The Groundtruth from a combat veteran, backed up by independent research and historical study. Information beneficial to the Troops. And a touch of objective politics, as it relates to the subjects at hand.
This site is unabashedly Pro-American and Pro-Military however none of the views expressed here are to be considered as endorsed, proposed, or supported by the Department of Defense or any other Agency, government, public, or private. http://waronterrornews.typepad.com/
SSgt Workman is featured in the Hall of Heroes and a book review on this from Marine Till Death that read it as it was written: http://waronterrornews.typepad.com/home/2008/12/shadow-of-the-sword-by-jeremiah-workman-w-john-bruning.html
http://waronterrornews.typepad.com/home/2008/12/ssgt-jeremiah-workman-navy-cross-usmc-iraq-marion-oh.html and links to prior articles.
Cpl Joshua Boston, former Marine, stepped into the spotlight following his open letter challenging Senator Feinstein's gun grab legislation, and calling Britain's Piers Morgan to return to the island of Banned Guns. Boston is representing sanity fairly well though Obama has decided not to deport the gun hating Morgan who is on a crusade to scrap the Bill of Rights.
Piers Morgan was fired in May of 2004 from his Editor position at Britain's Daily Mirror for publication of falsified pictures of Troops mistreating Iraqi prisoners. At least 4 British Soldiers were arrested over the false pictures.
Meanwhile, someone claiming to have also been a Marine, decides to throw his two cents into the pool:
"Boston’s attitude towards authority is frankly disgusting and his open letter is wrong in both its assumptions about why the gun-control debate has become heated, and the reasons why we should care about his opinions at all. It implies that because he served in Iraq and Afghanistan as a Marine, that he can choose which laws to obey while at home." "Anonymous Marine," as reported at This Ain't Hell
Let's put this in another context: Politicians and journalists attitude towards the Supreme Law of the Land is frankly disgusting and their open contempt for the Constitution they swore to uphold and protect is wrong in both the arrogance that they are above the law, and the reasons why we should allow them to sit in their chairs at all. It implies that because they won a popularity contest in the career pathes of the least trusted people in our Nation that they can choose which instances they will obey the Supreme Law of the Land.
"This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding." Article VI, US Constitution
In other words, the hierarchy of law is: The US Constitution (including Amendments), US Law made in accordance with the Constitution, Treaties, and State Laws. Any law that violates the provisions of the US Constitution is hence not a law, including treaties, including treaties with the UN.
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." Amendment II, US Constitution.
Activist judges included, any law that infringes on the Right of the People to keep and bear arms is hence illegal and NOT a law to begin with. "Common Law" does not supercede the US Constitution, as the Judicial Branch is not given legislative authority, and are specifically bound by the US Constitution above and beyond their bounds of State and US Law, and common law legal proceedings which are also bound by the Law.
Hence, the only Constitutional or legal means by which that Right can be infringed is to amend the Constitution, changing the 2nd Amendment itself. No Vice-President, President, Journalist, Judge, UN body, or even the unanimous votes of the entire Congress can legally infringe the Right of the People, unless the Constitution itself is amended.
The anonymous Marine, along with General McChrystal, need to review their oath, to the US Constitution, and the Constitution which they swore to protect. It supercedes the whims of Congress, Presidents, Governors, Mayors, Politicians, and Pundits of the MSM, particularly those non-Citizens.
Piers Morgan, who is a journalist, a profession that is supposed to report the facts, not to advocate policy, is not an American, and has a passport for a place that has already banned firearms. If he wants to live in a place with the soaring violent crimes of a gun-free country, he can move home. If he wants to advocate for something, it should be for the arrest of his fellow journalist David Gregory to be arrested for breaking current gun laws in that gun-free mecca of violence and hot air, Washington DC.
Piers states (on CBS) that his brother is an officer in the British Army and has served in Afghanistan. That does not mean he "understands," as he claims, what a Warrior sacrifices. That means his brother does, not him. Piers states that he doesn't want his child growing up in a country with assault weapons, which are almost "M4 machine guns," further demonstrating his ignorance of weapons. (M4 carbines are NOT machine guns and the only way that AR-15's are "assault rifles" is by declaration of politicians and parroting of journalists.) The automatic firing M4 is an assault rifle, as is an automatic version of the AK-47. Civilian semi-automatic weapons are NOT.
However, given the information above, Piers is probably not very welcome in the Island Nation. I doubt visits to his brother's house are welcomed either. Given his lack of integrity, even by journalist standards, he fits right in at CNN, who must have known of the pictures published by Piers. The Piers Morgan resume ain't so shiny either. And he was an anti-war "journalist" from the word 9/11.
Piers has a place to go, home. It already meets his criteria. As a subject of the British Empire, he doesn't have a dog in this debate. We broke our chains of the monarchy 237 years ago, and restated Our Independence, and the Independent Rights of Our Citizens in 1812, when they attempted to enslave Our Sailors. In both wars, we were outgunned and outmanned, by a Empirical force that was better trained and equipped, but let not the memory of Andrew Jackson and Tennesseans at New Orleans fade too quickly. That battle was fought with the best firearms a civilian could buy, and more Volunteers than Jackson could pay, but a far smaller force than the Empire sent.
