Iraq War Today

Soldiers' Angels Germany: Soldiers' Angels brings Chefs to Landstuhl

2010-03-22T19:12:00.000-04:00

Soldiers' Angels Germany: Soldiers' Angels brings Chefs to Landstuhl

Nearly 10 Years Out, and the Attack on the USS Cole isn't Over...

2009-12-31T22:32:00.003-05:00

USS Cole bombing survivor dies in Fla. home

By BRIAN SKOLOFF, Associated Press Writer – Tue Dec 29, 2:59 pm ET

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Johann Gokool lost his left foot when a bomb ripped a hole in the side of the USS Cole nearly a decade ago, but the injury was nothing compared with the mental torment that ravaged him almost daily.

He returned home to Florida suffering severe post-traumatic stress disorder and frequent panic attacks so violent he would launch into seizures and even fractured his own wrist several times as he flailed, sister Natala Gokool said Tuesday.
One of the brothers he lived with found him dead in their home last Wednesday, just a week after his 31st birthday, Natala Gokool said. His cause of death was unknown, though she said foul play was not suspected. The family believes the seizures just became too much for his body to handle.

Full story here.

Our hearts go out to this Hero's family, and all those haunted by the attack on the Cole...

Monopoly and WWII

2009-09-18T16:56:00.001-04:00

Who knew?

It's a story that will forever change the way you think of the phrase, "Get Out of Jail Free."

During World War II, as the number of British airmen held hostage behind enemy lines escalated, the country's secret service enlisted an unlikely partner in the ongoing war effort: The board game Monopoly.

It was the perfect accomplice.

Included in the items the German army allowed humanitarian groups to distribute in care packages to imprisoned soldiers, the game was too innocent to raise suspicion. But it was the ideal size for a top-secret escape kit that could help spring British POWs from German war camps.

The British secret service conspired with the U.K. manufacturer to stuff a compass, small metal tools, such as files, and, most importantly, a map, into cut-out compartments in the Monopoly board itself...

Full story here

Remember...

2009-09-11T06:23:00.004-04:00

There are precious few headlines devoted to it today. People are "moving on." And the White House designated it a "Day of Service," not a day to remember (of course, now it's a "Day of Remembrance and Service." I'm sure that had nothing to do with the backlash...). Seems the Left, the White House included, just wants to forget it ever happened.

But I can't. I won't. On this day each year, I will remember. Every sunny, cool, breezy morning as I drive in a car, I will remember. Whenever I hear news of our troops in Afghanistan, I will remember. At odd moments, out of the blue, I will remember.

I will never forget.

We must never forget.

photographer unknown

National Park Service photo

2009-08-04T09:05:00.003-04:00

A COOL DRINK - A U.S. soldier hands an Afghan girl a bottle of water during Operation Champion Sword in Khost province, Afghanistan, July 29, 2009. The operation directs Afghan and international security forces to focus on specific militant targets and safe havens within Sabari and Terezai districts in eastern Afghanistan. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Matthew Freire

And Yet Again with the "Peace" from Islam

2009-08-04T08:53:00.003-04:00

OK, I'll admit it - I've been guilty of doubting the "Religion of Peace" thing. But looking at the example of tolerance shown here....Oh, yes, I'm a believer now. I mean, look how peaceful....

Christian Family Burned to Death in Pakistan After Koran is 'Defiled'
Zahid Hussain in Islamabad

Paramilitary troops patrolled the streets of a town in eastern Pakistan yesterday after Muslim radicals burnt to death eight members of a Christian family, raising fears of violence spreading to other areas.

Hundreds of armed supporters of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, an outlawed Islamic militant group, set alight dozens of Christian homes in Gojra town at the weekend after allegations that a copy of the Koran had been defiled.

The mob opened fire indiscriminately, threw petrol bombs and looted houses as thousands of frightened Christians ran for safety. “They were shouting anti-Christian slogans and attacked our houses,” Rafiq Masih, a resident of the predominantly Christian colony, said. Residents said that police stood aside while the mob went on the rampage. “We kept begging for protection, but police did not take action,” Mr Masih said.

Police and local officials said that at least eight people, including four women and a child, were killed in the fires. Two others died of gunshot wounds. Residents said that the casualties were much higher; one claimed that the number of dead could be in the dozens as many bodies were still buried under the rubble.Shahbaz Bhatti, the Minister for Minorities, said that 40 Christian homes were torched in rioting. He said there was no truth to allegations that a Koran had been defiled, and accused the police of ignoring his appeal to provide protection to Christians.
[...]

On second thought...maybe, just maybe, burning down houses with women and children inside doesn't qualify as 'peaceful' after all...

