Dawn Patrol

Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and other sources around the world. 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.

IRAQ

The Value of Life -- [Jack Army - in Iraq]
One day last week, I spent the day watching a crane move huge concrete barriers around a building to better protect it for an Iraqi Army unit newly stationed there. My goodness, it was so freakin' hot.
...What struck me in the face like a shovel, though, wasn't the oppressive heat, rather it was a comment from a jundi (soldier) at that new IA outpost. This particular jundi is an informal leader in his unit. The officers often take suggestions from the Americans and with just a word or two to this jundi, he jumps up and makes things happen just as a good US Army NCO would do.
As the crane lowered another concrete block into place, this leader/jundi leaned towards my ear and said (through an interpreter), "You Americans have so much, life is important to you. That's why you build walls, wear your [IBA] vests and drive those trucks [pointing to my uparmored HMMWV]. We have nothing in Iraq so we don't care if we die."

Harry Reid: Patriot With No Stones -- [No end but Victory]
...Come on over here and tell me the war is lost, that the time has come to pack it in and let the Iraqis sort this mess out. Chastise me for sticking with a cause Harry says is hopeless, a mission he says never had any real chance of being “accomplished,” or the idea that the Arab world would prefer tyranny and oppression to freedom and liberty, and I’ll introduce you to a few Iraqis that would tell you otherwise.

My secret.. -- [Days of My Life - an iraqi in Iraq]
...Sometimes people live in great areas , have wonderful life, and have almost everything , but they are not satisfied ,in the same time people live in misery and still have hope , and do their best to have a good life, it’s all about decisions.
No matter what happen , I’ll do my best to live a normal life and won’t let the situation and the terrorists have a great effect on my life and education, The terrorists want us to be depressed and miserable , they want us to lose the hope which is a basic thing for the life to continue , if there is no hope , there is no life. I don’t want the terrorists to win and achieve their goal, I don’t think it is impossible to have a peaceful life “impossible is nothing” .
we don’t hear in the stories that the devil wins, right? We hear the virtuous always win , I believe it is the same thing in reality. It is a matter of time.

A Deadly War of the Devils... -- [neurotic Iraqi wife - an iraqi in Iraq]
...I am absolutely sickened by all this. They say they are patriots, they say they are nationalists, they say they are muslims and are fighting the enemy for the sake of Iraq. The only people they are infact ruining are the Iraqis themselves. I hope to god, with all the faith that I have left in me, for even that is dimming, that one day, one day pretty soon, these criminals will get what they deserve. Hell. Hell on earth and hell on judgement day.
Mr Moqtada, that great spiritual leader who everyone should look upto because he is a genius of his time, blamed the US forces for the bombing of the shrines. Umm yeah Moqtada, sure, I mean who can argue with you??? You ARE mr know it all after all!!! WHAT BS!!! The reason Iraq is not advancing, is because we have mutakhalifeen (illiterate) people that believe everything this guy says and follow him blindly. I refuse to even watch him on TV, his eyes creep me out. They are like the devils eyes that burn right through you. His followers, not long ago were Saddam loyalists (Fidaee Saddam), who would give up their lives to protect Saddam. And now, They would bomb their own people just to make this lunatic happy.
...The only solution to the mayhem we are in is to appoint someone who is fearless, ruthless yet fair, and has no allegiance, I mean no allegiance, to any party, group, sect or religeon. A man that rules with his fist to fight for the people, and in the name of the people. Not someone who sticks to his damn F****** chair because of prestige and promises words, words that mean nothing, nothing without any action.

Locals Help Iraqi Police Battle Al Sadr's Mahdi Army -- [Gateway Pundit]
The locals are getting tired of the violence in the region and the thuggery of the Al Sadr's lackeys.
The locals are getting fed up with Al Sadr's Mahdi Army and joined police in fighting the militia today in Nasiriya.
ADN Kronos reported:...

Be Not Afraid -- [Michael Yon - in Iraq]
Thoughts flow on the eve of a great battle. By the time these words are released, we will be in combat. Few ears have heard even rumors of this battle, and fewer still are the eyes that will see its full scope. Even now—the battle has already begun for some—practically no news about it is flowing home. I’ve known of the secret plans for about a month, but have remained silent.
This campaign is actually a series of carefully orchestrated battalion and brigade sized battles. Collectively, it is probably the largest battle since “major hostilities” ended more than four years ago. Even the media here on the ground do not seem to have sensed its scale.

