U.S. Air Force airmen and aircrew personnel offload a presidential limousine from a C-17 GLobemaster at Kotoka International Airport in Accra, Ghana, July 8, 2009, as part of the U.S. military support for U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Ghana July 10-11.
U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jerry Fleshman

A Marine who fought in 3 wars and was a true legend has passed away.

Reusser was awarded 59 medals during his career, including two Navy Crosses, four Purple Hearts and two Legions of Merit. He retired from the service a colonel, The Associated Press and Oregon media reported.

He was shot down five times during 259 combat missions in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam — at least once in each conflict.

Amazingly, they still make Marines like this.

Semper Fi Col. Reusser and God speed.

Jody,

Your advice has been requested:

Jerry joined the Navy soon after our wedding. He met "Hank" in boot camp, and they became good friends and hung out together until Jerry was deployed to Japan. Hank remained here and comes over from time to time to play with our son.

For the most part, I am content in my marriage, but lately I've had strong feelings for Hank. Hank has told me he has feelings for me, too. Now I'm mixed up about everything. I don't know if I could ever leave my marriage, but more and more I can picture myself with Hank.

Join for a beer if you wish.

Apparently the Pentagon's "Health Experts" think it would be keen to ban the military from using tobacco.

The last physical pleasure permitted by General Order #1 -- banning alcohol, banning sex of any kind, banning service members of the opposite sex from visiting in private for any purpose -- is a good cigar.  Though not a smoker normally, I had a few such in very fine company, though we smoked in spite of the worst of dust and sand in the deserts of Iraq.

Even that is too much to ask, apparently, for the one percent of Americans who give themselves to the service of their nation. 

I've never written one of these, so bear with me.  It came to my attention today that the brother-in-law of a close family friend is currently at Walter Reed fighting for his life.

“Karcher was on his 3rd deployment to Iraq… [D]espite a gunshot wound to his shoulder that ripped out much of his deltoid muscle, he fought hard to get back to the point where he could return to his soldiers. He said he felt guilty if they were in the fight and he was not.”

LTC Karcher was riding in an MRAP just before noon on Sunday, June 28th. The MRAP is considered the Army’s heaviest and safest personnel carrier.  But the multiple and powerful EFPs (explosively formed penetrator), those Iranian made shaped charge that penetrate metal, struck the door near where Karcher was seated.  His legs were gone.  Normally a medevac helicopter would be called, but the soldiers were socked in by a dust storm, and nothing was flying.  Karcher would have to be driven to Baghdad’s combat support hospital, or CSH as it is known.  Tourniquets were quickly applied in the field, but when he arrived at the CSH Karcher was in shock and losing blood.  Doctors at the CSH were finally able to stabilize him Monday morning when he was transferred to Balad air base for further medical care and then transferd to Landstuhl. When Karcher was loaded onto the plane for Landstuhl, those with him say he looked “strong and stable.”

A U.S. Marine signals members of his squad toward several CH-46 Sea Knights, CH-53 Super Stallions and other aircraft that participated in the training extraction of his platoon from their position during a long-range helicopter raid on Camp Pendleton, Twentynine Palms, Calif., July 8, 2009. The Marines are assigned to Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Marine and Navy teams are testing interoperability before a deployment certification exercise.
U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jeffrey Belovarac

The survey is here.

Elise Cooper who has contributed several pieces here at BLACKFIVE, has a post up at the New Majority about a meeting between members of the Justice Department and families of those killed on 9/11.

While it was a kind gesture to hold such a meeting, some of the elements showed a lack of tact, such as having a former counter-terrorism counsel for Human Rights Watch participate. This woman, Jennifer Daskal, who is now a member of the Justice Department Detainee Review Task Force has written that military commissions were “illegitimate, dysfunctional, and a kangaroo court.”. The families feel that the meetings with them were simply to provide political cover as the administration moves forward granting more rights to the detainees at Gitmo. While that point can be argued the comments at NM are inarguably offensive. I find it incomprehensible that someone can find more common ground with terrorists than with those who lost family members to terrorism. Here is the first comment.

New Majority purports to offer a way back from the wilderness for Republicans or a third way between left and right. I have to say it has not impressed me and if these clowns represent the audience, I'll decline the offer to follow them.

Stars and Stripes published a story originating with the Southern Poverty Law Center, which states that SPLC found dozens of members of a hate-group website who claimed to be members of the military. 

