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Military/Veterans (General/Chat)

Brevity: Headers | « Text »
  • How to Prevent ISIS From Using Our Weapons Against Our Troops

    08/15/2015 11:25:27 AM PDT · by RetSignman · 33 replies
    Same old, old mind at work again | August 15, 2015 | RetSignman
    The answer is pretty simple...finger identifications technology it can applied to hand held weapons, tanks, Humvee's and anything that requires a finger print used to operate. The cowardly Iraqis who are embedded with our 'advisers' to fight against ISIS would be required to use their finger print as an added security.
  • F'd: How the U.S. and Its Allies Got Stuck with the World's Worst New Warplane

    08/14/2015 11:39:31 AM PDT · by C19fan · 32 replies
    Real Clear Defense ^ | August 14, 2015 | David Axe
    From all the recent sounds of celebrating coming out of Washington, D.C., you might think the Pentagon’s biggest, priciest and most controversial warplane development had accelerated right past all its problems. The price tag—currently an estimated $1 trillion to design, build and operate 2,400 copies—is steadily going down. Production of dozens of the planes a year for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps is getting easier. Daily flight tests increasingly are hitting all the right marks. Or so proponents would have you believe.
  • Isis 'hacking division' releases details of 1,400 Americans and urges attacks

    08/13/2015 8:22:07 PM PDT · by bob_denard · 11 replies
    The Guardian ^ | Thursday 13 August 2015 | Michael Safi
    Spreadsheet lists names, email addresses, phone numbers and passwords of US military and government staff, but marines say information is out-of-date A group calling itself the Islamic State hacking division has published the details of 1,400 mostly US military and government personnel, urging supporters to attack those listed. The spreadsheet, published online on Wednesday, exposes names, email addresses, phone numbers and passwords. Those listed include members of the marine corps, Nasa, the state department, air force and FBI. Supporters of Isis on Twitter seized on the breach, posting personal details of soldiers and government staffers and encouraging lone wolves to...
  • Poll: Hillary Clinton loses to GOP field in Missouri

    08/13/2015 3:15:38 PM PDT · by Signalman · 7 replies
    wash. examiner ^ | 8/12/2015 | Ryan Lovelace
    Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton would lose Missouri to every GOP presidential candidate pitted against her in a new survey conducted by Public Policy Polling. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio performs best against Clinton, winning by 15 percentage points in a hypothetical matchup, while former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush performs worst, winning by only 7 percentage points. Donald Trump leads Clinton by 9 percentage points, Carly Fiorina had a 10 percentage point margin of victory, and Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky each won by 12. Missouri went blue for President Obama in 2008, and also features a...
  • Holy Cow....Today is my 10th Anniversary on Free Republic

    08/11/2015 7:21:50 PM PDT · by napscoordinator · 95 replies
    Free Republic ^ | 11 August 2015 | NAPSCOORDINATOR
    I can't believe I almost missed this most important day. I am privileged to be here and thank you all for the great education you have given me these last 10 years. I certainly have pissed off a few here and there but that is what is great about FR, we get up, shake hands and go on to the next thread. Thank you for that best 10 years!!!!! Oh and for the millionth time, NAPSCOORDINATOR means Naval Academy Preparatory School Coordinator......it is a prep school for a year before the Naval Academy to prepare students for the rigors of...
  • Was the Civil War about Slavery?

    08/11/2015 1:11:21 PM PDT · by iowamark · 1,097 replies
    Acton Institute, Prager University ^ | 8/11/2015 | Joe Carter
    What caused the Civil War? That seems like the sort of simple, straightforward question that any elementary school child should be able to answer. Yet many Americans—including, mostly, my fellow Southerners—claim that that the cause was economic or state’s rights or just about anything other than slavery. But slavery was indisputably the primary cause, explains Colonel Ty Seidule, Professor of History at the United States Military Academy at West Point. The abolition of slavery was the single greatest act of liberty-promotion in the history of America. Because of that fact, it’s natural for people who love freedom, love tradition, and...
  • MH17: 'Russian missile parts' at Ukraine crash site

