISAF troops

    12 May 2012 | 8:23 pm
    Three Coalition soldiers were killed by members of the Afghan security forces in two separate attacks over the past two days. Afghan security forces have now killed 23 ISAF soldiers in 2012. Two ISAF soldiers, who are British, according to Pajhwok, were killed and two more were wounded in an attack today by members of the Afghan Uniformed Police in Helmand province. The International Security Assistance Force confirmed the attack, but would not say if the attackers were Afghan policemen. "ISAF confirms that two individuals wearing Afghan Police uniforms turned their weapons against coalition…
 
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    Popular Science - Technology

  • Video: New Finger-Tap Power Generator Uses Viruses to Make Electricity

    Rebecca Boyle
    15 May 2012 | 12:39 pm
    Piezoelectric Viruses Engineered viruses convert an applied force into electricity in a new piezoelectric device, the first to use a biological material. Courtesy of Seung-Wuk Lee/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Piezoelectric devices promise to draw power from your footsteps or heartbeat, change the channel on your TV, and complete all sorts of helpful tasks - but they generally work in the nano-mechanical realm, requiring synthetic materials to function. Now for the first time, scientists have built a piezoelectric device using biological materials - in this case, viruses. Future…

  • NASA is Training Up an Astronaut Crew for a Potential Manned Asteroid Mission

    Clay Dillow
    15 May 2012 | 11:40 am
    Asteroid Eros This spud-shaped rock is asteroid 433 Eros. Gregory W. Nemitz claimed to own it and aims to develop it. In 2003, he sued NASA in search of parking fees after the NEAR spacecraft alighted on it. NEAR Project/NLR/JHUAPL/NASA We haven't heard much about if from NASA yet, but the Telegraph is reporting that the space agency will soon begin training up an international crew of astronauts for a potential manned mission to an asteroid slated for later in the next decade. Starting next month, six astronauts are headed to the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operation (NEEMO), the…

  • A Series of Long Exposures Aboard the ISS Produces a Psychedelic Swirl of Stars

    Clay Dillow
    14 May 2012 | 3:22 pm
    A Series of Exposures from the ISS Trippy. NASA: 2Explore via Flickr Hat tip to astronomer Phil Plait over at Bad Astronomy for digging up this gem of an image snapped by astronaut Don Petit aboard the International Space Station. Culled from NASA's Flickr stream, the composite is a series of eighteen 30-second exposures stitched together to capture the motion of the ISS around the Earth, trailing the light from cities and auroras below as well as stars above. The result is something close to psychedelic. Download the wallpaper-worthy super high-res version over at NASA: 2Explore's Flickr…

  • Computer Interface Monitors Your Overworked Brain and Takes Over Tasks For You

    Rebecca Boyle
    14 May 2012 | 2:22 pm
    Brainput Multitasking Assistant A volunteer tries out the Brainput workload-sensor and multitasking-helper. Solovey, et al. Your office mates, whether they're people or pets, can probably tell when you're feeling stretched too thin - heavy sighs, hand-wringing and general signs of stress are fairly easy to spot. Yet your computer takes no notice, its beach ball of death spinning away incessantly and its processor failing utterly to work any faster. Now a new brain-computer interface could turn your computer into a more sympathetic partner, taking over some of your tasks when it senses you're…

  • Engineer Details Plans to Build a Real, Burj-Dubai-Sized Starship Enterprise in 20 Years

    Rebecca Boyle
    14 May 2012 | 1:25 pm
    The year 2245 is just too distant - we should build and commission a real USS Enterprise right now, cracking the champagne across her hull within 20 years, according to an enterprising engineer. The gigantic ship would use ion propulsion, powered by a 1.5-GW nuclear reactor, and could reach Mars in three months and the moon in three days. Its 0.3-mile-diameter, magnetically suspended gravity wheel spinning at 2 RPM would provide 1G of gravity, and the thing looks just like the "Star Trek" ship of lore. This project is the brainchild of an engineer who calls himself BTE Dan. As in "Build The…
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    You Served® - Veteran and Military Blog and Military Podcast

  • Photo of the Day – America’s Battalion

    CJ
    15 May 2012 | 11:36 am
    TweetU.S. Marine Sgt. Marcus Martin, a squad leader with Guard Force Platoon, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, and 32-year-old native of Charlottesville, Va., practices Pashto with Afghan boys while providing security outside the Garmsir district center here, Nov. 28, 2011. … Continue reading →

  • U.S. Agencies Join Forces to Honor and Support Military Families

    CJ
    15 May 2012 | 11:28 am
    Tweet As part of the Joining Forces initiative to support our nation’s service members and their families, several U.S. government agencies announced an annual pass to active duty service members and their dependents, granting free access to more than 2,000 … Continue reading →

  • My Personal Review of 2012 Milblog Conference Weekend (Saturday)

    Troy
    15 May 2012 | 8:00 am
    TweetThis is part II of my series reflecting back on the 2012 (7th Annual) Milblog Conference. Part I can be read HERE. This post will cover the main conference on Saturday, to include my opinion of the panels. Let me emphasize … Continue reading →

  • Act of Valor Interview from Milblog Conference 2012

    Marcus the Redshirt
    14 May 2012 | 6:30 pm
    Tweet Scott Waugh talks about his film, Act of Valor, during the 2012 Milblog Conference in Washington DC. Go “down range” with real, active-duty Navy SEALs in Act Of Valor, the adrenaline-fueled action-adventure that inserts you into the heart of … Continue reading →

  • The Thank You Speech I Wanted to Give

    Marcus the Redshirt
    14 May 2012 | 3:38 pm
    TweetI honestly did not expect for You Served to win the Veteran Milbloggie this year. I didn’t even think about an acceptance speech. As usual, lack of planning completely bit me in the rear end. The veteran category often proves … Continue reading →
 
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    America's North Shore Journal

  • Upstate Mother’s Day Celebration Sickens 150

    Chuck Simmins
    14 May 2012 | 4:27 pm
    An annual Mother’s Day event at a Buddhist monastery in rural Putnam County, NY, was interrupted yesterday afternoon as participants began suffering gastrointestinal symptoms like vomiting and diarrhea. The event drew hundreds to the Chuang Yen Monastery, and delawareonline.com states that about 500 arrived by bus from New York City’s Chinatown. Food for the event was provided by volunteers, similar to a pot luck supper. Illness Susan Hoffner, a spokesperson for the Putnam County Health Department, states that approximately 150 people were taken ill. Symptoms of the illness…

  • Kandahar Nursing and Midwifery Institute Opens

    Chuck Simmins
    13 May 2012 | 7:42 am
    Attendees to the opening ceremony of the Kandahar Nursing and Midwifery Institute participate in the ribbon cutting May 9, 2012 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The Kandahar Nursing and Midwifery will be able to train up to 800 students, both male and female, a year in nursing, midwifery, pharmacy, lab and dental services. Photo by Staff Sgt. Timothy Chacon DVIDS Story by Staff Sgt. Timothy Chacon The Kandahar Nursing and Midwifery Institute held a ribbon cutting ceremony May 9,2012. The Nursing and Midwifery facility is one of only eight similar facilities in the country and will be able to train…

  • Hunting for Water in Afghanistan

    Chuck Simmins
    12 May 2012 | 8:32 am
    Leonard Sinfield, South District hydrogeologist, inspects well pipes stacked and ready for installation in a new well site on the Afghan National Army 9th Commando compound in Herat province, May 1. Photo by Dave Melancon DVIDS Story by Dave Melancon Water is a critical element for rebuilding Afghanistan’s economy and security, according Afghanistan Engineer District-South’s hydrogeologist, Leonard Sinfield. “Without water, nothing can happen,” said Sinfield, one of about a dozen hydrogeologists working for U.S. federal, military, or non-government agencies in Afghanistan. Sinfield…

  • Mosquito Testing at Camp Lejeune

    Chuck Simmins
    11 May 2012 | 8:32 am
    Sailors with the Preventive Medicine Unit, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, place traps along a tree line aboard Camp Lejeune, N.C., May 8, 2012. Throughout the year, PMU performs many tasks to keep the living conditions on base at a high standard. The unit is now working hard as the summer months approach to catch and test mosquitoes from across the base for malaria. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Franklin E. Mercado DVIDS Story by Pfc. Franklin Mercado According to the Center for Disease Control, in 2010 an estimated 216 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide and 655,000 people died from…

