Free Republic

In the middest of the chaos and despair, that is in the City of New Orleans, there have been people waiting for at least three days for food and water. The media has been squawking the loudest about the slowness of the food convoys. When a truckload of MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) finally arrived in to help feed the masses, that have not had any food or water; you would think that these people would be grateful. That seems to be not the case in the eyes of some people. Yes, that is right, there are some people that...

After Rep. Duncan Hunter's eye-opening description of how terrorist suspects are living high on the hog at the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, prisoners from around the world will no doubt be clamoring for a 'gulag' cell of their own. Appearing on Fox News Sunday, the House Armed Services Committee chairman began by detailing tonight's dinner menu at Gitmo - which all detainees, including one suspected of being involved in the 9/11 plot, will enjoy. "For Sunday they're going to be having Orange Glazed Chicken, Fresh Fruit Roupee, Steamed Peas and Mushrooms, Rice Pilaf - we treat them very...

NEW YORK As the U.S. military approaches nearly two years in the Iraq conflict, media training for soldiers going into the war zone has been stepped up, becoming mandatory for Army troops since October, E&P has learned. "Talking point" cards for military personnel, meanwhile, are being updated regularly as the war progresses -- often as much as once a week -- to keep up with the conflict's changing issues and the proximity of embedded reporters. Among the current talking points: "We are a values-based, people-focused team that strives to uphold the dignity and respect of all." Soldiers preparing for deployment...

An employment agency pleaded guilty to falsifying forms to get illegal immigrants jobs at the nation's top producer of U.S. military battlefield rations.James Echensberger, vice president of San Antonio-based Tollin Group Inc., on Tuesday pleaded guilty on the company's behalf to one count of conspiracy to provide false and fictitious statements during an FBI investigation.Investigators found that Tollin, which does business as Remedy Intelligent Staffing, was trying to cover up hundreds of fraudulent "I-9" employment eligibility documents. The illegal workers were hired by Wornick Co., which packages high-calorie "meals ready to eat" for troops in Iraq.The FBI initiated the investigation...

The military is trying to make the egg edible for soldiers. Researchers at Ohio State University and two other schools are working on a new process designed to produce a tastier, more tender egg that can be used in combat rations. The use of eggs in ``meals-ready-to-eat'' pouches - or MREs - was discontinued about 10 years ago after soldiers complained they were rubbery, tasted bad and had a grayish tint. ``Eggs are a real challenge to get that quality that is appropriate to heat and serve,'' said Patrick Dunne, senior adviser in the Combat Rations Directorate at the U.S....

Like they say about the mail: Neither rain, nor sleet, nor sand . . . You can imagine Joe Huff's and Aloma Adams' surprise when they got a note in the mail several weeks ago from their son, Tony, 20, a U.S. Marine who is stationed in Iraq — written on part of an MRE combat food ration box. MRE stands for Meals Ready to Eat, though some folks joke that it stands for Meals Refused by Ethiopians. The field rations aren't making anybody's list of fine cuisine to be featured in Gourmet magazine. But the box sure works good...

Now, after an absence of over fifty years, the "assault ration" is back. The U.S. Army just announced a new, lightweight, "assault ration" for combat troops, especially those who march long distances carrying all their gear. During World War II, two special, lightweight, rations were developed for troops going into an offensive where they might not be resupplied for a few days. The "K Ration" was smaller and lighter than the C Ration, using more food in pouches. Three meals, containing 3,000 calories, weighted 2.31 pounds and could be carried in the large pockets of the combat uniform. There was...

--"Ration stripping," they call it when forward- deployed combat troops jettison all but the most essential items from their Meals, Ready to Eat so they don't have so much to carry as they set out on a mission. Troops in Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan reported sacrificing all but a few carefully chosen food items from their MRE pouches to lighten their pockets and rucksacks. These reports alarmed food technologists at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center at Natick, Mass, who recognized that warfighters weren't simply tossing aside "luxury" items like flameless heaters and Tabasco sauce. Janice Rosado from the Defense...

MRE menu debuts new items by Staff Sgt. C. Todd Lopez Air Force Print News 9/4/2003 - WASHINGTON -- Servicemembers in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere will soon have several new MRE options to choose from for their deployed-dining pleasure. The newest meals, ready-to-eat, feature three new entrée items: pot roast with vegetables, barbecue pork ribs and vegetable manicotti. The menu also includes clam chowder, both peanut butter and crispy M&Ms, almond poppy seed pound cake, pumpkin pound cake, chocolate mint cookies and vanilla waffle-sandwich cookies. The new entrée additions come at a cost, according to Defense Logistics Agency spokesman Jack Hooper. "We are...

<p>Active-duty troops overseas can get free hamburgers at Burger King restaurants July 4.</p>

The effort of coordination required to feed the ranks in war creates its own culture of humour and memory. The Commander of the United States Navy’s Medical Corps offers a consumer’s guide for the hungry soldier in the field. Food in war has been used to assess enemy forces as well as motivate our own. Most importantly however, the binding ritual of sharing food that we experience in our own homes continues, even in the most adverse circumstances. In times of war, changes in diet play a large role in the lives of both combatants and civilians. Usual supplies...

<p>The military's top supply officer says American ground troops drove so fast to Baghdad they sometimes outran supply lines bringing bottled water and fresh rations of Meals Ready to Eat (MREs).</p> <p>Army soldiers and Marines wolfed down most varieties of the vacuum-packed, 1,300-calorie meals without complaint at the rate of hundreds of thousands a day. But they held their noses at one dish — beef with mushrooms. Now, it's now off the MRE menu.</p>

TIKRIT, Iraq (AP) -- Supper time has become a double treat at a Marine base outside Saddam Hussein's hometown - not only is there fresh meat, but it's from Saddam's personal hunting preserve. The Tikrit South airfield, where Marine Wing Support Squadron 271 set up base in this week's campaign to take the city, is on the edge of a preserve where Saddam and favored guests once hunted gazelle.Now, Marines are venturing into the woods to hunt the animals, which stand about waist-high. They haul back the carcasses as a welcome substitute for the prepackaged Meals Ready to Eat that...

United States Marines are hunting gazelles with rocks and pistols-to avoid having to eat MRE's.The soldiers at a base outside of Tikrit say they are enjoying eating the unusual meat from Saddam Hussein's personal hunting preserve. Marine Wing Support Squadron 271 are venturing into the woods to hunt the animals before hauling them back as a welcome substitute from the pre packaged Meals Ready to Eat.'It was delicious, I don't know if it was because we were eating MRE's for two months, but everyone has enjoyed it a lot, said Corporal Joshua Wicksell age 26.

Each single-meal MRE is targeted at 1,300 calories, and it's a challenge to get soldiers to eat all the nutrition they need.

At 11 (or about) they will drop alert from orange to yello