The Raw Story asks "Gays not welcome; White Supremacists 'OK'"?  The truth is the opposite of that, though the Stripes article is written in a way that may be confusing.

[M]ilitary officials gave conflicting answers this week when asked how policies governing racist behavior are being enforced.

A spokesman for the Department of the Army said the service takes seriously any allegations of membership in racist, extremist or hate groups. But he said such allegations are dealt with on a case-by-case basis at the unit disciplinary level or in the military justice system, and are not being addressed as an Army-wide problem.

The Army spokesman then referred Stripes to the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command for more information. But that office refused to comment on Army policy on hate groups, saying that the issue of extremists infiltrating the ranks was “an Army-wide issue” that should be addressed at the service command level.

“If a sergeant is assigned to Fort Bragg,” said Army spokesman Wayne Hall, “the Fort Bragg office of Criminal Investigation Command is going to investigate that individual, not the Department of the Army at this level.”

If, for example, a soldier is found to have participated in a neo-Nazi rally, “Then it comes down to the unit commander,” Hall said. “It’s a violation of good order and discipline.”

I don't share Stripes' view that this is conflicting information; I suspect, rather, that the people they interviewed thought they were answering different questions. 

If a particular servicemember is suspected of active membership in an extremist group, his commander has authority to punish him.  The base or unit investigative services can be brought to bear to help uncover the truth about the matter.  This is the opposite of the situation with homosexuals:  under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the commander is only supposed to react to open claims or unavoidable demonstrations of homosexuality, not to investigate suspicions.

The unit is the normal place for most disciplinary actions to be located, so there is nothing surprising in this.  It's just what you'd expect to be true.

The Army's Criminal Investigation Command appears to have thought that it was answering a different question from the one everyone else thought they were answering.  It is speaking not to the question of "What should be done if an individual servicemember is thought to be a member of a racist organization?", but "What should be done if there is a plot by racist organizations to infiltrate the military?"  Such a plot would be -- as the spokesman said -- a service-wide issue. 

Indeed, if the Army thought it was being targeted for organized infiltration, it might well look even to the interagency level, asking the FBI or others to help them disrupt the plot.  The FBI would have authority over the non-military members of the racist organization, which the Army would not. 

This is, however, not a military problem, but a civilian problem.  The military has clear rules prohibiting active membership in an extremist group by soldiers.  Does the civilian world have similarly clear laws banning extremist groups from organizing efforts to join the military?  I am no lawyer, but I would think that would be very hard to prosecute.  (E.g.:  Perhaps you could do something if you could prove they were suggesting their members commit fraud, by instructing them to lie when asked about membership in racist groups.  Certainly you could do something if you were able to prove an actual plot to overthrow the government or something similar.  However, mere advocacy that 'people who feel as we do' might want to 'join the military' would be protected free speech.) 

Regardless of the difficulties, though, it's civilian law and civilian agencies that would need to be brought to bear.

To recap:  if a particular servicemember is thought to be a member of a racist organization, that is a question for his unit, just as disciplinary measures normally are.  If it is suspected that a racist organization has a plot to infiltrate the ranks, that is a service-wide issue that needs to be handled at higher levels, because both military and civilian law may need to be brought to bear. 

A Blackfive reader (and Aussie)  sent me this request:
 

War Office, 6th September, 1945.

The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the VICTORIA CROSS to:-

No. VX. 102142 Private Edward KENNA, 2/4 Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian Military Forces.

In the South West Pacific at Wewak on 15th May, 1945, during the attack on the Wirui Mission features, Private Kenna's company had the task of capturing certain enemy positions. The only position from which observation for supporting fire could be obtained was continuously swept by enemy heavy machine gun fire and it was not possible to bring Artillery or Mortars into action.

Private Kenna's platoon was ordered forward to deal with the enemy machine gun post, so that the company operation could proceed. His section moved as close as possible to the bunker in order to harass any enemy seen, so that the remainder of the platoon could attack from the flank. When the attacking sections came into view of the enemy they were immediately engaged at very close range by heavy automatic fire from a position not previously disclosed. Casualties were suffered and the attackers could not move further forward.