  • National Guard troops to train in CNY next week

    Chuck Simmins
    11 May 2012 | 8:20 am
    DVIDS ORISKANY, N.Y. — More than 700 National Guard soldiers and airmen from New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands come together next week at the New York State Preparedness Center here to prepare for certification as a regional disaster response force. Residents may notice increased military traffic in the Oriskany, Rome and Utica areas as the HRF arrives and conducts its final training preparations and validation exercise. The organization, known as a National Guard Homeland Response Force, will train both at the New York National Guard Armory in Utica and…
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    Everyone's Blog Posts - Okinawa Hai Society

  • Turtle Beach and Sunset Park

    Okinawa Outdoors
    14 May 2012 | 8:31 am
    Just added a post about a beach in Onna Village and a Park in the Churami Aquarium complex - I also included a bit about getting the most out of your aquarium visit for less. http://www.okinawa-outdoors.com/

  • PCS 2012: The First Weekend

    Rosette Obedoza
    6 May 2012 | 2:00 pm
    Touchdown, Okinawa! As our family back in the states would say, we are now from the future (Japan Standard Time is ahead than PST, if my jetlagged brain is accurate). First Impressions After a long journey, literally 36 hours of traveling, the only thing on my head is to take a shower and be on my PJs and sleep (tired, very tired).  While we waited at the baggage claim area, I suddenly felt mixed emotions and feeling of uncertainty.  I thought to myself, "we are here on Okinawa...now."  The sights, smells, tastes, and sounds will all be different. Our "Welcome Party" gave us handshakes and…

  • PCS 2012: Journey to OKinawa

    Rosette Obedoza
    6 May 2012 | 1:28 pm
    AMC Flight April 24 - We finally received our tickets to Seattle, WA to board our flight to Okinawa April 25 - Left sunny Southern California for the Great Northwest to go on circuitous leave before heading to Japan.  April 25-May 3 - Circuitous Leave, enjoyed the company of family and ate all our fave foods from our local restaurants.  Went on a shopping spree for make up (Sephora does NOT ship APO/FPO), summer clothes (COTTON is the key word) i.e. skirts, shorts (not skin tight not too short), T-shirts, tank tops (decent looking not too revealing), rain gear (boots and jackets - heard it…

  • New Group for Camp Foster & Camp Lester Wives. Create events for get togethers & meet people.

    Melody
    5 May 2012 | 9:29 pm
    Join us on FACEBOOK. 80 Members in 2 weeks. We are growing fast! Hope to see you there.   http://www.facebook.com/groups/191548760963822/?ref=ts

  • Jobs

    LeRoyce Francis
    5 May 2012 | 11:33 am
    Hello, My name is LeRoyce. My husband and I will be arriving in Okinawa early June. I was wondering if anyone knew of any social work or social services jobs that may available.
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    Okinawa Hai!

  • Newlywed PCS, Part 5: Exhaustion and Awe

    Contributor
    13 May 2012 | 6:58 pm
    CONTRIBUTED BY MARIE LEWIS Riding with our sponsors from Kadena Air Base to the West Pac Lodge on Camp Foster, I was too tired to absorb much of anything. I stared at the road ahead and tried not to flinch every time we turned left or right…driving on the left side of the road would take some getting used to! I was struck by how dense the area seemed--so many brightly lit signs, businesses, restaurants, and hotels lining Route 58. My mind was a blur. Thankfully, our check-in at the West Pac was a breeze and we were asleep in no time. Newlywed Foster View We woke up the next morning to…

  • Tsuboya Pottery Village

    Contributor
    10 May 2012 | 12:20 pm
    CONTRIBUTED BY AMY MADDOCKS Tsuboya Vill Map Tsuboya Vill Street After visiting the Tsuboya Pottery Museum, don’t miss taking a walk down Yachimun Alley. Plan on spending at least an hour discovering adorable little shops, cafes, and watch skilled artisans work their creations. You can even create some pottery of your own! Naha’s Tsuboya District is the center of Okinawan pottery, and has been for many years. Even though WWII took its toll on Tsuboya’s craftsmen, they bounced back from the ravages of war and it is alive and thriving. Dozens of workshops are still operating after being…

  • Tsuboya Pottery Museum

    Contributor
    9 May 2012 | 8:00 pm
    Tsuboya Museum Front CONTRIBUTED BY AMY MADDOCKS Naha’s Tsuboya District has been the center of Okinawan pottery since 1682, but they say the earthenware first began being made about 6,600 years ago. The most famous Okinawan pottery is tsuboya-yaki, and it is still being made after being passed down from generation to generation. These are just a sampling of the facts and information to be found at the Tsuboya Pottery Museum. Okinawans, as we learned at the museum, have cultivated a unique culture of pottery through their interaction with nature and exchanging with neighboring countries.

  • Tee House Restaurant

    Contributor
    9 May 2012 | 8:38 am
    CONTRIBUTED BY MONETTE EAMES Ever since we moved to Okinawa, ladies I met from a Bible Study class often talked about the Tee House on Kadena. I imagined a cute little tea house where we could have tea parties at High Noon, complete with finger sandwiches, scones, crumpets and different types of teas. Not until I found an ad for the TEE House did I realize that it was TEE as in striking the ball from a tee in golf! So, there went my dreams of little ladies sharing a pot of tea discussing the warmth and joy of the Lord! Tee House We followed the signs to the golf course and found the Tee House…

  • Island Youth Lacrosse on Okinawa

    Contributor
    8 May 2012 | 9:01 am
    CONTRIBUTED BY LOUISE MCKERNAN Our children love lacrosse. I grew up with lacrosse, and while lacrosse is new to my husband, he embraces lax as a new sport to play with our kids. I thought being stationed in Okinawa was the end of organized youth lacrosse for a few years. In PCS prep mode, I purchased lacrosse sticks and balls, along with mini lacrosse sticks & tennis balls for my little guy - all to practice & play lacrosse with them. We’d return to Maryland one day, and I wanted our kids to be ready to play! Lacrosse Logo Then we heard of Island Youth Lacrosse on Okinawa (IYLO). A…
 
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    Milblogging.com : The World's Largest Index of Military Blogs (Milblogs)

  • The Air Force guide to effective social media

    14 May 2012 | 10:50 pm
    Via Tech. Sgt. Karen Tomasik, Air Force Public Affairs AgencyJOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO -- LACKLAND, Texas (AFNS) -- Airmen and families have a new resource at their fingertips with the recent release of an updated and revised social media guide by the Air Force Public Affairs Agency in San Antonio, Texas.The guide features sections geared toward all Total Force members and their families as well as Air Force leaders. It highlights topics including using social media effectively, security awareness, social media platforms, public affairs programs and social media policy among others."Our social…

  • Frontline stories told on ArmyStrongStories.com

    14 May 2012 | 10:47 pm
    Deployed unit returns home from Afghanistan and shares frontline experiences on ArmyStrongStories.com. During a year-long deployment, a group of soldiers from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, “Task Force Duke,” dedicated themselves to sharing their experiences bringing security and stability to the Khowst and Paktya provinces in Afghanistan. They did this on Army Strong Stories – the U.S. Army's premier blog and story-sharing program where every soldier is invited to blog about his or her day-to-day life in the Army.  Based out of Fort Knox, Task Force Duke was…

  • Military wife's racy pics end up on Facebook

    14 May 2012 | 2:31 pm
    What were supposed to be sexy photos for her husband's eyes only also turned up online on Facebook.According to WRAL.com, "A Fayetteville-area mother paid for a private boudoir photo shoot at her home. It was an anniversary gift for her deployed husband. She purchased a deal from Groupon for $65."However, when her husband who is deployed went online to learn more about the photographer, he found the very same photos on her Facebook page.  "The photos were among dozens of pictures of other women in lingerie."If you're planning to do the same for your military spouse, you may want to read…

  • Lexi Thompson picks Facebook Military prom date

    14 May 2012 | 2:15 pm
    A couple weeks back I wrote about professional golfer Lexi Thompson looking for a date for her prom taking place on May 18th.Well, she's announced the winner.Her choice according to ESPN:United States Marine Corps wounded warrior and Purple Heart recipient Lance Corporal Mark Scott.Full story here.

