Free Republic

An anthrax-tainted letter-probably cross-contaminated during the anthrax attacks of September/October 2001,was discovered this week in an FBI evidence locker in Arkansas, where it had been stored since April,2002. Agents came upon the letter,which had been sealed in a protective bag,while cleaning out the evidence locker,and,because it had anthrax investigation markings, decided to have it tested by Arkansas health officials before forwarding it to the Newark, NJ office. A swab test of the letter turned out positive, and the letter was then sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which confirmed the Arkansas findings, and which is doing...

<p>The check is in the mail for most people who claimed the child tax credit last year.</p> <p>If it's not, it soon will be.</p> <p>The federal government has begun mailing the first of more than 600,000 checks to Virginia residents. The checks are part of an accelerated new law that increased the child tax credit.</p>

Mail Call Live from the Gulf Sunday, July 6 @ 10pm ET/PT Host R. Lee Ermey answers viewer questions about Operation Iraqi Freedom and fighting desert warfare in a 1-hour live broadcast. Onboard the USS Nimitz, he finds out why the men and women on aircraft carrier flight decks wear different bright-colored jerseys; meets with an Air Force EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) unit that deals with unexploded bombs on the battlefield; and at Talil air base in Iraq, finds out what it takes to rescue downed pilots with the Air Force Reserve 39th Rescue Squadron. TV PG

The first known postal document, found in Egypt, dates from 255 BC. But even before that time postal services existed on nearly every continent in the form of messengers serving kings and emperors. Over time, religious orders and universities added their own message delivery systems to exchange news and information. Relay stations were set up along the messengers' routes to speed delivery over long distances. Eventually, private individuals were allowed to use the messengers to communicate with one another.   During the 17th and 18th centuries, the exchange of mail between countries was largely governed by bilateral postal agreements. But...

Years ago, there was a column in Leatherneck magazine titled "If I Were Commandant." This was provided for Marines who wished to voice their own ideas on anything in the Corps that they thought was wrong and could be done better. That vauable, I think, column no longer exists in Leatherneck. Never the less, IF I WERE CMC, I WOULD SEE THAT MARINES GET THEIR MAIL. In the last several months, I have read countless media articles, internet bulletin boards, etc. complaining about the lack of decent mail service to the troops of all services in Iraq; some of these...

White powder scare in at South Bend office (New Twist On The Powder-By-Mail Game) The letter, containing a packet of Tylenol tablets, was crushed during mailing Posted: 05/16/2003 04:38 pm A South Bend office building was shutdown for awhile Friday morning after a powdery substance was found in a letter. Police turned people away from the building and firefighters didn't know what they had after responding to the call from Healthcare Resources located on South St. Louis Street. An employee opened a letter and a white powder substance flew out. Two women who were exposed to the powder became worried...

I just wanted to take a few moments to share this all with you. Today was a very busy day—life seems to assault you with breakneck speed sometimes. I was coming out of a meeting when one someone told me he needed help responding to a Congressman who had visited us recently. Somehow, his district was made aware he was visiting wounded here in Germany, and people from his district in Indiana had supplied him with letters for our soldiers, sailors, and airman at the hospital and also for Iraq. I believe it was dubbed Operation Thank You.I was somewhat...

Danny Glover’s supporters start letter writing campaign with ugly, racial overtones Over the past few days, we have been investigating the political views of MCI spokesman, and movie star, Danny Glover. It hasn’t been a pretty sight. And this morning, Glover’s supporters launched a letter writing campaign with ugly, racial overtones. If you want to know why, here’s ‘The Real Deal.’ DANNY GLOVER is a well-known star of the screen who has traded his likeable image in for lots of money, as spokesman for telecom giant MCI, formerly, your friends at WorldCom. Nothing wrong with that, lots of stars do...

I was concerned to read about problems getting mail to the military in Iraq. In The Scandal of the Army's Mail Jonathan Foreman wrote in The Daily Standard that "Some troops on the front lines haven't received mail in two months. Our soldiers deserve better. " It was nice to see the Army’s response, and it’s sensibility in the letters section this Monday: As the individual who has oversight of the mail processing and delivery for all of our ground forces in both Kuwait and Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, I was initially both disappointed and concerned by...

I have a cousin who is currently in Iraq with 3rd Bde of 3ID. While I'm sure he's fine, his mom, like all moms, is somewhat prone to worry. Neither his family, nor his fiance, have heard anything from him since well before the war started - His last letter was dated 4 March. His habit was to write his fiance once a day, and his family at least every few days. Now I know that they were pretty busy for much of the intervening time, the operational tempo has certainly slowed by now, and I can't believe that the...

