Free Republic

With the President poised to strike in Syria and the Congress set to vote on the issue the week of Sep. 9, the debate about U.S. military intervention in the two-year-old civil war is already happening amongst the American public. Some Americans have made their voices known to their representatives, while many others have said the U.S. should stay out of the conflict, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll. In the poll, only 20% said the U.S. should take action, although that was up from 9% last week. Even if it's clear the Assad regime used chemical weapons on civilians, only...

The Forgotten War, it's called. Which is why it was so good to have it remembered so ceremoniously and extensively this past weekend on the 60th anniversary of the tenuous armistice -- certainly not peace -- that has uneasily endured on the Korean peninsula ever since. The Korean War is worth remembering and so are all those who fought in it, the living and the dead, the great and small, the worthless politicians who knew only how to continue it and the unsung heroes who died in the snow and ice. And let there be no mistake: It was a...

The Seattle news station has the video story online. This soldier was deployed and had a friend watch his dog. When he came back, he found out his friend had either given away or sold his dog. His dog is microchipped and registered to him so it won't be an issue once he finds him. The more people who see this, the better his chances are of finding his dog. http://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/pet/3956713351.html

A group of soldiers are preparing for their deployment to Egypt with riot training on post. They're planning ahead for violent protests or riots and the possibility of protecting the country's border with Israel. Soldiers encountered Molotov cocktails and other dangerous items in the training. Lt. Matthew Wilkinson says, "Just what I've seen over the course of the past week than we were a week ago." PFC Perez Alexander says, "We want to be as professional as possible... Know what we're doing." They wrap up training today before preparing to ship out in the near future.

Four Israeli female soldiers have been disciplined after pictures of themselves dressed only in their underwear and combat gear were posted on Facebook. The Israeli military said yesterday the group of women were punished for their 'unbecoming behaviour' after the pictures emerged on local news sites. The images, published on Israeli news site Walla, showed the soldiers removing their fatigues to expose their underwear and back sides.

On Memorial Day, tears were shed as programs across the country honored and prayed for those men and women who sacrificed their dreams in order that we might live out our own. Some Americans who had lost a son or daughter, a spouse, or a parent never got to see their loved one reach their full potential. Those soldiers who died left their dreams in their graves. Their loss is made even worse by an administration that is doing all it can to kill the dreams of Americans they fought to preserve. President Obama's plan for creating jobs takes more...

War memorials vandalised Vandals have attacked two of Britain’s most celebrated war memorials, apparently daubing them with the word “Islam” and covering over inscriptions. By Hayley Dixon 4:24PM BST 27 May 2013 The RAF Bomber Command War Memorial and the Animals in War Memorial, both in central London, were covered in red paint. The Metropolitan Police have not yet made any arrests, so the motivation behind the damage remains unclear. The words written on the memorials have been covered up with plastic sheets after being discovered in the early hours of the morning, but it is believed that "Islam" has...

A mother honours her 'precious’ son She had bravely come to see the spot where her son’s life was brought to a brutal end, but as she arrived at the flower-carpeted murder scene in Woolwich today, it became more than Lyn Rigby could bear. By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter 10:00PM BST 26 May 2013 Her legs buckled under her and Drummer Lee Rigby’s mother sank to her knees as her face dissolved into tears of raw grief. She was consoled by her husband Ian and other members of Drummer Rigby’s family, who wrapped their arms around her as she sat...

A report by a political activist and reservist combat soldier claims the IDF has effectively capitulated in the face of Arab rock and firebomb attacks. Writing in the web magazine Mida, Erez Tadmor says that in the past week, since the grave injury of Yaakov Zlatkin at the hands of an Arab mob, he has spoken with dozens of officers and soldiers who all said the same thing: The health and security of Jews who live in Judea and Samaria, as well as those of the soldiers who are supposed to guard them, have been left to the mercy of...

I received this in an email this AM from my friend Joe John at Combat Veterans for Congress.... It is really good and worth a watch! The Miami Dolphin cheerleaders sent the US Troops in Afghanistan a music video and they sent one back…imitating them almost to perfection. SO cool!! Plus the Soldiers light off a four point deuce mortar as a point of punctuation. Ya gotta love the American fighting man ! Soldiers win…hands down! CLICK BELOW:

Army could lose 100,000 soldiers due to sequestration. Of all the military services facing budget pressure this year, the Army is in the direst of straits. The budget Congress finally passed a month ago will help matters, but the service says it's still more than $15 billion short of funds in fiscal 2013. Army senior leaders told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday that the elimination of a continuing resolution and the passage of a formal budget only fixed about a third of the funding problem they face this year. The sequestration cuts that Congress left in place will force...