  • GI Film Festival news roundup, May 14, 2012

    14 May 2012 | 11:06 am
    Hollywood Stars and 42 Film Screenings Mark Sixth Annual GI Film Festival, May 14 - 20, 2012, in Washington, DC. The award-winning GI Film Festival (GIFF), the nation's only military-themed film festival, is pleased to announce the full schedule of events for the 2012 event, which will feature premiere military film screenings, celebrity appearances, red carpet parties and more. The festival will take place Monday, May 14 through Sunday, May 20, 2012 in Washington, DC. For ticketing information and the program schedule, visit www.gifilmfestival.com . The 6th annual GIFF film line-up offers 42…
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    War On Terror News

  • Rangers hold rare public ceremony to celebrate service, sacrifice

    tankerbrosbrat
    16 May 2012 | 4:38 am
    May 15, 2012 By David Poe, Northwest Guardian TACOMA, Wash. (May 10, 2012) Pfc. Joshua Overly, a Ranger from 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, receives a Bronze Star Medal from Lt. Col. David Hodne, his battalion commander, in Tacoma, Wash., May 10, 2012. TACOMA, Wash. (May 15, 2012) -- The...

  • Some Unemployed Veterans Eligible for Retraining Funds

    WOTN Editor
    15 May 2012 | 11:48 pm
    By Karen Parrish, AFPS, WASHINGTON, May 15, 2012 - Unemployed veterans ages 35 to 60 can apply for up to 12 months of paid training through a new program sponsored by the Departments of Labor (as paid for from DVA funds) and Veterans Affairs. VA officials said the population the...

  • War In Afghanistan 16 May 2012

    tankerbrosbrat
    15 May 2012 | 11:14 pm
    An Afghan and coalition security force detained a Taliban leader during an operation in Pul-e ‘Alam district, Logar province, Tuesday. The leader directed roadside bombings, suicide attacks and other operations against Afghan and coalition security forces throughout the district. He also coordinated for weapons, ammunition, explosives, and suicide bombers for...

  • RIP SGT Brian L. Walker, PFC Richard L. McNulty III

    tankerbrosbrat
    15 May 2012 | 5:41 pm
    The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died May 13, in Bowri Tana, Afghanistan, when the enemy attacked their vehicle with an improvised explosive device. The soldiers were assigned to the 425th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat...

  • Middle East News 15 May, 2012

    dfairben
    15 May 2012 | 5:00 pm
    Syrian activists say government forces have shot and killed at least 20 people at a funeral procession in central Syria while U.N. military observers were in the area. The activists say the shootings happened Tuesday in Khan Sheikhoun, near the city of Hama. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights...
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    Navy CyberSpace Blog

  • Ten Ratings Now Require More Time

    NCCM(Ret)
    27 Apr 2012 | 6:12 pm
    On November 16, 2009, Navy Recruiting Command officially kicked off a pilot program in an attempt to align a new Sailor’s initial service obligation with completion of his/her first operational tour. Because Sailor’s Projected Rotation Dates (PRD), Prescribed Sea Tours (PST), and the end of their active obligated service (EAOS) dates were all over the map; it made planning for a Sailor’s loss to a command a little precarious – at least until the Sailor would make a decision about re-enlistment, and often times that decision would come late. The T+X Accession Program,…

  • Navy SRB Guidance as of 24APR2012

    NCCM(Ret)
    24 Apr 2012 | 3:39 pm
    Below is the latest Selective Re-enlistment Bonus (SRB) guidance update for FY-12. Released April 24, 2012 via NAVADMIN 143/12. ROUTINE R 241711Z APR 12 PSN 611129K20 FM CNO WASHINGTON DC TO NAVADMIN ZEN//OU=DOD/OU=NAVY/OU=ADDRESS LISTS(UC)/CN=AL NAVADMIN(UC) INFO ZEN/CNO WASHINGTON DC BT UNCLAS ***THIS IS A 3 SECTION MESSAGE COLLATED BY OIX GATEWAY NORFOLK VA*** QQQQ SUBJ: SELECTIVE REENLISTMENT BONUS UPDATE UNCLASSIFIED/ FM CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1// TO NAVADMIN INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1// UNCLAS//N01300// NAVADMIN 143/12 MSGID/GENADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N1/APR// SUBJ/SELECTIVE REENLISTMENT…

  • Culinary Warfare

    NCCM(Ret)
    6 Apr 2012 | 11:16 am
    Navy Week New Orleans will officially kick off on Tuesday, April 17 and will conclude on the following Monday. New Orleans is the inaugural city in a three-year national celebration commemorating the War of 1812 and the Star-Spangled Banner. Navy Week New Orleans will have many of the same events that you have come to expect during such an event. There will be ships from the United States Navy other nations that you may be able to tour, the “Blue Angels”, the U.S. Navy’s flight demonstration team, a Navy Band will perform, and the “Leap Frogs”, the Navy’s…

  • Joining the Navy? A Few Ratings to Consider

    NCCM(Ret)
    29 Mar 2012 | 4:03 pm
    Every couple of months or so, Navy Recruiting Command puts out incentives for recruiters and classifiers to try and fill specific needs. One of those incentives is the Admiral’s Accelerator Award (AAA). The AAA’s award provides for a Four-Day Special liberty, a Cruitcom’s Flag Officer Coin, and a flag letter. Of course, any rating and program for which you qualify may be available when you go to MEPS to enlist, but those ratings and programs I will be listing below as a result of the current, short term incentive AAA, the chances are much better than average they will be…

  • Time to Paddle

    NCCM(Ret)
    25 Mar 2012 | 10:53 pm
    Boot Camp (Part Three): Time to Paddle By ETSA Slebodnik, D.V. In the previous article, I mentioned that everything in the compartment had a specific place, and I add that there is no room for error in Recruit Training Command. Grading the effectiveness of the Division and the Recruit Division Commanders is the Fleet Quality Assurance (FQA) who actively searches for hits against you and your Division. Don’t be surprised if your RDCs take your failures personally, as every hit is a deduction from the graduation totals. To protect the totals from any hits, many in your Division will be given…
 
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    Navy Reads

  • Happy Birthday Joe Rochefort - Midway Legacy

    12 May 2012 | 8:14 pm
    by Bill DoughtyToday is the 112th anniversary of the birth of Joseph John Rochefort.  Tomorrow, May 13, 2012, is the 70th anniversary of Rochefort’s discovery of the Imperial Japanese Navy’s plan to attack Midway Atoll.The Battle of Midway altered the course of World War II and saved Hawaii, Australia and perhaps the West Coast of the United States from further attacks by Japan.With a reporter’s skills, Elliott Carlson shows the influence of one man on the outcome of Midway in “Joe Rochefort’s War: The Odyssey of the Codebreaker Who Outwitted Yamamoto at Midway.”Carlson…

  • Battle of Midway: NHHC's Top Ten

    22 Apr 2012 | 8:02 pm
    (When we asked Rear Adm. (ret.) Jay DeLoach for his recommendations of the top ten books about the Battle of Midway, he immediately suggested the Craig Symonds’s book about the decisive turning point in the War in the Pacific 70 years ago. DeLoach, former Director of Naval History and Heritage Command, and his team at NHHC provided this top ten, which includes Elliot Carlson’s “Joe Rochefort’s War,” soon to be reviewed here on Navy Reads. -- Bill Doughty.)  “Joe Rochefort’s War: The Odyssey of the Codebreaker Who Outwitted Yamamoto at Midway.”Carlson, Elliot.Annapolis,…

  • From Battle of the Coral Sea to Victory at Midway

    15 Apr 2012 | 12:40 pm
    (Craig Symonds, author of “The Battle of Midway” was one of five authors recommended by distinguished historian Eric Foner in his post to Navy Reads last February.  Foner called Symonds’s “Lincoln and this Admirals” “the first full study of Lincoln’s relationship to the war at sea and it reveals him mastering the nuances of naval warfare...”  Dr. Symonds, professor emeritus of history at the U.S. Naval Academy, brings his own nuanced insights and context to a full study of the Battle of Midway.  In this blog post we’ll look briefly at a key event leading up to…

  • Just Solutions - USS Barb and ‘Thunder Below’

    1 Apr 2012 | 8:46 pm
    by Bill DoughtyThunder Below! is a first-hand report of submarine warfare by Medal of Honor recipient Adm. Eugene B. Fluckey (1913-2007).  As commanding officer of USS Barb (SS-220), Fluckey led some of the most daring missions of the War in the Pacific in WWII -- the attack of the Namkwan Harbor anchorage of the Imperial Japanese fleet and the assault of Kaihyo To (island), among others.Thunder Below! is Fluckey’s account of USS Barb’s undersea (and above ground) warfare mostly from April 1944 when Fluckey became CO to August 1945 when the Japanese surrendered aboard the battleship…

  • “Honey, are you a WAVE?” No ma’am, we’re all Sailors now!