Baghdad - Saddam Hussein received a bit of everything in the mailbox. There were messages from the world's rich and powerful to the once proud strongman of Baghdad, and there were letters from ordinary people with simple requests. A glimpse at some of Saddam's correspondence was possible in the ruins of one of his palaces destroyed by US air power. Helmut Hierzer of Austria wrote to Saddam Hussein in hopes of getting a watch with the now-deposed president's picture on it. In the letter dated September 24, 2002, the Austrian enclosed a photograph cut out of a newspaper showing the...

Some troops on the front lines haven't received mail in two months. Our soldiers deserve better. by Jonathan Foreman 04/15/2003 2:30:00 PM MORALE HAS CURDLED in many American units around Iraq, despite the amazing success of coalition forces since the invasion began on March 20th. The reason isn't 95-degree heat or the relentless dust or the suicidal harassment by Saddam's Fedayeen. It's the shameful total breakdown of the army's postal system. "It's the worst thing about this war" said Sp. Stephen Clifford of the 64th Armor Regiment, "The whole thing went well but they screwed up a lot of the...

MORALE HAS CURDLED in many American units around Iraq, despite the amazing success of coalition forces since the invasion began on March 20th. The reason isn't 95-degree heat or the relentless dust or the suicidal harassment by Saddam's Fedayeen. It's the shameful total breakdown of the army's postal system. "It's the worst thing about this war" said Sp. Stephen Clifford of the 64th Armor Regiment, "The whole thing went well but they screwed up a lot of the small details: When the first task force came over six months ago they had enough people to handle the mail. But when...

Submitted by: 3d Marine Aircraft Wing Story Identification Number: 200341343955 Story by Staff Sgt. John C. DiDomenico KUWAIT(April 9, 2003) -- Personnel eagerly await its daily arrival either in formation or by visiting their admin clerks. Those who receive it, smile and walk away with higher spirits. Others, who don't receive any, silently keep faith for the next day. No matter where they are, garrison or deployed, military personnel look forward to mail call. Although it has been deemed "snail mail," letters and packages arriving from family and friends keeps morale upbeat for the Marines and Sailors of 3rd Marine...

Apr 06, 2003 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Having penetrated Baghdad and neutralized its most potent defenders, U.S. troops Sunday were still facing intact Republican Guard troops north of the city and scattered irregulars who wielded control inside. Coalition planes dropped thousands of leaflets on the city, imploring citizens to stay inside their homes. U.S. officials told MSNBC that a large group of Republican Guard had communicated their willingness to surrender, but whether they were part of the force to the north was not known. MSNBC also reported that in the north of the country a U.S. warplane may...

<p>DIWANIYAH, Iraq -- The Marines camping at this strategic town 100 miles south of Baghdad figured they wouldn't be moving for a while, as bulldozers showed up early yesterday to build strong sandbanks in front of their gun positions. And indeed the word came down: There would be an ''operational delay'' of several days in the advance toward Baghdad.</p>

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 22, 2003 (703)428-0711(public/industry) TROOP SUPPORT MAIL POLICY STRESSED To bolster force protection, the general public is urged not to send unsolicited mail, care packages or donations to service members forward deployed unless you are a family member, loved one or personal friend. On Oct. 30, 2002, the Department of Defense (DoD) suspended the "Operation Dear Abby" and "Any Servicemember" mail programs due to force protection concerns. Although these programs provide an excellent means of support to friends and loved ones stationed overseas, they also provide an avenue to...

One thing the military is usually quite good at is getting mail to the troops. It is not uncommon for a commander to not know where all his people are. But, somehow, the mail clerks can find them. Fact is, while in the Army I can remember being places where our government formally told the world we had no military people. The big joke was that our presence where there were no military forces could not have been that big of a military secret because the guys working the Army Post Office forwarded our mail to us there regularly. "You...

CAMP MATILDA, Kuwait - KRT NEWSFEATURES (KRT) - They may be near what may soon be the frontlines of a war with Iraq, but for the soldiers at this desert encampment in Kuwait, when the war might start is as much a mystery as for anyone watching the news channels back home. Maybe even more so, given that this camp has no telephone and no Internet access. Not even the regular snail-mail has been getting through. Lance Cpl. Justin Adams, of Destrahan, La., said he realized how little contact he has had with the outside world while performing sentry duty...

Lazy postman George Lamb pocketed more than 17,000 letters, parcels and birthday cards because he could not be bothered to deliver them. Lamb of Avison Court, Fenham, Newcastle, stole cash, vouchers and presents while on his round in Fenham and was only caught after police trapped him through a fake package. He took nearly 17,500 parcels, letters, cards and packages, removing cash from 1,688 greetings cards, keeping hold of 7,331 door-to-door promotional packages and charity appeals, and storing 8,440 parcels in his flat in Newcastle. Post Office staff became suspicious after complaints from angry residents in the Fenham area who...