Tools for winning

Not all campaigns involve the violent clash of arms.

Some require other tools.

Like these:

How these will be applied described here.

You might consider them to be "special" forces.

Acute Politics Takes The Cessna

(...since "taking the boeing" means a lot more money than he's getting.)

The excellent writer and in-theater soldier behind Acute Politics has joined Pajamas Media, has some posts in Doonesbury's site, and apparently will be published in the Doonesbury book.

I wonder if we would have gotten such great writing if he had started a few months later, as Eighty Deuce can attest (h/t B5).

Re: The Exploding Baseball

Arkin manages to notice Badger 6 snarking at him in that entertaining post. Of course Arkin misspells the name of our favorite milblogging public figure from OPFOR. (So now in the space of months, he's gotten his name, rank, and job gotten wrong in the MSM--so much for the legions of fact checkers!)

It looks as though Arkin may have backed away from writing about his "obscene amenities" posture somewhat, and now is merely being the guild representative because the guild knows better than those peasant blogger types. I think we addressed that guild thing a while back, but it's going to come up again and again for a while.

I also note that Arkin didn't mention the ending of Blackfive's post, either.

I wonder why.

Funny...(Updated)

...You'd think the MSM would be all over this
But nope, no where.

KAMR -- An Amarillo man has been indicted for lying about earning military medals. Richard "David" McClanahan was indicted in federal court on three counts. Two were for his claims of having military honors including 3 Purple Hearts, 3 Silver Stars, and a Congressional Medal of Honor. The other count had to do with falsifying bank documents. These indictments have been in the works for at least a month, our story however, started two months ago. In the beginning it was a tale of heroics, in the end it turned into an I-Team investigation. David McClanahan was a poster boy of bravery, at least that's what so many believed. The letter from the President confirmed it. It was a nomination for the Congressional Medal of Honor. The letter told a story of valor, and he confirmed it on more than one speaking engagement. At a military banquet on March 24, 2007, McClanahan told the crowd, "It's just a nomination. There are so many more who deserve it." After several calls to the White House and Pentagon we confirmed the letter was a fake. By that time McClanahan had already shared his story with hundreds, including his unsuspecting family. It was a tale of how he killed Iraqis and saved American lives. On paper his story of bravery continued. His resume boasted dozens of awards, including 3 Purple Hearts and 3 Silver Stars. A Lt. Colonel at the Pentagon looked into those claims for us and e-mailed us this response. "The Army is looking into this matter, and as of yet has found no evidence to substantiate McClanahan's claim.

What is it with the MSM, and the blatant disregard to expose the Jesse Macbeths of this war.

AND, I'd liked to know, why were so many so easily fooled; I mean 3 purple hearts, 3 Silver Stars, and the Congressional Medal of Honor, among the many other supposed awards, well, that's pretty damn impressive and a red flag in my book. Not that this could not be accomplished, I'm just saying, I'd have at least checked him out in the beginning before being made a fool of.

According to Jack Barnes, who heads up America Supports You in Amarillo, Texas, McClanahan told him he had been awarded three Silver Stars, three Purple Hearts, the Legion of Merit and a nomination for the Congressional Medal of Honor for combat bravery in Iraq.

"We just embraced this young man. His story was so real," recalled Barnes.

Video Here

UPDATE: A reader digs deeper into google and emails his findings:

I was surprised that this guy got away with what he did. Was there no one with prior military service looking at McClanahan's supposed experiences and awards?!

--- 29 years old

--- "Retired Master Sergeant" (retired as an E-8 at 29yo?!)

--- See purported list of awards below (screen capture image assembled in Photoshop from online video)

--- Tours: at least one in Iraq; one in Afghanistan

--- Two Navy Achievement Medals (good for a young Army guy)

--- One Navy Good Conduct Medal (even better for a young Army guy)

--- Korean Defense Service Medal

Other info (below) I found while playing on Google.

--- His current wife's MySpace page acknowledging the hoax and her realization that McClanahan was married when they became engaged. Includes scanned images of McClanahan's indictment.

--- A couple forum entries by people conned by McClanahan into believing his story. *** Real sad part is the forum author's remark re people that were on hand to listen to McClanahan lie: "...the mothers, fathers, widows and children of the fallen. There were three families there, and their presence was extremely sobering to us...."***

BaseBall and Milblogs

Mr Arkin continues with his analogy here

I guess I'll continue in my naïve hope that a free press, not a fan base, is our best hope for encouraging impartial and well-rounded criticism.

Well Mr Arkin...my problem isn't with a free press. I actually believe I am part of a free press. My problem is with sloppy, inaccurate, misinformed reporting by the so called MSM. Case in point..from the AP quoting General Odierno

He said he thinks 80 percent of Iraqis — including Sunni insurgents and Shia militants — can reach reconciliation with each other, though most al-Qaida operatives won't.

Odierno said. "I believe about 80 percent are reconcilable, both Jaish al-Mahdi as well as Sunni insurgents," though very few of al-Qaida.

Which reality should I chose from this article Mr Arkin?