    24 Mar 2012 | 5:45 pm
    By Nancy HarrityWalking down Chicago’s Michigan Ave. in my dress whites in July 1996, more than one older person asked me, “Honey, are you a WAVE?”  I’m not one of the WAVES, nor are the nearly 55,000 women serving in the Navy today.  We’re Sailors, and I’m sure a good number of us would have been honored to have been one of the Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service during World War II.  Then, as is the case now, war enabled women to break barriers. “When World War II came to an end, women had established a remarkable legacy of womanpower in the U.S.
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    Military Embedded Systems

  • X-ES Introduces SWaP-Optimized Rugged Embedded Router, Running Cisco IOS Software

    15 May 2012 | 1:05 pm
    Extreme Engineering Solutions (X-ES) announces XPedite5205, a versatile, Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP)-optimized, embedded router module hosting Cisco IOS® IP Routing software. The XPedite5205 Embedded Services Router (ESR) provides mobile, ad hoc networking for military and emergency response, and it extends the Cisco enterprise infrastructure beyond the reach of traditional fixed-network infrastructure for oil and gas, mining, smart grid, transportation, and public safety applications. The XPedite5205 ESR incorporates Cisco Mobile Ready Net capabilities to provide highly secure data,…

  • Rugged small form factor router running Cisco IOS released by X-ES

    15 May 2012 | 6:55 am

  • HERCULES(r) Ruggedized Interconnect System Exemplifies Superb Electrical Signal Integrity

    14 May 2012 | 2:21 pm
    (Painesville, Ohio – May 14, 2012) Hercules Ruggedized Interconnect System Exemplifies Superb Electrical Signal Integrity. Meritec’s HERCULES Connector System exceeded expectations, while under the most stringent conditions. A 1 meter, 28 Awg, MIL-DTL-38999 Size 23 Meritec Hercules plug cable assembly was mated with the compatible MIL-DTL-38999 Size 23 Meritec Hercules flange mount board receptacle with press-fit tails. The tested cable assembly was well within the InfiniBand 10Gbps (QDR) insertion loss specification. The two pairs of connectors have a total of -1.4dB of loss at 5…

  • Army, Raytheon BBN to track metaphors under IARPA research program

    14 May 2012 | 10:04 am

  • WIN Enterprises Announces Affordable Desktop Appliance Featuring Intel D2500HN Mini-ITX SBC

    14 May 2012 | 9:01 am
    North Andover, Mass. – May 14, 2012 – WIN Enterprises announces the PL-60570, an affordable, compact desktop appliance with Intel® D2500HN, a mini-ITX SBC. The Intel® Desktop Board D2500HN optimizes the performance of the Intel® Atom™ processor D2500 and the Intel® NM10 Express Chipset. The appliance supports general computing, thin client applications, and delivers plenty of performance to support the rich Internet experience demanded by today’s business user. The 1.86GHz processor features integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3600, enabling…
 
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    At War

  • An Outpost of Afghan Dining Inside an American Military Base

    By GRAHAM BOWLEY
    15 May 2012 | 1:27 pm
    At a United States military base in the eastern reaches of Afghanistan, one Afghan brings local flavor to American palates.

  • Supreme Court Rejects Case of Former Sailor With Stress Disorder

    By DAVID NELSON
    14 May 2012 | 5:18 pm
    The case was being closely watched by lawyers who represent current service members and veterans because it related to guilty pleas from people who had P.T.S.D. or bipolar disorder.

  • The Taliban, in Their Own Verse

    By C.J. CHIVERS
    11 May 2012 | 11:00 am
    A new anthology of insurgent poetry, just published in Britain, is being received with both appreciation and anger. The poems themselves show how the Taliban's public bravado and severe Islamic code are sometimes at odds with its fighters' ruminations.

  • Secretary of Veterans Affairs Sides With Veteran in DOMA Case

    By JAMES DAO
    11 May 2012 | 9:00 am
    The Department of Veterans Affairs said it would not defend the constitutionality of two federal laws that define marriage as between a man and a woman.

  • Iraq's Wounds

    By STEPHEN FARRELL and YASIR GHAZI
    11 May 2012 | 6:00 am
    A video report: Although the United States has declared an end to its war in Iraq, the suffering continues for thousands of the allies it left behind.
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    GI Bill Expert Blog» Veterans Education Benefits | Ask the GI Bill Expert | GIBill.com

  • Newest GI Bill – VRAP – Now Accepting Applications

    Ron Kness
    15 May 2012 | 12:19 pm
    I receive this email from the VA this morning: “We will start accepting applications for the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP)on May 15th for training that begins on or after July 1, 2012. If you are an unemployed Veteran, you may be eligible to receive 12 months of training assistance equal to the full-time monthly payment rate under the Montgomery GI Bill-Active Duty program (currently $1,473 per month). You must pursue a program approved for VA benefits offered by a community college or technical school. The program must lead to a high demand occupation and result in an…

  • If I Use Tuition Assistance and the Post 9/11 GI Bill Top Up, Would I Still Get the Housing/Book Allowances?

    Ron Kness
    15 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    I have been accepted to a Master’s program. I’m trying to figure out the best way to pay, while conserving as much Post 9/11 GI Bill as possible for TEB. If I use Coast Guard Tuition Assistance, and use Post 9/11 GI Bill Top Up, would I still be eligible for the housing/book allowances? Or, do I need to use full GI Bill amounts to qualify for housing/book allowance? Minnesota offers a state GI Bill for around $1,000/semester for veterans. Would taking advantage of that hurt my GI Bill at all? Thanks! – Emily If you are active duty Coast Guard, you wouldn’t qualify for the…

  • Can I Opt to Not Use My Post 9/11 GI Bill Once I Run Out of Chapter 30 Benefits?

    Ron Kness
    14 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    I have 1 month and 4 days of Ch.30 benefits remaining. I understand that if I run out of benefits in the middle of a semester, any additional time used will be deducted from the 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill I am eligible for. I would like to prevent this from happening. Can I elect to have my benefits stop when my Ch.30 is exhausted, so all 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill can be later transferred to my spouse? – Mike Mike, you might as well use your Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits because if you are not currently serving (and it sounds like you are not) then you can’t transfer your benefits…

  • Am I Still Eligible for the GI Bill or the Post-9/11 GI Bill with a General Discharge?

    Ron Kness
    11 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    I got a General Discharge under Honorable Conditions after I did five years in the Navy. Am I still eligible for the GI Bill or the Post-9/11 GI Bill. I’m confused because I have been told by some people that I am eligible and by some that I am not. I don’t know who to believe. And I never seem to be able to get a response back from the VA regarding this question. I feel as if I’m being ignored by the VA. I am a veteran who is lost and does not know what benefits he has or how to get that information. Please help. – James It depends on if your five years served were all on…

  • How Does the Post 9/11 GI Bill Tier Percentage Work as Far as Pay Is Concerned?

