Top Military Blogs
Share the Top Military Blogs on
A Soldier's Perspective
I wanted you to know that I was informed by a woman who is a tax accountant that some soldiers are having their returns rejected when they claim the Making Work Pay deduction (schedule M) if they have the 2009 tax year claimed as tax exempt status because of combat...
I know it's too early on a Friday for deep thinking. Bear with me. My last post was pondering the character of men/women and how you make choices for political candidates. Basically, how do you define good character and the implications it has on voting practices when...
Huntsville City Schools Uniform Proposal
When you think of Huntsville, AL, does the term "gang" even slightly come to mind? Sounds more like an SNL skit comprised of a bunch of rednecks like me sporting overalls and straw toothpicks and carrying slingshots to intimidate the rival trailer trash gang who uses mullet whips and...
This week's Army Times paper had a story titled "Medicating the Military" by Brendan McGarry. It was kind of a sobering piece about the toll eight years of war has taken on our troops. One of the graphics really got me thinking. It dealt with the types...
You know there are a lot of clichés out there like "don't judge a book by its cover," or a very apropos quote by Stephen Covey, the author, "Public behavior is merely private character writ large." I have been thinking about those types of "character" issues because of the Adam Kokesh...
Throw Down Issued to Benefit Soldier's Angels
UPDATE (as of 2206 hrs 3/4/2010): The current coin is at over $150. The $1000 is in the hole and you guys SO rock!! ~LL ———— The hosts and producer of You Served radio show, CJ, Troy, and Marcus, are issuing a challenge to the MilBlogosphere in a charity...
BLACKFIVE
This is the view off our patio in San Antone. That sound you hear is beers being popped and prepping the battlefield for this evening....
Tom Hanks should stick to making films
I'm not going to go on a rant about Tom Hanks recent remarks about why we fought the Japanese during WWII, but I do have a comment or two to make. He said: Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as ‘yellow, slant-eyed dogs’ that believed in different...
Rebecca Cusey reviews "Green Zone"
Rebecca Cusey reviews Matt Damon's Green Zone: This film will appeal to people who hold Bush responsible for everything from masterminding 9/11 to their grandmother's halitosis. It offers up a neat, easy explanation for why we did not find WMDs in Iraq. If only reality were so simple. For the...
Roundtable - USD-C Commanding General Terry Wolff
We had a roundtable yesterday that I'm going to break out into two parts. Speaking was Major General Terry Wolff, currently commanding United States Division - Center. This replaces Multinational Division - Center (MND-C) and Multinational Division - Baghdad (MND-B), following the replacement of the last Coalition allies. MND-C was...
Someone You Should Know - COL Rick Welch
I had the honor of working with COL Rick Welch, US Special Forces, from time to time. He's been in Iraq literally for years -- divisions come and go, but the tribes won't let him go. I asked MG Wolff if he were still around, and this is what he...
A review of the new Pacific series on HBO in the NYT today includes this line:''Those battlegrounds became famous, but they have since faded from the collective memory in a way that the Normandy invasion or the London blitz have not. This is an overdue but fittingly painstaking and lavish...
Pacific Fleet Commander's Blog
As this will be my last blog post as the Pacific Fleet Commander, I'd like to take an opportunity to combine a couple things, if I may. First I'd like to say my farewells and then I'd like to talk a little bit about my successor here at Pacific...
Pacific Partnership in Kiribati
Recently we had an opportunity to visit Kiribati, which is an island nation that's located near the equator. Believe it or not, it's as big an expanse as the continental United States. It includes islands like Tarawa, all the way to Christmas Island, which is not terribly far...
Our Relationship With China's PLA Navy
The United States Navy has many partners in this region of the world, many allies and close navies. There are some that we're seeking to improve our relations with. One of those is China.There has been great interest as China has emerged over the past decades in seeking...
Welcome Fleet Master Chief John Minyard
I'd like to take this opportunity to acknowledge Fleet Master Chief John Minyard, who has taken over as the 15th Fleet Master Chief for the Pacific Fleet. Master Chief Tom Howard moved on to Fleet Forces Command, where he's now assumed the Fleet Master Chief job in a second...
HAWAII ~ 50 YEARS AS THE 50th STATE
Fifty years ago, August 21st, 1959, Hawaii became our 50th state. I'm very pleased and thankful that the Pacific Fleet headquarters is located in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and we congratulate the state of Hawaii on their semicentennial anniversary.Ninety years ago, in 1919, Prince Kuhio introduced the first Hawaiian statehood...
OUR NEWEST T-AKE ~ USNS MATTHEW PERRY
This week we're christening the newest T-AKE (Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo/ammunition ship) number 9, the USNS Matthew Perry, and I thought I'd take just a moment to talk a little bit about Commodore Perry as both a warfighter and a diplomat in the Pacific. He was very much...
Air Force Blues - Updated weekdays
Ah, a dream it is not, but Barbie may soon wish it was. I’m going to take some of your questions and try to work on a plan for a podcast over the weekend. There’s a special occasion this weekend, so if you stop in you may find a surprise. Have a great...