Update On Hit Arrests

Michael Yon follows up on yesterday's tease with a powerful explanation of what happened and why.

It's useful to remember, now that everyone's getting buzzword compliant on COIN, that Iraq is also what's left of a Stalinist state. The security apparatus in the Soviet Union was so powerful that it survived the death of Stalin by decades; Saddam idolized Stalin and built his security apparatus the same way. Absolute power corrupts, even in cases where the man with power starts out strong. Also, people in groups tend to tolerate bad actors in their midst much more than they should--just think of a workplace you were in where they didn't fire the guy who was the real pain in the tail.

I don't know more than what Yon tells us--but it sounds as though LTC Crissman's team is walking a tightrope and doing it well.

"Army Wives"

On Sunday, June 3, Lifetime television will debut a new television series, Army Wives. I had the oppertunity to review the first episode. Should be interesting to read the reactions of "real" Army Wives.

Pat Dollard JD Johannes explains why it feels as though sometimes the ordnance has your name on it, and sometimes it doesn't.

Update: Post fixed. Thanks for the heads up.

Re:Sept. Prelude for Petraeus

Lawrence Kolb is a mouthpiece for Center for American Progress
Former Senator Daschle is the "distinguished fellow" at the Center for American Retreat Progress
and holds a special place in history...the first sitting Senate Majority/Minority leader to be defeated in an election since 1952.
We recently had two votes for the Iraq supplemental...a show vote...designed to fill campaign coffers and send a message to the Iraq government which passed in the Senate with a 1 vote majority, and the real vote...which passed by 80-14. Sixty-six senators are not running for re-election in 2008.

Sept. Prelude for Petraeus

To paraphrase Admiral Painter,

Democrats don't take a dump, son, without a plan

Petraeus is not a reliable source...published a misleading commentary...he would most likely cherry-pick data...

When's The Movie Coming Out?

Oh, right. Nobody makes a movie about this subject, even if it's as amazing as this little tidbit from Michael Yon at Instapundit.

Toujours l'audace. I want to know more about the op, but the implications had this gone wrong were pretty significant.

Cook County (IL) Government and Veterans

I think this says an awful lot regarding the importance that Cook County gives to Veteran's programs and the like. I am almost losing my capacity to be surprised or angry about anything of this nature happening anymore in Illinois.

Dogpile or Google?

You decide.

Memorial Day Dawn Patrol

My eyes are red and swollen, my tissue box is empty, my coffee diluted with tears, but today's Memorial Day Dawn Patrol is up.

Re: Mile for Mile Matching ...

Mrs. G writes about the Operation Hero Miles [Frequent Flier] Mile for Mile Matching by the airlines this Memorial Day weekend.

Most people do not realize that even in the direst of circumstances, the military will only pay certain expenses for certain people to travel where a wounded Soldier, Marine, Airmen or Sailor is recovering. When we received the call telling us that Noah had been wounded in Iraq, one of the first questions we asked after the bare bones of the conversation of how he had been wounded and a very brief description of his injuries, was whether we should make arrangements to travel to him. Getting to our son and being there for him consumed us until we were re-united with him. The thought of how much that would cost did not enter our minds because, frankly, you know that you will "sell the farm" to get to your soldier. And the families of the wounded should not have to incur debt or worry how they will pay to be at their loved one's side under those circumstances. And recovering wounded should not have to worry about the effect on their familiy's finances either: they [should] have more important things on their minds. Programs like Operation Hero Miles (and spectacular organizations like Fisher House) are necessary programs that provide incredible and invaluable aid for military families. And just for Memorial Day Weekend, you can double the miles you donate through the airlines' matching "Mile for Mile" program.

Although we did not need to avail ourselves of this program, I hope a parent's perspective of what a program like this means will encourage those of you who might be debating whether to contribute some of those hard-earned miles to make the leap and donate them.

As family of sons and daughters and brothers and sisters and spouses now serving, we have lots to worry about. How to get to them there when you are here should not be one of them.

So drop down and follow the links in Mrs. G's post and donate some miles.

Bang the Drum Slowly

For our fallen...

I meant to ask you how to fix that car
I always meant to ask you about the war
And what you saw across a bridge too far
Did it leave a scar

Or how you navigated wings of fire and steel
Up where heaven had no more secrets to conceal
And still you found the ground beneath your wheels
How did it feel

Bang the drum slowly play the pipe lowly
To dust be returning from dust we begin
Bang the drum slowly I'll speak of things holy
Above and below me world without end

I meant to ask you how when everything seemed lost
And your fate was in a game of dice they tossed
There was still that line that you would never cross
At any cost

I meant to ask you how you lived what you believed
With nothing but your heart up your sleeve
And if you ever really were deceived
By the likes of me

Gone now is the day and gone the sun
There is peace tonight all over Arlington
But the songs of my life will still be sung
By the light of the moon you hung

I meant to ask you how to plow that field
I meant to bring you water from the well
And be the one beside you when you fell
Could you tell

- Bang the Drum Slowly, Guy Clark/Emmylou Harris

Prison Break in Diyala

via AFP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - US forces raided an Al-Qaeda prison camp north of Baghdad on Sunday and rescued 41 Iraqi captives showing signs of having been tortured or mistreated, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Donnelly said.

