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They even scheduled a protest in DC to commemorate the yet-to-be-reached "tragic milestone:'
In response to the death of the 2500th soldier in Iraq, participants in the Take Back America Conference (http://takebackamerica.org) will honor the keynote speaker Barack Obama’s closing statement—“Go Out and Fight for Change”—by taking to the streets to call for an end the unjust Iraq war. Hundreds are expected to gather outside the Hilton Hotel at Connecticut and T Streets carrying coffins, banners and signs. (Procession route: Connecticut Avenue South, East on K Street and South on 16 th Street through Lafayette Park to the White House)
Meanwhile, the U.S. death toll in Iraq remains stalled at 2497, where it has been since shortly after Zarqawi was killed.
(Aside: note the location of the Take Back America Conference.)
Joint Staff's J3 has been nominated for another star and an interesting new job.
At work and unable to see the photo. I'm sure I know what it is. Yeah, that's it.
In any case, I've got yer game right here.
Michelle Malkin has a column on the "Camp Pendelton 8," seven Marines and a Navy Corpsman being held in confinement on suspicion of kidnapping and shooting a man in Hamandiya, Iraq. Michelle intros her article thusly:
Did you know there are seven young Marines and a Navy Corpsman sitting in a military brig right now in leg and wrist shackles — despite the fact that they've not been charged with any crime?
Her article continues along these lines with the following:
These men — our men — may be innocent. They may be guilty. Charges may or may not be filed this week.
...
Not a peep heard yet from the American Civil Liberties Union. The website of the self-anointed crusaders for individual rights contains hundreds of articles on the rights of al Qaeda suspects and an indignant press release on the suicides of Guantanamo Bay detainees. But no mention of the Camp Pendleton 8.
There's just one small problem: Malkin is dead wrong.
From Military Officers Asssociation of America
Lautenberg TRICARE Fee Amendment Approved
We're pleased to report that, on June 14, the Senate approved Sen. Lautenberg's (D-NJ) amendment to bar any copay increases for drugs obtained through the retail pharmacy for FY2007. Thank you to our members for your willingness to support MOAA's legislative alert on this issue. One important reason this effort was successful is that MOAA members sent nearly 12,000 messages to their senators within hours of receiving a special e-mail alert that was sent yesterday to subscribers MOAA’s Legislative Update.
Concurrent Receipt Votes this Week?
In a striking reversal from last year’s delays -- and contrary to speculation in recent weeks that it could be delayed again -- Senate leaders now plan prompt action on the FY2007 Defense Authorization Bill (S. 2766). Debate is scheduled to begin Monday, June 12, with votes on amendments following through the rest of the week, and maybe longer.
We expect the Senate to consider a number of amendments on issues of importance to MOAA members. Key among these will be two amendments sponsored by Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV).The first Reid amendment would authorize combat-related special compensation for disabled members whose combat wounds forced them into medical retirement before attaining 20 years of service. Under current law, a 10% combat-disabled retiree with 20 years of service can receive combat disability compensation in addition to retired pay, but a 100% disabled member forced out of service by combat wounds at 19 years, 11 months has his full VA disability compensation deducted from his earned, service-based retired pay. MOAA believes strongly that combat-disabled servicemembers whose wounds force them from service should be "vested" in their service-earned retired pay (2.5% of pay times years of service).
The other amendment would end the "disabled veterans tax" on military retirees deemed "unemployable" by the VA. These members are certified as being unable to work because of their service-related disabilities and compensated by the VA at the 100% disabled rate. But unlike all other 100% disabled retirees, they still have a large share of their VA disability compensation deducted from their service-earned retired pay. Last year, Congress agreed to end this unfair practice - but not until 2009. Fair is fair. They deserve their full earned retired pay now.
Send your senators a message urging them to vote for the Reid amendments. HERE (with suggested email text).
Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, at yesterday's "Take Back America" Conference:
The President continues to say that the situation in Iraq is improving. But just because he wishes it does not make it so. This week, we have reached the tragic milestone of having lost more than 2,500 of our brave troops. This is in addition to more than 18,000 of our troops who have been wounded, more than half permanently, and that doesn't even count the mental health needs that our troops will have. Improving? I don't think so.
