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The U.S. Army is showcasing its softer side with the unveiling of its new Stability Operations Field Manual, one of a number of how-to guides it puts together for soldiers. The new manual is garnering lots of attention--and drawing controversy--in part because it marks a major shift in military thinking. Tellingly, it omits any reference to President Bush's democracy-promotion agenda. But, for the first time, the Pentagon is saying explicitly that nation-building is just as important as conventional military operations like tank wars--and perhaps more so.

Similar technology marketed as a way to control video games by thought Vocal cords were overrated anyway. A new Army grant aims to create email or voice mail and send it by thought alone. No need to type an e-mail, dial a phone or even speak a word. Known as synthetic telepathy, the technology is based on reading electrical activity in the brain using an electroencephalograph, or EEG. Similar technology is being marketed as a way to control video games by thought. "I think that this will eventually become just another way of communicating," said Mike D'Zmura, from the University...

WASHINGTON - More than 10,000 people have signed an online petition urging the Army to let an Iraqi puppy come home with a Minnesota soldier, who fears that "Ratchet" could be killed if left behind. "I just want my puppy home," Sgt. Gwen Beberg of Minneapolis wrote to her mother in an e-mail Sunday from Iraq, soon after she was separated from the dog following a transfer. "I miss my dog horribly." Beberg, 28, is scheduled to return to the U.S. next month. Ratchet's defenders are ratcheting up their efforts to save him. On Monday, the program coordinator for Operation...

By LOLITA C. BALDOR – 4 days ago OHRID, Macedonia (AP) — Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Tuesday said the U.S. is committed to keeping troops in Kosovo through late next year despite strong Russian opposition to creation of the world's newest country this year. Following a morning visit to Kosovo, Gates flew here to this lakeside resort in Macedonia, a neighbor that has yet to recognize Kosovo's independence. But Kosovo's president told reporters during a news conference with Gates that he was optimistic that Macedonia and Montenegro would join the nearly 50 nations that have recognized his country. Russia...

When the three military academies play one another there is nothing quite like it. Dick Vermeil once described Army-Navy this way: "It is the only game where you will see 22 players knock each other down on the opening kickoff." But there's no bitterness, no anger. Occasionally there's trash-talking because kids are still kids, but not much. For years, the players at Army and Navy thought the players at Air Force were cocky. In truth, they were simply better, which is why they dominated the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy for 20 years, holding onto it for 17 years during that period. Now...

Army disciplines sergeants in Jewish soldier case By CHRIS REINOLDS The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sunday, October 05, 2008 The Atlanta Anti-Defamation League said Sunday it has intervened in the case of a Jewish soldier at Fort Benning who allegedly suffered religious discrimination. At the ADL’s request, Army Pvt. Michael Handman has been moved to another unit. League spokesman Bill Nigut said that in September, Handman wrote to his parents and complained that he had been discriminated against. Two drill sergeants were disciplined in connection with those incidents. Then, on Sept. 24, Handman was attacked and beaten by another soldier. He was...

A U.S. Army soldier was brutally beaten by other soldiers in his platoon earlier this month following two incidents in which a drill sergeants allegedly used anti-Semitic slurs to address the soldier. Pvt. Michael Handman, 20, who has just completed his fifth week of basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, was recently released from a hospital where he was treated for a concussion, facial wounds, and severe oral injuries following the attack, according to the boy’s father, Jonathan Handman. The soldier’s father said he received a disturbing telephone call last week from his son’s commanding officer “to tell me that...

The United States military's Northern Command, formed in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks, is dedicating a combat infantry team to deal with catastrophes in the U.S., including terrorist attacks and natural disasters. The 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry, which was first into Baghdad, Iraq, in 2003, started its controversial assignment Wednesday. The First Raiders will spend 2009 as the first active-duty military unit attached to the U.S. Northern Command since it was created. They will be based in Fort Stewart, Georgia, and focus primarily on logistics and support for local police and rescue personnel,...

Babil and Wasit are next on the list for Provincial Iraqi Control. The Air Force may be getting F-16s while the Army trains more forces for air assault missions.

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq, Sept. 30, 2008 – Most people think of veterinarians as animal doctors, and indeed they are. But the work of a deployed Army veterinarian here shows the specialty involves much more than that. Army Maj. Freddie Zink, Task Force Mountain’s division veterinarian, poses with one of two Bengal tigers donated to the Baghdad Zoo with help from the Army and the U.S. State Department. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Michel Sauret  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “My main job here at division is agriculture subject-matter expert,” Army Maj. Freddie Zink explained from his office...

