Mark Your Calendars

The 2007 MilBlog Conference will take place in Washington, DC on either April 28, or May 5. I'm throwing the dates out there in the event that most of you strongly prefer one date over the other.

Panel topics are already being hammered out, and other exciting events are being planned. The 2007 conference is going to top the 2006 conference by leaps and bounds.

Most of the complaints I received about the 2006 conference centered around the fact that there wasn't enough time for personal planning (finances for travel costs, babysitters, etc.) between the time the conference was announced and the time it actually took place, so we're going to do better in that regard this time around.

More details in the coming weeks.

If World War II Were Fought Today...

Bad things would happen.

Just a little historical note.

Today is the 61st Anniversary of V-J Day.

And while denigrating no one's efforts in the Pacific - this soldier acknowledges it was the Navy Department's war.

Just sayin'.

1:12 of an uneventful patrol

My first attempt at posting a movie clip. A whopping minute and twelve seconds of a foot patrol I went with in February of 2005. Not bad quality for a tiny camera (DiMage XT) set on "movie".

Check it out for a laugh (at my photography skills, or lack thereof).

Re: Pre-paid Cell Phone Control

Last year, Malayasia announced a program requiring the registration of "pre-paid" cell phones as noted here:

All pre-paid handphone users will be required to register their personal particulars with their service providers under a new cabinet directive.

"The decision was made not just because of recent SMS abuses, but also for national security as we saw the London bombs were triggered off by mobile phones," Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said Sunday.

Cell phone service was disabled in the four tunnels leading into Manhattan following the Islamic terrorist bombings in London. Now just why would they do that? Because cell phones make excellent remote detonation devices for bombs. As our troops in Iraq have found out too many times, any cell phone can apparently be rigged to blow a bomb as soon as the number is called. Quite convenient.

"My Recruiter Screwed Me"

Anti-war activists are sure to make some hay out of this:

The number of alleged and substantiated violations by U.S. military recruiters increased by more than 50 percent in one year, a rise that may reflect growing pressure to meet wartime recruiting goals, according to a Government Accountability Office report released yesterday.

What none of the articles mention is the hostility that many recruiters face from increasingly aggressive anti-war nuts. This hostility manifests itself in "takeovers" of recruiting centers, acts of vandalism, and even assault. It's all part of an orchestrated effort by groups like United for Peace and Justice and the G.I. Rights Hotline to, in their own words, "bring down the war machine."

Not that any of this excuses unethical or illegal behavior by military recruiters. It should be noted (but generally isn't), however, that all the active services are exceeding their recruiting goals for 2006 (the GAO report only covers up through 2005). Re-enlistment rates are also high across the board, especially in front-line units.

Can't blame all of that on unscrupulous recruiters.

"Someone Needed Help, It Didn't Matter Who"

A mystery is solved.

For years, authorities wondered about the identity of a U.S. Marine who appeared at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, helped find a pair of police officers buried in the rubble, then vanished.

Even the producers of the new film chronicling the rescue, "World Trade Center," couldn't locate the mystery serviceman, who had given his name only as Sgt. Thomas.

But now they have.

A Stiff Upper Lip Or A Willingness To Say It

A commenter a couple of posts down gave various folks the beatdown for being downbeat. The two articles referenced here, by Michael Gerson and Bill Quick, are illustrative.

Both the Gerson article and the Quick article are worthwhile reads, and I commend them to you for your consideration.