Dawn Patrol

Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs, other blogs, and the mainstream media. If you're a blogger, you can join the conversation. If you link to any of these stories, add a link to the Dawn Patrol too and your trackback will be added to the list. (We have a daily "Open Post" too, if you have something on another topic you can link there.)

I'm Back! I'll do a post later on my travels but wanted to pass on to Holly Aho a big THANK YOU for doing an excellent job on the Dawn Patrol.

IRAQ

The 6th Division Assumes Authority -- [My Days at Division - in Iraq]
Yesterday the Iraqi Army Sixth Division assumed authority over two of its subordinate brigades (You should know all about brigades and divisions from yesterday's entry). This is significant because it shows the progress the Iraqi Army is making to improve their ability to secure their country.

Americans And Iraqis Fight Through "Dark Day" -- [Blackfive]
Remember this picture of an Iraqi medic consoling an American Soldier after losing many Iraqi soldiers to an IED - Fighting And Dying Together?

Happiness is... [Salemonz News Service - just landed in Iraq]

...sitting in the belly of a C-130 with 54 other soldiers, side by side, idling at the end of a runway in Kuwait at three in the afternoon.
...The ramp opened and I noticed that it was dark -- well, I noticed after a construction vehicle had pulled up to the aircraft and unloaded the pallet, giving us our first glance at Iraq.

The New Guys -- [Faces from the Front - JD's Blog - in Iraq]
Their Platoons go by 'Renegade' 'Thunder' and 'Striker', but they are made up the same mettle as Silver and Gold.

Our time in Iraq is drawing to a close and soon we will be back in the states.

Mail Stinks When there is none for you!!! / Elections / Military Discounts (?) -- [NEW MILBLOGGER - [Hayden's Public Journal of Camp Fallujah, in Iraq ]
Everyday Is the same but now we are doign mail so the past couple weeks we been helping the Camp Fallujah Post Office with the mail for the entire base and today was mail call. So we went up there around 0645 to sort out 2 ISSO (Size of cargo containers they use on trains) packed top to bottum front to back. It's a 30mans job and no one showed up but

Too close -- [Six More Months - in Iraq]
I mentioned in an earlier post that I usually get the jitters before I go out on a patrol. A few days ago, I didn?t and should have. It was an ill conceived mission to begin with, we were supposed to drive into downtown Baghdad, locate 4 civilian trucks, driven by Iraqis, which had been having trouble getting to our camp. They claimed they were getting turned around at a checkpoint, but it was unclear whether it was an Iraqi Army, Iraqi police, or US checkpoint. Based on the location they gave us, it was actually most likely

It?s been a good week -- [Blood and Sand - in Iraq]
We?ll it?s been an exciting first week of flight for me and a great start to the deployment. For those of you who don?t know what I do in the Army, I fly the Shadow TUAV. It?s a small unmanned airplane that we control from a station on the ground. There is a camera mounted on the underside of the airframe that we use to perform reconnaissance missions,...

Operation Hunter -- [Cool Blue Blog]
It appears a major push is underway with a well-planned series of operations coexisting under the umbrella of an Operation called Hunter. And it seems to me the plan is to clear and fix a position close to the Syrian border and block the smuggling routes first. Then sweep up from the south driving the bad guys into the anvil. Hunter is the Anvil. Iron Fist, River Gate, and Mountineer are the hammer.

Two Great Videos -- [Open Fire]
With the month of October comes two great videos. We are constantly highlighting our courageous men and woman who are combating Islamic extremists in the ongoing war against militant Islam. This appreciation often comes in the form of raw footage from Iraq and/or Afghanistan. This month is no different. We have two great videos.

Fobbits and Their Bras -- [MREeater in Iraq]
Some of the soldiers on our FOB (Forward Operating Base) rarely or never leave it. These soldiers are called Fobbits. Fobbits use the term freely, perhaps a bit sheepishly, because there is a certain amount of machismo in going outside the wire. Soldiers who do go out regularly also use the term Fobbit, but a bit more pejoratively.