As Ashley Barrett-Carter left Ryan Memolo's Army recruiting station after their first meeting more than a year ago, the staff sergeant thought, "I'll never see her again." Sgt. Memolo had encountered overweight applicants before, including some who dropped the pounds and returned to enlist. But those people exceeded the weight requirement by 20 or 30 pounds. Ms. Barrett-Carter needed to lose 100.

As a Black American Army Warrant Officer, it appears clear to me that Barack Obama does not think too highly of Black America. Whether liberal puppet-masters in his campaign are prompting this or Obama, himself, lacks a real connection with the Black American struggle, one thing is clear: Barack Obama and his party do not want us to leave the oppressive plantation mindset that has exploited the Black vote for years. Obama is far more liberal than he is Black. His elitist views that Black Americans cannot succeed, contribute to society, or take care of our families without government...

Brigade homeland tours start Oct. 1 3rd Infantry’s 1st BCT trains for a new dwell-time mission. Helping ‘people at home’ may become a permanent part of the active Army By Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer Posted : Monday Sep 8, 2008 6:15:06 EDT The 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team has spent 35 of the last 60 months in Iraq patrolling in full battle rattle, helping restore essential services and escorting supply convoys. Now they’re training for the same mission — with a twist — at home. Beginning Oct. 1 for 12 months, the 1st BCT will be under...

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — It’s a few minutes before 5 a.m. The sun isn’t up yet, but Chris Weir is. A few years ago, the Cleveland, Tenn., native might still have been in bed at this hour. He might have been dreaming about his chances of winning the Bradley County mayoral race before getting up and putting on the suit and tie that had become his uniform in the business world. But today the 28-year-old already is dressed, and he’s wearing a different kind of uniform. It’s the same kind his little brother died in. Though the fabric is fairly...

Logistics are key for the Iraqi military and police to conduct fully independent operations.

Was the Stephenville UFO a National Security Threat? american chronicle Franklin D. Fields, Jr. Esq. Stephenville, Texas attracted worldwide attention earlier this year (Jan, 08) after residents sighted an unidentified flying object (UFO) that some say was a mile long. By news accounts, there were more than 30 residents to specifically report the sighting. It was front-page headlines in a large number of news forums. Many of the witnesses were interviewed on national television programs such as CNN´s Larry King Live. All of the witnesses were credible and none were shown to be perpetrating a hoax. They might have been...

Exclusive   You're in the Army now   Undercover ... Russell Sharp in trainingBBC/Kent News and Pics   By JOHN KAY Chief Reporter Published: Today   A BBC reporter who joined the Army to expose bullying may be sent to war, it emerged yesterday. Russell Sharp, 25, did 15 weeks before lying so he could quit on “compassionate” grounds. And last night after furious top brass found out who he was they threatened to haul him back to complete his training — and send him into action. Senior officers hit the roof because Sharp, whose TV film Undercover Soldier...

HEIDELBERG, Germany, Sept. 19, 2008 – Though he’s never regretted joining the Army, a soldier here said, his decision never felt more right than when he faced the greatest challenge of his life: battling cancer. It’s been almost nine years since Army doctors found a grapefruit-sized tumor growing in Sgt. 1st Class James Jordan’s chest. He was 33 then and stationed in South Korea. Today, Jordan has survived two bouts with cancer and is planning a long career before retiring from the Army. "I love the Army," said Jordan, a senior paralegal for the Europe Regional Medical Command judge advocate...

For a military accustomed to quick, easy victories, the trials and tribulations of the Iraq War have come as a rude awakening. To its credit, the officer corps has responded not with excuses but with introspection. One result, especially evident within the U.S. Army, has been the beginning of a Great Debate of sorts. Anyone who cares about the Army’s health should take considerable encouragement from this intellectual ferment. Yet anyone who cares about future U.S. national-security strategy should view the debate with considerable concern: it threatens to encroach upon matters that civilian policy makers, not soldiers, should decide. What...

But the way ahead is becoming clearer, with a road map provided by men such as Col. Dominic Caraccilo, a brigade commander in the 101st Airborne whose men patrol a patch south of Baghdad that used to be called the Triangle of Death. The soldiers now laughingly refer to it as the "Triangle of Love." A year ago, there were as many as 50 attacks every week; now there are just a few. Caraccilo is overseeing a drawdown of U.S. forces; his brigade of about 4,000 soldiers is shipping out, to be replaced by a task force of fewer than...