No where in the 2nd Amendment does it mention what a Citizen "needs" or "hunting purposes." What it explicitly states is "shall not be infringed."
Despite the facts, some are arguing that long metal tubes embedded in plastic, ie. rifles, are evil. Senator Feinstein is arguing that we should ban and confiscate the tools of self-defense, though she owns and carries firearms herself, and works behind the protection of armed security.
Several politicians have stepped up to the podium to bemoan the electoral muscle of the NRA, but the NRA cannot pull a lever or push a button for any candidate. What it does do, is monitor the politicians and tell the voters how a particular candidate has voted on gun legislation. The influence of the NRA is that the majority of voters are against unConstitutional gun restrictions, in most of America.
Paul Howe, a 20 year Special Operations veteran and weapons instructor, explored the possibilities of how gun confiscation programs would be executed. In essence, he concluded that a forcible attempt to take firearms from the People would result in violent resistance, and that those officials that attempted it would be run out of town. In places like Texas, where Mr. Howe works, and in places like Tennessee, he is possibly correct. In places like Chicago, California, and New York, things could very well be different. In fact, much of the Northeast and the Left Coast have already voluntarily given up huge parts of their 2nd Amendment Right, voluntarily, without a fight. These days, I don't underestimate the people's willingness to tolerate "small" abuses of tyranny, by the government they "know."
“Confiscation could be an option. Mandatory sale to the state could be an option. Permitting could be an option — keep your gun but permit it.”– Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y.
Others have opined that the gun control debate is just a distraction technique, to get people's attention off the fact that Obama just raised taxes on 100% of America's workers, and other negatives out of Washington. At a minimum, FICA taxes went up by 2% on the first dollar (and most of the rest)you made this year, and 2% on your employer for paying you to work, as well as the ObamaCare taxes. These tax increases won't pay for the new subsidies to DNC special interests, like "green energy." In their arguments, the politicians know that the House will prevent gun grabs, and are happy that the economy and fiscal cliff are finally seeing reduced air time in the media.
Even General McChrystal decided now was the time to break his silence. He opined that M4's belong on the battlefield, not in schools. Who could argue with that? I'll argue that airplanes belong in the air and airports, not on the roads and rivers, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't be allowed to land one on your own cornfield, or keep one in your barn. When I was on the battlefield, I preferred that I had better weapons than the enemy, and that the bystanders be unarmed, but that doesn't mean I shot someone just because they had an AK-47, or even took it away from them. It just would have been easier to identify the actual enemy if non-combatants didn't have weapons, and that I could have shot all those that did, from a distance beyond the AK's effective range.
Then again, General McChrystal was fired by the politician he voted for, and ordered that Our Troops unload their weapons inside our bases in Afghanistan. Perhaps, he should have weighed in on why that politician ignored him and his recommendations on Afghanistan, instead of whether or not American Citizens should be stripped of their Rights. Perhaps, he should protect the Constitution he swore to protect, rather than the party he voted to put in power.
The gun industry and sports stores got an economic boost from the "debate," as law abiding citizens stocked up on what they feared would be taxed out of the supply system, or banned outright. Or as others have opined, Americans aren't stocking up before a ban, but preparing for a Civil War.
While the state legislature in Tennessee along with county and municipal officials discuss meaningful means to safeguard Our Children, politicians in other States are passing new laws that infringe the 2nd Amendment Rights of their subjects. Some of the new measures do include armed officials at the schools, as well as controlled entry points into those schools, with locked doors and key cards to get inside. Tennessee is considering the authorization of armed teachers, which has worked in Utah and Texas. The discussion of School Security did not start after Newton, but it was given greater prominence as a result.
On the other hand, Govenor Cuomo is pushing for banning even more rifles in the State of New York. The mayor of Burlington, VT has enacted new laws against rifles, though there appears to be no history of rifles being used in Burlington crimes.
And while the MSM returns to using the Aurora, CO massacre as an emotionally charged call for banning the means of self-defense, it ignores the more recent San Antonio theater shooting, in which a massacre was prevented by a woman with a gun. They ignore the Aurora church shooting which preceded the theater shooting, where an Armed Citizen prevented another massacre. They ignore thousands of such stories every year, because it doesn't fit their argument.
Some are claiming that the NRA and gun-owners are out of touch, and short on facts, or unskilled in debate. I contend that those that defend the Constitution, and Individual Liberty, are instead poor at executing their "marketing campaign." History and facts are clearly behind Liberty and small government leading to prosperity, and national prominence.
I would argue that the MSM's monopoly on information dissemination has hamstrung those that oppose their view. While the internet provides the tools for information to be disseminated outside of the MSM monopoly, even those that report information on websites rely on the MSM for their sources of information. This has created a circuitous cycle where the MSM still controls the debate, while individuals can falsely conclude that they are immune from its influence. The MSM talks about Aurora, or Newton, or Karzai, and the bloggers and Facebookers cite them. If you don't believe me, just look at the topics you discuss on Twitter and Facebook versus what the MSM is talking about.
