Free Republic

Russia announced on Tuesday that by the end of this month it will deploy the latest version of its giant command and control aircraft designated for use during nuclear war or national disasters. The flying command center will be able to coordinate the worldwide operations of its ground, naval, air and missile forces, including nuclear weapons, as well as the country's satellites. Russian military sources said that the Ilyushin-80 jet would be used when the command infrastructure is disrupted due to a nuclear war, or when ground communication systems are absent. The sources said the plane will be permanently staffed...

DAYTONA BEACH — The vacant YMCA building in the north central area of the city, a beloved and bustling hub of activity for more than 30 years before it went dormant close to a decade ago, is poised to become a mosque. The building's owner, The Islamic Center of Daytona Beach, now located in a 4,500-square-foot building in the Midtown neighborhood east of Nova Road, plans to spread its wings in the 32,000-square-foot YMCA complex in the Derbyshire neighborhood. The vision is to create a much larger place of prayer, school, daycare center, thrift store, recreation center and Islamic heritage...

When I received this pic in email today I thought it would be fun to compare vs. Osamas so-called "command center".

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The compound in Pakistan where U.S. forces killed Osama bin Laden was an active command center from which he directed al Qaeda, a senior intelligence official said on Saturday as he released videos showing bin Laden watching himself on tape and rehearsing speeches. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said information carted away from the compound by U.S. forces following Monday's raid represented the largest trove of intelligence ever obtained from a single terrorism suspect. "This compound in Abbottabad was an active command and control center for al Qaeda's top leader and it's clear ... that...

SEOUL, South Korea - From inside a mountainside bunker, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) saw firsthand Saturday what a war with North Korea (news - web sites) might look like. Rice became the most senior American official to tour a command center for U.S. and South Korean troops that would be the battle headquarters in the event of fighting with the communist North. "I know that you face a close-in threat every day," Rice told troops at Command Post Tango, or Theater Air Naval Ground Operations. Rice's visit coincided with a twice-yearly war exercise involving thousands...