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1 year ago
Former soldier surrenders after taking hostages at Ga. hospital - USATODAY.com
The Army Major nurse in this article is a HERO. Not many other details available so let’s wait to make any other judgement calls. USAToday - Former soldier surrenders after taking hostages at Ga. hospital: http://usat.me?39997216 -
1 year ago
Iraqi TV Prank Show
Tantor sends this gem: All during Ramadan the Iraqi TV show “Put Him In [Camp] Bucca” has been planting fake bombs in the cars of prominent Iraqis, busting them at bogus checkpoints, and filming the fun. To add to the comedy, the cops tell him they may have to execute him. And really, what’s funnier than a car bomb? There’s a video of one caper, which is funny even if you don’t understand Arabic:http://hotair.com/archives/2010/09/03/fun-new-iraqi-tv-prank-show-planting-fake-bombs-in-peoples-cars-at-security-checkpoints/Those silly Iraqis.#End -
1 year ago
A Special place in Hell exists for Fred Phelps
Families of the Fallen pay the price for this nonsense. Thanks to the Patriot Guard Riders for protecting then. Protest at military funeral ignites a test of free speech
http://usat.me?39898684 -
1 year ago
Federal contractor charged with leaking secrets about N. Korea - USATODAY.com
Federal contractor charged with leaking secrets about N. Korea results in a directive. Directive telling agencies to stop leaking to the press was, interestingly enough, then leaked to the press. Hello, Director Clapper, Irony for you on line one… http://usat.me?39874802 -
1 year ago
Wronged by Nixon - Righting a Good Man’s Reputation
Quite a few of you regulars have emailed us this story from the Washington Post:Record Set Straight For U.S. GeneralLavelle took blame after Nixon denied authorizing bombings in North VietnamBy Craig WhitlockDuring the summer of 1972, official Washington was dragging Air Force Gen. John D. Lavelle’s name and reputation through the mud. Multiple investigations by the Pentagon and Congress concluded that the four-star commander had ordered unauthorized bombing missions in North Vietnam and then tried to cover them up. He was demoted to major general and forced to retire, in disgrace.Lavelle maintained his rectitude until his death, saying he was acting on orders. Nearly four decades later, it turns out he was right.On Wednesday, after an exhaustive reexamination of Lavelle’s actions, President Obama asked the Senate to restore his honor and his missing stars. In the process, the decision officially sets the record straight about who really lied during the controversial chapter in the Vietnam War, who told the truth and who was left holding the bag.Historical records unearthed by two biographers who came across the material by happenstance show that Lavelle was indeed acting on orders to conduct the bombing missions, and that the orders came from the commander in chief himself: President Richard M. Nixon.Not only did Nixon give the secret orders, but transcripts of his recorded Oval Office conversations show that he stood by, albeit uncomfortably, as Lavelle suffered a scapegoat’s fate.“I just don’t want him to be made a goat, goddamnit,” Nixon told his national security adviser, Henry Kissinger, on June 14, 1972, a few days after it was disclosed that Lavelle had been demoted for the allegedly unauthorized attacks. “You, you destroy a man’s career… . Can we do anything now to stop this damn thing?”On June 26, Nixon’s conscience intervened in another conversation with Kissinger. “Frankly, Henry, I don’t feel right about our pushing him into this thing and then, and then giving him a bad rap,” the president said. “I don’t want to hurt an innocent man.”But Nixon was unwilling to stand up publicly for the general. With many lawmakers and voters already uneasy about the war, he wasn’t about to admit that he had secretly given permission to escalate bombing in North Vietnam. At a June 29 news conference, he was asked about Lavelle’s case and the airstrikes.“It wasn’t authorized,” Nixon told the reporters. “It was proper for him to be relieved and retired.”In testimony and interviews before his death in 1979, Lavelle took responsibility for the military consequences of the bombings, which he said were justified to protect U.S. air patrols and surveillance missions over North Vietnam. But he insisted that he never exceeded his authority. He said he was following rules of engagement communicated to him by the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington as well as by Defense Secretary Melvin R. Laird and Gen. Creighton Abrams. (There is no evidence that Lavelle ever knew that the directive originated with Nixon.)