Brigade helps Iraqis help themselves -- [MNF-I]
CAMP TAJI — Helping Iraqis to help themselves has been a common theme running through many of the reconstruction efforts currently being pursued by coalition forces as they work with the Iraqi government.
A new way ahead for reconstruction, being outlined by the 1st “Ironhorse” Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, follows this line of thinking about helping the Iraqi government to become self-reliant as it works to transition into a fully independent democracy.

Diyala's Turn -- [Captain's Quarters]
...At some point, the terrorists will have no more places to run, but that will take quite a long time. Petraeus wants to get them out of Baghdad in order to allow the central government to finally take steps towards national reconciliation. No one thinks that a military solution exists that will solve all of Iraq's problems, but the military needs to give enough space to allow the political solutions to take place and to root themselves firmly in the Iraqi culture.
At some point, chasing insurgents will become the exclusive province of the Iraqi Army. We will probably work on AQI ourselves for the next few years, but we want to hand everything else off to a strong, representative government in Baghdad in the very near future, if possible. By keeping the pressure on AQI and other terrorists in Baghdad, Anbar, and now Diyala, we're giving that solution the best possible chance to succeed.

What is the strategy in Iraq? -- [Dumb Looks Still Free]
...in Iraq, many individuals are using the old saw from Vietnam of 'wrong war, wrong place, wrong time'. If you enjoy that meme then *also* sign up for all of the consequences of defeat and take responsibility for that idea that the US should *lose* wars because of it. Really, those millions of dead and hundreds of thousands of refugees, the expansion of tyranny, and the hard pressing by the USSR of the US afterwards, plus the expansion of terrorism into its current, noxious form are ALL the fallouts of that meme. If you like this meme, then do sign up for taking actual, real responsibility for doing *nothing better* when confronting the enemies of the United States.

Alert: 10,000 Troops Storm Diyala -- [Pat Dollard]
The crime here is, this was all predicted on this website since mid-April, but not in the MSM. They gave us only body counts without context, instead of the narrative of the campaign that was leading to this final showdown with Al Qaeda in Diyala. See the links in the opening sentence of the post below to see how long I’ve been laying this out. Mid April. As exploding bridges and other horrific acts of violence ripped Baghdad and its environs, we knew that they were the violent, desperate acts of the cornered Al Qaeda beast. But the MSM and Congress wanted you to believe they were all signs of hopelesness instead of the darkly ironic signs of true hope that they really were. This is a dark, shameful age in America.

Task Force Lightning strikes al-Qaeda -- [MNF-I]
BAQOUBA, Iraq – Task Force Lightning commenced Operation Arrowhead Ripper today in a large-scale effort to eliminate al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists operating in Baqouba and its surrounding areas.
The 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, launched the offensive with a quick-strike nighttime air assault earlier today.
By daylight, attack helicopters and ground forces had engaged and killed 22 anti-Iraqi forces in and around Baqouba.
“The end state is to destroy the al-Qaeda influences in this province and eliminate their threat against the people,” said Brig. Gen. Mick Bednarek, deputy commanding general, operations, 25th Infantry Division. “That is the number one, bottom-line, up-front, in-your-face, task and purpose.”

The Battle of the Belts -- [The Fourth Rail]
With the last U.S. combat brigade to hit the ground over the last two weeks as part of the surge, Multinational Forces Iraq has declared the beginning of “major combat operations” in the belts regions surrounding Baghdad. The Baghdad Belts, which included Eastern Anbar, northern Babil, and southern Salahadin and Diyala provinces, has long been a staging area for al Qaeda and insurgent operations into Baghdad, and a key part of the Baghdad Security Plan is denying these regions to the enemy.

"Marne Torch" - What's in a Name? -- [The Tank - W. Thomas Smith Jr.]
The recent and continuing series of operations in Iraq — part of the overall surge-offensive aimed at rooting out elements of Al Qaeda in Iraq — have spawned a variety of operational codenames from "Chosin" and "Arrowhead Ripper" to "Marne Torch" to other sub-operational codenames — Some codenames with historical significance; others with no rhyme or reason.

US Army - Marne Torch Air Assault in Iraq

Matt Sanchez, From Iraq: Rinse and Repeat -- [Pajamas Media - dispatch from iraq]
As a media embed in the United States military, a big part of my job is to observe, but as I watched the members of the 96th Transportation Company out of San Antonio, Texas, work tirelessly in preparation for their mission, I got to thinking that something was missing. Something was definitely different between wartime Americans deployed overseas and peacetime Americans hunkered down in the United States. And then it struck me, like the game show contestant who beats his opponents to the buzzer, what was missing from the time I left the United States, only a week before, was the sense of despair, frustration and self-centered complaining.

