tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-116415802024-03-07T14:13:44.030-05:00Boots In Baghdad<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/img/66/4281/1024/BIB6.jpg"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/img/66/4281/400/BIB6.jpg"></a>Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comBlogger213125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-12570740523375915052014-06-14T14:09:00.002-04:002014-06-14T14:09:45.016-04:00Iraq jihadis cut off head for World Cup tweet<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Your most morbid and demented imagination of evil doesn't come close to the reality these people live in. Their tactics are cowardly. Their technique is control by oppression through fear and terror. There is no reasoning with them. They respond only to force. They are evil personified. Words cannot describe how frustrating this whole situation is.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://nypost.com/2014/06/13/iraqi-jihadists-joke-about-using-severed-head-as-soccer-ball/">http://nypost.com/2014/06/13/iraqi-jihadists-joke-about-using-severed-head-as-soccer-ball/</a></span>Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-63379646388267863922014-06-14T14:06:00.003-04:002014-06-14T14:07:54.083-04:00Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">This article provides some good background on the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. My platoon back in 2005 spent more than a couple sleepless nights out hunting Zarqawi. This is pure evil in action. For all you isolationists out there,</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"> don't think for a second this snake won't bite.<br /><br />4,470 KIA in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. Tens of thousands wounded. Trillions of U.S. dollars. We can debate the invasion all day. But we were there. While we were there, mistakes were made. Things could have been done better and more efficiently. Hindsight is 20/20. The one thing that everyone agreed on was that a premature withdrawal without sufficient security on the ground would cause the whole thing to come tumbling down.<br /><br />In 2010 I was an assistant operations NCO and for a time acting battle captain in an Infantry Battalion Tactical Operations Center. Our Battalion conducted convoy security and escort from Kuwait into southern Iraq and for a few months elements of our Battalion conducted security and escort operations all over Iraq. For a period these convoy escort teams were tasked with sending reports to our operations center outlining their observations of Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police checkpoints spread throughout Iraq's major highways. We would compile the reports we received from our convoy escort teams and then send them up the chain.<br /><br />These reports were clear and concise. There wasn't any room for interpretation. The checkpoints weren't manned, or the Soldiers and Police Officers at these checkpoints were sleeping on the job, or they were inside watching TV, or they were drunk, or they were doing any number of activities other than manning an effective checkpoint. At the very least, these reports were indications of some significant shortcomings within the Iraqi government's security forces.<br /><br />These reports were just one indication out of many. Just about every metric you could use indicated that the withdrawal timeline that was established for American forces from Iraq was premature, that Iraqi forces weren't ready, and that Iraq's government wasn't ready. Despite the multitudes of indications and the urging of the intelligence and military communities, this President opted to place his individual political ambitions and his re-election pursuits ahead of the national interest and continued with a premature withdrawal of forces.<br /><br />This is what happens when your foreign policy is built upon the whims of public opinion. This, my friends, is a very scary situation.</span><div>
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Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-81225832421267715822012-03-18T21:34:00.000-04:002012-03-18T21:35:27.067-04:00Guest Column: Miner says US next on Iran's 'hit list'Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-10280460820326880372009-06-25T08:33:00.008-04:002009-06-25T08:51:49.197-04:00Ed "Too Tall" Freeman<em>Remembering a Hero</em><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnWTblwYP3quaUB45tE-VapcVjWTMMrCXlssPbY02tMEqZneQ7VeW-m7uHt8U8DLBs80PbCZ7dDYcAbHX6ow7PgqIXpb6EijRfpTGyp9vP9SS0PNr-GpZspZezEAzOEN8EHM3/s1600-h/EdFreeman1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 278px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnWTblwYP3quaUB45tE-VapcVjWTMMrCXlssPbY02tMEqZneQ7VeW-m7uHt8U8DLBs80PbCZ7dDYcAbHX6ow7PgqIXpb6EijRfpTGyp9vP9SS0PNr-GpZspZezEAzOEN8EHM3/s320/EdFreeman1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351244322425970898" /></a><br /><strong>From an e-mail I received this morning:</strong><br /><br />You’re a 19 year old kid. You’re critically wounded, and dying in the jungle in the Ia Drang Valley, 11-14-1965, LZ X-ray, Vietnam. Your infantry unit is outnumbered 8–1, and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 or 200 yards away, that your own Infantry Commander has ordered the MediVac helicopters to stop coming in. <br /><br />You’re lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns, and you know you’re not getting out. Your family is half way around the world—12,000 miles away—and you’ll never see them again. As the world starts to fade in and out, you know this is the day. <br /><br />Then, over the machine gun noise, you faintly hear that sound of helicopter, and you look up to see an un-armed Huey, but it doesn't seem real, because no Medi-Vac markings are on it. <br /><br />Ed Freeman is coming for you. He’s not Medi-Vac, so it’s not his job, but he’s flying his Huey down into the machine gun fire, after the Medi-Vacs were ordered not to come. <br /><br />He’s coming anyway. <br /><br />And he drops it in, and sits there in the machine gun fire, as they load 2 or 3 of you on board. <br /><br />Then he flies you up and out through the gunfire, to the doctors and nurses. <br /><br />And, he kept coming back…13 more times…and took about 30 of you and your buddies out, who would never have gotten out.<br /><br /><br />From <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Freeman">Wikipedia</a>:<br /><br />On November 14, 1965, Freeman and his unit transported a battalion of American soldiers to the Ia Drang Valley. Later, after arriving back at base, they learned that the soldiers had come under intense fire and had taken heavy casualties. Enemy fire around the landing zones was so heavy that the medical evacuation helicopters refused to enter the area. Freeman and his commander, Major Bruce Crandall, volunteered to fly their unarmed, lightly armored helicopters in support of the embattled troops. Freeman made a total of fourteen trips to the battlefield, bringing in water and ammunition and taking out wounded soldiers.<br /><br />Freeman was sent home from Vietnam in 1966 and retired from the military the next year. He settled in the Treasure Valley area of Idaho, his wife Barbara's home state, and continued to work as a pilot. He used his helicopter to fight wildfires, perform animal censuses, and herd wild horses for the Department of the Interior until his final retirement in 1991.<br /><br />Freeman's commanding officer nominated him for the Medal of Honor for his actions at Ia Drang, but not in time to meet a two-year deadline then in place. He was instead awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. The Medal of Honor nomination was disregarded until 1995, when the two-year deadline was removed. He was formally presented with the medal on July 16, 2001, by President George W. Bush.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeKsVI2WdGiYSSfRqBp0yJNKrMIsE03yfyAKY7aK8-Hm_8kinZN_t2lh3ppo1edkN6HEj3FJj-NWXHCVT4yaVJsNHVX28oyznsx6LAaX8c5yAmQA9szKTv8dTI3UA94Ep0a00U/s1600-h/EdFreeman2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 168px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeKsVI2WdGiYSSfRqBp0yJNKrMIsE03yfyAKY7aK8-Hm_8kinZN_t2lh3ppo1edkN6HEj3FJj-NWXHCVT4yaVJsNHVX28oyznsx6LAaX8c5yAmQA9szKTv8dTI3UA94Ep0a00U/s320/EdFreeman2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351244538357575298" /></a><br /><br />Freeman died on August 20, 2008 due to complications from Parkinson's disease. He was buried in the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery in Boise.<br /><br />In the 2002 film We Were Soldiers, which depicted the Battle of Ia Drang, Freeman was portrayed by Mark McCracken. The post office in Freeman's hometown of McLain, Mississippi, was renamed the "Major Ed W. Freeman Post Office" in March 2009.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-39279784061377877442009-06-23T15:58:00.005-04:002009-06-23T16:09:58.830-04:00Iran's Post-Election Crisis<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCujsWVEW3vo2_Llsi71eDZGlS8g4xXq2sxYajM-lT58MJZ25_hqXTq9rqsb3Q18amUxT_EFHZUPC1XQDV4FBYYKh2H6ikrCJgu225RjUk4kE5bdQVhTutCGop-OBEYWFcU00/s1600-h/iran_elections004_rf.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 169px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCujsWVEW3vo2_Llsi71eDZGlS8g4xXq2sxYajM-lT58MJZ25_hqXTq9rqsb3Q18amUxT_EFHZUPC1XQDV4FBYYKh2H6ikrCJgu225RjUk4kE5bdQVhTutCGop-OBEYWFcU00/s320/iran_elections004_rf.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350617151925781842" /></a><br />"The United States must seek out opportunities for resolving the increasingly urgent impasse over Iran’s nuclear program and addressing the broader array of concerns about Iranian policy. The elections have not changed the fact that negotiations represent the best of a range of unappealing options available to Washington. However, as a result of the increasingly arbitrary actions by Iran’s leadership, the American diplomatic approach has become more complicated and a successful resolution of the three-decade long estrangement becomes unfortunately less likely."<br />-Suzanne Maloney, June 14, 2009<br /> Saban Center for Middle East Policy<br /><br />For the entire article, click <a href="http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2009/0614_iran_election_maloney.aspx">here</a>.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-6437181383006836552009-04-01T17:15:00.001-04:002009-04-01T17:18:31.895-04:00HERO - Coast Guard Vet saves livesHeroic Nurse, Shot 27 Times, Saved Lives<br />Coast Guard Vet Died While Alerting Others As Gunman Went On Rampage In N.C. Nursing Home<br /><br />ROCKINGHAM, N.C., March 30, 2009 <br /><br />(CBS) Jerry Avant Jr. died while protecting others. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_xWL1_wmm0LMYKUty5JmGe65debhB2XmtHgnI3NsZXAz8H0BsyfWW5lZ4ITV3qOqfxqEVUvfUHhQi1LeViL0StrDdJrfWkwnElv6gYbRSB-fUllKpFxWAocmrGczkaA6h1Hzr/s1600-h/Jerry+Avant+JR.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 244px; height: 183px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_xWL1_wmm0LMYKUty5JmGe65debhB2XmtHgnI3NsZXAz8H0BsyfWW5lZ4ITV3qOqfxqEVUvfUHhQi1LeViL0StrDdJrfWkwnElv6gYbRSB-fUllKpFxWAocmrGczkaA6h1Hzr/s320/Jerry+Avant+JR.