But what about those 'invincable' AlQueda 'Holy' Warriors...where were they?

As we came upon this thing, we had the captors or whoever was holding them flee the scene

Ahhh...they abandoned their post...didn't even put up a fight....somehow I think the Court Martial will not go well for them.

Mile for Mile Matching ...

I just heard about this, but there is still time.

This weekend, the participating airlines will match your donation mile-for-mile, from 6 AM, Friday, May 25th through 11:59 pm, Monday, May 28th. Now is the time to donate those unused miles in your frequent flyer accounts!

Through a partnership with the Fisher House Foundation and individual airlines, airline tickets are available for service men and women wounded or injured in Iraq or Afghanistan or for their families to visit them in the hospital.

At this time, Airtran Airways, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, Midwest Airlines, Northwest Airlines, United Airlines, and US Airways accept donations from their passengers.

More info on donating to Operation Hero Miles

Update Re Canadians

Maryann points to the care the US provided to the injured Canadian soldiers: Soldier's Angels doing their good work, Fisher House doing the right thing and supporting the Canadian families and soldiers.

It's what you do for a comrade.

I Love Me Some German Moralizing (really)

I briefly met David while in Germany and he truly is America's friend and he's dumbfounded by his own who have no morals.

(Correction - Author is Ray D not David) No matter.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: A Perverted New Low....

Headline: "Psychology: Why some People want to have Sex with Buildings and Machines" (Photo caption depicts women holding models of the World Trade Center)

So much for showing respect to the American friends. It doesn't matter that nearly 3000 people died in those buildings. Now it is apparently OK to exploit them for tasteless stories on people with sexual perversions.

As David sometimes says: "You may throw-up now."

Eewww!!

James at The American Thinker has his thoughts

I Love Me Some Canadian Moralizing

No, really. A.L., you'll like this.

Ace hips us to a deservedly painful smackdown of a person lacking a moral clue. It's not a good idea to torque off this Newfie:

Dear Noreen,

I am so sorry to hear about the interruption to your holiday cheer. You say in your column that it all started when the CBC ran a story on some “poor sod” who got his legs blown off in Afghanistan.

The “poor sod” in question, Noreen, has a name and it is Cpl. Paul Franklin. He is a medic in the Forces and has been a buddy of mine for years. I had dinner with him last week in Edmonton, in fact. I will be sure to pass on to him that his lack of legs caused you some personal discomfort this Christmas.

I Love Me Some Finnish Moralizing

Is there anything better than moralizing by a Finn? Except maybe the same by a Norwegian? Well, until Norway gets their act together, we're stuck with the UN's Martin Scheinin faulting the US human rights record. Needless the say, the 12 page preliminary report, at least as reported, is decidedly weak tea we begin by defining "torture" down:

Still, he said reports that information was obtained from terror suspects using "enhanced interrogation techniques" amounted to a form of torture or inhumane treatment that is illegal under international law, particularly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights treaty the United States signed.

Look, naked man-ass pyramids and barking dogs are unpleasant and may even be abusive (yes for the man ass, "eh" for the barking dogs), but that isn't torture. This is torture. So is this.

A little musicology for the holiday

So that we Sea Service types are all singing off the same pages, so to speak.

A Must Read

May No Soldier Go Unloved Book 1

May No Soldier Go Unloved is Book number one in a Seriers that chronicles the History of Soldiers Angels

Written by the Founders Husband, Book One Centers Around How Soldiers Angels Started and the Mission it set forth.

The incredible journey of one woman's desire to help, and how that has drawn over 120,000 volunteers and millions of dollars to her cause.

Patti Patton Bader has the heart of Mother Teresa, the motivational mastership of Vince Lombardi, and the mobilization skills of Genghis Khan. She was raised an army brat; the great niece of the famous World War II General George S. Patton, daughter of decorated Vietnam Veteran Lt. Colonel David W. Patton, and brother of Iraqi War Veteran David Patton.

When her oldest son, Brandon, was sent to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, in the spring of 2003, she decided to send him at least one care package a day and keep a blog of the events that occurred in Iraq and Afghanistan as an electronic scrapbook for Brandon when he returned.

What started out as a mother's small commitment to her son, soon turned into Soldiers' Angels.

The Books Will revolve around Soldiers Angels Motto

May No Soldier Go Unloved
May No Soldier Walk Alone
May No Soldier Be ForGotten
Till they All Come Home.

The First 1000 Books will be signed by the Author and his Wife Patti Founder of Soldiers Angels

A portion of these proceeds will go to Welcome Packs for our deployed heroes!

Get yours Today!

For the History Lovers...

...this military collection is pretty cool

Ancestry.com, a research database for genealogists, has just added a fabulous collection of military records that's worth a look. Their new Military Collection includes all the WWII United Newsreel collection, all the WWII Stars & Stripes editions and something like 7,000 photographs from the Civil War (including the Matthew Brady collection). This is in addition to the muster rolls, draft registrations, pension applications and other data we researchers love to dig through. The Military Collection will be open to all through June 6th and is well worth a visit.