A religion of peace? -- [My Desert Adventure - in Iraq]
I will go out on a politically incorrect wing here and ask the question “is Islam a religion of peace?”
I base that question on what I have seen—not what the talking heads on TV say. Some things that happen over here are simply unspeakable.
Today, one of those things happened. Ideology, religion, and politics aside; all children are innocent and precious. They should be protected at all costs and never, ever targeted. To do otherwise in not only unholy, but it is inhuman.

Anti Iraq Forces Face the 3rd Infantry Division

Case of the Mondays -- [Making the Leap - in Iraq]
Now imagine this. You arrive at the office to discover a trench dug right in front of the threshold. You go to your desk and find out that the network is down, meaning no email, no Internet, no remote drives. There's no way you can get any work done. The network isn't due to come up until the following day. However, you're one of the lucky ones -- some workstations don't even have power. But there is still electricity, which means that you still have lights. Your boss thinks this is the perfect opportunity to clean up. The end result of that is five garbage bags of shredded paper, and there's still more to do.

Iraq, The Guaranteed Solution -- [Strategy Page]
A major problem in Iraq is that there are two, quite different, solutions to the violence problem. Most of the bombings, and violence in general, are the work of Sunni Arab groups, desperate to get back into power, and avoid being brought to justice for atrocities committed during Saddams long reign. The Iraqi solution is the traditional one; punish the entire Sunni Arab community. Since the Kurds and Shia now have far more men under arms than do the Sunni Arabs, this approach would result in a series of battles against Sunni Arab neighborhoods (in large cities) and towns (out in the countryside). These areas would be cut off from the outside world. Food, water and electricity would cut off as well. Surrender or die.
...The other approach is less popular among most Iraqis, and it is the American one. This involves getting Sunni Arab leaders to tame the terrorists in their midst, and become law-abiding Iraqis.

Sheiks meet, discuss progress -- [MNF-I]
BAGHDAD – More than 60 sheiks from the Al-Rashid District held a meeting at the District Council Hall here Wednesday.
Sheik Faisel Karem Jabour Al-Saadi, the Al-Rashid District Council Sheik Council Chairman and Sabeeh Al-Ka’abi, the District Council Chairman, called a meeting to discuss sectarian violence, the progress of essential services and security issues.
The sheiks were asked to take the lead in their own security, said U.S. Army Col. Ricky D. Gibbs, commander of 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, who was requested to speak at the meeting.

Abu Nuwas Street Revitalization Center opens -- [MNF-I]
FORWARD OPERATING BASE LOYALTY — The rebuilding of the famous market in eastern Baghdad is making progress with the opening of the Abu Nuwas Revitalization Center June 9.
...The wait won’t be too much longer as the information center is one of the first steps in the historic street’s revival.

Reintegration Tip #1-- [Online Chaplain - in Iraq]
...After about a week in the hospital recovering, he's at his friend's house one evening. While in the kitchen, he suddenly hears the teakettle whistling. He grabs a baseball bat from the nearby closet and proceeds to batter and bash the teakettle into an unrecognizable lump of metal. His friend rushes into the kitchen, sees what's happened and asks the man: "Why'd you ruin my good tea kettle?" The guy who had grown up in the desert replied: "Man, you gotta kill these things while they're still small. Their nasty when they get big."
In this simple joke there is a good lesson as we prepare to go home. The lesson: take care of issues when they are small, because they are nasty when they get big. It is not a bad lesson for those heading back to civilian life after being gone for two years, or for those who are about to receive them.

Troops won’t get month break -- [Military Times]
WASHINGTON — U.S. commanders in Iraq are rejecting a recommendation by Army mental health experts that troops receive a one-month break for every three months in a combat zone, despite unprecedented levels of continuous fighting and worsening risks of mental health problems.
Instead, commanders are trying to give troops two to three days inside heavily fortified bases after about eight days in the field, said Brig. Gen. Joseph Anderson, chief aide to the ground forces commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno.

AFGHANISTAN

Battle Company Makes Presence Known -- [Defend America]
KORENGAL VALLEY, Afghanistan, June 18, 2007 — The paratroopers were keen for the mission despite their rough conditions. The difference between a tan line and dirty skin has long since passed. Bites from sand fleas and mosquitoes just add to the problem. Electricity, toilets and running water (a 45 minute patrol away) are long forgotten conveniences.
...The living conditions for the soldiers are the least of their problems. The Korengal Valley is a support area for Taliban extremists.
“The towns here are neutral at best,” said U.S. Army 1st Lt. Mathew Piosa, 2nd Platoon leader, “In the last eight days we’ve had five (enemy) contacts.”