    08/11/2015 11:44:29 AM PDT · by moose07 · 8 replies
    BBC ^ | 11 Aug 2015 | Jonathan Marcus,
    Fragments of a suspected Russian missile system have been found at the Flight MH17 crash site in Ukraine, investigators in the Netherlands say. They say the parts, possibly from a Buk surface-to-air system, are "of particular interest" and could help show who was behind the crash. But they say they have not proved their "causal connection" with the crash. MH17 crashed on land held by Russian-backed rebels in July 2014, killing all 298 on board. There were 283 passengers, including 80 children, and 15 crew members on the Malaysian Airlines airliner. About two-thirds of those who died were Dutch nationals,...
  • AF Special Operations Command receives first AC-130J

    08/11/2015 8:20:48 AM PDT · by Half Vast Conspiracy · 33 replies
    Air Force News Service ^ | July 31, 2015 | SSgt Marleah Robertson
    HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. (AFNS) -- The first AC-130J Ghostrider landed here July 29, making it Air Force Special Operations Command’s first AC-130J. After completing the initial developmental test and evaluation by the 413th Flight Test Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, the aircraft will be flown by the 1st Special Operations Group Detachment 2 and maintained by the 1st Special Operations Aircraft Maintenance Squadron during its initial operational tests and evaluations at Hurlburt Field. “Putting it through these tests will allow us to wring out the AC-130J in a simulated combat environment, instead of the more rigid flight profiles...
  • A must see youtube video(tissues required)

    08/10/2015 3:44:24 PM PDT · by chasio649 · 2 replies
    http://blog.theveteranssite.com/ ^ | 8/10/14 | NIKKI BURNS
    The little boy had cerebral palsy, and the doctor told his parents that he would never walk. But, in true American style, they never gave up hope.
  • Pentagon still searching for its lost WWII veterans

    08/10/2015 12:26:25 PM PDT · by Kartographer · 4 replies
    AFP via Yahoo News ^ | 8/9/15 | Laurent Barthelemy
    Long dead but little forgotten, US soldiers who disappeared across the globe during World War II are being reunited with their loved ones in a dogged push to find and bring home their bodies. From the forests of Germany to the jungles of Papua New Guinea, US experts employed by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency -- among them historians, archeologists and forensic experts -- are the main sleuths. When recovery of a body is possible, the Pentagon specialists turn the remains over to an ultra-modern lab in Hawaii for identification and then wait for the ultimate reward: bringing the bereaved...
  • Whatever Happened to the Wild Camels of the American West?

    08/09/2015 9:18:49 AM PDT · by afraidfortherepublic · 43 replies
    The Smithsonian ^ | 8-6-15 | Chris Heller
    Initially seen as the Army's answer to how to settle the frontier, the camels eventually became a literal beast of burden, with no home on the range. In the 1880s, a wild menace haunted the Arizona territory. It was known as the Red Ghost, and its legend grew as it roamed the high country. It trampled a woman to death in 1883. It was rumored to stand 30 feet tall. A cowboy once tried to rope the Ghost, but it turned and charged his mount, nearly killing them both. One man chased it, then claimed it disappeared right before his...
  • Hoping to repay a debt, retired SEAL makes it his mission to help working dogs

    08/09/2015 5:29:21 AM PDT · by csvset · 6 replies
    The Virginian-Pilot ^ | August 9, 2015 | Mike Hixenbaugh
    In a darkened Iraqi suburb, Christmas Eve, 2006, a team of Navy SEALs moved quietly into position outside the home of a man known for training suicide bombers. The operation that night wasn’t unlike hundreds of others carried out by Naval Special Warfare Development Group during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it’s one Jimmy Hatch won’t ever forget. He’d later learn that no amount of alcohol could erase the memory. It was chilly, not quite cold enough to see your breath. As the operators prepared to raid the home, a husky man popped his head out of an...
  • Dallas Marine Veteran Gets Home to Call His Own

    08/09/2015 1:15:35 AM PDT · by nickcarraway · 1 replies
    NBC DFW ^ | Aug 7, 2015 | Maggie Kerkman
    A Dallas veteran and his little girl now have a home to call their own after a whole community came together to give them a place to find peace. To say that life has been hard for 8-year-old A'naijah Anderson doesn't begin to cover it. "Her mom and sister were killed in 2012," said her father, Ben Anderson. They've been homeless, and now Ben Anderson has cancer. But there is a new chapter for them, one with hope. They have a new home thanks to the caring of a community. "It gives me peace of mind that she will never...
  • America's new mega-bomb is an absolute terror — but Iran may have the last laugh