Private Kenna endeavoured to put his Bren gun into a position where he could engage the bunker, but was unable to do so because of the nature of the ground. On his own initiative and without orders Private Kenna immediately stood up in full view of the enemy less than fifty yards away and engaged the bunker, firing his Bren gun from the hip. The enemy machine gun immediately returned Private Kenna's fire and with such accuracy that bullets actually passed between his arms and his body, piercing his clothing. Undeterred, he remained completely exposed and continued to fire at the enemy until his magazine was exhausted. Still making a target of himself, Private Kenna discarded his Bren gun and called for a rifle. Despite the intense machine gun fire, he seized the rifle and, with amazing coolness, killed the gunner with his first round.

A second automatic opened fire on Private Kenna from a different position and another of the enemy immediately tried to move into position behind the first machine gun, but Private Kenna remained standing and killed him with his next round.

The result of Private Kenna's magnificent bravery in the face of concentrated fire, was that the bunker was captured without further loss, and the company attack proceeded to a successful conclusion, many enemy being killed and numerous automatic weapons captured.

There is no doubt that the success of the company attack would have been seriously endangered and many casualties sustained but for Private Kenna's magnificent courage and complete disregard for his own safety. His action was an outstanding example of the highest degree of bravery.

Godspeed, Ted Kenna.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!!!

Greyhawk points out how a new policy "protects" our troops who are renters from forced moves when their landlords are foreclosed on. Turns out this simply saves the gubmint a few bucks by screwing our junior enlisted folks. How 'bout that quality of life eh?

In May of this year, however, President Obama signed the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009 - part of the larger Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009. Under the terms of this law, tenants are "protected" in case of such a foreclosure in that they can not be evicted prior to expiration of an existing lease. (An exception - if the "new" landlord sells the property to a buyer to use as their principal residence the current tenant is allowed 90 days to vacate.)

As a result, military families now won't be forced to vacate until their lease expires, therefore their move may be delayed a bit - but they will no longer be reimbursed for the expenses of that move because it's due to a normal lease expiration - not a foreclosure action. They'll still have to move - maybe with a bit more advance notice but no reduction in hassles - only once again they'll be the ones writing the checks.

Bravo, well done.

This same change in Iraq, to take territory and then stay there alongside the populace, was instrumental in shifting public opinion in Iraq. In conjunction with increased security from local forces it led to our ability to let the Iraqis take care of themselves. A similar strategy is now being employed in Afghanistan, but faces many more challenges. The Afghan security forces are near useless as currently constituted. Tribal issues make it almost impossible for any national forces to be used in an area where they are not native. Our training efforts have focused on attempting to put together Afghan police and military units but the problem is that other than perhaps Hamid Karzai there are no Afghans. There are a patchwork of tribes and villages and cliques that speak different languages, hold centuries long beefs and don't see themselves as part of this larger, artificial thing we call Afghanistan.

When the Anbar Awakening happened in response to al Qaeda brutality, local sheiks said "enough" to the outsiders who were wreaking so much havoc in their areas. They formed their own security forces to combat them and safeguard their people. US forces midwived these actions and supported the efforts of what became the "Sons of Iraq". local folks protecting their neighborhoods and villages. To do the same in Afghanistan is a much more challenging puzzle as the same model must be adapted and constructed dozens of times for different tribes and we must be willing to stay and share the danger as they stand up against the Taliban and al Qaeda. Instead of kicking on doors and confiscating weapons, we have to prepare to arm villagers and stand with them when the militants come to pressure them.Complicating things further is the sheer number of separate places we must do this in some of the most hellacious terrain on the planet.

Our ability to place troops on the ground and support them in the case of concerted attacks against them is limited. We must be very judicious in how we expand our footprint and attempt to deny the enemy the ability to mass forces to attack these new outposts. This will be slow and difficult and requires a long war mentality. Alliances with tribal leaders must be formed and fostered, and then we must empower them to secure their own people. We must help them increase quality of life, hovel by hovel. They must begin to see that working with us causes less killing and strife and then they can be expected to work with us.

Call it oil spots or whatever you want, but we have to strategically spread security and prosperity out in a de-centralized fashion. The national government and security forces have almost zero credibility and it will take much greater efforts to change that. Commanders at the local level have the ability and expertise now to build personal relationships and to show concrete results. They are the building blocks for this strategy, they and the strategic corporals can show both physical, moral and ethical courage that can win the tribal leaders over. We don't want them on our side as much as we need to convince them we are on their side. This will take concepts like returning the same units to the same locations in rotation, leaving cadres of officers and NCOs in the same AOs for extended periods to build a continuity that lasts beyond one unit's deployment. And most of all it takes a commitment from our government to support these efforts over a time fram longer than the next election cycle. That is one of the biggest dangers to this new strategy.

