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April 21, 2004: The U.S. Air Forces X-45A combat UAV (UCAV, or unmanned combat air vehicle) dropped it’s first smart bomb on April 19th. During the test, the X-45 was flying at 35,000 feet, and moving at about 700 kilometers an hour. The bomb was an SDB (Small Diameter Bomb), a new type of smart bomb that weighs only 250 pounds (and is six inches in diameter and six feet long). A human operator on the ground authorized the release of the bomb when the X-45 signaled that it was within range. The bomb, which carried no explosives, hit the...

It was exactly three months ago when Iraq's deposed dictator Saddam Hussein was last seen in public. And it has been about 100 days since the U.S.-led Coalition launched a formal hunt for him. And, yet, as U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell admitted in Washington last week, the Americans are nowhere near capturing the fugitive. One may wonder why? The short answer is that no one has been really looking for him. Yes, the U.S. is offering $25 million for Saddam's capture. And, yes, American troops have carried out 22 raids in nine localities, including Baghdad, in the past...

In June of 1944, when Field Marshal von Rundstedt, the German commander in France, was told that the Allies were landing in Normandy, he knew exactly what to do. He went out into the garden and pruned his roses. Von Rundstedt knew that in war, early reports, regardless of whether the news is good or bad, are usually misleading. Reacting to them with "instant analysis" merely makes the problem worse. That is as true for the war in Iraq as for any other war. For now, we need to wait. Only time can offer clarity. What we can do now...

INFORMATION WARFARE: Mind Games With Iraq August 19, 2002; The much anticipated attack on Iraq is shaping up to be an Information War campaign rather than a conventional military one. The United States has long wanted to see Iraqi's long time dictator removed from power. So have most Iraqis. Saddam has stayed in power so long because he has built a formidable police state that has withstood numerous coups, rebellions and several assassination attempts a year. So how do you topple this thug without an invasion? You can do it with the right rumors, leaks and pronouncements. This is called...

Conquering Iraq - American Strategies by Tom Holsinger's June 27, 2002 Inspiring Saddam Hussein's own people to assassinate him is the safest opening move for the American conquest of Iraq. Deploying overpowering force is the most effective way to this, as that would phenomenally enhance a psychological warfare campaign against Saddam?s regime-protection services. The bodyguard standing behind Saddam is in a better position to kill him than we are, can do it earlier, and only needs tacit motivation from us. A reinforced corps in Kuwait, with a Marine division-equivalent off-shore, could conquer Iraq fast, while also being such a psych-war...

LANCASTER, Pa. -- A handful of Amish families are charging tourists for meals in their homes. There's only one problem. The practice is illegal. Bishops in the sect that shuns modern conveniences are tentatively allowing the practice as a way for farm families to supplement their incomes. But state officials said these so-called Amish restaurants must be inspected. They promise to prosecute those who ignore the law. Some said the Amish should be exempted from the law. Officials with the state Agriculture Department charged one Amish couple with operating a public eating place without a license after a busload of ...

Carroll County legislators have introduced a bill providing new legal protection to business owners in cases such as one this month in which two brothers are under investigation in the fatal shooting of a man during what police said was an attempted burglary of their Glyndon concrete business. The measure would shield owners from civil lawsuits for deadly force against someone "who unlawfully and forcefully enters" their business. It would not affect criminal prosecutions. Del. Carmen Amedori, a Carroll Republican, said yesterday the bill is in response to an incident in which a Baltimore man was killed and two Baltimore ...

NOBODY NEEDS a psychoanalyst to explain that weekend pep rally for Matthew and Dominic Geckle, who seem to have taken the law into their own hands. Though police say the brothers shot one man dead and wounded two others, about 75 people gathered Sunday in Essex to support them and express their contempt over any possible criminal charges. The crowd was speaking for a lot of people, none of whom (on either side of the current debate) knows exactly what happened -- or why -- in that flash of gunfire eight nights ago in the darkness of a Baltimore County ...

The attorney representing one of the brothers involved in the shooting of three suspected burglars at a Glyndon warehouse early Monday said yesterday that his client is "extremely remorseful" but confident that he did nothing illegal. The brothers - Matthew J. Geckle, 36, and Dominic A. Geckle, 31 - have hired separate attorneys as they prepare to face possible criminal charges in the incident, which left one man dead and two wounded. Police said they have found no evidence that the three intruders were armed. Richard G. Berger, a Baltimore attorney who represents Matthew Geckle, said his client sympathizes with ...

An attorney for one of the men apparently shot by a Glyndon business owner during a break-in launched a blistering attack yesterday on Baltimore County prosecutors for not immediately filing charges against the suspected shooter. Leonard H. Shapiro, a former county prosecutor, said the case should not go to a grand jury because there is overwhelming evidence that the shooting, which left one man dead and two wounded, was not in self-defense. "We think the fact the owners of the business have not yet been charged borders on the ridiculous," Shapiro said. "This is a murder. You don't lay in ...

A grand jury likely will be asked to decide whether criminal charges should be filed against either of the brothers involved in the shooting of three burglary suspects, a Baltimore County assistant state's attorney said yesterday. S. Ann Brobst, who is in charge of the case, said the incident was "extremely serious" and presents "a lot of complicated issues." Brobst said that she will begin reviewing the case after homicide detectives complete their investigation, but that it could be weeks before a final decision is made. "I think this is the type of thing we want a grand jury to ...

A Baltimore man was shot and killed and two other men were wounded early yesterday when they encountered the armed owners of a Glyndon concrete plant during what police said was an attempted burglary. The owners of Back River Supply Inc. -- brothers Dominic A. Geckle, 31, and Matthew J. Geckle, 36 -- were keeping an all-night vigil with shotguns after being burglarized Friday and Saturday nights, said Cpl. Vickie Warehime, a Baltimore County police spokeswoman. Jonathan B. Steinbach, 24, of the first block of W. Biddle St. was pronounced dead at the scene. Steinbach was the owner of Midtown ...

In 1995 Carlos Vignali was convicted of masterminding a scheme to distribute millions of dollars worth of crack cocaine. On his last day in office, Bill Clinton commuted his sentence. Until this week, Clinton's aides justified the decision by pointing out that this was Vignali's first offense and drug laws are too harsh in America. This must have been great solace to Todd Hopson, who was described in the LA Times by his lawyer as an "uneducated black kid with a noticeable stutter." Hopson is one of Vignali's 30 co-defendants, most of whom are black and poor and without a ...

(T)he flag at Daytona flies at half staff in honor of Dale Earnhardt, whose final lap in the Daytona 500 was as final as they get. The fabled driver hit the wall at 180 mph (or so) and that was that. A great sport has lost one of its great men; bitter tears must fall. And now, of course, meddling fingers must wag. To no surprise, we hear calls for extra safety devices, replacing concrete walls with shock-absorbent barriers, and reversing crowd-pleasing rules changes that can make the running of races more dangerous. One suspects it is only a matter ...