Free Republic

Just in the last two days we have reported on major issues with the U.S. military, ranging from delays in every major Navy shipbuilding program, U.S. Navy Facing Major Shipbuilding Delays While China’s Navy Expansion Accelerates, to problems with military recruiting: Army Invites Retirees as Old as 70 to Return to Active Duty in Attempt to Fix Recruiting Woes. And this is just the tip of the iceberg, and all of you are likely well aware of the deteriorating state of our military under Joe Biden. But through all this, and the other foibles of today’s DEI/CRT-centric military, we always...

Artificial intelligence will lead to fewer employees at companies in most sectors, according to an exhaustive survey of executives by the Swiss staffing company The Adecco Group (OTCPK:AHEXY). The survey found 41% of companies expect fewer people employed at their organization in five years due to AI and generative AI. What's more, only 46% of employers plan to redeploy workers internally if their jobs are displaced by AI. The survey, "Leading through the great disruption 2024," involved 2,000 C-suite executives spanning nine countries. It was conducted in collaboration with Oxford Economics. The study's authors suggest companies should take a "human-centric...

16 SWAT officers hospitalized after blast at training facility in Southern California An explosion during a California training exercise sent 16 members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team to the hospital... The FBI Special Agent Jerry Crowe Regional Tactical Training Facility south of Los Angeles hosts firearms training and qualifications tests for the bureau and local law enforcement agencies, Eimiller said. The FBI will lead the investigation, Gonzalez said.... ...

ARLINGTON, Va., — The National Guard Bureau announced today the director of the Army National Guard has ordered an aviation safety stand down of all Army National Guard helicopter units to review safety policies and procedures following two recent helicopter crashes. The stand down went into effect Monday. Two separate crashes of AH-64D Apache helicopters in Utah on February 12 and Mississippi on February 23 drove the decision to ground all helicopters for safety reasons. Mississippi Army National Guard pilots Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bryan Andrew Zemek and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Derek Joshua Abbott died in the February 23...

As part of the ongoing counterterrorism operation in Nur Shams, near Tulkarm, in which numerous terrorists have been killed already, the various terrorist organizations are attempting to send a message of resolve and determination against the Israeli forces to the Palestinian Authority Arabs in the city. In a video clip published on Palestinian Arab Telegram channels, seven armed members of the al-Quds battalion, a military army of the Islamic Jihad organization in Nur Shams, read a message that despite the destruction caused by Israeli forces, the "Palestinian struggle" will continue due to the national support and determination of the residents....

NC Scout, Alpha Charlie and another guy discuss things.

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - A large U.S. Navy aircraft ended up in shallow waters of Kaneohe Bay on Monday afternoon after overshooting the runway at Marine Corps Base Hawaii. The incident happened about 2 p.m. and the large plane could be partially submerged in shallow waters. Sources said the aircraft had nine people on board and all of them made it to shore. Injuries were reported to be minor, but that could not be independently confirmed.

A “radical” Jordanian national living in Texas was allegedly plotting an attack on Houston’s Jewish community before he was arrested on gun charges. Sohaib Abuayyash, 20, had been studying how to build bombs and posted about his support for killing Jews, federal officials claim. “He has viewed specific and detailed content posted by radical organizations on the internet, including lessons on how to construct bombs or explosive devices,” FBI Director Chris Wray told the Senate Homeland Security Committee, though he declined to identify Abuayyash by name. “And that defendant has made statements to others that support the killing of individuals...

The Pentagon will exempt its Ukraine operations from a potential shutdown if lawmakers can’t agree on a deal to fund the government by the end of the month, allowing key training and other activities in support of Kyiv’s forces to move ahead uninterrupted, according to a Defense Department spokesperson. (snip)“Operation Atlantic Resolve is an excepted activity under a government lapse in appropriations,” Sherwood said, referring to the named operation for DOD’s activities in response to the Russian invasion. The move means that the U.S. military’s activities related to the war, such as training of Ukrainian soldiers on American tactics and...

Throughout the United States, it takes three times as many hours of training to become a nail technician, a barber, or a plumber as it does to become a police officer. Finland, Australia, Denmark, and Germany – countries with far less crime and a fraction of American gun violence – spend dramatically more to prepare officers before sending them off into the streets. Finland, for instance, provides police cadets with 5,500 hours of training, nearly 14 times the minimum 408 training hours required by the state police board in Georgia. Highly trained law enforcement officers, studies consistently show, are better...

