Approx. 25 KM North Of Naray FireBase 8000 FT MSL.It was at night, under goggles, and shows just how far they go to pick up the wounded. Many have seen the photo of a CH-47 Chinook with its back wheels on a rooftop during the day, but this is at night, at high altitude, and with one of the crewmembers on the roof helping the patient. Filmed from an AH-64 Apache using its FLIR.
February 29, 2008
Freedom Watch Afghanistan
This edition features stories on mentoring Afghan forces, hands on training to Afghan national police and route clearance patrol from Orgun-E.
Afghanistan Stories: Czech EOD-Team in Kabul
The following clip shows the Czech Explosive Ordnance Disposal team (EOD), on mission in and around Kabul.
Breaking News
Its been a long time coming and its high time I make it official:
I know this might come as a blow to my supporters but...oh bullocks it all!
I just didn't want to miss the boat, what with candidates withdrawing from races they were never in, and candidates apologizing for things they never said, I didn't want to miss the boat on withdrawing from something I was never in in the first place either.
I listened carefully to those who encouraged me to run, but I am not -and will not be - a candidate for president in the 2008 election cycle.
I know this might come as a blow to my supporters but...oh bullocks it all!
I just didn't want to miss the boat, what with candidates withdrawing from races they were never in, and candidates apologizing for things they never said, I didn't want to miss the boat on withdrawing from something I was never in in the first place either.
Web Reconnaissance for 02/29/2008
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Democrats Blaze Trails In February Fundraising - Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama continued to rewrite fundraising records this month, with Clinton announcing yesterday that she had rebounded from a disappointing showing in January to raise $35 million in February, by far her biggest one-month total of the campaign. (READ MORE)
Did 'SNL' Go Beyond the Pale With Fauxbama? - When Barack Obama announced his candidacy for president last year, some observers questioned whether the senator from Illinois was "black enough" to embody the hopes and aspirations of African Americans. (READ MORE)
Kenyan Rivals Sign Power-Sharing Agreement - NAIROBI, Feb. 28 -- Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement Thursday to halt ethnic violence that has killed at least 1,000 people and displaced 600,000 in a post-election crisis that has ushered this nation to anarchy's door. (READ MORE)
Dutch Film to Slam Islam - Europe's uneasy relationship with its Muslim minority faces another blow next month, when Dutch politician Geert Wilders releases a 15-minute film that compares Islam to Nazism and communism. (READ MORE)
Banks in Crisis Cut Lines of Credit - Consumers from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., Miami to Detroit are facing unexpected difficulties as banks stung by losses on defaulting second mortgages are shutting off credit lines and turning down home-refinancing applications, citing falling prices. (READ MORE)
Bush Weighs in on '08 Race - President Bush yesterday unloaded his most forceful criticism yet of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama for his promise to meet unconditionally with leaders hostile to the United States. (READ MORE)
High Costs Force Chinese Firms to Move to Cheaper Options - Outsourcing has hit the hub of China's Pearl River Delta, with soaring costs pushing the world's longtime workshop for low-cost goods to move its factories overseas. (READ MORE)
On the Web:
Do the Right Thing: War OF Jihad Part 2 - The Islamic Jihad or Holy War shows no signs of being in regression any time soon. The United States in Feb. 2008 offered official recognition to the newly formed (unilaterally) state of Kosovo, which is roughly 90% Muslim. With that support and the support of the European Union, one has to wonder just precisely what type of death wish the current administration of the United States has. It’s not enough that we’re already fighting against rogue groups of Islamists unaffiliated specifically with a nation State? We need another challenge at this point to bolster some ideal of national pride? (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: Pushing Green Could Drive Taxpayers Into Red - Once again, Mayor Mike Bloomberg's nanny state tendencies are taking hold. The Taxi and Limousine Commission is requiring that the ubiquitous black Town Cars will become a thing of the past as the city demands higher mileage requirements on those vehicles. The City is forcing the owners of these vehicles to switch to hybrids and other vehicles claiming that they're going to reduce emissions. This is an unfunded mandate on those businesses, which is to be carried by those businesses. So, he's also pushing for tax breaks: (READ MORE)
A Soldier's Mind: Quick Withdrawl From Iraq Would Wipe Out Security Gains - For quite some time now, we’ve heard the anti-Bush crowd rant, rave and scream that we needed to bring all of our Troops home from Iraq now. We’ve stated all along, as have most milbloggers, how unrealistic that demand is. For just as long, milbloggers have said that to do so, would spell disaster for our Troops as they were leaving the country, as well as disaster for the Iraqi people. Many of our Troops who have or are serving in Iraq, say that there are visible signs of progress and they want to finish the job that they started. Milbloggers have shared story after story of schools being built, hospitals being renovated, security being improved and essential services being restored. We’ve wittnessed countless Iraqi’s standing up and taking ownership in the well being of their country and it’s people, by joining the Iraqi Security Forces and volunteering for community watch groups. (READ MORE)
Donald Douglas: U.S. Will Succeed in Iraq, Poll Finds - I've long noted that public opinion on Iraq is far more complicated that the standard left-wing line that Americans want to "bring the troops home." Indeed, not only are claims of a public demand for withdrawal unsupported, a recent Pew Research poll finds that a majority of 53 percent of Americans sees the United States ultimately prevailing in the conflict. Here's some background from Hot Air: “In case you were wondering why the Democrats are running from this debate, it’s because the more public opinion shifts, the more their willingness to abandon Iraq looks less like a “realist” exit strategy than calculated defeatism. Even so, note how inelastic most of the results are despite the security gains (especially in Anbar). The microresults show impressive shifts — click the image and follow the link to see double digit swings in the ‘Growing Perceptions of Iraq Progress’ graph — but the baseline results below are static. I wonder why.” (READ MORE)
Ace of Spades: Grim Milestone: Media Interest In Surge Success Falls To Dangerously Unstable Levels - Correlation is not causation? Sure, whatever. “After heavy coverage of the shift to a new Iraq policy in January and February 2007, the TV coverage began to closely track the rising and falling death rates for U.S. soldiers in Iraq. When the number of U.S. fatalities jumped in May, TV coverage jumped, too. When U.S. casualties began to steadily decline, TV coverage of Iraq dramatically decreased. While the amount of coverage has shriveled, the tone remains more negative than positive.....” (READ MORE)
American Ranger: The Last Mission - Since my return to my home base at the end of 2007, I have been preparing for what will be my final mission in the Army. My previous job was to mobilize a battalion of military police soldiers who are now successfully engaged in one of the war zones. Tomorrow I make a brief one-day trip to give a pre-mobilization briefing to another military police unit, but next week I begin that final mission. I have been attached to a team that will spend the next few months preparing an infantry unit for its tour at war. Yep – my last mission will be with a unit of “grunts”, the same type of hardened “bayonet and bullet” warriors with whom I shared my first experience at war. (READ MORE)
Big Dog: Democrats; Party of Racial Division - For years and years the Democrats have painted Republicans as a party of old white guys that is not inclusive of blacks or other minorities. They like to point out that there are no black members of Congress in the Republican party and Howard Dean recently said that the Democrats look like the modern party while Republicans looked like they were still stuck in a time long ago. These geniuses never stop to consider that most blacks are registered as Democrats so it would be difficult to find black Republicans who would want to run for Congress. Why would they? If they are Republicans they are labeled as “Uncle Toms” and sell outs by other blacks. (READ MORE)
Blackfive: Paratroopers Fighting in Afghanistan Need to Hear from You! - Not too long ago, Blackfive readers, joined by thousands of readers from other blogs, sent over 30,000 emails of support to Marines in Iraq. The Marines had to shut down the email address because you all were causing bandwidth issues with the support we were sending. Now, as if the Taliban and Al Qaeda, bad weather, and lack of support here at home weren't bad enough, the New York Times has published a one-sided view of the paratroopers tour in Afghanistan. And so now we have cause to band together again and send massive support down range. Here's why: (READ MORE)
Deebow @ Blackfive: Bias, Bias Everywhere... - LW sent this over to me and he obviously has no concern as to how high my blood pressure could possibly get. "I went to Afghanistan last fall with a question: Why, with all our technology, were we killing so many civilians in air strikes?" Up, Up, Up it goes... not even a break. Like 3 paragraphs into the story. Elizabeth Rubin, in this writer's humble opinion, has published an article and it is a load of bull-pucky, centered around true events. The article covers Battle Company, commanded by Captain Dan Kearney, son of Lt. General Frank Kearney, Commander of SOCCENT (Special Operations Command Central Command) and their actions while fighting in the Korengal. (READ MORE)
Blonde Sagacity: Looking for an Anti-War Explanation - I keep asking Obama supporters (who always seem to use the war as their reason for choosing him after his neophyte status is pointed out) how they as civilians, drinking lattes and attending palates classes, can vote for someone because he'll bring the troops home --when the troops don't want to come home. When the troops believe in their CIC and their mission and 100% believe they are making progress. Their answer? "Well, some want to come home." Duh. I just don't get how people here -that really have no idea what's going on there - would presume to pretend they do. Do you think for one second that I want even one more finger (let alone life) sacrificed for a Muslim country? Don't these anti-war fanatics realize that the pro-troop people love these guys and HATE the fact that they are dying for people that don;t seem to appreciate the sacrifice? (READ MORE)
LTC Gian Gentile: What Lies Beneath - Compromises only mask the underlying issue behind Iraq’s civil war - Reports from Iraq are showing that the war-torn country might finally be on the road to some mix of local and national reconciliation. The recent reduction in violence suggests this might be the case and Iraq’s bleeding may have been stopped. Yet deals cut with our former Sunni-insurgent enemies to stop fighting us and become our allies against al-Qaida, along with the hope of compromise between the different factions in Iraq and the Iraqi government, may be taking our eyes off the fundamental issue that has yet to be resolved: Who will hold absolute power in Iraq, Shiites or Sunnis? One observer in Iraq noted that the Shiites and Sunnis still have not recognized the need to share power and acknowledge that one group cannot dominate over the other. How this fundamental conflict is resolved, through compromise or civil war, is still anything but clear. (READ MORE)
The Captains' Journal: Body Armor Wars in the Marine Corps - Foxnews is carrying an article on a dust-up over body armor within the Corps. It is frankly difficult to imagine that this issue could have become so confused to so many people. Hopefully this article will be enlightening for the careful reader. To begin with, it is necessary to show a picture of a Marine in Fallujah during Operation Alljah, wearing the IBA (Interceptor). This picture comes to you courtesy of Bill Ardolino who embedded with the 2/6 Marines in 2007. Take particular note of the thing hanging on the side of this Marine’s IBA (Interceptor Body Armor) vest. It is called a side SAPI plate (small arms protective insert, or the enhanced version is ESAPI). The side SAPIs are not used when Marines train stateside. They are issued upon entry to the theater. (READ MORE)
Blue Crab Boulevard: Today’s I Told You So - The electrical grid operator in Texas had to invoke stage two emergency load shedding when the wind suddenly stopped. When the 1,700 MW of wind generation suddenly dropped to 300, they had a big problem and had nothing more to put into the grid as the frequency began to drop. By quickly cutting off large industrial customers, they managed to keep the grid from going down. “HOUSTON (Reuters) - A drop in wind generation late on Tuesday, coupled with colder weather, triggered an electric emergency that caused the Texas grid operator to cut service to some large customers, the grid agency said on Wednesday.” (READ MORE)
Chickenhawk Express: Angelina Jolie Or Harry Reid - Who Ya Gonna Believe? - Interesting contrast of opinions today. First we have a WaPo commentary written by Angelina Jolie about humanitarian aide in Iraq after her visit. Take note of her opinion of the SURGE... “As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible.” Well she can forget about any further awards from her brethren in Hollywood - she's probably on their blacklist. (READ MORE)
Matthew Levitt: AQI Facilitation Networks Still Active in Syria - In its latest effort to target al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) financial and logistical networks operating out of Syria, the Treasury Department designated today four members of a key terrorist facilitation network. Such facilitation networks have long operated out of Syria and have been the target of periodic designations. As recently as December 2007, Undersecretary of the Treasury Stuart Levey called on Syria to “take action to deny safe haven to those supporting violence from within its borders.” Today’s designation suggests Syria still has far to go in this regard. Known as the “Abu Ghadiyah” network and run by Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih (aka Abu Ghadiyah), the group designated today controls the flow of much of the money, weapons, personnel and other material through Syria into Iraq for AQI. (READ MORE)
David Hambling: When Royals Go To War - You can't turn on a television or pick up a newspaper in Britain today without getting more details of Prince Harry's deployment to Afghanistan. The latest: the Prince appears to be heading home, after all the media exposure. It was pretty much inevitable that he was going to see action somewhere. The tradition of English royal princes proving themselves in war goes back to Crecy in 1346 when Edward III's son (also Edward, and known as the Black Prince to avoid confusion) was hard pressed at the height of the battle. According to the Chronicles of Froissart written in 1523, the king ordered his son should fight on without extra assistance: (READ MORE)
Dadmanly: Times Reports Internet Buzz - The NY Times continues in their partisan campaign to find ways to discredit or diminish Sen. John McCain as Presidential Candidate. This time, the always reliably partisan Carl Hulse was tasked to pound out a tendentious cloud of oblivious blather about whether John McCain is eligible to run for President. Hulse begins with this howler of an assertion: “WASHINGTON — The question has nagged at the parents of Americans born outside the continental United States for generations: Dare their children aspire to grow up and become president? In the case of Senator John McCain of Arizona, the issue is becoming more than a matter of parental daydreaming.” (READ MORE)
Dr. Sanity: THE NEO-MARXIST AGENDA OF THE ANTI-MILITARY LEFT - On January 29 of this year, the Berkeley City Council called the US Marines "unwelcome", "uninvited", and told them to get out of their city. They authorized the radical group, Code Pink, to harass the local recruiting station by granting them a preferred parking space in front of the office and waiving any permits they might need for 6 months of 'activity'. This sort of floridly anti-military and anti-American behavior on the part of the nut clusters on the political left seems to be a fairly frequent occurrance in this day and age. Berkeley happens to be one of the main players in these little psychodramas, but you can find the same sort of moral insanity wherever the species academicus pseudointellectualis runs rampant, i.e., in most university towns. (READ MORE)
Don Surber: The 9/11 next time - Would House Democrats rather smear Bush than protect the United States? By refusing to take up FISA legislation, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is undermining national security, two Republican congressmen said. Pelosi refuses to schedule a vote on FISA that would allow our spies to intercept foreign communications. New York’s Peter King and Vito Fossella wrote in the Washington Times today: “Half of all the information we obtain on future attacks against our nation comes from electronic surveillance, according to National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell, who warned that failure to pass the Senate bill will degrade all intercepts by two-thirds. We can’t expect intelligence officials to connect the dots when they have one arm tied behind their back collecting them.” That’s a serious problem. (READ MORE)
Flopping Aces: Iraq War Leaves Democrats at a Loss - Be careful what you wish for…Democrats wanted power in 2006, and vowed to end the war if they got it. They got power, and showed that they had no clue how to end it, and no intention of doing so in any event. There was talk of cutting funds for the war, and they could have done that, but instead chose to push their party agenda rather than make concessions needed to pass a funding cut measure in a bi-partisan way. Instead they tell their constituents that the Democratic Party needs more power. They need enough power to override vetoes and opposition to measures that would leave Iraq in chaos; they need unchecked political power. On the Presidential campaign trail, we’ve heard all kinds of positions from the Democratic Party candidates; from vowing to stay in Iraq until 2013 to ordering an unconditional withdrawal on day 1. Two things are clear: 1) The Democratic Party has no idea what to do with the Iraq War 2) The Democratic Party must continue to tell their base that they are against the war (READ MORE)
Allahpundit: Good work, Drudge: Brits pull Harry out of Afghanistan, send him home - Per yesterday’s post, mightn’t Drudge have been doing the Brits’ secret bidding by spilling the beans? Er, probably not: Harry was due back anyway “in a matter of weeks,” which, on the one hand, makes the leak seem not so bad and on the other makes it totally gratuitous. Bummer: “Sky defence correspondent Geoff Meade said it could take at least 24 hours to bring him back to the UK. He added: ‘There will be a degree of frustration - not least from the Prince himself - and anger.’ (READ MORE)