The rest of the article is here, from The Times of London

After Nearly Twenty Years, a Hero Will Be Coming Home

2009-08-02T19:28:00.003-04:00

Sands hid fate of Gulf War pilot lost since '91

By PAULINE JELINEK and PAMELA HESS, Associated Press Writers

WASHINGTON – Navy pilot Michael "Scott" Speicher was shot down over the Iraq desert on the first night of the Gulf War in 1991 and it was there he apparently was buried by Bedouins, the sand hiding him from the world's mightiest military all these years.

In a sorrowful resolution to the nearly two-decade-old question about his fate, the Pentagon disclosed Sunday it had received new information last month from an Iraqi citizen that led Marines to recover bones and skeletal fragments — enough for a positive identification.

His family issued a statement Sunday saying, "The news that Captain Speicher has died on Iraqi soil after ejecting from his aircraft has been difficult for the family, but his actions in combat, and the search for him, will forever remain in their hearts and minds."

President Barack Obama called the news "a reminder of the selfless service that led him to make the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom."

"My thoughts and prayers are with his family, and I hope that the recovery of his remains will bring them a needed sense of closure," Obama said in a statement issued Sunday.

More here

Our hearts are with this Hero's family.

Two Hundred and Thirty-Three Years Ago Today

2009-07-04T11:02:00.000-04:00

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

— John Hancock

New Hampshire:
Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton

Massachusetts:
John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:
Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery

Connecticut:
Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott

New York:
William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris

New Jersey:
Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark

Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross

Delaware:
Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean

Maryland:
Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:
George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton

North Carolina:
William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn

South Carolina:
Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton

Georgia:
Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton

************************************************

Thanks to those who still step forward to pledge their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to keep us free.

************************************************

Images courtesy of:
Navyjack.info
The Flagpole

Pravda - Beacon of Truth?

2009-06-02T06:49:00.001-04:00

Remember the days when we used to look skeptically at anything in the Russian / Soviet media, knowing the pressure they faced to issue propaganda? Well, how's this for a turning of the tables. Now it's the U.S. media that is a state-run propaganda machine, and Pravda's doing their job:

American capitalism gone with a whimper

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.

True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years. The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was. But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.

Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elites and betters.

First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather then the classics. Americans know more about their favorite TV dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives. They care more for their "right" to choke down a McDonalds burger or a BurgerKing burger than for their constitutional rights. Then they turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our "democracy". Pride blind the foolish.

More here - and well worth the read.

2009-06-02T06:44:00.001-04:00

KEY MOMENT - Iraqi National Army Capt. Ali Abdual Zaharra Hussain raises the symbolic key to Joint Security Station Mutanabe during a transfer ceremony in Wasit province, Iraq, May 28, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Joe Thompson

Home-Grown Jihad

2009-06-02T06:38:00.004-04:00

At what point do we decide we're going to pay attention to the threats on our own soil? Certainly, it's a dicey proposition. We don't want to repeat the era of internment camps and rounding up U.S. citizens without cause. But we'd better start paying attention to the terrorists in our midst, or we're going to have more of this type of tragedy:

A man with "political and religious motives" killed a soldier just out of basic training and wounded another Monday in a targeted attack on a military recruiting center in Arkansas, police said.

The suspect, Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, reportedly had been under investigation by the FBI Joint Terrorist Task Force after he traveled to Yemen and was arrested there for using a Somali passport.

According to ABC News, the investigation was in its early stages and was based on Muhammad's travel to Yemen. While there, Muhammed, a recent convert to Islam, studied jihad with an Islamic scholar, Jihadwatch.org reported.

A police report based on an interview with the suspect said Muhammad, 23, told police he observed two soldiers in uniform on Monday, drove up to the recruiting center in Little Rock and started shooting.

Sigh. Yet another reason that "Religion of Peace" thing doesn't quite ring true with me. You can read the rest here.

2009-05-27T06:31:00.003-04:00

ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY - Family members visit the gravesite of a loved one during Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Va., May 25, 2009. DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley

Today’s Troops, Families Best Ever, Chairman Says

2009-05-27T06:28:00.000-04:00

By Fred W. Baker III
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2009 – As the nation prepares to enjoy its Memorial Day holiday, the military’s top officer asked that U.S. troops and families be remembered for their sacrifices.
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, made appearances this morning on the major network morning shows broadcasting from the Pentagon.

Mullen called today’s fighting force and its families the best he’s ever been associated with.

“I've been wearing the uniform for over 41 years. This is the best military we've ever had, and they are making a big difference in these two wars that we're fighting,” he said. “And we're in our eighth year of war, our sixth year of fighting two wars simultaneously, and they've just been incredible.”