UFOs are already having an impact on combat training for America's fighter pilots, a top national security official has warned. 'Some of these phenomena, we know, have already had an impact on our training ranges,' according to John Kirby, the National Security Council's Coordinator for Strategic Communications under President Biden. The comments suggest a new approach from the White House, whose press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre coyly dismissed questions about the F-22 stealth raptor jets that shot down three UFOs last February by saying, 'I love E.T. the movie.' Kirby, a retired rear admiral in the US Navy, said the unanswered...

After the Biden regime announced yesterday they would let Communist China invade Taiwan, we learn today that they are willing to let our greatest enemy to build a military base right at our doorstep. The Wall Street Journal reported that Cuba and China are negotiating to establish a joint trining facility on island. this will lead to Chinese forces being established just off the Florida coast. Cuba is positioned just 90 miles south of Florida. The talks are at an advanced stage at the moment but have not yet concluded according to the Journal report. The Biden regime’s only move...

Biden administration scrambles to forestall China’s ambitions in the CaribbeanWASHINGTON—China and Cuba are negotiating to establish a new joint military training facility on the island, sparking alarm in Washington that it could lead to the stationing of Chinese troops and other security and intelligence operations just 100 miles off Florida’s coast, according to current and former U.S. officials. Discussions for the facility on Cuba’s northern coast are at an advanced stage but not concluded, U.S. intelligence reports suggest. The Biden administration has contacted Cuban officials to try to forestall the deal, seeking to tap in to what it thinks might...

The city of Atlanta has approved funding for a controversial new police training center dubbed 'Cop City' by opponents. The 11-4 vote happened on Tuesday after hundreds of activists packed City Hall and spoke for hours in fierce opposition to the project, which they say will destroy the local environment and militarize the police. For about 14 hours, residents took to the podium to slam the $90 million project, saying it would be a gross misuse of public funds to build the huge facility in a large urban forest in a poor, majority black area of southeast of Atlanta. Six...

As Ukraine prepares for what is said to be the Spring Offensive against Russia, a debate has sprung up about why Europe’s contribution to the war is not getting due recognition as compared to that of the United States. The debate is based on the age-old maxim that the quality manpower (in this case, the soldier’s quality and competence) is as important as quality weapons in fighting a war. Accordingly, the point is being made that while the United States may have contributed more than half of the $160 billion in economic, humanitarian, and military aid that Ukraine has received...

The United States is ready to begin training Ukraine forces on how to use and maintain donated Abrams tanks as it continues to fast track efforts to get them onto the battlefield against Russia, U.S. officials said Friday. According to officials cited by AP, 31 main battle tanks will arrive at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany early in May and the troops will begin 10 weeks of training soon after. The heavy armor will not be the examples given to Ukraine as it fights against Russia’s invasion. Instead, another 31 M1A1 battle tanks are being refurbished in the U.S. and...

A former student who killed three children and three adults at a Christian elementary school in Nashville had 'some resentment for having to go to that school', cops said as they try to pin down a motive. Nashville police chief John Drake said police are still investigating what drove the killer - who they named as Audrey Hale, 28 - to open fire on Monday morning at The Covenant School, where she used to be a student, before being shot dead by police. He said in an interview with NBC News that investigators believe the killer had 'some resentment for...

In backrooms and dark corners, airline lobbyists, particularly the Regional Airline Association, are scurrying all over Washington, still trying to undo all the hard work that has been done to make air travel the safest form of transportation in human history. They’re doing this for the usual reasons. They want to try to cheapen pilot training and levels of experience for their own financial gain and expedience. They’re trying to do what is easier and cheaper for them, not what is best for passengers or crews, or for their industry. Once again, it is necessary that those of us who...

"It is difficult indeed, but one has to face it. That's why we're here." Civilians turned Ukrainian troops are now training in Spain, where their Captain says they are advancing 'very quickly.'

President Biden on Monday called for police officers to be retrained so they’re taught not to use deadly force in every situation that requires them to fire their weapon. The 80-year-old president’s comments came during the National Action Network’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Breakfast in Washington, DC, as Biden blasted Senate Republicans for blocking a police reform bill in 2021 that would’ve restricted the use of deadly force by law enforcement officers. “We have to retrain cops,” Biden said. “Why should you always shoot with deadly force? The fact is if you need to use your weapon, you don’t...