Amy Proctor: (VIDEO) GEN Casey: Troops More Interested in Victory Than Coming Home - GEN George Casey affirmed the military’s positive morale and desire to win in Iraq and Afghanistan rather than coming home leaving a failed mission before the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday saying: “‘As I talk to the soldiers…the most important thing to them is winning, not necessarily coming home.’ ‘Everything I have personally observed during my visits in December and that I continue to hear is that morale in both in Iraq, Afghanistan, and among returning forces is very positive. They believe in what they’re doing, they see themselves making a difference in a very difficult environment, and so I believe morale is very good.’” (READ MORE)
Missiles and stilettos: Princess Diana would be proud! - PRINCE Harry received a heart-wrenching letter in the front line from brother William telling him: “You’re making mum proud.” It was among a treasure chest of personal messages sent to the Royal as he took on the Taliban in Afghanistan. Fellow Blues and Royals officer William reminded his younger brother of Princess Diana to provide a vital boost, after hearing from other soldiers in the regiment how tough life was in Helmand Province. Harry said: “Hopefully, she would be proud. She would be looking down having a giggle about the stupid things that I’ve been doing, like going left when I should have gone right, finding myself in an awkward position earlier today. “William sent me a letter saying how proud he reckons that she would be.” (READ MORE)
The Monkey Tennis Centre: "I'm a free human being in Europe, and I'm not a slave of the European Commission." - With this existential cry, Czech Republic interior minister Ivan Langer today ripped the electrodes out of his head and disconnected the downlink from Brussels, in his country's latest act of defiance against the Borg-like entity that is the European Union. The BBC reports that the Czech government could face legal action after signing its own deal on visa-free travel with the US, having become fed up waiting while the EU haggled over a Europe-wide deal: The European Commission fears the accord undercuts its own talks with the US on an EU-wide visa agreement. But Czech interior minister Ivan Langer criticised the EU. "We've been waiting years and nothing happened," he said. (READ MORE)
Political Pistachio: Rally Behind Lt. Col. William Russell - Dirty Politics. That is a common practice by Democratic Candidates. Hillary Clinton is now using a tactic the press calls the "Kitchen Sink Strategy" because in her desperation of trying to stop the rise of Barack Hussein Obama, it seems like she is throwing everything at him but the kitchen sink. John Murtha is another cheating, lying, unscrupulous politician that will do anything in his power to ensure his 34 year reign in the United States Congress continues. John Murtha's years in Congress have been spotted with scandals. (READ MORE)
John Hinderaker: The Times Goes Looking for Media Bias - Not, as you might expect, in the mirror. Instead, the Times pointed its finger at a television station in the Republican South. This is a spin-off from the recent 60 Minutes story that apparently claimed it was Karl Rove's fault that former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman was convicted of bribery and mail fraud. I haven't followed that story closely, assuming that it is another 60 Minutes hoax. The Left blogosphere got excited over the fact that one Alabama television station, WHNT in Huntsville, didn't air the 60 Minutes segment on Siegelman; it went dark for a few minutes just as that segment was in progress. The Times joined its friends on the creepy Left in seeing all the signs of a conspiracy. The paper went so far as to editorialize on the power outage: (READ MORE)
Scott Johnson: Brad Smith responds to Senator McCain - I was intrigued by Paul's account of the blogger conference call with Senator McCain yesterday. Senator McCain justified his refusal to shake the hand of former FEC Commissioner Brad Smith on the ground that Professor Smith had engaged in attacks on Senator McCain's character. Checking out Smith's 2001 book on the problems with campaign finance regulation -- Unfree Speech: The Folly of Campaign Finance Reform -- Professor Smith's comments on Senator McCain and the then-proposed McCain-Feingold reform bill, one finds only Professor Smith's reference to McCain's "minimal" role in the Keating Five scandal and criticism of the bill itself. A Google search on Brad Smith on John McCain similarly turns up nothing personal in nature. Professor Smith's consideration of John McCain as a presidential candidate is accessible here. (READ MORE)
ShrinkWrapped: Does Hamas Want War? - There is an unspoken assumption that underlies most of the reporting from the area since Israel withdrew form the Gaza strip. That assumption is that, like the scorpion who kills the frog and thus drowns, Hamas and the Gazans must attack Israel with their rockets because "its their nature." In this conception, Hamas cannot possibly want war because it would devastate Gaza, kill many innocent Palestinians, and destroy Hamas's power base. There may be some truth to this, but it is always worth considering, when an escalation takes place, cui bono?, who benefits? The Middle East has always been an incredibly complex web of interconnecting moving parts. An action in one area often has reverberations elsewhere in the region. Most often the connections are hidden; this is facilitated by a compliant, easily manipulated and managed press, and an incurious West. (READ MORE)
Sister Toldjah: Just words? Part II (UPDATE 2: CLINTON CAMP WILL MEET TO DISCUSS CTV STORY) - Yesterday, I wrote about a CTV (Canada) story that reported that a “senior member” of BO’s campaign told the Canadian Ambassador Michael Smith that Barack Obama’s tough talk against NAFTA was merely campaign rhetoric, and assured them not to worry. Naturally, all camps denied anything was said (Smith himself, to my knowledge, hasn’t commented). I posted some updates to that story in my original post but wanted to start a new one on it with the info because I think the update deserves it’s own post. CTV is standing by its report: “The Obama campaign told CTV late Thursday night that no message was passed to the Canadian government that suggests that Obama does not mean what he says about opting out of NAFTA if it is not renegotiated. However, the Obama camp did not respond to repeated questions from CTV on reports that a conversation on this matter was held between Obama’s senior economic adviser — Austan Goolsbee — and the Canadian Consulate General in Chicago.” (READ MORE)
Mark Steyn: Dear Leaders - What's wrong with this picture? "Saying he is no longer healthy enough to hold office, Cuban leader Fidel Castro has announced he will not seek re-election after 49 years in power" - the Miami Herald. Hmm. Castro didn't really have to "seek" re-election, did he? He's a - what's the word? Oh, yeah - "dictator." If he "seeks" re-election, he's pretty much guaranteed to find it - assuming for the purposes of argument you can be "re-elected" if you've never been freely or fairly elected in the first place. In its own "news report," the satirical website The Nose on Your Face got closer to reality: "Fidel Castro announced today that he would not seek a new term as Cuba's president, citing concerns that at 81, it may be difficult for him to serve the full, constitutionally-mandated 49-year term." (READ MORE)
Steve Schippert: IAEA Schweizer Käse - While Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hails the latest IAEA report on the Iranian nuclear weapons program as another “great victory” against the United States and the West, significant holes and questions remain. On several “outstanding questions” the IAEA had on the Iranian program, the UN nuclear watchdog agency’s Director ElBaradei was satisfied with the Iranian response. But even some of those seemingly settled issues raise significant questions from within themselves. And a gaping hole remains in the form of indications of the “administrative interconnections” among the Iranian enrichment program, high explosives testing and missile re-entry design programs as well as “their possible link to nuclear material.” (READ MORE)
Wolf Pangloss: I had a dream about Barack Obama - I had a dream about Barack Obama. I was watching Obama give a speech. It felt so good, so hypnotic. He was so beautiful and he spoke like an angel. I remember wondering if I was actually floating in the middle of the air. Have you ever had one of those dreams where you are having a conversation of such surpassing brilliance and insight that you want to remember every single speck of memory from the dream so you can write it down when you do actually wake up? This was one of those dreams. Every idea, every word, every phrase, every syllable that came out of his mouth was so perfect, so absolutely appropriate and energizing, that I knew I was giggling and couldn’t help it. (READ MORE)
Wonkoblog: Conservative bloggers showing more focus than liberal bloggers right now - Every four hours each of the candidates’ Wonkosphere buzz page is re-generated, and it gives you a snap-shot of the 30 most representative posts about the candidate over the last several days (biased towards recent posts). We identify those posts that are most representative by using computerized text analysis, which measures how “close” each post is to another, and then selects those posts that are on average the most similar to all other posts. You’ll note that the 30 the computer chooses are independent of affiliation, so we can look at the ratio of red to blue to get a sense of which side is being more focused. (READ MORE)
Army Girl Chronicles: Oops - Alright. So I haven't been keeping up as planned. Somewhere, I still have the rest of that crazy Basic Training journal, so I'll get it on here one day. At least for the sake of me having it, because Lord knows a beat-up notebook won't last long. Until I track it back down, though, I'll just make this a fun update. So. Updates. Hrm. Well, as for normal life, things are pretty good right now, albeit stressful. It's entertaining trying to keep up a civilian life and an army life at the same time. I met a guy in AIT that I thought I was in love with, so we got engaged pretty quickly. (Spending ungodly amounts of time with someone stuck in training changes things, I guess.) However, I at some point figured out he wasn't very nice, and packed him back off to his mommy. (READ MORE)
Have an interesting post or know of a "must read?" Then send a trackback here and let us all know about it. Or you can send me an email with a link to the post and I'll update the Recon.
In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Democrats Blaze Trails In February Fundraising - Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama continued to rewrite fundraising records this month, with Clinton announcing yesterday that she had rebounded from a disappointing showing in January to raise $35 million in February, by far her biggest one-month total of the campaign. (READ MORE)
Did 'SNL' Go Beyond the Pale With Fauxbama? - When Barack Obama announced his candidacy for president last year, some observers questioned whether the senator from Illinois was "black enough" to embody the hopes and aspirations of African Americans. (READ MORE)
Kenyan Rivals Sign Power-Sharing Agreement - NAIROBI, Feb. 28 -- Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement Thursday to halt ethnic violence that has killed at least 1,000 people and displaced 600,000 in a post-election crisis that has ushered this nation to anarchy's door. (READ MORE)
Dutch Film to Slam Islam - Europe's uneasy relationship with its Muslim minority faces another blow next month, when Dutch politician Geert Wilders releases a 15-minute film that compares Islam to Nazism and communism. (READ MORE)
Banks in Crisis Cut Lines of Credit - Consumers from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., Miami to Detroit are facing unexpected difficulties as banks stung by losses on defaulting second mortgages are shutting off credit lines and turning down home-refinancing applications, citing falling prices. (READ MORE)
Bush Weighs in on '08 Race - President Bush yesterday unloaded his most forceful criticism yet of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama for his promise to meet unconditionally with leaders hostile to the United States. (READ MORE)
High Costs Force Chinese Firms to Move to Cheaper Options - Outsourcing has hit the hub of China's Pearl River Delta, with soaring costs pushing the world's longtime workshop for low-cost goods to move its factories overseas. (READ MORE)
On the Web:
Do the Right Thing: War OF Jihad Part 2 - The Islamic Jihad or Holy War shows no signs of being in regression any time soon. The United States in Feb. 2008 offered official recognition to the newly formed (unilaterally) state of Kosovo, which is roughly 90% Muslim. With that support and the support of the European Union, one has to wonder just precisely what type of death wish the current administration of the United States has. It’s not enough that we’re already fighting against rogue groups of Islamists unaffiliated specifically with a nation State? We need another challenge at this point to bolster some ideal of national pride? (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: Pushing Green Could Drive Taxpayers Into Red - Once again, Mayor Mike Bloomberg's nanny state tendencies are taking hold. The Taxi and Limousine Commission is requiring that the ubiquitous black Town Cars will become a thing of the past as the city demands higher mileage requirements on those vehicles. The City is forcing the owners of these vehicles to switch to hybrids and other vehicles claiming that they're going to reduce emissions. This is an unfunded mandate on those businesses, which is to be carried by those businesses. So, he's also pushing for tax breaks: (READ MORE)
A Soldier's Mind: Quick Withdrawl From Iraq Would Wipe Out Security Gains - For quite some time now, we’ve heard the anti-Bush crowd rant, rave and scream that we needed to bring all of our Troops home from Iraq now. We’ve stated all along, as have most milbloggers, how unrealistic that demand is. For just as long, milbloggers have said that to do so, would spell disaster for our Troops as they were leaving the country, as well as disaster for the Iraqi people. Many of our Troops who have or are serving in Iraq, say that there are visible signs of progress and they want to finish the job that they started. Milbloggers have shared story after story of schools being built, hospitals being renovated, security being improved and essential services being restored. We’ve wittnessed countless Iraqi’s standing up and taking ownership in the well being of their country and it’s people, by joining the Iraqi Security Forces and volunteering for community watch groups. (READ MORE)
Donald Douglas: U.S. Will Succeed in Iraq, Poll Finds - I've long noted that public opinion on Iraq is far more complicated that the standard left-wing line that Americans want to "bring the troops home." Indeed, not only are claims of a public demand for withdrawal unsupported, a recent Pew Research poll finds that a majority of 53 percent of Americans sees the United States ultimately prevailing in the conflict. Here's some background from Hot Air: “In case you were wondering why the Democrats are running from this debate, it’s because the more public opinion shifts, the more their willingness to abandon Iraq looks less like a “realist” exit strategy than calculated defeatism. Even so, note how inelastic most of the results are despite the security gains (especially in Anbar). The microresults show impressive shifts — click the image and follow the link to see double digit swings in the ‘Growing Perceptions of Iraq Progress’ graph — but the baseline results below are static. I wonder why.” (READ MORE)
Ace of Spades: Grim Milestone: Media Interest In Surge Success Falls To Dangerously Unstable Levels - Correlation is not causation? Sure, whatever. “After heavy coverage of the shift to a new Iraq policy in January and February 2007, the TV coverage began to closely track the rising and falling death rates for U.S. soldiers in Iraq. When the number of U.S. fatalities jumped in May, TV coverage jumped, too. When U.S. casualties began to steadily decline, TV coverage of Iraq dramatically decreased. While the amount of coverage has shriveled, the tone remains more negative than positive.....” (READ MORE)
American Ranger: The Last Mission - Since my return to my home base at the end of 2007, I have been preparing for what will be my final mission in the Army. My previous job was to mobilize a battalion of military police soldiers who are now successfully engaged in one of the war zones. Tomorrow I make a brief one-day trip to give a pre-mobilization briefing to another military police unit, but next week I begin that final mission. I have been attached to a team that will spend the next few months preparing an infantry unit for its tour at war. Yep – my last mission will be with a unit of “grunts”, the same type of hardened “bayonet and bullet” warriors with whom I shared my first experience at war. (READ MORE)
Big Dog: Democrats; Party of Racial Division - For years and years the Democrats have painted Republicans as a party of old white guys that is not inclusive of blacks or other minorities. They like to point out that there are no black members of Congress in the Republican party and Howard Dean recently said that the Democrats look like the modern party while Republicans looked like they were still stuck in a time long ago. These geniuses never stop to consider that most blacks are registered as Democrats so it would be difficult to find black Republicans who would want to run for Congress. Why would they? If they are Republicans they are labeled as “Uncle Toms” and sell outs by other blacks. (READ MORE)
Blackfive: Paratroopers Fighting in Afghanistan Need to Hear from You! - Not too long ago, Blackfive readers, joined by thousands of readers from other blogs, sent over 30,000 emails of support to Marines in Iraq. The Marines had to shut down the email address because you all were causing bandwidth issues with the support we were sending. Now, as if the Taliban and Al Qaeda, bad weather, and lack of support here at home weren't bad enough, the New York Times has published a one-sided view of the paratroopers tour in Afghanistan. And so now we have cause to band together again and send massive support down range. Here's why: (READ MORE)
Deebow @ Blackfive: Bias, Bias Everywhere... - LW sent this over to me and he obviously has no concern as to how high my blood pressure could possibly get. "I went to Afghanistan last fall with a question: Why, with all our technology, were we killing so many civilians in air strikes?" Up, Up, Up it goes... not even a break. Like 3 paragraphs into the story. Elizabeth Rubin, in this writer's humble opinion, has published an article and it is a load of bull-pucky, centered around true events. The article covers Battle Company, commanded by Captain Dan Kearney, son of Lt. General Frank Kearney, Commander of SOCCENT (Special Operations Command Central Command) and their actions while fighting in the Korengal. (READ MORE)