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319835228310352258" /></a><br /><br />Doctors said the 39-year-old male nurse was shot more than two dozen times Sunday while trying to shield others from a gunman at a Carthage, N.C. nursing home. <br /><br />The suspect, 45-year-old Robert Stewart, seemingly picked his targets at random, moving from room to room inside the Pinelake Health and Rehab Center in Carthage, N.C., shooting 11 people in all, eight fatally. <br /><br />Seven of the eight killed were patients at the facility, where police say Stewart's ex-wife was employed. <br /><br />Avant's father, Jerry Avant Sr., told CBS Affiliate WRAL-TV that the doctor told him his son was a hero. "He said he undoubtedly saved a lot <br />of lives before he went down, because he counted, himself, 27 bullet holes." <br /><br />Avant was a 10-year veteran of the Coast Guard before he became a male nurse. <br /><br />Avant's fiancée, Jill DeGarmo, a medical technician who was working at Pinelake's Alzheimer's unit when the shooting began, told CBS' The Early Show that she'd heard Avant over the intercom: "I couldn't make out everything he was trying to say, something about 'Lock the doors.' And one of the girls got a call that there had been a shooter in the building. <br /><br />"And the first thing we did, we grabbed the patients as quickly as possible and got them in a room that would hold everyone. We put the blinds down and made sure everyone was in there. Turned the lights off, got it quiet." <br /><br />Shortly after, DeGarmo said she heard doors open up "and we heard a couple of shots go off." <br /><br />DeGarmo stayed with the patients until word spread that the gunman had been apprehended - and that her fiancée had been shot. "I went to the front to see where he was. He was laying on the floor bleeding. I ran and got some towels and tried to help control his bleeding the best I could until someone got there." <br /><br />"He told me he felt like he was dying. And I kept telling him he wasn't going to die, everything would be OK. <br /><br />"And he asked me to pray with him. And he started to pray. And he said a couple more times, he said, 'I'm dying.' I guess … I just didn't think that way. I didn't think that no matter how bad it got … he was not going to die, he was going to be OK. And he was losing consciousness. I just tried to keep him awake the best I could until someone got there. And then once the paramedics got there, they took over." <br /><br />DeGarmo followed him to the hospital where he was taken into surgery. <br /><br />"The doctor informed me during surgery - he had come out and spoke with me- [that] his heart had stopped. And they did revive him, but I guess his heart stopped the second time around, and they couldn't revive him. He had lost too much blood." <br /><br />Avant's sister, Frances Greene, said she wanted the world to remember her brother as "a very compassionate, wonderful person. <br /><br />"I couldn't have went out and hand-picked a better brother," she told Early Show anchor Julie Chen. "I mean, God blessed me with a wonderful brother for 39 years. And I love him so much. And I'm going to miss him, so much." <br /><br />Avant's father told WRAL that he takes solace in knowing his son may have saved many more lives. <br /><br />"Like it said in the Bible, John 15:13, any man that would lay down his life for another man, that's good." <br /><br />For the original article, click <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/30/earlyshow/main4902345.shtml">here</a>.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-81971554222484101982008-05-08T21:54:00.008-04:002008-05-09T06:17:42.301-04:00General Electric and Iran: CEO Jeffrey Immelt is killing American troops in IraqGeneral Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt admits General Electric is doing business with Iran. <br /><br />Iran has been sending platter charge improvisational explosive devices, also known as Explosively Formed Penetrators, into Iraq that have been maiming and killing American soldiers and marines since I was there in 2005. They have also made continuing and substantial fiscal contributions in support of anti-American and anti-Iraqi forces.<br /><br />"It is the policy of the Iranian government, approved to the highest levels of that government, to facilitate the killing of American's in Iraq." - CIA Director General Michael Hayden<br /><br />Despite such realities, one of America's largest and most respected corporations continues to do business with Iran. Some business even relates to defense technologies.<br /><br />At GE's annual meeting in Pennsylvania on April 23, 2008, GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt was questioned by a shareholder on GE's involvement with Iran:<br /><blockquote><br />Investor: GE products are keeping Mr. Ahmadinejad comfy when he's plotting to kill U.S. troops and trying to annihilate Israel. It's just an outrage. And GE is keeping their infrastructure intact... You know, this is kind of blood money and I don't want to be a part of it...<br /><br />Jeffrey Immelt: Ok let me respond, and I'll respond on behalf of the board. We have stopped taking any orders from Iran in 2005. Our customers with Iran were European oil and gas companies. We decided at that time to fulfill the orders they had committed to us at the time and now that is completed...<br /><br />Investor: I hope the other shareholders will vote. Do they think we should be selling equipment to Iran? Let's see a show of hands... <br /><br />Jeffrey Immelt: Dr. Borelli, you've gone on and on, I think you made your point. Thank you.</blockquote><br /><br />Mr. Immelt's statement is misleading, considering General Electric is still in business with Iran.<br /><br />Article III Section 3 of the United States Constitution states, "Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or, <span style="font-weight:bold;">in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort</span>."<br /><br />Bill O'Reilly of Fox News tonight aired a segment on General Electric's continued involvement with Iran, which is where the audio and transcript of the General Electric annual meeting was obtained. Please view an older segment done by O'Reilly on this situation below:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xD-_EOjyycs&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xD-_EOjyycs&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />At the annual meeting in Pennsylvania, Jesse Watters, a Fox News producer, spoke to one of the wives of a General Electric executive. "She told me the executives had no idea that the relationship between the Iranian's and GE ever existed until they saw it on (the O'Reilly Factor) and what she used to describe the reaction was complete and utter shock. So now there is a lot of animosity between the GE hierarchy and Immelt, because they felt like they'd been left in the dark."<br /><br />A bi-partisan congressional investigation of GE's involvement with Iran needs to occur. Regardless of their level of involvement, it needs to discontinue immediately. <br /><br />If any link is drawn between General Electric and the loss of American life in Iraq, our representatives in Congress are obligated by the United States Constitution to take appropriate action.<br /><br />More attention needs to be brought to this situation. There has been virtually no coverage of this. Don't take my word for it. Do some research and spread the word.<br /><br />I would encourage to do what I did this evening and contact your representative in Congress. Make them aware of this situation and let them know how you feel.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-14679854169295854192008-04-25T21:01:00.000-04:002008-04-25T21:02:09.061-04:00Top U.S. military officer assails Iran's role in IraqInternational Herald Tribune<br />By David Stout<br />Friday, April 25, 2008<br /><br />WASHINGTON: The government of Iran continues to supply weapons and other support to extremists in Iraq, despite repeated promises to the contrary, and is increasingly complicit in the death of U.S. soldiers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday in a stark new assessment of Iranian influence.<br /><br />The chairman, Admiral Michael Mullen, said he was "extremely concerned" about "the increasingly lethal and malign influence" by the government of Iran and the Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, a special force that aids and encourages Islamic militants around the world. The Quds Forces in Iran were created during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s and report directly to the leadership of Iran's theocratic government.<br /><br />Pentagon concerns about Iranian influence in neighboring Iraq is nothing new, but the content and tone of Mullen's remarks left the impression that far from abating, the worries about Iran have intensified in recent months.<br /><br />"The Iranian government pledged to halt such activities some months ago," Mullen said. "It's plainly obvious they have not. Indeed, they seem to have gone the other way."<br /><br />The discovery of weapons caches in Iraq, with devices bearing stamps that indicate they were manufactured quite recently, run contrary to the Iranian promises not to interfere in Iraq, the admiral said. He conceded that he had "no smoking gun" to prove direct involvement by the very highest echelons in Tehran, but he said he found it hard to believe that all the top leaders were ignorant of recent developments.<br /><br />The Pentagon is sufficiently concerned about Iran's apparently deepening involvement in Iraq that it plans a briefing in the near future by General David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Iraq, to publicize the caches of weapons, some of which are believed to have been used against U.S. troops in the recent fighting in Basra, in southern Iraq. Details of the weapons and the Pentagon's concerns over them were disclosed Friday in The Wall Street Journal.<br /><br />"I believe recent events, especially the Basra operation, have revealed just how much and just how far Iran is reaching into Iraq to foment instability," Mullen said.<br /><br />Of particular concern to U.S. military commanders are explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs, which the Pentagon says are being made in Iran and shipped to Shiite militants in Iraq, where they are used to deadly effect against U.S. forces trying to subdue extremist elements and bolster the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.<br /><br />Asked whether the new evidence of Iranian mischief in Iraq portends an U.S. military conflict with Iran, the admiral said, "I'm not going to add anything to what I've already said in that regard." For now, Mullen said, the best weapon against Iran is a combination of diplomatic and financial pressure by the United States and other nations alarmed by Iran's attitude.<br /><br />Pentagon leaders have said they would not rule out military action against Iran. But it is not uncommon for U.S. civilian and military leaders to leave "all options on the table," in an often-used phrase, because to rule out military action in advance is seen as admitting a lack of resolve.<br /><br />Mullen acknowledged that the U.S. military was being stretched thin by the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. But, he said, "it would be a mistake to think that we are out of combat capability." As for Iranian motives, Mullen said he believed the leadership in Tehran hopes for a weak Iraq, so that Iran can increase its influence in the region.