Re: The Beast

But can it do this -

Via Vanderbilt University Archives(actually have to register and $$pay to see the video

NBC Evening News for Thursday, Oct 31, 1974 Abstract: (Studio) 1 week ago, Air Force dropped ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) from C-5 A cargo plane. REPORTER: John Chancellor

The Beast

Pinch has the pics.

That thing looks like it puts our C-5s to shame.

NYT Mag - false but true

The things in Stolen Valor that we read from the over use of PTSD (I know a touchy subject, but there it is) all the way to smear stories, that even though known fakes, are too good to pass up.

Editors' Note: March 25, 2007, Sunday The cover article in The Times Magazine on March 18 reported on women who served in Iraq, the sexual abuse that some of them endured and the struggle for all of them to reclaim their prewar lives. One of the servicewomen, Amorita Randall, a former naval construction worker, told The Times that she was in combat in Iraq in 2004 and that in one incident an explosive device blew up a Humvee she was riding in, killing the driver and leaving her with a brain injury. She also said she was raped twice while she was in the Navy.

On March 6, three days before the article went to press, a Times researcher contacted the Navy to confirm Ms. Randall's account. There was preliminary back and forth but no detailed reply until hours before the deadline. At that time, a Navy spokesman confirmed to the researcher that Ms. Randall had won a Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal with Marine Corps insignia, which was designated for those who served in a combat area, including Iraq, or in direct support of troops deployed in one. But the spokesman said there was no report of the Humvee incident or a record of Ms. Randall's having suffered an injury in Iraq. The spokesman also said that Ms. Randall's commander, who served in Iraq, remembered her but said that her unit was never involved in combat while it was in Iraq. Both of these statements from the Navy were included in the article.

This is such a lame excuse - they knew that there was good reason not to go with the story prior to publication - but they had their cover girl.

Based on the information that came to light after the article was printed, it is now clear that Ms. Randall did not serve in Iraq, but may have become convinced she did. Since the article appeared, Ms. Randall herself has questioned another member of her unit, who told Ms. Randall that she was not deployed to Iraq. If The Times had learned these facts before publication, it would not have included Ms. Randall in the article.

Naval "Show Of Force" In Arabian Gulf

Fifth Fleet announced today that the USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) entered the Arabian (Persian) Gulf to conduct a "dual-carrier exercise" with the Eisenhower Strike Group. While this sounds "escalatory" with respect to the captured British servicepeople, in actuality this lessens our tactical options vis-à-vis Iran, and, IMHO, isn't the right move at this time. Pulling the Eisenhower out of the Gulf would have sent a stronger message to the Iranians. (Basically, the worst initial conditions for attacking Iran would be for us to have any carriers in the Gulf, let alone both of them.)
I discuss it more at my home blog.

Re: Hillary

The first thing I noticed in her front office when I visited once was this big old shadowbox of medals from somewhere or other. This hanging around military stuff ain't new; she's been pretty forward about the trappings of being close to her military constituents for some time. I don't think that signal is being beamed at military types.

I think it's related to what I've called over at my blog "Sacred Veteran Status" (here and here, for instance). There's a fine line to walk as a politician when talking about military folks, and it's easy to have words ring hollow unless you're well known for being a leader of the club (Sam Johnson) or get a reputation for being deeply involved (Ike Skelton).

Shhhhhh...

...can you keep a secret?

In one of the more unusual proposals to emerge in the Senate debate on Iraq withdrawal, Sen. Mark Pryor wants to keep any plans for bringing troops home a secret.

The Arkansas Democrat is a key holdout on his party's proposal to approve $122 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan while setting a goal of March 31, 2008, for winding up military operations in Iraq. Unlike the plan's Republican opponents, Pryor wants a withdrawal deadline of some kind. He just doesn't want anyone outside the White House, Congress and the Iraqi government to know what it is.

"My strong preference would be to have a classified plan and a classified timetable that should be shared with Congress," Pryor said yesterday. A public deadline would tip off the enemy, "who might just bide their time and wait for us to leave," he said. "Then you'd have chaos and mayhem and instability."