The holiday serves as the unofficial start of summer with many community pools opening for the weekend. Many enjoy the typical three-day weekend boating, cooking out and in other outdoor recreational activities.

But Mullen asked that the nation take pause to remember the sacrifices of the troops and families, and to renew its commitment to supporting those in their communities who are serving.

“Today’s a day we need to remember their sacrifice -- those who’ve paid the ultimate sacrifice as well as the families of the fallen,” Mullen said.

Nearly 5,000 troops have died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since they began, Mullen said. More than 36,000 troops have been injured.

“We’ve got some 240,000 young men and women of the United States deployed around the world today … and many of them in harms way who we really need to take pause and remember their sacrifice,” the chairman said.

“They represent the best of America. They’re the best young people I have ever been associated with and they really do make a difference,” Mullen said.

Biographies:
Navy Adm. Mike Mullen

Memorial Day 2009 with Soldiers' Angels

2009-05-25T07:53:00.002-04:00

Memorial Day Live with Soldiers' Angels

Community Team Leaders and Angels across the nation are honoring our great nation's Fallen Heroes.

Soldiers' Angels invites Angels and Warriors to share Memorial Day activies from across the nation by taking pictures/videos on their cell phone and sending to Soldiers' Angels (218) 779-7271 or to ShelleMichaels-AT-SoldiersAngels.org to be uploaded to the website or you can choose to join this Facebook group and upload your information here: Memorial Day Across the Nation with Soldiers' Angels

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=79427592631#/group.php?gid=79427592631&ref=mf

Don't forget to take your phone to your event!

Happy Angeling~

2009-04-23T22:13:00.004-04:00

LONG-RANGE TECHNIQUE - A U.S. Army soldier uses long-range marksmanship techniques to engage steel targets with an M-14 enhanced battle rifle during a four-day marksmanship course on Forward Operating Base Marez in Mosul, Iraq, April 13, 20009. The soldiers are assigned to 1st Cavalry Division's Company A, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Benjamin Fox

Religion of Peace: Terrortown, NY

2009-03-23T19:51:00.004-04:00

I'm not quite sure why this is headline news, since this place has been well known for years, but here we are:

HANCOCK, N.Y. — If you didn't know where to look, you'd probably never find Islamberg, a private Muslim community in the woods of the western Catskills, 150 miles northwest of New York City.

The town, sitting on a quiet dirt road past a gate marked with No Trespassing signs, is home to an estimated 100 residents. There are small houses and other buildings visible from the outside, but it is what can't be seen from beyond the gate that has some watchers worried.

Islamberg was founded in 1980 by Sheikh Syed Mubarik Ali Shah Gilani, a Pakistani cleric who purchased a 70-acre plot and invited followers, mostly Muslim converts living in New York City, to settle there.Federal authorities say Gilani was also one of the founders of Jamaat al-Fuqra, a terrorist organization believed responsible for dozens of bombings and murders across the U.S. and abroad. The group was linked to the planning of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and 10 years earlier a member was arrested and later convicted for bombing a hotel in Portland, Ore.
[...]

Shoe bomber Richard Reid has been linked to the group, along with convicted D.C. sniper John Allen Muhammad. But it is Sheikh Gilani who creates the most controversy and concern.

Gilani has told his followers that "Zionist plotters" plan to rule the world, and he encourates them to leave America's cities and avoid the "decadence of a godless society." Gilani is the man American reporter Daniel Pearl was trying to interview in Pakistan when he was kidnapped and beheaded. The Sheikh was taken into custody and later released by Pakistani authorities; he denies any involvement in Pearl's murder.

[...]

So basically, we have a report that warns state troopers to look out for citizens exercising their Constitutional rights, and classifies them as possible domestic terrorists - but it's very likely that real terrorists have been allowed to operate in upstate NY for years without anyone saying anything. Oh, and the place was founded by the guy Daniel Pearl was headed to interview when he was kidnapped. But Gilani couldn't have had anything to do with that - after all, he says so.

Yeah, that makes sense.

The full story is here.

Look, Ma - I'm in the Militia

2009-03-23T14:52:00.004-04:00

Vote for a third party candidate this past election? Ever criticize the IRS? Have a problem with the way the government does things? You're not just exercising your Constitutional rights - you could be a domestic terrorist:

If you're an anti-abortion activist, or if you display political paraphernalia supporting a third-party candidate or a certain Republican member of Congress, if you possess subversive literature, you very well might be a member of a domestic paramilitary group.
That's according to "The Modern Militia Movement," a report by the Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC), a government collective that identifies the warning signs of potential domestic terrorists for law enforcement communities.

