Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various 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. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
Updating....
White House Aides: No Afghan Decision Before Thanksgiving -- [Washington Post]
President Obama will not announce his decision on sending more troops to Afghanistan before the Thanksgiving holiday, senior aides said Thursday. The news came as the president greeted 1,500 troops at Osan Air Base in South Korea, just before boarding Air Force One and heading back to Washington after an eight-day trip to Asia.
...Obama arrived on the base 3:19 p.m. local time (1 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) and received a rousing welcome from 1,500 troops in camouflage uniforms, many holding cameras or pointing cellphones to snap pictures.
"You guys make a pretty good photo op," the president said.
Standing on a riser wearing a blue suit and red tie, with a cluster of troops and a large American flag behind him, Obama expressed "the gratitude of the American public" and said his meetings in four countries over eight days in Asia will help deliver a "safer, more prosperous world for all of us."
He got a huge cheer when he told them he was increasing military pay. "That's what you call an applause line," he said, before boarding his jet and taking off at 4:11 p.m.
Light vs. Heavy: Brigade Combat Teams -- [Wings Over Iraq]
While the Obama White House debates the exact troop numbers for the new counterinsurgency strategy, it's safe to say that there will be an increase of around 20,000 to 40,000 additional "combat troops" (definition to follow). While the troop numbers must primarily take into consideration the desired effect in Afghanistan, planners must also take into account one additional factor: how many brigade combat teams we have available. (Based on over 100,000 troops in Iraq and over 60,000 in Afghanistan)
Honoring the fallen -- [FOB Tacoma]
As they left for the mission on Nov. 5, they swept the roads near Jelewar, Afghanistan, for mines. They scanned the area for any wires that could be used to detonate a bomb.
"We thought we did everything right," Lt. Brian Giroux later said.
But in what has become the signature attack in southern Afghanistan, insurgents detonated a bomb underneath their 20-ton Stryker, killing Spc. Aaron Seth Aamot and Spc. Gary Lee Gooch Jr., both 22 years old
Fear Factor -- [Free Range International]
The Problem - In the war on terror, our greatest enemy is our self. Like the company picnic we have become a community of self licking ice cream cones and have forgotten the mission, or more tragically become so self-absorbed in power point success and vertical movement within dysfunctional organizations that champion mediocrity and the status quo. This risk adverse culture has paralyzed the intelligence world and is metastasizing to the military and other government organizations to the point of a terminal diagnosis or paralysis through analysis. Our current senior management (I cannot use the word leadership as that implies the ability to lead and inspire others which if were the case this post would not be necessary)in the military and intelligence services have become a large group of frighten children who put career advancement and self preservation ahead of the mission.
Border Crossings -- [Bouhammer]
After observing approximately 15-20 bad guys cross the Afghan-Pakistan border in the same spot for two nights in a row, I decided to take a squad of Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers, my Embedded Tactical Trainer (ETT) NCO, and myself to set up an overnight ambush along their avenue of approach. Now for all of you Monday morning quarterbacks who are already saying to yourself why didn't you set up an ambush after the first night or use mortars, artillery, or even call in air assets to eliminate this threat. Well, those are courses of action that were discussed but other priorities limited our manpower for maneuver capabilities, air coverage wasn't available at the time, and we could only get a few mortar rounds off before the enemy would scurry back across the border into Pakistan and then our hands were tied with the rules of engagement.
As soon as darkness arrived, my squad of 12 ANA soldiers and I moved out towards the pre-determined ambush site.
US Defense Secretary Urges Against Afghan Withdrawal Timeline -- [Voice of America]
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates is urging caution on those who are calling for a timetable for an allied withdrawal from Afghanistan. Among those who have spoken about a "timetable" or an "endgame" in recent days are British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President Barack Obama. It was during a CNN interview this week that President Obama said his eagerly-awaited new Afghanistan strategy will include an "endgame." He said without the "discipline" a plan for ending the conflict would impose, the United States could find itself in "a multi-year occupation" that is not in its interests.
Afghanistan: We will need western troops for another five years, says country's president -- [Daily Record]
HAMID KARZAI was sworn in for a second term as Afghan president yesterday and vowed to make the country safe within five years.
He also pledged to stop foreign security companies operating in the country so that Afghanistan would "control its own security".
ANSF vetting -- [Embedded in Afghanistan... - in Afghanistan]
It's always disturbing to hear news of Coalition trainers being turned on by their trainees. When you hear of an incident like the one a couple of weeks ago where the five Brits were killed by one of their trainees, it certainly makes you wonder how feasible the end strategy of training more and more Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF...an umbrella term to cover the ANA, ANP, Border Police, and other security agencies within Afghanistan) is. Thankfully, such incidents are rare, but with more and more ANSF out there, we're bound to start seeing more of this. To significantly increase the size of the ANP and ANA they are going to have continue lowering the already low standards for recruits...many are essentially conscripts already.
Currently...
Karzai Sworn In for Second Term as President -- [New York Times]
Tainted by a flawed election and allegations of festering corruption in his government, President Hamid Karzai was inaugurated Thursday for a second term, promising to remedy the country's problems and to have the Afghan Army assume full control of security within five years. Speaking in Dari and Pashto, Mr. Karzai reached out to the country's two largest ethnic groups as well as to his defeated political rivals in a speech at a midday ceremony at the presidential palace. Above all, his address seemed aimed at the United States and other Western allies,...
ISAF + COIN Academy -- [Charlie Simpson's War - in Afghanistan]
Not a lot to report here. Yesterday all the roads were closed due to Karzai's inauguration. So we were confined to the compound all day.
Afghans Want Obama to Hold Karzai's Feet to the Fire -- [Los Angeles Times]
On Afghanistan's independence day in August, my friends in Kandahar were puzzled. Why was the government bothering to celebrate the holiday? With 100,000 or so foreign troops occupying our country, how could we consider ourselves independent? When my American friends and professors ask me if I think the United States should send additional troops to Afghanistan, I tell them yes, but only if the resources are distributed on the condition that the Afghan government cleans up its act. This often causes bewilderment on their part. "But Afghanistan is a sovereign state," they invariably reply. "How can the United States interfere in Afghanistan's domestic politics?" In fact, as my friends noted on "independence" day, Afghanistan is not at this point a sovereign state.
Profile: Abdul the Jingle Truck Driver -- [Sgt Danger - in Afghanistan]
I've been leading a gun crew on these security missions for some five months now, and have a pretty good grasp on the concept. I've had very unique experiences: adjusting to the intense summer heat, the mad downtown traffic, the boredom of miles of dirt road, and the stress of constant enemy lookout. But the our local jingle truck drivers are going through a hell of a time too. What is it like for them? On our last mission - we got back to yesterday, after four days on the road - I asked our interpreter to introduce me to one of the drivers. Papa J, as we call him, said, "I know the guy."
Heading home -- [Desert Bound - in Afghanistan]
Well, over the past month, I havn't been able to get access to my blog. As I said before, the internet here is lacking. They are still trying to get MWR computers/phones setup, but it still looks like it's another month out. I'll try and post at least one more detailed wrap-up of my time here, but my six month tour has finally come to an end. It's been great getting to know everyone that found comfort and encouragement through my postings.
Improvements in Afghan Governance Will Take Time, Gates Says -- [Defense Link]
Improving the quality and professionalism of Afghanistan's central government will not be accomplished quickly, and will involve continued discussion between US and Afghan officials, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. "My view on all this is that improvements in governance in Afghanistan will be evolutionary," said Gates, in response to a Pentagon reporter's question on the possibility the United States could link the amount of assistance it provides the Afghan government through its performance in rooting out alleged corruption. Newly re-elected Afghan President Hamid Karzai has pledged that he will fight government corruption.
Mullen: Talks Favor Broad Afghanistan Solution -- [Defense Link]
President Barack Obama's security team recognizes troops alone aren't the answer as it begins wrapping up strategy deliberations about the way ahead in Afghanistan, the top military officer said today. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the talks are nearing their conclusion, predicting that Obama will announce his decision "in the near future." Mullen told participants in the National Guard Bureau's Joint Senior Leadership Conference that he's satisfied by the depth and breadth of the discussions as the team addresses the challenges in Afghanistan and makes recommendations to the president.
Italy Remains a 'Determined' Ally -- [Washington Times]
Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata, the newly appointed Italian ambassador to the United States, objected to the term "war" to describe the conflict in Afghanistan, but he said Italy had dropped restrictions that had kept its troops away from the fighting. In an interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times Thursday, Mr. Terzi said that Afghanistan is a key component of Italian foreign policy. He said Western involvement in Afghanistan could best be described as "peacekeeping" instead of war, because it has been mandated by the UN Security Council.
To Succeed in Afghanistan, We Must Fail -- [Los Angeles Times]
Afghan President Hamid Karzai's inauguration today will be a somber affair. Gray storm clouds are slowly replacing the blue skies, and the sour tang of charcoal smoke hangs in the air. The mood among the internationals here is similarly gloomy. So many conversations end with the scratching of heads, with the tacit admission that no idea that has come forward has been big enough to reverse the Afghan government's steady loss of control. This is not because of the flawed elections or the ghastly killing of foreigners. That's all bad, but it's not doomsday. Nearly two years ago, I heard the distant rumbles, like thunder, of the attack on the Serena Hotel in Kabul, which killed seven people. The Afghan government's legitimacy was being questioned then too, and urgent reforms demanded - without practical result. Two elections had already happened and were marred by fraud. We have been here before, and survived. No, what is depressing about the situation in Afghanistan is not that it has suddenly gotten much worse but that it steadily fails to get better.
Taliban Chief Hides Among Pakistan Populace -- [Washington Times]
Mullah Mohammed Omar, the one-eyed leader of the Afghan Taliban, has fled a Pakistani city on the border with Afghanistan and found refuge from potential US attacks in the teeming Pakistani port city of Karachi with the assistance of Pakistan's intelligence service, three current and former US intelligence officials said. Mullah Omar, who hosted Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leaders when they plotted the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, had been residing in Quetta, where the Afghan Taliban shura - or council - had moved from Kandahar after the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.
Why the Pakistan Army Won't Fight Afghanistan's Taliban -- [TIME]
In return, he reportedly offered a range of fresh incentives, "including enhanced intelligence sharing and military cooperation.
Expecting the unexpected -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany]
In Balad with Task Force 38's medevac unit, Company C, 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment. Typically, the unit flies routine missions pick up patients, medical supplies, doctors and nurses from outlying bases and bring them to Balad. The patients come to Balad for a higher level of care - surgery or evaluation such as an MRI. Some are staged there for transport to an even higher echelon of care at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center.
The crews must be prepared at all times to ...
Iraq Sentences Sunni Leader to Death -- [New York Times]
A leader of a Sunni Awakening Council was sentenced to death for kidnapping and murder on Thursday, setting off charges that the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government was trying to weaken the Sunni movement, which is credited with much of the reduction of sectarian violence here since 2006. The Sunni leader, Adil al-Mashhadani, who led the Awakening militia in the impoverished Fadhil neighborhood of Baghdad, was arrested in March on charges of terrorism. His arrest set off 24 hours of fighting between Awakening members and American and Iraqi security forces, ...
Iraq's Election Law Morass -- [New York Times]
Iraqis have quickly learned to play hardball politics. That was evident on Wednesday when one of Iraq's two vice presidents, Tariq al-Hashimi, who is a Sunni, vetoed an important election law at the last minute. He demanded a change that would allocate more parliamentary seats for Iraqi Sunnis living abroad. It is unquestionably better for Iraq's political leaders to wage their battles through legislative maneuvering than in the streets. But their repeated delays in completing the election law (there have been nearly a dozen attempts) threatens their fragile constitutional system as well as the American military withdrawal. And it could provoke new violence.
New View of Samarra -- [Outside the Wire - JD Johannes - in Iraq]
In the lexicon of Iraq, few words carry as much meaning as Samarra.
This city on the Tigris river north of Baghdad was the source of the sectarian slaughter of 2006 and 2007 and the scene of some the most violent fire fights of the same era.
Even as late as 2008, it was city to be by-passed when traveling north or south on Highway 1. The city is peaceful enough now, but still struggling with an identity crisis. It is a Sunni city but home of a holy Shia shrine that draws millions of pilgrims a year.
Who Flies That Blackhawk? The Whole Story -- [In Iraq Now (at 56) - in Iraq]
Task Force Diablo is based in Pennsylvania but includes units and soldiers from across the nation. Because National Guard soldiers bring a variety of life and work experiences with them on deployment, even the smallest unit can include soldiers with a surprising array of skills and experience. In September Alaska-based, Charlie 1-52nd MEDEVAC needed a crew for the chase bird for a routine flight to two of their remote sites. Alpha 1-106th from Illinois supplied a crew for a Pennsylvania 1-150th Blackhawk helicopter. The four soldiers who comprised the Illinois crew on a Pennsylvania helicopter following an Alaska MEDEVAC show how different the members of a four-man unit can be.