THE AUDACITY OF HYPE

Yes, I'll go ahead and say it. I hate the planet:

If it is the politicization of science that has truly become inevitable then at the very least both sides of the argument should be provided equal time, rather than just the lefty columnist lockstep that ensures us "the debate is over." Funny, I guess I missed that one. Must have aired exclusively on Current TV.

Claiming that all scientists concur that we're carelessly heating up the world is a bit like saying all Hollywood actors agree that the War in Iraq is only about petroleum rights. Consensus over faulty assumptions is their stock in trade. (Interesting how the only article of faith the otherwise secular Left seems to agree on is that Big Oil is the root of all evil.)

Oh I'm just getting warmed up...

Permitting Al Gore to ordain himself as our self-anointed guru of Gaia would be akin to the Senate confirming Sean Penn as Secretary of Defense. When confronted with reports of his own massive public utility consumption Gore countered that he lives a "carbon neutral life" by obtaining "offsets" to compensate for his gargantuan energy use. You know, like after the time he accidentally left the guest cottage helipad lights on all month, he footed the bill for a third party to blow up a third world electrical grid in order to make up for it. I'm a man who seeks balance, lectures the Lecturer-in-Chief. If I decide I want a steak, I'll happily pay you not to have one. I buhlieve that's mah responsibility as a co-steward of the plann-itt.

Just like they say at the annual Sierra Club meetings in Aspen: think globally, act vocally.

You know WHERE TO GO for the rest.

Morning Headlines From MNF-I

Weapons cache destroyed, four suspects detained

Three Anti-Iraqi Forces Detained

Polar Bears seize terrorists and weapons cache

And here's a report from Baghdad at Iraq the Model:

Overall, the security operation continues to gain more support among the political parties, including some that were skeptical in the beginning out of fear the operation would not be impartial. Today a spokesman of the Accord Front, to which VP Hashimi and deputy PM Zobaie belong, affirmed the AF’s support for the ongoing operation saying, “Our bloc, seeing the security forces covering Baghdad’s districts and operating without discrimination, is now convinced that the operation is unbiased.”

On the other hand extremist parties of both sects continue their criticism of the operation, in stupid and somewhat amusing ways. One case I found funny is related to the recent discovery of a large weapon cache that included 470 anti-tank land-mines in Jameela district near Sadr city. The discovery of the stash was reported by MNF-I website, as well as Qasim Ata the official spokesman of Baghdad operations.

Neither report accused a specific entity of being responsible for possessing the cache, but then I saw the Sadrist lawmakers (I mean lawbreakers) on TV gather reporters to tell them that the whole story about finding weapons is a lie!

It was a textbook example of how denying involvement in a crime can only make people believe that you are indeed responsible.

Re: Tillman

The report has been officially released.

The "unofficial release" over the weekend is drawing some unfriendly fire:

Angered by the leak of partial results of a Pentagon probe into the friendly fire death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, Rep. Mike Honda, the Democrat who represents Tillman's former San Jose district, threatened Saturday to call for congressional hearings on the issue.

Honda slammed the Friday night leak as unfair to Tillman's family, which long has accused the Pentagon of stonewalling their demands for information about the April 22, 2004, killing of Tillman by his fellow Army Rangers in Afghanistan.

"I am dismayed that the family of Army Ranger Pat Tillman was not afforded the opportunity to review the results of the investigation into his death prior to their public release," Honda said in a statement.

More: Tillmans assail Pentagon report

Re: Gitmo

Shocked indeed:

Sydney - Anti-war protesters in orange jump suits marching in Brisbane's city centre Tuesday were stunned by the news of David Hicks' guilty plea to a charge of supporting terrorism at a US war crimes' tribunal at the Guantanamo military base.