    Ron Kness
    10 May 2012 | 12:00 pm
    I have a somewhat complicated question. My husband was given an admin separation in 2011 due to a medical problem (not a service-related disability) after serving a year and 10 months in the Navy. He paid $100/month during his first year towards the MGIB, so as I understand it, he has the choice between that and the Post-9/11 GI Bill. He wants to go to a California community college and then transfer to one of the schools in the UC system. He joined the Navy as a Texas resident, and has never officially changed his driver’s license/residency. We married in CA in 2009 and have lived here…
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    Fighter Country Partnership

  • Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum teach Compton kids how to fly

    Fighter Country
    1 May 2012 | 3:15 pm
    The CNN blog post “Compton Kids learn how to fly after school” so inspiring that we just had to share it. Robin Petgrave, a pilot and entrepreneur who was inspired by the Tuskegee Airmen, started the youth outreach program. To contribute to Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum, visit their website at http://www.tamuseum.org.Tribute to Arizona’s Tuskegee Airmen CAF Arizona Wing Aviation Museum at Falcon FieldSpecial Tribute Event to Celebrate the Legacy of Arizona’s Tuskegee Airmen

  • Lightning strikes twice: Airman receives second Air Force weather award of career

    Fighter Country
    18 Apr 2012 | 11:42 am
    Photo by Tech. Sgt. Ryan Labadens U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Gregory Spiker, joint meteorology and oceanography operations weather forecaster, Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa, uses an air pump here, April 13, to provide air pressure for lowering the mast on a radar system used to detect rain and thunderstorms. Spiker was named the 2011 Air Force Weather Non-commissioned Officer of the Year.CAMP LEMONNIER, Djibouti —There’s an old saying that lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place, but it did for one U.S. Air Force airman.Tech. Sgt. Gregory Spiker, joint meteorology…

  • Live Virtual Constructive (LVC) technology set to revolutionize air combat training

    Fighter Country
    13 Apr 2012 | 5:25 pm
    The US Air Force and Lockheed Martin are getting ready to demonstrate the first operational use of live virtual constructive (LVC) training technology on 26 April at Luke Air Force Base (AFB), Arizona.The technology has the potential to revolutionize the way air forces train-particularly for aviators who will fly 5th generation machines like Lockheed’s F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.While currently USAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps pilots fly their aircraft against other friendly jets replicating enemy “bandits” such as the Russian Sukhoi Su-30 Flanker, often there are…

  • “How” does FCP support families at Luke AFB?

    rsites
    10 Apr 2012 | 1:57 pm
    From the Desk of Fighter Country Partnership,It is very important that we explain how FCP supports the families at Luke AFB. The military doesn’t support individual families for many reasons. The most important reason is they can’t. Within the military, every individual and family must be treated the same. There are no biases, no favoritism and no special treatment due to circumstance. This is for the right reasons too. A perfect example of why FCP exists is to support the families of the fallen and injured at Luke AFB, because the base can’t. What would Luke AFB do if they support one…

  • Luke AFB Airman and Family Readiness Center hosts job fair

    Fighter Country
    5 Apr 2012 | 8:30 am
    2011 Luke Air Force Base Airman and Family Readiness Center Annual Job FairThe Luke Air Force Base Airman and Family Readiness Center will host its Annual Job Fair 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 1 at Club 56 on Luke Air Force Base. The event is open to all Luke AFB personnel, their families and other personnel with a military or DoD Civilian ID card for base access. The center won’t promise you that you will find the perfect job, but they will promise you the opportunity to find a job.An average of 70 employers can be expected to attend the job fair. A complete listing of the employers who will be…
 
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    Mil-Tech

  • HPI Fleet & Mobility Offering Prize for Seamless and Sustainable Mobility Concepts

    Artur Nowak
    16 May 2012 | 3:53 am
    HPI Fleet & Mobility, Europe’s leading independent fleet manager, has one primary objective: bringing people from one place to another in the simplest, most convenient ways possible. In its ongoing effort to blaze new trails in this field, the company is using this year’s European Satellite Navigation Competition (ESNC) to look for innovative ideas for seamless, sustainable mobility concepts that incorporate new technologies.   Oberpfaffenhofen, 15 May 2012: Whether it’s with privately owned or hired cars; public services such as buses, trains, and planes; bicycles…

  • Globecomm Awarded Seven Year Contract Renewal By Showtime Networks

    Artur Nowak
    16 May 2012 | 3:50 am
    Globecomm Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: GCOM), a leading global provider of communications solutions and services, announced today that Showtime Networks Inc. has awarded the company a seven-year contract renewal.   Globecomm will continue providing Showtime Networks with a managed services solution that supports the origination and broadcasting of over 40 channels. These include standard definition, high definition, MPEG 2 and MPEG 4, and video on demand via satellite and terrestrial means. Globecomm broadcast technicians maintain the on air availability of all channels 24/7, along with support…

  • USAF moves to new phase of engine tech development

    Artur Nowak
    15 May 2012 | 4:50 am
    The US Air Force has started work on a follow-on effort to further develop next-generation turbine engine technology called the adaptive engine technology development, a senior service official tells Congress.   Source: www.flightglobal.com

  • The Global Soldier Modernization Market 2012-2022

    Artur Nowak
    15 May 2012 | 1:48 am
    The Global Soldier Modernization Market 2012-2022 offers the reader detailed analysis of the global soldier modernization systems market over the next ten years, alongside potential market opportunities to enter the industry, using detailed market size forecasts.   Source: www.militaryaerospace.com

  • DOD Certifies 6 BlackBerry Devices For Military Networks

    Artur Nowak
    15 May 2012 | 12:45 am
    The Department of Defense has approved six relatively new BlackBerry devices for use on military networks. The devices that will now be included on a list of products that meet the military’s security requirements include the touchscreen BlackBerry Torch 9850 and 9860; the touchscreen and keyboard Torch 9810, Bold 9900, and Bold 9930; and the Curve 9360. The certification, which was handed down on May 2 by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), also includes BlackBerry Enterprise Server and two versions of the BlackBerry Smart Card Reader.   Source: www.informationweek.com
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    Basic Training Blog

  • So You Wanna Be a Special Ops Soldier? Here’s What it Takes

    SGT Volkin
    3 May 2012 | 8:44 pm
    More than any other question about basic training, I get the following email exchange: Recruit: “SGT Volkin how do I get into special ops?” SGT Volkin: “Well, have you been to basic training?” Recruit: “No” SGT Volkin: “Well, it’s probably best to see how you do in special ops first” I use the analogy of picturing a couple 6 year olds throwing a football around pretending that they are in the superbowl making the winning touchdown with seconds on the clock. They dream big and let their imaginations run wild. However, only a very small…

  • Know Your Strenghts and Weaknesses

    SGT Volkin
    3 Apr 2012 | 9:48 am
    By the time you complete basic training you will have rolled more shirts, folded more towels and made more beds than you will care to remember. However, there will be some things you wont be able to do right no matter how many times you try. For some people it’s making hospital corners on their bed, for others it’s folding towels into perfect rectangles with every edge the same length. For me, it was getting my duffle bag perfectly folded into a square. No matter how many times I tried I couldn’t make it perfect. On the other hand, rolling socks and shirts into perfect, wrinkle-free…

  • Katy Perry Joins the Military? Is it True?

    SGT Volkin
    22 Mar 2012 | 11:20 am
    Ditching her sugary image as a sweet California girl, the West Coast singer gets over her ex-boyfriend by joining the marines and going to a boot camp. From: AceShowbiz.com Katy Perry is breaking up with her boyfriend in a music video for her newest single “Part of Me”. Confronting the guy after catching him flirting with another woman, she decides that she’s done with the drama. Inspired by “all women are created equal, then some become marines” sticker, she chops off her shoulder-length hair and runs away to join the military. Premiered on MTV, the Ben…

  • How to Get Washboard Abs Without Doing a Single Sit-Up-Seriously!

    SGT Volkin
    13 Feb 2012 | 9:56 am
    As a military fitness trainer, you might think I am a big advocate of sit-ups.  Actually, I despise sit-ups and rarely ever do them, but many people ask how I maintain my 6-pack abs at the age of 35 without being on a diet. Well today, I will tell you my secret. There is a muscle called the Transverse Abdominus that acts as a stabilizer to the middle part of your body, located right behind your abdominal muscles.  If you’re not familiar with this muscle, sign up for the military, your drill sergeants will be very aware of how to work make it sore.  Drill sergeants love exercises that…

  • Sending Mail to Your Recruit at Basic Training

    SGT Volkin
    3 Feb 2012 | 10:12 am
    For a lot of recruits, basic training is the first time they receive and write actual hand written letters to friends and family. With e-mails, texting and instant messaging, there isn’t much reason to write letters to friends and family anymore. Being unable to send abbreviated messages every other minute to your boyfriend or girlfriend is just one of the harsh realities of being in a basic training environment. Without these modes of communication, letter seems to be a recruit’s only viable option of communication. If you have a loved one at basic training, make sure you are aware of…
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    Chairborne Commandos Talk Radio and Podcast

  • It’s Lights Out For The Navy’s LCS Platform

    The Mighty Quin
    4 May 2012 | 4:32 pm
      On today’s show: SOFREP Radio… It’s officially here! Shave like a man campaign starts now. Glitter Bomb – The latest weapon of mass distraction against terrorism. Iran claims to have spent 1 Billion in preparation to attack the West with cyber warfare.  Finally, the US may do something about it. US is beginning to assemble a massive stealth armada near Iran.  For the first time ever the YF 22 is close to front lines. N. Korea put on a massive military display for all the world to see and uses FAKE missiles. Navy LCS platform – It’s got more than…

  • Epic Fail – North Korea’s Rocket Program.