Of course, whether you leave the FOB or not is usually not a matter a choice.

Dispatches from Iraq 8 -- [Dave's World - dispatch from Iraq]

The second part of a two-part post by Matt. Click here to read part 1.

There are official Army terms we use -- like cordon and search and traffic control point -- and then there are several unofficial terms.

One of these unofficial terms that we have been using frequently was one that we can't use in polite company. So, for now, we'll call it a cluster, which...

The last leg of this deployment -- [True Blue Lines - Blue star wife]
A woman I work with has a son in my husband's unit. He is barely 21 and is her only son. She has been a basket case since they left for Iraq. I know the emotions of being a parent and being a spouse of a soldier are completely different. I am not sure one is worse or harder than the other.... just very different. Your fears are processed and channeled according to varying sets of emotions.

MSM REPORTS ON IRAQ

Corrections -- (New York Times)...The New York Times
A front-page article yesterday about new election rules in Iraq that seem intended to ensure voter approval of the constitution in the Oct. 15 referendum misstated the size of the majority needed in the National Assembly to amend the transitional law.

Iraqi Charter Gains Wide Backing -- (Washington Times)...Andrew Quinn, Reuters News Agency
Recent polling shows widespread support for a new Iraqi constitution to be voted on Oct. 15, even in strongholds of Sunni Arab groups that are fighting to derail the charter.

U.S. Troops Begin New Offensive In W. Iraq -- (Washington Post)...Associated Press
U.S. troops pushed through streets sown with bombs Tuesday in their biggest operation this year in western Iraq. The Americans are seeking to retake three Euphrates River towns from al Qaeda insurgents, and at least five U.S. service members have been killed in recent fighting in the area.

GIs still driving poorly armored vehicles in Iraq -- (The Salt Lake Tribune)...Matthew D. LaPlante
TAQADDUM, Iraq - Two years into a war against insurgent fighters who use roadside bombs as a favored tactic, U.S. Army soldiers still are being ordered to roll off forward operating bases with inferior truck armor.
The Utah-based 146th Transportation Company has logged more than 200,000 miles on M915 tractors armored with what soldiers unkindly refer to as "hillbilly armor" - a half-inch of scrap steel hastily cut in the shape of the door and welded or riveted on.

Army To Return Saddam Palace Complex To Iraq -- (USA Today)...Steven Komarow
The U.S. Army is returning Saddam Hussein's most elaborate presidential complex, a sprawling network of 136 buildings overlooking the Tigris River here, to Iraq's government.

US Strives To Resurrect Iraq's Broken Air Force -- (Flight International)...Stephen Trimble
Standing up a rebuilt Iraqi air force with the capability to fight insurgents and support ground forces in action has emerged as a new focus for US Air Force planners, says a US operational commander.

Marine Mourns 11 Friends Killed in Bombing -- (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)...Antonio Castaneda, Associated Press
...Now, all of the Marines assigned to the 1st Squad, 3rd Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines, based in Columbus, Ohio, are gone -- except Williams.

AFGHANISTAN

Warning to forieng people -- [Afghan Lord - an Afghani in Afghanistan]
Today unconfirmed reports from a reliable source that the group affiliated with the abduction of Clementina Cantoni are planning to kidnap International people in Afghanistan to ensure the immediate release of Ms. Cantoni kidnappers (most prominent: Timor Shah) who were recently re-arrested by the Afghan law enforcement authorities in Kabul city.

mines, rain, experience, why, saluting
mines
like i said before this area is one of, if not the most heavily mined areas in the world? and that fact was proven yet again today? one of the contractors lost one of his legs and part of another today (sunday)?

War is Heck (Part 2)-- [NEW MILBLOGGER! Soldierfoto - The Blog - in Afghanistan]
When I first got off the plane in Afghanistan, the first thing I was reminded of was the army bases you see in some of the Vietnam movies or in Black Hawk Down. Planes and helicopters were flying overhead, everyone was carrying loaded weapons, and everything just seemed to have an air of unreality about it. ?How the hell did I end up here?? I kept thinking to myself. Even though I?d been in the army both full time and as a reservist for about 13 years it just didn?t sink in.