Blonde Sagacity: Looking for an Anti-War Explanation - I keep asking Obama supporters (who always seem to use the war as their reason for choosing him after his neophyte status is pointed out) how they as civilians, drinking lattes and attending palates classes, can vote for someone because he'll bring the troops home --when the troops don't want to come home. When the troops believe in their CIC and their mission and 100% believe they are making progress. Their answer? "Well, some want to come home." Duh. I just don't get how people here -that really have no idea what's going on there - would presume to pretend they do. Do you think for one second that I want even one more finger (let alone life) sacrificed for a Muslim country? Don't these anti-war fanatics realize that the pro-troop people love these guys and HATE the fact that they are dying for people that don;t seem to appreciate the sacrifice? (READ MORE)
LTC Gian Gentile: What Lies Beneath - Compromises only mask the underlying issue behind Iraq’s civil war - Reports from Iraq are showing that the war-torn country might finally be on the road to some mix of local and national reconciliation. The recent reduction in violence suggests this might be the case and Iraq’s bleeding may have been stopped. Yet deals cut with our former Sunni-insurgent enemies to stop fighting us and become our allies against al-Qaida, along with the hope of compromise between the different factions in Iraq and the Iraqi government, may be taking our eyes off the fundamental issue that has yet to be resolved: Who will hold absolute power in Iraq, Shiites or Sunnis? One observer in Iraq noted that the Shiites and Sunnis still have not recognized the need to share power and acknowledge that one group cannot dominate over the other. How this fundamental conflict is resolved, through compromise or civil war, is still anything but clear. (READ MORE)
The Captains' Journal: Body Armor Wars in the Marine Corps - Foxnews is carrying an article on a dust-up over body armor within the Corps. It is frankly difficult to imagine that this issue could have become so confused to so many people. Hopefully this article will be enlightening for the careful reader. To begin with, it is necessary to show a picture of a Marine in Fallujah during Operation Alljah, wearing the IBA (Interceptor). This picture comes to you courtesy of Bill Ardolino who embedded with the 2/6 Marines in 2007. Take particular note of the thing hanging on the side of this Marine’s IBA (Interceptor Body Armor) vest. It is called a side SAPI plate (small arms protective insert, or the enhanced version is ESAPI). The side SAPIs are not used when Marines train stateside. They are issued upon entry to the theater. (READ MORE)
Blue Crab Boulevard: Today’s I Told You So - The electrical grid operator in Texas had to invoke stage two emergency load shedding when the wind suddenly stopped. When the 1,700 MW of wind generation suddenly dropped to 300, they had a big problem and had nothing more to put into the grid as the frequency began to drop. By quickly cutting off large industrial customers, they managed to keep the grid from going down. “HOUSTON (Reuters) - A drop in wind generation late on Tuesday, coupled with colder weather, triggered an electric emergency that caused the Texas grid operator to cut service to some large customers, the grid agency said on Wednesday.” (READ MORE)
Chickenhawk Express: Angelina Jolie Or Harry Reid - Who Ya Gonna Believe? - Interesting contrast of opinions today. First we have a WaPo commentary written by Angelina Jolie about humanitarian aide in Iraq after her visit. Take note of her opinion of the SURGE... “As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible.” Well she can forget about any further awards from her brethren in Hollywood - she's probably on their blacklist. (READ MORE)
Matthew Levitt: AQI Facilitation Networks Still Active in Syria - In its latest effort to target al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) financial and logistical networks operating out of Syria, the Treasury Department designated today four members of a key terrorist facilitation network. Such facilitation networks have long operated out of Syria and have been the target of periodic designations. As recently as December 2007, Undersecretary of the Treasury Stuart Levey called on Syria to “take action to deny safe haven to those supporting violence from within its borders.” Today’s designation suggests Syria still has far to go in this regard. Known as the “Abu Ghadiyah” network and run by Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih (aka Abu Ghadiyah), the group designated today controls the flow of much of the money, weapons, personnel and other material through Syria into Iraq for AQI. (READ MORE)
David Hambling: When Royals Go To War - You can't turn on a television or pick up a newspaper in Britain today without getting more details of Prince Harry's deployment to Afghanistan. The latest: the Prince appears to be heading home, after all the media exposure. It was pretty much inevitable that he was going to see action somewhere. The tradition of English royal princes proving themselves in war goes back to Crecy in 1346 when Edward III's son (also Edward, and known as the Black Prince to avoid confusion) was hard pressed at the height of the battle. According to the Chronicles of Froissart written in 1523, the king ordered his son should fight on without extra assistance: (READ MORE)
Dadmanly: Times Reports Internet Buzz - The NY Times continues in their partisan campaign to find ways to discredit or diminish Sen. John McCain as Presidential Candidate. This time, the always reliably partisan Carl Hulse was tasked to pound out a tendentious cloud of oblivious blather about whether John McCain is eligible to run for President. Hulse begins with this howler of an assertion: “WASHINGTON — The question has nagged at the parents of Americans born outside the continental United States for generations: Dare their children aspire to grow up and become president? In the case of Senator John McCain of Arizona, the issue is becoming more than a matter of parental daydreaming.” (READ MORE)
Dr. Sanity: THE NEO-MARXIST AGENDA OF THE ANTI-MILITARY LEFT - On January 29 of this year, the Berkeley City Council called the US Marines "unwelcome", "uninvited", and told them to get out of their city. They authorized the radical group, Code Pink, to harass the local recruiting station by granting them a preferred parking space in front of the office and waiving any permits they might need for 6 months of 'activity'. This sort of floridly anti-military and anti-American behavior on the part of the nut clusters on the political left seems to be a fairly frequent occurrance in this day and age. Berkeley happens to be one of the main players in these little psychodramas, but you can find the same sort of moral insanity wherever the species academicus pseudointellectualis runs rampant, i.e., in most university towns. (READ MORE)
Don Surber: The 9/11 next time - Would House Democrats rather smear Bush than protect the United States? By refusing to take up FISA legislation, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is undermining national security, two Republican congressmen said. Pelosi refuses to schedule a vote on FISA that would allow our spies to intercept foreign communications. New York’s Peter King and Vito Fossella wrote in the Washington Times today: “Half of all the information we obtain on future attacks against our nation comes from electronic surveillance, according to National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell, who warned that failure to pass the Senate bill will degrade all intercepts by two-thirds. We can’t expect intelligence officials to connect the dots when they have one arm tied behind their back collecting them.” That’s a serious problem. (READ MORE)
Flopping Aces: Iraq War Leaves Democrats at a Loss - Be careful what you wish for…Democrats wanted power in 2006, and vowed to end the war if they got it. They got power, and showed that they had no clue how to end it, and no intention of doing so in any event. There was talk of cutting funds for the war, and they could have done that, but instead chose to push their party agenda rather than make concessions needed to pass a funding cut measure in a bi-partisan way. Instead they tell their constituents that the Democratic Party needs more power. They need enough power to override vetoes and opposition to measures that would leave Iraq in chaos; they need unchecked political power. On the Presidential campaign trail, we’ve heard all kinds of positions from the Democratic Party candidates; from vowing to stay in Iraq until 2013 to ordering an unconditional withdrawal on day 1. Two things are clear: 1) The Democratic Party has no idea what to do with the Iraq War 2) The Democratic Party must continue to tell their base that they are against the war (READ MORE)
Allahpundit: Good work, Drudge: Brits pull Harry out of Afghanistan, send him home - Per yesterday’s post, mightn’t Drudge have been doing the Brits’ secret bidding by spilling the beans? Er, probably not: Harry was due back anyway “in a matter of weeks,” which, on the one hand, makes the leak seem not so bad and on the other makes it totally gratuitous. Bummer: “Sky defence correspondent Geoff Meade said it could take at least 24 hours to bring him back to the UK. He added: ‘There will be a degree of frustration - not least from the Prince himself - and anger.’ (READ MORE)
Amy Proctor: (VIDEO) GEN Casey: Troops More Interested in Victory Than Coming Home - GEN George Casey affirmed the military’s positive morale and desire to win in Iraq and Afghanistan rather than coming home leaving a failed mission before the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday saying: “‘As I talk to the soldiers…the most important thing to them is winning, not necessarily coming home.’ ‘Everything I have personally observed during my visits in December and that I continue to hear is that morale in both in Iraq, Afghanistan, and among returning forces is very positive. They believe in what they’re doing, they see themselves making a difference in a very difficult environment, and so I believe morale is very good.’” (READ MORE)
Missiles and stilettos: Princess Diana would be proud! - PRINCE Harry received a heart-wrenching letter in the front line from brother William telling him: “You’re making mum proud.” It was among a treasure chest of personal messages sent to the Royal as he took on the Taliban in Afghanistan. Fellow Blues and Royals officer William reminded his younger brother of Princess Diana to provide a vital boost, after hearing from other soldiers in the regiment how tough life was in Helmand Province. Harry said: “Hopefully, she would be proud. She would be looking down having a giggle about the stupid things that I’ve been doing, like going left when I should have gone right, finding myself in an awkward position earlier today. “William sent me a letter saying how proud he reckons that she would be.” (READ MORE)
The Monkey Tennis Centre: "I'm a free human being in Europe, and I'm not a slave of the European Commission." - With this existential cry, Czech Republic interior minister Ivan Langer today ripped the electrodes out of his head and disconnected the downlink from Brussels, in his country's latest act of defiance against the Borg-like entity that is the European Union. The BBC reports that the Czech government could face legal action after signing its own deal on visa-free travel with the US, having become fed up waiting while the EU haggled over a Europe-wide deal: The European Commission fears the accord undercuts its own talks with the US on an EU-wide visa agreement. But Czech interior minister Ivan Langer criticised the EU. "We've been waiting years and nothing happened," he said. (READ MORE)
Political Pistachio: Rally Behind Lt. Col. William Russell - Dirty Politics. That is a common practice by Democratic Candidates. Hillary Clinton is now using a tactic the press calls the "Kitchen Sink Strategy" because in her desperation of trying to stop the rise of Barack Hussein Obama, it seems like she is throwing everything at him but the kitchen sink. John Murtha is another cheating, lying, unscrupulous politician that will do anything in his power to ensure his 34 year reign in the United States Congress continues. John Murtha's years in Congress have been spotted with scandals. (READ MORE)
John Hinderaker: The Times Goes Looking for Media Bias - Not, as you might expect, in the mirror. Instead, the Times pointed its finger at a television station in the Republican South. This is a spin-off from the recent 60 Minutes story that apparently claimed it was Karl Rove's fault that former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman was convicted of bribery and mail fraud. I haven't followed that story closely, assuming that it is another 60 Minutes hoax. The Left blogosphere got excited over the fact that one Alabama television station, WHNT in Huntsville, didn't air the 60 Minutes segment on Siegelman; it went dark for a few minutes just as that segment was in progress. The Times joined its friends on the creepy Left in seeing all the signs of a conspiracy. The paper went so far as to editorialize on the power outage: (READ MORE)
Scott Johnson: Brad Smith responds to Senator McCain - I was intrigued by Paul's account of the blogger conference call with Senator McCain yesterday. Senator McCain justified his refusal to shake the hand of former FEC Commissioner Brad Smith on the ground that Professor Smith had engaged in attacks on Senator McCain's character. Checking out Smith's 2001 book on the problems with campaign finance regulation -- Unfree Speech: The Folly of Campaign Finance Reform -- Professor Smith's comments on Senator McCain and the then-proposed McCain-Feingold reform bill, one finds only Professor Smith's reference to McCain's "minimal" role in the Keating Five scandal and criticism of the bill itself. A Google search on Brad Smith on John McCain similarly turns up nothing personal in nature. Professor Smith's consideration of John McCain as a presidential candidate is accessible here. (READ MORE)
ShrinkWrapped: Does Hamas Want War? - There is an unspoken assumption that underlies most of the reporting from the area since Israel withdrew form the Gaza strip. That assumption is that, like the scorpion who kills the frog and thus drowns, Hamas and the Gazans must attack Israel with their rockets because "its their nature." In this conception, Hamas cannot possibly want war because it would devastate Gaza, kill many innocent Palestinians, and destroy Hamas's power base. There may be some truth to this, but it is always worth considering, when an escalation takes place, cui bono?, who benefits? The Middle East has always been an incredibly complex web of interconnecting moving parts. An action in one area often has reverberations elsewhere in the region. Most often the connections are hidden; this is facilitated by a compliant, easily manipulated and managed press, and an incurious West. (READ MORE)
Sister Toldjah: Just words? Part II (UPDATE 2: CLINTON CAMP WILL MEET TO DISCUSS CTV STORY) - Yesterday, I wrote about a CTV (Canada) story that reported that a “senior member” of BO’s campaign told the Canadian Ambassador Michael Smith that Barack Obama’s tough talk against NAFTA was merely campaign rhetoric, and assured them not to worry. Naturally, all camps denied anything was said (Smith himself, to my knowledge, hasn’t commented). I posted some updates to that story in my original post but wanted to start a new one on it with the info because I think the update deserves it’s own post. CTV is standing by its report: “The Obama campaign told CTV late Thursday night that no message was passed to the Canadian government that suggests that Obama does not mean what he says about opting out of NAFTA if it is not renegotiated. However, the Obama camp did not respond to repeated questions from CTV on reports that a conversation on this matter was held between Obama’s senior economic adviser — Austan Goolsbee — and the Canadian Consulate General in Chicago.” (READ MORE)
Mark Steyn: Dear Leaders - What's wrong with this picture? "Saying he is no longer healthy enough to hold office, Cuban leader Fidel Castro has announced he will not seek re-election after 49 years in power" - the Miami Herald. Hmm. Castro didn't really have to "seek" re-election, did he? He's a - what's the word? Oh, yeah - "dictator." If he "seeks" re-election, he's pretty much guaranteed to find it - assuming for the purposes of argument you can be "re-elected" if you've never been freely or fairly elected in the first place. In its own "news report," the satirical website The Nose on Your Face got closer to reality: "Fidel Castro announced today that he would not seek a new term as Cuba's president, citing concerns that at 81, it may be difficult for him to serve the full, constitutionally-mandated 49-year term." (READ MORE)
Steve Schippert: IAEA Schweizer Käse - While Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hails the latest IAEA report on the Iranian nuclear weapons program as another “great victory” against the United States and the West, significant holes and questions remain. On several “outstanding questions” the IAEA had on the Iranian program, the UN nuclear watchdog agency’s Director ElBaradei was satisfied with the Iranian response. But even some of those seemingly settled issues raise significant questions from within themselves. And a gaping hole remains in the form of indications of the “administrative interconnections” among the Iranian enrichment program, high explosives testing and missile re-entry design programs as well as “their possible link to nuclear material.” (READ MORE)
Wolf Pangloss: I had a dream about Barack Obama - I had a dream about Barack Obama. I was watching Obama give a speech. It felt so good, so hypnotic. He was so beautiful and he spoke like an angel. I remember wondering if I was actually floating in the middle of the air. Have you ever had one of those dreams where you are having a conversation of such surpassing brilliance and insight that you want to remember every single speck of memory from the dream so you can write it down when you do actually wake up? This was one of those dreams. Every idea, every word, every phrase, every syllable that came out of his mouth was so perfect, so absolutely appropriate and energizing, that I knew I was giggling and couldn’t help it. (READ MORE)
Wonkoblog: Conservative bloggers showing more focus than liberal bloggers right now - Every four hours each of the candidates’ Wonkosphere buzz page is re-generated, and it gives you a snap-shot of the 30 most representative posts about the candidate over the last several days (biased towards recent posts). We identify those posts that are most representative by using computerized text analysis, which measures how “close” each post is to another, and then selects those posts that are on average the most similar to all other posts. You’ll note that the 30 the computer chooses are independent of affiliation, so we can look at the ratio of red to blue to get a sense of which side is being more focused. (READ MORE)
Army Girl Chronicles: Oops - Alright. So I haven't been keeping up as planned. Somewhere, I still have the rest of that crazy Basic Training journal, so I'll get it on here one day. At least for the sake of me having it, because Lord knows a beat-up notebook won't last long. Until I track it back down, though, I'll just make this a fun update. So. Updates. Hrm. Well, as for normal life, things are pretty good right now, albeit stressful. It's entertaining trying to keep up a civilian life and an army life at the same time. I met a guy in AIT that I thought I was in love with, so we got engaged pretty quickly. (Spending ungodly amounts of time with someone stuck in training changes things, I guess.) However, I at some point figured out he wasn't very nice, and packed him back off to his mommy. (READ MORE)
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From the Front
News and Personal dispatches from the front lines.