RAF AFGHAN DIARIES: 22nd May 2007

Takin' the poisoned pens to the streets -- [The Torch]
Further to Babbling's post, it looks to me like some peaceniks are intending to break the peace:
Anti-war protesters will confront Afghanistan-bound troops on Friday in Quebec City as a sign of the tension in Canada's most anti-war province.

Coalition Trains Afghan Police in Special Weapons, Tactics -- [Defense Link]
KABUL, Afghanistan, June 18, 2007 – The battle against the Taliban is an ongoing fight throughout Afghanistan. One of the groups leading the charge against the terrorists and insurgents is the Afghan National Police.
A new capability is being added to make the Afghan police an even stronger force. The Afghan National Civil Order Police will be an elite group of police officers filling a variety of roles.
Superintendent James Rainville, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, is assigned as a mentor with Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan and is in a lead role helping to develop the Afghan’s police capabilities.

The Borders Are Burning -- [Strategy Page]
June 19, 2007: Along the Afghan border in Pakistan, the army is patrolling less, and Taliban terrorists are more active, trying to impose lifestyle restrictions throughout the region. This includes keeping women out of the workforce (Pakistan, as a while, has the lowest labor force participation rate, under 20 percent, in Asia for women), no videos or music and compulsory religions services attendance. The government, which at present is a military dictatorship, does not want to offend its Islamic conservative supporters by cracking down on the Taliban activity along its border with Afghanistan.

Arrests in Pakistan's Nishtar Park bombing -- [Peace like a River]
...The NWFP is the tribal frontier area in northwest Pakistan which the Pakistani government recently "gave" to the Taliban and Al Qaeda as a safe haven in a peace deal.
The LJ group is a radical Wahabbi group with ties to Al Qaeda. The US has designated it a terrorist organization, saying:

U.S. AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Pakistani Official Hints Musharraf To Quit Army Post -- [Defense News]
Pakistani Foreign Minister Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri strongly suggested on June 18 that President Pervez Musharraf would give up his post as army chief by year’s end as political opponents have demanded and the nuclear-armed country’s constitution requires.

A U.S. - China Hotline Coming -- [Defense Tech]
U.S. and Chinese officials are expected to finalize arrangements in September for a “hotline” communications link between the Pentagon and China’s Ministry of Defense. Lieutenant General Zhang Qinsheng, the deputy chief of General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, is planning to attend a meeting in Washington, D.C., in September to complete arrangements for the link.

Dude, Where’s My Spine? Agreed Framework 2.0 at Four Months -- [One Free Korea]
...the press reported that after months of multilateral bungling, we had finally transferred either 20 or 25 million dollars of frozen assets to the disposal of Kim Jong Il for whatever purposes he chooses. Those assets had gathered in a shady Macau Bank known as Banco Delta Asia until September 2005, when the Treasury Department published an interim rule noting that they were, in large part, laundered proceeds of counterfeiting and drug dealing. Does anyone think Kim’s purposes will now include the feeding of his desperately hungry subjects?

WAR ON TERROR /TERRORISM

Understanding and Disrupting Terrorist Financing -- [Counterterrorism Blog]
To achieve a meaningful and consistent impact in disrupting terrorist financing, there must be a better understanding of the multi-dimensional elements involved in the funding process. Understanding begins with training. This holds true for the government, business and financial sectors. Terrorist financing is usually discussed in a broad and generic context and therefore seldom understood. To truly understand terrorist financing it must be presented and assessed in specific terms. Terrorist financing training should focus on factors to include:...

Graduation Day: AQ Suicide Teams Complete Murder
Academy, Depart For New Jobs In US, Europe -- [Ace of Spades]
Hopefully we can get comprehensive immigration reform passed in time to draw them "out of the shadows."
Large teams of newly trained suicide bombers are being sent to the United States and Europe, according to evidence contained on a new videotape obtained by the Blotter on ABCNews.com. ...
Another fictional threat.