?I?m in a freaking war zone! What the hell is going on?!"

MSM REPORTS ON AFGHANISTAN

Vote Count Complete in Afghan Election -- (Daily Democrat)...(AP)MATTHEW PENNINGTON
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Election authorities investigated reports of vote fraud and audited results Wednesday after ballot-counting ended in Afghanistan's landmark parliamentary poll, officials said.

Pakistan Arrests Chief Spokesman For Taliban -- (New York Times)...Carlotta Gall
Pakistan said Tuesday that it had arrested the chief spokesman of the Taliban, Abdul Latif Hakimi, in a rare move against a Taliban leader living in Pakistan.

Warlords Faring Well In Elections -- Miami Herald)...Matthew Pennington, Associated Press
Powerful warlords, a former Taliban commander and women's activists were among the front-runners as vote counting drew to a close Tuesday in Afghanistan's first parliamentary elections in more than 30 years.

The Afghanistan Miracle -- (Seattle Times)...Diane Tebelius
Having just returned from Kabul, where I served as an election observer from the United States to Afghanistan's parliamentary elections, I am convinced, now more than ever, that spreading democracy is the only long-term strategy to defeat global terrorism.

Former Taliban Fighters Brave A New Battlefield -- (Los Angeles Times)...Paul Watson
Mullah Abdul Salam used to fire a grenade launcher with such lethal skill that his guerrilla comrades renamed him Rocketi, or the Rocketman. Today, after giving up guns for politics, the former Taliban commander is leading his province's race for a seat in parliament, where he hopes his debating skills will prove as sharp as his aim.

Magazine Stories Called Un-Islamic; Editor Jailed -- (Los Angeles Times)...Times Wire Reports
The editor of an Afghan women's rights magazine was jailed after a presidential advisor accused him of publishing un-Islamic material, including an article critical of punishing adultery with 100 lashes, officials said.

OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Google's "One China" policy -- [Riding Sun]
I've blogged before about Western companies' shameless attempts to ingratiate themselves with China's vicious, repressive, amoral, puppy-beating regime. Now, via Dartblog, comes another example: Google's Google Maps service lists Taiwan as a "Province of China". Here's a screen shot:...

MSM REPORTS ON OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Disrepair Cited In U.S. Arms -- (Washington Post)...Ann Scott Tyson
Critical U.S. military war stocks in South Korea -- including M1A1 tanks, howitzers and Bradley Fighting Vehicles -- fell into such significant disrepair in the past year that it could have slowed a U.S. ground response to North Korean hostilities or another Pacific conflict, unreleased classified and unclassified U.S. government reports show.

Army Takes Control Of Iran Nukes -- (Washington Times)...David R. Sands
Iran's new president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has placed the military firmly in control of his nation's nuclear program, undercutting his government's claim that the program is intended for civilian use, according to a leading opposition group.

Kim Expected To Name Successor -- (Mercury News)...AP
SEOUL, South Korea - North Korean leader Kim Jong Il could soon name his successor to head the hard-line communist nation, a Russian news agency reported Tuesday.

KATRINA

Few Patients Seek Comfort -- (Baltimore Sun)...Douglas Birch
When the crew of the USNS Comfort pulled out of Baltimore harbor a month ago to help the Hurricane Katrina relief effort, the highly trained doctors and nurses aboard the Navy hospital ship never imagined they'd have to hunt for patients. Yet it has been a month of relative inaction for the 1,000-bed ship, at a cost of about $700,000 a day to taxpayers.