Elise Cooper for BLACKFIVE

New York Times Number one bestselling author Brad Thor has written a new book, “The Apostle.” This fictional book is centered on rescuing a hostage, Dr. Julia Gallo, who is held by the Taliban in Afghanistan.  To head the rescue team, the American President enlists Scot Harvath, a special forces’ operative.   The book’s sub-plot involves a secret service agent, Elise Campbell, who overhears the possibility of the President’s involvement in the death of one his aides.   Blackfive.net had the opportunity to interview Mr. Thor about his new book.

Mr. Thor stated to Blackfive that “as a political thriller writer my job is to be as current as tomorrow’s headlines and to speak with as much firsthand knowledge as possible.” When reading fiction do the readers wonder where fantasy becomes reality? A good fictional political thriller must have plots, sub-plots, and themes that are believable.  There were a few themes in “The Apostle” which could have been based on a realistic situation. 

First, there is the Secret Services’ quandary of overhearing a delicate, personal matter.  In reading this, one reverts back to the Clinton years when there were numerous reports of the President’s infidelity.  How many of Thor’s readers remember the secret service agents being compelled to testimony about President Clinton’s contemporaneous activities?   Thor commented about the secret service agent, Elise Campbell that he wanted her character to have her “own mystery to unravel with and wrestle with her own points.”

The next theme involves the CIA’s bureaucratic mistakes, including wasting time and money for mandatory sensitivity training and the failure over 9-11.  Thor states in his book that “management was more concerned with getting promoted and pushing their paperwork than making sure the operatives got the resources they needed.”  Both CIA sources interviewed agreed with this statement during the years John Deutch and James Woosley Jr. served as directors.  One former operative stated that both “Deutch and Woosley were risk averse.  They cut some of our resources because there was not enough money in the payroll.  A lot of people who did take risks were asked to retire.”  However, he goes on to state that during the George Tenet and Michael Hayden years, “everyone was gung-ho and had the full backing of the Bush administration.”   Besides the two former operatives, a high ranking official told Blackfive that “the guys in the field are viewed as heroes…the people at the headquarters are seemingly idiots.  The problem with this is that many of the senior people at HQ came from the field…remember that someone has to evaluate them to make sure in light of the bigger picture that their plan makes sense.” 

Mr. Thor writes in the book, “What puzzled him (Scot Harvath) more was that not a single management head had rolled at the CIA over the attacks.”  Many at the CIA admit that they should have connected the dots more, but the other agencies should also share in the blame.  As one former CIA official explained, “It was an American failure.  It was a State Department failure because the terrorists should never have been given visas, a law enforcement failure because the FBI should have been on them once they entered this country and an intelligence failure because the CIA should have disrupted the attacks.”

Realizing that today’s world is a dangerous place, Mr. Thor was asked about his main character, Scot Harvath.  He is hopeful that there are Harvaths in the world who will keep Americans safe.  He wanted to write a book set in Afghanistan because he saw it as a place that would be back in the headlines.  He stated that “as a political thriller writer my job is to be as current as tomorrow’s headlines.”

He explained that he writes the books for entertainment; yet, wants to give a voice to those that keep Americans safe.  Thor stated that “I stand in awe of the men and women in law enforcement, in intelligence, and in the military.  Every freedom I enjoy is because of the service and sacrifice of others.”

This is a very good political thriller because of its suspenseful and believable plots.  Luckily for Scot Harvath fans Brad Thor is going to write a book with him as the main character every single year.  The CIA parts should probably not have been put in the book since they did not add anything to the plot.  If you want a book that has a likeable main character, a good sub-plot, and is fast moving, this is a great summer book to read.  As Mr. Thor stated, “First and foremost I am an entertainer so I want to give people the best white knuckle job I am capable of based on believability.”

Over at Montrose Toast, DJ Elliot exposes a big lie about Saddam Hussein that our detractors like to put forth time and time again.

The Big Lie Propaganda approach is:  If you state a big enough lie often enough, people will believe it.

This concept took off when the National SOCIALIST German Workers Party (Hitler) used it in the 1930s and 1940s and the Communist (Stalin) adopted it from them.