The Free and the Brave

Over in America, home of the free
Land of unlimited opportunity
People in the streets protest whatever they can
While over in Iraq and Afghanistan

The brave, far from home, are standing tall
toeing the line, so they can have it all
Some like to complicate it but it's simple to me
They're making noise, we're making history

We're making history
They're making noise
We're facing the fire
They're playing with toys
Nobody ever said
That it would be easy
They're making noise
While we're making history

Some would like to tell you that we can't get it done
Some would like to think that it's time to cut and run
Me I like to finish something once I've begun
And I don't think I'm the only one

Here making history, hearing the noise
of louder things, bigger things, things that destroy
Things you'd never want to see on your street
Things you might call the price of defeat

So forgive me if I come home a little annoyed
I've been making history while you were making noise

- Greyhawk
Iraq, May 2007

After effects of the Toby Keith concert: Wrote this country music song while driving around in my humvee. Maybe later I'll work out the guitar part and record.

Counter-intuitive?

Remember that kerfuffle last fall when the San Francisco School Board voted 4-2 to kick JROTC out of local high schools? For the sake of the children!

I ran across an interesting dissertation with the title: "A comparative study between Navy Junior ROTC cadets and general population students on measures of dogmatism, personality type, and self-esteem"

I always cringe a little bit inside when I read a topic framed in such a way that it seems to be literally begging the question. It seems to me that any study that asks about "dogmatism" as it relates to high school age JROTC cadets presents at least a rebuttable presumption of an expected result.

Whether or not you find the results counter-intuitive will depend I suppose on the soundness of your intuition.

For my own part, I found it mildly amusing to see that researcher - faced with his own results - said that the topic "required more study."

I'll bet.

Re: Re: Anti-Military or Anti-Media

They depend on the news media for commentary and amplification and insight; they study and memorize the statistics

To continue with this ridiculous analogy.

People who have actually played baseball know that how many homeruns a batter has hit is insufficient information to determine what kind of pitch is most effective against a given batter. How many homeruns were from a fastball, or curveball or changeup is the minimum information required.

Edgar Martinez was one of the most walked players in baseball. If I listen to the MSM it was because opposing pitchers were afraid of his bat...there is a grain of truth to that...Edgar also needed a cane to get to second base...having him on first was a good setup for a double play...I never once heard a baseball announcer say..."Ohh heck...Edgar got walked...it could be a setup for a double play".

I've seen a lot of polls about Iraq published in the MSM...the most important question..."Would you willingly choose a 7th Century Sharia lifestyle?" To my knowledge the question has never been asked or if asked, published. It is an important question...because if the answer is yes...then the only way to defeat AlQueda in Iraq is to subjugate the entire Iraqi population...if the answer is no...then victory is assured as long as we stay long enough to give the Iraqi people a fighting chance to keep themselves from being subjugated by AlQueda.

The problem with the MSM 'filter' is not what they print...it is the critical facts that they don't even consider that ultimately determine the outcome.

14,000 increase in Iraqi Army since beginning of May

The Second Surge
By DJ Elliott, IS1 (SW), USN (Ret)

Think about it. 14,000 more IA personnel.
A Division's worth of new troops added to a 10 Division force.
I had to write the headline myself a week after the data was released to the public since the press did not bother with this major news item.

I thought these people were our allies?!

So I go to sign on Army Knowledge Online, and what do I see? This:

Sgt. Tierney Nowland teaches the "Macarena" (a type of dance) to an Iraqi Soldier during a break from a cordon and search mission in Ameriyah, May 16. She is a combat cameraman with the 982nd Signal Company. (Photo by Spc. Elisha Dawkins)

The Macarena? I thought we were trying to help the Iraqis? Heh.

RE: RE: Anti-Media or Anti-Military

Sorry, I have to adjust my post (Adjustment in BOLD)

They depend on the news media for commentary and amplification and insight; they study and memorize the statistics

If this were true, the media, just as a sportscaster, would understand the game, the rules, the lingo and the MilBlogs would not need to correct them daily. AND THE SPORTCASTER WOULD NOT REVEAL THE PLAYBOOK DURING THE GAME!

This is not the first time and will not be the last. Milbloggers here, are aware of this problem, however I don't think the average Joe realizes how often it happens and the problems it causes.

I wish the media would quit taking freedom of speech for granted and realize, that with that freedom comes responsiblity.

Milbloggers are obligated to follow OPSEC rules , unfortunately it means nothing to the MSM

Re: Anti-Media or Anti-Military

This is what I'm talkin about

Kudos to CNN! Just wish they had not been so slow to come around. Let see if they can keep this up.

I bet their viewership would go up, if they continued this trend.

AMERICA DOESNT FORGET!

As Memorial Day approaches, don’t look back on Tuesday and go “I wish I would have done this or that”. Do something special this Memorial Day that recognizes those who have gone before us to make a difference. Don’t look at it as a chance to have a three day weekend to go camping but a special day to acknowledge those who help America what it is today. Below is a post I wrote a time back. Hope you enjoy it and especially this Memorial Day. Semper Fidelis and God Bless America!