While there are occasions that the internet buzz forces the MSM to address that which they attempt to ignore, like the Green Movement in Iran, or the Islamist takeover in Egypt, or Benghazi terrorist attack, it is both rare, and again slanted to their views. While CNN has no qualms publishing classified information from the US, it bowed to the demands to keep its reporters out of the streets of Tehran. And as they ignore the persistance of Islamist terrorists taking over the revolution in Syria, their female reporters are indicators as they cover their hair in the presence of Islamists. The more their hair is covered, the more extreme the Islamist faction.
Some facts: 33,808 Americans were killed in automobile accidents in 2009. 4,872 of those killed were not even in a vehicle. 4,092 of those killed were simply walking along. In contrast, 351 people were murdered with a rifle in 2009 (323 in 2011). Personal objects (817 murders) such as hand and feet, blunt objects such as hammers (623), knives (1,836), and shotguns (423) were used in more murders than were rifles of ANY kind in 2009.
Hopefully, there will never be a call to ban hands and feet, though more people are killed with them. It is impractical to attempt to ban hammers, though there are probably fewer of them. And despite the fact that cars kill more people than firearms, by more than 100 times the rate, I haven't heard anyone call for a ban on automobiles, other than the environmental whackos, and that's for an entirely different reason. Ten times as many pedestrians were killed by cars than were all Americans killed by rifles, and yet, there's no call to ban Sports Cars, or Limos, or even Pintos.
And let's look at England, as "gun murders" there are often used as proof that dis-arming the People leads to lower crime rates. The reality is that it does change the weapons used, but that England has a far greater violent crime rate, per capita, than does America. We could look at Mexico, but there are far more similiarities between the English and Americans than there are between Mexicans and Americans. Still, the gun murder rate in Mexico is far greater than in either, and they've banned guns for far longer. More than 12,000 were murdered over drugs alone in our less populous Southern Neighbor in 2011.
In England and Wales, 615 murders occurred in the 2009-10 timeframe, along with 588 attempted murders. Of the 54,509 sexual crimes, 13,991 women and 1,174 men were raped, making Detroit's 427 rapes look like a safe haven. There were 1,868 kidnappings. England and Wales had 55,240,000 people at the end of that period, or roughly 1/6th the US population. There were 871,712 violent crimes in that period, which includes part of 2009 and part of 2010. There were 32,491 charges of illegal weapon possession, along with 9,962 conspiracies to commit murder, in 2007/08. 19% of violent crimes involved a weapon, including 7,995 involving firearms and 33,771 involving a knife.
Only 45% of violent crimes were reported to the Police in England. Of those not reporting, 52% said they believed the Police could not or would not do anything about it (or it was "too trivial"), while 36% said they dealt with it themselves. Another 3% said they didn't report it because it was "a common occurrence." There were an estimated 2.2 Million violent crimes committed in England & Wales in 2010/2011.
England and Wales have a violent crime rate of 1,574 per 100,000 in 2009/10 and far worse than even America's most violent cities, such as Chicago's 1,050 per 100,000 or Washington DC's 1,326/100,000. And far worse than the US National rate of 405 per 100,000. What do Chicago, DC, and England have in common? Anti-gun laws. In contrast, Chicago is far more urban than England, and England is less urban than America as a whole.
Many argue that we "must do something." The "something" so many argue for ignores the facts, and plays on emotion. The "something" almost always calls for greater government interference in the lives of individual Citizens. It may feel like we have "done something" by holding a protest or signing a petition, and sometimes those are the best ways for Individual Citizens to "do something," but the most important "something" we can do is educate ourselves, and point Our Friends and Family to the base information, so that they can as well. It may be emotionally satisfying to "do something" but before we do, we should look at the facts, and make the decision based on logic and reason, not just jerk our knee in reaction.
In this particular case, the fact is that about 1 in One Million Americans are killed by a rifle, so banning rifles, much less a particular type of rifle would have negligible or no effect on anything. The problem is not the means by which a life is taken, but the person who takes the life. As the trend in China demonstrates, evil, or psychotic individuals if you prefer, will use the weapons on hand to commit violence. In their case, is mass stabbings at schools, since that is the weapon to which they have access, and all guns are banned.
And if the government banned cars, more people would be killed in horse accidents.
The United Nations says new and exhaustive analysis shows that more than 60,000 people have died in Syria's civil war, a figure that surpasses Syrian opposition estimates by about one-third.
U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay, in a study released Wednesday in Geneva, said death reports from seven separate sources were cross-referenced by experts to arrive at the new toll. She said the number of casualties is much higher than expected, and is truly shocking.
Estimates from the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights had placed the death toll in the nearly two-year conflict at about 45,000.
The U.N. report said researchers who studied data for months could not distinguish between civilian and combat deaths. But Pillay said she fears thousands more will die or “suffer terrible injuries” unless there is a quick resolution to the conflict.