Soldiers barking orders at each other is so 20th Century. That's why the U.S. Army has just awarded a $4 million contract to begin developing "thought helmets" that would harness silent brain waves for secure communication among troops. Ultimately, the Army hopes the project will "lead to direct mental control of military systems by thought alone." If this sounds insane, it would have been as recently as a few years ago. But improvements in computing power and a better understanding of how the brain works have scientists busy hunting for the distinctive neural fingerprints that flash through a brain when...

In a move that could reverse years of Army small arms policy, the service is asking industry to send in ideas for a new combat rifle that could replace the M4 carbine. In late August, the Army issued a solicitation to the arms industry asking companies to submit proposals that would demonstrate "improvements in individual weapon performance in the areas of accuracy and dispersion ... reliability and durability in all environments, modularity and terminal performance." And in a dramatic gesture that could throw the door wide open to a totally new carbine, the service did not constrain ideas to the...

Last week, AUSA President Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., urged congressional leaders to move quickly on the fiscal 2009 Defense Authorization and Appropriations Bills. In a letter to the House and Senate leadership, Gen. Sullivan said, “Our ability to win the Global War on Terrorism and sustain the all volunteer force is dependent upon timely defense authorizations and appropriations. The bills must meet the Army’s baseline budget and fund the war. I stress the necessity of getting the bills to the president for signature before September 30, the end of the fiscal year.” While the House finished its version...

WHILE campaigning in public for a speedy withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, Sen. Barack Obama has tried in private to persuade Iraqi leaders to delay an agreement on a draw-down of the American military presence. According to Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, Obama made his demand for delay a key theme of his discussions with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad in July. "He asked why we were not prepared to delay an agreement until after the US elections and the formation of a new administration in Washington," Zebari said in an interview. Obama insisted that Congress should be involved in...

Rep. Jack Murtha’s (D-Johnstown) opponent in this year’s congressional race -- Lt. Col. William Russell, a decorated Iraq war veteran who was in the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001 -- has just released an ad titled “In Cold Blood.” So far, it is one of the most powerful campaign spots to hit the airwaves in the down- ballot races this cycle in the Keystone State.

Because I'm pointing you to the Army Times and they are on the list of "News Organs" that don't want any of their words post on FR I can only point you to the Army Times web site. You'll enjoy the words that the troops are giving to whoever made the decision (if you can call it that) to do away with the Class A Greens and go to a Junked Up Dress Blue uniform. Army Times

Barry's War = So Barry Wanted to be a Soldier eh?

From Cantigny, France, and the Argonne Forest to North Africa, Normandy, Vietnam’s Iron Triangle and Iraq —and now hauteconcept.com? Foreign battles aren’t new for the 1st Infantry Division, but this firefight is from another world, a clash between the New Army and Old over plans to commercialize the 1st Division’s historic “Big Red One” insignia in a sportswear line at Sears. After days of questioning, the Army confirmed Monday the arrangement was first reached in June 2007 on the advice of an outside licensing agency, The Beanstalk Group in New York, but the full scope of the royalties to be...

ARLINGTON, Va. (Army News Service, Sep. 8, 2008) -- The Army kicked off a celebration recognizing 100 years of military aviation during a Sept. 6 ceremony at Fort Myer, Va. Despite heavy rains and flooded streets due to Tropical Storm Hanna, hundreds turned out to Conmy Hall to see the first public starting of the engine on a replica of the 1908 Wright Model A. The original of that aircraft flew Sept. 3, 1908 at Fort Myer. That flight was the first in a series that led to a $30,000 Army contract awarded to the Wright brothers in July 1909...

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Aug. 25, 2008) -- Out with the old, in with the blue. The Army has made it official; the green service uniform, which has defined the service since the mid-1950s, is on the outs. In place of the green uniform will be a variation of the blue uniform, something many Soldiers already own. Official word on the new "Army Service Uniform," or ASU, was released Aug. 20 in a message to all Army activities. The message defines the wear policy and the "bridging" strategy for transition to the new uniform. "It's a culmination of transformation efforts...

I wasn't going to mention it but I am leaving for Fort Jackson, S.C. on the 10th to begin Basic Training. I am leaving behind my wife and 9-year-old son. Please pray for me to be strong, and for them as well. My MOS is 56M, Chaplain's Assistant, so I guess I will be able to change the "street" preacher moniker soon. Maybe I will be able to post once I make it to AIT. Very excited to have this opportunity to serve.