The new microphone arrived yesterday, and the problem with recording sound is definitely fixed. So much so that I feel like I can use this, and the recording suite I have, to do much more than just record voices and sounds for Flash. I don’t listen to many (any) podcasts, but...
Something I discovered last night that may come in handy (STS) for a few of you: Microsoft-brand mice, Windows 7 64-bit and the Adobe Creative Suite don’t like each other much. Just so you know. I’ve been asked, actually several times now, if I have plans to make an iPhone or...
You know those little tubes of drink mix you can put in a bottle of water, and then you shake it up and it becomes lemonade or some other flavored drink? That’s what this comic is about. Drink mixes. Unless you make it something else in your dirty little mind. I have exciting...
I actually got a little work done on a Flash cartoon over the weekend, which is amazing because I didn’t get around to doing anything else I needed to. But I took Monday off! Woo-hoo! Actually, it’s a little sad when you have to take leave from work so you can get...
Today was actually supposed to be a Kaitie ‘Toon day, but the cartoonist for those strips had a long day at work and fell promptly asleep when she got home. I guess you’ll have to settle for me for another day. That said, I had a request for a new Star...
Neptunus Lex
That’s the word that CNN is using to describe the pending decision of Democratic Party lawmakers to renege on yet another “transparency” plege: House Democrats appear to be softening their pledge to allow the public 72 hours to review the health care reform package online before a House vote. “We will...
Much of what Scott Altran writes about the root causes of terrorism at the science website Edge strikes me as true: The threat today is from a Qaeda –inspired viral social and political movement that abuses religion in the name of defending a purist form Sunni Islam, and which is particularly...
Leave it to the Swiss: According to these well meaning, but obviously over-funded scientists, the key to a happy marriage — if you are a man — is to find a woman who is 27 percent smarter than you are. If you are a woman,...
Something to hide, in Redmond. Truth be told, I think that as a phone, the iPhone is merely adequate. But as a portable personal computing platform that also enables telephony, it’s top notch....
It’s been a very busy couple of weeks at work, as I’ve been assigned a new position while still keeping the plates spinning on the old one and trying to find a replacement that can plausibly step in, get the work done and guard the company’s equities. Things were much...
It’s not just a beer: The U.S. Navy grounded 104 older model F/A-18 fighter jets built by Boeing Co (BA.N). after tests had revealed earlier-than-expected cracks in the airframes, the agency said on Friday. The Navy’s Naval Air Systems Command cited an emerging “safety of flight issue” with legacy F/A-18 A through...
Defense Tech
Author Steven Pressfield Blogs Afghan Visit With Gen. Mattis
Author, historian and former Marine Steven Pressfield is on what I consider the dream tour of Afghanistan with Marine Gen. James Mattis, commander, Joint Force Command. You know that question, “Who would you want to be sat next to on an interminably long plane flight?” My answer would be Mattis,...
Army Fast Tracks GPS Mortar Round
The Army is fast tracking a GPS guided 120mm mortar round to Afghanistan in response to an urgent request for precision mortar fire from commanders on the ground there, and should be fielded by the end of the year. Called the Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative (APMI), it improves upon the...
That Elephant’s Going To Do What? Where?
AvWeek’s Bill Sweetman, who has been tracking the Joint Strike Fighter program for a long time, says people are missing the elephant that was in the room at the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on JSF yesterday, and that elephant is about to take a dump all over Defense Secretary...
My colleague Colin Clark reports from the Hill today where chief Pentagon weapons buyer Ashton Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Joint Strike Fighter now costs 50 percent more than it did in 2002 and that it will breach the Nunn-McCurdy cost limits in a few days....
Earlier this week, on a flight back from Utah where I was visiting my ageing parents, I finished reading CSBA president Andrew Krepinevich’s new paper titled “Why AirSea Battle?” (.pdf) The evolving AirSea Battle concept is a spin on the Army’s 1980s AirLand Battle concept that aimed to rain punishing...
More Vehicle Digital Camouflage
Via Defense Industry Daily I learned that China’s PLA is not the first to paint their vehicles with digital camouflage. Apparently the Jordanians might be the trendsetters, applying “fractal” camo to their vehicles back in 2006 (follow the DID link for a larger image). Honestly though, compared to the Chinese,...
Twitter / PacificFleet
PacificFleet: RT @us_navyseals: Check out some more of NBC's Silent Warriors!! Part 1 http://bit.ly/lSmEH Part 2 http://bit.ly/dxNxgk...
PacificFleet: RT @FlexPlexico: Guide To The Social Media Landscape http://shar.es/mbS7y (courtesy of cmo.com)...
PacificFleet: I posted 6 photos on Facebook in the album "Around The Fleet 2" http://bit.ly/93xKAM
PacificFleet: I posted 6 photos on Facebook in the album "Around The Fleet 2" http://bit.ly/93xKAM...
PacificFleet: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3513374&l=e057493390&id=62418562969
PacificFleet: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3513374&l=e057493390&id=62418562969...