TERRORISM

Islamist Parties and Terrorism: Hidayat Nur Wahid?s Inanity and Why He Deserves a Second Look -- [Counterterrorism Blog]
In April 2004, Indonesia held parliamentary elections, deemed as the freest and fairest in the country?s history. The surprise in that election was how well the Islamist parties did. In the 1999 elections held in the immediate aftermath of the fall of the strongman Soeharto, Islamist parties only carried 14 percent of the popular vote and 16 percent of the seats, and most analysts assumed that they would fair no better in 2004.

MSM REPORTS ON TERRORISM

Report Due In Able Danger Probe -- (Washington Times)...Rowan Scarborough
The Senate Intelligence Committee has taken closed-door statements in an inquiry that could clear up whether the intelligence program Able Danger identified September 11 hijacker Mohamed Atta a year before the attack.

SUPPORTING THE TROOPS...OR NOT

Cookie Grandma -- [Pepple Pie - Blue Star Mom]
Since Feb. 5, Merry Debbrecht, nicknamed the Rose Hill Cookie Lady, has baked more than 30,000 cookies for deployed troops all over the world. Mrs. Debbrecht?s baking project began after her grandson, Army Private 1st Class Andrew Webb, deployed overseas. ?As soon as I knew my grandson was going, I started baking,? she said. But supporting just her grandson wasn?t enough.

Militancy in Seattle -- [Andi's World]
It looks as if the peace-loving, anti-war crowd has struck again, this time in Washington state at the home of a Veteran who served three tours of duty in Vietnam.

From OpEdNews.Com -- [Athiest Soldier - in Iraq]
Saying ?Support Our Troops? and actually doing it are two entirely different things in Congress, it seems. Too few veterans in the right positions, I suppose. When we are no longer of use to them?well, you can see what happens. ?Support Our Troops?until we don?t need them anymore.?

RECOVERING

Been Better. --[From My Position... On the way!]
I tried to do something this week as a matter of strength, a matter of will. I failed, miserably. I went completely off my narcotics. No more Fentnyl patches, no more actiq, no more Dilaudid, nada. Cold Turkey.
It has been one of the worst experiences of my life, including getting my ass shot off.

POLITICS

New Chairman of the Joint Chiefs -- [The Gunn Nutt]
I was doing some research for a post about Marine General Peter Pace, who assumed the role of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Sept. 30th from General Myers. He gave a Guidance speech that has been quoted, but I've not found the entire text.

Secretary Rice at Princeton -- [Dadmanly - in Iraq]
...Secretary Rice gave a stirring speech, and revisited the great US Foreign Policy achievements of these last 75 years, and drew ready parallels between earlier perils and achievements, and today?s Global War on Terror (although Secretary Rice never used those words).

MSM REPORTS ON POLITICS

6 Iraq War Veterans Running For Congress -- (Boston Globe)...Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press
...Murphy and five other veterans of the war are asking questions about President Bush's policies in Iraq as part of their broader Democratic campaigns to win congressional seats in next year's elections.

THE MEDIA

Fox and O'Reilly: 82nd like Nazis -- [Daily Kos]
From Crooks and Liars. There was an exchange on Fox News last night between Bill O'Reilly and Wes Clark. The issue was the release of further Abu Ghraib pictures and video.

O'Reilly was incensed that it "puts our troops at risk". Clark responded that what's putting the troops at risk is the chain of command letting, or even making, this happen in the first place.

MSM REPORTS ON MILITARY

Military's Role in a Flu Pandemic -- (Washington Post)...David Brown
Troops Might Be Used to 'Effect a Quarantine,' Bush Says
President Bush said yesterday that he would consider using the military to "effect a quarantine" in the event of an outbreak of pandemic influenza in the United States.

MILBLOGGING/BLOGGING

Our friends the Saudis are blocking the blogs -- [TigerHawk]
Reporters without Borders reports that Saudi Arabia's national ISP is blocking the blogger.com domain:

Howdy and Hurl: EXPOSED AS LIARS! (Ha Ha) -- [Howdy's Blog - just home from Iraq]
I didn't realize that Hurl and I were fakes.