In their own words:
Northern Disclosure: Hoorah for Harry - When I was in basic training I had a Drill Sergeant that to me was a military diety. Drill Sergeant Chaney was a physical specimen and clearly more knowledgable than the others. It was no surprise that he was one of the Army's best and an Elite Soldier. He taught me something about leadership that stuck with me since that time and it was through example and not rhetoric that I learned that someone leading from the front and example offers alot more than some brain or ego in the rear. Since this Conflict has happened there have been alot of armchair generals and monday quarterbacks. Many of these are in the public eye and some holding or trying to hold public offices. (READ MORE)
Sergeant Grumpy: A largely successful Arba'een - Yesterday completed an important holiday period for the Shia's of Iraq. (Well for the Shia's of the world I guess, but the holiday's impact is all here in Iraq). Arba'een (literally Arabic for the number 40) is the 40th day after Ashura and commemorates the suffering of wives and children of Husayn ibn Ali, who was murdered on Ashura in the Battle of Karbala. His wives and children were then marched across the desert to Syria by the Sunni Caliphate army and many of them perished. The Shia in my observation* are obsessed with suffering and, as might be said in America, immerse themselves in a culture of being the victim. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Preparing for spring - I can remember when prepping for spring meant doing some spring cleaning around the house, planting some flowers or herbs in the garden and cleaning the grill to get ready for the barbecue season. Here in Afghanistan, we prepare for spring a bit differently. The cleaning we are worried about involves cleaning up an area of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. The planting that concerns us are IEDs being planted on our main routes of travel. Cooking up something special for the bad guys is what makes us happy here. (READ MORE)
Iraq: The Purgatorium: Insomnia - We're phantoms here. No past, no background, just like I hoped. Almost. The girl who pointed out the tranny called me out on being military. So did an old man in the first bar. I guess there's no hiding it. All there's left to do is try to leave a good impression, I guess. The realization that this is all temporary, it haunts me once in a while. I want to hold on to this as long as I can. We've got a clean slate, even if its a different color than everyone else's proverbial slate. We're finding something out, but we don't know what. This isn't just R&R from Iraq, its R&R from my entire life. Just picking up and leaving for somewhere where I don't know anyone, I've probably needed this for years. Random thoughts occur to us while we lay in our beds in the dark. (READ MORE)
Iraq: The Purgatorium: The Adventure Continues - My homedude woke me up at some mid-morning hour to inform me that we had to leave, that we didn't have this hotel booked anymore. I thought we still had another day. I crawled out of bed in a still-half-drunk buzz and attempted to pull myself together. We threw our shit in our backpacks and walked out, slightly bummed. It was a damn good hotel, and fucking CHEAP as it gets. If you're military and kicking it in Tokyo, check out The New Sanno Hotel. The ultimate hookup. Walking down the clean streets of Tokyo, trash cans rarely ever seen, litter just as rare, concrete and asphalt and greener than green trees, crazy signs with English and chicken-scratch Kanji writing. (READ MORE)
IraqPundit: Obama's Incoherence - What did Barack Obama mean Tuesday when he told Tim Russert that if, following his promised withdrawal of U.S. forces, "al-Qaeda is forming a base in Iraq, then we will have to act in a way that secures the American homeland and our interests abroad"? Surely Obama is aware that much of the military activity in Iraq for some time has been devoted-- successfully -- to pushing AQI out of those areas (Anbar, for example) where it had previously established itself. Isn’t he? If he does know that, and if he concedes that a future AQI “base” in Iraq would be a cause for his ordering some sort of military action – either some missile lobbing in Bill Clinton’s feckless style, or a reintroduction of troops -- then why is he promising to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq as fast as he can? (READ MORE)
LT Nixon: Bush Sends a Zinger at the Senate - The Prez. Despite the fact that I'd jump off a cliff if the guy ordered me to, I'm not in the business of heaping praise upon Bush. After all his administration did give us a skyrocketing deficit, an overused-understaffed military, and a distrust for conservative values that will take years to repair. But I did like what he had to say at today's White House press conference about the Senate bickering over Iraq (via Bloomberg): “Congressional leaders are still sounding the same old call for withdrawal. I guess you could say that when it comes to pushing for withdrawal, their strategy is to stay the course.” (READ MORE)
Michael Yon: Paratroopers Fighting in Afghanistan Need to Hear from You! - This last summer, many of you helped to send over 30,000 emails of support to Marines in Iraq. Now, as if the Taliban and Al Qaeda, bad weather, and lack of support here at home weren’t bad enough, the New York Times has published a one-sided view of the paratroopers tour in Afghanistan. Conditions and morale are tough right now for paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Yes, they are having a tough time, but they are also succeeding in many ways. (READ MORE)
Fearless 1st Marines’ blog: RCT-1’s PSD, Sentinels to Commanding Officer - CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq (Feb. 28, 2008) – Some of the most battle-hardened, seasoned veterans of war can be found in a personnel security detachment; Marines who have deployed several times, fought in numerous battles and even some who have been wounded in action. Experience and the knowledge of combat are essential when it comes to protecting the commanding officer and VIPs. The sentinels of Regimental Combat Team 1’s PSD are Marines who have proven to be of this caliber on the battlefield. (READ MORE)
Army of Dude: You're Visitor 100,000! Click here to claim your prize. - Sometime in the last few days, my hit counter surpassed 100,000 visit to this blog. Like your dad in the family station wagon counting the odometer, I'm very excited to be at this historic number. I created the blog in April 2006 but I only added a counter in September of last year, days before I came home from Iraq. Blue Man was the first person to link to me before my quote and URL appeared in the LA Times and Associated Press stories, making him fan #1. My parents have always been the most supportive readers from the start, along with my wonderful girlfriend Lauren. I'm often asked why I started the blog in the first place. If you go back to the very beginning, you'll see writing that's rough around the edges with heavy doses of sarcasm. (READ MORE)
Paul McLeary: Power Surge - The press often takes heat—not unfairly—for only reporting the “bad news” out of Iraq and Afghanistan. But sometimes the bad news just so happens to be the most important news of the day. Check out this morning’s front-page Washington Post piece about problems in the Awakening movement in Iraq—a mostly Sunni security effort that has put 80,000 Iraqi men on the American payroll, and which has cost the American taxpayer about $123 million so far, according to the Multinational Force-Iraq command. The program has undoubtedly produced results. Violence in the country is way down now that Iraqis have stepped up to staff checkpoints in their own areas, and some of the same guys who were planting IEDs a year ago are now turning in caches of weapons and explosives. (READ MORE)
That Krazy Korean: Knick knack transportation - I’m being moved from my desk to make way for a new inbound person into our section. Unfortunately this isn’t my replacement, but one that will be working on the team to take over Tad’s position. So, in order to consolidate areas of responsibility, they are moving me out of the section to a desk around the corner and out of sight to make room for him. It’s probably a good thing according to that whole cliché “out of sight, out of mind”, but it still sucks to move for the fourth time and this close to the end of my mission. (READ MORE)
Desert Dude: 29 February - Today I went over to the shop and laid out for a while, and studied some…the guys brought over a couple trucks to work on—minor things like doors sticking and turret handles broken…we started cleaning things and organizing tools and parts and shop equipment and now the shop looks great…we pulled in a few more trucks and gave them a good once over to make sure everything is good to go for the new guys coming in…there are already two new guys here that came in early to get started and be on the ground to help the rest of their crew get situated when they get in... (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Bill Roggio: Egyptian al Qaeda leader reported killed in South Waziristan airstrike - Pakistani and US intelligence are attempting to sort out the names of the al Qaeda and Taliban operatives killed in yesterday's airstrike in Azam Warzak, South Waziristan. Initial reports indicated Arabs and fighters from Central Asia were killed in the operation. One report indicates an "al Qaeda fugitive from Egypt" was among those killed, sparking rumors that Ayman al Zawahiri was the target of the strike. (READ MORE)
Oklahoma National Guard unit assumes base security at Bucca - CAMP BUCCA, Iraq — The 1st Battalion, 179th Infantry from Stillwater, Okla., assumed command of base security at Camp Bucca in southern Iraq during a transfer of authority ceremony Monday. The Oklahoma National Guard unit will be performing external patrols in the area of operations and maintaining security at the forward operating base, which houses the largest Theater Internment Facility in Iraq. (READ MORE)
Paratroopers capture senior Special Groups leader - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers captured a suspected senior leader of a criminal Special Groups network during an operation in Baghdad’s Beida neighborhood Feb. 27. After receiving actionable intelligence on his whereabouts, paratroopers with the 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, detained the suspect. (READ MORE)
Coalition disrupts al-Qaeda in Iraq network; five terrorists killed, 22 suspects detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed five terrorists and detained 22 suspects Thursday and today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda networks operating in central and northern Iraq. During an operation east of Khan Bani Sad this morning, Coalition forces captured an alleged al-Qaeda in Iraq facilitator associated with a member of the Baqouba improvised explosive device and suicide bombing network. As the ground force arrived in the area, they called for occupants of the target building to come out. (READ MORE)
MND-B Soldiers, ISF, local residents discover multiple caches - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers, Iraqi Security forces and local Iraqis discovered multiple weapon and ammunition caches Feb. 27 northwest of Baghdad. Soldiers from 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, discovered a 68mm mortar round, a French-made rocket and a 68mm mortar tube during a combat patrol at approximately 10:30 a.m. (READ MORE)
Sayifiyah Sheiks Meet with National Police Commander, Discuss Security - FOB KALSU — Coalition forces organized a meeting here Feb. 26, where leaders of Sayifiyah and an Iraqi National Police (NP) battalion commander discussed the Iraqi security force presence in the region. “You have worked wonderfully with Coalition forces,” said Col. James Adams, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division deputy commander, addressing the 13 Sayifiyah sheiks. “We’re just adding one more member to the team and that member is the Iraqi security forces (ISF).” (READ MORE)
Marines Patrol Saqlawiyah Day and Night, Keep Streets Safe - SAQLAWIYAH — Thanks to the Marines of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, the streets of Saqlawiyah continue to be a safer place to live. “With us always patrolling and keeping an eye on the area, the Iraqis seem to feel more comfortable and are out of their homes more,” said Cpl. Kyle W. Peterson, a squad leader with Co. E. “They’ve said that they feel safer with us around.” (READ MORE)
Iraqi Police Find Hundreds of Munitions in Weapons Cache - OB KALSU — Iraqi Police (IP) manning a checkpoint near Jurf as Sakhr discovered a large weapons cache containing more than 500 munitions, Feb. 22. The cache contained (240) 60 mm mortars, (189) 100 mm mortars, 107 fuses, three 82 mm rockets and two 88 mm mortars. The IP spotted three masked individuals digging approximately 250 meters from the checkpoint. The policemen yelled at the men and moved toward the location. By the time they arrived at the site, the individuals had fled. Further investigation yielded the discovery of three cache sites. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Air Force Pilots Get Airborne in ‘King Air’ for First Time - KIRKUK — The Iraqi Air Force’s 3rd Squadron took another step on the path to establishing a fully functioning airpower capability here as Iraqi pilots recently took the controls of a King Air 350 for the first time. The King Air is the most advanced aircraft in Iraq’s arsenal and enhances the abilities of their Air Force tremendously. “This flight signifies another beginning for the Iraqi Air Force,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Chris Spangenberg, an instructor pilot with the 870th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron. “The King Air gives them a 21st century capability that can be integrated into the overall mission with ground forces. This first flight will open a whole new chapter in this quickly accelerating Air Force.” (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Soldiers teach Afghan police first aid - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – Two combat medics have devoted their time to teaching Afghan police officers one of the most important Soldier skills…first aid. Every other week, Sgt. 1st Class Maurice Wells, Joint Forces Headquarters, Arizona Army National Guard, and Spc. Richard L. Bacher, 1st Battalion, 108th Infantry Regiment, New York Army National Guard, teach a first aid class to about 20 Afghan National Police officers from Logar Province. (READ MORE)
Afghan police graduate winter training class - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – A ceremony was held here Feb. 21 to celebrate the newest group of Afghan National Policemen to graduate from a winter training program. The 18 ANP officers, who came from various districts of the Logar Province, are the third group to graduate from the class since its inception in January. (READ MORE)
In their own words:
Northern Disclosure: Hoorah for Harry - When I was in basic training I had a Drill Sergeant that to me was a military diety. Drill Sergeant Chaney was a physical specimen and clearly more knowledgable than the others. It was no surprise that he was one of the Army's best and an Elite Soldier. He taught me something about leadership that stuck with me since that time and it was through example and not rhetoric that I learned that someone leading from the front and example offers alot more than some brain or ego in the rear. Since this Conflict has happened there have been alot of armchair generals and monday quarterbacks. Many of these are in the public eye and some holding or trying to hold public offices. (READ MORE)
Sergeant Grumpy: A largely successful Arba'een - Yesterday completed an important holiday period for the Shia's of Iraq. (Well for the Shia's of the world I guess, but the holiday's impact is all here in Iraq). Arba'een (literally Arabic for the number 40) is the 40th day after Ashura and commemorates the suffering of wives and children of Husayn ibn Ali, who was murdered on Ashura in the Battle of Karbala. His wives and children were then marched across the desert to Syria by the Sunni Caliphate army and many of them perished. The Shia in my observation* are obsessed with suffering and, as might be said in America, immerse themselves in a culture of being the victim. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Preparing for spring - I can remember when prepping for spring meant doing some spring cleaning around the house, planting some flowers or herbs in the garden and cleaning the grill to get ready for the barbecue season. Here in Afghanistan, we prepare for spring a bit differently. The cleaning we are worried about involves cleaning up an area of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. The planting that concerns us are IEDs being planted on our main routes of travel. Cooking up something special for the bad guys is what makes us happy here. (READ MORE)
Iraq: The Purgatorium: Insomnia - We're phantoms here. No past, no background, just like I hoped. Almost. The girl who pointed out the tranny called me out on being military. So did an old man in the first bar. I guess there's no hiding it. All there's left to do is try to leave a good impression, I guess. The realization that this is all temporary, it haunts me once in a while. I want to hold on to this as long as I can. We've got a clean slate, even if its a different color than everyone else's proverbial slate. We're finding something out, but we don't know what. This isn't just R&R from Iraq, its R&R from my entire life. Just picking up and leaving for somewhere where I don't know anyone, I've probably needed this for years. Random thoughts occur to us while we lay in our beds in the dark. (READ MORE)
Iraq: The Purgatorium: The Adventure Continues - My homedude woke me up at some mid-morning hour to inform me that we had to leave, that we didn't have this hotel booked anymore. I thought we still had another day. I crawled out of bed in a still-half-drunk buzz and attempted to pull myself together. We threw our shit in our backpacks and walked out, slightly bummed. It was a damn good hotel, and fucking CHEAP as it gets. If you're military and kicking it in Tokyo, check out The New Sanno Hotel. The ultimate hookup. Walking down the clean streets of Tokyo, trash cans rarely ever seen, litter just as rare, concrete and asphalt and greener than green trees, crazy signs with English and chicken-scratch Kanji writing. (READ MORE)
IraqPundit: Obama's Incoherence - What did Barack Obama mean Tuesday when he told Tim Russert that if, following his promised withdrawal of U.S. forces, "al-Qaeda is forming a base in Iraq, then we will have to act in a way that secures the American homeland and our interests abroad"? Surely Obama is aware that much of the military activity in Iraq for some time has been devoted-- successfully -- to pushing AQI out of those areas (Anbar, for example) where it had previously established itself. Isn’t he? If he does know that, and if he concedes that a future AQI “base” in Iraq would be a cause for his ordering some sort of military action – either some missile lobbing in Bill Clinton’s feckless style, or a reintroduction of troops -- then why is he promising to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq as fast as he can? (READ MORE)
LT Nixon: Bush Sends a Zinger at the Senate - The Prez. Despite the fact that I'd jump off a cliff if the guy ordered me to, I'm not in the business of heaping praise upon Bush. After all his administration did give us a skyrocketing deficit, an overused-understaffed military, and a distrust for conservative values that will take years to repair. But I did like what he had to say at today's White House press conference about the Senate bickering over Iraq (via Bloomberg): “Congressional leaders are still sounding the same old call for withdrawal. I guess you could say that when it comes to pushing for withdrawal, their strategy is to stay the course.” (READ MORE)
Michael Yon: Paratroopers Fighting in Afghanistan Need to Hear from You! - This last summer, many of you helped to send over 30,000 emails of support to Marines in Iraq. Now, as if the Taliban and Al Qaeda, bad weather, and lack of support here at home weren’t bad enough, the New York Times has published a one-sided view of the paratroopers tour in Afghanistan. Conditions and morale are tough right now for paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Yes, they are having a tough time, but they are also succeeding in many ways. (READ MORE)
Fearless 1st Marines’ blog: RCT-1’s PSD, Sentinels to Commanding Officer - CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq (Feb. 28, 2008) – Some of the most battle-hardened, seasoned veterans of war can be found in a personnel security detachment; Marines who have deployed several times, fought in numerous battles and even some who have been wounded in action. Experience and the knowledge of combat are essential when it comes to protecting the commanding officer and VIPs. The sentinels of Regimental Combat Team 1’s PSD are Marines who have proven to be of this caliber on the battlefield. (READ MORE)