This Memorial Day is the first one I have been home at since I deployed to Afghanistan for 8 mos, then Iraq for a year. A lot has happened in that time, to me, my family and my fellow Marines but I haven’t forgotten.

READ MORE HERE

Battle Seeking Rhythm

In case anyone's wondering, I'm fine. Have arrived at new location and been quite busy setting up living and working quarters. "Battle Rhythm" is a phrase that describes a routine - and mine's not yet established.

Weather is quite warm - next time you go to the beach on a hot day wrap yourself in an electric blanket and sit near a heater that can throw 10 knots of hot air at you and you'll know what I mean by "quite warm". The good thing is this is mild compared to July and August.

But it's a dry heat.

Oh, and Toby Keith is a great American.

Congress Wants Answers Now

via Newspaper posing as having something to do with the Marine Corps

By William H. McMichael - Staff writer Posted : Wednesday May 23, 2007 15:46:46 EDT

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle ripped the Bush administration Tuesday over what they say is a continued failure by the Pentagon to provide witnesses and information on the training of Iraqi security forces.

“If we cannot get answers, democracy is in trouble,” said Jones, who originally supported the war.

A bit of information that did emerge Tuesday: As of May 9, a total of 337,200 Iraqi Security Forces are “trained and equipped,” according to a biweekly Defense Department update to its quarterly Iraq status report.

Well Congressman...I don't know where you have been getting your information.....but it is out of date..

Ouch

Dan Davis:

According to recently published reports, the Bush administration quietly approached several retired four-star generals last March about accepting a newly created position to coordinate military and political/diplomatic activity in Iraq. None accepted. One of those who refused was highly decorated retired Marine Corps Gen. John J. Sheehan, who was quoted in The Washington Post as saying, "So rather than go over there, develop an ulcer and eventually leave, I said, 'No, thanks.' " How unreasonable indeed it was of the president of the United States to ask a retired Marine Corps four-star general -- during a time of war -- to do something hard, particularly at the risk of an upset tummy.

(Update: h/t CDR Salamander. Whoops, I had forgotten where I found this--apologies for stepping on your post!)

Re: Anti-Military

Mrs. Greyhawk--

William Arkin?

William "The Troops Also Need To Support The American People" Arkin? "Obscene Amenities" Arkin?

The same guy who spends most of his time criticizing anything we do? The guy who wrote an entire book of leaked American code names?

Who the expletive pulled his string this week? Was he feeling lonely or looking for attention?

Andi just wanted to prevent the spittle from flecking everywhere. To continue the analogy, Arkin at the baseball game is Roseanne Barr singing the national anthem: loud, out of tune, and missing the point.

Serving John Edwards

I guess the idea of insulting the dead on Memorial Day just hasn't been good enough for the former Senator from N.C. (who would not have been re-elected had he chosen to run). He wants to allow all the "poor" people serving in the military to upgrade their companions, as Sister Toldja tells us here:

Echoing an insulting theme expressed by Rep. Charlie Rangel and Senator John Kerry, among other reprehensible Democrats, presidential hopeful John Edwards made a call yesterday for not only protesting the war on Memorial Day, but also for a “mandatory military service” requirement to take the ‘burden’ off the poor:

Last week, Edwards sent a Web notice asking his supporters to use the holiday to speak against the war. Paul Morin, national commander of the American Legion, called the request "as inappropriate as a political bumper sticker on an Arlington headstone."

Edwards also called Monday for spreading the burden of serving the country by mandating national service.

"One of the things we ought to be thinking about is some level of mandatory service to our country, so that everybody in America -- not just the poor kids who get sent to war -- are serving this country," he said.

After the event, Edwards said he had not meant to imply that only the poor go to war, only that everyone should serve in some way.

"We have people from all walks of life in America who are serving, including Reservists and National Guard," he said. "What we want to do is to have all Americans to have a chance to serve their country."

I wonder if he is concerned that only "rich people" seem to be able to run for high public office?

UPDATE: Maybe Mr. Edwards could learn something by embedding with the troops?

The most spectacular recent case of a journalist with an antiwar mindset being completely overwhelmed into a change of heart by American soldiers, according to the public affairs officer, was a Greek public television reporter who had been embedded with an infantry unit that became entrenched in a 45-minute firefight with insurgents. Yanked out of the line of fire by a soldier who put the journalist's life above his own, he waited under cover and in fear of his life for the almost hourlong duration of the battle, with the best view possible of American soldiers in action against an armed and murderous enemy. He credits his having lived to tell the tale directly to those young troops.

"He had tears in his eyes as he talked about it," said the public affairs officer. "He just kept saying, 'They saved my life, they saved my life. . . . These are great men; they are heroes.' Even after telling it several times, he couldn't get through the story without choking up--and this was a man who had arrived here with all of the disdain for the Iraq mission and for the American soldiers who he [like seemingly most Europeans] had seen as the bad guys in this fight."