    The Mighty Quin
    24 Apr 2012 | 6:29 pm
      On Today’s Show: Epic Fail.. North Korea can’t build a rocket to save it’s own life. Chairborne Commandos – now the Marines #1 resource for recruiting??? Listen in to find out more. Congratulations to Master Sgt. Kevin Foutz & Sgt. 1st Class Thomas Payne for Winning the 2012 Best Ranger Competition. US Marine Corps to allow females to serve in infantry units.  A first in it’s 236 year history. Iran is now pretending to control the Strait of Hormuz by installing military checkpoints.  Luckily… their not fooling anyone. CIA Spygames –…

  • Chinese Spys Hack Into JSF F-35 Program

    The Mighty Quin
    29 Feb 2012 | 1:09 pm
      On today’s show: Iran brings 3,500 female ninjas into their latest defense arsenal. Army’s 18D live tissue training.  Is this life saving training or outdated practice? Chinese spys hack into JSF F-35 program and steal valuable information and cause major program set backs. Navy Explosive Ordinance Disposal may be forced to chance their unofficial motto “Initial success or total failure” Strange News Stories – FBI Raids the wrong house and holds women at gunpoint for 30 minutes. Make sure you visit: http://www.veteranrescue.org/ Post your comments below.

  • Act of Valor Exclusive Interview & Navy Seal Sniper Brandon Webb

    The Mighty Quin
    16 Feb 2012 | 1:44 am
    On today’s show: Act Of Valor producers Mouse McCoy & Scott Waugh Brandon Webb former Navy Seal and owner of SOFREP.com checks in to tell us about the website and his new book “The Red Circle.” Another 5 star review on iTunes… And a funny story… Post your comments below! Go Check out SOFREP for the latest special forces situational report! 

  • Obama’s Secret Weapon

    The Mighty Quin
    3 Feb 2012 | 7:43 pm
    On today’s show: Sandia’s New Smart Bullet.  It flys at 2400fps and coming to a town near you. USAF – Big Penetrator…What’s Iran gonna do now? Invisibilities Next Big Thing – Scientists manage to clock 3d objects making them completely disappear! PPSS Body Armor – 6.5MM thick body armor with level IIIA protection Strange News Stories Subscribe and post your comments below. Download
 
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    Defense Media Network

  • EU NAVFOR Helicopters Attack Somali Pirates Ashore

    Edward H. Lundquist
    15 May 2012 | 12:52 pm
    Just about everyone agrees the solution to the scourge of Somali pirates has been ashore in Somalia, not at sea.  But there was little enthusiasm about entering the pirates’ lair.  That may be changing. A May 15 operation conducted by the European Union Naval Forces involved an EU NAVFOR helicopter firing upon pirate skiffs stowed away on a beach on the Somali coastline. “The focused, precise and proportionate action was conducted from the air and all forces returned safely to EU warships on completion,” read a statement issued by EU NAVFOR headquarters in Northwood, UK. “Whilst…

  • PORTABLE HIGH GAIN SATCOM ANTENNA

    Associate Editor
    15 May 2012 | 12:05 pm
    TACO Antenna is a leading manufacturer of VHF and UHF communications antennas for both military and commercial markets.  TACO began in the communications industry over 75 years ago and has been involved in military communications since World War II. We are actively involved in ground-air-ground communications and tactical communications. It is with great pleasure that we recently introduced our UHF Manpack Antenna.  TACO’s new high-gain Manpack Antenna is designed for UHF SATCOM-on-the-move communications. The SAT-MP-320 covers the entire frequency band (240-400 MHz) with 11 dBic gain.

  • Heinkel He 177 Bomber Was a ‘Flying Tinderbox’ During World War II

    Robert F. Dorr
    15 May 2012 | 8:20 am
    Adolf Hitler talked about the Heinkel He 177 Greif (Griffin) bomber in a meeting with his military staff on February 1, 1943. Speaking to Generaloberst (Colonel General) Hans Jeschonnek, chief of staff of the Luftwaffe as part of a rambling exchange about tanks and aircraft, the Führer said: “I have to say again and again: I consider the whole 177 model a mistake because it was demonstrated already during the Great War that the problem of installing two engines on one shaft is extremely difficult to solve, and has led to constant difficulties.” The He 177 may not have been…

  • USS Ponce Afloat Forward Staging Base (AFSB) Will Provide Combat Capability for Fifth Fleet

    Edward H. Lundquist
    14 May 2012 | 12:34 pm
    In order to fulfill a long standing U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operations (AOR) request for an Afloat Forward Staging Base (AFSB), the Navy has delayed the decommissioning of the USS Ponce (LPD 15), which has been redesignated as an Interim AFSB until a permanent solution can be identified. The Navy needed a platform to stage vital combat capability in the region, which included the Arabian Gulf. The concept isn’t new. There has been a long-standing requirement for an Afloat Forward Staging Base (AFSB), but no ships were available for the job. So as the Navy was moving ahead…

  • Elephant Walks, Well-deck Ops, and Twin-rotor Blizzards | Military Photos

    Chuck Oldham (Editor)
    14 May 2012 | 8:04 am
    …
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    Army Tankers Wife

  • Again why are medical practioners stigmatizing PTSD

    Crissy
    20 Apr 2012 | 3:23 pm
    You all know I am a really huge person about PTSD, and I have two different stories I want to blog about. It is both about professional psychologists downing people with PTSD and another one is about labeling a person with or without PTSD. So I was reading around on the internet today especially on the VAMortgage Center website blog bout Dr. Phil, now I can't say officially because I haven't seen the show, but from what I am reading he is calling veterans with PTSD "monsters" and "damaged goods". Check out the article that I read HERE about what Dr. Phil is saying. Now I have't been…

  • Red Baron..... Heroes Beyond the Battlefield

    Crissy
    19 Apr 2012 | 7:33 am
    Have any of you seen the new move coming out called "The Avengers" with Captain America and the Hulk, etc? It is like all my comic book dreams from being a kid are coming through. (Yes as a girl in middle school, I loved comic books, it all started with Batman. I wanted to be the one Batman rescued, lol. From there it was X-Men and Spider Man). So you know my love for these companies who are giving back to the military community and OMG Red Barron, is the BEST! I love their pizza, and you know I remember eating these pizzas as a child. They are a really GREAT company and affordable too.

  • How does moving make you feel?

    Crissy
    16 Apr 2012 | 10:52 am
    As you have read here before we are temporarily moved to Northern VA, we completed a semi-military move. Howver my husband is still stationed at Ft Bragg, and we have ties to the community, our PCM is still the military treatment clinics on base. The commute from Ft Bragg to Washington, DC is about 5 hours. I did that for about 4 months every weekend from December to the beginning of April. My husband has already PCS to Korea and we were left here at Bragg. Well in the mean time, we could move anywhere we wanted to (us the family). After a family discussion we decided to move closer to where…

  • Race Cars, a Hero and a home, melts my heart

    Crissy
    6 Apr 2012 | 8:17 am
    Ok Readers!!! I have been MIA for a while the entire month of MARCH has/was a transition from NC to VA. Finally we are moved in! Today I want to write about a special person. This really warmed my heart too. Now I am not much of a big NASCAR fan watching it on TV BUT I LOVE TO WATCH IT IN PERSON. When I was little my grandparents took me to the Daytona 500 and we got to ride around the track, it was pretty special. I was recently contacted by Lionel NASCAR® to blog about this story, and I am so amazed, and excited to be doing this blog post. Did I mention we are coming up to my favorite…