Army of Dude: You're Visitor 100,000! Click here to claim your prize. - Sometime in the last few days, my hit counter surpassed 100,000 visit to this blog. Like your dad in the family station wagon counting the odometer, I'm very excited to be at this historic number. I created the blog in April 2006 but I only added a counter in September of last year, days before I came home from Iraq. Blue Man was the first person to link to me before my quote and URL appeared in the LA Times and Associated Press stories, making him fan #1. My parents have always been the most supportive readers from the start, along with my wonderful girlfriend Lauren. I'm often asked why I started the blog in the first place. If you go back to the very beginning, you'll see writing that's rough around the edges with heavy doses of sarcasm. (READ MORE)
Paul McLeary: Power Surge - The press often takes heat—not unfairly—for only reporting the “bad news” out of Iraq and Afghanistan. But sometimes the bad news just so happens to be the most important news of the day. Check out this morning’s front-page Washington Post piece about problems in the Awakening movement in Iraq—a mostly Sunni security effort that has put 80,000 Iraqi men on the American payroll, and which has cost the American taxpayer about $123 million so far, according to the Multinational Force-Iraq command. The program has undoubtedly produced results. Violence in the country is way down now that Iraqis have stepped up to staff checkpoints in their own areas, and some of the same guys who were planting IEDs a year ago are now turning in caches of weapons and explosives. (READ MORE)
That Krazy Korean: Knick knack transportation - I’m being moved from my desk to make way for a new inbound person into our section. Unfortunately this isn’t my replacement, but one that will be working on the team to take over Tad’s position. So, in order to consolidate areas of responsibility, they are moving me out of the section to a desk around the corner and out of sight to make room for him. It’s probably a good thing according to that whole cliché “out of sight, out of mind”, but it still sucks to move for the fourth time and this close to the end of my mission. (READ MORE)
Desert Dude: 29 February - Today I went over to the shop and laid out for a while, and studied some…the guys brought over a couple trucks to work on—minor things like doors sticking and turret handles broken…we started cleaning things and organizing tools and parts and shop equipment and now the shop looks great…we pulled in a few more trucks and gave them a good once over to make sure everything is good to go for the new guys coming in…there are already two new guys here that came in early to get started and be on the ground to help the rest of their crew get situated when they get in... (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Bill Roggio: Egyptian al Qaeda leader reported killed in South Waziristan airstrike - Pakistani and US intelligence are attempting to sort out the names of the al Qaeda and Taliban operatives killed in yesterday's airstrike in Azam Warzak, South Waziristan. Initial reports indicated Arabs and fighters from Central Asia were killed in the operation. One report indicates an "al Qaeda fugitive from Egypt" was among those killed, sparking rumors that Ayman al Zawahiri was the target of the strike. (READ MORE)
Oklahoma National Guard unit assumes base security at Bucca - CAMP BUCCA, Iraq — The 1st Battalion, 179th Infantry from Stillwater, Okla., assumed command of base security at Camp Bucca in southern Iraq during a transfer of authority ceremony Monday. The Oklahoma National Guard unit will be performing external patrols in the area of operations and maintaining security at the forward operating base, which houses the largest Theater Internment Facility in Iraq. (READ MORE)
Paratroopers capture senior Special Groups leader - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers captured a suspected senior leader of a criminal Special Groups network during an operation in Baghdad’s Beida neighborhood Feb. 27. After receiving actionable intelligence on his whereabouts, paratroopers with the 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, detained the suspect. (READ MORE)
Coalition disrupts al-Qaeda in Iraq network; five terrorists killed, 22 suspects detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed five terrorists and detained 22 suspects Thursday and today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda networks operating in central and northern Iraq. During an operation east of Khan Bani Sad this morning, Coalition forces captured an alleged al-Qaeda in Iraq facilitator associated with a member of the Baqouba improvised explosive device and suicide bombing network. As the ground force arrived in the area, they called for occupants of the target building to come out. (READ MORE)
MND-B Soldiers, ISF, local residents discover multiple caches - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers, Iraqi Security forces and local Iraqis discovered multiple weapon and ammunition caches Feb. 27 northwest of Baghdad. Soldiers from 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, discovered a 68mm mortar round, a French-made rocket and a 68mm mortar tube during a combat patrol at approximately 10:30 a.m. (READ MORE)
Sayifiyah Sheiks Meet with National Police Commander, Discuss Security - FOB KALSU — Coalition forces organized a meeting here Feb. 26, where leaders of Sayifiyah and an Iraqi National Police (NP) battalion commander discussed the Iraqi security force presence in the region. “You have worked wonderfully with Coalition forces,” said Col. James Adams, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division deputy commander, addressing the 13 Sayifiyah sheiks. “We’re just adding one more member to the team and that member is the Iraqi security forces (ISF).” (READ MORE)
Marines Patrol Saqlawiyah Day and Night, Keep Streets Safe - SAQLAWIYAH — Thanks to the Marines of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, the streets of Saqlawiyah continue to be a safer place to live. “With us always patrolling and keeping an eye on the area, the Iraqis seem to feel more comfortable and are out of their homes more,” said Cpl. Kyle W. Peterson, a squad leader with Co. E. “They’ve said that they feel safer with us around.” (READ MORE)
Iraqi Police Find Hundreds of Munitions in Weapons Cache - OB KALSU — Iraqi Police (IP) manning a checkpoint near Jurf as Sakhr discovered a large weapons cache containing more than 500 munitions, Feb. 22. The cache contained (240) 60 mm mortars, (189) 100 mm mortars, 107 fuses, three 82 mm rockets and two 88 mm mortars. The IP spotted three masked individuals digging approximately 250 meters from the checkpoint. The policemen yelled at the men and moved toward the location. By the time they arrived at the site, the individuals had fled. Further investigation yielded the discovery of three cache sites. (READ MORE)
Iraqi Air Force Pilots Get Airborne in ‘King Air’ for First Time - KIRKUK — The Iraqi Air Force’s 3rd Squadron took another step on the path to establishing a fully functioning airpower capability here as Iraqi pilots recently took the controls of a King Air 350 for the first time. The King Air is the most advanced aircraft in Iraq’s arsenal and enhances the abilities of their Air Force tremendously. “This flight signifies another beginning for the Iraqi Air Force,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Chris Spangenberg, an instructor pilot with the 870th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron. “The King Air gives them a 21st century capability that can be integrated into the overall mission with ground forces. This first flight will open a whole new chapter in this quickly accelerating Air Force.” (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Soldiers teach Afghan police first aid - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – Two combat medics have devoted their time to teaching Afghan police officers one of the most important Soldier skills…first aid. Every other week, Sgt. 1st Class Maurice Wells, Joint Forces Headquarters, Arizona Army National Guard, and Spc. Richard L. Bacher, 1st Battalion, 108th Infantry Regiment, New York Army National Guard, teach a first aid class to about 20 Afghan National Police officers from Logar Province. (READ MORE)
Afghan police graduate winter training class - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – A ceremony was held here Feb. 21 to celebrate the newest group of Afghan National Policemen to graduate from a winter training program. The 18 ANP officers, who came from various districts of the Logar Province, are the third group to graduate from the class since its inception in January. (READ MORE)
February 28, 2008
What Day is It - Part 654,123
I swear for some reason this month I can not keep the days straight in my head. It must be because I am now without a calendar next to my desk and I'm relying on my eyesight which while it is exemplary at a distance [20/15] ...close up....not so good.
So this weekend I shall purchase a new calendar for the wall next to the blogging desk...in the meantime, don't be suprised if you see another From the Front for 02/29/2008. *Sigh*
So this weekend I shall purchase a new calendar for the wall next to the blogging desk...in the meantime, don't be suprised if you see another From the Front for 02/29/2008. *Sigh*
Web Reconnaissance for 02/28/2008
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
On the Web:
A Newt One: JOHN MCCAIN, BECAUSE THE ALTERNATIVE IS UNTHINKABLE - The title of this post is taken directly from Atlas Shrugs and in a round-about way, from Neocon News. Approximately 35+ people were in the chat room during a Blog Talk Radio Show with Political Pistachio. The guest was Atlas Shrugs. Listen to the archive of that very important discussion. It will not be a waste of your time or energy. However, the show isn't what this post is about. It is about the Conservative Movement, John McCain and principles. (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: The Gaza War Continues - While the New York Times and other outlets lead with the fact that Israel continues to pound Hamas positions with airstrikes, it curiously omits the reason that Israel is firing at Gaza in the first place. Israel kept up its airstrikes Thursday against militants in the Gaza Strip, and Hamas continued to fire heavy barrages of rockets at Israel , one day after an Israeli civilian was killed in a rocket attack. That death was the first such fatality in nine months. (READ MORE)
Ace of Spades HQ: Smart people can be real retards - There's this story here about the rise of autonomous military robots. What struck me about this piece is a quote from University of Sheffield professor Noel Sharkey “...detachments that will include 150 soldiers and 2,000 robots. The use of such devices by terrorists should be a serious concern, said Sharkey. Captured robots would not be difficult to reverse engineer, and could easily replace suicide bombers as the weapon-of-choice. ‘I don't know why that has not happened already,’ he said.” (READ MORE)
The Anchoress: A Clintonian Conundrum - Does she stay in the race and face a mortifying loss next Tuesday or does she get out with some dignity and credibility still intact? As analysts declare that Hillary Clinton needs to win, and win soundly, in Texas and Ohio in order to remain even remotely viable in the race for the Democrat nomination, Drudge is promising a “developing” story claiming Barack Obama has garnered a four percent lead over Hillary in Texas . A drubbing next Tuesday would be the supreme mortification. To go from presumed-and-inevitable to castaway in a matter of months may forever weaken the Clinton brand, both here and abroad. It could impact both the Clinton ’s powerbase and profits. (READ MORE)
The Armorer: An Open letter to Anyone Who Served in Vietnam - This is well-intentioned, heartfelt, and, of course, a little late - but better late than never, as I said when I forwarded this to my favorite Vietnam Veteran. His response was not what I expected, though in retrospect, it doesn't surprise me. Truly the forgotten soldiers of a forgotten war. Here's what he said: "Its never for most of those who served in an even bloodier and more uncomfortable although shorter war in Korea , who got about the same reception when they came home." (READ MORE)
Pamela Geller: Obama and Islam: The Third Rail in American Politics - I am not a racist. Tough to prove a negative. But I refuse to dhimmi down and STFU. Too much is wrong. Obama's narrative is being altered, enhanced and manipulated to whitewash troubling facts. The web is being scrubbed of Obama's ties to Islam. But America will know the truth even if the mainstream media refuses to touch the third rail. The racist charge is fallacious - Islam is not a race, but why split hairs, right?) America should be skeptical. America should question - intensely. We are in the fight for our lives against an enemy that has vowed to destroy us. Good faith is not good enough. My objective is to unearth Obama's relationship to Islam. Islam is a political ideology and it is incompatible with democracy. (READ MORE)
The Barnyard: On The Other Side Of The Aisle - Oh boy, the Democratic convention in Denver is going to be grand, attended I am sure by the glitterati of Hollywood and their oohing gaggle of attendees. I wonder if they will let their base in and by base, I mean the Code Pinkos, but more on that later, mean while this is the gentleman they they are swooning over. I think this is the same video my friend Gayle posted that she notified me about but I haven't been to her site yet to see. I snagged this from Hot Air where I saw it this morning but I will give Gayle credit anyway just because. Make it virile! Anyway back to the Code Pinkos, ANSWER, etal, guess what they are planning to do? Oh this is sweet, they are staging a "Recreate '68" rally, you know all the anti-war commies and hippies gather to stink up the joint, pun intended, break a few windows, and disrupt traffic for a week with their clown parade during a Party Convention. (READ MORE)
The Belmont Club: Politics rears its Iraqi head - Today brought some bad news for the Surge. " Iraq 's three-member presidency council has rejected a draft law to hold provincial elections and returned it to parliament, the president's office said on Wednesday." Fortunately, the other two laws which were part of the reform package "the 2008 federal budget and a general amnesty" passed. But "the law to hold provincial elections has not been approved and has been sent back to the parliament". Max Boot argued the fact that "80,000 Iraqis, primarily but not exclusively Sunnis" had joined the Sons of Iraq "after having fought Iraqi and coalition forces" was "the best evidence" that real reconciliation was waiting to happen on the ground. Unfortunately they will have to wait a little longer. (READ MORE)
Dafydd: Say - Maybe Democrats Will Sue to Force McCain Off the Ticket! - The New York Times is practically begging them to do so, on the grounds that McCain -- born in the Panama Canal Zone -- may not be a "natural born citizen": “Mr. McCain’s likely nomination as the Republican candidate for president and the happenstance of his birth in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 are reviving a musty debate that has surfaced periodically since the founders first set quill to parchment and declared that only a ‘natural-born citizen’ can hold the nation’s highest office. Almost since those words were written in 1787 with scant explanation, their precise meaning has been the stuff of confusion, law school review articles, whisper campaigns and civics class debates over whether only those delivered on American soil can be truly natural born. To date, no American to take the presidential oath has had an official birthplace outside the 50 states.” And why was McCain born in the Canal Zone ? Because that's where his father -- then-Lieutenant (later Admiral) John Sidney McCain, jr., USN -- was stationed in 1936. (READ MORE)
Ed Morrissey: Obama Getting Bad Military Advice - Jack Jacobs at MS-NBC wonders who Barack Obama has as his military advisers. Based on his answers at the debate, Jacobs suggests replacing them at the first opportunity. No one expects a presidential candidate to be an expert on ground combat, but at the very least candidates can hire a few: “But last week, during his debate with Clinton, Obama tried speaking about substance when he mentioned the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and he displayed an astounding ignorance of the military instrument. He said that an anonymous U.S. Army captain told him that his infantry platoon was split and sent to different areas of operations; that they were lacking vehicles; and that they had insufficient ammunition to fight.” (READ MORE)
Dennis Lormel: Terrorists and Credit Card Fraud a Quiet Epidemic - A few weeks ago while conducting research for a client; I came across a newspaper article from Toronto that immediately caught my attention. It reported the arrest of four men on charges of debit and credit card fraud for possessing numerous gift cards containing bank account and debit information from individuals in the United Kingdom (U.K.). Further investigation found laptop computers and memory sticks containing bank information for thousands of U.K. bank customers. What resonated was the fact the four subjects were believed to be associated with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) aka, the Tamil Tigers. In November, I was in Toronto and met with a credit card fraud expert. I inquired as to whether he observed a nexus between credit card fraud and terrorists. (READ MORE)
Crazy Politico: Name Calling Politics and Smears - Yesterday's buzz in the political world was Bill Cunningham, host of "The Big Show, With Bill Cunningham" repeatedly referring to Barack Obama at a John McCain rally as Barack Hussein Obama (the Senator's given name). Everyone this side of Mars knows the reason, it's to try and get folks to think (wrongly) Obama is a covert Muslim agent or some other silliness. McCain repudiated the remarks, rightfully so, and spoke out pretty forcefully against Cunningham, who today tossed his hat into Hillary Clinton's ring. My though, good, she deserves you. When I heard the story my first thought was that Cunningham has been reading too many blogs, on both sides of the aisle, that think name calling is some sort of "good thing". It's not. (READ MORE)
Noah Shachtman: Air Force Blocks Access to Many Blogs - The Air Force is tightening restrictions on which blogs its troops can read, cutting off access to just about any independent site with the word "blog" in its web address. It's the latest move in a larger struggle within the military over the value -- and hazards -- of the sites. At least one senior Air Force official calls the squeeze so "utterly stupid, it makes me want to scream." Until recently, each major command of the Air Force had some control over what sites their troops could visit, the Air Force Times reports. Then the Air Force Network Operations Center , under the service's new "Cyber Command," took over. (READ MORE)
Dr. Sanity: Why John Donne was Wrong – “No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee. --John Donne, Meditation XVII” On the whole, I consider myself extremely pro-human--radically so, in fact. I've spent most of my professional life as a psychiatrist being "involved in Mankind". And, when you think about Donne's quote above, it boils down to the reality that when you define the essence of what it means to be 'human' or a part of 'mankind'; it define thee. (READ MORE)
Don Surber: Enough rope - Republicans decide to let Democrats hang themselves on Iraq . Having watched Harry Reid and company squander about a third of the legislative session last year on attempts to cut off funding for our troops in Iraq , Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell switched gears this week. Instead of filibustering the latest attempt by Russ Feingold to withdraw the troops from Iraq , McConnell said, let the debate begin. Just what America needs on C-Span: 30 hours of teeth gnashing and snort ripping. McConnell told CQ: “They’re the ones who want to turn back to the subject, we’d like to spend the time talking about the dramatic improvements in Iraq .” (READ MORE)
Fortress of Solitude: The New Ice Age - I am about to share a news story with you. Despite any impressions you may get from this article or any conclusions that you may draw from it, always remember one thing. No matter what happens with our climate, it is all caused by Global Warming. After all, that is what the Church of Global Warming has been trying to convince us of. Freak snow storms or extreme heat waves? Global Warming. Increased hurricane activity or a complete lack of hurricanes? Global Warming. Bridge collapses and decreases in African circumcisions? Global Warming (I really wish I was kidding about that, but it’s true). So, we all know that no matter what happens, it is all due to Global Warming. With that in mind, I give you this story from DailyTech: (READ MORE)
Ft Hard Knox: McCain VP Pick - I have certainly been a vociferous critic of John McCain. I don’t like the man, I don’t trust him and I think he is bad for both the Republican Party and the country as a whole. But the fact is, he’s going to be the GOP nominee, that much is certain. The real question is, can he beat Obama in November. From my perspective, choosing between McCain and Obama is like choosing between a firing squad and hanging. I’d prefer not to have to make that choice. As it stands now, I don’t think McCain can beat Obama and the cult of personality. Obama just has so much charisma and McCain is just crotchety. The only possible salvation for a McCain candidacy might be his VP pick. (READ MORE)
Have an interesting post or know of a "must read?" Then send a trackback here and let us all know about it. Or you can send me an email with a link to the post and I'll update the Recon.