Near Damascus, opposition activists said Wednesday that government warplanes bombed a gasoline station, killing dozens of people as they waited for fuel.
Activists say the strike occurred in the eastern suburb of Mleiha — an area partly under rebel control. The blast ignited a huge fire that sent black smoke billowing into the air. Amateur video posted online showed dismembered bodies at the scene.
Separately, the French news agency reported that armed men in northern Syria kidnapped one of its freelance contributors six weeks ago.
The family of U.S. journalist James Foley — who previously had asked media groups not to report the abduction — asked Wednesday for his release.
AFP says Foley last supplied the agency with video material on November 21, the day before he disappeared in the town of Taftanaz. No one has claimed responsibility.
A brutal civil war between rebel groups and the Assad government has shaken Syria since evolving from peaceful anti-government protests in March 2011. VoA.
In the practice of special counter-drug patrols, cars and semi-trucks are pulled over on excuses of small infractions. The targets have out of state license plates. They are then "asked" if they will allow a search of their vehicle. (Just say NO!) The police are looking for cash. The cash is then seized on the suspicion that it is drug profits. The driver is pushed to deny ownership to make the legal proceedings simpler. The cash is then kept by the law enforcement agencies involved in seizing it. If the Citizen wants his money back, the prosecutor's office requires them to fight for it, with lawyers, sometimes for years, at considerable cost.
While it was Tennessee's journalists that uncovered it here, these shakedowns are not just happening here. News Channel 5, WSMV, Nashville has been investigating the illegal seizures of property for two years, since the Institute for Justice came out with their report. What they found was an abuse of power, greed, and corruption. It is clear from the words of those in power, those stealing from The People, that it is a breach of the Constitution. The people of Tennessee are outraged over it, even though the police are targeting guests of our great state.
The Institute of Justice points out that this practice is happening elsewhere. It includes Michigan, Texas, and Georgia in its reports as being worse than Tennessee, and more than half the Nation gets graded at least as bad. It found that in 2008, more than $1 Billion had been seized from individual Citizens and was being held by the Department of Justice's Assets Forfeiture Fund.
Download Inst for Justice - Policing for Profit
I encourage you to watch the video series. The defense of the practice by prosecutors and police officers should enrage you. When a police officer says "he didn't prove it wasn't drug money," it demonstrates a practice of "guilty until proven innocent."
"It is illegal to have proceeds." [of criminal activity], District Attorney General Kim Helper. The "fact that no one ever claimed the money proves it was illegal."
"The doctrine of in rem forfeiture arose from Medieval ideas, rooted in the ancient law of “deodand.”Kings, for instance, could seize an instrument that caused the death of another in order to finance the deceased’s funeral mass.The idea arose from a superstitious belief that objects acted independently to cause death." Policing for Profit, Institute of Justice
There is nothing illegal about using and/or having cash. I understand that in today's world few people use cash, but short of gold and silver, paper currency is still the closest thing to real money.
Constitutionally, it is the burden of the prosecutor and police to prove guilt in a crime, not the accused to prove innocence. This fundamental premise must be upheld in law, in legislation, and in practice.
Constitutionally, you and your property cannot be searched without proof of cause. It cannot be seized without Warrant.
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall NOT be violated.." 4th Amendment, Bill of Rights, US Constitution
".. nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation." 5th Amendment, Bill of Rights, US Constitution
If you are pulled over and asked to forfeit your Rights, i.e., "Can we look in your vehicle?" Just say NO! It may be the practice, but it is un-Constitutional, for the government to presume you are guilty because you retain your rights.
What should happen now? The Governor and Legislature of Tennessee should act to remove the excuse for unlawful search and seizure. The Judges should clamp down on the practice and protect the Constitution they swore to uphold. And beginning with the DAG Kim Helper, and including every official uncovered in Channel 5's investigation, demonstrating the corrupt and un-Constitutional "justification" for these roadside shakedowns should be fired, and stripped of any chance of ever being in a position of authority again. Ms. Helper should be disbarred.
And Citizens of other States should press for their governments to do the same. I'm all for seizing the finances of criminal organizations, but that money is not guilty of anything. The owner of the money must be proven to have gained it through criminal activity, before it can be seized.
A leading media rights group says China is currently holding at least 32 journalists behind bars, making it the world's third-worst jailer of the press.
The Committee to Protect Journalists said reporters working in the restive areas of Tibet and Xinjiang are most vulnerable. It said nearly two-thirds of China's imprisoned journalists are Tibetans or Uighurs held in detention for documenting rising ethnic tensions.
The findings were reported Tuesday in CPJ's annual census of jailed journalists, which found that the number of imprisoned journalists reached a record high in 2012. Turkey ranked worst in CPJ's report, jailing 49 journalists. Iran was close behind with 45.
Worldwide, CPJ identified 232 journalists behind bars, the group's highest figure since it began conducting surveys in 1990. It said the spike was driven in part by the widespread use of charges of terrorism and other anti-state offenses against reporters and editors.