In this article, Murdoc askes "Spot Anything Questionable?":

"Early in the Iran-Iraq War, an AK-47-toting Iranian soldier watches smoke rising from burning oil refineries near the Iranian city of Abadan. The Iraqis under Saddam Hussein, armed and supported by the United States, used mostly M16s. Photo: Henri Bureau/Sygma/Corbis"  From Wired

What is being furthered in the caption is the big lie that the United States armed Saddam...

[link is http://home.comcast.net/~djyae/site/?/blog/view/10/ ]

St Jude's has a video about Evan and I'll post it below.  You all have helped make a difference.  Please watch the video and then leave a note of encouragement to Evan here.

Thanks!

~Blackfive, Out.

It was a simple mission that ended as anything but. Army Sgt. Justin Puetz with the 5th MPAD is there as Soldiers from Task Force Mountain Warrior come under fire.

Shreveport.

I'm looking forward to visiting beautiful downtown Shreveport, Louisiana, later this week.  If any of you are in the area, give me a holler at blackfive-at-gmail-com.  It should be a temperate 99 degrees so I'll be eating right and drinking lots of fluids...

We are a nauseatingly celebrity obsessed culture. We tend to worship a group of people as heroes whose job, for the most part,is to pretend they're other people when they act, or to sing songs others have written for them. Certainly Michael Jackson was in a league of his own, in more ways than one (and not all of them positive). But the 24/7 coverage in just about every media outlet you can imagine has literally eclipsed news coverage of far more important events with absurdities such as the breathless announcement of Jackson's golden casket arriving on stage at his memorial.

And, as usual, some who've been given the short shrift are the real heroes this country should be mourning:

A day before New York Rep. Peter King called Michael Jackson a “pervert” unworthy of nonstop media coverage, the aunt of a U.S. soldier killed in Afghanistan on the same day Jackson died asked why her nephew's death went virtually unnoticed while the King of Pop got memorial shrines across the country.

"Mr.Jackson received days of wall-to-wall coverage in the media," Martha Gillis wrote to the Washington Post. "Where was the coverage of my nephew or the other soldiers who died that week?"

Gillis' nephew, Lt. Brian Bradshaw, 24, died in Kheyl, Afganistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. Bradshaw, of Steilacoom, Wash., was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division in Fort Richardson, Alaska. He was one of at least 13 U.S. soldiers to die in Afghanistan since Jackson's death on June 25.

Bradshaw's mother, Mary, said she agreed with Gillis, saying the nonstop coverage of Jackson's death has become "totally ridiculous" and laughable.

"I can watch the news many nights and there's no mention of what's going on in Afghanistan or Iraq and there's boys dying over there," Bradshaw told FOXNews.com. "Oh God, I can't talk."

In fact, now that the deaths of our warriors aren't useful for the media to use as a daily hammer with which to pound the current administration, it appears their interest in those we lose has waned quit a bit, even from it's former scarce attention.

Ms. Gillis has it right when she says her nephew's death in the service of his country went virtually unnoticed in the unseemly circus of the Jackson death.

Rest in peace and God speed LT Bradshaw. We here at Blackfive thank you for your brave service to our country and your sacrifice. We mourn your loss as we mourn the loss of all our brothers and sisters in arms. We pray your family will be comforted by the fact that the Blackfive community and the broader milblog community does indeed honor and appreciate what you and your fellow warriors have given in service to this nation.

Well we had quite a fiesta in Dallas on the 3rd of July courtesy of the USO Girls (many more pics there) and quite a few BLACKFIVE readers. The Tap In Grill in Grapevine hosted an event for us and it went like gangbusters. The far and away crowd sensation was the official "Hugging and Kissing Grandmas". They were amazing and raised a ton of money one pair of hugs at a time.

It was great to meet all of the great patriots down in Big D and I even said that WLF is hardly needed in Texas, those folks already understand the value of military service, it is the rest of the country we need to work on. Thanks to the Tap In, the USO Girls and all their compatriots and all the good folks who showed up to help us out and enjoy some fun.

B5 reader Michael sporting WLF colors

My mother, who was a wise and wonderful woman (and also a vet) always told me that if I couldn't say something nice about the recently departed I should keep quiet.

So I'll let Joe Galloway, Vietnam's "Ernie Pyle", sum up my feelings about Robert McNamara's death

"I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure." —Clarence Darrow (1857–1938)

Well, the aptly named Robert Strange McNamara has finally shuffled off to join LBJ and Dick Nixon in the 7th level of Hell.