<br /><br />Moreover, deep resentment remains in Iran toward the United States, which until the Iranian revolution in 1979 long supported the repressive regime of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as a bulwark against Soviet influence in the Cold War. The current Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has shown little indication of wanting better relations with Washington.<br /><br />Mullen said Iranian influence in Iraq goes beyond shipment of weapons. "They continue to train Iraqis in Iran to come back and fight Americans and the coalition," he said. Reiterating earlier accusations, he asserted that Iranian leaders "continue to broadly support terrorists in other parts of the region," including the militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas.<br /><br />"And in fact, we're seeing some evidence that they're supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan," Mullen said.<br /><br />Thom Shanker contributed reporting.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-56167740371799755502008-04-15T10:45:00.003-04:002008-04-15T10:59:00.476-04:00This War is Real<em>Thank you to Joe Hill of Jacksonville, FL for e-mailing this article.</em><br /><br />By Dr. Vernon Chong, Major General, USAF (Ret.)<br /><a href="http://www.af.mil/bios/bio.asp?bioID=5000">Biography </a><br /><br />To get out of a difficulty, one usually must go through it. Our country is now facing the most serious threat to its existence, as we know it, that we have faced in your lifetime and mine (which includes WWII).<br /><br />The deadly seriousness is greatly compounded by the fact that there are very few of us who think we can possibly lose this war and even fewer who realize what losing really means.<br /><br />First, let us examine a few basics.<br /><br />1. When did the threat to us start?<br /><br />Many will say September 11, 2001. The answer, as far as the United States is concerned, is 1979, 22 years prior to September 2001, with the following attacks on us:<br /><br />* Iran Embassy Hostages, 1979;<br />* Beirut , Lebanon Embassy 1983;<br />* Beirut, Lebanon Marine Barracks 1983;<br />* Lockerbie , Scotland Pan-Am flight to New York 1988;<br />* First New York World Trade Center attack 1993;<br />* Dhahran , Saudi Arabia Khobar Towers Military complex 1996;<br />* Nairobi , Kenya US Embassy 1998;<br />* Dares Salaam , Tanzania US Embassy 1998;<br />* Aden , Yemen USS Cole 2000;<br />* New York World Trade Center 2001;<br />* Pentagon 2001.<br /><br />(Note: During the period from 1981 to 2001 there were 7,581 terrorist attacks worldwide.)<br /><br />2. Why were we attacked?<br /><br />Envy of our position, our success, and our freedoms. The attacks happened during the administrations of Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush 1, Clinton and Bush 2. We cannot fault either the Republicans or Democrats, as there were no provocations by any of the presidents or their immediate predecessor, President Ford.<br /><br />3. Who were the attackers?<br /> In each case, the attacks on the US were carried out by Muslims.<br /><br />4. What is the Muslim population of the World?<br /> 25%.<br /><br />5. Isn't the Muslim Religion peaceful?<br />Hopefully, but that is really not material. There is no doubt that the predominately Christian population of Germany was peaceful, but under the dictatorial leadership of Hitler (who was also Christian), that made no difference. You either went along with the administration or else you were eliminated. There were 5 to 6 million Christians killed by the Nazis for political reasons (including 7,000 Polish priests).<br />http://www.nazis.testimony.co.uk/7-a.htm<br /><br />Thus, almost the same number of Christians were killed by the Nazis as the six million holocaust Jews who were killed by them, and we seldom hear of anything other than the Jewish atrocities. Although Hitler kept the world focused on the Jews, he had no hesitancy in killing anyone who got in the way of his extermination of the Jews or of taking over the world - German, Christian, or any others.<br /><br />Same with the Muslim terrorists. They focus the world on the US, but kill all in the way -- their own people or the Spanish, British, French or anyone else. The point here is that, just like the peaceful Germans were of no protection to anyone from the Nazis, no matter how many peaceful Muslims there may be, they are no protection for us from the terrorist Muslim leaders and what they are fanatically bent on doing -- by their own pronouncements -- killing all of us "infidels." I do not blame the peaceful Muslims. What would you do if the choice was to remain silent or to be killed?<br /><br />6. So, with whom are we at war?<br /><br />There is no way we can honestly respond that it is anyone other than the Muslim terrorists. Trying to be politically correct and avoid verbalizing this conclusion can well be fatal. There is no way to win if you do not clearly recognize and articulate whom you are fighting.<br /><br />So with that background, now to the two major questions:<br /><br />1. Can we lose this war?<br />2. What does losing really mean?<br /><br /> If we are to win, we must clearly answer these two pivotal questions:<br /><br />We can definitely lose this war and, as anomalous as it may sound, the major reason we can lose is that so many of us simply do not fathom the answer to the second question - What does losing mean?<br /><br />It would appear that a great many of us think that losing the war means hanging our heads, bringing the troops home, and going on about our business, like post-Vietnam. This is as far from the truth as one can get.<br /><br />What losing really means is:<br /><br />We would no longer be the premier country in the world. The attacks will not subside, but, rather, will steadily increase. Remember, they want us dead, not just quiet. If they had just wanted us quiet, they would not have produced an increasing series of attacks against us over the past 18 years. The plan was, clearly, for terrorists to attack us until we were neutered and submissive to them.<br /><br />We would, of course, have no future support from other nations, for fear of reprisals and for the reason that they would see; we are impotent and cannot help them..<br /><br />They will pick off the other non-Muslim nations, one at a time. It will be increasingly easier for them. They already hold Spain hostage. It does not matter whether it was right or wrong for Spain to withdraw its troops from Iraq. Spain did it because the Muslim terrorists bombed their train and told them to withdraw the troops. Anything else they want Spain to do will be done. Spain is finished.<br /><br />The next will probably be France. Our one hope with France is that they might see the light and realize that if we don't win, they are finished, too, in that they can't resist the Muslim terrorists without us. However, it may already be too late for France. France is already 20% Muslim and fading fast.<br /><br />Without our support, Great Britain will go also. Recently, I read that there are more mosques in England than churches.<br /><br />If we lose the war, our production, income, exports, and way of life will all vanish as we know it. After losing, who would trade or deal with us if they were threatened by the Muslims? If we cannot stop the Muslim terrorists, how could anyone else?<br /><br />The radical Muslims fully know what is riding on this war, and therefore are completely committed to winning, at any cost. We had better know it, too, and be likewise committed to winning at any cost.<br /><br />Why do I go on at such lengths about the results of losing? Simple. Until we recognize the costs of losing, we cannot unite and really put 100% of our thoughts and efforts into winning. And it is going to take that 100% effort to win.<br /><br />So, how can we lose the war?<br /><br />Again, the answer is simple. We can lose the war by "imploding." That is, defeating ourselves by refusing to recognize the enemy and their purpose and failing to dig in and lend full support to the war effort. If we are united, there is no way that we can lose. If we continue to be divided, there is no way that we can win.<br /><br />Let me give you a few examples of how we simply don't comprehend the life and death seriousness of this situation:<br /><br />President Bush selects Norman Mineta as Secretary of Transportation. Although all of the terrorist attacks were committed by Muslim men between 17 and 40 years of age, Secretary Mineta refuses to allow profiling. Does that sound like we are taking this thing seriously? This is war! For the duration, we are going to have to give up some of the civil rights to which we have become accustomed. We had better be prepared to lose some of our civil rights temporarily or we will most certainly lose all of them permanently.<br /><br />And do not worry that it is a slippery slope. We gave up plenty of civil rights during WWII, and immediately restored them after the victory ... and, in fact, added many more since that time.<br /><br />Do I blame President Bush or President Clinton before him?<br /><br />No, I blame us for blithely assuming we can maintain all of our Political Correctness and all of our civil rights during this conflict and have a clean, lawful, honorable war. None of those words apply to war. Get them out of your head. Some have gone so far in their criticism of the war and/or the Administration that it almost seems they would literally like to see us lose.<br /><br />I think some actually do. I hasten to add that this is not because they are disloyal. It is because they just do not recognize what losing means. Nevertheless, that conduct gives the impression to the enemy that we are divided and weakening. It concerns our friends and it does great damage to our cause.<br /><br />Of more recent vintage, the uproar fueled by the politicians and media regarding the treatment of some prisoners of war perhaps exemplifies best what I am saying. We have recently had an issue involving the treatment of a few Muslim prisoners of war, by a small group of our military police. These are the type prisoners who just a few months ago were throwing their own people off buildings, cutting off their hands, cutting out their tongues, and otherwise murdering their own just for disagreeing with Saddam Hussein.<br /><br />And just a few years ago, these same type prisoners chemically killed 400,000 of their own people for the same reason. They are also the same type of enemy fighters who recently were burning Americans and dragging their charred corpses through the streets of Iraq. And still more recently, the same type of enemy that was and is providing videos to all news sources internationally of the beheading of American prisoners they held.<br /><br />Compare this with some of our press and politicians, who for several days have thought and talked about nothing else but the "humiliating" of some Muslim prisoners -- not burning them, not by dragging their charred corpses through the streets, not beheading them, but "humiliating" them.<br /><br />Can they be for real?<br /><br />The politicians and pundits have even talked of impeachment of the Secretary of Defense. If this does not show the complete lack of comprehension and understanding of the seriousness of the enemy we are fighting, the life and death struggle we are in, and the disastrous results of losing this war, nothing can.