On the Web:
A Newt One: JOHN MCCAIN, BECAUSE THE ALTERNATIVE IS UNTHINKABLE - The title of this post is taken directly from Atlas Shrugs and in a round-about way, from Neocon News. Approximately 35+ people were in the chat room during a Blog Talk Radio Show with Political Pistachio. The guest was Atlas Shrugs. Listen to the archive of that very important discussion. It will not be a waste of your time or energy. However, the show isn't what this post is about. It is about the Conservative Movement, John McCain and principles. (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: The Gaza War Continues - While the New York Times and other outlets lead with the fact that Israel continues to pound Hamas positions with airstrikes, it curiously omits the reason that Israel is firing at Gaza in the first place. Israel kept up its airstrikes Thursday against militants in the Gaza Strip, and Hamas continued to fire heavy barrages of rockets at Israel , one day after an Israeli civilian was killed in a rocket attack. That death was the first such fatality in nine months. (READ MORE)
Ace of Spades HQ: Smart people can be real retards - There's this story here about the rise of autonomous military robots. What struck me about this piece is a quote from University of Sheffield professor Noel Sharkey “...detachments that will include 150 soldiers and 2,000 robots. The use of such devices by terrorists should be a serious concern, said Sharkey. Captured robots would not be difficult to reverse engineer, and could easily replace suicide bombers as the weapon-of-choice. ‘I don't know why that has not happened already,’ he said.” (READ MORE)
The Anchoress: A Clintonian Conundrum - Does she stay in the race and face a mortifying loss next Tuesday or does she get out with some dignity and credibility still intact? As analysts declare that Hillary Clinton needs to win, and win soundly, in Texas and Ohio in order to remain even remotely viable in the race for the Democrat nomination, Drudge is promising a “developing” story claiming Barack Obama has garnered a four percent lead over Hillary in Texas . A drubbing next Tuesday would be the supreme mortification. To go from presumed-and-inevitable to castaway in a matter of months may forever weaken the Clinton brand, both here and abroad. It could impact both the Clinton ’s powerbase and profits. (READ MORE)
The Armorer: An Open letter to Anyone Who Served in Vietnam - This is well-intentioned, heartfelt, and, of course, a little late - but better late than never, as I said when I forwarded this to my favorite Vietnam Veteran. His response was not what I expected, though in retrospect, it doesn't surprise me. Truly the forgotten soldiers of a forgotten war. Here's what he said: "Its never for most of those who served in an even bloodier and more uncomfortable although shorter war in Korea , who got about the same reception when they came home." (READ MORE)
Pamela Geller: Obama and Islam: The Third Rail in American Politics - I am not a racist. Tough to prove a negative. But I refuse to dhimmi down and STFU. Too much is wrong. Obama's narrative is being altered, enhanced and manipulated to whitewash troubling facts. The web is being scrubbed of Obama's ties to Islam. But America will know the truth even if the mainstream media refuses to touch the third rail. The racist charge is fallacious - Islam is not a race, but why split hairs, right?) America should be skeptical. America should question - intensely. We are in the fight for our lives against an enemy that has vowed to destroy us. Good faith is not good enough. My objective is to unearth Obama's relationship to Islam. Islam is a political ideology and it is incompatible with democracy. (READ MORE)
The Barnyard: On The Other Side Of The Aisle - Oh boy, the Democratic convention in Denver is going to be grand, attended I am sure by the glitterati of Hollywood and their oohing gaggle of attendees. I wonder if they will let their base in and by base, I mean the Code Pinkos, but more on that later, mean while this is the gentleman they they are swooning over. I think this is the same video my friend Gayle posted that she notified me about but I haven't been to her site yet to see. I snagged this from Hot Air where I saw it this morning but I will give Gayle credit anyway just because. Make it virile! Anyway back to the Code Pinkos, ANSWER, etal, guess what they are planning to do? Oh this is sweet, they are staging a "Recreate '68" rally, you know all the anti-war commies and hippies gather to stink up the joint, pun intended, break a few windows, and disrupt traffic for a week with their clown parade during a Party Convention. (READ MORE)
The Belmont Club: Politics rears its Iraqi head - Today brought some bad news for the Surge. " Iraq 's three-member presidency council has rejected a draft law to hold provincial elections and returned it to parliament, the president's office said on Wednesday." Fortunately, the other two laws which were part of the reform package "the 2008 federal budget and a general amnesty" passed. But "the law to hold provincial elections has not been approved and has been sent back to the parliament". Max Boot argued the fact that "80,000 Iraqis, primarily but not exclusively Sunnis" had joined the Sons of Iraq "after having fought Iraqi and coalition forces" was "the best evidence" that real reconciliation was waiting to happen on the ground. Unfortunately they will have to wait a little longer. (READ MORE)
Dafydd: Say - Maybe Democrats Will Sue to Force McCain Off the Ticket! - The New York Times is practically begging them to do so, on the grounds that McCain -- born in the Panama Canal Zone -- may not be a "natural born citizen": “Mr. McCain’s likely nomination as the Republican candidate for president and the happenstance of his birth in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 are reviving a musty debate that has surfaced periodically since the founders first set quill to parchment and declared that only a ‘natural-born citizen’ can hold the nation’s highest office. Almost since those words were written in 1787 with scant explanation, their precise meaning has been the stuff of confusion, law school review articles, whisper campaigns and civics class debates over whether only those delivered on American soil can be truly natural born. To date, no American to take the presidential oath has had an official birthplace outside the 50 states.” And why was McCain born in the Canal Zone ? Because that's where his father -- then-Lieutenant (later Admiral) John Sidney McCain, jr., USN -- was stationed in 1936. (READ MORE)
Ed Morrissey: Obama Getting Bad Military Advice - Jack Jacobs at MS-NBC wonders who Barack Obama has as his military advisers. Based on his answers at the debate, Jacobs suggests replacing them at the first opportunity. No one expects a presidential candidate to be an expert on ground combat, but at the very least candidates can hire a few: “But last week, during his debate with Clinton, Obama tried speaking about substance when he mentioned the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and he displayed an astounding ignorance of the military instrument. He said that an anonymous U.S. Army captain told him that his infantry platoon was split and sent to different areas of operations; that they were lacking vehicles; and that they had insufficient ammunition to fight.” (READ MORE)
Dennis Lormel: Terrorists and Credit Card Fraud a Quiet Epidemic - A few weeks ago while conducting research for a client; I came across a newspaper article from Toronto that immediately caught my attention. It reported the arrest of four men on charges of debit and credit card fraud for possessing numerous gift cards containing bank account and debit information from individuals in the United Kingdom (U.K.). Further investigation found laptop computers and memory sticks containing bank information for thousands of U.K. bank customers. What resonated was the fact the four subjects were believed to be associated with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) aka, the Tamil Tigers. In November, I was in Toronto and met with a credit card fraud expert. I inquired as to whether he observed a nexus between credit card fraud and terrorists. (READ MORE)
Crazy Politico: Name Calling Politics and Smears - Yesterday's buzz in the political world was Bill Cunningham, host of "The Big Show, With Bill Cunningham" repeatedly referring to Barack Obama at a John McCain rally as Barack Hussein Obama (the Senator's given name). Everyone this side of Mars knows the reason, it's to try and get folks to think (wrongly) Obama is a covert Muslim agent or some other silliness. McCain repudiated the remarks, rightfully so, and spoke out pretty forcefully against Cunningham, who today tossed his hat into Hillary Clinton's ring. My though, good, she deserves you. When I heard the story my first thought was that Cunningham has been reading too many blogs, on both sides of the aisle, that think name calling is some sort of "good thing". It's not. (READ MORE)
Noah Shachtman: Air Force Blocks Access to Many Blogs - The Air Force is tightening restrictions on which blogs its troops can read, cutting off access to just about any independent site with the word "blog" in its web address. It's the latest move in a larger struggle within the military over the value -- and hazards -- of the sites. At least one senior Air Force official calls the squeeze so "utterly stupid, it makes me want to scream." Until recently, each major command of the Air Force had some control over what sites their troops could visit, the Air Force Times reports. Then the Air Force Network Operations Center , under the service's new "Cyber Command," took over. (READ MORE)
Dr. Sanity: Why John Donne was Wrong – “No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee. --John Donne, Meditation XVII” On the whole, I consider myself extremely pro-human--radically so, in fact. I've spent most of my professional life as a psychiatrist being "involved in Mankind". And, when you think about Donne's quote above, it boils down to the reality that when you define the essence of what it means to be 'human' or a part of 'mankind'; it define thee. (READ MORE)
Don Surber: Enough rope - Republicans decide to let Democrats hang themselves on Iraq . Having watched Harry Reid and company squander about a third of the legislative session last year on attempts to cut off funding for our troops in Iraq , Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell switched gears this week. Instead of filibustering the latest attempt by Russ Feingold to withdraw the troops from Iraq , McConnell said, let the debate begin. Just what America needs on C-Span: 30 hours of teeth gnashing and snort ripping. McConnell told CQ: “They’re the ones who want to turn back to the subject, we’d like to spend the time talking about the dramatic improvements in Iraq .” (READ MORE)
Fortress of Solitude: The New Ice Age - I am about to share a news story with you. Despite any impressions you may get from this article or any conclusions that you may draw from it, always remember one thing. No matter what happens with our climate, it is all caused by Global Warming. After all, that is what the Church of Global Warming has been trying to convince us of. Freak snow storms or extreme heat waves? Global Warming. Increased hurricane activity or a complete lack of hurricanes? Global Warming. Bridge collapses and decreases in African circumcisions? Global Warming (I really wish I was kidding about that, but it’s true). So, we all know that no matter what happens, it is all due to Global Warming. With that in mind, I give you this story from DailyTech: (READ MORE)
Ft Hard Knox: McCain VP Pick - I have certainly been a vociferous critic of John McCain. I don’t like the man, I don’t trust him and I think he is bad for both the Republican Party and the country as a whole. But the fact is, he’s going to be the GOP nominee, that much is certain. The real question is, can he beat Obama in November. From my perspective, choosing between McCain and Obama is like choosing between a firing squad and hanging. I’d prefer not to have to make that choice. As it stands now, I don’t think McCain can beat Obama and the cult of personality. Obama just has so much charisma and McCain is just crotchety. The only possible salvation for a McCain candidacy might be his VP pick. (READ MORE)
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From the Front: 02/29/2008
News and Personal dispatches from the front lines.