The September 2008 updates to the Iraqi Security Forces Order of Battle are now available at the ISF OOB homepage. The significant changes to the Order of Battle that occurred in August are summarized below.

ST. PAUL -- Fox News "opinionater" Bill O'Reilly finally got his man. Barack Obama appears on his show this evening at 9 p.m. after an earlier taped one-on-one session with the self-proclaimed king of pithy comments. Here is a clip of Obama and O'Reilly going to eyeball to eyeball on tonight's show which is sure to raise a lot of eyebrows among the left and the right

BAGHDAD (AFP) - A draft security deal between Washington and Baghdad on the future of US forces in Iraq is to be submitted to parliament within 10 days, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was quoted as saying on Tuesday. "The SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) will be sent to parliament within 10 days," he said in the Badr newspaper, run by the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council, a key Shiite political party which is closely allied to Maliki. "The government is waiting for an answer from the United States on the Iraqi suggestion to keep the sovereignty of Iraq and the interests...

Army Deploys 'Experience Center' The high-tech launch in a Philadelphia mall features giant TV screens, helicopter simulators and a cafe Aug 29, 2008 -By Andrew McMains   NEW YORK The U.S. Army today opened an "Army Experience Center" in a major mall in Philadelphia with the goal of explaining how the modern Army operates and becoming a hub for community outreach programs. But unlike recruitment centers in office complexes, the center is surrounded by retail stores and designed to look hip and modern, with giant plasma screen televisions, brushed stainless steel fixtures, interactive displays, helicopter and Humvee simulators, a gaming...

This is why the Defense Department, and the US Army especially, is the most successful government institution in the US.Facing a decreasing pool of eligible recruits, the Army has started a learning program for dropouts to get up to speed before going to basic training. Hey, all you crabby leftists with smug bumper stickers wishing the DoD would have to hold bake sales to purchase their weapons take note: This is America's war machine picking up the education system's slack. Yeah, our teachers union dominated schools are failing, but don't worry, as usual, the Army's got our backs.What other government...

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Suspected drug hitmen attacked a group of sleeping soldiers with grenades in central Mexico, sparking a battle that killed three gunmen, a state attorney general's office said on Wednesday. Around 15 drug gangsters in vehicles surprised the soldiers while they were camped out in the central state of Guanajuato on Tuesday night, shooting at them with automatic weapons. "Two soldiers were injured in the clash in a firefight that lasted several minutes," a spokesman for the Guanajuato state attorney general's office said.

After a century of green uniforms, the last one is being retired from the U.S. Army. The new "Class A" uniform, as of August 21st, 2008, will be the current blue "Dress Uniform.". By 2010, troops graduating from basic training will be issued the "dress blues" as their "Class A" uniform. The "Class B" uniform will be the dress blue trousers and a white shirt with decorations (ribbons, combat badge and so on). For both enlisted and officers, rank will be worn on epaulets. The new uniform "system" is similar to the one the U.S. Marine Corps has been wearing...

BEIJING, China (August 16, 2008) - The U.S. Shooting Team added to its medal count at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing today when 19-year-old Pfc. Vincent Hancock (Eatonton, Ga.) captured the gold medal in Men's Skeet. Hancock of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, a world champion and world record holder in Men's Skeet was in first place going into the final after hitting 121 out of a possible 125 targets in the qualification round, which is a new Olympic record. Hancock shot 24 targets in the final to finish tied with Norway's Tore Brovold, who shot a perfect 25,...

President's Proclamation for National Airborne Day, Aug. 16 WASHINGTON, Aug. 9, 2001 – Sixty-one years ago, 48 brave volunteer members of the U.S. Army Parachute Test Platoon pioneered a new method of warfare. Their successful jump led to the creation of a mighty force of more than 100,000 paratroopers. Members of this force were assigned to the legendary 11th, 13th, 17th, 82d and 101st Airborne Divisions and numerous other units that fought in every theater during World War II. The soldiers of the Parachute Test Platoon also forged a unique warrior spirit, a relentless passion for victory, and a reputation...