US Talks Tougher on Dealing With Iran -- [Wall Street Journal]
The international spokesman for Iran's main opposition movement called for President Barack Obama to increase his public support for Iranian democrats and significantly intensify financial pressure on Tehran's elite military unit, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. Mohsen Makhmalbaf, during an unofficial visit to Washington, also said Thursday that Iranian opposition leaders supported US efforts to use diplomacy to contain the nuclear ambitions of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government.
Get Ready to Bomb Iran -- [Washington Times]
Representatives from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia are scheduled to meet today in Brussels to discuss future steps to dissuade Iran from developing the capacity to build nuclear weapons. Our message to the world leaders: If you want peace, prepare for war. President Obama said yesterday that the international community intends to send a "clear message" to Iran. Unfortunately, Iran has clearly gotten the message already: It has nothing to fear.
Japan wants US military base out of Okinawa -- [PRESS TV]
Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says he will devise a plan to relocate the US military airfield based in Okinawa as soon as possible.
N. Korea Among Topics of Discussion as Obama Wraps up Asia Tour -- [Washington Post]
With none of the tension presented by a rising China and a willful Japan, President Obama's visit to South Korea on Thursday was short, congenial in substance and splendid in form. Ending a sometimes bumpy week-long tour of East Asia, Obama said the welcoming ceremony in Seoul - a glorious, sun-drenched mingling of music, flags and traditional garb - was the "most spectacular" he has seen in his travels. In his talks with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, whose right-of-center government has embraced political cooperation with the United States, Obama also found much to his liking.
An Anti-pirate Policy that Works -- [Washington Times]
Merchant ships need guns to fight pirates. Seven months ago, Somali pirates attacked the Maersk Alabama and held its captain hostage. Pirates attacked the Maersk Alabama again this week but were repulsed because the Maersk Shipping Line put armed guards on its ships. Pirates successfully attacked another unarmed ship on Monday, leaving 28 members of its crew dead. On Tuesday, 36 crew members of a Spanish ship were released only after pirates were paid a $3.3 million ransom. But when the pirates got within 300 yards of the Maersk Alabama, the ship tried evasive maneuvers and its security team successfully engaged in small-arms fire. Vice Admiral Bill Gortney of the US Naval Forces Central Command said the actions of the Maersk Alabama were following the maritime industry's "best practices."
Major Hasan's E-Mail: 'I Can't Wait to Join You' in Afterlife -- [ABC News]
United States Army Major Nidal Hasan told a radical cleric considered by authorities to be an al-Qaeda recruiter, "I can't wait to join you" in the afterlife, according to an American official with top secret access to 18 e-mails exchanged between Hasan and the cleric, Anwar al Awlaki, over a six month period between Dec. 2008 and June 2009.
Intercepted e-mails deemed innocent by the FBI detail possible terror relations.
More Photos"It sounds like code words," said Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer, a military analyst at the Center for Advanced Defense Studies.
Air Defense Push Inspired by 9/11 Gets a 2nd Look -- [New York Times]
The commander of military forces protecting North America has ordered a review of the costly air defenses intended to prevent another Sept. 11-style terrorism attack, an assessment aimed at determining whether the commitment of jet fighters, other aircraft and crews remains justified. Senior officers involved in the effort say the assessment is to gauge the likelihood that terrorists may succeed in hijacking an airliner or flying their own smaller craft into the United States or Canada. The study is focused on circumstances in which the attack would be aimed not at a public building or landmark but instead at a power plant or a critical link in the nation's financial network, like a major electrical grid or a computer network hub.
Arrests in Chicago Drive Home Global Nature of Terrorism Threat - [Washington Post]
David C. Headley, a peripatetic Chicagoan accused of scouting potential terrorism targets in India and plotting to kill two Danish journalists, was not always David C. Headley. Until 2006, he was Daood Gilani, but he told investigators he had changed his name to raise less suspicion when he traveled abroad. He lived anonymously in an apartment leased in the name of a dead person. He changed e-mail accounts often and spoke in code on the telephone. The strategy worked less than perfectly, according to the FBI, which arrested him on terrorism charges last month at O'Hare International Airport on the first leg of a trip to Pakistan.
Linda's "Blanket Ladies" -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany]
Readers of this blog are familiar with Linda Ferrara and her Blanket Ladies. There are many more than pictured here, including one group called the Sunshine Club. The groups meet regularly to make blankets for the patients coming through Landstuhl.
So they were very excited recently when they spotted one of their blankets in the longer version of the video in the story here about the 86th CASF
Show of Support Surprises Heroes -- [NewsWest 9]
MIDLAND - West Texans gave heroes a big welcome. Several injured troops flew in to the Tall City this week and on Thursday, the streets were packed with folks from across the Basin who came to say thanks. The 6th Annual Show of Support banquet filled up the Horseshoe Arena.
25 injured troops rode into the Tall City for the Show of Support celebration - each bringing with them a unique background
BART will offer free tickets for military members -- [KGO-TV]
Beginning in 2010, BART will offer free $50 tickets to active duty military personnel who are in the Bay Area on leave from the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan
Community teams up to support troops -- [South Carolina Now]
"I wanted to lift their spirits, to make them feel good about not being able to be home with their families," Johnson said.
With the help of many volunteers and local business donations Johnson has finished 116 care packages to send overseas.
One of Johnson's neighbors did a fundraiser at work to help get items for the care packages. "When she backed her car up to my door there was just so much stuff it scared me. Donations kept coming we kind of got slow a minute here and fast a minute there. I wish I could do it over again, I would love to do it over again," Johnson said.
Military experiment seeks to predict PTSD -- [KFDA]
(AP) - A military experiment in California is meant to try to predict who's most at risk for post-traumatic stress disorder. Earlier this year, a quarterly
Positive Petraeus Lessons -- [Washington Times]
The essence of counterinsurgency strategy (COIN), integral to defeating Sept. 11, 2001-type extremists infecting various Middle East countries, is building confidence among the population. The key is working hand-in-glove with the respective military and civilian authorities to help stabilize their combustible nations so they might be free of the specter of extremist violence, thereby enabling the buildup of family, community and nation, according to each culture's unique and beautiful character. This new, irregular warfare is fought largely on human terrain, about which Gen. David H. Petraeus has written in the COIN bible, ...
Pentagon Launches Review of Fort Hood Shooting -- [Defense Link]
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today announced the Defense Department will conduct a broad review of the Nov. 5 Fort Hood, Texas, shooting that left 13 dead and dozens injured. Former Army Secretary Togo West and retired Navy Adm. Vernon Clark, former chief of naval operations, will head the initial 45-day review, which will inform a follow-on investigation expected to last four to six months. "The shootings at Fort Hood raise a number of troubling questions that demand complete but prompt answers," Gates said during a Pentagon briefing. "It is prudent to determine immediately whether there are internal weaknesses or procedural shortcomings in the department that could make us vulnerable in the future." The department review is separate from both the criminal investigation of Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan
Army Lacks Guide on Jihadists in Ranks -- [Washington Times]
The Army has guidelines on how to deal with racist views and actions within the ranks, but none on how to deal with Islamic jihadism, a former Army vice chief of staff told Congress on Thursday. Retired Army Gen. John M. Keane said this absence of guidance fostered a politically correct reluctance to investigate the man accused in the Fort Hood shootings, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. A military pamphlet created after the 1995 racially motivated shootings at Fort Bragg is the intended guidebook on how to deal with extremist activities and prohibited conduct but is mostly focused on white supremacist behavior, Gen. Keane told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in the first congressional oversight hearing on the Fort Hood shootings. "Clearly we don't have specific guidelines in dealing with jihadist extremists," Gen. Keane told the Senate homeland security committee.
Army captain welcomed home from Iraq -- [Citrus Daily]
A well-deserved Hero's Welcome was observed for Capt. Eric Evans from his recent tour of duty from the "Iraqi Theater of Operations". The welcome home
Fearing Obama-bashing, Army limits media access to Palin event at Fort Bragg -- [Hot Air]
The AP and a local paper put up a fuss so the base relented and is now granting limited access -- provided that neither Palin herself nor anyone else there is interviewed. They're not worried about Sarahcuda, I don't think; hopefully, she's disinclined to bash the C-in-C in front of a military audience. They're worried about conservative troops chattering with each other about politics, getting worked up, and then being roped in by reporters eager for an anti-Obama quote or two to prove that the right-wingers in the military hate America or whatever.
Poll: Majority Of Republicans Think Obama Didn't Actually Win 2008 Election -- ACORN Stole It! -- [TPM]
The new national poll from Public Policy Polling (D) has an astonishing number about paranoia among the GOP base: Republicans do not think President Obama actually won the 2008 election -- instead, ACORN stole it.
Just there to burnish his image? Obama tells troops 'You guys make a pretty good photo op' -- [Examiner]
Are American soldiers risking their lives in defense of...well, of whatever the heck they're fighting for in Iraq and Afghanistan worth only a good photo opportunity for American Presidents.
...No, of course not. Who would make such a bad joke?
Probably just an attempt at a making a funny by the President, but like his 'You're likable enough, Hillary' barb that fell flat, this President just is not a funnyman. In fact, his jokes tend to be the exact opposite of funny if not just straight-up offensive.
(Need more? Dawn Patrols Archives are here.)
Comments (if any):
Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various 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. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
Boondoggle -- [3rd Time, New Country - in Afghanistan]
I know I am a little late on posting to my blog, but I returned from a boondoggle out to Mazar-e-Sharif in the Northern provinces. I even have some pictures to post with this entry. First, let me recap last week. We did make a normal trip to NDS. It was actually a clear, cool morning which is a rarity here in Kabul. The pollution is so thick that it is very rare to see the distant mountains. So, here is a picture of the snow-capped mountains, west of Kabul. This picture was taken last Monday. I haven't seen the mountains since. Other than that, it was a normal week of mentoring. There are always little things to work on and improve in the OT. Friday was another violent day here in Kabul. The Taliban used a SVBIED outside Camp Phoenix a little before 0800. There were no American casualties, but there were injuries.
Clinton in Kabul for Karzai's inauguration -- [Foreign Policy - AfPak]
U.S. President Barack Obama reportedly told CNN today that he is "very close" to making a decision about whether to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan and plans to make an announcement "in the next several weeks," after more than two months of deliberations (Reuters, Reuters). Obama is reportedly angry about the stream of leaks that has come out about his Afghanistan decision, telling CBS, "For people to be releasing info in the course of deliberations is not appropriate" and said yes when asked if that is a "firing offense" (CBS, Politico). Meanwhile
The war of leaks -- [Foreign Policy - AfPak]
The Obama Administration's social media prowess has been a novelty among latter day political media machines. It helped to crowd-source the campaign funding needed to put Barack Obama in the White House, and generated a populist gloss that was, at the time, convincingly fresh and transparent. What was equally admirable was its apparent internal discipline over when information made the transition from government secret to press release. Controlling the flow of data and keeping secrets secret is a challenge under any circumstance. Combine that with a predilection for Facebook and Twitter, and a hyperactive security officer might expect policy waters to muddy more quickly than they would under normal circumstances.
So when U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry's expressed his "discomfort" last week over a possible troop surge, via diplomatic cable to Washington, it's no wonder that the message ended up dominating headlines.
Ridding Afghanistan of Corruption Will Be No Easy Task -- [Los Angeles Times]
Afghans have a name for the huge, gaudy mansions that have sprung up in Kabul's wealthy Sherpur neighborhood since 2001. They call them "poppy palaces." The cost of building one of these homes, which are adorned with sweeping terraces and ornate columns, can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Many are owned by government officials whose formal salaries are a few hundred dollars a month. To the capital's jaded residents, there are few more potent symbols of the corruption that permeates every level of Afghan society, from the traffic policemen who shake down motorists to top government officials and their relatives who are implicated in the opium trade.
Afghan Minister Accused of Taking Bribe -- [Washington Post]
The Afghan minister of mines accepted a roughly $30 million bribe to award the country's largest development project to a Chinese mining firm, according to a US official who is familiar with military intelligence reports. The allegation, if proved true, would mark one of the most brazen examples of corruption yet disclosed in a country where the problem has become so pervasive that it is now at the heart of Obama administration doubts over Afghan President Hamid Karzai's reliability as a partner.
Vision for Victory, Part I -- [Washington Times]
The news from Afghanistan all year has been dispiriting, and the last few weeks have been especially tough in terms of the violence. Yet most foreign and Afghan officials and officers who I encountered on a recent weeklong visit sponsored by the U. military are guardedly optimistic about our prospects. How can this be so?