In their own words:
LT Nixon: Iraq News 28 Feb - The Good: Millions are in Karbala for the Arba'een pilgrimage. For those that think life was great under Saddam's "secular" tyranny of genocide should heed this quote from the AFP: "Under Saddam, those who went to Karbala were killed or had their legs shot so they could not walk again." It should be noted that sectarian strife was not a Cheney conspiracy to gain greater control of oil fields as some on the far-left have mentioned. There is talk about the Sadr trend turning the Mahdi Army into some kind of cultural/humanitarian organization. While Mr. Sadr's people aren't going to be waving American flags anytime soon, this is a welcome change of behavior from the violence preceding the ceasefire in August '07. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Warming up, dressing down - The thaw is here, finally! After one of the worst winters in modern memory, Ghazni and the rest of Afghanistan are ridding themselves of the snow with the help of Mother Nature and some beautiful days. Days are getting up into the 40s and nights are staying at or above the teens. This is my new definition of "warming up." It's amazing how that has changed compared to what I once considered "warm" in Alabama. And, yes, as you can see I have returned to walking to the shower wearing only my underwear, which means I am no longer having to get dressed just to take a shower. You can blame my wife for this picture, it was her idea. (While I'm thankful my wife still has an interest in seeing me nearly naked, I am genuinely sorry to inflict this image on the rest of you.) (READ MORE)
Jason's Iraq Vacation: So close, yet so far - Seriously. I feel like I am in quicksand and just cant get out of this trap. Leap year - just my luck. That extra day is like an entire other month has been tacked onto the deployment. Who invented leap year, anyway? What is its purpose? In any event, I cant complain. Some of my IRR brethren have been royally screwed by the plethora of bad leaders here. Me? I am still on schedule. If a schedule really exists. (READ MORE)
That Krazy Korean: Failure - To say that I’m pissed would be a gross exaggeration, although I’m not really sure how to express my frustration without sounding like I’m whining. Let’s instead say that my leadership is failing me and the rest of us in their decision making and they lack the professionalism to try and fix the situation in a logical and just manner. To publicly go into specific details would be in violation of military regulations, so I’ll try to be vague as possible. The old adage that goes, “Screw up, move up” applies in this situation. Show that you are incompetent and the leadership will just push you off to an easier task so that you don’t screw anything up. They’ll turn a blind eye to your abuse of privileges and they’ll even reward you with an above average evaluation, an award that you don’t deserve and they will send you home early from a combat zone to boot. That should teach you a lesson! (READ MORE)
Eighty Deuce on the Loose in Iraq: I'm going CRAZZZZZYY!!! - Ok so this is just going to be a quick update post since I am getting ready to head out and probably will be away from the computers for a little bit. But know that the next time I am able to get on and post, that I will most likely be on my journey out of this country already! :) The past couple days have brought some big changes. There were a few incidents around here, that have cause our upper level chain of command to get all Nazified with some stupid rules. They probably wouldn't be so bad if it wern't for the fact that I stay back for a few days from going to the outpost with my platoon as a part of an agreement with my Plt Sgt since I'm doing the 'left seat right seat rides' I talked about in the last post. Well now this origionally seemed like a good idea to me. A few days back, all by myself, do whatever I want. (READ MORE)
Doc in the Box: Have I said thank you? - As usual, I’ve had a team of great people sending me care packages and they are being welcomed with open arms. Thank you, specially Soldiers Angels! Sorry with the slackness of my blogging, the other half of my team has a rather high tempo look on life and likes that in the work environment. Believe me, my time spent here has been more productive then most periods in my life and I’m known for working my butt off for a project. I’m a little worn out but it’s a good worn out. Hopefully the end product is as good as the work I’m putting into it. I’m actually doing something that takes advantage of my 4 trips out here at all levels with the typing of this SOP. With each page I type, I open up another can of worms and questions that I have to answer. (READ MORE)
M&M's Home Blog: The Greatest Question Ever - Part of my job involves creating funding packages for projects so that they can be approved and money can be released to support the project. This includes determining an estimated cost for the project, and in the case of something I'm currently working, I needed to call a vendor in the US to get estimates on some parts. I call the corporate headquarters, and the operator transferred me to the company's government representative. And then the phone call became interesting. I gave the woman my name and told her that I was serving with the US Army in Baghdad, Iraq and was looking for some estimates on parts. We spoke for about five minutes, and I gave her my email address so that a salesperson could contact me. She asked, "And where are you located again?" I told her again that I was in Iraq, and her next question blew me away. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Coalition forces disrupt al-Qaeda operations; two killed, 15 detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed two terrorists and detained 15 suspects Wednesday and today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda networks operating in northern and central Iraq. During an operation Wednesday afternoon in Mosul, Coalition forces killed two wanted terrorists involved in foreign terrorist facilitation and conducting attacks against Coalition and Iraqi forces. Coalition forces confirmed the location of the wanted individuals and directed a precision helicopter strike, killing two terrorists and destroying their vehicle. (READ MORE)
Escalation of force results in death of Iraqi - DIYALA, Iraq – An Iraqi citizen was killed during an escalation incident Feb. 27 in the al-Muqdadiyah area of Diyala. The Iraqi citizen was approaching Coalition forces on foot wearing a bulky jacket with his hands in his pockets. The CF patrol enacted security measures to prevent the civilian from approaching them. A search of the man was conducted, but no weapon was found. Coalition forces were not injured during the incident. (READ MORE)
MND-N Soldiers increase protection at Balad mosque - BAGHDAD – At the request of the Imam of the Balad Shrine Mosque, soldiers of 2nd platoon, 164th Military Police Company, 728th Military Police Battalion, 18th Military Police Brigade and Multi National Division – North visited the mosque Feb. 24 to increase force protection measures. The idea is to prevent future attacks on the mosque. The soldiers were the first Coalition forces to visit the mosque. (READ MORE)
MND-B Soldiers detain, question suspect in SOI murders - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division - Baghdad soldiers questioned a “person of interest” Feb. 25 after a Sons of Iraq leader and his son were found murdered in the Mechanix neighborhood of Rashid District Feb. 24. Following a report of the murders, soldiers of Company E, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, attached to 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, found the bodies of the local SOI leader and his son in the SOI headquarters building in Mechanix. The victims had their hands tied behind their backs and had multiple gunshot wounds. (READ MORE)
Iraqi security forces, U.S. Special Operations forces detain nine suspected terrorists in separate operations - BAGHDAD – Iraqi security forces, with U.S. Special Operations forces advising, detained nine suspected terrorists in separate operations Feb. 24 and Feb. 25. In Al Hawad, south of Mosul, soldiers from 2nd Iraqi Army Division detained five suspected members of a terrorist cell Feb. 24. The suspects are believed to be responsible for improvised explosive device attacks against Iraqi and Coalition forces. According to intelligence reports, they are also allegedly involved in a campaign to intimidate Iraqi citizens. (READ MORE)
Helicopter Air Assaults: Putting Ground Forces on Target - CAMP STRIKER — Rather than moving Soldiers on the ground through difficult terrain sometimes littered with improvised explosive devices (IED), many infantry units in the rural areas south of Baghdad opt to use helicopters to reach their targets. “Air assaults extend the abilities of the ground units,” said Capt. Joshua Karkalik, commander of Company B, 4th Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment. “A lot of times the purpose of an air assault is the element of surprise, or the target is not reachable by ground either because of the terrain or because of IEDs,” Karkalik said. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Give Backpacks to School Children - FOB KALSU — If you were to walk down the streets of Jurf as Sahkr during a school day, you would see a large number of children walking to and from school. One thing you would not see is many children carrying school bags. Seeing the need, Soldiers of Company A, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, recently distributed school bags to students in the area. First Sgt. Wayne Lawrence, from Carsville, Mo., first sergeant for Company A; Staff Sgt. Michael Navarro, from Clifton, N.J., a squad leader in 2nd Platoon, Co. A; and Spc. William Johnson, from Bellevue, Wash., a medic with 2nd Platoon, handed out school bags to children near the Tharir primary school in Snadeej. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Make Presence Known in Khanassa - FOB HAMMER — Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, visited the village of Kesra in southern Khanassa to meet with local leaders, Feb. 24. Soldiers and leaders, including the commander of the 1-15th Inf. Regt., Lt. Col. Jack Marr, from Minneapolis, visited the village to discuss how Coalition forces can support the area’s humanitarian and security needs. “We have only done air assault missions in the area in the past,” said Maj. John Cushing, from Rochester, Mich., the 1-15 Inf. Regt. operations officer. “No one has been there for the reasons we were today. They had not seen Coalition forces driving during the day since 2006.” (READ MORE)
MPs, Dogs Sniff out Explosives in Mosul, Deny Enemy of Supplies - MOSUL — U.S. military police in northern Iraq are developing new tactics in an attempt to counter insurgent violence in the Ninewah provincial capital city of Mosul. In February, the 552nd Military Police Company, based out of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, working with military canine handlers, began conducting a series of random traffic searches in downtown Mosul for vehicles transporting explosives. “If we get detection dogs and start actively seeking them out, it denies the enemy the capability of bringing them out,” said Sgt. 1st Class Michael Ford, platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon, speaking of the explosive materials often used by insurgents to create improvised bombs in houses and roadways. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Bagram military police donate smiles - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Coalition forces provide necessary public facilities, like schools and health clinics, to develop Afghanistan, but sometimes it isn’t the new building or improved medical care; it’s simply a smile, handshake or friendly greeting that makes a difference in people’s lives. Army Chaplain (Capt.) Joe Gotshall and several members of the 724th Military Police Battalion regularly visit the Egyptian Hospital here to meet with Afghan patients and share a few snippets of conversation and sometimes a stuffed animal, or coloring book and crayons. (READ MORE)
More than 300 receive medical, humanitarian assistance - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – More than 300 Afghans received medical treatment and humanitarian aid from the Afghan National Police and Coalition forces in the Arghandab District of Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 25. “I have been two days without food, and this aid that you brought us today is very helpful,” said Gul Mohammad, a local who received aid. This mission was in response to a visit in early February by the Afghan National Army. (READ MORE)
MPs pass weapons knowledge to Afghan counterparts - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – The basic fundamentals of using weapons is taught to every Soldier going through basic training until all functions from safety to proper operation become second nature. Military Policemen from the 508th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, dedicated two weeks teaching this discipline to members of the Afghan National Police in Logar Province. “We don’t really have a whole lot of time to teach them more specific functions, but we do try to instill at least the basic points of weapons marksmanship,” said Spc. Justin Goggans, a 508th STB military policeman. (READ MORE)
Weapons Turn-In at Shinwar Jirga, Nangahar Province - In early February, over 100 weapons were turned in to the Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups (DIAG) representatives in Shinwar District, Nangahar Province during a Jirga. The Jirga (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jirga) was centered around the DIAG program. The tribal elders of the area had collected weapons and turned them into the DIAG through the Afghan National Police and the sub-governor of the district. The DIAG regional advisor, Nazmas Jugbery was there as well. (READ MORE)
In their own words:
LT Nixon: Iraq News 28 Feb - The Good: Millions are in Karbala for the Arba'een pilgrimage. For those that think life was great under Saddam's "secular" tyranny of genocide should heed this quote from the AFP: "Under Saddam, those who went to Karbala were killed or had their legs shot so they could not walk again." It should be noted that sectarian strife was not a Cheney conspiracy to gain greater control of oil fields as some on the far-left have mentioned. There is talk about the Sadr trend turning the Mahdi Army into some kind of cultural/humanitarian organization. While Mr. Sadr's people aren't going to be waving American flags anytime soon, this is a welcome change of behavior from the violence preceding the ceasefire in August '07. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Warming up, dressing down - The thaw is here, finally! After one of the worst winters in modern memory, Ghazni and the rest of Afghanistan are ridding themselves of the snow with the help of Mother Nature and some beautiful days. Days are getting up into the 40s and nights are staying at or above the teens. This is my new definition of "warming up." It's amazing how that has changed compared to what I once considered "warm" in Alabama. And, yes, as you can see I have returned to walking to the shower wearing only my underwear, which means I am no longer having to get dressed just to take a shower. You can blame my wife for this picture, it was her idea. (While I'm thankful my wife still has an interest in seeing me nearly naked, I am genuinely sorry to inflict this image on the rest of you.) (READ MORE)
Jason's Iraq Vacation: So close, yet so far - Seriously. I feel like I am in quicksand and just cant get out of this trap. Leap year - just my luck. That extra day is like an entire other month has been tacked onto the deployment. Who invented leap year, anyway? What is its purpose? In any event, I cant complain. Some of my IRR brethren have been royally screwed by the plethora of bad leaders here. Me? I am still on schedule. If a schedule really exists. (READ MORE)
That Krazy Korean: Failure - To say that I’m pissed would be a gross exaggeration, although I’m not really sure how to express my frustration without sounding like I’m whining. Let’s instead say that my leadership is failing me and the rest of us in their decision making and they lack the professionalism to try and fix the situation in a logical and just manner. To publicly go into specific details would be in violation of military regulations, so I’ll try to be vague as possible. The old adage that goes, “Screw up, move up” applies in this situation. Show that you are incompetent and the leadership will just push you off to an easier task so that you don’t screw anything up. They’ll turn a blind eye to your abuse of privileges and they’ll even reward you with an above average evaluation, an award that you don’t deserve and they will send you home early from a combat zone to boot. That should teach you a lesson! (READ MORE)
Eighty Deuce on the Loose in Iraq: I'm going CRAZZZZZYY!!! - Ok so this is just going to be a quick update post since I am getting ready to head out and probably will be away from the computers for a little bit. But know that the next time I am able to get on and post, that I will most likely be on my journey out of this country already! :) The past couple days have brought some big changes. There were a few incidents around here, that have cause our upper level chain of command to get all Nazified with some stupid rules. They probably wouldn't be so bad if it wern't for the fact that I stay back for a few days from going to the outpost with my platoon as a part of an agreement with my Plt Sgt since I'm doing the 'left seat right seat rides' I talked about in the last post. Well now this origionally seemed like a good idea to me. A few days back, all by myself, do whatever I want. (READ MORE)
Doc in the Box: Have I said thank you? - As usual, I’ve had a team of great people sending me care packages and they are being welcomed with open arms. Thank you, specially Soldiers Angels! Sorry with the slackness of my blogging, the other half of my team has a rather high tempo look on life and likes that in the work environment. Believe me, my time spent here has been more productive then most periods in my life and I’m known for working my butt off for a project. I’m a little worn out but it’s a good worn out. Hopefully the end product is as good as the work I’m putting into it. I’m actually doing something that takes advantage of my 4 trips out here at all levels with the typing of this SOP. With each page I type, I open up another can of worms and questions that I have to answer. (READ MORE)
M&M's Home Blog: The Greatest Question Ever - Part of my job involves creating funding packages for projects so that they can be approved and money can be released to support the project. This includes determining an estimated cost for the project, and in the case of something I'm currently working, I needed to call a vendor in the US to get estimates on some parts. I call the corporate headquarters, and the operator transferred me to the company's government representative. And then the phone call became interesting. I gave the woman my name and told her that I was serving with the US Army in Baghdad, Iraq and was looking for some estimates on parts. We spoke for about five minutes, and I gave her my email address so that a salesperson could contact me. She asked, "And where are you located again?" I told her again that I was in Iraq, and her next question blew me away. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Coalition forces disrupt al-Qaeda operations; two killed, 15 detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed two terrorists and detained 15 suspects Wednesday and today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda networks operating in northern and central Iraq. During an operation Wednesday afternoon in Mosul, Coalition forces killed two wanted terrorists involved in foreign terrorist facilitation and conducting attacks against Coalition and Iraqi forces. Coalition forces confirmed the location of the wanted individuals and directed a precision helicopter strike, killing two terrorists and destroying their vehicle. (READ MORE)
Escalation of force results in death of Iraqi - DIYALA, Iraq – An Iraqi citizen was killed during an escalation incident Feb. 27 in the al-Muqdadiyah area of Diyala. The Iraqi citizen was approaching Coalition forces on foot wearing a bulky jacket with his hands in his pockets. The CF patrol enacted security measures to prevent the civilian from approaching them. A search of the man was conducted, but no weapon was found. Coalition forces were not injured during the incident. (READ MORE)