The current U.S. death toll in Iraq has been stalled at 2497 since June 9, the day after terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was "martyred" by two 500lb bombs.
Pelosi may be impatient us to reach this particular "tragic milestone," but wishing doesn't make it so.
Colonel William Bernhard - someone you should know. Meet him here, at the Heartless Libertarian.
Some readers may be familiar with the Profiles I've written of National Guard soldiers who deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
I've published a new Profile, one long overdue, about the three Vietnam Veterans who were part of our National Guard unit when we were mobilized for deployment to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). While I’ve written about these soldiers before, I have been negligent in not including them in my Profiles series.
I can't imagine what Deployment for OIF must seem like to them. A world apart from what they experienced in Vietnam, I'm sure. Both in country, and their reception on return. Not that they talk about it much, that's not their way. It occurs to me that that's a post in itself, but not this time around.
Rather, the impression they made on us, having done the combat time many years before most of the rest of us were toilet trained (or born).
So here it is, for those interested, Profile: Vets Again.
For a background on these profiles, and why I write them, go read An Introduction to Dadmanly's Profiles.
The NYT gloats, but for once, I'm not disgusted. This is the type of weak, short-term policy thinking driven by political expediency and wishful thinking rather than cold, hard consideration of public impact and lasting legality, careful study to learn from 5 years of dreadful mistakes and the application of the ever necessary "clarity".
The Defense Department is also expected to drop a plan to have one set of interrogation methods for detainees that the military considers "unlawful combatants," like detainees at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and another set for traditional prisoners of war captured on the battlefield, the officials said. Some military officials and top aides to Vice President Dick Cheney have insisted it is essential to have a secret set of techniques and to leave ambiguous just how far American interrogators could go to extract information from terror suspects. But lawmakers from both parties, State Department officials and human rights organizations argued that detainees would eventually disclose the secret interrogation techniques and that keeping them secret would only reinforce the perception abroad that the United States condoned torture as an interrogation method.
Tom Bevan posts about The Assault on Our Troops today at the RCP Blog, and highlights two other must reads for today: his companion column at RCP, and a Guest Editorial in the Chicago Tribune by the Commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo, Navy Rear Adm. Harry B. Harris, Jr.
Harris’ comments have been so widely vilified, by the New York Times and others, it’s a wonder that he withstands such unwarranted criticism with professionalism, at all. He submitted a very professional explanation of our efforts at Gunatanamo, describing how detainees are treated, and the numerous military safeguards, and international inspections that have been conducted by the International Red Cross, with favorable results.
One can credit the Chicago Tribune with giving him the space to rebut the Times dedicated campaign against Guantanamo with this essay. That’s more than many of their mainstream media (MSM) cohorts would do.
Why would the Times be resurrecting it’s overtly hostile and inflammatory campaign, just at this moment?
It couldn’t have anything to do with good news out of Iraq, a collapsing of politicized witch-hunts against Karl Rove, the “Culture of Corruption” that so far has only evidenced cash flowing into the hands (and freezer) of a Democrat. It couldn’t possibly be in response to other more aggressive efforts by President Bush and his administration to counteract incessant drumbeats of “Bush Bad” from the MSM. Or to attempt to revive the tattered “Republicans Looming Disaster in ’06,” which somehow doesn’t translate into any uptick for Democrats, either as a party or for particular candidates.
So for the Times, it’s time for another squirt of Gitmo Gas: Let’s see what THIS ignites. Just wait and see. Trouble is, if they keep up with the Jihadis in Despair tripe, they’re likely to be as successful as they (and the Democrats) have been with the “Please don’t spy on Terrorists” Campaign.
Enough snark. Go read the whole of Harris' essay. Cross posted with excepts from Harris' essay back at home.
via The White House (Hattip commenter DJ)
The President will provide, through the Commander, MNF-I, 12 battalions (approximately 7,200 troops) of Coalition forces in Baghdad to support 36 battalions of Iraqi Army forces (approximately 26,000) and nearly 23,000 Iraqi police who will work together to secure the city.