“It is not pleasant to contemplate ending a long and distinguished military career with a catastrophic blemish on my record,” Lavelle told Congress, “a blemish for conscientiously doing the job I was expected to do.”Removal of that blemish began in 2007, when Aloysius Casey, a retired Air Force general, and his son, Patrick Casey, wrote an article in Air Force Magazine about the case. While researching a biography about another Air Force commander, the Caseys came across audio recordings of Nixon’s conversations as well as declassified message traffic from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The material, they concluded, showed that Lavelle had “unequivocal authorization” from Nixon and senior military officials to conduct the North Vietnam airstrikes in late 1971 and early 1972.The findings were presented to Lavelle’s widow, Mary Jo, now 91 and a resident of Marshall, Va., as well as the couple’s seven children. The family retained Patrick Casey, a Pennsylvania lawyer, to help them ask the Air Force to reopen the case and restore Lavelle to the rank of full general.The Lavelles applied to the Air Force Board for the Correction of Military Records, which endorsed the general’s exoneration last year. That decision was separately upheld by Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates. On Wednesday, Obama gave his support as well. The case will now go to the Senate for final approval.“Jack was a good man, a good husband, a good father, and a good officer,” Mary Jo Lavelle said in a statement Wednesday. “I wish he was alive to hear this news.”Air Force officials said the Lavelle family does not stand to benefit financially from his posthumous promotion. Although he was demoted, military personnel rules in effect at the time enabled Lavelle to retire with a full pension, said Beth Gosselin, an Air Force spokeswoman.Sen. James Webb (D-Va.), a Vietnam combat veteran who had urged the Air Force to hear Lavelle’s petition, said the case is an example of the frustrations encountered by military commanders during Vietnam who thought they were given conflicting directions from lawmakers and civilian officials.“We’ve still got a lot of unwinding to do from the debates at the end of the Vietnam War,” Webb said. “But this restores his honor.”
Better info at the Donovan’s place: http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2010/08/vietnam_war_wro.html Thanks to the Caseys for doing this.#End -
1 year ago
Parting Shot
GEN McChrystal’s PAO posts up on the Yon and Rolling Stone aftermath: -
1 year ago
Wikileaks working with the New York Times
Is this Wikileaks parting shot? Reports: Leaked records show unreported Afghan deaths
http://usat.me?39421438 -
1 year ago
Canadian Jet Crash Yesterday
From reader Steve G:Here is a video of a Canadian CF-18 fighter jet crashing Friday during practice for an air show in Alberta. Apparently, he lost his right engine at slow speed and very low altitude, stalled out, and planted it on the airfield in a big ball of fire right in front of the news camera. The pilot ejected just in time to get two swings in the chute before landing just outside the flame with no serious injuries. -
1 year ago
Ranger Up Sale Rhis Weekend
20% of anything you buy Saturday or Sunday goes to Soldier’s Angels. Anything in the Ranger Up store is fair game.We’ve also also launched three new Soldiers’ Angels shirts. And ladies, we’ve got two new styles designed with you in mind. Check them out at RangerUp.com.
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1 year ago
Wanat Officers Vindicated
From the official Army report:”In every review and study conducted to date, the courage, valor, and discipline of the soldiers who fought at Wanat have been universally praised. These soldiers were well-trained, well-led, and fought bravely to defeat a determined and intense enemy action to overrun their base in Wanat. They persevered in a fashion that deserves broad recognition of their bravery and tenacity,” said Gen. George Casey, the Army chief of staff. “Our hearts go out to the families of the fallen soldiers.”“We can never alleviate the suffering felt by the families and friends of the incredibly brave soldiers who were killed and injured during this battle, or adequately express our sympathy for their loss,” said McHugh. “We remain grateful for and humbled by their extraordinary courage and valor.”More here at the Army Times:
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