On a positive note, the report said that for the first time since 1996, Burma is not among the nations jailing journalists. It said Burmese authorities released at least 12 imprisoned journalists over the past year as part of the southeast Asian country's political reform process.
But it was more pessimistic about China, where journalists have long complained of harassment and interference by Communist leaders who use some of the world's toughest censorship policies in the world to stifle dissent.
Beijing has recently given lengthy jail terms to a number of writers and dissidents who were critical of the Communist Party, which often views such material as threats to its single party hold on power. VoA.
British police say they have identified 300 potential victims of alleged child abuse by the late BBC entertainer Jimmy Savile.
Police Commander Peter Spindler said Thursday authorities have so far spoken with 130 people, all but two of whom are women. He said the majority of alleged offenses involve Savile but other people might also face similar allegations.
Jimmy Savile, who died last year, was one of Britain's top broadcasters whose popular programs spanned several decades and brought him into contact with children.
The investigation has rocked the British Broadcasting Corporation, which is facing accusations that it helped cover up sexual abuse by Savile, and possibly by other BBC staff, against children and underage teenagers. VoA.
Paul Szoldra, of the satirical military news site, The Duffel Blog (highly recommended), has started a petition for the US News & World Report to include an index of the Best Rated Universities for Military Veterans. He also maintains the site: College Veteran.com, which is serious and attempts to provide information to Veterans striking out on the same path he has taken: Higher Education.
There is certainly a need for such a study and a ranking. As Paul notes, there are many less than savory organizations out there that are just after the money that comes with enrollment in College by Military Veterans. There are "non-profits" and for-profit businesses that get paid by the US government to provide information to Veterans. And frankly the needs of the Veterans are not always their primary concern.
In the first quarter of 2012, the media has publicized an Iraq Veteran killing a Park Ranger in Washington, an Orange County Deputy killing a Marine, an Army Private being stabbed to death by Meth Heads in Washington, and a Staff Sergeant that allegedly killed 16 Afghans in their sleep, along with so many other stories of Violent Veterans. The media is quick to tell us that these are Combat Veterans, but often fail to tell us when the person was tossed out of the military, like in that first case listed, or correct the story when they weren't in Combat at all, or weren't in the military as they had claimed.
In 2008, the NYTimes was on the same hunt, to prove that "Crazed" Combat Veterans were slaughtering American Civilians. They wrote about 121 cases in which someone died. The problem was that in many of those the Veteran was found to be innocent or to have acted in self-defense, while in others the trial had not occurred, and in many it was not murder at all. In those latter cases, it was often a car accident, that helped to boost their body count. When it was all said and done, the numbers demonstrated it was safer to be near a Combat Veteran than to be in the safest big city in America.
But "one is too many."
One case of domestic violence, one murder, or one suicide is "too many." Yeah, that sounds good, but short of locking every American up in solitary confinement, there is NO program that can end all violence in this Nation, any subsection of it, or in any other country.
The question is whether or not the media attention presents a true picture. It sells papers and tunes in viewers when the headline reads "Crazed Combat Veteran Kills Civilians," and they are selling papers. The problem is that by pimping that headline while ignoring headlines about illegal aliens, druggies, and gangbangers killing cops and civilians, the media is creating, purposely, the perception that Our Veterans are violently, deranged lunatics, to be feared by Our Citizens. The evidence does not support that.
I may be the last to argue in favor of Victory in Afghanistan.
In 1993, Osama thought he understood the lesson: America would back down from a fight, if they just killed a few of Our Troops. He had learned the lesson from Viet Nam, and from Somalia. In both cases, Our Troops had delivered America Great Victories, but the politicians had managed to defeat Our Troops. There was a point in 2006, 2007, and into 2008, where it looked like the politicians would pull a defeat off in Iraq too. In a sense, they did. General Petraeus was able to pull Victory out of the jaws of the politicians in the nick of time.
In the wake of the 2008 elections, I warned colleagues that the media and politicians were going to try it again in Afghanistan. It had been a tough year in Afghanistan, but the war there has been the least deadly in American History.
Nevertheless, the media has done its part to publicize every negative while ignoring the positives. In few other places will you find the stories of the Generosity Our Troops are doing every day. In few other places will you find their daily Victories. The MSM had sabotaged the Mission in Iraq and now they were fully focused on doing the same in Afghanistan. It wasn't for a lack of stories that they didn't report daily. It was for a lack of negative stories and the others they ignored.
To hear some people talk about it, the Nation can no longer afford to provide Health Care and Disability payments to Our Veterans. The Obama Administration says they need to pay for their own health care to a greater degree. We "all" need to "share in the sacrifice." And others point to 10 years of war and question how we could possibly afford to fulfill Our National promise and obligation to those that volunteered to put their lives in harm's way. Surely, the number of Veterans in the Nation is rising, and the number that have earned disability checks and care for their injuries is rising as well, right?