A guy who is "One of the Most Prolific Writer's in the World" (according to his web site) thinks we are a fake. I like the insinuation that we are "professional writers" or hacks writing from the States. Nope sorry, we would never consider such a thing.

On blogging -- [Phil and Becky - Phil's in Iraq]
In this war, the democratization of information dissemination has produced an unprecedented degree of information flow from the front lines to the home front. Military leaders know this and, understandably, some are quite apprehensive. Anxiety about the unknown is a common and forgivable component of human nature.

SORRY TO SAY THIS IS MY LAST JOURNAL ENTRY -- [Kevin Kelly - Dixie Sappers - in Iraq]
This morning CPT Cager woke me up early to tell me that he and I needed to go see the battalion commander. I got up there to find out that I had alarmed some people by writing about us getting the rocket fired at us. I guess some of the families didn't want to know about that and I apologize if I alarmed you. That is why I said it didn't get close to anyone. There were also some concerns about operations security and what insurgents could gather to use against us.
... No one told me I had to stop writing the journal, but I just can't take that chance of anything being taken out of context or cause someone to be killed or injured.

Return of The Fly -- [Pass the Brass]
With Vincent Price?.*help meeeeee help meeeeeee*
*Wheeeeww* What a long and treacherous journey that was!

First and foremost I would just like to put out a huge thank you to all of you great Americans out there who supported me, even when you did not even know me! I can?t even begin to tell you how much inspiration that gives me as a soldier, that we still have true blooded Americans who will bond together and support the rights we as a nation fight so hard to maintain! I love you all for that!

CONGRATS

Hurray -- [Salemonz News Service - just landed in Iraq]
Happy birthday me! 25 and still ticking.

ZEN AND THE ART OF MARITAL MAINTENANCE -- [AMERICAN CITIZEN SOLDIER - in Iraq]
My wife and I met one year ago today on a Friday night blind date. Blind, perhaps, but certainly not deaf, dumb or mute -- by Sunday we had already fallen in love. Exactly three months later I slipped an engagement ring on her finger; in seven more weeks she slid a wedding band onto mine.

WELCOME HOME

New Song Welcomes Home Our Soldiers -- [Broken Masterpieces]
Bill Stewart, a friend of mine at ShareTruth.com launched a project to express our deep appreciation for the military men and women who have served our country in Iraq and honor them as they return home from abroad. (Of course, we hold in the same esteem those who continue to serve overseas and those who have served our nation so faithfully in the past.)

A New Reader
Okay forgot to tell you all that while I was gone my hubby got back to the USA and is now currently at the Seabee Base in California awaiting completion of his Demob stuff. Hope to have him back here Thursday or Friday at the latest.

He's Here! -- [The Story of Us - husband just returned home]
After my threats of dont call me from the airport with a "come get me" call......thats exactly what I got, the shithead, lol. He said he got to DFW and immediatley went to see when his next flight left for home only to be told that the flight that was currently boarding was headed this way!! So with no time for a phone call, he hopped on board.
When he touched down here, he calls the house...as soon as I saw the area code I knew it was him.

Back in the USA -- [NEW MILBLOGGER! - [greenzone - just home from Iraq]
Got stateside into Dover, MD.
Nine of us grabbed a taxi/van to haul us to Philadelphia airport.
The ride was the most dangerous event in my life in the last 8 months!
Underinflated tires on the rear of the van, 27 full dufflebags, 9 soldiers.

HUMOR

For his birthday, ...[Argghhh!]
little Patrick asked for a bicycle . His dad said, "Son, we'd be happy to buy you one, but the mortgage on this house is $80,000 and your mother just lost her job. There's no way we can afford it."

The next day, his dad saw little Patrick heading out the front door with a suitcase. He stopped him and asked, "Son, where are you going?"

After Miers, Bush Promises Big Fight with Dems -- [Scrappleface]
President George Bush, in an effort to calm the Republican party's conservative base after his appointment of the relatively-unknown Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, today promised that...

(Need more? The previous Dawn Patrol is here.)