McNamara was the original bean-counter — a man who knew the cost of everything but the worth of nothing.

'Nuff said.

When I was on vacation, I saw this video shown on the cable network news channels, but only part of it. The whole video from CJTF-82 is valuable because it shows (1) the concern that we have for collateral damage, (2) the effectiveness of our air crews, (3) the bravery of our grunts and (4) why you never bunch up (looking at you noobs at Benning)...

BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan - Combined Joint Task Force-82 has released video of an air weapons team engaging and killing insurgents when responding to the insurgents' complex attack on a small patrol base in Paktia province May 27.

The video shows 14 insurgents carrying automatic rifles, rocket propelled grenades and a mortar round fleeing the scene after they attacked the outpost with indirect fire, rocket propelled grenades and smalls arms fire.

The pilot of an Apache AH64 helicopter is heard verbally checking to make sure the militants are far enough away from any qalats, or Afghan homes, so that shooting the militants will not endanger any civilians.

The attack helicopter checks six times to ensure there will be no collateral damage before receiving permission to engage the insurgents.

After the helicopter engages the insurgents from the air, U.S. troops continue fighting the insurgents on the ground. [B5 note: you see US soldier engaging with hand grenades]

The entire fire fight lasted more than five hours. Afghan National Army and ISAF service members conducted an assessment of the area, finding at least 15 militant forces killed, numerous small arms and a mortar system.

No ANA or International Security Assistance Forces were injured during the attack. The incident resulted in no civilian casualties.

You can go to his Caring Bridge Web site http://caringbridge.org/visit/evanpertile and leave him a note of encouragement. To register, enter an e-mail address and create a password.

U.S. Marines with 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, along with approximately 650 Afghan soldiers and police officers from the Afghan national security force, prepare to board CH-53D Sea Stallion and CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters at Forward Operating Base Dwyer, Afghanistan, July 2. The Marines and ANSF are partnered for a major operation in the Helmand Province to transition security responsibilities to the Afghan forces. The Marines and ANSF will move into towns and villages along the Helmand River Valley in an effort to secure the population from the threat of the Taliban and other insurgent intimidation and violence.
Regimental Combat Team 3 Photo by Philippe E. Chasse.

I understand that's a relative term, but here it is - he's alive and it looks like our guys have a pretty good idea of who has him and where he might be. CNN reports:

An American soldier captured in southeastern Afghanistan is being held by a notorious militant clan, a senior U.S. military official said.

The American and three Afghan soldiers were captured by low-level militants and then quickly "sold" to the clan led by warlord Siraj Haqqani -- believed to be deeply involved in the action.

The Haqqanis operate on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and are well known to the U.S. military. They are assembling shuras, or local councils of leaders, to talk and try to "legitimize" what they have done, the official said.

U.S., Afghan and Pakistani troops are sealing off the area and also are talking to tribal chiefs, village elders and leaders.

They are telling them to "do the right thing and solve this," the official said.

The U.S. military is telling people not to let Haqqani operatives move through their area and to find the American and return him. The military wants to make sure there is "no shelter" for the militants holding him.

"We want to make sure there is no place to hide," the official said.

I'm sure some of our folks at Blackfive or our readers can give us more of an idea of who the Haqqani's are and their association with the Taliban, but frankly it appears we may be getting a handle on this.

The Taliban has claimed they captured the soldier, who they claim was drunk at the time.  The Taliban have been known to lie every now and again.

Meanwhile, prayers for the soldier's safe return are still appropriate.

Lo, There Do I See My Father…

Lo, There Do I See My Mother…

And My Sisters and My Brothers…

Lo, There Do I See The Line

Of My People Back to the Beginning…

They Do Bid Me To Take My Place Among Them…

In The Halls of Valhalla

Where The Brave May Live Forever

I never know how to start a post like this...

News of something like this shows up in the news (at least on our radar).... (H/T: Bill at LWJ)

US soldiers in eastern Afghanistan beat back a complex attack on a combat outpost by the Haqqani Network in Eastern Afghanistan.

The attack began as Haqqani Network fighters launched rockets and mortars at a small US base in the Zarok district in Paktika province. As the rockets and mortars were fired, a suicide bomber attempted to ram a truck packed with explosives into the combat outpost, but soldiers shot and killed the driver before he could penetrate the base. The attackers also fired assault rifles and machine guns during the assault.