U.S. Turns to Local Guns-for-Hire to Guard Afghan Outpost -- [Danger Room - Noah Shachtman]
The U.S. military is turning to guns-for-hire to guard one of its outposts in Afghanistan. But Blackwaters of the world, take note: simply hiring former G.I.s or American cops or even Nepalese Gurkhas won't do the trick this time. At least half of the 50-man force has to come "from within a 50 kilometer radius" of the base, according to a contract solicitation issued by the U.S. Air Force. Over the summer, the American military signaled its interest in hiring an army of contractors to help handle security at as many as 50 outposts in Afghanistan. It's one of several efforts efforts designed to free up uniformed troops for combat and counterinsurgency work. Now, U.S. forces appear to be taking the first step towards building that country-wide private security force, by soliciting bids for a team that watch over Forward Operating Base Lightening, in Paktya province.
NATO Chief Confident Afghanistan Will Have More Troops -- [Voice of America]
The NATO secretary-general says he is confident the United States and other NATO allies will send more troops to Afghanistan, where insurgent attacks have surged in recent months. He spoke at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Meeting in Edinburgh, where Britain's foreign secretary outlined the strategy his nation would support.
Germany to extend Afghanistan mission another year -- [AP]
Germany will extend its mission in Afghanistan for another year, the government said Wednesday, despite the growing unpopularity of the war at home
Pakistani Successes May Sway US Troop Decision -- [New York Times]
A month after the Pakistani military began its push into the Taliban stronghold of South Waziristan, militants appear to have been dispersed, not eliminated, with most simply fleeing. That recurring pattern illustrated the problems facing the Obama administration as it enters its final days of a decision on its strategy for Afghanistan. Success in this region, in the remote mountains near the Afghan border, could have a direct bearing on how many more American troops are ultimately sent to Afghanistan, and how long they must stay. Pakistan has shown increased willingness to tackle the problem, launching sweeping operations in the north and west of the country this year, but
Where are Taliban and al Qaeda commanders, US media asks Pak -- [Daily News & Analysis]
Washington: A day after senior Pakistani army commanders claimed that their forces have captured all major towns and population centres of the extremist-ridden South Waziristan, Taliban and foreign militants appear to have disappeared and not been eliminated.
Pakistani Army Shows Off Captured Taliban Posts -- [Washington Post]
A toy car booby-trapped with explosives, chemistry textbooks and handwritten case files from a Taliban court were among the debris left behind by fleeing Islamist militants in this remote village in the conflicted tribal region of South Waziristan. The now-deserted village, which was retaken by Pakistani army forces two weeks ago and visited by Western journalists on Tuesday for the first time since, had been a stronghold of Taliban forces for nearly five years.
Iraqi Kurds Warn of Election Boycott in Dispute Over Seats - [Washington Post]
Kurdish officials threatened Tuesday to boycott the upcoming national election in the three provinces they control in northern Iraq unless more parliament seats are allocated to the region. The threat came two days after Iraq's Sunni vice president said he would veto the election law passed last week unless more seats are set aside for representatives of Iraqi refugees. The majority of Iraqis abroad are Sunni. Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi has until Wednesday to veto the law, which legislators approved after weeks of wrangling, primarily over how the vote would be held in the disputed northern city of Kirkuk. The two ultimatums underscored the deep divisions among Iraqi politicians and raised fresh concerns about Iraq's ability to hold a credible election by Jan. 18.
Iraq's national elections in jeopardy as Sunni VP issues veto -- [McClatchy News]
BAGHDAD -- Iraq's pivotal national elections were thrown back into turmoil and potential delay Wednesday after Vice President Tariq al Hashemi vetoed part of an election law and sent it back to parliament.
US has time to reconsider Iraq drawdown plan-Odierno -- [Reuters]
The US military does not have to decide until April or May whether to push back the end of its combat operations in Iraq due to...
A few words from medics for the 41st Brigade -- [The Oregonian]
I spent an hour or two last month with Oregon National Guard medics who are based at Al Asad Airbase, discussing a little of what they've observed since coming to Iraq this summer. The discussion, as you might think, covered issues in two categories: The physical and the mental. The Physical - CPT Scott Johnson of Newport, who is the highest-ranking soldier in the medical support unit at Al Asad, said that medics are seeing a significant share of orthopedic issues that stem from the heavy loads that soldiers carry. Even though the war has wound down considerably over the last few years, soldiers on convoys and at checkpoints still wear a lot of body armor and carry a lot of ammunition and weaponry, as much as 65 pounds or even more. Over time, even young soldiers experience increased stress on their joints from walking, running and jumping with that much gear.
Goodbye to Iraq, and thanks -- [The Oregonian]
The soldiers of Oregon's 41st Brigade are about halfway through their Iraq deployment, but I'm finally home after a gruelling passage through Kuwait and a misadventure or two. I said goodbye to my last acquaintance in the Oregon National Guard on Monday afternoon in Salt Lake City. SSG Tom McNeil of Central Point was peeling off to fly to Medford, close to his home in Central Point, while I continued on to Portland. Have a terrific Thanksgiving at home, Tom. Thanks to all the folks along the way, especially the soldiers of Oregon's 41st Brigade Combat Team, for the many kindnesses extended to me during my sojourn among them. This toast to you, and I'm starting with you two, since you challenged me to do this, Scott and Mike
US, China in Strained Diplomatic Embrace -- [Wall Street Journal]
President Barack Obama was set to leave China on Wednesday after an awkward summit with some achievements but a long list of unfinished business - a result that suggests challenges ahead for the US as it struggles to come to terms with Asia's increasingly assertive superpower. The president secured a far-ranging framework for cooperation Tuesday with Beijing. But that deal was announced as frictions between the two nations appeared to increase over human rights and economic policy. President Obama and Chinese leader Hu Jintao issued their ambitious statement on cooperation in a clumsy fashion - at a media "availability" where they took no questions, didn't address each other and exhibited body language that seemed to say they had been frustrated by the entire exercise.
Obama: 'We've restored America's standing' -- [CNN]
A little more than a year after his election, President Obama said his administration has laid the groundwork for success on global and domestic matters. -- "I think that we've restored America's standing in the world
Somali Pirates : Maersk Alabama Attacked, Fights Back -- [Eagle Speak]
On the early morning of 18 November 2009, 350 nautical miles east from the Somali coast, pirates attacked MV Maersk Alabama, a US flagged, Danish owned, 155 meter long, Container ship.
Iranian COS Warns Russia: Your Security Is Tied To Ours -- [Memri Blog]
Iranian Army chief of staff Hassan Firouzabadi has warned Russia that delay in the supply of S-300 missile systems could harm Russia because its security is tied to that of Iran.
Suspected Fort Hood Shooter Believed to Be Self-Radicalized -- [Wall Street Journal]
Some lawmakers briefed Tuesday on the Fort Hood shooting said the suspect, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, was most likely a self-radicalized extremist. The briefing for select members of Congress came as Republicans with oversight of national-security issues called on Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to open a full congressional inquiry into alleged government miscues in the case of Maj. Hasan. He is charged with murdering 13 people Nov. 5 on the sprawling US Army base where he served as a psychiatrist.
Guantánamo Won't Close by January, Obama Says -- [NY Times]
President Obama acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that his administration would miss a self-imposed deadline to close the detention center at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, by mid-January, admitting the difficulties of following through on one of his first pledges as president.
No Man Left Behind -- [Knottie's Niche]
We've all heard the military quote "No Man left behind" But it wasn't until last weekend as I sat listening to a veteran Marine talking to an Army Sgt about how the Army helicopter pilot who saved him and many others in Vietnam by flying in a hot zone repeatedly to save men that it hit home. The words took on a whole new meaning to me. When Micheal was killed the Army did not leave us behind. It started with a visit to tell us the news and they did not leave until there was no more they could do for us in that moment. Then there was the email to let us know no one else had been hurt from one of the medics. The Army did not leave us behind when they assigned us a causality assistance officer who walked us through each step, even offering to go to the store for us at any hour of the day if we needed anything at all. Then the emails, calls and instant message conversations from the men who served with Micheal began.
LTC Tim Karcher Update -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany]
Wonderful update on LTC Tim Karcher, Commander of the 1st Cavalry Division's 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, wounded June 28 in Sadr City.
4 weeks later, after fighting for his life in Iraq, here in Germany, and at Walter Reed, the loss of both legs was the least of his problems:
Support SA while Christmas shopping this year! -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany]
Through Soldiers' Angels, patriotic Americans can do their Holiday shopping or planning and support the troops at the same time!
The easiest way to do this is shop online at all your favorite stores. If you stop by GoodShop and Shop to Earn before you start, you can visit all your favorite online stores, purchase anything you want at the usual great prices, and a portion of what you spend will be donated to Soldiers' Angels--at no extra cost to you! On GoodShop, be sure you select Soldiers' Angels as the charity you are "GoodShopping for."
Trees for Troops: Helping Military Families -- [AdAge.com]
Military families. Transportation. Tree growers. Logistics. These seemingly incongruous words provide a case study in cause marketing.
FOX 5 Special: I-Team VA Loans -- [FOX News]
Muslim discrimination in the U.S. military. Not. -- [Castra Praetoria]
I'm done listening to any more bellyaching about how Muslims have it bad in the American military. It's a lie.
At this very moment there are American Muslims serving in our armed forces with valor. Muslim interpreters work along side us daily who aren't even American citizens and they have proven themselves as well. All these pansies wailing and moaning about discrimination against them because they are Muslims are not doing anyone any favors. Take it from a guy who has served along side Muslim Marines and Sailors in combat; worked with Jordanian and Iraqi interpreters in country; trained with Iraqi-Americans who have contributed to the effort by working as role players and training our troops in culture and language classes.
Time to revisit firearms policies on military posts -- [Atlanta Journal Constitution]
Just as legitimate questions were raised following the mass killings on the Virginia Tech campus in 2007, both military personnel and civilian citizens
Army's Record Suicide Rate 'Horrible,' General Says -- [Washington Post]
Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli on Tuesday called the Army's record suicide rate this year "horrible" and said the problem of soldiers taking their own lives is the toughest he has faced in his 37 years in service. As of Nov. 16, 140 soldiers on active duty and 71 soldiers not on active duty were suspected to have committed suicide. "We are almost certainly going to end the year higher than last year,"
Veterans' descendants welcome troops home to Fort Campbell -- [Clarksville Leaf Chronicle]
Their day concluded with the Welcome Home ceremony for 80 soldiers who returned from a year in Afghanistan. "We are descendants of our country's first
'Greywolf' Among First CAV Troops to Return Home -- [DVIDS]
Once the buses arrived at Cooper Field, chants of "move that bus" were heard from Families waiting to welcome home their Soldiers. Tommy Tatum, from Kempner
Where are Taliban and al Qaeda commanders, US media asks Pak -- [Daily News & Analysis]
Washington: A day after senior Pakistani army commanders claimed that their forces have captured all major towns and population centres of the extremist-ridden South Waziristan, Taliban and foreign militants appear to have disappeared and not been eliminated.
Army officials said that they have killed as many as 550 Taliban militants a month after the military began its campaign into the lawless territory, yet they acknowledge that hundreds, perhaps thousands more have melted away.
As the offensive into the area, considered to be a sanctuary of al Qaeda and Taliban militants gained momentum, Boston Globe said, "Vast numbers of Taliban and foreign terrorists had disappeared into the vast desert scrub and craggy hills surrounding their strongholds of Sararogha and Ladha".
"Where are they? That's what bothers me," New York Times quoted a senior American intelligence officer as saying.
Republicans Criticize Obama's Call to Delay Hill Inquiries on Fort Hood -- [Washington Post]
The Obama administration's request that congressional committees slow their investigations of the Fort Hood shootings sparked denunciations Tuesday from Republicans on Capitol Hill, who pushed for an immediate inquiry of any warning signs before the massacre. House and Senate Republicans, emerging from the most detailed briefings given to Congress since the Nov. 5 attack killed 13 at the central Texas Army post, said delaying investigations would put off legislative efforts to give military officials the tools to prevent similar tragedies in the future. They said such an effort would not interfere with the criminal investigation of shooting suspect Nidal M. Hasan, an Army major who was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan.
Obama Approval Dips Below 50% For First Time -- [Quinnipiac University]
Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Support For U.S. Troops In Afghanistan Drops Below 50% -- President Barack Obama's job approval rating is 48 - 42 percent, the first time he has slipped below the 50 percent threshold nationally ...
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Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various 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. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
Taliban Spokesman Azam Tariq Releases Statement Through as-Sahab Productions on Youtube -- [Jawa Report]
as-Sahab is al-Qaeda's "production label" So here we have an official terrorist communication being released and referenced by AP on Youtube.
...The story goes on about recent attacks and the response of Taliban spokesman Azam Tariq.
DP opposes troops to Afghanistan -- [JoongAng Daily]
The main opposition Democratic Party decided yesterday to oppose the government's decision to dispatch troops to Afghanistan. Until yesterday, party officials remained divided on the controversial decision. The government had announced on Oct. 30 that it would send troops to protect civilian professionals working on rebuilding projects in the war-ravaged Afghanistan.