A Sad Development in IL

This story is sort of disheartening. Needless to say, I am disappointed in several people that figure in this tale. I would like to say I was shocked, but I am in Illinois (John Kass once held a contest to replace the State Motto "Land of Lincoln" - the winning entry was "Illinois - Will the Defendant Please Rise").

I can only hope that the replacement for this fellow turns out for the better.

Anti-Media or Anti-Military?

Andi, add this to "What They're Saying" about the MilBlog Conference.

And shame on you for not inviting him.

The MilBloggers got an extra boost of attention after the news about the Army's "crackdown" on blogs, with the overheated claim that the new operations security (OPSEC) and bandwidth rules cut off soldiers from their families and restricting people's freedoms. An extra boost from whom, you ask? From the mainstream media they so seemingly despise -- with various noterati of the MilBlog world being interviewed and quoted regarding the impact of the military's new rules.

As I see it, beyond the social networking and communications functions, the Milblogs have set themselves up as an anti-news media squad. The conference included many discussions of the deficiencies of mainstream press coverage of Iraq. In fact, some people actually believe that, with the availability of worldwide news on the Web and the emergence of military blogs, the Pentagon press corps and even the mainstream news media is obsolete.

Which brings me back to the Red Sox game -- specifically, Section 15, where I was sitting. I couldn't help but notice that the baseball aficionados felt quite confident about their knowledge and views. Everyone had an opinion on the game; everyone was an expert.

For the super-fans who can actually afford to go to the games, or who commit their lives to the Sox, the professional reporters are hardly the enemy. These are people who can't get enough news and analysis. They depend on the news media for commentary and amplification and insight; they study and memorize the statistics.

I've often thought if we could cover the military like sports, with transparency and intimate knowledge and a play-by-play that was both affectionate and unsparingly critical, we'd have a healthier debate. Interest and knowledge on the part of the typical American in foreign affairs and national security would actually increase.

But alas, it is the military, and whether it is the death of Pat Tillman or a war plan, the impulse of the institution is strategic defense. Secrecy, of course, is always justified on OPSEC grounds.

It's guys like this that just don't get it.

Affectionate and unsparingly critical

They depend on the news media for commentary and amplification and insight; they study and memorize the statistics

If this were true, the media, just as a sportscaster, would understand the game, the rules, the lingo and the MilBlogs would not need to correct them daily.
AND THE SPORTCASTER WOULD NOT REVEAL THE PLAYBOOK DURING THE GAME!

This is not the first time and will not be the last. Milbloggers here, are aware of this problem, however I don't think the average Joe realizes how often it happens and the problems it causes.

I wish the media would quit taking freedom of speech for granted and realize, that with that freedom comes responsiblity.

Milbloggers are obligated to follow OPSEC rules , unfortunately it means nothing to the MSM

In fact, some people actually believe that, with the availability of worldwide news on the Web and the emergence of military blogs, the Pentagon press corps and even the mainstream news media is obsolete.

The MilBlogs need the media as a resource, however the media has not recognized that they need MilBlogs.

Obsolete? Not just yet.

UPDATE: Jules has a perfect example of misreporting

OK my rant is done, I'll go back to my little corner and stick to Dawn Patrolling.

Tank Caught Out On Navy Times Periodic Maintenance

The Tank notes a Navy Times article on an interesting phenomenon: five Navy CO's fired in recent weeks.

What the Tank doesn't tell you is that this kind of article happens in the Navy Times every time there's a random cluster of firings or groundings or whatever. I've seen it over and over again over the years. It's related to the phenomenon you see every time we get an overlap of carriers in the Gulf and the uninformed scream "OMG!!! Invasion!!!!11!!".

Not so--although it sells copies of the Navy Times. These things happen at more or less random times, most of the time. Random things tend to cluster. Just because they're clustered does not mean something's behind it. Correlation does not imply causation (and these firings range from violations of the Three Kiss Principle to other issues).

Re: Wishing We Had

It's that letter 'e' in the name that changes everything.

Two points:
--I wonder what the post-speech discussion was like. Did he call her out on it?
--The "atrocity" issue may have soured his desires in that direction.

The Kerry we wish we had

Get a chance to read what former Democrat Senator Bob Kerry wrote at OpinionJournal.com? Worth a full read, but it is the kind of conversation and ideas I wish we had coming out of the Democrat Party right now.

No matter how incompetent the Bush administration and no matter how poorly they chose their words to describe themselves and their political opponents, Iraq was a larger national security risk after Sept. 11 than it was before. And no matter how much we might want to turn the clock back and either avoid the invasion itself or the blunders that followed, we cannot. The war to overthrow Saddam Hussein is over. What remains is a war to overthrow the government of Iraq.
...

This does not mean that Saddam Hussein was responsible for 9/11; he was not. Nor does it mean that the war to overthrow him was justified--though I believe it was. It only means that a unilateral withdrawal from Iraq would hand Osama bin Laden a substantial psychological victory.

What Day is It?

Why, it's National Maritime Day!