No. As of 2007 (VA's most recent information), there were 3x as many Veterans over 65 than under 40. Of Our Living Veterans, more than 39% are over 64. In fact there were twice as many Veterans over 80 than there are Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. As of the end of 2006, according to CBS (in 2009), 947,000 Viet Nam Veterans were receiving compensation for their disabilities. This compares to only 181,000 current conflict Veterans receiving compensation (of at least $1). "Officially" we've been at war longer, and in two Nations, than we were in Viet Nam, though that doesn't account for the early years of the Viet Nam War.
Why are there so many more Viet Nam Veterans than current conflict Veterans? A greater burden has been placed on a smaller number of people. In Viet Nam, a very high percentage of Veterans did one deployment and one term of enlistment. In today's conflicts, a very high percentage of Troops have served multiple tours. And we have fewer Troops deployed.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 2, 2011 – Afghanistan’s military retains the vestiges of a modern air force, and its skilled and eager airmen have NATO trainers encouraged as they build up the force, the commander of NATO Air Training Command Afghanistan said today.
The Afghanistan air force has about 5,000 of its 8,000-member goal, and 66 of 145 aircraft NATO plans to provide it, U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Timothy Ray said during a meeting with reporters at the State Department’s Foreign Press Center here.
“Back in the 1970s and ’80s, they actually had a very modern air force,” Ray said. The force had mostly Russian-made aircraft, which were new then, but either were lost in later combat or weren’t maintained after the country fell to the Taliban, he said.
“But I can tell you that we are building on that expertise and bringing in a young force behind them,” Ray said.
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2011 – The U.S. Army general who leads the coalition training effort for Afghanistan’s security forces has been cleared of allegations that he used psychological operations personnel to try to influence visiting dignitaries.
A Rolling Stone magazine article in February quoted an Army lieutenant colonel saying that Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV had tried to use psychological operations capabilities to influence visiting senators and members of Congress.
Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, who then commanded U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan, initiated an investigation into the allegations and appointed Army Lt. Gen. William Webster to lead it. The investigation report exonerated Caldwell, who has served as the commander of NATO Training Mission Afghanistan since October 2009.
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation says it has opened an investigation into whether the phones of victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks and their families were hacked into by media baron Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation.
Law enforcement sources said Thursday the FBI will look into whether employees at Murdoch’s media firm illegally tried to access private calls, voicemail messages or call records of the victims and their relatives after the attacks nearly a decade ago, or looked to bribe police for such information. The FBI started the probe a day after Peter King, a congressman for the New York district where many of the 3,000 victims of the September 11th attacks lived, asked the agency to investigate.
12 July 2011 VOA News A British police official says he made a "poor decision" not to reopen an investigation of phone-hacking allegations at the tabloid The News of the World, but accused officials at the newspaper of withholding information.
The assistant commissioner of the London police, John Yates, told a British parliament committee Tuesday that as investigators considered whether to restart their probe of the phone-hacking allegations in 2009, they "simply were not provided" the information they should have been by the newspaper. He resisted suggestions that he should resign, however, for not reopening the investigation police had first started in 2005.
As furor mounted over the phone-hacking scandal, the Conservative government of British Prime Minister David Cameron said it would join the opposition Labor Party in a vote Wednesday calling for media baron Rupert Murdoch, the owner of the now-closed tabloid, to withdraw his bid to take full control of British Sky Broadcasting.
The government's backing for the anti-Murdoch resolution is likely to result in an overwhelming vote for him to abandon his prospective BSkyB takeover as authorities continue to investigate the extent of phone-hacking employed by journalists at Murdoch papers.
Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown accused The News of the World, which closed Sunday after 168 years of publishing, and other Murdoch-owned papers of hiring criminals to tap into calls and records of his family and ordinary people to obtain confidential information. Brown also told the BBC that he believes that The Sunday Times, another Murdoch publication, obtained access to his bank account and legal files early in his 2007-2010 tenure as Britain's leader.
Brown's comments came after it was revealed that a third Murdoch newspaper,
Britain's tabloid News of the World (think National Enquirer in the US) has just announced that Sunday's edition will be it's last. British PM David Cameron shared his outrage in the British Parliament over the latest revelations that NoW's 'journalists' are being accused of hacking into murder victims' phones, as well as relatives of the 7/7 London bombings.
July 7 2011 VOA News British Prime Minister David Cameron has called for independent inquiries into new allegations that British tabloid newspaper News of the World hacked into the phones of multiple crime victims in recent years.
British media say police have expanded their investigation of the tabloid to include allegations that it hacked the phones of several schoolgirls murdered in 2002 and phones belonging to victims of the July 7, 2005 London transport bombings.
In remarks to the British parliament, Mr. Cameron described the revelations about News of the World as “absolutely disgusting.”
The U.S. Secret Service says it is investigating the hacking of Fox News' political Twitter account and posting false messages reporting the assassination of President Barack Obama.
The Secret Service, which has the job of protecting U.S. presidents, says it will do an “appropriate follow-up” to the matter.
Fox News Twitter Feed Hacked VOA News July 4 2011 Hackers on Sunday broke into the Twitter feed of U.S. network Fox News and posted six messages falsely reporting the death of U.S. President Barack Obama.