And then Aaron's father, David M. Masters, passed along the devastating news on Twitter over the weekend that his son was one of two American soldiers killed by a suicide bomber in Afghanistan at the COP in Zarok.  His brothers and sisters are grieving as well and they are enroute to receive him when he arrives at Dover AFB.  There is more here about Aaron and what happened. (H/T: MM)

Aaron had a MySpace page and you can see it here

Hey my name is Aaron Fairbairn, I am 20 and in the army. I like to ride dirtbikes, go muddin and all of that kind of stuff. One of my favorite things to do is work on my truck when I break it. I have a yamaha yz 125 I haven’t got to ride it much because of work but i plan to go race it sometime.

My Kandak helped establish this COP out in the Zarok District with a company from 2-87 INF of the 10th Mountain Division in 2006.  In fact, we took down an HVT we had been looking for there and spent the better part of a year operating there, as it is a major cross roads for infiltration from over the border.

Aaron sounds like someone that I would have shared a canteen cup of coffee over my Esbit stove with and talked motorcycles and girls with. 

God Bless Aaron, his comrades in arms and his family, and I grieve with them for their loss...  I will remember him and his family in my prayers

The Brave Truly Do Live Forever...

This report that the Saudis would tacitly support, by not stopping, an Israeli transit of their airspace en route to bombing Iran's known nuke facilities is interesting. It's even more interesting that there have been no loud denials from the Saudis. That is certainly a signal from them. The Israelis face an unmistakable threat from the current regime in Iran, but if it was toppled it could bring relief to many of their problems. Most of their enemies (Hezbollah, Hamas etc.) are funded, trained and in many cases take marching orders from Teheran. While they are well aware an attack on Iran could unite the country against them, it is not inconceivable that they would still bomb the facilities and remind the Iranian opposition that they share a common enemy.

The rallying force for Iranian opposition has been Mousavi and now he has announced he will form a political party. It is somewhat surprising that he remains free and able to do so. It seemed likely he would be swept up with the thousands detained during the wide-spread protests after the election. The regime may believe detaining him would raise his popularity, but this latest move seems very provocative.

Another factor that should be considered now is the possibility of recruiting sources within Iran that have detailed knowledge of the nuclear program. Lack of actionable intel about the number and location of these facilities has always been the top reason to doubt the efficacy of airstrikes. In addition having information or agents on the inside greatly increases the possibility of sabotage as a method. The large number of disaffected Iranians obviously includes some of the many educated engineers and administrators working on these programs. It only takes a couple to provide the keys to knocking this effort back a few steps at least. Airstrikes can be the implied threat and again if a decent act of sabotage can be conducted the follow on is to remind the Iranian people that their economic suffering is caused by the same fanatics whose pursuit of nukes has exiled them from much of the rest of the world.

For a long while US policy advocated regime change in Iran, both for the benefit of the Iranian people and the safety of all nations. Currently our administration seems hell-bent on negotiating with these theocratic tyrants while the best possibility of freeing the Iranian people stares them in the eye. The possibility of negotiating a grand bargain with the Iranians was a pipe dream all along and the actions of the regime in response to it's farcical election shows their legitimacy is stolen. The US should not get involved in directly attacking Iran, but we have so many other weapons in our arsenal that we can deploy i.e. sanctions on companies selling gasoline to the regime, vocal support for free elections monitored by outside agencies, coordination with local nations threatened by Iranian influence, not to mention covert help to internal dissidents in both technical means and organizing.

We obviously walk a fine line in this, but we need to look at the opportunity presented to prevent the horrific possibility of a nuclear-armed Iran and seriously consider the most likely means of stopping that, which is regime change, preferably from within.

A U.S. Marine helps his buddy up as they prepare to board helicopters for a mission on Forward Operating Base Dwyer, Afghanistan, July 2, 2009. The Marines are assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.
U.S. Marine Corps photo by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Philippe E. Chasse

A new monument and park has opened near Diamond Head on Oahu, Hawaii.  This new park is in honor of those who died in Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan.

A couple of weeks ago I was talking to Blackfive, who was on vacation there and he commented on the new memorial not yet completed or dedicated.  I tweeted the question (twittered? twatted?? tooted??) and got a quick reply that, not 2 days after Blackfive was there, the park was completed- the monument was finished and the park had a dedication ceremony.  So Matt had an answer to his question- what was going on?