As proclaimed here:

In times of war, the Merchant Marine is the lifeline of our troops overseas. By carrying critical supplies, equipment, and personnel, merchant mariners provide essential support to our Armed Forces and help advance the cause of freedom. Today, merchant mariners are supporting operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and their devotion to duty is a tribute to the generations of men and women who have served our Nation with courage and determination in every conflict in America's history. On this day, and throughout the year, America is grateful for their service.

Redo's

I wonder what the world would be like if -
The US had left a sizable stabilaztion force in Europe at the end of WWI
The US had not passed the neutrality act of 1936
Rather than create the State of Israel in 1948..force the Palestinians to accept an unlimited right of return of the Hebrews(the original idea).
North Korea had been carpet bombed in '52
Rather than collapsing after a few rather unsubtantial protests in '53, the Iranian parliament had adopted good governance.
Joe McCarthy had spent his energies pointing out the weakness of communism rather than conducting a witch hunt against communists.
Congress had left 25K or so advisors and some aid on the table for South Vietnam.
Carter didn't pull the plug on the Shah of Iran and insisted on incremental reforms.
Carter didn't believe Breznev's assertion that the Soviets wouldn't invade Afghanistan.
The Looney Left hadn't killed the Nuclear Power Industry in the US in the '70's
We had leveled the Iranian Parliament 30 seconds after the US hostages were released.
Bush Senior had actually gone to Baghdad when we had a much larger Army.
Clinton hadn't cut the size of the Army.

Unfortunately...we don't get redo's in real life.

American hostages seen alive

No, not what you are thinking. Look at these three Americans - held hostage by terrorists for almost 4 years.

Relatives of kidnap victims call it "proof of life."

Almost four years have passed since Gene and Lynne Stansell received any confirmation that their son, Keith, a U.S. defense contractor who was taken hostage by left-wing guerrillas in Colombia, was still alive.

The three Americans were captured in February 2003 after their single-engine plane crashed in the Colombian jungle on a counterdrug reconnaissance mission.

A gaunt looking Pinchao said he escaped the prison camp in the country's eastern jungle lowlands on April 28. He last saw the Americans on the day he fled, he told reporters. One of the Americans, Gonsalves, was suffering from hepatitis.

You Want Ice with that?

For 95 years, with time off for WWII, an important mission involves growlers, Albatross, Hercules, cutters, currents and islands and a foe that can't be destroyed except by time.

Prompted by a disaster that hasn't been repeated, a small team continues with their long-running mission, as explained here.

One Missing Soldier's Death Announced

I have received this public announcement from DOD.

DoD Announces Change-In-Status Of Army Soldier

The Department of Defense today announced the death of a soldier supporting Operation Iraq Freedom, who was previously listed as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown (DUSTWUN).
Sgt. Anthony J. Schober, 23, of Reno, Nev., died on May 12 in Al Taqa, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his patrol was attacked by enemy forces using automatic fire and explosives. He was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.

Rest in peace, comrade.

Consider Yourself Slapped

Yep... ranting again...

The other day the House Committee on Veterans Affairs held a "Symposium" on PTSD. The speakers (besides all the members of the committee) included people from the Thought Field Therapy Center (ummm, tapping various pressure points on your body in a specific sequence and applied to a psychological problem the person is focusing on, "will eliminate the perturbations in the thought field, the fundamental cause of all negative emotions..." [ed. comment: including war??] and you apparently don't have to understand or believe for it to work! Yah.), National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare (represents the interests of community behavioral healthcare organizations nationwide... conducts federal advocacy activities, representing the industry on Capitol Hill and before Federal agencies), American Psychiatric Association, Institute of Rural Health at Idaho State University (improving the health of rural communities in Idaho and the Intermountain Region, as well as throughout the nation and the world [ed. comment: nothing like a little over achievement to scream mentally healthy, huh?]), Wounded Warriors Project (assisting men and women of our armed forces who have been severely injured during the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations around the world) and the American Enterprise Institute [for Public Policy Research] (a private, nonpartisan, not-for-profit institution dedicated to research and education on issues of government, politics, economics, and social welfare. [ed. comment: don't "government, politics & economics" actually preclude "social welfare"?]

I watched the last 60-90 minutes of this "symposium" and to say that I was less than impressed would be an understatement; to say that I was infuriated at times might be an overstatement. Aggravated, agitated (principally at the attitude) might be most accurate.

But what I know for sure is that many of those people DO.NOT.HAVE.A.CLUE about COMBAT-INDUCED PTSD's effect on those with the condition. And a few need to be slapped up side the head for their generally self-serving attitude.

Lots more and all the links at Some Soldier's Mom

Remember Jesse MacBeth?