<br /><br />To bring our country to a virtual political standstill over this prisoner issue makes us look like Nero playing his fiddle as Rome burned totally oblivious to what is going on in the real world. Neither we, nor any other country, can survive this internal strife. Again, I say, this does not mean that some of our politicians or media people are disloyal. It simply means that they are absolutely oblivious to the magnitude of the situation we are in and into which the Muslim terrorists have been pushing us for many years.<br /><br />These people are a serious and dangerous liability to the war effort. We must take note of who they are and get them out of office. Remember, the Muslim terrorists stated goal is to kill all infidels. That translates into ALL non-Muslims - not just in the United States ? but also throughout the world. We are the last bastion of defense.<br /><br />We have been criticized for many years as being 'arrogant.' That charge is valid. We are arrogant in that we believe that we are so good, powerful, and smart that we can win the hearts and minds of all those who attack us, and that, with both hands tied behind our back, we can defeat anything bad in the world. We cannot! If we don't recognize this, our nation, as we know it, will not survive, and no other free country in the world will survive if we are defeated.<br /><br />And, finally, name any Muslim countries throughout the world that allow freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, equal rights for anyone -- let alone everyone, equal status or any status for women, or that have been productive in one single way that contributes to the good of the world.<br /><br />This has been a long way of saying that we must be united on this war or we will be equated in the history books to the self- inflicted fall of the Roman Empire; if, that is, the Muslim leaders will allow history books to be written or read.<br /><br />If we do not win this war right now, keep a close eye on how the Muslims take over France in the next 5 years or less. They will continue to increase the Muslim population of France and continue to encroach, little by little, on the established French traditions.<br /><br />The French will be fighting among themselves over what should or should not be done, which will continue to weaken them and keep them from any united resolve. Doesn't that sound eerily familiar?<br /><br />Democracies do not have their freedoms taken away from them by some external military force. Instead, they give their freedoms away, politically correct piece by politically correct piece. And they are giving those freedoms away to those who have shown, worldwide, that they abhor freedom and will not apply it to you or even to themselves, once they are in power.<br /><br />Muslims have universally shown that when they have taken over, they then start brutally killing each other over who among the few will be controlling the masses.<br /><br />What is happening in Iraq is a good example. Will we ever stop hearing from the politically correct about the "peaceful Muslims?"<br /><br />I close on a hopeful note by repeating what I said before: If we are united, there is no way that we can lose. I hope now, after the election, the factions in our country will begin to focus on the critical situation we are in, and will unite to save our country. It is your future we are talking about. Do whatever you can to preserve it. I reiterate: our national election is under way.<br /><br />After reading the above, we all must do this, not only for ourselves, but for our children, our grandchildren, our country, and our world, whether Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal, and that includes the politicians and media of our country and the free world.<br /><br />Please forward this to any you feel may want, or NEED to read it. Our "leaders" in Congress ought to read it, too. There are those who find fault with our country, but it is obvious to anyone who truly thinks through this, that we must UNITE!<br /><br />Lastly, I wish to add: at the risk of offending, I sincerely think that anyone who rejects this as just another political rant, or doubts the seriousness of this issue, or just deletes it without sending it on, is part of the problem. Let us quit laughing at and forwarding the jokes and cartoons that denigrate and ridicule our leaders in this war against terror. They are trying to protect the interests and well-being of the US and its citizens. Best we support them.<br /><br />GOD BLESS AMERICAMark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-39489573113328885102008-03-25T23:00:00.004-04:002008-03-25T23:30:34.761-04:00BAGHDAD from the suburbs to downtownOriginally posted May 6, 2005<br /><br /><blockquote>My Battalion has changed its Area of Operations from the rural suburbs of Baghdad to some of the city's most downtown sectors. This change has included the permanent relocation of some personnel, including myself, to a new base in the heart of Baghdad. We have been working around the clock, continuing missions, getting moved in as well as pulling various details. Despite the constant changes and endless work, everyone has stayed postitive and done more than their part.<br /><br />I myself have been extremely excited about the changes. For starters... we are in downtown Baghdad! We are living in buildings that have decades of history. Before we were living in dress right dress white trailers. They were comfortable, complete with air conditioning and electricity, but they lacked any sense of individuality or character. The buildings we now occupy were only a few years ago the backbone of Saddam Hussein's regime. Just looking out the windows and seeing American soldiers working with the new Iraqi police officers and Iraqi soldiers is a constant reminder of progress.<br /><br />In some ways literally but in more ways symbolically Baghdad is the heart of Iraq. It serves as the epicenter of life, the core of change. With a profound history and a challenging future, the entire world measures the success of a nation which consists of 437,072 sq km of diverse landscapes and unique cultures by the daily happeneings within this remarkable city.<br /><br />Baghdad as a guage of progress for the rest of Iraq isn't always fair, considering the successes and setbacks within the city aren't always consistent with those of the rest of the country. However, it is impossible to deny the significance of this city as it houses the creation of the first real and credible democracy this region of the world has seen.<br /><br />We've been out several times doing dismounted patrols. There is no doubt a heightened level of intensity as we walk through streets whose histories are full of blood. People are everywhere. Life goes on all around us. We get an occasional smile or wave. Sometimes a nod with a hand over heart, a gesture of gratitude and respect. The children, as always, are quick to embrace us. Despite the many distractions we are constantly scanning. The rooftops, the balconies, the crowds, the cars, the kids, the market stands. <br /><br />Anything and everything must be analyzed, considered and ruled out as a threat in a split second. And when that split second is over and your assesment has been made you begin the process all over again, "Why is he nervous? That man is staring from that doorway. Why are they walking so fast? That taxi is moving pretty slow. What is she holding? Three guys are on the balcony to the right. Who is he on the phone with? There's a man in the window up ahead. What's in her backpack?" Constantly scanning. Awareness means control. Control means survival. Even when nothing happens, you are drained when you get back in the wire.<br /><br />I spent the night of my twenty-second birthday on the roof of what used to be the Ba'ath party headquarters in an overwatch position. The view was utterly amazing. Straight ahead was Baghdad. Looking to my left was the Tigris river and Sadr City. On the right was the downtown markets and the Grand Mosque. The mosque was surrounded by a glowing haze from its bright and colorful lights. Throughout the city were distant flashes and deep rumbles from various explosions. Sporatic small arms fire accompanied by thin red and orange bursts of fire from tracer rounds ripped the black night sky apart. Each projectile moving fiercely fast toward its target... all too ready to fulfill its destiny. None of this new or unusual within this city of perseverance. I sat there quietly, somehow feeling peaceful and relaxed as I absorbed the distant sights and sounds of war.<br /><br />POSTED BY MARK P. MINER AT 5/06/2005 06:50:00 PM</blockquote><br /><br />For the rest of this post and others from my deployment, utilize the "archives" menu on the right sidebar and review 2005.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-84344478691045566692008-01-13T17:02:00.000-05:002008-01-13T17:04:03.950-05:00I am running for office!As many of you are aware, I am running for office. If you are interested in helping out, please go to <a href="http://electmarkminer.com">www.ElectMarkMiner.com</a> and view my website. You can also make a contribution using your credit card by clicking <a href="http://electmarkminercontributions.blogspot.com">here</a>.<br /><br />Thank you!Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-28834980132673485382007-12-20T16:27:00.000-05:002008-12-09T15:28:16.215-05:00Guard Film Tells Soldiers' Stories<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfk-zkS_JmmzzSktKtVOeMJx1M0N5cPxwRpI6WF9Q_-QEHcee4Ru0Gef3zm190jS7auKy8gc3FAUv1jXWfVFgRD3nO98c4shn32tpJFFFV0CJ0ieKu-79fn1ms_GritqM9c6ym/s1600-h/size1-army.mil-2007-11-30-103707.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfk-zkS_JmmzzSktKtVOeMJx1M0N5cPxwRpI6WF9Q_-QEHcee4Ru0Gef3zm190jS7auKy8gc3FAUv1jXWfVFgRD3nO98c4shn32tpJFFFV0CJ0ieKu-79fn1ms_GritqM9c6ym/s320/size1-army.mil-2007-11-30-103707.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5146170259320897538" /></a><br />Staff Sgt. Mary Flynn<br /><br />Army News Service<br /><br />WASHINGTON - Like many Soldiers deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, Soldiers from the Oregon National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry brought their personal cameras to Iraq during their deployment in 2004. They snapped photos of each other firing weapons, shot video of explosives they detonated and logged plenty of footage of their own commentaries intermixed with Soldier humor.<br /><br />But they never expected that their day-to-day antics would one day represent deployed National Guard Soldiers everywhere, preserved in a feature-length documentary film called "This is War: Memories of Iraq."<br /><br />The National Combat History Archive and Lucky Forward Films used the unscripted testimonies of nine Soldiers of varying ranks and experiences to narrate the events. Photos and video they shot with their own personal cameras illustrate their experiences.<br /><br />"We wanted to make a very non-political film that took someone who's never been to Iraq ... to show what it means to go into combat," said the film's director, Gary Mortensen. "We told it in a non-specific way so that it could represent Soldiers everywhere - we wanted to tell a tale that anyone who has been over there can identify with."<br /><br />Mr. Mortensen added that the unique thing about the film is that these Soldiers had their own personal recording devices on hand, giving an intimate view of what they saw on a daily basis. The Soldiers had no idea any of it would be turned into a film, so the result is a very honest and raw portrait of their experiences.