  • Remembering a Special Uncle who passed away last week

    Crissy
    7 Mar 2012 | 8:27 pm
    So you all know how death just affects me, it is hard for me to sit through wakes, funerals and services, but especially when it is family I just go to pieces. I really wish I had a sibling to be able to go through this with, when my grandmother and mother pass away. Death is a weakness for me, however it  does put things in perspective. I honestly think that our last chance meeting was a chance for me to say goodbye. He didn't know of my accomplishments until I saw him and he was the reason I made my hometown news paper, and he died before he could read what they wrote about me.  I…
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    household6diva.com

  • Torn between moving, children, and myself

    Ann Marie @ Household6 Diva
    15 May 2012 | 8:10 am
    Today I have eleventy-billion things to do. Unaccompanied baggage is being packed tomorrow. Researching the neighborhoods of our future ‘home town’ – population 649,121. soon to be 649,126. This past weekend we took our children to a local castle, Burg Lichtenberg one last time. I haven’t even downloaded the pictures from my camera. and trust me – I reeeaaaally want to ignore my chores and do just that! Either that or spend the day outside picking dandelions because I’m not quite sure – do dandelions grow in the desert? Then there’s the ME…

  • Edeka Neukauf, I shall miss you

    Ann Marie @ Household6 Diva
    14 May 2012 | 6:05 am
    One of my favorite places to walk to with our children is the Edeka Neukauf. This little store is part grocery, part drug store, part bottle shop, part clothing and stationary store. I like to think of it as my little Target. Aren’t the flowers lovely? Every year I buy a few for my windowsills and balcony. But the major highlight of the trip for our kids? is a 50 cent ride in Batman’s Batmobile and Batgirl’s Batcopter. This trip, I bought two large bags of my husband’s favorite chocolate musli, some pretzels for an afternoon snack for the kids, and two lovely…

  • 2012 Military Spouse Appreciation Day Blog hop

    Ann Marie @ Household6 Diva
    11 May 2012 | 7:04 am
    Welcome to the Military Spouse Appreciation Day Bloghop! In 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed May 23 as the first Military Spouse Day to recognize the important role that spouses play in the readiness and well-being of our nation’s armed forces. In 1985, the Secretary of Defense standardized the day as the Friday preceding Mother’s Day. This day is an opportunity to acknowledge the significant contributions, support, and sacrifices made by the spouses of our Armed Forces. So, in HONOR of all the amazing Military Spouses in the world —  we, RC of Riding the Roller…

  • Household6 Bloghop Party post

    Ann Marie @ Household6 Diva
    11 May 2012 | 5:25 am
    Today, in preparation for our “Virtual Meet n Greet”, I thought I’d post my Bloghop party post a little early! (That way, if this is your “first hop”, you can get some ideas!) Welcome visitors from the Military Spouse Appreciation Day Bloghop! Thank you for stopping by! (And for those of you who haven’t heard yet – go write yourself an intro post, to sign the Linky later today over at Household 6 Diva & Riding the Roller Coaster, then join the fun by surfing some lovely new blogs!  Also be sure to post a button in your sidebar to be eligible for one of the wonderful…

  • Bye bye Moving Truck!

    Ann Marie @ Household6 Diva
    10 May 2012 | 3:57 pm
    I can’t even begin to tell you how exhausted I am… But I thought I’d post a quick note to say all is well and I am SOOO excited for tomorrow! Did you know the friday before Mother’s Day is Military Spouse Appreciation Day? (Check out this post for more info about the Military Spouse Appreciation Day Blog Hop!)
 
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    Welcome Home Blog

  • U.S. Army Soldier, On Leave, Surprises His 6 Children

    admin
    15 May 2012 | 7:43 am
    “My husband, SFC Dustin Freitas, a soldier in the U.S. Army, was deployed to Afghanistan and came home for R&R to surprise each of our 6 children. He had not seen the children in over six months. He was deployed when our youngest Ella was only 2 weeks old. Our oldest is Megan, 15; then [...]

  • U.S. Marine Gets Surprised by His 8-Year-Old Little Sister

    admin
    14 May 2012 | 10:00 am
    We show many videos of servicemen and women surprising their families, but it’s a special treat when we receive a video that’s the other way around! Here is what Barbara had to say about her video: “This is a video of my Marine son getting surprised by his little sister. My son-in-law took my 8-year-old [...]

  • Donate to Michael, the Brave Boy with Cerebral Palsy, and His Family

    admin
    13 May 2012 | 9:11 pm
    Hey everyone! After we posted the video of Michael, the extremely brave young boy who surprised his Marine father by walking to him for the first time, we have received a lot of inquiries about how one can help him and his family. Michael’s mother, Melissa Cooney, has created an online fund where anyone can [...]

  • 6-Year-Old Boy Walks to His U.S. Marine Father for the First Time

    admin
    9 May 2012 | 8:26 am
    “When my husband left on his deployment, our 6-year-old son could not walk on his own. He has cerebral palsy. Doctors originally said that he would never walk or do much of anything. While daddy was away, he learned to walk. For his homecoming, we set it up for Michael to walk to his daddy [...]

  • U.S. Airman Surprises His Daughter at School

    admin
    7 May 2012 | 7:48 am
    An Airman returning from deployment to Afghanistan surprised his daughter during class. TODAY’s Dara Brown reports:
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    A Soldier's Perspective

  • Theory of America’s Founding

    Wes
    14 May 2012 | 11:11 am
    The principles of America’s founding amount to a remarkable and radical departure from government, as practiced for centuries prior to the American Revolution. To be sure, a tradition is tied to the theory and to the men responsible. We are, however, quite remarkable as a nation today, because the Founders were indeed radical in their definition of liberty and their uncompromising demand for freedom. The theory of America’s founding may be said to be embodied in the Declaration of Independence. If anyone reads it, he or she finds that it is stated rather clearly, not hard to understand…

  • Army Values – Duty

    CJ
    13 May 2012 | 8:29 pm
    Fulfill your obligations. Doing your duty means more than carrying out your assigned tasks. Duty means being able to accomplish tasks as part of a team. The work of the U.S. Army is a complex combination of missions, tasks and responsibilities — all in constant motion. Our work entails building one assignment onto another. You fulfill your obligations as a part of your unit every time you resist the temptation to take “shortcuts” that might undermine the integrity of the final product. Going above and beyond. Stepping “outside your lane.” Going the extra mile. For you. For…

  • President Obama to Award Medal of Honor

    CJ
    9 May 2012 | 11:46 am
    On May 16, President Barack Obama will award Specialist Leslie H. Sabo, Jr., U.S. Army, the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry. Specialist Sabo will receive the Medal of Honor posthumously for his heroic actions in combat on May 10, 1970, while serving as a rifleman in Company B, 3d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division in Se San, Cambodia. On that day, when he and his platoon were ambushed by a large enemy force, Specialist Sabo immediately charged the enemy position, killing several enemy soldiers. He then assaulted an enemy flanking force, successfully drawing their fire…

  • Soldier Graduates 20 Years After High School

    CJ
    7 May 2012 | 4:37 pm
    It had all the makings of the typical college graduation. There was the speech Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moon had earned the right to give as an honor graduation, but when he began to thank the people who made his graduation possible, a fighter jet roared overhead, drowning out his voice as he stopped and wiped away a tear. There was the graduation cap that he’d tossed in the air to celebrate an academic milestone, only to have it travel two feet, hit the ceiling and fall to the ground. There were loved ones who’d gathered around to help him celebrate, except they were some 6,000 miles away…

  • Milblogger Family Reunion

    CJ
    3 May 2012 | 11:20 am
    The general details of the 2012 Milblogger Family Reunion sponsored by You Served and Veterans United Home Loans have been put together and we are happy to announce them here.  This is open to anyone who wishes to join us, including milbloggers, supporters, non-military bloggers, family members and kids.  The more the merrier! When: Friday, August 31, 2012-Sunday, September 2, 2012. Where: San Antonio, Texas Tentatively scheduled Events: Friday, 8/31/12 Travel day in for everyone 6pm-12 midnight:  Party with beer and light foods at the Soldiers Angels Warehouse The party is BYOB but a…
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    Military Gear News

  • SHOT Show 2012: Tru-Spec’s Exclusive All Terrain Tiger Camouflage

    Nora Holloway
    19 Apr 2012 | 1:30 pm
    Ever since SHOT Show, people have been talking about the new All Terrain Tiger camouflage that’s exclusive to Tru-Spec by Atlanco. This is a variation of the well-known Tiger Stripe pattern. Officially unveiled at the Las Vegas show, the camo was shown on the Tru-Spec Tactical Response Uniform or TRU. “Tiger Stripe has been a very popular pattern stemming back to the Vietnamese War,” said Jeff Mason, Tru-Spec spokesperson, “where this camouflage was originally used.” He explained that they created this pattern using the popular four-way selection found in the…