ON Point Interview: Brigadier General Robert Holmes -- [ON Point]
Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, U.S Central Command (Centcom) is responsible for American military operations in the Middle East. With an area of operations ranging from Egypt to the United Arab Emirates, the Saudi Peninsula, and then north and east to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran, Centcom has daily contact both with some of America’s best friends, as well as its most bitter enemies. Last week, ON Point spoke with Brigadier General Robert Holmes, a U.S. Air Force officer who serves as Centcom’s Director of Operations, or J-3
ON Point: And what are we doing to find Osama?
Holmes: More than people think. We’ve never stopped looking for him. What the folks at home need to recognize is that when we catch him, the war will not be over, and in fact we may see a flurry of violence in response. But at the same time, these same people, our enemies if you will, will also understand that even if it takes time, the United States will find you.

The Tracking Twins Trap Terrorists -- [Strategy Page]
June 18, 2007: Last week, the U.S. launched a secret payload that was, apparently, two electronic monitoring satellites, to provide ocean surveillance, and a system for keeping track of suspicious ships, particularly those carrying weapons or terrorists, or both.

SUPPORTING THE TROOPS...OR NOT

Redstone Properties, Inc. donates albums -- [Soldiers' Angels]
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., June 18 -- In an effort to help raise the spirits of the men and women serving the United States around the world, Redstone Properties, Inc. has donated 1,000 copies of 2006 American Idol winner Taylor Hicks' self titled album to Soldiers' Angels, the country's largest non-profit military support organization.
"We rely on donations for all of our efforts," said Debby Frerichs, Vice President of Donations for Soldiers' Angels. "Our First Response Backpack program is designed to bring comfort to injured soldiers, who often arrive at hospitals with nothing other than the uniform on their back. This generous contribution from Redstone will go a long way in making life a little more enjoyable for them."

http://soldiersangels.org/index.php?page=veterans-supportSoldiers' Angels –Call to Action for Community Support for the Veterans Clinics and Hospitals Across America -- [Soldiers' Angels]
The Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) clinics and hospitals located in many communities across the nation provide medical services to combat veterans. These facilities are an important resource for veterans returning from the Global War on Terror and their families.
Of the 25 million veterans currently alive, nearly three of every four served during a war or an official period of hostility. About a quarter of the nation's population, approximately 70 million people are potentially eligible for VA benefits and services because they are veterans, family members or survivors of veterans.

Group Links Guard Families With Loved Ones -- [America Supports You]
WASHINGTON, June 12, 2007 - The nonprofit group “Operation Homelink” provided 100 Massachusetts National Guard families with refurbished desktop computers earlier this month to ensure they can communicate with deployed loved ones via e-mail.
“Communication with home is hugely important to those serving overseas,” Army Brig. Gen. Thomas Sellars, commander of Land Component Command for the Massachusetts Army National Guard, said at the June 2 event near Boston. “On behalf of all those serving in the Massachusetts National Guard, thanks to Operation Homelink and Raytheon for providing our families peace of mind.”

MILITARY

Underwear for all weather in development -- [Military Times]
If a project sponsored by Air Force Special Operations Command succeeds, airmen soon may be able to wear the same T-shirt or socks for days without stinking up their tent, or own bulk-free cold-weather gear that’s light enough to cram into a small stuff sack.

The Incredible Lightness Of Being Tony Taguba -- [Villianous Company]
But surely here is a confusion? Did not General Taguba testify to Congress that he believed these men acted on their own volition? Would thees not be... how do you say... the lying which is wrong/bad? This is a great confusion. Was he lying then, or now? How are we to know?

Bad Acts -- [Intel Dump]
Take two large grains of salt and read the latest from Sy Hersh in the New Yorker about retired Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba. As you may recall, he led the Army's initial inquiry into Abu Ghraib, but later found himself under assault from the military establishment and Rumsfeld Pentagon for his candor and thoroughness. The article illuminates a great deal about the way operations were managed and information was passed within the Rumsfeld Pentagon. Suffice it to say that bad news was not received well; the blood of many messengers stains the carpet in the SecDef's office. Taguba's comments to Hersh reveal a great deal of pain over the way he was treated by the Army and the Pentagon for doing what he felt was his duty. Read how he describes his reception after the Abu Ghraib story broke:..

Body Armor Goes Political -- [Captain's Journal]
...In Body Armor Wars: The Way Forward, we gave a primer on the features and characteristics of the currently deployed body armor (the Interceptor Body Armor and the Modular Tactical Vest, or Spartan 2 Assault Vest), and expanded the investigation into the claims and counterclaims of Pinnacle, and the Army, respectively, concerning the Dragon Skin body armor. Finally, we outlined a way forward for all concerned parties, this way being the best solution for the Soldier and Marine irrespective of how other parties feel about it. The recommendations included but were not limited to the development of analytical models of the body armor types, a re-examination of the testing protocol, a review of the test data and more testing as deemed appropriate, and real world input from Soldiers and Marines concerning ‘wearability’ and heavy battlefield weight. This was to be led by an independent engineering consultant to the Department of Defense.