According to the report, here are some of the scarier things they say to look for:

- strong Christian identity
- being opposed to illegal immigration
- displaying the "Don't Tread on Me" flag
- criticism of the IRS

Think I'm kidding? I wish.

More here.

If you haven't figured it out yet, we are headed into some very scary waters. Follow where this report eventually leads, and it ain't pretty. But then again, that's just the sort of thing you'd expect a potential right-wing wacko militia member to say, isn't it?

ACORN and the Census

2009-03-18T08:50:00.003-04:00

Call me a cynic, but could this just maybe be related to our current President's push to move the Census under the direction of the White House?

ACORN to Play Role in 2010 Census

The U.S. Census is supposed to be free of politics, but one group with a history of voter fraud, ACORN, is participating in next year's count, raising concerns about the politicization of the decennial survey.

The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now signed on as a national partner with the U.S. Census Bureau in February 2009 to assist with the recruitment of the 1.4 million temporary workers needed to go door-to-door to count every person in the United States -- currently believed to be more than 306 million people.

A U.S. Census "sell sheet," an advertisement used to recruit national partners, says partnerships with groups like ACORN "play an important role in making the 2010 Census successful," including by "help[ing] recruit census workers."

The bureau is currently employing help from more than 250 national partners, including TARGET and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), to assist in the hiring effort.

But ACORN's partnership with the 2010 Census is worrisome to lawmakers who say past allegations of fraud should raise concerns about the organization...

Naaaaah...just coincidence, I'm sure.

Full article here.

Same Old, Same Old

2009-03-02T10:39:00.003-05:00

More proof that the only "change" we can "hope" for with this Administration is some in our pocket once the goverment is done taxing us into oblivion:

Obama Will Sign Spending Bill Despite Earmarks

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama will break a campaign pledge and sign a budget bill laden with millions in lawmakers' pet projects, administration officials said.

Administration budget chief Peter Orszag and White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel both downplayed the $410 billion spending bill and signaled Obama would hold his nose and sign it. Orszag said: "We want to just move on. Let's get this bill done, get it into law and move forward.

Said Emanuel: "That's last year's business."

The House last week passed the measure that would keep the government running through Sept. 30, when the federal budget year ends. Taxpayers for Common Sense, a watchdog group, identified almost 8,600 specially sponsored projects totaling $7.7 billion; Democrats say the number is $3.8 billion.

Either way, it is far more than Obama promised as a candidate. He refused "earmarks" for the economic stimulus package he championed and a children's health bill.

Now we'll see if his fan club is willing to hold him accountable.

Full story is here.

Army Charity Hoards Millions Meant to Help Veterans

2009-02-22T23:07:00.001-05:00

AP
Sunday, February 22, 2009

FORT BLISS, Texas -- As soldiers stream home from Iraq and Afghanistan, the biggest charity inside the U.S. military has been stockpiling tens of millions of dollars meant to help put returning fighters back on their feet, an Associated Press investigation shows.

Between 2003 and 2007 -- as many military families dealt with long war deployments and increased numbers of home foreclosures -- Army Emergency Relief grew into a $345 million behemoth. During those years, the charity packed away $117 million into its own reserves while spending just $64 million on direct aid, according to an AP analysis of its tax records.

Tax-exempt and legally separate from the military, AER projects a facade of independence but really operates under close Army control. The massive nonprofit -- funded predominantly by troops -- allows superiors to squeeze soldiers for contributions; forces struggling soldiers to repay loans -- sometimes delaying transfers and promotions; and too often violates its own rules by rewarding donors, such as giving free passes from physical training, the AP found.

Full story here

2009-02-19T22:49:00.003-05:00

Distinguished Service Cross awarded for saving lives in Iraq
In front of a standing-room-only crowd of 600 at the National Training Center Friday, Spc. Erik Oropeza became the 21st Soldier to receive the Distinguished Service Cross since the war in Afghanistan and Iraq began. FULL STORY (opens in new window)

Tasteless, Yes - Illegal, No

2009-02-19T22:24:00.003-05:00

OK, let's start with the fact that I find this little bit of free expression to be completely tasteless. What concerns me is the reaction of law enforcement.

The Oklahoma City Police Department admits one of its officers made a mistake in pulling over a man last week for carrying an anti-President Obama sign in his car.

According to The Oklahoman newspaper, an officer pulled over Chip Harrison last week because he had in his car a sign that said, "Abort Obama, not the unborn."
Call me a cynic, but I'm fairly sure that it wouldn't have been handled the same way if it read "Abort Bush...."