Fox News released a statement on Monday saying the reports were "false" and "malicious" and apologizing for any distress they caused. The feed was suspended after the hacking became apparent, and Fox says it has asked the Twitter company to investigate.
The tweets began in the early-morning hours of Sunday, reporting that Mr. Obama had been shot twice while campaigning at a restaurant in the state of Iowa. But Fox later confirmed that Mr. Obama is spending the U.S. Independence Day holiday in Washington, D.C. as scheduled.
Some reports link the incident to an anonymous hacking group called Script Kiddies. A spokesman for the Secret Service, the U.S. law-enforcement agency responsible for guarding the president and vice-president, among others, refused to comment.
Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
Early yesterday morning, Twitter and FaceBook started echoing across the world that two tireless champions of the oppressed had been killed by mortar fire on one of the most dangerous roads in Libya.
Tim Hetherington in Liberia 2003
Panos Pictures
Tim Hetherington, British born, Oxford educated, was an award winning photojournalist.
The first msm to pick up the story yesterday morning was Business Insider, but as the morning wore on, more msm got wind of the unbelievable news.
From the BBC to Vanity Fair, and every corner of the globe in between, shock and disbelief as long-time colleagues, casual acquaintances, and strangers who felt they knew Tim through his amazing work, both as an intrepid story teller, to an ardent, committed film-maker, all desperately looked for confirmation that the news trickling out of Libya was incorrect. As the day wore on, it became clear that the fog of civil war that is Tripoli Road, the voiceless of the world, had silenced two important voices.
In this age of sensational tabloid journalism, the media can encourage our returning warriors to wallow in a "pity party" by presenting endless reports and exaggerated "news" pieces implying that virtually every veteran of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan (and, by extension, any police who experience combat on the home front) is suffering from full-blown PTSD. This can create dire consequences. A landmark article in the April 2009 issue of Scientific American referred to this in an article entitled, "The Post-Traumatic Stress Trap" ... in looking for PTSD (or, as I call it, "wallowing in the pity party"), we can actually cause it.
Furthermore, the negative persona that the media is creating can affect the seriousness of any post-war issues returning soldiers are having. Coming back with slight mental scars and being met with negativity, coupled with a sense of self-doubt after being unsuccessful in securing a good job, could compound into more serious issues. They deserve better than this! Those who have selflessly served our country and protected our freedoms deserve better treatment than this "obscene bid to smear our veterans."
18 April 2011 VOA News The U.S. government has cleared its former top military commander in Afghanistan of wrongdoing that forced his resignation last year.
Last June, Gen. Stanley McChrystal was dismissed after Rolling Stone magazine published an article that quoted his senior aides making disparaging comments about members of President Barack Obama's national security team, including Vice President Joe Biden. The article, titled “The Runaway General,” quoted McChrystal's aides as calling a top Obama official a “clown” and another a “wounded animal.” It also said McChrystal was “disappointed” by his first meeting with the president.
The Department of Defense issued a report Monday saying it interviewed several witnesses and determined there was not sufficient evidence to suggest that McChrystal and his aides violated any Pentagon standards. It also called into question the accuracy of portions of the article about McChrystal, who was the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan.
Rolling Stone's editors have repeatedly defended the article, saying Monday it was “accurate in every detail.”
Last week, the Obama administration appointed Gen. McChrystal to head a new advisory board to support military families, an initiative of first lady Michelle Obama and the vice president's wife, Jill Biden.
In 2009, Richard Goldstone led a fact-finding mission created by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate international human rights and humanitarian law violations related to the Gaza War. The mission's findings that Israel and Hamas had both committed serious violations of the laws of war led to a major controversy. You can find the whole report here on the UN site.
Today, it appears that Mr Goldstone is tempering that initial report. Last Friday, April 1, the Washington Post published an op/ed with Mr Goldstone's byline:
Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes
By Richard Goldstone, Friday, April 1, 2011
We know a lot more today about what happened in the Gaza war of 2008-09 than we did when I chaired the fact-finding mission appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council that produced what has come to be known as the Goldstone Report. If I had known then what I know now, the Goldstone Report would have been a different document...."
Here was my first thought after grunting my way into 26 pounds worth of body armor and Kevlar helmet: Doesn’t the Register have any younger reporters to send to Afghanistan?
Here was my second thought: If 2,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers can do this for a year, I can do it for three weeks.
Americans are sending tens of thousands of soldiers to the other side of the world to fight on our behalf. The least we can do is pay attention. You can support the war, oppose it, or vacillate about it – but you shouldn’t just tune it out while you watch the latest Charlie Sheen update.
A recent report suggested many Americans and the media that serve them are losing interest in Afghanistan. Just 4 percent of U.S. news coverage last year was related to the war, according to the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.
"Humans have a basic need to convert others to their cause."
An educated friend explained that to me when I was telling him about another that was trying to convince me to become a vegetarian. He holds true for politics, for causes, for religion (even Atheism), and for ideologies. It validates their beliefs, if they can convince others to take it up. Religion is the most obvious we think of when it comes to conversions, but politics & ideology is equally if not more dogmatic.