<br /><br />"It's very powerful," said Sgt. 1st Class Phillip "Vince" Jacques, one of the Soldiers featured in the film. "It really represents the professionalism of these guys and shows exactly what troops are going through over there. They're the ones fighting the war. You might as well hear their story."<br /><br />Present at various screenings of the film, Sgt. 1st Class Jacques noticed that the audience's reaction was often one of awe. "Whether they support the war or not, they come away with a whole different view of what Soldiers are doing over there," he said.<br /><br />National audiences are also beginning to take notice. "This is War" won the Audience Choice Award and Best Documentary at the Idaho International Film Festival, and received the Jury Award: Best Documentary at the Florida International Media Market. It also took home awards for best documentary and best director at the Sweet Onion Film Festival in Walla Walla, Wash.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the film isn't available in local video stores yet; Mr. Mortensen explained that they are working on the film's distribution and broadcast rights. It can be purchased by calling (503) 597-7030 or by checking out the Web site at <a href="http://www.luckyforwardfilms.com/">www.luckyforwardfilms.com</a>.<br /><br />According to the site, all sales of the film help support the Fallen Soldiers Relief Fund, the National Combat History Archive, the Iraq/Afghanistan Oregon Memorial Fund and the Wounded Warriors Project, a non-profit organization that helps injured servicemembers by providing programs and services to meet their unique needs.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Photo </span><span style="font-style:italic;">- The National Combat History Archive and Lucky Forward Films used the unscripted testimonies of nine Oregon National Guard Soldiers of varying ranks and experiences to narrate the events of the film "This is War: Memories of Iraq." Photos and video the Soldiers shot with their own personal cameras illustrate their experiences. (Contributed Photo).<br /><br /> </span>Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-33516421697259348092007-12-20T16:22:00.000-05:002008-12-09T15:28:16.535-05:00U.S. Airmen Help Open Hospital in Afghanistan<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQUss6egOVkD2NE4nQlNNmLYeEuB31EbcL9l-TvPwsr4YzcJjj6hyxnIAM6-6tW9aF5gVNtSl3wAy0AQDpUi0CU3cGYWWip3OQvLeiG5ioQ6CuI5dtedjZcJWIak2ldOVWYbx/s1600-h/airman.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQUss6egOVkD2NE4nQlNNmLYeEuB31EbcL9l-TvPwsr4YzcJjj6hyxnIAM6-6tW9aF5gVNtSl3wAy0AQDpUi0CU3cGYWWip3OQvLeiG5ioQ6CuI5dtedjZcJWIak2ldOVWYbx/s320/airman.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5146168936470970354" /></a><br />By Staff Sgt. Mike Andriacco, USAF<br /><br />455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs<br /><br />FORWARD OPERATING BASE HERO, Afghanistan – Airmen in a medical mentoring team here have been working hard to ensure the successful opening of an Afghan National Army hospital for the past several months. <br /><br />The team’s original mission was to mentor their Afghan counterparts and teach them medical skills to treat Afghan military and police members, said Air Force Col. Mike Skidmore, the team’s senior mentor officer and administrator.<br /><br />All that changed when the team arrived several months ago, he said. The hospital was 500 days behind schedule, and instead of finding equipment and eager ANA medical personnel, the team found an empty, incomplete facility.<br /><br />“We had to move from a mentoring mission to a new mindset of equipping the hospital, opening it and then mentoring,” said Air Force Col. (Dr.) Thomas Seay, the senior medical mentor and chief radiologist.<br /><br />Most of the state-of-the-art equipment, to include a digital X-ray and digital ultrasound machines, were purchased by the United States, with some items – such as wheelchairs -- donated by a nonprofit organization based in Canada, he said.<br /><br />The hospital is one of the most advanced of its kind in the southern region of Afghanistan.<br /><br />“Phase one of the construction consisted of a $5.6 million, 50-bed main hospital,” Skidmore said. “It will serve the entire ANA 205th Corps, including four combat brigades, their associated garrison clinics and more than 27,000 ANA soldiers, Afghan National Police and their families. There are two isolation rooms, one trauma room, two operating rooms, and an intensive care ward that can accommodate up to six patients.”<br /><br />One of the most impressive elements of the project is the water processing plant, he added. It uses a multi-stage process to clean and sterilize water to the standard necessary for hospital conditions and also is being used as a model for future water plants throughout the country.<br /><br />Contractors also recently broke ground on phase two, a $2.6 million hospital expansion that will house an additional 50 patients, Skidmore said.<br /><br />With the hospital ribbon-cutting held Dec. 15, the mentoring team now is looking forward to starting the job it came to do.<br /><br />The team is made up of a total of 18 airmen: three doctors, three nurses, three administrators, a radiologist, a pharmacist, a medic, two lab technicians, a pharmacy technician, a radiology technician, a biomedical equipment technician and a logistician. Team members will work with their Afghan counterparts to create a baseline of skills, Seay said. There also will be a lot of focus on sterilization and sustainment of equipment and resources, he added.<br /><br />Together, the team hopes its efforts can help the Afghan National Army to rebuild the country and be effective at maintaining peace and security.<br /><br />“This is arguably the best ANA hospital in the entire country, given the building, the equipment and the water treatment plant, but the most impressive part of this hospital is its staff,” Skidmore said. “They are incredibly excited and enthusiastic to learn new clinical and managerial techniques in health care.” <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Photo</span> <span style="font-style:italic;">- Air Force Tech. Sgt. Edward Weaver, a medic deployed from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., instructs Afghan National Army medical personnel on spinal immobilization techniques at the newly opened Kandahar ANA regional hospital in Afghanistan. The medical mentoring team arrived to find the construction 500 days behind schedule and immediately took on the task of supplying the hospital and getting it opened before continuing the mission of mentoring Afghan National Army medical personnel. Photo by Col. (Dr.) Thomas Seay, USAF. </span>Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-76392445737509844302007-12-20T16:20:00.000-05:002007-12-20T16:21:43.610-05:00DETAINEES RELEASED IN BAGHDADFrom U.S. Central Command<br /><br />Release Date: <br />12/20/2007<br />Release Number: <br />07-01-03P<br /><br />BAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces held a release ceremony for 100 detainees Wednesday at Camp Cropper in a gesture of goodwill and reconciliation during the holiday of Eid al Adha.<br /> <br />“On this joyful occasion, I would like to take the opportunity to welcome you back to the new, peaceful Iraq,” said Maj. Gen. Doug Stone, commander of Multi-National Force - Iraq Detainee Operations, in Arabic. “I hope and believe that you will be the role models for the generations to come and contributors to Iraq’s glory and prosperity.”<br /> <br />The ceremony honored the joint effort by the Government of Iraq and Coalition forces to increase the average number of detainee releases per month. Individuals are only released after they are deemed to no longer be an imperative threat to the security of Iraq.<br /> <br />The majority of the detainees were released through a review board process, when they had the opportunity to address their cases personally. They also made a pledge to an Iraqi judge, swearing to maintain peace and good conduct.<br /> <br />“We pledge to Allah, the Almighty, to be faithful servants in safeguarding and building Iraq,” said one releasee on behalf of the group. “And we ask of Him to fill our hearts with love and compassion to the Iraqi people and reject all aspects of violence and hatred.”<br /> <br />While in detention, the detainees had the opportunity to volunteer for a number of programs, including basic education courses, religious discussions, vocational training and work programs designed to help them reintegrate and function as productive members of the community.<br /> <br /> <br />All 100 detainees were released Wednesday. Approximately 850 detainees have been released so far during the Hajj and Eid al Adha holiday season.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-47134343188982074812007-12-20T16:19:00.000-05:002007-12-20T16:20:28.969-05:00COALITION FORCES CAPTURE SPECIAL GROUPS CRIMINAL ELEMENT LEADER, DETAIN THREE SUSPECTSFrom U.S. Central Command<br /><br />Release Date: <br />12/20/2007<br />Release Number: <br />07-01-03P<br /><br />BAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces captured a Special Groups leader and detained two other suspected criminals during operations to disrupt criminal element networks early Sunday in the Baghdad area.<br /><br />The targeted individual reportedly supplied various weapons, such as explosively formed penetrators, rocket propelled grenades, improvised explosive devices and mortars, to various Special Group criminal elements to aid in attacks on Coalition forces. He was coordinating criminal cells throughout the Diyala province. In addition, he was reportedly an associate of several other senior-level criminal element leaders who were involved in attacks on Coalition forces.<br /> <br />Intelligence led ground forces to the target area, where they captured the targeted individual and detained the two other suspects without incident.<br /> <br />During the operation, ground forces also discovered two assault rifles, two pistols, two machine guns, night vision goggles and large amounts of American and Iranian currency.<br /> <br />“Groups honoring al-Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr’s ceasefire pledge are helping to make Iraq a safer place,” said Maj. Winfield Danielson, MNF-I spokesman. “Criminal elements dishonoring Sadr’s pledge can not be allowed to undermine the improvements in security and stability the Iraqi people have fought so hard to achieve.”Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-45124349587073147612007-12-08T22:37:00.000-05:002007-12-08T22:38:37.009-05:00NBC Reverses Course, Agrees to Air Troop 'Thank You' AdSaturday , December 08, 2007<br /><br />Associated Press<br /><br />WASHINGTON — <br /><br />NBC reversed course Saturday and decided to air a conservative group's television ad thanking U.S. troops.<br /><br />The ad, by the group Freedom's Watch, asks viewers to remember the troops during the holiday season. NBC had refused to air the ad because it guides viewers to the Freedom's Watch Web site, which NBC said was too political.<br /><br />But in a statement issued Saturday evening, NBC said:<br /><br />"We have reviewed and changed our ad standards guidelines and made the decision that our policy will apply to content only and not to a referenced Web site. Based on these amended standards the Freedom's Watch ad will begin to run as early as Sunday."