Clinton Ties Future US Aid to Afghanistan Accountability -- [Los Angeles Times]
The United States is limiting its goals in Afghanistan and demanding better accountability from that country's underperforming leader, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Sunday, and she tied additional US civilian help to results from the government in Kabul. Clinton, an influential voice in deliberations about whether to add large numbers of US troops to an unpopular eight-year war, said Afghan President Hamid Karzai could do more to reduce corruption and go after those who may have looted US aid in the past.
High Costs Weigh on Troop Debate for Afghan War -- [New York Times]
While President Obama's decision about sending more troops to Afghanistan is primarily a military one, it also has substantial budget implications that are adding pressure to limit the commitment, senior administration officials say. The latest internal government estimates place the cost of adding 40,000 American troops and sharply expanding the Afghan security forces, as favored by Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top American and allied commander in Afghanistan, at $40 billion to $54 billion a year, the officials said. Even if fewer troops are sent, or their mission is modified, the rough formula used by the White House, of about $1 million per soldier a year, appears almost constant.
Report: Contractors Outnumber Troops In Afghanistan By Highest Ratio In US History -- [Huffington Post]
In the clearest sign that the Pentagon has become dependent on privatization, a new report reveals that today there are more defense contractors than US troops in Afghanistan
Idiots With Weapons -- [Afghan Quest - in Afghanistan]
...A little after 12:30, two explosions rocked the crowded bazaar just past the gates of the District Center. The insurgents had missed an area large enough to play several soccer games simultaneously and instead hit the bustling market about midday on bazaar day.
A CROW gunner in one of the MRAPS nearby announced that he had spotted a group on a nearby mountain that he thought may have been involved. Mortars at FOB Kutschbach launched a number of rounds at the probable POO (Point Of Origin) site. The local ANP Chief, a heroic individual who I've written about before, ran up into the bazaar with four ANP. Soon ANP trucks were summoned to assist with evacuating the casualties. The Chief later stated that at least six civilians had been killed and another 26 wounded. Four casualties were brought to the District Center, where French and American medics stabilized them before loading them into French vehicles and rushing to them to FOB Kutschbach for further treatment. ...
No Rain No Rainbows -- [Inside The Wire - in Afghanistan]
It's Friday, the High Holy Day and my day off. Ninety minutes later I was woken up by my roommate entering the room, "You missed all the excitement," he tells me. Come to find out there was a VBIED at Camp Phoenix, the one US installation we typically visit to drop mail off or run to the PX for anything we need to buy. The news drained me, a car bomb at Phoenix when just five days ago I went through that same check point to send a hard drive back to the states. A group of brothas where working the gate, about 4 or 5 that day. I can't say I knew them but it was very sobering.
Rex out on a multi-day mission -- [Afghanistan My Last Tour - in Afghanistan]
From Liisa, SMSgt Temple's wife: Rex has departed on a multi-day mission. In his absence he asked me to post the official announcement about the USF Bulls adopting his school supplies drive so that if anyone who reads this blog is in the Tampa Bay area , they can come to the game and help with the drive this Saturday. Remember that while we ask for new supplies it's also OK to donate your slightly used school supplies as well. Again, our warmest thanks to the USF Bulls.
Taliban guerrillas bring 'Iraq tactics' to Pakistan -- [AFP]
"The previous three or four attacks in markets was a kind of strategy that was being used in Iraq... but it will come at a cost. No guerrilla movement can
In eastern Afghanistan, a vital road-building mission -- [Washington Post /AP]
French and Afghan troops move to secure a dangerous area
Hundreds of French and Afghan troops on Sunday pushed into a hostile valley in eastern Afghanistan where militants launch quick attacks and then disappear into hillside villages. The mission: Secure the area for a planned bypass road around the Afghan capital to move supplies from neighboring Pakistan.
Outskirts of Town -- [Highland Sailor - in Afghanistan]
I have been sequestered in a room with 20 other officers from various nations, services and specialities with orders to prepare a product for our Commanding General. In other words, no pictures and nothing I can report on in this blog...not very exciting I know, sorry.
However, Today I made it outside the wire and visited a make-shift displaced persons (aka refugee) camp on the outskirts of Kabul. This camp was the worst I have seen. We distributed items that you provided/donated to our VHS mission.
IJC Operational Update, Nov. 16 -- [ISAF - in Afghanistan]
An Afghan-international security force detained several suspected militants in Nangarhar province today, one of which was a sought-after Taliban facilitator responsible for numerous weapons shipments to other militant elements in the area.
The joint security force targeted a compound near the village of Lawangpur in the Chaparhar district where intelligence sources reported the Taliban facilitator was located. The joint force searched the compound without incident and detained the suspected militants, one of which was identified as the Taliban facilitator.
No shots were fired, and no civilians were harmed during this operation.
Ghazni Development Projects Completed
Meet Earl -- [HERMANEUTICS: AFGHANISTAN - in Afghanistan]
Earl is a Staff Sergeant ...As the Transportation Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) he was almost single-handedly responsible for moving all 3000 people, all 100 helicopters, and hundreds of containers from Savannah all the way to Afghanistan. Over the last year he has worked longer hours than almost anyone to make sure we didn't lose a single piece of equipment. Never one to complain, he put off knee surgery and ignored his other health issues for the good of our Brigade. He doesn't like to type or make Powerpoints (which is most of my job) but would rather be out on the tarmac with the Soldiers and equipment despite the dehydration and sunburn on his scalp. Earl has taught me volumes about what it means to be a Soldier through his work ethic, prudence, and Git-er-done attitude.
So, when Earl asked me to re-enlist him this week I was honored beyond words. Here is a man nearly twice my age, who still salutes and calls me Sir, and evidently respects me enough to help commit the next 9+ years of his life to the Army.
US Troops Battle Taliban, Afghan Rules -- [Washington Times]
Army Capt. Casey Thoreen wiped the last bit of sleep from his eyes before the sun rose over his isolated combat outpost. His soldiers did the same as they checked and double-checked their weapons and communications equipment. Ahead was a dangerous foot patrol into the heart of Taliban territory. "Has anyone seen the [Afghan National Army] guys?" asked Capt. Thoreen, 30, the commander of Blackwatch Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment with the 5th Stryker Brigade. "Are they not showing up?" A soldier, who looked ghostly in the reddish light of a headlamp, shook his head. "We can't do anything if we don't have the ANA or [the Afghan National Police]," said a frustrated Capt. Thoreen. "We have to follow the Karzai 12 rules. But the Taliban has no rules," he said. "Our soldiers have to juggle all these rules and regulations and they do it without hesitation despite everything.
VIDEO: Life on the frontline with the Afghan Army -- [Helmand Blog]
Bombed, Blasted and Shot Yet Still the Taliban Come -- [The Times]
Two years ago Corporal Alex Temple fought like a lion to capture the Afghan town of Musa Qala from the Taliban. Last week he was back, once again in a fierce battle just two miles from its centre. "It has changed though," he said. "It's more dangerous. The fighting is harder." Amid the thunder of battle, I saw Temple lead men forward with the same raw courage I had witnessed before. The British soldiers with him seemed more composed, unperturbed by the bullets flying past their heads. The Afghan army on their flanks was better armed and vastly more competent. Yet the enemy had learnt too.
Taliban kill Bajaur opposition leader, target Peshawar leader -- [LWJ Bill Roggio]
The Taliban continue their campaign to remove tribal opposition leaders in the Northwest. A leader who agreed to fight the Taliban in Bajaur was killed, while another anti-Taliban leader escaped an assassination attempt in Peshawar. In Bajaur, the Taliban killed Malik Shir Zaman, a tribal leader who signed an agreement with the government. Zaman had agreed to raise a lashkar, or tribal militia, to oppose the Taliban. The Taliban stormed Zaman's home and destroyed part of it. Zaman was killed in a gunfight. Zaman was from the Mamond tribal area, a region that serves as a stronghold for the Taliban and Faqir Mohammed, the chief of the Bajaur Taliban. Although the military has conducted several operations there, it has failed to eject the Taliban.
For Pakistani President, Goodbye to Goodwill --[Washington Post]
President Asif Ali Zardari, who entered office 14 months ago on a wave of post-dictatorship goodwill and sympathy for his slain wife, Benazir Bhutto, now faces growing public anger and disillusionment over his remote presidency. Some critics are urging him to step down, and others predict he will be forced from office within months.
US Set to Open New Afghan Prison -- [Wall Street Journal]
Officials unveiled a new $60 million detention facility at the main US air base in Afghanistan and promised greater transparency at a prison where Afghans have long suspected hundreds of their countrymen are being held for dubious reasons. The new prison and the pledge to open the inmate review process come as the Department of Defense worries that abuses and militant recruiting within Afghan prisons are helping strengthen the Taliban. A Pentagon review earlier this year called for a broad overhaul of the Afghan penal system, as well as of the US's prison at Bagram Air Base. The old Bagram prison is housed in a Soviet-era machinery hangar. Critics of the old prison, where two inmates died after being interrogated in 2002, have referred to it as "Obama's Gitmo."
Was the Iraq War Worth It? A Divided City Tries to Answer. -- [Washington Post]
The Shiite pilgrims arrive in crowded buses and are dropped off just outside the shrine's gate. They walk down a narrow path patrolled by security guards and lined with tall cement walls to pray at the al-Askari mosque, the resting place of two of the most revered figures in Shiite Islam. The mosque, which once had a golden dome that sparkled in this city of gray, looks like a construction site, with piles of debris and scaffolding - remnants of the February 2006 bombing that unleashed a brutal civil war between Sunnis and Shiites. The thousands of visitors who come each week, mostly Iranians and Iraqis from southern provinces, don't venture from the tear-shaped exclusion zone. Just outside, stores and hotels that once thrived on tourism make up a battle-scarred ghost town. City leaders, merchants and residents have grown deeply resentful at being cut off from the economic heart of the city. "We feel like we're living in a big prison," said merchant Ghazan Hamid, whose shop lies just beyond the wall protecting the mosque. Samarra, where the US military closed a key base this fall, in many ways embodies the Iraq that American forces are leaving behind as the troop drawdown begins in earnest.
Militants Disguised As Troops Kill 13 In Iraq -- [RTT News]
Despite a fall in violence in Iraq since last year, a number of recent blasts have raised fears that sustained violence could return to the country,
Seasons -- [The Life - in Iraq]
Now that it's November, the weather in Basra, Iraq has turned. The air has cooled and the dust storms of the summer are a thing of the past.
Blackhawk rides have become bearable, not leaving you sapped of energy and sweating through all the layers of your clothing and body armor by the time you land.
800,000 Converts from Islam? -- [The_Anchoress]
From my fellow FT'er, comes news that there are, apparently, 800,000 new Muslim converts to Christianity.
Why the US should keep an eye on China's military -- [Foreign Policy]
Asian leaders are privately, and increasingly publicly, concerned about China's growing military might and what they see as a failure of the United States
Obama seeks China's support -- [The Australian]
BARACK Obama will today urge China's President Hu Jintao to join with the US and Russia in sanctions against Iran in an effort to curb the Islamic
UN atomic watchdog wants answers from Iran -- [AFP]
VIENNA -- Iran's explanation about the nature and purpose of a previously undeclared second nuclear site "requires further clarification", the UN atomic
Obama says al Qaeda still greatest threat to U.S. -- [Reuters]
President Barack Obama said on Monday that al Qaeda remained the biggest threat to U.S. security, as his aides stepped up pressure on Afghanistan and Pakistan to cooperate with Washington's strategy in the troubled region.
Experts Outline Hurdles in Trying to Defend Hasan -- [New York Times]
Defending the man accused of premeditated murder in the Nov. 5 shooting rampage at Fort Hood is the kind of test that many lawyers dread, and that some live for. How does Col. John P. Galligan, the retired Army officer who is representing the accused, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, defend someone who shot and killed 13 people before so many witnesses, whose story became national news, in a court where the judge and jury will be fellow soldiers? Military experts say the best Colonel Galligan might hope for is to save his client from the death penalty. "There won't be a lot of guilt-innocence maneuverability there," said Thomas H. Dunn, a former defense lawyer for the Army in death penalty cases. Avenues of defense, experts said, could include the military equivalent of an insanity plea, petitioning for a change of venue to take the proceedings away from the emotions of Fort Hood, and delaying the proceedings to allow the passions to ebb. Questions could also be raised about the prejudicial effect of statements by military officials, and even by the commander in chief, President Obama, who spoke of the "murderous and craven acts" at the memorial service. Ultimately,...
Cleric Says He Was Confidant to Hasan -- [Washington Post]
In his first interview with a journalist since the Fort Hood rampage, Yemeni American cleric Anwar al-Aulaqi said that he neither ordered nor pressured Maj. Nidal M. Hasan to harm Americans, but that he considered himself a confidant of the Army psychiatrist who was given a glimpse via e-mail into Nadal's growing discomfort with the US military. The cleric said he thought he played a role in transforming Hasan into a devout Muslim eight years ago, when Hasan listened to his lectures at the Dar al-Hijra mosque in Northern Virginia. Aulaqi said that Hasan "trusted" him and that the two developed an e-mail correspondence over the past year.