    08/08/2015 5:59:34 PM PDT · by bob_denard · 53 replies
    The Week ^ | August 5, 2015 | Paul Huard
    It 's a weapon that justifies the use of the word "awesome" to describe its power. The Massive Ordnance Penetrator — or MOP — weighs in at 30,000 pounds, is almost 20 feet long and is designed to burrow through 200 feet of earth and 60 feet of concrete before detonating. It's the king of the so-called "bunker busters" and is the largest non-nuclear weapon in the world. Delivered by the stealthy B-2 Spirit heavy strategic bomber from as high as 20,000 feet, the MOP hits the ground at supersonic speed before slamming its way toward a hardened target through...
  • Canadian woman returns after fighting with Kurds against ISIL

    08/08/2015 1:51:16 PM PDT · by rickmichaels · 7 replies
    National Post ^ | August 8, 2015 | Catherine Solyom
    As news reports of Western youths joining ISIL dominated the headlines last spring, Hanna Bohman — once a fashion model, then a sales clerk — ran the other way: away from her cushy life in Vancouver and toward the front lines in the war against the jihadists. In March, she boarded a plane to Iraq, and spent 10 days trying to get across the border into Syria to join up with the Kurdish women’s defence forces, known as the YPJ. She had found her calling. Now back in Vancouver after four months of moving from abandoned houses to deserted schools,...
  • Can anyone help me locate squadron patches

    08/08/2015 9:01:55 AM PDT · by FunkyZero · 25 replies
    Hopefully I'm posting this correctly in general chat... My dad has always talked about his service in very general terms, but lately is opening up a little more. He's the humble type. Anyway, he has always talked about how he wanted a certain hat that they had and I've given up on ever finding one so I want to make one from parts and surprise him with it. I have been searching for a long time trying to find the correct patch, but I'm coming up empty unless I buy a lot of 500 from a custom shop. Do any...
  • The Best Commercial Of The Summer Is The Heartwarming Tale Of A Military Child

    08/07/2015 3:23:43 PM PDT · by Kartographer · 13 replies
    The separation of our military men and women from their families is tough on everyone. However it can be the most difficult on children, who don’t fully comprehend where mommy or daddy is and why they are away. This summer the Paper and Packaging Board has launched a series of TV ads aimed at showing the intimacy that letters on hard paper have as opposed to digital mediums.
  • San Jose Man Finds 70-Year-Old Suitcase: What's Inside Leads Him on Quest to Honor WWII Veterans

    08/07/2015 2:22:24 PM PDT · by nickcarraway · 6 replies
    NBC Bay Area ^ | 8/6 | Garvin Thomas
    Chris Texiera has always been partial to restoring old Chevrolets, but he was happy to make an exception this time. The 31-year-old from San Jose, who has spent much of his life with his head under the hood of classic cars, has been spending all his spare time lately working on a truck. A World War II-era, 2 1/2 ton, GMC truck. Chris is the lead mechanic on the project for the Spirit of ‘45, a non profit dedicated to honoring the veterans of WWII. The group hopes to use the truck, once restored, to carry veterans in parades. “It...
  • Magic Stone 466--SAM Hunter-Killer Mission

    08/07/2015 11:43:14 AM PDT · by Portcall24 · 15 replies
    By Email | Gary Barnhill
    I received this email from a fellow controller. He served on ABCCC flying on EC-130 out of Thailand.
  • Just War And Where Snipers Fit In

    08/07/2015 10:48:44 AM PDT · by Perseverando · 17 replies
    Ammoland.com ^ | August 5, 2015 | Wayne Laugesen via Lt. Col. Robert K. Brown USAR (Ret.)
    Boulder, CO – -(Ammoland.com)- “You shall not kill.” As a Catholic altar boy and student at St. Jude’s School near Boston, Jack Coughlin learned the Fifth Commandment early in life. As a Marine Corps sniper and devout pro-life Catholic, Coughlin killed for a living. From rooftops, hillsides and shelled-out buildings, he focused the crosshairs on distant individuals, squeezed the trigger and ended their lives. By the time he retired, Coughlin had accumulated 60 confirmed kills in Somalia, Iraq and other foreign battlefields he will not identify. Coughlin, author of the autobiography Shooter ( tiny.cc/40gh1x ) , has little trouble...