<br /><br />NBC' head of standards and practices, Alan Wurtzel, notified Freedom's Watch's media consultant Saturday by e-mail, writing: "This will confirm that the Freedom's Watch spot is approved for air."<br /><br />NBC initially said that airing the spot would violate the network's prohibition on controversial issue ads. Wurtzel, in an interview Friday with The Associated Press, said NBC found nothing wrong with the ad's content, but rather objected to the link to http://www.FreedomsWatch.org, viewing the Web site as too political.<br /><br />The group's home page is critical of liberals and has a link to a page urging lawmakers not to "cut and run" from the war in Iraq. The home page also links to another Freedom's Watch page dedicated to ways to assist the troops and provides links to organizations that send care packages to soldiers.<br /><br />News of NBC's initial rejection caused an angry reaction on the Internet. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, appearing on the Fox News Channel on Friday, called for a boycott of NBC.<br /><br />Freedom's Watch, a group backed by wealthy Republican fundraisers, has emerged as one of the best-financed conservative groups. It seeks to be a vocal advocate of President Bush's current policy in Iraq.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-83087428250304104462007-12-08T01:15:00.000-05:002007-12-08T01:19:28.801-05:00NBC refuses to thank our troopsGroup Says NBC Refuses to Air Ads Thanking Troops Over Holidays<br />Saturday, December 08, 2007<br /><br />Fox News<br /><br /> WASHINGTON — <br /><br />NBC has nixed holiday advertisements meant to thank troops for serving overseas in opposition to the inclusion of a non-profit's Web address.<br /><br />The ads, paid for by the non-profit Freedom's Watch, are a simple thank you, the group says, with people shown paying gratitude to members of the military and the final frame showing the group's Web address, <a href="http://www.freedomswatch.org/">www.freedomswatch.org</a>.<br /><br />Click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6S2uEM09Fs">here</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SQztt3ZC6U">here</a> to view the ads that NBC won't air.<br /><br />NBC is refusing to air the ads as long as the address is included, according to an e-mail exchange between NBC and the group, which Freedom's Watch provided to FOX News.<br /><br />"Per my previous email, the www.freedomswatch.org website will have to be redacted from the commercials for approval. This comes from Alan Wurtzel and Rick Cotton," according to one of the notes.<br /><br />Wurtzel is president of research at NBC. Rick Cotton is general counsel for NBC Universal.<br /><br />Speaking with FOX on Friday, Wurtzel said NBC has no problem with the content of the ad, specificallythe well-wishes to troops.<br /><br />However, he said, the link to the website violates their policy on controversial issue advertising because it encourages political action and other activities. He said the policy is applied consistently across the board and this group was not targeted in any way.<br /><br />Wurtzel also expressed general concerns that NBC has about people with "deep pockets" being able to buy up a great deal of advertising and affect public perception on any issue, solely because they have the money to do it.<br /><br />Freedom's Watch President and CEO Bradley Blakeman told FOX on Friday that this is not the first time NBC has turned down his group's ads and believes it has a specific objection to his group's support for the War on Terror.<br /><br />"NBC asked us to re-vamp our Web site. They wanted to censor us, and we said, 'No we're not going to be censored,'" Blakeman said, noting that the organization's Web site points to more than 20 other non-profit Web sites where readers can thank and support troops.<br /><br />NBC also objected to using images including military uniforms and vehicles and asked for proof of government approval for the group's use of the images in its ads.<br /><br />Freedom's Watch says it has never been questioned on that before and paid for the rights to use the images from an independent licensing company.<br /><br />E-mails provided to FOX show that NBC also might have objected to the ads on its in-house issue advertising policy.<br /><br />FOX News' Shannon Bream contributed to this report.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-25942114217372659792007-12-03T21:43:00.000-05:002008-12-09T15:28:17.059-05:00U.S. Urges Iraq to Take Advantage of LullBy PAUL von ZIELBAUER<br /><br />Published: December 3, 2007<br /><br />BAGHDAD, Dec. 2 — Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte, in Baghdad after a week of meetings with Iraqi provincial leaders, said Sunday that lawmakers must take advantage of the decline in daily violence in recent months to pass crucial legislation and improve basic government services. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9rvvDIwBTnu7C_FHAXB6eP5q39ZIGur8ixsxYZPA-Qp3e-pnzbIp8524xLz9S3qU1xzTIESXhOV3iE2x-_sZ4yLr7vBdQA-FYUlLXRx4FOKyN8I_zsCmCFcSiLS6A20cSIXUI/s1600-r/03iraq.600.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_FHivEh69cXxy1IS076tWnm8xVN77XbprqX8bbiDe9t5hyWKhmlgxr7X3M5xyURKH3032mpCsOUpeb35KUAWYlfjgGvLbzIR3Cjb5pkndqW-gA4Bx481hV7gb2Z2R9gehgdl/s320/03iraq.600.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139943241712149122" /></a><br /><br />Mr. Negroponte, a former ambassador to Iraq, said if Iraq’s sharply divided Parliament did not reach a consensus “in the near future” on matters that would improve the lives of Iraqis, it risked losing the gains in security that had come in part because of the increased number of American combat troops. <br /><br />“It’s one thing to have brought the violence under some semblance of control,” Mr. Negroponte said during a news conference in the heavily fortified Green Zone here, after meeting Iraqi officials in Baghdad and seven other provinces in Iraq’s north, south and west. “But it’s another matter now to follow up with the necessary reconstruction and stabilization projects that will safeguard regions and protect them from this type of violence.” <br /><br />In particular, he said, Washington was counting on Iraqi lawmakers to pass two languishing bills that would help stabilize the central government: an oil revenue-sharing law, and a measure that would allow more former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party to take government jobs. <br /><br />“It would be extremely helpful if this could be passed and go forward as an indication that the people and government and the legislature of Iraq are prepared to build on the security gains that have been achieved,” he said.<br /><br />Mr. Negroponte also said a referendum vote in Kirkuk on whether to join the Kurdish-controlled region would probably not occur this year. “Clearly it’s not going to be possible between now and the end of this year to mount a referendum,” he said.<br /><br />Also on Sunday, the leader of Iraq’s largest Sunni Arab political bloc said he and his fellow lawmakers would return to Parliament after his release from a three-day house confinement. The lawmaker, Adnan al-Dulaimi, the leader of the Iraqi Consensus Front, told an Iraqi television station on Sunday that he was allowed to travel from his house to a hotel in the Green Zone.<br /><br />After Mr. Dulaimi left his house, Iraqi Army troops arrived and removed the blast walls surrounding it, said his son, Muthanna Adnan al-Dulaimi. The removal of the walls appeared to suggest that Mr. Dulaimi would no longer have the benefit of government protection unless he was in the Green Zone. <br /><br />Consensus Front members walked out of Parliament on Saturday to protest what they said was the government’s restriction on Mr. Dulaimi, part of a law-enforcement operation on Thursday in which dozens of his security guards were arrested after a car bomb was discovered in an alley near his Baghdad office compound. <br /><br />The episode was another in a series illustrating the profound problems within the Iraqi government in stopping infiltration by insurgents. While Mr. Dulaimi’s colleagues privately expressed doubt that the politician, an elderly man, was directly involved in the criminal activities that his guards were accused of engaging in, he also seemed unable to stop them.<br /><br />Also Sunday, a roadside bomb in the Mansour district of west Baghdad killed two policemen and wounded four others, an Interior Ministry official said. Gunmen in the same neighborhood also killed a police official as he was heading to work, the Interior Ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.<br /><br />Iraqi security forces were subject to other attacks around Iraq on Sunday. In Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, a suicide bomber blew himself up near a police patrol, wounding 14 people, a city police official said. In Hawija, west of Kirkuk, gunmen killed five Iraqi solders as they drove out of an army base, a police captain said.<br /><br />In Falluja, Iraqi security forces found a mass grave containing about 20 bodies of men, women and children, the police said, Reuters reported. In Mosul, Iraqi policemen discovered six bodies, including those of two policemen, in different areas of the city, the Interior Ministry official said.<br /><br />Alissa J. Rubin contributed reporting from Baghdad, and Iraqi employees of The New York Times from Mosul, Diyala and Kirkuk.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-23050744667234988542007-11-21T23:32:00.000-05:002007-11-21T23:34:25.754-05:00George Washington's Thanksgiving ProclamationGeneral Thanksgiving<br />By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America <br /><br />A PROCLAMATION <br /><br />WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:" <br /><br />NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us. <br /><br />And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft. <br /><br />GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine. <br /><br />(signed) G. Washington <br /><br />Source: The Massachusetts Centinel, Wednesday, October 14, 1789Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-50108296107374767322007-11-10T21:49:00.000-05:002007-11-10T21:52:13.623-05:00VETERANS DAYThank you to the men and women of the American Armed Forces and their families. Past, present & future.