POLITICS

Hillary's Iraq Vote Do Over -- [GOP]
Hillary Clinton Pandering Continues With Her Push To Deauthorize The War
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) Circulated Letter To Senators Asking Support For "Iraq War Vote Do-Over":
The Daily News Reports That Clinton Is Circulating A Letter Asking Fellow Senators To Support Legislation To Deauthorize The Iraq War. "Sen. Hillary Clinton is asking her fellow senators to sign on to her and Sen. Robert Byrd's plan for an Iraq war vote do-over. In a letter to all 98 other senators ... Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Byrd (D-W.Va.) say Congress should haul President Bush back for a new war vote when the Senate debates the 2008 military spending bill in the next few weeks." (Michael McAuliff, "Hillary Pitches New Iraq War Vote," [New York] Daily News, 6/18/07)

The Clinton Chapters - Ch. 5

Edwards Goes After Petraeus -- [Real Clear Politics]
General Petraeus' comments are just the latest example of the Bush Administration's disconnect from the reality on the ground. In order to get the Iraqi people to take responsibility for their country, we must show them that we are serious about leaving, and the best way to do that is to actually start leaving. Instead of talking about keeping our troops in Iraq for another decade, the Administration should begin bringing our troops home to the hero's welcome they deserve.
The American people have called for a new course in Iraq. It is time to end this war.

The Further Truth Revealed -- [GI Korea]
I posted before about the truth of why the Democrats are suddenly attacking General Peter Pace. As further news gets released it appears that Pace’s comments about gays is only part of the reason. The next reason is to create a perception that US military generals are incompetent:
...The Democrats need to paint the generals, especially Petraeus as incompetent in order to discredit Petraeus’s report to Congress in September on the status of the “surge” strategy.

THE MEDIA

Alternative Way for Soldiers to share media -- [Hooah Wife]
Why just send an email when you can send a video?
I was contacted by a concerned American named Leonard Ferrara. He e-mailed me and several other milbloggers about the concept of using videos in e-mails for soldiers. This would be a way to still share videos without having to have it hosted by government servers (which was the reason for the new Pentagon regulations). I would circumvent the need for You Tube and MySpace for media sharing. I sent this poor fella through the ringer - as I never want to pass out info that could possibly mislead anyone. Here is his vidoe explaining everything you need to know about it. He would be happy to help any soldiers or their family members learn how to use it. Here is his Myspace page.

Placing The Blame Where It Belongs -- [Flopping Aces]
Bookworm notices the differences in reporting between two very liberal news organizations. Those being The New York Times and my favorite news organization....the AP. They both report on a coalition airstrike against a school that al-Qaeda used as a headquarters. First The New York Times starts with a "capture your attention" headline:
7 Afghan Children Killed in U.S.-Led Airstrike
The New York Times forgets to mention for much of the article that there were al-Qaeda inside the building, instead they focus on the tragedy of the children dying. No context at all:

Major Surge Op Underway in Diyala -- [Confederate Yankee]
...The "Mahogany Ridge" media is tied up in the latest suicide bombing in Baghdad (simply look at the title, lede, and focus of the CNN article cited above as an example), and even those who chose to feature the Baquba assault clearly don't understand the magnitude of the just-joined battle.
Once reality slowly dawns on the media that they are misunderestimating the scope and scale of the assault, steel yourself for a rush of inaccuracies as they seek to get something, anything published, much of it based upon rumor, some of it based upon outright propaganda and lies.
We saw the same during and after Fallujah, when the U.S. military was accused of using napalm on civilians. We don't even have napalm.
The ignorati claimed that white phosphorus was a "chemical weapon," of a "poison gas" and ascribed horrible wounds to it. These claims turned out to be completely untrue.
There may also once again be claims that using .50-caliber machine guns and the cannons of Bradley IFVs and helicopter gunships against terrorist personnel somehow violates the Geneva Conventions. It doesn't.
We'll be hearing and seeing much more from Diyala Province, Baquba proper, and other areas surrounding Baghdad as full-scale surge operations seek to envelop and destroy al Qaeda.

HUMOR / SATIRE

Day By Day

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