Remaining Detainees Leave Guantanamo's Closure Up in Air -- [Los Angeles Times]
The Obama administration took an important step toward closing the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, when it announced plans Friday to prosecute the accused Sept. 11 conspirators in the United States. But the move also underscored the near certainty that President Obama will miss a self-imposed January deadline for shuttering the controversial facility. Five detainees - including self-proclaimed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, will be tried in federal court in New York. But the plans leave unsettled the fate of more than 200 remaining detainees, who now represent the biggest obstacle to closing the prison.
Durbin, Quinn see economic boon -- [Sun Times]
...According to an economic impact analysis by the Obama administration, the federal purchase and operation of Thomson could generate $1 billion for the local economy over four years and create between 2,340 and 3,250 jobs.
Quinn and Obama discussed converting Thomson to a federal facility at a Nov. 4 White House meeting. In a Nov. 12 letter to Holder and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, the governor acknowledged that Guantanamo prisoners could end up at Thomson.
Wounded Warrior, Wife Overcome Adversity -- [Family Matters Blog]
When I recently walked into the lobby of Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., I felt that familiar sense of awe and excitement I always feel when I'm about to be in the presence of wounded warriors. These troops wage war on the battlefield and, when injured, wage a different type of war back home, a battle that requires just as much, if not more, courage and resilience. I must admit I'm a huge fan. I was there to meet with a wounded soldier and his wife to find out how they had weathered the depths of deployment and injury and made it through. Army Staff Sgt. Robert Canine and his wife, Jennifer, an attractive, young couple, greeted me warmly and immediately put me at ease. At first glance, you'd never notice that Robert had been injured
Group collects food, hygiene and gift items to send to troops for the holidays -- [Steamboat Pilot]
Molly Hibbard, part of the local Support the Troops group, said the lack of commissaries in Afghanistan means
Dr. No and the Wounded Veterans -- [NY Times]
A creative plan to help wounded veterans and their exhausted families adapt to the strain of long-term home care is on the brink of bipartisan approval -- but for the familiar obstructionism of Senator Tom Coburn. This is one of the most deplorable displays by the lawmaker-physician, an Oklahoma Republican who relishes playing the self-styled budget hawk by putting attention-grabbing holds on crucial legislation.
Lack of Healthcare Kills Veterans at Much Higher Rate than Combat -- [Salem-News]
Harvard study shows that for every American killed in Afghanistan in 2008, 14 military veterans died because they lacked healthcare coverage
700 Connecticut National Guard Soldiers Heading Off To Iraq, Afghanistan -- [The Courant]
The dispatching of the 1st Battalion, 102nd Infantry Regiment of New Haven to Afghanistan, and the 250th Engineer Company of New London, a bridge-building unit that is being sent to Iraq, is the largest single deployment of Connecticut Guard members since the Korean War.
Morale and Meaning -- [CBN - Boots on the Ground: Chuck Holton]
The AP recently published an article calling on two recent studies from the U.S. Army Medical Department's Mental Health Advisory team. These reports polled soldiers in combat and non-combat units in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and found that unit morale is dropping in Afghanistan and holding steady in Iraq.
As President Obama continues to mull his response to General McChrystal's request for more troops, and in the wake of the cowardly killings of 13 Soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, the media is asking lots of questions about the mental health of America's military. And these reports seem to be more fuel for the theory that our men and women serving overseas are being stretched to the breaking point.
Families and friends welcome home airmen from the 115th Fighter Wing -- [Daily Cardinal]
Jim Doyle welcomed the troops as they exited an aircraft at Truax Field in Madison. Afterwards, friends and family met their loved ones at the Wisconsin
Obama Bristles At AP Question: Loven At Risk Of Being Shunned -- [Wizbang]
Herein is a just a small measure of a thin skinned White House on the matter of Afghanistan policy. Considering that the source is Politico, which covets its White House access, and the quoted question came from none other than AP Obama maven Jennifer Loven, it can only be concluded that, to a small degree, some in the media are seeing themselves as Hope and Change chumps.
The two faces of Matthew Alexander -- [This Ain't Hell ...]
Matthew Alexander published his book last year entitled "How to Break a Terrorist: The U.S. Interrogators Who Used Brains, Not Brutality, to Take Down the Deadliest Man in Iraq". The book has it's roots in a Mark Bowden article in the Atlantic. Alexander parlayed the Atlantic article into a book deal.
...Olbermann didn't read the book, or if he did, he didn't mind that Alexander lied about what he wrote in the book. In the interview, ...
In the interview, Alexander says that he used interrogation techniques in Iraq that the military isn't using, however, throughout the book, he credits his instructors at the "Schoolhouse" (his word) for teaching him these new techniques. But in one brief paragraph he says he talked religion with a terrorist which would have made his instructors at the "Schoolhouse", to use his phrase, "shit bricks" - so I have to assume that the whole book is about that one little conversation since that's the only time he deviated from his training by his own admission.
Hostages -- [Michael Yon]
When New York Times journalist David Rohde was kidnapped last year in Afghanistan, the company engaged in a painstaking effort to squash the story. They succeeded in persuading major media who learned of the kidnapping to keep quiet. The cover-up was so good that a New York Times reporter I spoke with in December 2008, while she and I joined Secretary Gates on a trip through Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iraq and back to the United States, had not heard about the David Rohde kidnapping.
The New York Times openly agrees that publishing such articles increases the peril to the lives of hostages, yet it published details about a British couple being held hostage in Somalia, and thus increased the value of the hostages to the kidnappers.
Obama sends letter to Philippine Muslim rebel leader -- [Asia-Pacific News]
Manila - US President Barack Obama has sent a letter to the leader of the main Muslim rebel group in the Philippines, a guerrilla official said Saturday.
The letter to Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chairman Murad Ibrahim was delivered to rebel peace negotiators by Deputy Assistant State Secretary Scot Marciel, according to Muhammad Ameen, chairman of the MILF secretariat.
Ameen said Marciel and two other US diplomats met MILF peace negotiators headed by Mohagher Iqbal on November 6. Ameen did not disclose the contents of the letter but said it was a response to a letter Murad sent to Obama after he won the election last year.
On Friday, US State Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton urged the Philippine government and the MILF to conclude a peace deal before the end of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's term next year.
Shocker. Obama Slams Bush & America in Japan -- [Gateway Pundit]
It just wouldn't be the same if Obama went abroad without trashing Bush or America...
President Obama took the time to trash former President Bush and America during his visit to Japan.
(Need more? Dawn Patrols Archives are here.)
Comments (if any):
Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various 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. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
Updating....
Obama: decision soon on troops for Afghanistan -- [AP]
President Barack Obama said Friday that his decision about how many troops to send to Afghanistan will come soon and he is bent on "getting this
Landstuhl staff busy as Afghan fight intensifies -- [Stars&Stripes]
LANDSTUHL, Germany -- On a drizzly, frigid morning, about 20 injured servicemembers were unloaded from buses at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center.
Some walked off. Others lay on gurneys covered in green blankets that had kept them warm on the long flight from Afghanistan. As the hospital staff eased the wounded off the buses, the mood grew solemn, as it often has lately.
...The number of combat-wounded troops from Afghanistan treated at the hospital has spiked during the past three months. Doctors from Landstuhl -- the first stop for the wounded from the war zone -- saw 163 troops with battle injuries during August, 152 in September and 109 in October.
Obama: Key for Afghans to provide for own security -- [Reuters]
President Barack Obama said on Friday he would make a decision soon on his Afghanistan strategy and the plan would make clear the goal is for Afghans to provide for their own security. He added that the U.S. commitment in Afghanistan could not be open-ended.
Asked at a news conference in Japan what information he still needed to enable him to make a decision, Obama said it was not matter of awaiting a piece of data.
Instead, he said, "It's a matter of making certain that when I send young men and women into war and devote billions of dollars in U.S. taxpayer money, that it's making us safer and that the strategies that are in place, not just on the military side but also on the civilian side, are coordinated and effective in our primary goal."
Army says morale down among troops in Afghanistan -- [AP]
WASHINGTON -- The army says morale has fallen among its forces in Afghanistan, where troops are seeing record violence in the 8-year-old war.
"ER" Nursed back to Health -- [Afghanistan My Last Tour - in Afghanistan]
Today's mission was to travel to Camp Phoenix and retrieve "ER," one of our MRAPs. Despite being the ambulance model, we do not use it as such, so the boss doesn't want me to refer to it as ER anymore. Instead, it has been relabeled 5K-1 (5th Kandak, vehicle 1). It was another cool morning and my ETT team readied the vehicles for the mission. Our MRAPs are undergoing maintenance, so we used our fleet of armored HMMVWs for this mission. Meanwhile, I was busy loading lumber on a contractor's truck so it can be pushed out to another FOB down south. The lumber will be used to build a tent floor for our ANA brothers. Recently an insurgent rocket destroyed one of our sister Kandak b-huts (tragically killed 2 ANA soldiers) and another one accidentally burned down resulting in the death of another ANA comrade.
Rift in US War Cabinet as Obama Throws Out All Options in Debate Over Troop Surge -- [The Times]
Two leaked classified cables from the US Ambassador in Kabul voicing grave concern about sending more American troops to Afghanistan have exposed open conflict inside President Obama's national security team over his war strategy.
Gates Lashes Out at Leakers -- [Defense Link]
...Gates said he has little doubt that some of those leaks have come from within the Defense Department. "If I found out who" was involved, he said, "it would probably be a career ender." Leaking information as Obama is weighing critical factors serves neither the interest of the country nor the military, the secretary said.
Envoy Questioning More Troops in Afghanistan Was Military Hawk Under Bush -- [FOXNews]
"Ambassador Eikenberry expressed his reservations about troop increases to the president while Afghanistan's political situation remains unclear,"...
The Cable Guy -- [Quatto Zone - in Afghanistan]
In an Afghan version of the chicken-or-egg question, cables by U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry leaked today urged President Obama to continue to delay a decision to deploy more troops until Hamid Karzai's government takes a stronger stand against corruption. There are political speculations about the ambassador's motives (Spencer Ackerman, for example, suggests the cables are designed to expand the Embassy's influence in Afghanistan) and a double standard already at work in press coverage (don't expect Eikenberry to suffer the same outrage that greeted General McChrystal regarding the propriety of influencing policy deliberations). But the most interesting aspect of the episode is ...
White House Talks Up Need for Exit Strategy in Afghanistan -- [Los Angeles Times]
The White House sent its strongest signal yet Thursday that it is searching for an eventual way out of Afghanistan even as it considers sending thousands of additional troops to join the war there. Emphasizing the importance of timetables for US involvement, administration officials stressed that President Obama is concerned about how long American troops will remain in the country and wants to avoid an "open-ended" commitment. "We have been there for eight years, and we're not going to be there forever," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters.
Japan aid pledge for Afghanistan - return to checkbook diplomacy? -- [Christian Science Monitor]
Japan has offered $5 billion in nonmilitary aid to Afghanistan as it ends refueling mission for US forces.
Germany Sends More Troops to Northern Afghanistan -- [Bloomberg]
13 (Bloomberg) -- Germany will send a company of 120 extra soldiers to northern Afghanistan as the Taliban-led insurgency in the once relatively peaceful
Bomber Strikes Near US Military Base in Afghan Capital -- [Voice of America]
By VOA News Afghan officials say a suicide bomber struck a convoy of vehicles Friday near a US-run NATO military base in Kabul, wounding six people.
Down Time in Afghanistan -- [NY Times - At War - in Afghanistan]
On a recent reporting trip to Afghanistan's Helmand Province with Dexter Filkins, the photographer Peter van Agtmael captured images of American and Afghan soldiers during some down time.
Digger dog found after Afghan adventure [ABC News]
An Australian Special Forces explosives detection dog has been found alive and well almost 14 months after going missing in action (MIA) in Afghanistan.
Iraq Lesson Still Unlearned: We Won -- [Investors.com]
You wouldn't know it from most news coverage, but the Iraq story continues and -- get this -- it's a story of emerging victory. What else can you call it when a stable democracy, the ultimate goal in America's military intervention, is in sight?
...These are all signs that the U.S. nation-building effort in Iraq, once widely seen as hopeless, is working. The liberal view of the Iraq War -- that of a debacle from which we cannot escape fast enough -- can't stand up for long against such good news. That may be why certain news gatekeepers stressed the theme of U.S. withdrawal when they reported the passage of the election law.