<br /><br />A Proclamation By the President of the United States of America<br /><br />Throughout our history, America has been protected by patriots who cherished liberty and made great sacrifices to advance the cause of freedom. The brave members of the <br />United States Armed Forces have answered the call to serve our Nation, ready to give all for their country. On Veterans Day, we honor these extraordinary Americans for their service and sacrifice, and we pay tribute to the legacy of freedom and peace that they have given our great Nation. <br /><br />In times of war and of peace, our men and women in uniform stepped forward to defend their fellow citizens and the country they love. They shouldered great responsibility and lived up to the highest standards of duty and honor. Our veterans held fast against determined and ruthless enemies and helped save the world from tyranny and terror. They ensured that America remained what our founders meant her to be: a light to the nations, spreading the good news of human freedom to the darkest corners of the earth. <br /><br />Like the heroes before them, today a new generation of men and women are fighting for freedom around the globe. Their determination, courage, and sacrifice are laying the foundation for a more secure and peaceful world. <br /><br />Veterans Day is dedicated to the extraordinary Americans who protected our freedom in years past, and to those who protect it today. They represent the very best of our Nation. Every Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine, and Coast Guardsman has earned the lasting gratitude of the American people, and their service and sacrifice will be remembered forever. In the words of Abraham Lincoln: " . . . let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the Nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle . . . ." On this Veterans Day, I ask all Americans to express their appreciation to our Nation's veterans. <br /><br />With respect for and in recognition of the contributions our service men and women have made to the cause of peace and freedom around the world, the Congress has provided (5 U.S.C. 6103(a)) that November 11 of each year shall be set aside as a legal public holiday to honor our Nation's veterans. <br /><br />NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim November 11, 2007, as Veterans Day and urge all Americans to observe November 11 through November 17, 2007, as National Veterans Awareness Week. I encourage all Americans to recognize the valor and sacrifice of our veterans through ceremonies and prayers. I call upon Federal, State, and local officials to display the flag of the United States and to support and participate in patriotic activities in their communities. I invite civic and fraternal organizations, places of worship, schools, businesses, unions, and the media to support this national observance with commemorative expressions and programs. <br /><br />IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-second. <br /><br />GEORGE W. BUSHMark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-77824502428848682662007-11-07T08:17:00.000-05:002007-11-07T08:24:39.918-05:00Corporate America Accelerates Military Recruiting Efforts as Baby Boomer Retirements Cause Growing Nationwide Talent ShortageBPITTSBURGH, Nov. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- On Oct. 15, 2007, Kathleen Casey- Kirschling -- America's first official baby boomer -- applied for social security. She is the first in a wave of 80 million baby boomers who are expected to retire at a rate of over 10,000 per day for the next two decades. This shrinking quantity and quality of the U.S. workforce, combined with even modest economic expansion, will make transitioning military personnel -- one of only two renewable talent pools in the U.S. -- even more coveted as companies compete for top talent.<br /> <br />"Hiring America's military veterans is a smart business decision for which all of the Top 50 companies should be commended," said Chris Hale, general manager of the publication. "Sure, it's patriotic to hire military, but that's not why corporate America does so. These companies understand how military knowledge, training and real-world experience positively affect their bottom line."<br /><br />BNSF Railway unseated two-time repeat performer Union Pacific to capture the No. 1 position of America's Top 50 "Military Friendly-Employers" in the fifth annual list published by G.I. Jobs, the nation's premier career guide for military job-seekers. "We are humbled, and proud, to be selected the No. 1 of 2,500 companies," said Connie McLendon, military staffing manager for BNSF. "We have worked hard to increase our outreach to members in transition from the military to civilian work. Just to be among the Top 50 is an honor."<br /><br />The annual list is a "who's who?" of FORTUNE® 1000 firms who have made the greatest effort and have had the greatest success in hiring military veterans. The list spans the entire industry spectrum of the U.S. economy.<br /><br />The pool of eligible companies (minimum of $1 billion annual revenues) was approximately 2,500. Only 2 percent made the list. Seven firms -- American Electric Power, Brinks, GE, Merrill Lynch, Sprint Nextel, The Home Depot and USAA -- have earned a spot on the list in all five years of its existence. Johnson Controls, Lockheed Martin and Union Pacific have made the lists in four of five years.<br /><br />Criteria for the rankings included assets dedicated to military hiring (40%), Reserve/Guard policies (25%), percentage of total new hires in the past two years who are veterans (20%), and veteran recruitment / training / promotional programs (15%).<br /><br />ABOUT G.I. Jobs<br /><br />G.I. Jobs is published by Victory Media, a veteran-owned business, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa. The company also publishes Military Spouse and Vetrepreneur magazines.<br /><br /><br /> G.I. Jobs 2007 Top 50 Military-Friendly Employer List<br /><br /> 1 BNSF Railway <br /> 2 Union Pacific <br /> 3 ITT Systems <br /> 4 EG&G (Lear Siegler) <br /> 5 USAA <br /> 6 Schneider National <br /> 7 Johnson Controls <br /> 8 CSX Transportation <br /> 9 ManTech International <br /> 10 Applied Materials <br /> 11 Booz Allen Hamilton <br /> 12 The Home Depot <br /> 13 Lockheed Martin <br /> 14 J.B. Hunt Transport <br /> 15 CINTAS <br /> 16 DynCorp <br /> 17 EDS <br /> 18 General Electric <br /> 19 Travelers <br /> 20 GlobalSantaFe <br /> 21 Southern Company <br /> 22 Werner Enterprises <br /> 23 Norfolk Southern <br /> 24 Morgan Stanley <br /> 25 Sunbelt Rentals <br /> 26 Sprint Nextel<br /> 27 Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold<br /> 28 Constellation Energy<br /> 29 ENSCO International <br /> 30 Fluor<br /> 31 BearingPoint<br /> 32 Merrill Lynch<br /> 33 Brink's U.S.<br /> 34 State Farm<br /> 35 Anheuser-Busch<br /> 36 Health Net<br /> 37 Lowe's<br /> 38 Xcel Energy<br /> 39 Progress Energy<br /> 40 FMC Technologies<br /> 41 U-Haul<br /> 42 Bank of America<br /> 43 AT&T<br /> 44 T-Mobile<br /> 45 NVR<br /> 46 American Electric Power<br /> 47 Southern California Edison<br /> 48 Westinghouse<br /> 49 Wachovia<br /> 50 Sears HoldingsMark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-75540372439360000072007-10-30T18:11:00.000-04:002007-10-30T19:44:53.567-04:00Videos no longer available at Boots In Baghdad FilmsI read a blog piece about one of the videos I had posted from Iraq. The piece, which can be found at <a href="http://ziggimawara.blogspot.com/2007/04/kat-asked-in-her-blog-if-anyone-had.html">Caitlin's Journalism Blogs</a> has led me to reconsider having my videos available to the general public. While I appreciate the author's respect for the troops, I do not appreciate their statement, "I take issue with our training of soldiers."<br /><br />The video the author is referencing is from Sunday August 21, 2005 around 2015 hours (8:15 pm). My platoon had just returned from conducting a BDA (Battle Damage Assessment) of a popular family restaurant just outside the gates of our Forward Operating Base in Kadhimiya that had been hit with two vehicle born improvisational explosive devises (car bombs). It was messy. You can read my original posting from August 22, 2005 <a href="http://bootsinbaghdad.blogspot.com/2005/08/kadhimiya-car-bombs-fob-justice-mortar.html">here</a>.<br /><br />Upon completion of the Battle Damage Assessment we returned to base to rest and prepare for a mission we were to go on a few hours later. As we were downloading some of our gear and prepping our vehicles for later that evening, a series of mortar rounds began impacting and our fighting positions along the Tigris River began taking small arms fire.<br /><br />Being the target of both direct and in-direct enemy fire, we did what we were trained to do. The video I had posted was of a M240B (machine gun) laying a belt of tracer rounds right into the source of the small arms fire that was aimed at us. From the video I posted, you couldn't see our rounds meet their targets. You couldn't see the mussel flashes from the barrels that were sending bullets down range aimed at us. What you could see was some Army National Guard Infantrymen immediately gain fire superiority over the enemy with a PFC screaming in the background, "light those mother fu*kers up!"<br /><br />The author indicated a concern over the comments the PFC screamed in the video, and when the author thought about where those 7.62 rounds spraying from that M240B were going, they felt sick.<br /><br />Well maybe if the author had been in our Battalion two weeks earlier when we lost two soldiers (Pfc. Hernando Rios and Sgt. Anthony Kalladeen), they would have felt sick then. Maybe if the author had conducted a Battle Damage Assessment of a crowded family restaurant that had just been hit with two car bombs, they would have felt sick. And maybe if the author had been with us when we were the target of mortars and bullets just moments before, they would not have felt so well.<br /><br />Perhaps if the author had been with us the preceding eleven months they would have understood why that PFC was screaming when he was only a few weeks from being home, standing toe to toe with the enemies of his nation, and perhaps more importantly at the time the enemies of his friends. After all, isn't that what it is all about?<br /><br />The terror and the adrenaline slamming together amidst the psychological conundrum of fight or flight syndrome balanced with discipline and effective training somehow results in the right thing being done time and time again. From the jaded hardness that comes from a year of walking the streets of Baghdad as a young Infantryman, staring into the face of a faceless enemy is eerily romantic, an opportunity to be cherished in the land of road side bombs and falling mortars.<br /><br />I do regret that to many civilians that video may have made American soldiers seem anything other than professional and disciplined. But having the luxury of passing judgment from the safety of home or the floors of Congress can't be had without the trigger pullers.<br /><br />Considering Anderson Cooper can show our soldiers getting shot by snipers on CNN, I didn't think that me showing our soldiers shooting back would be such a big deal. But if there is even the slightest indignation, then maybe this small window into Iraq shouldn't be made available to everyone. I don't want anyone to question the professionalism, the discipline or the training of America's Army National Guard.<br /><br />And while the Author may be a student of sociology and psychology, the beast that is war and the preparation that is necessary to survive it will never be something even an expert in those studies could comprehend. No book, no seminar, no degrees and no interviews could ever come close.<br /><br />It is one of those things you have to experience to understand. And because of people like the PFC with a vulgar tongue, the Author and the vast majority of every day America will never have that experience, thank God. That just means we are doing our job and doing it well.<br /><br />I don't blame the Author for having abject opinion of military training or naivety of the real world outside the American bubble. I blame a plethora of variables beginning with horrific representation of this war by the media and western news outlets. I blame members of Congress for speaking of things they know nothing about for political gain. I blame people like John Kerry, Jack Murtha, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi for condemning our troops and condemning this war without ever giving it a chance.