Hmmm... 
An old Viet Vet sitting here with tears in his eyes, full of pride for the American Fighting Man.
God Bless America and God Bless the American Fighting Men!
"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win great triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." --Theodore Roosevelt
Deserves to be posted again.
Almighty God Who art the Author of Liberty and the Champion of the oppressed hear our prayer.Take Care,We the men of Special Forces, acknowledge our dependence upon Thee in the preservation of human freedom. Go with us as we seek to defend the defenseless and to free the enslaved.
May we ever remember that our nation, whose oath "in God We Trust," expects that we shall requit ourselves with honor, that we may never bring shame upon our faith, our families, or our fellow men.
Grant us wisdom from Thy mind, courage from Thine heart, and protection by Thine hand. It is for Thee that we do battle, and to thee belongs the victor's crown. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power and glory forever,
Amen!
Ruck
The RPK is a variant of the AKM assault rifle. It has a longer, heavier barrel; a stamped metal bipod; and a heavier type of fixed, wooden buttstock. The modified receiver of the RPK can accommodate its larger-diameter barrel. The RPK normally feeds ammunition from either a 40-round curved box magazine or a 75-round spring-loaded drum magazine. However, it can also use the 30-round curved box magazine of the AKM, if necessary. It has a chrome-plated barrel, chamber, and gas piston. It also has a cyclic rate reducer built into the trigger mechanism. The users usually install luminous night sights on the front and rear sights. Some RPKs can mount an infrared night-sighting device. The RPKS is a folding-stock version used by airborne troops. The RPK has a maximum effective range of 800 meters in either automatic or semiautomatic mode. Almost all of the moving parts of the RPK are interchangeable with those of the AK or AKM assault rifles. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RPK-74 5.45-mm Light Machine Gun
Just as the RPK is the squad machine gun version of the AKM, the RPK-74 is a machine gun version of the AK-74, firing the same ammunition. The RPKS-74 is a folding-stock version of the weapon. Instead of the prominent muzzle brake used on the AK-74, the machine gun has a short flash suppressor. The magazine is longer than that normally used with the AK-74, but the magazines are interchangeable. The RPK-74 has a bipod. The 5.45-mm round of the RPK-74 has a considerably higher muzzle velocity than the 7.62-mm round of the RPK. However, both weapons probably have the same maximum range (2,500 meters) and effective range (800 meters). Unlike the RPK, the RPK-74 is compatible with the front firing ports of the BMP. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PK Series 7.62-mm General Purpose Machine Guns
The 7.62-mm general-purpose machine gun Pulemyot Kalashnikov (PK) is a gas-operated, belt-fed, sustained-fire weapon. The PKM fires 7.62 x 54R rimmed cartridges using a metal non disintegrating belt. The basic PK model is bipod-mounted. It is fed by a 100-round belt carried in a box fastened to the right side of the receiver. It weighs 9 kilograms and is 1,161 millimeters long. It is constructed partly of stamped metal and partly of forged steel. The PKS is a PK mounted on a lightweight (4.75-kg) tripod. It uses either a 200- or 250-round belt. The belt feeds from a box placed to the right of the weapon. The PKT is the tank-mounted version of the PK. Late-model FSU tanks, turreted APCs and IFVs, and amphibious scout cars mount it as a coaxial machine gun. It has a longer and heavier barrel than the PK. It also lacks the PK's stock, sights, bipod, and trigger mechanism. The PKT has a solenoid at the rear for remote-controlled firing, although it also has an emergency manual trigger. The PKB is a variant of the PKT. It is intended for use as a pintle-mounted gun on APCs and SP guns. It differs from the PKT by having a butterfly trigger rather than a solenoid trigger and by having double space grips and front and rear sights. The PKM is an improved, lighter version (8.4 kilograms) of the PK, using stamped metal components instead of machined metal. Joinable 25-round sections of non-disintegrating metallic belts feed the bipod-mounted PKM. An assault magazine attached to the rails under the receiver can carry 100 cartridges belted in this way. Either 200- or 250-round belt boxes can also feed the PKM. The tripod-mounted PKMS is a lightweight version of the PKS. It has the same characteristics as the PKM, from which it is derived. The effective range of the PK-series machine guns is 1,000 meters. They have a cyclic rate of fire of 650 rounds per minute and a practical rate of fire of 250 rounds per minute. Ammunition types include the following: ball, ball-tracer, armor-piercing incendiary, armor-piercing incendiary-tracer, and incendiary-ranging. It normally fires from its bipod mount but can also fit in vehicle firing ports. The PKS and PKMS are also infantry weapons. Used as heavy machine guns, they provide long-range area fire. Their tripod provides a stable mount for long-range ground fire. The tripod opens quickly to elevate the gun for antiaircraft fire. The machine gun has an effective range of 600 meters against slow-moving aircraft. The PKT serves as a coaxial machine gun on most modern Soviet tanks, IFVs, and APCs. The PKB (PKBM) serves as a pintle-mounted gun on older armored vehicles such as the BRDM, BTR-50, and BTR-60.
I've been wanting to ask a question and now seems like a good time based on this comment from the article:
All locals loudly greeted us and thanked all Americans. Much waving, cheering and clapping even from the women. ... USN/USAF did a great job.
I've been wondering if what we're doing over there will change the way Arabs think of Americans. Will this help us in any way or will hatred for the U.S. continue? I do not know much at all about the different countries in that area, so please forgive my ignorance.
Candi
Think O.J. will get to play bin Laden? Not much of a character stretch, not much make-up needed, and they're both convincing liars. Low budget, too. Wardrobe is mostly rags.
Gulp. Lump in the throat time for me.
God bless our servicemen, God bless our Commander In Chief and God bless America!
"We have witnessed the horse cavalry bounding overwatch from spur to spur to attack Taliban strong points -- the last several kilometers under mortar, artillery ... and PK fire. There is little medical care if injured, only a donkey ride to the aid station, which is a dirt hut. I think (the Mujahadeen) are doing very well with what they have. They have killed over 125 Taliban ... while losing only eight.
These guys are no slouches either. Anyone that thought they got a free pass to Kabul from the B-52 strikes and Daisy Cutters, had better read this paragraph again.