At 5:20 a.m. on Monday, four hours before the Boston Marathon's elite runners took off, a group of 15 active-duty soldiers from the Massachusetts National Guard gathered at the starting line in Hopkinton. Each soldier was in full combat uniform and carried a "ruck," a military backpack weighing about 40 pounds. The rucks were filled with Camelbacks of water, extra uniforms, Gatorade, changes of socks—and first-aid and trauma kits. It was all just supposed to be symbolic. "Forced marches" or "humps" are a regular part of military training, brisk walking over tough terrain while carrying gear that could help a...

WIESBADEN, Germany — The Army announced Friday it is suspending its tuition assistance program for soldiers newly enrolling in classes due to sequestration and other budgetary pressures. “This suspension is necessary given the significant budget execution challenges caused by the combined effects of a possible year-long continuing resolution and sequestration,” Paul Prince, an army personnel spokesman at the Pentagon, wrote in an email to Stars and Stripes. “The Army understands the impacts of this action and will re-evaluate should the budgetary situation improve.” The Army’s announcement follows a similar move by the Marine Corps. The Army’s tuition assistance program was...

Forget that The Daily Caller is reporting Progressive USA’s claim that NRA donated $10,000 to Debbie Halvorson, and that the contender for the Congressional seat vacated by disgraced anti-gun head case Jesse Jackson Jr. calls for “Universal Background Checks and registration of all firearms … Making sure that background checks work so people do not fall through the cracks in the National Data Base [and] Ending the Gun Show loophole” on her campaign website. Those who play political chess will tell us Halvorson opposes banning semi-autos and some such, while hard-liners will point out the prospective ban is likely to...

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE SUBJECT: Determination with Respect to the Child Soldiers Prevention Act of 2008 Pursuant to section 404 of the Child Soldiers Prevention Act of 2008 (CSPA) (title IV, Public Law 110-457), I hereby determine that it is in the national interest of the United States to waive the application of the prohibition in section 404(a) of the CSPA with respect to Libya, South Sudan, and Yemen; and further determine that it is in the national interest of the United States to waive in part the application of the prohibition in section 404(a) of the CSPA...

I recently read the new biography of Trotsky by Oxford don Robert Service, published in 2009 by Pan Books. It is well-written and surprisingly interesting. The book does a great public service in describing the life of the actual Trotsky, whose previous “biographies” were little more than hagiographies written by his toady worshippers (people like Isaac Deutscher). The last time that I had taken any interest in Trotsky was when I was a teenager and had fleeting delusions of believing in “socialism.” Reading the new book as an adult and as an economist, I found it a useful opportunity to...

Soldiers in Afghanistan have been filling us in on what it means to no longer get a hot breakfast each morning - and it has a lot more to do with morale than hunger. The comments are in response to a story that appeared in Home Post last week about the Pentagon's dismissal of a viral email that claimed all troops in Afghanistan weren't getting breakfast. According to the American Forces Press Service: The Internet myth’s genesis came from a few forward operating bases in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika province that are closing or being turned over to Afghan security forces....

Forty years later, veterans still suffer rebound effects from inhabiting thick jungles during one of America’s most brutal wars. “Inside the Vietnam War,” airs tonite, December 28 at 8 p.m., in a special encore presentation on the National Geographic Channel. An outstanding memorial tribute by USA TODAY it features individual interviews of veterans from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Marine Security Guard, Bill Newell stood post at the US Embassy in Saigon on April 29, 1975, when he got the news that two of his fellow Marines became the last Americans to die in that terrible war....

2 US troops die in apparent Afghan insider attack Last Updated: 11:12 AM, October 25, 2012 KABUL, Afghanistan — A man in an Afghan police uniform shot and killed two American service members Thursday, the US military said, in what appeared to be the latest in a rash of attacks on international forces this year by their Afghan partners.

Paul Flynn is thrown out of Commons for calling Philip Hammond a 'liar' Paul Flynn has been suspended from the House of Commons after accusing defence ministers of 'lying' about events surrounding the deaths of soldiers in Afghanistan. By Rosa Prince, Online Political Editor 3:42PM BST 18 Sep 2012 Comments1 Comment The Labour MP was ordered to leave the Chamber and suspended from the Commons for 24 hours after comparing statements given by Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, and his ministerial team to the First World War when "politicians lied and soldiers died". John Bercow, the Speaker of the Commons,...