Rebuilding Its Economy, Iraq Shuns US Businesses -- [New York Times]
BAGHDAD -- Iraq's Baghdad Trade Fair ended Tuesday, six years and a trillion dollars after the American invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein,
Oops: Biden Never Supported the Partition of Iraq? -- [Times Watch]
Thursday's off-lead story by James Glanz and Walter Gibbs is on recent revelations that Peter Galbraith, an "unpaid adviser to the Kurds" who has influenced Democratic policymakers like former senator/VP Joe Biden and Sen. John Kerry, stands to make millions from his closeness to the Kurds and a Norwegian oil company.
Given the Times sympathies for anti-war and leftish "blood for oil" arguments, the Times couldn't ignore the story, and indeed provides a lot of new damning details -- but also has one enormous gaffe that lets Vice President Biden off the hook.
Marines welcome Iraqi Airmen to Camp -- [MNF-I]
The Iraqi Ministry of Defense has based one Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) helicopter detachment here to support the Iraqi Security Forces in Anbar province.
Iraqi court rules Guardian defamed Nouri al-Maliki -- [Guardian]
An Iraqi court has ordered the Guardian to pay Nouri al-Maliki damages of 100m dinar (£52,000) after supporting a complaint by the Iraqi prime minister's intelligence service that he had been defamed by a Guardian story in April describing him as increasingly autocratic.
Iraq in the rear view mirror -- [Blogs Over Baghdad - leaving Iraq]
After nearly 330 days, all of the 314th PAOC Soldiers are now out of Iraq and on our way home. The last 8 of us, including LTC Perez and me, left Baghdad International Airport right at the end of Veterans Day. Four of our Soldiers are already at Fort Dix doing the work of the advanced party...and the rest of us will join them in a few days. We all slept in yesterday morning, and then started the work day with an awards ceremony. SGTs Autumn Hope, Mary Lee and Kellena Leech all received an Army Achievement Medal for work they did toward the end of our year in Iraq. SSG Jeremy Fowler received a Certificate of Achievement for an incredible end-of-tour magazine he created that spotlighted all our Soldiers. Family members might want to look at the magazine to get some insight into the experiences of their loved ones
Lawyer: Accused Fort Hood gunman may be paralyzed -- [AP]
FORT HOOD, Texas -- The Army psychiatrist accused in the fatal shootings at Fort Hood may be paralyzed from the waist down after being shot multiple times
Second Officer Gives an Account of the Shooting at Ft. Hood -- [New York Times]
Sgt. Kimberly D. Munley has been applauded as a hero across the nation for shooting down Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan during the bloody rampage at Fort Hood last week. The account of heroism, given by the authorities, attracted the attention of newspapers, the networks and television talk shows. But the initial story of how she and the accused gunman went down in an exchange of gunfire now appears to be inaccurate. Another officer, Senior Sgt. Mark Todd, 42, said in an interview Thursday that he fired the shots that brought down the gunman after Sergeant Munley was seriously wounded.
Feds Move Against Iranian Mosques; 1st Amendment Rears Its Head -- [PJM - Michael Ledeen]
It's undoubtedly sheer coincidence as Michael Rubin told the AP, but just as the debate over Hasan-Son-of-Allah takes on greater intensity, the Justice Department has moved to seize what is says are Iranian assets in America. They have tagged four mosques and the Piaget Building at 650 Fifth Avenue in New York, New York.
This is stage two of an ongoing action against the Alavi Foundation, and what the government alleges to be a front company, the Assa Corporation.
Breaking: Hasan wired money to Pakistan? -- [Hot Air]
Share on Facebook | printer-friendly This would appear to indicate that Nidal Hasan was something other than a loner who cracked under the strain of vicarious PTSD. The man who made a $90,000 annual salary but lived like a pauper may have sent money to Pakistan, according to Rep. Pete Hoekstra
Bureaucracy, Culture & Ft. Hood Attacks -- [Counterterrorism Blog]
The Fort Hood attack was an intelligence failure, just like 9/11 and so many others before. In retrospect, it all seems obvious - these kinds of failures always do. It is easy to blame bureaucratic inertia, but it is also unfair. Large organizations need procedures to function. Priorities must be set and decisions have to be made and implemented.
Examining the system failure is revealing, both about the challenges in preventing these kinds of tragedies but also in how they reveal some of our society's core values.
'I agreed to become a suicide bomber' -- [BBC]
A 14-year-old boy in the tribal region of Bajaur, in north-west Pakistan, says he was detained by Taliban forces who tried to turn him into a suicide bomber. The boy is now in army hands. He provided a detailed account to BBC correspondent Orla Guerin. His story cannot be independently verified.
Gitmo 9/11 suspects heading to NY trial -- [AP]
Self-proclaimed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other Guantanamo Bay detainees will be sent to New York to face trial in a civilian federal court, and five other suspects will be sent to military commissions, an Obama administration official said Friday. The official said Attorney General Eric Holder plans to announce the decision later in the morning. The official is not authorized to discuss the decision before the announcement, so spoke on condition of anonymity.
US to seize mosques linked to Iran -- [UKPA]
US Federal prosecutors are seeking to take over four mosques and a New York City skyscraper owned by a Muslim organisation suspected of being controlled by the Iranian government. Prosecutors have filed a civil complaint in federal court against the Alavi Foundation, seeking the forfeiture of more than 500 million dollars (£302 million) in assets.
The assets include bank accounts; Islamic centres consisting of schools and mosques in New York, Maryland, California and Houston; more than 100 acres in Virginia; and a 36-story Manhattan office tower.
Lawyer: FBI asked terror suspect to be informant -- [AP]
A Massachusetts man accused of plotting to kill Americans was portrayed by federal prosecutors Thursday as a jihadist who is too dangerous to be released on bail, but the man's lawyer said he was charged only after he refused to become an FBI informant against Muslims.
US Post Office offering deals on military mail -- [13abc]
Today is the recommended mailing date if you want to send a parcel post package to a member of the military serving overseas. For members of our military
CACI Named to GI Jobs Top 100 Military-Friendly Employers -- [CNNMoney]
12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CACI International Inc (NYSE: CACI) announced today that it has placed 31st in GI Jobs magazine's Top 100 military-friendly
SBA, Six Universities to Offer Business Training for Iraq/Afghanistan Disabled Vets -- [Business Wire]
The U.S. Small Business Administration today announced a three-year agreement to expand and deliver entrepreneurship training for service-disabled veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hal Muskat: don't thank me -- [This ain't Hell,...]
Yes, there are 363 days every year to express your personal disrespect for soldiers. Just like a black person thinks he has a right to call other black people the "n" word, some veterans think they can use Veterans' Day to call other veterans vile names. Hal Muskat, one of the original zombies of the VVAW, is just like that. He begins his Veterans Day rant by trying to undo all of the work veterans and their service organizations have accomplished over the last thirty years;
The American Valor Project -- [BlackFive - Uncle Jimbo]
Stephens Media has an initiative underway to spotlight our new generation of heroes on the pages of their newspapers and their websites call the American Valor Project. It salutes those who have gone above and beyond the call in the war on terror. You will recognize some of the names from our Someone you should know series.
Medals Of Dishonor -- [Smoking Gun]
FBI: Prodigiously decorated California man never served in military
Just in time for Veteran's Day, a California bank employee is facing federal charges for allegedly masquerading as a decorated Marine and wearing a host of bogus medals, including the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and Navy Cross. Steven Burton, 39, is scheduled to surrender tomorrow in U.S. District Court in Riverside, California (Burton, who has never served in the armed forces, was named last week in a misdemeanor criminal information charging him with the unauthorized wearing of military medals). According to a search warrant affidavit, Burton's charade was discovered after an actual Navy commander, Colleen Salonga, ran into Burton at their high school reunion.
Martinez native accused of dressing up as hero -- [San Francisco Chronicle]
So were military officials, who said Burton had never served in the military - nor had he spent a day fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan, as he claimed.
US Troops are Not Getting The Heroic Welcome Home They So Richly Deserve -- [NewsBlaze]
I had the honor of meeting some of these troops and watched more than two thousand freshly returned from Iraq and Afghanistan preparing to march.
A red, white and blue crowd greets soldiers at D/FW Airport -- [Dallas Morning News]
A soldier knelt to high-five a young child who was waving and smiling as he and others in uniform came down a crowded aisle at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
The soldier paused for a moment to grasp the child's hand, tears in his eyes.
It was apparent that he didn't know the child - or any of the others in the crowd who turned out to welcome him.
But it didn't matter. He was home.
Families and friends welcome home airmen from the 115th Fighter Wing -- [Daily Cardinal]
Jim Doyle welcomed the troops as they exited an aircraft at Truax Field in Madison. Afterwards, friends and family met their loved ones at the Wisconsin
The New Media: The Dark Side -- [Wings Over Iraq]
Additional links: Adam Elkus--Ft. Hood: A Social Media Failure, ABC News "Fort Hood Soldier Causes Stir on Twitter"
In September of 2009, the Associated Press came under intense criticism for publishing pictures of Lance Corporal Joshua Bernard, as he lay dying in Afghanistan. The picture was published soon after his death, against the wishes of the family. Although the Associated Press' actions were protected under the First Amendment, their actions were, as Tom Ricks puts it, "morally indefensible". Indeed, the pictures were decried by many throughout the defense community, including Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.
Charles Krauthammer on the media coverage of the Fort Hood shooting -- [Washington Post]
What a surprise -- that someone who shouts "Allahu Akbar" (the "God is great" jihadist battle cry) as he is shooting up a room of American soldiers might have Islamist motives. It certainly was a surprise to the mainstream media
Top Republican says White House hiding info on Fort Hood -- [The Hill]
The ranking Republican on the House intelligence committee on Tuesday night accused the White House of withholding information on the Fort Hood attack.
Rep. Pete Hoekstra (Mich.) said administration officials delayed briefing members of Congress about the alleged gunman, raising "red flags" about what the White House was hiding.
The Politics of Fort Hood -- [NRO - Jonah Goldberg]
...That effort stems from what Obama believes to be a sweeping mandate to be Not George Bush. In pursuit of that mandate, the White House has already purged the phrase "war on terror" from its lexicon, preferring "overseas contingency operations." Obama is hell-bent on closing Guantanamo Bay, is making progress on the White House project to treat terrorists as mere criminals, and has kowtowed to the United Nations as no president has. Meanwhile, his secretary of homeland security, Janet Napolitano, says that Islamic terrorism of the type we saw on 9/11 should now be referred to as "man-caused disasters." But she adds that American right-wingers must be scrutinized as potential terrorists.
Suckers of the Week -- [Slate- Kaus Files]
"Am I the only one who smells Kabuki in the reports that President Obama has dramatically rejected all the Afghan war options with which he was presented, demanding to know where the 'off ramps' are? If you were about to recommend a troop increase that was unpopular, especially with your Democratic base, wouldn't you precede it with some drama like this to demonstrate that you are a) in charge, b) not being conned, and c) insistent on a withdrawal as quickly as possible? Just asking."
(Need more? Dawn Patrols Archives are here.)
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Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various 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. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
Muggers Return Wallet After Seeing Army ID -- [FOX News]
Muggers Return Wallet After Seeing Army ID, A Milwaukee Army reservist's military identification earned him some street cred Tuesday, when he says four men who mugged him at gunpoint returned his belongings and thanked him for his service after finding the ID.
Serving those who have served us well -- [The Statesman]
Patti Patton-Bader's living room is filled nearly to the ceiling with cardboard boxes containing packages for wounded soldiers. Soon, they will make their way from her Bastrop home to hospitals and bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, where soldiers will find clothing with fabric-fastener flaps to replace flimsy paper hospital gowns, as well as phone cards to call home once they reach Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany and a "blanket of hope" -- a personalized quilt handmade by a Soldiers' Angels volunteer.
Patton-Bader, the grandniece of Gen. George S. Patton, started the group shortly after her son Brandon deployed to Iraq in 2003.
Standing Tall in Harm's Way -- [Washington Post - David Ignatius]
...This picture of a traumatized military is misleading. Certainly, the Army and the other services are stressed by the demands of combat. But what's striking to me this Veterans Day is how healthy the military is, given all the weight it has been carrying for the country these past eight years.
Vietnam Myths Haunt Afghanistan -- [Washington Times]
Adm. Jeremiah A. Denton Jr. is a true American hero. The former senator, retired admiral and naval aviator spent almost eight years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam, half of that time in solitary confinement. When forced by his captors to do a television interview in 1966, he blinked the word "torture" in Morse code. He's the kind of man Washington leaders might want to listen to more carefully than the average purveyor of foreign-policy wisdom. Adm. Denton's classic account of his experiences, "When Hell Was in Session," is being re-released today, updated with a new epilogue. In part, Adm. Denton seeks to "correct some of the mythology of the Vietnam War." The version of the war that has come down through pop culture, the media and history books is fatally flawed - and those flaws may well be informing critical decisions at the White House.