Islamism, is a political ideology that preys upon a religion, and attempts to convert the "believers" to it, before oppressing them with it. There are many types of islamists and they don't agree on how best to achieve their common goal: a worldwide Islamist Caliphate. In Current Affairs, we see the rise of islamism in previously democratic nations of the Middle East. But, our own political leaders are downplaying the dangers of islamism as they focus on the means rather than the goals, in many of these efforts.
The most obvious of islamists, and the ones that are condemned most widely, are terrorists. Al-Qaeda is the most known of these and the Taliban are their junior partners. Islamist Terrorists are willing to kill anyone in order to further their goals of Islamist Emirates in the Caliphate (Islamist Empire). Strangely, Western Politicians are now suggesting negotiations with the Taliban, despite their knowledge that the Taliban desire to oppress women, and their continued attacks on Afghan & Paki Citizens and Politicians.
China Tightens Restrictions on Foreign Journalists
Stephanie Ho VoA News Beijing: Chinese authorities are tightening controls on foreign journalists, following the third week of calls for protests to show solidarity with the Jasmine Revolutions in the Middle East. Although there was no apparent demonstration last week, foreign journalists at the scene were harassed.
Tight security in Beijing is a regular feature of the annual legislative session of the National People’s Congress.
When Michael Yon attacked Generals Menard and McChrystal, his readership soared. When Michael Hastings of Rolling Stone magazine published disparaging remarks by General McChrystal's staff, their hits peaked at 943,000 the day after, 600% of their norm. Their American readership soared from 100k to 753k that day. There's no telling how many copies of that issue were sold. The General was fired within hours for daring to note that the POTUS had hardly given him the time of day. Hastings got a Polk Award from for taking down the General. Their online revenue likely hit 6x the norm as well.
So, it's little surprise, that Hastings and Rolling Stone have decided to try to replicate those numbers. This time, they're going after LTG Caldwell IV, and relying on hearsay and "he said, she said," with a zeal reminiscent of the Inquisition. He's aligned himself with an officer with a bone to pick: LTC Holmes (a married man) was investigated for inappropriate relations with a subordinate and evidently took issue with orders given him by the General, his boss. Hastings decided to get the hackles of Senators up, by implying they had been played.
The Media is hiring reporters to cover military issues. Who better than a Veteran to report what they know. See the link above for further description of below jobs
The world of journalism has long portrayed itself "the 4th Estate," the "4th Branch" of Government, and the light that sends corrupt cockroaches of government scurrying for cracks into which to hide. I have long held that it was once a noble profession, and still maintain that it has an important role, but I haven't had faith in the integrity of the media in many years. I've stood beside the cameras recording the news, while contrasting the reports to the reality, simply too many times to trust the reports.
"Journalism is the one solitary respectable profession which honors theft (when committed in the pecuniary interest of a journal,) & admires the thief....However, these same journals combat despicable crimes quite valiantly--when committed in other quarters." Mark Twain in a Letter to W. D. Howells, October 30, 1880
And Twain was not the first to bemoan the ethics of journalism. A century earlier, some of the Founding Fathers, themselves complained of the conjectures of the news media of their day. Perhaps then, longing for the good old days, when journalism was honorable is as much an illusion, as hopes that it will return to its ethics.
Still, there is no doubt that a "free press" is crucial to Freedoms we enjoy. A friend of mine, who works at the edge of the public-private sector, has run into the importance more than once. Where there is little in the way of journalistic scrutiny, corruption runs rampant. His work often brings the spotlight of journalism behind it, as it brings jobs to an area and the press follows that development.
But where are the limits to the "free press?" Are they beyond the reach of the law? Do they have a responsibility to withhold information that can cost lives? Why do they believe themselves beyond reproach? Do American journalists have an obligation to report the American side of the story? Or do they have an obligation to "objectively" report the world or opposition view? Who watches the watchers?
VoA News: The U.S. State Department has insisted that a U.S. consulate employee who has been detained in Pakistan and who media reports say is a CIA spy has diplomatic immunity and needs to be released.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Monday the U.S. is concerned about the safety of American Raymond Davis and believes that he was acting in self defense when he shot two Pakistani men he claims were trying to rob him in Lahore.
Crowley's comments came shortly after news reports quoted a senior Pakistani intelligence official and U.S. officials as saying Davis works for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Crowley declined to directly comment on the news reports.
For a few bucks more you can get a signed copy from the author himself! http://www.deltabravosierra.us/2011/02/10/a-word-about-the-new-book/comment-page-1/#comment-3383
Get your copy of this legendary cartoon now (or wait a few days for the signed copy!)
Go to War against the Nazis with SSG Smith of the 94th Infantry Division. Review: http://waronterrornews.typepad.com/home/2010/04/everymans-war-vet.html.html
Ace Of Spades: Why Language Matters In this article, Ace of Spades demonstrates how the writing style of "journalists" and other writers is purposely used to influence the electorate. He explains this far better than I have been able to do, but this is the foundation of why I could no longer be silent.
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