The wannabe boot camp washout who "confessed" to being an Army Ranger who committed war crimes, and who got a big following among the gullible left before mil-bloggers (among others) outed him, wasn't forgotten by the criminal justice system. He was charged with two counts today related to his deception under a federal indictment unsealed in Seattle:

A man who tried to position himself as a leader of the anti-war movement by claiming to have participated in war crimes while serving in Iraq is facing federal charges of falsifying his record.
A complaint unsealed Friday in U.S. District Court in Seattle charged 23-year-old Jesse Adam Macbeth with one count of using or possessing a forged or altered military discharge certificate, and one count of making false statements in seeking benefits from the Veterans Administration.
Macbeth garnered much attention on blogs and in some alternative media after he began claiming in 2005 to have been awarded a Purple Heart for his service, which he said included slaughtering innocent civilians in a Fallujah mosque.
His story was contradicted by his true discharge form, showing that he was kicked out of the Army after six weeks at Fort Benning, Ga., in 2003 because of his "entry level performance and conduct."

Update: Michelle Malkin has much more.

Yup, He Is A Criminal

JAG LCDR I mentioned below got six months and a big chicken dinner, according to reports.

That's pretty lenient, I would think, although not Sandy Berger lenient. Army Lawyer, what do you think?

Re: Good Thing It Was Air Force JAGs...

...because it looks like one of those Navy JAGs has been caught on the wrong end of the Green Table. Villanous Company has the scoop. Why hadn't I heard much about this till now, I wonder?

NORFOLK, Va. -- Two days before a Navy lawyer allegedly mailed a list of Guantánamo captives' names to a New York human rights group -- tucked inside a Valentine -- he signed a military form agreeing not to disclose ''any government information,'' according to testimony at his court-martial Tuesday.

Navy Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Diaz, 41, faces up to 24 years in prison if convicted of five charges ranging from unlawfully releasing classified material that could harm the United States to conduct unbecoming an officer.

Prosecutors argue that the list containing names, codes and serial numbers of 500-plus Guantánamo captives was a national security secret when Diaz sent a shrunken version in January 2005 to the Center for Constitutional Rights, a civil liberties law firm suing on behalf of both publicly identified and nameless war-on-terror captives.

Air Force Deploys Its Meanest Warfighters

Lawyers.

On Greyhawk's Advice....

I watched Idiocracy.

Sorry 'hawk, I found it to be....well, idiotic. Killed it halfway through and stuck in Equilibrium in its place.

Now there's the best movie you've never seen.

How Fast Can You Spin?

Not doing a full post on this... but feel free to pull your favorite parts and spin comment -- this should be good.

Fox News/Opinion Dyanmic Poll HERE

Pages 10-11 (questions 40-45) are pretty interesting... on deadlines, benchmarks and retreat.

An eye opener for me was that the War in Iraq will be extremely important (52%) or very important (37%) to a person's vote in '08... but viewed (and asked) separately "terrorism" is second at 43% and 38%, respectively.

65% thought Harry Reid's comment on the war being "lost" was unacceptable... the same percentage of people that had an unfavorable opinion of Rosie... (3% had never heard of her.) heh.

RE: Time to Kill This Quote

Some actual Jefferson Quotes

When, in spite of all efforts to avoid it, a republic must go to war, the focus of the nation is temporarily changed. The President, as Commander-In-Chief, assumes the extraordinary powers necessary to conduct the all-out effort. Citizens and legislators must then put aside differences and unite against the common enemy. Undesirable conduct may be forced on the republic in dealing with an unscrupulous enemy.

"

The times do certainly render it incumbent on all good citizens attached to the rights and honor of their country to bury in oblivion all internal differences

and rally around the standard of their country in opposition to the outrages of foreign nations. All attempts to enfeeble and destroy the exertions of the General Government in vindication of our national rights, or to loosen the bands of Union by alienating the affections of the people, or opposing the authority of the laws at so eventful a period, merit the discountenance of all." --Thomas Jefferson to Daniel D. Tompkins, 1809. ME 16:341

Time to kill this quote (again): "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism"

In a comment to the post below on Saving Memorial Day, Miss Ladybug wrote:

John Edwards' campaign manager was on a segment on Fox News by phone, along with a man from the American Legion, just a few minutes ago. He (an AF vet, apparently) defends this statement still, saying "dissent is the highest form of patriotism"...
(I've taken the liberty of correcting a couple of typos)

The trouble is, notes reader Dave Forsmark, who has been waging a one-man campaign to correct what he believes to be a blatant misattribution, "the quote is about two years old, not 200. It was made by [historian] Howard Zinn in an interview with TomPaine.com to justify his opposition to the War on Terror." Someone erroneously attributed the quote to Jefferson soon after, and now seemingly everyone is doing it.

More to the point, howver, is the idiocy of such a sentiment, as very well expressed by Dean Esmay here:

There's a very common--and very ridiculous--saying that holds that "dissent is the highest form of patriotism." This has always been, quite obviously to any thinking person, total baloney.

The Ku Klux Klan are dissenters. Extremist black and chicano separatists are dissenters. Does that make their hateful idiocy the highest form of patriotism?

Perhaps the Edwards campaign wants to be lumped in with such patriots.

I have another quote in mind for such a statement:

Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.

Recruiter Appreciation Day

The folks at Gathering of Eagles have prclaimed Saturday, May 19 Operation Recruiter Appreciation Day. Click here for details on how you can thank your local recruiting office for the work they do. Details on the Washington, DC recruiter apprecation festivities can be found here.