Veterans Day - Part II - It's About The Living -- [BlackFive]
Pearl Harbor survivor Houston James of Dallas embraces Marine Staff Sgt. Mark Graunke Jr. during a Veterans Day commemoration in Dallas. Graunke lost a hand, a leg and and eye when he was injured by a bomb...
Ripley At The Bridge -- [The Anti-Chomskyan Redoubt]
This article, written by Jeremias Wells, tells of one of the most harrowing and heroic stories of the war in Vietnam.
Ripley's American adviser contact continued to give him bad news. Practically all resistance north of the bridge had been wiped out, which was probably the source of the ARVN deserters clogging the road along with the refugees. Then came the final blow: "We finally got a spotter plane in the air. They have tanks and armored personnel carriers stretched along Highway 1 for miles. Must be at least two hundred."
Ripley shouted back, "We can't stop that many. We have to blow the bridge at Dong Ha."
...Ripley worked his way over to the downstream side and repeated the process and then hand-walked back to the fence. He realized that he had exceeded all normal human endurance, so again turned to God and His Mother: "Jesus and Mary, get me there! Jesus and Mary, get me there..." He climbed back through the razor wire once more and fell to the ground near the abutment in a bloody heap. He was so tired that he could hardly lift his arm. The major tapped him on the back. "Look what I found. But you won't need them now." He pointed to a box of electrical detonators. Ripley looked at the caps and realized that he had to go through the ordeal under the bridge once again. He had always been taught to rig up a backup charge if one was available, At this point, the substance of a man takes over.
Veteran's Day 2009 -- [John of Argghhh!!!]
Today is my day. Today is SWWBO's day. Today is Dusty's day. Today is Bill's day. Neffi's, Bloodspite's, Sanger's, Jim B's, Mike L's, Jim C's, John S', V29's, Sergeant B's, 1SG Keith's, Oldloadr's, 74's, CAPT H's, a certain Canadian Gunner who shall remain nameless, a certain Redleg Captain who shall remain nameless, RetRsvMike's, the 'Phibian's, Lex's, Matty's, Chuck's, Fishmugger, John(NTA), Heartless Libertarian's, Kevin's, Grumpy's, Grimmy's, the list is endless, and I know I didn't list everybody - feel free to add yourself in the comments. That would be a nice touch, actually.
How I will spend this Veterans Day -- [Burn Pit - MOTHAX]
...I almost never venture forth from my bloggers lair on Veterans Day. I have a face made for radio as the saying is, and I don't really like crowds. So it is the one time a year when I play the "Veterans prerogative" and simply stay home and don't do much of anything. A few years ago I got to spend a Veterans Day with all the folks at the White House and other veterans groups, and that was nice, but again, I prefer to spend the day alone. I generally call some of my friends and wish them a happy Veterans Day, but conversely when they call me to wish the same, I feel kinda silly. It's almost like Veterans Day doesn't apply to me. It applies to WWII vets, Korean War vets, the guys and gals who fought in Viet Nam, but not to me. Part of my feeling is that my war isn't over. Everyone can thank us when it is done, but for now, there is a lot more to do.
Marines of the Day: SSgt. Theodore "Sam" Holder and LCpl. Kyle Burns -- [Villainous Company]
Veterans' Day is for the living. Memorial Day is for the fallen.
That said, for those in 1st LAR, Veterans' Day 2004 is when the unit lost Holder and Burns in the second battle of Fallujah. Today is the 5th anniversary of their deaths.
Veterans Day -- [Neptunus Lex]
...In this land we are graced with a vibrant political culture, but it was Washington's guns and musketeers who gave it to us. We enjoy the remote fastness of our island home, but it was Decatur, Farragut and Porter who scoured the seas to defend our ocean ramparts. We have human freedom and increasing dignity here at home, but not before three million boys in blue and butternut contended the terms of that freedom. We have liberal democracies here and abroad, but not before millions more marched forth asking for nothing but a patch of earth to be buried in, should it come to that.
There are many blessings in this land, but although we tend to treat them as birthrights, transferable to our heirs in perpetuity, the reality is that all of them have been fought over. Perhaps the greatest blessing of all is that in each generation there have been those who answered their country's call when it came and said, "I'll go. I'll do it. Pick me."
They are the veterans, and this is our day to thank them.
I'm the one they call Doc -- [ROK Drop]
Many brave Marines wouldn't be alive today without the aid of the hospital corpsman who labored hard and often bravely to keep their fellow men alive. Did you know 22 of us have won the Medal of Honor? I used to be able to roll off the names by memory, but I'm getting old and my memory isn't as good. Did a spot check this morning and remembered 17 of them. The US Marines rely on specially trained HM aka battlefield corpsmen to go into harm's way in order to treat and save men who fall in battle.Why did I say us earlier? I was a Hospital Corpsman from 1980 to 1989.
On Veteran's Day -- [Foreign Object Damage]
On the 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month, a salute to America's Veterans. Also a salute to the wives and husbands of those who served. While we were out flying, riding, or walking somewhere, they held down the home front. And worried.
Years later my wife told me of how her heart would sink if ...
Veteran's Day 2009 -- [Miserable Donuts]
Veteran's Day. Growing up it usually meant a day off from school. And as I got older, I started to learn what it meant to the Veteran most involved in my life...
Dad, home on leave, from the Navy in 1945. Later I learned what it meant to an uncle...
MICHELLE OBAMA AND JILL BIDEN JOIN SERVICENATION ON VETERANS DAY TO LAUNCH MISSION SERVE: FORGING A CONTINUUM OF SERVICE -- [Service Nation]
Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden, and Alma J. Powell, three of the nation's most inspiring advocates of service, will join ServiceNation today to launch MISSION SERVE: Forging a Continuum of Service. The initiative gets underway by partnering more than 50 civilian and military service organizations in 36 programs designed to more closely integrate service to country with service to community, helping grow the service movement that is critical to America's future success.
The First Lady and Dr. Biden will join hundreds of active-duty service members, veterans, military families, and volunteers representing service organizations at a ceremony on Veterans Day at George Washington University. Also speaking at the event will be Undersecretary of the Army Dr. Joseph W. Westphal and Major General Steven R. Abt, Deputy Commander, US Army Accessions Command, which has been a leader in partnering with ServiceNation.
In Afghanistan, Taliban Surpasses al-Qaeda -- [Washington Post]
As violence rises in Afghanistan, the power balance between insurgent groups has shifted, with a weakened al-Qaeda relying increasingly on the emboldened Taliban for protection and the manpower to carry out deadly attacks, according to US military and intelligence officials. The ascendancy of the Taliban and the relative decline of al-Qaeda have broad implications for the Obama administration as it seeks to define its enemy in Afghanistan and debates deploying tens of thousands of additional troops.
Bringing Him Home -- [The Military Observer]
Kandahar, Afghanistan. They call it a "Dignified Transfer," which is Pentagon-ese for bringing home the body of one of our young men.
Two days ago I flew here from Camp Bastion on a cargo flight. The plane was virtually empty; five passengers and me, the small Air Force crew, and covered by an American flag, the remains of one of our troops killed in Helmand Province. The military's goal is to bring our dead back home within 48 hours, and this was the first leg of such a journey.
Obama Receives New Afghan Option -- [Wall Street Journal]
'Hybrid' Compromise Would Combine Troops, Trainers to Hold Back Taliban and Boost Local Military
President Barack Obama on Wednesday will consider a new compromise plan for adding troops to Afghanistan that would deploy 30,000 to 35,000 new forces, including as many as 10,000 military trainers, over the next year or more.
Obama Aides Accuse Pentagon of Pressuring President Over Afghanistan -- [Daily Telegraph]
Aides to Barack Obama have complained that the Pentagon is trying to force the president into committing large numbers of reinforcements to Afghanistan through leaks to the media. Tensions between the White House and senior members of the US armed forces are rising over the toughest decision the president has faced in his first year. Senior military officials and Republicans have accused him of dithering over the troop request from Gen Stanley McChrystal, the US and NATO commander in Afghanistan.
Taliban expands control of Nuristan -- [Al Jazeera]
Taliban fighters are expanding their control of Afghanistan's Nuristan province, an area they claim to have recaptured from US troops.
A video obtained exclusively by Al Jazeera purports to show Taliban fighters in the Kamdesh district.
For the Night of 10 November 2009 -- [NightWatch]
An Afghan Taliban spokesman described follow-on activities in Kamdesh District, Konar Province, after NATO and Coalition forces abandoned their operating bases and retreated. The area is currently under the control of Taliban, who walk freely in the district, according to al Jazeera.
...The significance of the report is that it exposes as false the idea that the presence of Coalition forces creates instability and that their withdrawal would restore quiet normality. On the contrary, in the absence of Coalition forces, the Taliban moved in to establish their own administration.
Britain to Train 10,000 More Afghan Troops to Speed Up Withdrawal -- [The Times]
Britain is to help to train 10,000 extra Afghan soldiers to serve in Helmand to bring forward the date when British troops can be withdrawn from parts of the province and replaced by Afghanistan's national army. Under an Afghan-surge plan being discussed between Washington and London, British and American troops in Helmand would split the responsibility 50-50, taking part in an accelerated programme to boost the number of Afghan soldiers and police in the province to more than 17,000.
Neutics -- [Hermeneutics: Afghanistan - in Afghanistan]
...Trying to understand why God has placed me in such a desolate place and how He will use me here. To ascertain the purpose of my position when I am not doing the job I was trained for. Most of all how the distance between Jocelyn and I will once again work for good in our marriage. Essentially this is a format to record my thoughts and hopes in lieu of a written journal. Someday this experience will be a foggy memory and I want to be able to recognize the role this year played in my formation and future decisions.
A SAT dish of the wrong proportions, swarms of flies and dust -- [The Kitchen Dispatch]
Since the beginning of October, The Hubs and the FST have been trying to move into a different building. Progress was hindered by several things. Lack of a sink, an electrical generator blow up, and no Satellite for either TV or internet. This caused a delay, which resulted in a pissing contest with the arrival of another unit who had expected to move into the old buildings. Finally, after getting things somewhat squared away, they are in. "We are completely moved. It is big and,roomy, but we have swarms of flies due to the presence of goats and cows. We are going to get double outside screen doors and miles of flypaper. Also, we are engulfed in clouds of Afghan moon dust every few minutes when the winds or swirls of planes pass by.
Another >GAG< Trip To Bagram -- [Afghan Quest - in Afghanistan]
...There are Soldiers and Marines all over this country who get squat... even water... while Bagram has "Karaoke Nite" and "Salsa Nite." Then the spoiled wonders there even have the temerity to rant out loud about not getting beef with their pepperoni for their Pizza Hut pizza (delivered, no less). Now, I can't fault them for making their lives as comfortable as possible, but there is silly and then there is ridiculous. Salsa Nite is silly.
Housing the warriors who normally live in Spartan conditions that the fobbits at Bagram would riot over in those pathetic "transient tents" is ridiculous. You do not see field grade officers spending the night in those wretched holes called "transient tents."
A Wild Ride on a Stallion -- [Doc H's International Adventure - in Afghanistan]
All I can say is that today's ride made this entire Afghanistan trip worth the price of admission.
The day started slowly, with cold rain, mud, and a still uneasy queasy feeling after battling a persistent case of moderate GI illness.
On the road again -- [There's sand in my... -- heading out of Afghanistan]
So far the WTP, Warrior Transition Program, has been surprisingly well coordinated, hard to believe being run by the Navy and everything. Haha. After the Marine run we come back and turn in our 2 seabags of gear that was never used, that will be a load off of our minds, literally. After the turn in I'll be down to a 2/3 full seabag and a carry on, traveling light will be a welcome change. I'm at the point now that I throw away a pair of socks, underwear and t-shirt after each use, since everything has a wonderful light brown tint to it from the laundry in Kandahar. I'm under the impression that our decompression classes start on Wednesday, and continue through Thursday and then we're outta here. I love the feeling you get when the wheels leave the ground for the last time, it's incredible.
NATO, Afghan Forces Seize 250 Tons of Bomb Material (Update1) -- [Bloomberg]
The Afghan National Police and NATO- led forces seized 250 tons (225,000 kilograms) of bomb-making material in an operation in the southern province of Kandahar, the alliance said.
Marines Provide Clean Water to Afghans, Keep Area Safe -- [ISAF - in Afghanistan]
HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Marines with 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, recently funded a well construction project to provide clean water for local Afghans.
The project, funded by 1/5's civil affairs Marines, also created jobs in the community, as local Afghan workers were contracted to dig three wells.
"Having these wells built is something that people have been asking us to do for a while now," said Cpl. Leland Van Leer, an amphibious assault vehicle operator with 1/5. "Now that we were able to get them dug, they see that we can help them."
Bomb Rocks Northwestern Pakistan -- [Voice of America]
A suicide car bomb attack in northwestern Pakistan has killed at least 30 people, including some children. Investigators say the bomb exploded Tuesday on a busy street near a market in the city of Charsadda, some 40 kilometers north of Peshawar. The blast wounded dozens of people and destroyed several buildings. It was the third bombing in the area in three days.