Thanks to several people who took the time to go and gather the info, and sent pics of the ceremony and the completed monument- as you can see, it's a fantastic dedication.  Small, but poignant.  Now, those of you with sharp eyes and a good recollection will notice something not quite right- take a look at the photos and see if you can catch it (hint: look at the title of this posting.)

The new park, called Fort Ruger the Operation Red Wing-Medal of Honor Park, was initially dedicated last Veteran's Day (2008).  As we all know, that was the operation where the SEAL team lead my LT Murphy was ambushed and during the operation and attempted rescue, 19 soldiers and sailors died, and included the largest loss of life in the Teams since Vietnam.  Ft. Ruger is named for

Maj. Gen. Thomas Ruger, who fought in the Civil War on the Union side and later served as governor of Georgia during the Reconstruction period. The headquarters of the Hawaii National Guard is named after him and is located near the park.  (How is it that a Georgian gets a park named for him in Hawaii???  just askin').

Here's the pic that begged the question and the tweet:









Now, the completed monument pics:

Elise Cooper for BLACKFIVE                                                                            6 July 2009

General Richard Myers, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke to Blackfive.net on a number of national security issues confronting America today.  He discussed his views on North Korea, the Iran protests, and Afghanistan. 

North Korea is a state that is causing major problems to the world order according to General Myers.  The General believes their leadership from time to time increases the use of inflammatory rhetoric to exert power and influence.  He noted that “it is amazing that they are talking about missile tests when the whole world is against them.” 

To deal with this rogue state he feels America should combine diplomacy by working with China, increase missile technology and use America’s military power.  Stating that “if the high seas is the place to (search and seize North Korean ships), we need to do it to keep us safe as well as our allies.”  He would take that additional step beyond the UN Resolution and confront the ships before they reach port.  He wants to see a missile defense program become a reality to offset the threat of missiles being fired at Alaska and Hawaii and stated that “we better do it…we need to make sure we have the ability to shoot missiles down with a very high probability.” 

 A senior intelligence officer used an interesting metaphor to describe the situation with China: “China wants to be invited to Thanksgiving dinner, wants to sit at the head of the table, but is not willing to carve the turkey.”  When asked about this, the General commented that it is America’s job to impress upon them the seriousness of the situation and get them involved by pointing out that “the situation could become dire pretty quickly.”

Looking at the Iranian protests and how America basically sat on the sidelines, General Myers was asked his views on what should and should not have been done.  Surprisingly, he agreed with the Obama administration’s policy of restraint and explained that “we don’t want to unite all Iranians with an external threat…we have very little leverage with these rogue states.” According to the General, America needs to team up with Russia by exploiting the Russian’s fear of the Muslim extremists along their border to help Iran become more moderate.

Recently the troops were told by General McChrystal to break away from fights with the Afghanistan militants hiding in houses to spare civilian lives.  General Myers was asked about the Unites States’ philosophy regarding this latest rule of engagement.  He noted that what makes the Muslim extremists so dangerous is that anyone can be a target and “many men, women, and children who are not part of the fight are killed routinely.” 

 He went on to explain that General McChrystal’s new order was issued to accommodate some of the Afghanistan’s government’s fears.  General Myers pointed out that American troops must “walk that fine line between killing Taliban and making friends versus killing Taliban and making enemies.  This is the kind of conflict we are in and in the end what General McChrystal must do is win the hearts and minds of the people and you don’t do that by killing innocent civilians.  We must walk a fine line.”

To win in Afghanistan, Myers explained, America needs to fight both a ground and air war.  He is hopeful that the small bomb being developed by the air force will be ready soon.  According to the General this bomb can be released from any aircraft and can precisely target Taliban locations which will enable the military to avoid civilian casualties. 

 General Myers summed up his position to Blackfive.net by explaining that both China and Russia must play a role in dealing with these rogue states. Both countries do not “want instability in that region because economic progress will slow down, capital would not flow in, and they would not continue to progress.”  Regarding the rogue states of North Korea and Iran he feels that they are not sustainable and that both will become failed states.  He explained that “folks in the (North Korea) inner circle see that their own government can’t house themselves, can’t feed themselves.  I can’t believe that somebody is not hanging around at the upper echelon that doesn’t say we can’t do a lot better with a different philosophy.   What you are seeing in Iran with the protestors willing to risk their lives and in some cases losing their lives shows they know there is a better way.”  Hopefully, this will all come out to be true.

Thanks to Mr. Morse Gist!