From the Journal of the Continental Congress, Wednesday, June 14, 1775:
Resolved, That six companies of expert rifflemen, be immediately raised in Pensylvania, two in Maryland, and two in Virginia; that each company consist of a captain, three lieutenants, four serjeants, four corporals, a drummer or trumpeter, and sixty-eight privates...
Happy Birthday to all American Soldiers!
I'll avoid a sense of tartness, given the *tens* of thousands of readers of the participating blogs (even allowing for a huge overlap) - but the 97 (as of yesterday evening) of you who've donated thus far - You Rock, Baby!
The goal was at least $7260 to clear the current backlog of laptop requests.
We're there!
Fuzzy reports:
97 donations since Friday Weekend 2144.11 Monday 2475 Tuesday 3801 Total: 8420.11
Nice trend, too.
But of course, we aren't done. Why? Because, well, there's a coupla thousand of you who haven't availed yourselves of this opportunity, of course.
And it's the Army's Birthday. And Flag Day.
It's also the anniversary of...
1936 Oranienburg Concentration Camp opens
1940 Nazis open a concentration camp at Auschwitz
Something the Army, along with all the other services and our Allies, helped to disestablish, at no small cost to all concerned As we did Saddam. And Milosevic, Noriega, et.al. And no, it wasn't always easy, nor fair, and certainly not perfect.
But, while we've raised enough to meet the immediate need, this war is still a hot one, the casualties are still coming. This request (above and beyond the 11) arrived yesterday from Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston:
Female army SSG with hand injury (we've only had two or three female requests). Two fingers amputated. As Chuck can testify, that means additional damage to the hand and months of limited use.
So, the fundraising for Project Valour-IT continues. Please click on the graphic below - and give up a little beer/winecooler/pack of cigarettes/movie rental money (or more, like Blackhawk!) to help the wounded re-connect to their wired lives.
And join these fine people, who are all doing their bit, too.
(If you are a supporting blog and aren't listed - drop me a note! And feel free to swipe the roll-code.)
Oh, and CPT B - talk to me, baby!
Are budget constraints forcing Britain to cancel its major defence purchases and shift funds towards homeland security?
Remember, the enemy of Her Majesty is not in Berlin or Moscow anymore so much as in Manchester and Liverpool....
All the more reason for Rep. Hunter's proposal to be followed through and formally discussed with NATO.... and sell the JFK (or the Kitty Hawk in 2008) to NATO.
Hat Tip: Lexington Green of Chicago Boyz
While the Army is having a hard time retaining company grade officers, the Navy is finding itself in the opposite situation -- needing to find creative ways to get rid of excess O-3s and O-4s. As described in this Navy NewsStand story, the Navy earlier this week issued a NAVADMIN detailing how they plan to get rid of officers in "over-manned" communities. These communities include not only most of the Special Duty Officer designators, but also Surface Warfare Officers, pilots, NFOs, and submariners.
The funnest part of the whole process, though, is that officers will get to "bid" on how much money they'll take to get out, and the community managers will get to decide if it's "Deal or No Deal". I snark about the program much more over at my home blog.
The Editors of the New York Times began a supremely dishonest and partisan editorial on the suicides at Guantanamo with this lead paragraph:
The news that three inmates at Guantánamo Bay hanged themselves should not have surprised anyone who has paid the slightest attention to the twisted history of the camp that President Bush built for selected prisoners from Afghanistan and antiterrorist operations. It was the inevitable result of creating a netherworld of despair beyond the laws of civilized nations, where men were to be held without any hope of decent treatment, impartial justice or, in so many cases, even eventual release.In this rarest of cases, I’ll echo Michelle Malkin: Boo Freakin Hoo. Do the Editors of the Times really believe those three “poor unfortunate” dedicated Al Qaeda Terrorists were so despondent over their status as enemy non-combatants, their legal limbo, their continued confinement at the hand so such brutal American military captors, that they fervently desired death over confinement?
Do these fools have a clue?
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