<br /><br />They have watered down our nation's motives and politicized the War on Terror to a state of dejection.<br /><br /><blockquote>The less intense the motives, the less will the military element's natural tendency to violence coincide with political directives. As a result, war will be driven further from its natural course, the political object will be more and more at variance with the aim of ideal war, and the conflict will seem increasingly political in character.<br /><br /> - Carl Von Clausewitz</blockquote>Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-68978655340056905672007-10-29T21:12:00.000-04:002007-10-29T21:14:11.122-04:00Immunity deal hampers Blackwater inquiryBy LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer<br /><br />The State Department promised Blackwater USA bodyguards immunity from prosecution in its investigation of last month's deadly shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians, The Associated Press has learned.<br /><br />The immunity deal has delayed a criminal inquiry into the Sept. 16 killings and could undermine any effort to prosecute security contractors for their role in the incident that has infuriated the Iraqi government.<br /><br />"Once you give immunity, you can't take it away," said a senior law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.<br /><br />State Department officials declined to confirm or deny that immunity had been granted. One official — who refused to be quoted by name_ said: "If, in fact, such a decision was made, it was done without any input or authorization from any senior State Department official in Washington."<br /><br />Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd and FBI spokesman Rich Kolko declined comment.<br /><br />FBI agents were returning to Washington late Monday from Baghdad, where they have been trying to collect evidence in the Sept. 16 embassy convoy shooting without using statements from Blackwater employees who were given immunity.<br /><br />Three senior law enforcement officials said all the Blackwater bodyguards involved — both in the vehicle convoy and in at least two helicopters above — were given the legal protection as investigators from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security sought to find out what happened. The bureau is an arm of the State Department.<br /><br />The law enforcement and State Department officials agreed to speak only if they could remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the inquiry into the incident.<br /><br />The investigative misstep comes in the wake of already-strained relations between the United States and Iraq, which is demanding the right to launch its own prosecution of the Blackwater bodyguards.<br /><br />Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell declined comment about the U.S. investigation. Based in Moyock, N.C., Blackwater USA is the largest private security firm protecting U.S. diplomats in Iraq.<br /><br />The company has said its Sept. 16 convoy was under attack before it opened fire in west Baghdad's Nisoor Square, killing 17 Iraqis. A follow-up investigation by the Iraqi government, however, concluded that Blackwater's men were unprovoked. No witnesses have been found to contradict that finding.<br /><br />An initial incident report by U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in Iraq, also indicated "no enemy activity involved" in the Sept. 16 incident. The report says Blackwater guards were traveling against the flow of traffic through a traffic circle when they "engaged five civilian vehicles with small arms fire" at a distance of 50 meters.<br /><br />The FBI took over the case early this month, officials said, after prosecutors in the Justice Department's criminal division realized it could not bring charges against Blackwater guards based on their statements to the Diplomatic Security investigators.<br /><br />Officials said the Blackwater bodyguards spoke only after receiving so-called "Garrity" protections, requiring that their statements only be used internally — and not for criminal prosecutions.<br /><br />At that point, the Justice Department shifted the investigation to prosecutors in its national security division, sealing the guards' statements and attempting to build a case based on other evidence from a crime scene that was then already two weeks old.<br /><br />The FBI has re-interviewed some of the Blackwater employees, and one official said Monday that at least several of them have refused to answer questions, citing their constitutional right to avoid self-incrimination. Any statements that the guards give to the FBI could be used to bring criminal charges.<br /><br />A second official, however, said that not all the guards have cited their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination — leaving open the possibility for future charges. The official declined to elaborate.<br /><br />Prosecutors will have to prove that any evidence they use in bringing charges against Blackwater employees was uncovered without using the guards' statements to State Department investigators. They "have to show we got the information independently," one official said. <br /><br />Garrity protections generally are given to police or other public law enforcement officers, and were extended to the Blackwater guards because they were working on behalf of the U.S. government, one official said. Experts said it's rare for them to be given to all or even most witnesses — particularly before a suspect is identified. <br /><br />"You have to be careful," said Michael Horowitz, a former federal prosecutor in Manhattan and senior Justice Department official. "You have to understand early on who your serious subjects are in the investigation, and avoid giving these people the protections." <br /><br />It's not clear why the Diplomatic Security investigators agreed to give immunity to the bodyguards, or who authorized doing so. <br /><br />Bureau of Diplomatic Security chief Richard Griffin last week announced his resignation, effective Thursday. Senior State Department officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said his departure was directly related to his oversight of Blackwater contractors. <br /><br />Tyrrell, the Blackwater spokeswoman, said the company was alerted Oct. 2 that FBI would be taking over the investigation from the State Department. She declined further comment. <br /><br />On Oct. 3, State Department Sean McCormack said the FBI had been called in to assist Diplomatic Security investigators. A day later, he said the FBI had taken over the probe. <br /><br />"We, internally and in talking with the FBI, had been thinking about the idea of the FBI leading the investigation for a number of different reasons," McCormack told reporters during an Oct. 4 briefing. <br /><br />Last week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ordered a series of measures to boost government oversight of the private guards who protect American diplomats in Iraq. They include increased monitoring and explicit rules on when and how they can use deadly force. <br /><br />Blackwater's contract with the State Department expires in May and there are questions whether it will remain as the primary contractor for diplomatic bodyguards. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said his Cabinet is drafting legislation that would force the State Department to replace Blackwater with another security company. <br /><br />Congress also is expected to investigate the shootings, but a House watchdog committee said it has so far held off, based on a Justice Department request that lawmakers wait until the FBI concludes its inquiry. <br /><br />___ <br /><br />Associated Press writers Matthew Lee and Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this story.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-26567400521554736532007-10-29T21:09:00.000-04:002007-10-29T21:10:49.864-04:00More progress from IraqJOINT STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR RYAN C. CROCKER AND GENERAL DAVID H. PETRAEUS ON THE TRANSFER OF SECURITY RESPONSIBILITY FOR KARBALA PROVINCE <br /> <br />Release Date: 10/29/2007 <br /> <br />Release Number: 07-01-03P <br /> <br />Description: The United States and Multi-National Force-Iraq welcome the transfer of security in Karbala Province to Iraqi responsibility as a positive step on the path to Iraq’s self-reliance.<br /> <br />Karbala is the eighth province to be transferred to Iraqi security responsibility as the Government of Iraq and its security forces continue to develop and assume greater responsibility for governing and providing security for the citizens of Iraq. The first province transferred to Government of Iraqi security control was Muthanna in July 2006, followed by Dhi Qar, An Najaf, Maysan, and most recently Irbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Dahuk in May 2007. <br /> <br />The transfer of provincial security responsibility is particularly significant because it includes the city of Karbala, a center of Shi’a Muslim worship, pilgrimage and religious instruction. Saddam Hussein once restricted religious observances at this city and non-Iraqi Shi'a were not allowed to travel there. Today, Karbala is again an international center of worship, pilgrimage and religious instruction. <br /> <br />Iraqi Security Forces in Karbala have been successfully operating independently, maintaining their own security for the past three months. Working with local government officials, they have demonstrated their readiness to assume responsibility for the province. Today this responsibility is theirs.<br /> <br />The transition of responsibility for security in Karbala Province represents the most recent step toward a future of improved security, self-reliance and increasing prosperity that will benefit all Iraqi citizens. The United States and Multi-National Force-Iraq congratulate the Government of Iraq on this important milestone.Mark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11641580.post-29995265082382485172007-10-22T05:50:00.000-04:002007-10-22T05:51:05.052-04:00Two sailors shot dead in Bahrain: navyMANAMA (Reuters) - Two American sailors were shot dead and one was critically wounded at the U.S. navy base in Bahrain, the navy said on Monday.<br /><br />There were no indications that non-U.S. citizens were involved, a navy spokeswoman said.<br /><br />The shootings took place at about 5 a.m. (0200 GMT), the navy said in a statement, adding that they were investigating the incident.<br /><br />The navy gave no explanation for the shootings, which took place in the base's barracks, and said the names of the sailors were being withheld. No further information was immediately available.<br /><br />Bahrain is the home of the U.S. navy's fifth fleet, which patrols Gulf waters, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.<br /><br />About 3,000 U.S. personnel, not including the crews of visiting ships, live and work on the base. Staff generally keep a low profile in the tiny Gulf Arab kingdom of about 750,000 people.<br /><br />© Reuters2007All rights reservedMark P. Minerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01849004410008454107noreply@blogger.com