Veterans at Work on Veterans Day -- [Outside the Wire - JD Johannes - in Iraq]
Sala ad Dihn Province, Iraq -- In the US many Americans barely notice Veterans Day. The banks and post offices are closed. Federal Employees have the day off. Some states and local governments may be closed.
There are ceremonies and memorial services. But here in Iraq it is another day at work in a combat zone.
The Soldiers of the 1-28 Infantry, the Black Lions, went about their work.
As We Stand Down, Can They Stand Up? -- [Weekly Standard - Max Boot]
One way to chart the recent course of Iraq's history is by the vehicles that American soldiers drive. When I first came here in the summer of 2003, I remember riding around in open-top, unarmored Humvees. By 2004, a spate of IEDs had made it necessary to move to up-armored Humvees, followed a few years later by heavier MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicles that look as if they wandered off the set of a Star Wars movie. When last here in 2008, I went everywhere in a hulking MRAP. Imagine my surprise, then, to find myself being driven in late October from Camp Victory, the main US base on the outskirts of Baghdad, into the center of town along Route Irish, once notorious as the world's most dangerous road, in a lightly armored Chevrolet Suburban that could not withstand a roadside bomb.
Efforts Focus on Iraq's Election, US Commander Says -- [Defense Link]
A US commander in Baghdad today said all efforts are focused on helping Iraqi forces provide security for upcoming national elections in Iraq. Army Col. Gregory Lusk, commander of the North Carolina National Guard's 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, joined a chorus of US officials praising the Iraqi Parliament's passage this week of key legislation that paves the way for balloting in January. "With the recent passing of the election law, Iraq has indeed reached an important milestone," he said by satellite in a Pentagon news conference. "All of our efforts since our day of arrival have been dedicated towards accomplishing this goal and setting the conditions and supporting the Iraqi desires for holding these important elections."
Kuwait -- [Sorority Soldier - leaving Iraq]
I can't describe the happiness that's overtaking me. I'm in Kuwait. Away from Iraq forever. Elation.
Soldiers, Family Come Together To Grieve at Fort Hood -- [Voice of America]
President Obama spoke at a memorial ceremony at Fort Hood, Texas, Tuesday for the 13 people who died there last week when a gunman opened fire at the large military base. The alleged attacker, who was wounded by police, is an army psychiatrist. The attack on a domestic base, allegedly by a fellow soldier has saddened and shocked many servicemen and their families. The signs of grief are not hard to miss at Fort Hood. Flowers and messages are displayed around the sign at the main entrance and there is a subdued tone on base. But the soldiers carry on and the military family pulls together.
North, South Korean Ships Exchange Gunfire -- [Washington Post]
A brief naval skirmish erupted Tuesday between North and South Korea, raising tension in Northeast Asia as President Obama prepares this week for a visit to the region. The North and the South blamed each other for the exchange of gunfire - the first such clash in seven years. South Korean officials said a badly damaged North Korean patrol ship retreated in flames after crossing into South Korean waters. It was not clear whether there were any injuries or deaths aboard the North Korean vessel. North Korea issued a statement that blamed the South for "grave armed provocation," saying that ships from South Korea crossed into the North's territory.
North Korean Ship "Wrapped in Flames" After Battle; No South Korean Sailors Hurt -- [One Free Korea]
Most people have already forgotten that in May of this year, North Korea unilaterally declared an end to the 1953 armistice. We've forgotten because Kim Jong Il has few military options against the South that wouldn't inevitably result in either a military embarrassment or more escalation than he's prepared for.
If Yonhap's "wrapped in flames" report is accurate, this could have the makings of a military embarrassment and serious harm to morale within the North Korean navy. That's why it's essential for the regime's domestic propaganda machinery to report an alternative reality. That also illustrates why breaking down the information blockade and saturating North Korea with alternative sources of information can help preserve peace in the region.
Is Russia Playing Both Sides on Iran Nukes? -- [Christian Science Monitor]
Iran's failure to respond to an international offer to enrich much of its uranium stockpile outside the country - for use in a Tehran medical research facility - is again raising the prospect of tougher sanctions. Much of the focus of the sanctions debate is falling on Russia, which has blown hot and cold on additional punitive measures on Iran over its nuclear program - but which is sounding open to the idea once again. The attention is reviving lingering questions about Russian assistance - either official or unauthorized - to Iran's nuclear program and weapons research.
China Ready to Welcome President Obama -- [Voice of America]
Sino-American relations are likely to get a boost when President Barack Obama comes to China later this month. The potential to work together to combat climate change is expected to overshadow more contentious issues, such as trade, military relations and human rights. From tentative beginnings in the 1970's, Sino-American ties have grown into what is often described as one of the most important relationships in the world. China was one highlight of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's first trip abroad. "The inter-dependent world in which we live requires us to find new ways to collaborate and cooperate in the face of unprecedented global challenges and untapped global opportunities," she stated.
Military Not Told About Ft. Hood Suspect's E-mails -- [Los Angeles Times]
Two high-profile anti-terrorism task forces did not inform the Defense Department about contacts between a radical Islamic cleric and the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people in last week's rampage at Ft. Hood, a senior Defense official said Tuesday. On the day of a memorial service for those killed at the Texas military base, the revelation compounded questions about whether the government had known enough in advance to stop the gunman. The FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Forces investigated e-mails that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan sent over the last year to Anwar al Awlaki, an imam in Yemen who espouses a radical Islamist ideology and who has ties to militants. However, officials said, task force members concluded that the communications posed no threat and had been undertaken as part of Hasan's research on Muslims, the military and post-traumatic stress disorders. Defense officials said Tuesday that the department did not learn about Hasan's contacts with Awlaki until after the Ft. Hood shootings.
Taliban: Fort Hood Killer a "Hero", Warn of Further Attacks -- [Jawa Report]
What, you thought the Taliban would condemn the attack? Note, also, that the Taliban dismiss the notion that Hasan was motivated by a psychological breakdown:
Two Sides, Same Coin -- [Baldilocks]
Lots of things going on today, but two of them seem to demonstrate one of my convictions that there is no such thing as a coincidence.
John Allen Muhammad--the lead Beltway Sniper--is scheduled to be executed today at 6PM 9PM EST in Virginia.
Justice and Guantanamo Bay -- [Wall Street Journal]
This past Sunday, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the administration will decide by Nov. 16 which Guantanamo detainees will be tried in military commissions trials, and which of them will stand trial in federal courts. But a decision to use both legal settings is a mistake. It will establish a dangerous legal double standard that gives some detainees superior rights and protections, and relegates others to the inferior rights and protections of military commissions. This will only perpetuate the perception that Guantanamo and justice are mutually exclusive. President George W. Bush authorized military commissions in November 2001, and President Barack Obama ordered them stopped in January 2009.
Qaeda militant incites Sunnis against Shiites, Iran -- [AFP Global Edition]
A commander of an Al-Qaeda-linked group warned Islam's majority Sunnis that the Shiites and Iran pose a greater "danger" to their religion than Jews or Christians, a US monitoring group said on Tuesday.
"We call on the nation ... to stand by (Sunnis) with whatever means they can against the danger of Iran and those who follow (the Shiite) faith in the region," Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman al-Rashid of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula said in an audio recording carried by SITE Intelligence group
Muggers Return Wallet After Seeing Army ID -- [FOX News]
Muggers Return Wallet After Seeing Army ID, A Milwaukee Army reservist's military identification earned him some street cred Tuesday, when he says four men who mugged him at gunpoint returned his belongings and thanked him for his service after finding the ID.
Vets Offered Free Meal this Veteran's Day at Applebee's -- [ROK Drop]
Just a reminder to everyone that Applebee's once again has their promotion of a free meal for veterans
Applebee's, Golden Corral, M&S salute vets with free food -- [USA Today]
Three major casual-dining chains --Applebee's, McCormick & Schmick's and Golden Corral-- are offering free food to veterans and, in most cases, active-duty military personnel in observance of Veterans Day.
WELCOME BACK VETERANS.org -- [Soldier's Mom]
I know you'll be celebrating Veteran's Day this Thursday. But if you are looking for an extra way to honor our Veterans, this might be up your alley.
Major League Baseball and Welcome Back Veterans are asking people to share their message of thanks to American veterans: http://www.welcomebackveterans.org/thanks
War hero's family calls book a 'dishonor' -- [HometownAnnapolis]
On this, the 234th birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps, a new book about Annapolis - and national - hero Col. John Ripley is coming under fire from the late Marine's family.
Ripley's daughter, Annapolis resident Mary Ripley, called Fulkerson's picture of her father "a dishonor" to his memory.
Standing Tall in Harm's Way -- [Washington Post]
In the aftermath of the Fort Hood shootings, some commentaries have examined the damage to the US Army from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A few have spoken about the alleged shooter, Maj. Nidal M. Hasan, as an extreme version of what can happen with an overstressed force. This picture of a traumatized military is misleading. Certainly, the Army and the other services are stressed by the demands of combat. But what's striking to me this Veterans Day is how healthy the military is, given all the weight it has been carrying for the country these past eight years. Facing a new and disorienting kind of warfare, the military has learned and adapted. Rather than complain about their problems, soldiers have figured out ways to solve them. In truth, the US military may be the most resilient part of American society right now.
Once a Soldier, Always a Soldier... -- [Bouhammer]
Well today is the it, my very last day in the Army. I can't believe this day is here. Over 22 1/2 years in the Army ends today. In reality it is really 40+ years in the Army. I was born at Ft. Bragg, NC and have been holding either a dependent or active duty ID card ever since. I mean I will have a retired ID card later this week, which looks like the dependent ones today, but the time of serving as a soldier is ending. My time of being a leader of men, a caregiver to the soul of the young and confused, a motivator to those that are un-motivated is ending. It probably ended back in July when I turned over my last company and took off the diamond for the first time since getting it put on me over seven years ago. That was a painful day to remove the one rank that I always sought, but I can't be greedy.
Choosing Between Family and the Military -- [Center For American Progress]
Approximately 70 immigrant soldiers in the US military from 35 countries pledge their allegiance to the United States during a welcome home naturalization
Soldier Gets Surprise Welcome Home -- [WNEP-TV]
A family gathered Tuesday night to welcome home a soldier from Iraq. He's on a break from his fourth tour in that war-torn country.
At Fort Hood, day of mourning ends with celebration -- [CNN]
Teary wives and girlfriends and moms and dads hold the hands of children bearing signs like Zachariah Wolf's: "Welcome home bestest daddy.
How the New York Times does Veterans Day -- [Blackfive]
I know you're not surprised. I guess I still expect more from "professionals". For posterity, here's a screen shot of the NYTimes Veterans Day Section (archive):
CBS's Smith: Iraq and Afghanistan Wars to Blame for Ft. Hood Shooting -- [NewsBusters]
Interviewing Veteran Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki on Wednesday's CBS Early Show, co-host Harry Smith cited a cause of the shooting at Ft. Hood: "...the Iraq war, the escalation in number of cases of post traumatic stress disorder...the more people go back to these fields, these theaters of war, either in Iraq or Afghanistan, it multiplies the incidence of these kinds of things occurring."
Obama, World Leaders Honor Veterans on Anniversary of End WWI -- [Voice of America]
U.S. President Barack Obama will mark the first Veterans Day observance of his presidency Wednesday with a traditional wreath-laying ceremony and speech at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington.
The Potemkin Color Guard -- [CDR Salamander]
You have worked long and hard to reach a high profile position, as those who came before you had. You did everything that was asked of you, and more. You believed in a system that told you all you had to do was work hard, pay attention to detail, excel in your efforts, show exceptional dedication, and demonstrate professionalism better than those around you. Do that, you were told, and you will be rewarded.
The day prior to the event you are told that those in power decided to remove you and a friend from the position you worked so long and hard for. You wonder, "What did we do? Why?"
...The reason is rather simple; those in positions of authority did not like your race and gender. Nothing that you did - no - not that. Nothing personal - just business, you know.
Simply by being born, you have been found wanting, and unworthy.
On 29 OCT, the USNA Color Guard made an appearance at the World Series. The day prior to their appearance, two Midshipmen were removed from the Color Guard by senior Commissioned Officers in leadership positions at Annapolis for one simple reason; they were white males. That isn't a guess on their part - that is what they were told.
In Congress, injured vets signing on for duty -- [Washington Post]
Fellowship program helps steer returning wounded to jobs on the Hill
... Lasko confronted the existential question faced by thousands of veterans too injured for active service: What now?
"Anybody coming back, any young veterans coming out, you're saying, 'What next?' " says Lasko, 26. It's not easy getting established in the civilian world. "You did your time in the military. In our cases, we're injured, so we're at another disadvantage."
Lasko found his way to one of the more unusual internship programs on Capitol Hill.
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