MND-N Soldiers increase protection at Balad mosque - BAGHDAD – At the request of the Imam of the Balad Shrine Mosque, soldiers of 2nd platoon, 164th Military Police Company, 728th Military Police Battalion, 18th Military Police Brigade and Multi National Division – North visited the mosque Feb. 24 to increase force protection measures. The idea is to prevent future attacks on the mosque. The soldiers were the first Coalition forces to visit the mosque. (READ MORE)
MND-B Soldiers detain, question suspect in SOI murders - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division - Baghdad soldiers questioned a “person of interest” Feb. 25 after a Sons of Iraq leader and his son were found murdered in the Mechanix neighborhood of Rashid District Feb. 24. Following a report of the murders, soldiers of Company E, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, attached to 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, found the bodies of the local SOI leader and his son in the SOI headquarters building in Mechanix. The victims had their hands tied behind their backs and had multiple gunshot wounds. (READ MORE)
Iraqi security forces, U.S. Special Operations forces detain nine suspected terrorists in separate operations - BAGHDAD – Iraqi security forces, with U.S. Special Operations forces advising, detained nine suspected terrorists in separate operations Feb. 24 and Feb. 25. In Al Hawad, south of Mosul, soldiers from 2nd Iraqi Army Division detained five suspected members of a terrorist cell Feb. 24. The suspects are believed to be responsible for improvised explosive device attacks against Iraqi and Coalition forces. According to intelligence reports, they are also allegedly involved in a campaign to intimidate Iraqi citizens. (READ MORE)
Helicopter Air Assaults: Putting Ground Forces on Target - CAMP STRIKER — Rather than moving Soldiers on the ground through difficult terrain sometimes littered with improvised explosive devices (IED), many infantry units in the rural areas south of Baghdad opt to use helicopters to reach their targets. “Air assaults extend the abilities of the ground units,” said Capt. Joshua Karkalik, commander of Company B, 4th Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment. “A lot of times the purpose of an air assault is the element of surprise, or the target is not reachable by ground either because of the terrain or because of IEDs,” Karkalik said. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Give Backpacks to School Children - FOB KALSU — If you were to walk down the streets of Jurf as Sahkr during a school day, you would see a large number of children walking to and from school. One thing you would not see is many children carrying school bags. Seeing the need, Soldiers of Company A, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, recently distributed school bags to students in the area. First Sgt. Wayne Lawrence, from Carsville, Mo., first sergeant for Company A; Staff Sgt. Michael Navarro, from Clifton, N.J., a squad leader in 2nd Platoon, Co. A; and Spc. William Johnson, from Bellevue, Wash., a medic with 2nd Platoon, handed out school bags to children near the Tharir primary school in Snadeej. (READ MORE)
Soldiers Make Presence Known in Khanassa - FOB HAMMER — Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, visited the village of Kesra in southern Khanassa to meet with local leaders, Feb. 24. Soldiers and leaders, including the commander of the 1-15th Inf. Regt., Lt. Col. Jack Marr, from Minneapolis, visited the village to discuss how Coalition forces can support the area’s humanitarian and security needs. “We have only done air assault missions in the area in the past,” said Maj. John Cushing, from Rochester, Mich., the 1-15 Inf. Regt. operations officer. “No one has been there for the reasons we were today. They had not seen Coalition forces driving during the day since 2006.” (READ MORE)
MPs, Dogs Sniff out Explosives in Mosul, Deny Enemy of Supplies - MOSUL — U.S. military police in northern Iraq are developing new tactics in an attempt to counter insurgent violence in the Ninewah provincial capital city of Mosul. In February, the 552nd Military Police Company, based out of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, working with military canine handlers, began conducting a series of random traffic searches in downtown Mosul for vehicles transporting explosives. “If we get detection dogs and start actively seeking them out, it denies the enemy the capability of bringing them out,” said Sgt. 1st Class Michael Ford, platoon sergeant for 1st Platoon, speaking of the explosive materials often used by insurgents to create improvised bombs in houses and roadways. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Bagram military police donate smiles - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Coalition forces provide necessary public facilities, like schools and health clinics, to develop Afghanistan, but sometimes it isn’t the new building or improved medical care; it’s simply a smile, handshake or friendly greeting that makes a difference in people’s lives. Army Chaplain (Capt.) Joe Gotshall and several members of the 724th Military Police Battalion regularly visit the Egyptian Hospital here to meet with Afghan patients and share a few snippets of conversation and sometimes a stuffed animal, or coloring book and crayons. (READ MORE)
More than 300 receive medical, humanitarian assistance - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – More than 300 Afghans received medical treatment and humanitarian aid from the Afghan National Police and Coalition forces in the Arghandab District of Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 25. “I have been two days without food, and this aid that you brought us today is very helpful,” said Gul Mohammad, a local who received aid. This mission was in response to a visit in early February by the Afghan National Army. (READ MORE)
MPs pass weapons knowledge to Afghan counterparts - FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHANK, Afghanistan – The basic fundamentals of using weapons is taught to every Soldier going through basic training until all functions from safety to proper operation become second nature. Military Policemen from the 508th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, dedicated two weeks teaching this discipline to members of the Afghan National Police in Logar Province. “We don’t really have a whole lot of time to teach them more specific functions, but we do try to instill at least the basic points of weapons marksmanship,” said Spc. Justin Goggans, a 508th STB military policeman. (READ MORE)
Weapons Turn-In at Shinwar Jirga, Nangahar Province - In early February, over 100 weapons were turned in to the Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups (DIAG) representatives in Shinwar District, Nangahar Province during a Jirga. The Jirga (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jirga) was centered around the DIAG program. The tribal elders of the area had collected weapons and turned them into the DIAG through the Afghan National Police and the sub-governor of the district. The DIAG regional advisor, Nazmas Jugbery was there as well. (READ MORE)
Spc. Orlando A. Perez,
DoD Identifies Army Casualty - The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. Orlando A. Perez, 23, of Houston, died Feb. 24 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered from small arms fire during dismounted operations. He was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany.
Rest in peace trooper!
"Toujours Prêt"
February 27, 2008
From the Front: 02/27/2008
News and Personal dispatches from the front lines.
In their own words:
Hello Iraq: “Message to Congress: Build the Fence” - While our troops defend our freedom and Democracy abroad and the same for others, it is our duty to do the same here at home. Part of that effort is the security and the protection of our nation. Congress has repeatedly let us down both at home and abroad in both our efforts and those of our troops. There is a lot going on right now that we all need to do to force Congress to pass legislation to protect our borders and support the efforts of our troops abroad. Here is one such effort regarding the “border protection” that is crucial here at home. Don’t let our troops down by dropping the ball here at home! (READ MORE)
IraqPundit: The Surge as Failure - A trio of Democrats make a stab today at saving their party's disastrous stand on the surge. The authors, John Podesta, Ray Takeyh, and Lawrence J. Korb, have long been critics of the surge; these thinkers have suggested in the past that Gen. Petraeus was not to be trusted in any claims of progress in Iraq. Today, they resume their increasingly discordant chorus on WaPo’s op-ed page. “[T]here is unease among the [Democratic] party's base,” they note. “Some ardent activists have suggested that upon election, a new Democratic president will come under inordinate pressure to sustain the U.S. military commitment to Iraq, albeit with some modifications.” (READ MORE)
all expenses paid afghan vacation: just when things start getting good, time to leave - We’re getting into the stages of last time doing this, last time doing that and so on now. I can’t believe it’s almost all over. Some of the days seem painfully slow but looking at large blocks of time, it has gone by quickly. It seems like just at the end is when things start getting good around here. The gym has been completely renovated, a new aviation unit is in country now with a lot more assets than the last one meaning…we have air support and escorts flying overhead on a lot of missions now, the weather has warmed up to being perfect recently, and just the other week one of our trucks was able to return fire on a baddie position (very small small incident with just a few shots). (READ MORE)
Tony Perry: IRAQ: The un-Charmed life - One of the more idiosyncratic aspects of the lives of young Marines is the superstition about the dangers of finding a package of Charms, the small square candies, in a Meals-Ready-to-Eat package. Skittles or M&M's are fine, but Charms represent imminent mayhem. Supposedly some Marine who got Charms in an MRE was soon killed or court-martialed or found out his girl was cheating on him. If a Marine finds Charms, he is not to touch the pack with his hands. Instead he must wear gloves while disposing of it. I've seen this with numerous companies over several years, starting with the assault on Baghdad in 2003. (READ MORE)
Tina Susman: IRAQ: Dog duty - It wasn't your typical military mission. For starters, the soldiers leading the patrol had four legs each, one of which was frequently lifted. They were Army Staff Sgt. Iron and Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Pluto, two of about 200 dogs deployed in Iraq to sniff for bombs, chase down insurgents, hunt for human remains or just offer comfort to soldiers in need. For the first time, therapy dogs have been sent to a combat zone, and two are in northern Iraq working with stressed-out troops. Iron and Pluto are not the warm and fuzzy type, though. Fearsome-looking creatures who weigh more than 80 pounds each, they go up front on foot patrols to search for weapons and explosives in insurgent-filled areas not previously scoured by U.S. troops. (READ MORE)
Badger 6: Vested Interest - Sarah over at Trying to Grok has an insightful post sparked by this article from Slate. "The soldiers on the ground are working with the nuances and getting physically and emotionally invested in the outcome. Really, really invested. And they don't want to fail. But most of all they don't want to be sent home before they have a chance to succeed." Sarah is right on there. She talks about it in the context of what her husband has done and will do in the future. I suppose there are many people that can go and do a job until they are told to quit, merely shrug their shoulders, and move on to the next assignment. (READ MORE)
Desert Dude: 27 February - Today started around 0600…got up and cleaned myself up for the trip to J-Bad…I was a gunner on a hummer, rockin the MK-19…it’s a pain in the ass gun to mount and load and clear and all that, but just one time of firing that bad boy makes it all worth it—unfortunately we never get the chance to use it—or you could make the argument that it a fortunate thing, since it means we don’t get attacked…either way, I would just love to fire that thing off and blow some shit up with it…so, as usual, I had to wake up the armory room guy to get in and sign out my weapon…loaded up the truck and stage it in the convoy pre-departure area… (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Latest Law Dogs - There are six more law dogs roaming around Camp Vulcan. Slinky has had puppies . . . again. They were born while the snow was still covering everything and the nights were still very cold. But all are doing well and eating everything we can put down in front of them. For the longest time, they stayed beneath our deck and couldn't be coaxed out. But as the snow has melted and the days have been sunny and nice, they've ventured out more and more to explore their surroundings. (READ MORE)
Major John: A visit from the General - When we first arrived at Phoenix Academy [the location where Military Transition Teams receive their final training] we had a couple of distinguished visitors drop by. First, LTG Austin, the commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, came by and gave us his take on the fight, as well as his priorities for the year. Then we had GEN Petraeus stop in and go straight to Q&A.I was the first person he pointed to and solicited a question from…I didn’t hold back either. I point blank asked him if the Iraqi logistics system was broken. (READ MORE)
News from the Front:
Iraq:
Coalition forces disrupt Special Groups criminal network, detain one suspect - BAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces detained a suspected Special Groups member during operations to disrupt criminal element networks early Wednesday in Baghdad. Coalition forces were targeting Iranian-backed Special Groups criminal networks involved in attacks on Iraqi and Coalition forces. (READ MORE)
Coalition targets al-Qaeda in Iraq networks; one killed, nine detained - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed one terrorist and detained nine suspects today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda operating in central and northern Iraq. North of Tarmiyah, Coalition forces detained two suspected terrorists including an alleged al-Qaeda in Iraq leader involved in the facilitation of finances for the northern belt network. The network is responsible for the majority of car-bombing and improvised explosive device attacks in the area and is involved in extortion, intimidation, weapons trafficking and the facilitation of foreign terrorists. (READ MORE)
Suicide bomber kills 9 at Iraqi Army checkpoint - TAL AFAR, Iraq – An al Qaeda in Iraq suicide bomber killed nine civilians and wounded three after exiting a bus at an Iraqi Army checkpoint. The IA stopped the bus to check passenger identification cards. The IA reported the AQI member boarded the bus in Rabiyah. (READ MORE)
Weapons cache destroyed in Arab Jabour - BAGHDAD – MND-C Soldiers found and destroyed a large weapons cache Feb. 22 in southern Arab Jabour. Soldiers from Company C, 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, located the cache while conducting operations along a route in Arab Jabour. The cache consisted of 166 57 mm mortars, six of which were attached to command wire, 18 liters of homemade explosives and one DSHKA heavy machine gun. (READ MORE)
Citizens’ Tips Lead Iraqi, U.S. Soldiers to 11 Weapon Caches - CAMP STRIKER — Local citizens gave information to Iraqi Army (IA) and U.S. Soldiers that removed hazardous materials off the streets near Janabi Village and Qarghuli, Feb. 22. The Iron Rakkasans of Company C, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), uncovered numerous weapon caches with their IA counterparts in the past week. “The capture of 11 caches this week is the strongest indicator that the Iraqi Army is mastering the principles of counterinsurgency,” said Capt. Michael Starz, commander of Co. C, 3-187th Inf. Regt. (READ MORE)
U.S. Army Doctors Begin Lifesaving Procedures on 8-Month-Old Iraqi Baby - FOB DELTA — U.S. military doctors recently began the process of treating a potentially life-threatening condition for Noor, an 8-month-old Iraqi baby girl. Doctors from the 948th Forward Surgical Team (FST), from Shelbyville, Ind., performed the first of three procedures to reverse Noor’s prolapsed rectum. The procedure involved manually reducing the swelling in the rectum and manipulating it back inside the body. Once the rectum returned to its normal location, the area around the rectum was injected with a highly-concentrated dextrose solution. (READ MORE)
Afghanistan:
Troops provide ton of aid to Kandahar - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Afghan national security forces, assisted by Coalition forces, provided medical treatment to 210 patients and provided more than one ton of humanitarian aid for 400 Afghans in Hajyano-Qala in the Arghandab District of Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Feb. 19. Kuchi elders attended a community development council recently and requested medical and humanitarian aid from the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan representatives. (READ MORE)
Troops deliver items to Farah Province Women’s Center - FARAH PROVINCE, Afghanistan — Afghan National Army Soldiers, assisted by Coalition forces, distributed food, tea and clothes to more than 350 women and children visiting the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s Women’s Affairs Department Office in downtown Farah Jan. 26. ANA Soldiers distributed more than 1,000 pounds of flour, rice and tea. They also distributed clothes, shoes and blankets to the women and children registered with the department. The donations will help ease the effects of the harsh winter months. (READ MORE)
66th MPs train Afghan police in Nangarhar - NANGARHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Soldiers from 66th Military Police Company, based out of Ft. Lewis, Wash., spent 21 days conducting a round-robin training cycle to help their fellow policemen in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan. Afghan National Police in Shinwar District here were taught hasty and full-vehicle searches Feb. 12. The class was part of larger training cycle that started Jan. 19 to help refresh and reiterate basic police skills. (READ MORE)
Insurgent rocket kills 5 Afghans in Helmand - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – An insurgent rocket landed near a group of civilians in Helmand Province killing five and wounding one Feb. 25. Afghan National Army and Coalition forces witnessed the errant 107 mm rocket and immediately responded to the site in Karez de Baba and treated the wounded, who suffered sharapnel wounds to their lower extremeties. The injured Afghan was medically evacuated to a nearby treatment facility. (READ MORE)
ANA commandos arrest suspected insurgents in Khowst - KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Afghan National Army commandos from the 203rd Kandak, assisted by Coalition forces, arrested 17 suspected insurgents near Tirzaye and Sabari Districts, Khowst Province, Feb. 24. Intelligence, provided by Afghan citizens, led the combined force to several compounds suspected of housing the militants. The detainees are suspected of being members of the Taliban, operating as facilitators in the emplacement and detonation of improvised explosive devices in Khowst. (READ MORE)
New bridge increases commerce, improves quality of life - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Until recently, a large obstacle stood in the way of the people in the villages of Tupak and Nalyar in, Nurgaram District, Nuristan Province. That obstacle was removed when the Nuristan Provincial Reconstruction Team funded an 82-foot-long, $100,000 bridge across the Alingar River Feb. 18.Local residents once travelled into another province before doubling back on the opposite side of the river. This round-about trip involved an unnecessary two-hour car ride. (READ MORE)
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