Free Republic

The Pentagon (the U.S. Department of Defense) began to produce its "annual reports to Congress on the military power of the People's Republic of China" in 2002, and so its report of 2007 is its sixth. First, take note that the dictatorship in China is ingratiatingly referred to by the U.S. Department of Defense as "the People's Republic of China." Marx, Lenin, and Mao defined this "form of government" as the "dictatorship of the proletariat," and Lenin stated that one person (such as Lenin) could impersonate the proletariat. But today, after Hitler, "dictatorship" and "dictator" are bad words, while the...

The US Department of Defence has proposed a rule that would make it difficult for universities to engage foreign scientists in any work the department funds. It is the latest in a series of initiatives intended to minimise the risk of certain technologies falling into the hands of countries that the United States views as security threats. To comply with the proposed rule, universities and companies doing work funded by the department would need to obtain special licences to employ foreign scientists, and control their access to project information. This could include making foreign nationals wear badges and work in...

REBUILDING IN THE GULF Accused U.S. Marine sent Iraqis 'a message' Prosecutors in officer's murder case likely will underscore his 'bravado' Posted: March 8, 2005 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2005 WorldNetDaily.com A statement by the Marine officer charged with pre-meditated murder for killing two Iraqi insurgents is expected to provide support for defense attorneys as well as prosecutors, who likely will underscore his attempt to "send a message" to Iraqis and fellow servicemen. A pre-trial, or Article 32, hearing next month will determine whether 2nd Lt. Ilario G. Pantano will face a court-martial that could lead to the death penalty....

WASHINGTON, Dec. 29, 2004 — Three Marine Corps disaster relief assessment teams are on the ground or about to arrive in Thailand, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, and at least two P-3 aircraft are conducting initial reconnaissance of damaged areas as a wide range of other Defense Department assets works its way to tsunami-stricken regions of the Indian Ocean. U.S. Pacific Command has marshaled assets ranging from carrier strike groups to water purification ships to aircraft to provide emergency support for victims following the Dec. 26 earthquake and subsequent tsunamis, Marine Corps Lt. Gen. James Conway, director of operations for the...

Senate Keeps Casket PolicyWashington-The Senate refused Monday to change a Pentagon policy banning media coverage of America's war dead as their caskets arrive at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.The 54-39 Senate negative vote defeated an amendment to the authorization bill for the Defense Department that would have required the Pentagon to produce a protocol in 60 days to regulate media coverage of the returning dead.

Armor shell games & body bags Posted: February 4, 2004 1:00 a.m. Eastern By Tom Marzullo © 2004 WorldNetDaily.com Corruption and /or incompetence in government contracting goes as far back as records are kept and if history tells us anything of these situations, it is that eternal vigilance is simply an integral part of the cost of purchasing goods and services. The subject is modern armor for our troops – something that has been in short supply for a while now and has become increasingly valuable in tactical, political and financial terms. For decades, there has been an increasing trend...

Up to 25,000 Defense Department civilians may be eligible for thousands of dollars in separation pay through an early-buyout program. The program is part of the 2004 National Defense Authorization Act. On Dec. 30, Ginger Groeber, deputy undersecretary of defense for civilian personnel policy, allocated 25,000 buyouts to defense components to pay eligible departing employees up to $25,000 if they choose to leave their jobs early. She said the program is available for permanent hires, which includes workers not on time-limited appointments such as temporary appointments or those with a specified end date to their employment, and is available to...

No Stinking Empire The Army of World War II, you might say, was the last Army of the republic. It performed great deeds, but there was not much luxury, not even for the generals and admirals. Nobody was paid much. Travel was by military plane, troop train or warship, even for generals, admirals and world leaders. Not so in today's imperial Army. According to Chalmers Johnson, an excellent writer, in his new book, "The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic," the Defense Department maintains a fleet of 71 Lear jets, 13 Gulfstream IIIs and 17...

GENEVA — Worried over U.S. domination, a group of developing nations wants to put control of the Internet into the hands of the United Nations, an issue that likely will overshadow a summit on information technology opening today. Key decisions on Internet issues, such as domain names and addresses, now reside in a private agency spun off from the U.S. government — and the United States wants to keep it that way. But if countries do not think their concerns are adequately heard by the Internet's key decision-makers, a U.N. official warned yesterday, they may create conflicting national policies and...

The Dept. of Defense can't account for billions of dollars which perhaps could be found if annual congressional audits were conducted. These audits, as prescribed by Congress, aren't conducted according to a report on the Moyers program. Congress, it seems, lacks the guts to find out why the Defense Department wastes and can't account for tax dollars. The program noted that Congress doesn't pursue the audits they have mandated as they are fearful that Defense dollars will be cut to their home districts. Did anyone else catch this? They don't want to cut taxes but they sure don't want to...

No column again this week ... Barbara went to Cuba to interview Fidel Castro. Cuba and Castro will be the focus of the entire hour.Here are some comments about last Friday's story on Defense Department credit cards: "I'm a government employee and one whom several years ago I was thrilled to get this gov. credit card since I couldn't get one of my own. They told you it was absolutely for gov. spending when traveling, and if you tried to use it for anything other than food & gas it wouldn't go through. Then they changed companies to the one...

Key Democrats, joined by a number of conservation groups, pledged on Tuesday to stop what they call the Defense Department’s stealth attack on the environment. The 2003 Defense authorization bill, H.R. 4546, contains language that would grant the department broad exemptions from the 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The legislation, which the House Armed Services Committee approved 57 to 1, is expected to go to the House floor Thursday. With increased responsibilities for homeland security, Defense has pushed for freedom to expand training operations into areas inhabited by endangered species. The language would...

March 31, 2002, 6:08PM 12 million reasons for condoms, sex education By M. JOYCELYN ELDERS Why we in public health did not give "The Battle of the Condoms" to the Defense Department so it could be properly classified as a "Weapon of Defense" against the war of sexually transmitted disease, unplanned pregnancies and HIV, I will never know. Out of the 15 million people in the United States who get sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs, every year, 4 million are teen-agers. Almost 50 percent of all pregnancies in the United States are unplanned -- 92 percent of pregnancies for teen-agers....