'We were actually saying the military trial is unfair, but we didn't know he was going to strike a plea bargain,' demonstrator and Stop the War Collective spokesman Robert Nicholas said. 'We're clearly saying that still, but we understand why he would want to plead guilty and get out of Guantanamo Bay.'

There was a palpable air of disappointment among those who had campaigned to bring Hicks home at his decision to go ahead and achieve that outcome himself, by admitting to helping the Taliban in Afghanistan.

A promise President George Bush gave Prime Minister John Howard means the Muslim convert would serve any extra jail time in Australia. With five years already served, he could be back in his Adelaide hometown within the week.

Green Party leader Bob Brown was also glum at the surprise capitulation.

'This is a low day in Australian legal history,' Brown said.

He was unrecognisable from old photographs of him, although the extra weight has made him resemble his father.

Overweight, clean-shaven, smiling and with a straggly mop of dark brown hair dangling down to his chest, Hicks at times resembled more an overfed member of a heavy metal band than a suspected terrorist.

Hicks's lawyers had described him as having dark, sunken eyes, but he did not appear like that today.

Rather than being pale from long stints locked inside the maximum security prison, Hicks's skin looked as tanned as that of his American military lawyer Major Michael Mori, sitting beside him in court.
<...>
Prison food had added about 10kg to Hicks's small, 167cm-tall frame.
<...>
He certainly looks nothing like the man in the old family photos that have appeared regularly in the Australian media since his arrest in late 2001 in Afghanistan.

The adventures of David Hicks continue below the fold

Hillary says it ain't gonna happen again

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is working hard to master the ins and the outs of the United States military, the NEW YORK TIMES is planning to report.

Editors have set a Tuesday Page One placement for Pat Healy's detailed dispatch, newsroom sources tell the DRUDGE REPORT..

Of all the early problems Bill Clinton faced as president, few stand out to Hillary as more aggravating and avoidable than his rocky relationship with the military, her advisers tell Healy.

Hillary, in effect, has been practicing her salute:

"She has cultivated relationships with generals and admirals, prepped herself on wartime needs and strategy and traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan."

It's working. Suddenly, I feel all warm and cozy with Hill, don't you?

Source.

Gitmo Trials Are A Sham! They Are All Rigg...Wait, He Did What? Oh, Uhhh....nevermind.

Australian David Hicks pleads guilty to material support of terrorism

David Hicks has entered a guilty plea, after an initial hearing which was immediately thrown into disarray when the judge effectively disqualified two of his three lawyers.
...
The presiding judge, Colonel Ralph Kohlmann said that Major Michael Mori’s assistant could not, at least for the moment, represent him because she was not a serving member of the military.

The judge also decided that Hicks’s civilian lawyer, New York criminal attorney Joshua Dratel could not represent Hicks because he had not signed a form demanded by the court saying he would conform to the regulations governing proceedings.

How 'bout that.

It Doesn't Take Many

via MNF-I

BAGHDAD – A second suspected leader of an insurgent cell that specialized in car bombs was captured in Baghdad’s Adhamiyah Security District March 21....It is estimated that since Nov. the car bombs from this cell have killed approximately 900 innocent Iraqi citizens; another 1,950 have been wounded.

One cell...

These babaric clowns are responsible for 10-15% of the killing, if the totals at Icasualties.org are to be believed.

Kudos to the 2nd/82nd for tracking these thugs down and whoever provided the "actionable intelligience".

Updatedvia ITM

Another Scumbag...(I hope the Iraqi security forces treated him with all the dignity he deserved)

Local Iraqi TV aired recorded confessions of Ahmed Farhan Hassan. Hassan, who was captured in Abu Ghraib west of Baghdad a few days ago, spoke about his connection to al-Baghdadai, and I’m paraphrasing:
“I have four emirs operating under my command. I receive money directly from Abu Omar and then I distribute it among the members of my units according to the number and size of operations they carry out.”
Quoting Iraqi military officials, the TV report added that Hassan admitted to have been responsible for some 300 murders and about 200 kidnapping incidents since he joined al-Qaeda three years ago.