  • CamelBak Linchpin: Stay Hydrated & Organized

    Nora Holloway
    7 Mar 2012 | 3:16 pm
    Love your gear? Camelbak predicts you might drop to one knee and propose to the Linchpin. “Keeps all your stuff organized and within reach,” reads the catalogue. “If this pack had a pulse, you’d marry it.” There’s no question that the hydration system/pack will keep you organized. It has external side pockets that each fit three M16 magazines. The external top pocket tailored to store goggles or NVGs. Its front compartment boasts internal organization and an external pocket for easy access to that essential gear. The Linchpin’s reservoir stores up to…

  • What Soldiers Do

    Jeanette Kozlowski
    17 Feb 2012 | 12:49 pm
    Have you seen the “What I Do” meme? It the latest Internet sensation that can be created in Photoshop or MS Paint. We took a shot at creating one of these bad boys on our own. So, what do you think? Let us know, and create your own. Feel free to post a link to it in the comments section.

  • Air Force To Switch to New Fabric For ABU

    Nora Holloway
    15 Feb 2012 | 7:48 pm
    In November 2011, the United States Air Force officially phased in the Airman Battle Uniform (ABU), which is comprised of ABU pants and ABU coats. The USAF made the switch in order to provide Airmen with a single uniform that could satisfy various climates and utility needs. However, due to an overwhelming amount of complaints about its weight, a new ABU fabric is being introduced. “The improvements to the ABU are a continuum of the Air Force Chief of Staff’s initial direction to ‘fix what we have’ with regard to uniforms,” writes Michael Dickerson, chief of…

  • St. Louis: First City to Officially Welcome Home Iraq War Veterans

    Nora Holloway
    30 Jan 2012 | 11:55 am
    This past Saturday, St. Louis hosted the first official welcome home parade for Iraq War veterans. Thousands of people lined mile-long route to celebrate veterans during the January 28th Welcome Home the Heroes event. The brainchild of two local men, Craig Schneider and Tom Appelbaum, the parade was organized grassroots style. In a little over a month, the event became a reality thanks to a number of individual donations, a partnership with the Mission Continues and corporate sponsors like Anheuser-Busch and Mayflower Moving Company. Hundreds upon hundreds of veterans from the area walked…
 
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    Military Weapons

  • Loch class frigate

    16 May 2012 | 1:16 am
    The Loch class was a class of anti-submarine (A/S) frigate built for the Royal Navy and her allies during World War II. They were an innovative design based on the experience of 3 years of fighting in the Battle of the Atlantic and attendant technological advances.The Lochs class frigate were based upon the hull of the preceding River class with increased sheer and flare to improve seakeeping and modified to suit it to mass pre-fabrication, with sections riveted or welded together at the shipyard. Accordingly, as many curves as possible were eliminated, producing a noticeable kink in the main…

  • River class frigate

    16 May 2012 | 1:12 am
    The River class frigate was a class of 151 frigates launched between 1941 and 1944 for use as anti-submarine convoy escorts in the North Atlantic. The majority served with the Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), with some serving in the other Allied navies; the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), the Free French Navy (FFN), the Royal Netherlands Navy and, post-war, the South African Navy (SAN). Ten ships built in Canada were assigned to the United States Navy (USN) to cover for a shortage of suitable convoy escorts until American built ships became available. In the event, only two were…

  • Captain class frigate

    15 May 2012 | 9:48 pm
    The Captain class frigate was a designation given to 78 frigates of the Royal Navy, constructed in the United States of America, launched in 1942–1943 and delivered to the United Kingdom under the provisions of the Lend-Lease agreement (the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom and other Allied nations with materiel between 1941 and 1945), they were drawn from two subclasses of the American Destroyer Escort (originally British Destroyer Escort) classification; 32 from the Evarts subclass and 46 from the Buckley subclass. On reaching the UK the ships…

  • Colony class frigate

    15 May 2012 | 4:57 pm
    The Colony class frigates were a class of 21 ships constructed in the United States by Walsh-Kaiser of Providence, Rhode Island for transfer under Lend-Lease to the Royal Navy in 1944. They were given the names of relatively minor colonies as names of large colonies had been used for the Crown Colony class cruisers. The design was based on that of the Tacoma class frigates used by the United States Navy (some sources state that these vessels were identical). That design was itself an adaptation of the Royal Navy River class frigate, with modifications made mainly to use materials and parts…

  • Bay class frigate

    15 May 2012 | 4:51 pm
    The Bay class was a class of 26 anti-aircraft (A/A) frigates built for the Royal Navy under the 1943 War Emergency Programme during World War II (one of which was cancelled and six completed as despatch vessels or survey ships). They were based on the hulls of incomplete Loch class anti-submarine (A/S) frigates. In 1959 and 1961, four frigates of the class (Bigbury Bay, Burghead Bay, Morecambe Bay and Mounts Bay) were transferred to the Portuguese Navy. Between 1966 and 1968, based in Mozambique, these ships were part of the Portuguese naval deterrent force against the Royal Navy Beira…
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    **Wife [Widow] of a Wounded Marine**

  • I just won a milbloggie!

    Karie
    12 May 2012 | 12:20 am
    I need to write a quick post because I'm going to be out of town for the weekend (will say something more "eloquent" when I get back.)First of all, I just won the 2012 milbloggie for best military spouse blog.Thank you to everyone who voted. Ya'll. Are. AWEsome.Thank you to all that were finalists with me. You are all truly fabulous, amazing, spectacular, beautiful, awesome, and every other cheesy word that my wine infused brain cannot think of right now. You were some very stiff competition. My winning is quite baffling to me, but as someone who isn't good at much... I can't turn down an…

  • There's nothing I can do about it

    Karie
    6 May 2012 | 1:28 am
    I'm having a moment.How did I get here again? And why am I still trying to do... anything? Remind me what the point is? I miss him. And I'm thoroughly exhausted by it. I've felt this way for too freaking long and I don't want to anymore. Most things in life can be tweaked. They can be changed, rearranged, redone. Death... being a widow... there is nothing you can do about it. I will always be this. I will always feel like this. That fact gets me so frustrated with life. Seriously, God, please take this back. I don't want it.SICK of it. So tired, dude. 

  • Squeezing in a Blog Post While I Can

    Karie
    2 May 2012 | 9:25 pm
    Quick update in between homework.First of all, I've lost nearly twenty pounds. Had to throw that out there first because I'm a girl and these things are important to girls.Also very important is the fact that tomorrow is officially the last day of my first semester of college. Thank you. Thank you. Yes, I have a ways to go but, dang it, it took me a long time to just get here so I'm pretty stoked.This Summer already has many activities planned including (hopefully) an AWP trip and a trip to Walter Reed. The AWP trip I'm hoping to go on is to Seattle to kayak with killer whales. As soon as I…

  • Two Year Festivities and a Little Bit of Illegalness

    Karie
    21 Apr 2012 | 4:06 am
    My first picture next to him... like this. Kelly convinced me it would be okay... and now I love it. Giving Cleve a shot of Crown. He did love his Crown. I had to take one too. Though, I'm really not a fan.My widows moving the headstone that was WRONG to replace it with the right one. Seriously... only a widow would do this for you. I love them. With everything in me.  Moving the icky one to the car. It will be placed next to a tree that is planted for him. Though it was wrong, it was still made for him and was on his grave for a year. It can't go to waste. Hahaha. Muddy…

  • It's Been Two Years - And it still hurts

    Karie
    20 Apr 2012 | 10:30 am
    Yesterday I woke up at 5 A.M. as I usually do. I put my slippers on, dragged myself to the bathroom, closed the door behind me, and looked in the mirror. I felt a little more tired than usual - a little heavier. My motivation to go to school was lacking. The bed was calling my name. I looked in the mirror and analyzed my aging, tired face. Every small wrinkle and flaw seemed to be more obvious than usual. I don't typically notice, but I have changed so much, especially since he's been gone. I don't like it. It is a visual reminder that I'm still here, without him - that time and life continue…
 
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