Maybe the police officer reacted that way because the Left tried to drill it into our heads that if you dare to be underwhelmed by the Obamessiah, you're a racist. Maybe he was young. Maybe he was being overly careful in no-doubt-sensitive Oklahoma City, in a post-9/11 environment.

Whatever the reason, the fact that the current Administration seems to think it can dictate what you can and can't say about our new President makes this particular incident a little creepy. Even though the Secret Service investigated the incident, ruled him not a threat, and presumably he can go about his business, incidents like this have some potential to create a chilling effect on those who would criticize The One.

I've got no argument with taking the security of our President seriously. But when we start having people face law enforcement over distasteful speech, we should all keep a very close eye on the situation. It's a very steep, and very slippery slope from here, and the landing is extremely unpleasant.

(For the full article, go here)

2009-02-18T21:57:00.003-05:00

Feb. 16 airpower summary: F-15E bombs encampment
An F-15E Strike Eagle flies a combat mission over Afghanistan in support of Operations Enduring Freedom. The Strike Eagle is a dual-role fighter designed to perform air-to-air and air-to-ground missions. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Aaron Allmon)

Giving Credit Where Credit Is (maybe) Due

2009-02-18T21:51:00.005-05:00

If this is true, it's one of the only bright spots I've seen in the new Administration:

White House: Obama Opposes 'Fairness Doctrine' Revival
President Obama opposes any move to bring back the so-called Fairness Doctrine, a spokesman told FOXNews.com Wednesday.

The statement is the first definitive stance the administration has taken since an aide told an industry publication last summer that Obama opposes the doctrine -- a long-abolished policy that would require broadcasters to provide opposing viewpoints on controversial issues.

"As the president stated during the campaign, he does not believe the Fairness Doctrine should be reinstated," White House spokesman Ben LaBolt told FOXNews.com.

More here

Let's just hope the reason for his opposition isn't a belief that it doesn't go far enough...

I don't think I trust any of the useless lumps in Washington.

UPDATE: Looks like my inclination not to trust this was well founded; the White House is now apparently indicating that a new Fairness Doctrine is up for discussion. Disappointing, but certainly not a surprise.

Religion of Peace: Building Bridges, Beheading Brides

2009-02-17T21:08:00.003-05:00

Bridges TV was touted as the TV station that was going to bring understanding to America - to "better the Islamic image" in the U.S.

Yeah, umm.....FAIL:

Beheading in New York Appears to Be Honor Killing, Experts Say

The beheading of 37-year-old Aasiya Hassan has all the markings of an honor killing, psychologists and Islamic experts tell FOXNews.com, as the upstate New York woman's husband awaits a preliminary hearing on murder charges.

Muzzammil Hassan, 44, remains jailed after being charged with the second-degree murder of his wife, whose body was found Thursday at the office of Bridges TV, their television station in Orchard Park, near Buffalo.

Orchard Park Police Chief Andrew Benz said Hassan has not confessed to the crime, despite media reports to the contrary.

"He came in and said his wife was dead," said Benz, who declined to elaborate on the particulars of his conversation with the suspect.

But Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita III left no doubt that he believes Muzzammil Hassan killed his wife. Hassan will appear for a preliminary hearing Wednesday in Orchard Park. If convicted of second-degree murder, he faces up to life in prison.

"He's a pretty vicious and remorseless bastard," Sedita told FOXNews.com Tuesday. "Whether he was motivated by some kind of interpretation of his religious or cultural views, we don't know. We'll look into everything in the case."

More here

**********************************************

And then there's this little gem:

FBI Cuts Ties With CAIR Following Terror Financing Trial

The FBI severed its ties with all local branches of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the country's largest Islamic advocacy group, an FBI official told FOX News.

The FBI is severing its once-close ties with the nation's largest Muslim advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, amid mounting evidence that it has links to a support network for Hamas.

All local chapters of CAIR have been shunned in the wake of a 15-year FBI investigation that culminated with the conviction in December of Hamas fundraisers at a trial where CAIR itself was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator.

The U.S. government has designated Hamas as a terrorist organization.

An official at the FBI's headquarters in Washington confirmed to FOX News that his office directed FBI field offices across the country to cut ties with local branches of CAIR.

More here

Me, I'm a little concerned that there ever WERE ties to CAIR....seriously, how did anyone not know these guys were tied to terrorists?? What's next - the shocking news that Mexican drug gangs are dangerous?

And while we're on the subject, CAIR was an unindicted co-conspirator in a trial that ended - in a conviction - in freakin' December! It takes until February to cut ties?? Methinks there's a few people whose heads need to be removed from a certain part of their anatomy.

Your tax dollars at work, folks.