Russia’s Army may soon have more money at its disposal, after an analysis of the military campaign in South Ossetia and Georgia. As the Vedomosti newspaper reports (Rus), Russia’s Ministry of Finance has delayed presenting the country’s financial plan through 2023, in connection with new requests from the security agencies for additional allocations. In the words of a Defense Ministry employee, the current budget requests were prepared before the war in South Ossetia, and now need to be amended. Combat has apparently shown some deficiencies in the Russian armed forces, with military officials saying their forces had inferior equipment to...

It is not just the Indo-U.S. Civilian Nuclear Deal that has gained momentum in recent days, nor is it just the ever growing economic and business ties but the Armed Forces of the two largest democracies in the world are coming together at an unprecedented rate even as the Government of India has gotten rid of its Communist backers in the Indian Parliament. Operation Vajraprahar Indian and American armed forces are holding joint maneuvers on counter-terrorism in the famous Counter Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School at Vairangte, Mizoram - about 100 km from Mizoram capital Aizawl. The three week-long 'Operation...

Iraq's arms purchases provides insight on the potential distribution of armor in the Iraqi Army.

August 12, 2008, 4:00 a.m. ‘The Army We Need’The McCain/Obama debt to Rumsfeld. By Lawrence Di Rita In remarks to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in April 2007, Sen. Barack Obama told an audience that “if the need arises when I’m president, the Army we have will be the Army we need.� The phrasing was an obvious shot at Chicago’s own Donald Rumsfeld, who in December 2004 in Kuwait told a deployed National Guard unit that the nation goes to war “with the Army you have.� Given Obama’s hostility to Bush’s strategy in Iraq overall, it is probably...

BEIJING (Army News Service, Aug. 12, 2008) -- Spc. Glenn Eller won the Gold Medal in double trap shooting Tuesday, setting an Olympic record with a total score of 190. Eller's teammate, Spc. Jeff Holguin, finished fourth. Both Soldiers are members of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit based at Fort Benning, Ga. Eller went into the final round leading by four shots and hit 45 out of 50 targets, to win the first shooting Gold for Team USA in Beijing. Eller is a three-time Olympian. He finished 15th in 2000 and 17th in the last summer Olympic games. He claimed...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 8, 2008 – The government of Afghanistan has proposed to nearly double the size of its army over the next five years, senior Pentagon officials said here today. If the Afghan proposal is realized, the Afghan National Army would increase its ranks from about 65,000 soldiers presently to about 120,000 troops over the next five years, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters. “This new Afghan plan, we think, has merit,” Whitman said. “But, it also will have some costs associated with it, too.” The Afghan army is slated to grow to about 80,000 soldiers sometime next year, Whitman...

The U.S. Army is sending 10 soldiers to the olympics as competitors, mostly marksmen, and a wrestler. Don't know what happened to our boxing team this year, normally there are a few Army boxers too. Several different articles posted at this link in case you are interested.

Aug. 6th Direct Action: Stop the Military Recruitment of Children Help Stop the Army’s Child Recruitment Program“America’s Army” Videogame Targets Children as Young as 13South Park Game Companies Profit from Illegal Recruitment Program Rally and Direct Action, Noon, Aug. 6thSouth Park, (btw 2nd/3rd, Bryant/Brannan) San FranciscoTell the companies “Break contract with the Army, No more child recruitment” “America’s Army” is a game developed by the U.S. military to instruct players in “Army values,” portray the army in a positive light, and increase potential recruits.  The “game” is the property and brainchild of the US Army, which admit freely, and with pride, that...

Poland introduces professional army www.chinaview.cn 2008-08-06 07:14:40 WARSAW, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Polish government on Tuesday passed a military reform program designed to turn Poland's army into a professional force, according to Polish news agency PAP. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said after a cabinet meeting that Poland's obligatory draft would end with this year and that by 2010 Poland would have a fully professional army numbering 120,000troops. Currently Poland's armed forces number over 124,000 soldiers. Defense Minister Bogdan Klich, speaking to Polish Radio One on Tuesday, said at present career soldiers constitute some 64 percent of the entire military...

This was why many Army officers were excited when Petraeus was appointed to chair this year's promotion board. Rarely, if ever, had a combat commander been called back from an ongoing war to assume that role. It almost certainly meant that McMaster would get his due. (Some referred to the panel as "the McMaster promotion board.") McMaster did get his star—but so did many others of his ilk. That's what makes this list an eyebrow-raiser. Among the 40 newly named one-star generals are Sean MacFarland, commander of the unit that brought order to Ramadi; Steve Townsend, who cleared and held...