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WASHINGTON, March 28, 2008 – A rock star is putting a successful music career on hold as he prepares to deploy overseas as a member of the Army Reserve. “I think it’s the pinnacle of life to be able to say, when my country needed me, … I heeded the call,” Sgt. Frank Cavanagh said in an “America Supports You Live” BlogTalkRadio.com interview a week before deploying for training and eventually to Iraq. Cavanagh was the bass player for the band Filter, and he recently participated in a reunion tour in Kuwait with Operation MySpace. Cavanagh left a successful...

The first month of fiscal 2008 was a success for all active and reserve military components. In a meeting with Pentagon reporters today, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said all components met or exceeded their recruiting and accession goals for October. On the active-duty side, the Army made 101 percent of its goal of 4,500, with 4,564 recruits. The Navy made 100 percent of its goal of 2,788 recruits. The Marine Corps made 102 percent of its goal of 2,720, with 2,788 enlisting. The Air Force made 100 percent of its goal of 2,656.

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla., Sept. 21, 2007 – Problems facing reserve-component servicemembers are universal, regardless of which country they come from, international officials here this week learned. Representatives from the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand here to discuss reserve personnel issues all agreed that the biggest challenges facing reserve-component family programs are communication and overcoming the stigma of receiving support. The group, known as the ABCA Information Team -- for America, Britain, Canada and Australia; New Zealand joined only recently -- has met for the past eight years to ensure member armies have necessary capabilities...

U.S. Army Reserve Capt. Andrew Berry (right) listens to an explanation offered by one of his Iraqi Army counterparts during training near Muqdadiyah, Iraq, May 20, 2006.  Berry, a retired New Jersey police officer, works to train the Iraqi Army to be self-sustaining. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Lee Elder U.S. Army Capt. Andrew Berry Soldier Helps Train Iraqi Army By Spc. Lee Elder 133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment MUQDADIYAH, Iraq, June 7, 2006 -- An Army Reserve officer serving in northern Iraq has now had to answer a quick call to service twice. Capt. Andrew Berry, a member...

This is the differance between the mighty mighty Marine Corps and the obsolete US Army (of course, take the ribbing to heart Army...:) yes, I know, we are part of the Department of Navy, but it is the Mens Department.

The following letter was written to me [Tom Craighead] by a college professor who worked for me when he was in High School. This letter is very shocking. If I did not know Richard all of his life, I would have tossed this and considered it nonsense. However I do know Richard very well and I take his confession very seriously. I hand carried this to the FBI. The following is in it's entirety and uncut. Dear Tom: I don't know how to say this ... Deep down, I have always trusted and respected you, and that's why I am...

Spc. William Miranda, left, assists Spc. Pinael Roamel to don more than 85 pounds of gear, which must be worn by firefighters when responding to an emergency. Both Soldiers are assigned to the 215th Engineering Detachment, attached to the 1st Cavalry Division. U.S. Army photo by Cpl. Benjamin Cossel U Army Firefighters Protect Camp Taji Soldiers play a pivotal role as first responders to a variety of situations on Camp Taji in Iraq. U By Cpl. Benjamin Cossel 122nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment CAMP TAJI, Iraq — Housed in an unassuming concrete structure, the remnant of a prior regime,...

Thom Shanker's story in the Sunday New York Times explores how post-9/11 commitments will require a rethink of the National Guard and National Reserves in defese planning: The National Guard and Reserves must be fundamentally revamped if they are to carry the growing burden placed on them in support of the administration's military strategy, according to many commanders, Pentagon officials and respected national security experts. With hundreds of thousands of these citizen-soldiers having deployed in the combat zones of Afghanistan and Iraq, and others engaged in missions related to the global campaign against terrorism overseas and here at home, these...

This month is the 15th anniversary marking the brutal murders of Don Henry and Kevin Ives, who were unwitting witnesses to a police-protected drug drop in a small community south of Little Rock, Arkansas. This drug drop was part of a smuggling operation based out of Mena, Arkansas. Don Henry and Kevin Ives were just 17 years old and approaching their senior year of high school when they were murdered. What should have been a memorable year for these two boys resulted in tragedy. Unfortunately, no one has been convicted for the murders of Don Henry and Kevin Ives. The...

DefenseWatch (sftt.org) August 14, 2002 Exonerated On Battlefield, Shafted By Headquarters By Ed Offley Why have their Army superiors attempted to destroy the careers of two soldiers who by all accounts served effectively and honorably in Afghanistan under the most dangerous of conditions? It is a question whose answer two senior members of the 710th Ordnance Co. have been searching for these past 10 weeks. The story is not very complicated, but its implications are disturbing: Last November, Capt. Keith Nelson and 1st Sgt. Kevin L. Albritton deployed the San Diego-based 710th Ordnance Co. - a component of the Fort...

Six Months and a Day After 9-11 Message from the Chief, Army Reserve Yesterday, on March 11, we noted the six-month mark since the day that no American will ever -- or should ever -- forget. So much has happened in that time. We have buried our dead with the dignity and honor they deserved. We have comforted their family members and will always hold them in our hearts and remember them in our prayers. Those injured in the Pentagon attack, many still bearing visible scars, have returned to duty. Dedicated work crews have made remarkable progress in rebuilding the...