PacificFleet: RT @MarineCorpsNews: #Marines kick off Exercise Key Resolve 2010 in the South Korean peninsula http://bit.ly/9Kfgjl...
PacificFleet: RT @CNO_PAO: NBC covers @us_navyseals Part 1 http://bit.ly/c4YQJ8 Part 2 http://bit.ly/c7HYM3 (via @NavyNews @FrostinaDC)...
Wired: Danger Room
Tanker Manufacturers to Air Force: Later, Haters
European defense and aerospace consortium EADS and its U.S. partner, Northrop Grumman, have handed an apparent $35 billion dollar gift to rival Boeing — by packing up and going home. In late February, the Air Force launched a contest to replace its fleet of Eisenhower-era KC-135 aerial refueling tankers. The Air...
A Combat Zone iPhone? Soldiers Have an App for That
In the military’s vision of future, the real trick will be getting information down to the individual soldier on the battlefield. Now the Army plans to test a smartphone for soldiers that will have mobile applications that could — in theory — access everything from technical manuals and maintenance records...
Blackwater in Kabul, or Eric Cartman Gets an AK-47
The Senate Armed Services Committee is holding a hearing today on Paravant, a previously little-known subsidiary of Xe Services (aka Blackwater). It caps a six-month investigation by the committee, and it promises to be a doozy. Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, the Democratic chair of the committee, met with reporters yesterday...
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A careful excavation continues at the site of the Hotel Montana, the four-star hotel toppled by the January 12 earthquake. The collapse of the Montana was also a symbolic blow: In addition to being one of the city’s prestige destinations, the hotel housed many members of the...
Despite Tight Controls, U.S. Rocket Truck Kills 10 Civilians
It’s one of America’s most potent weapons in Afghanistan, and it is also one of its most tightly regulated. Approval to use the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System is rarely given, because of its potential to harm innocents and to interfere with other military assets. But on Sunday, U.S. commanders...
Video: Laser Jet Blasts Ballistic Missile in Landmark Test
The American military has been working since 1996 on a tricked-out 747 that could blast ballistic missiles out of the sky with a ultra-powerful laser. After 14 years of promising “the American people their first light saber,” the Missile Defense Agency finally pulled it off Thursday night at 8:44 p.m It’s...
America's North Shore Journal
Our Best – Lt. Bergan Flannigan
Tupper Lake is a small upstate New York community in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains. The drive to this community proceeds through paths where the sky is blocked out by the mountains on either side of the road. It is perhaps one of the most beautiful regions of the...
Choosing the perfect roller derby nickname is important, the women said, because it becomes registered and is theirs forever. "Someone can call and ask to create a version of your name, but they have to get your permission," Wahkahquah said. Wahkahquah's last name in Comanche means "riding death." So, in keeping...
Women in the Afghan army – Gen. Khatol Mohammadzai
Prayer and hard work pushed her forward, she said. "I had to work very hard; sometimes I was even scared for my life. I still went ahead and did it," she said. Mohammadzai said she grew brave because of all her hard work. "If you receive, or get, or achieve something difficult, then...
The story of a former fat girl
Losing the weight isn't necessarily going to make you like what you see. There are still a lot of times I step on the scale and cringe. It has to do with hitting the perfect weight, or more accurately, "the number" that signifies that perfect weight. That number is different...
Turks train Afghan special ops soldiers
Afghan National Army troops boarded a C-17 cargo plane at the International Security Assistance Force airport for a flight to Turkey to take part in the first of a series of extensive training opportunities in securing the development and defense of Afghanistan. The 119 ANA troops are the first group to...
Women in the Afghan police – Col. Shafiqa Quarashi
“No one will give your rights to you as a gift, you have to take them. Who is saying women can’t do anything. We can do everything, anything you want,” she said. “We have to fight against corruption and those who are against women working.” It is with speeches like...
Broadside Blog
What must it have been like in the late 1700s in this country, when elections were held to put flesh on the bones of a newly formed government? Imagine the sensation. The people of Iraq are feeling that right now. Barely mentioned in the news, Iraq held...
I got an email from my good buddy Donn, an Air Force and FBI veteran, telling the story of an encounter with Darrell “Shifty” Powers, one of the famous Band of Brothers. Over the last couple of years the email has been modified, sometimes claiming the author was Chuck...
Master Gunnery Sergeant Peter Proietto
When you think of Master Gunnery Sergeant Peter Proietto, think Sergeant Fury with a few more stripes. He was awarded a Bronze Star with Valor for his actions in Afghanistan back in 2003. He was in his vehicle outside the village of Bara Waze when the Taliban ambushed...
Greenside of the Week – Mar 10, 2010
Visit the Greenside Archives! (click here)...
The good, the bad and the squirrel
I miss Public Works. If something goes wrong at a military command, all you have to do is call Public Works and before you know it an expert shows up and fixes the problem. Those guys were so good that they often came and went and I didn’t...
Broadside of the Week – Mar 8, 2010
Visit the Broadside Archives! (click here)...
Murdoc Online
...
U.S. Army Requests Permission To Modify Strykers Defense News: The U.S. Army has asked the Pentagon to approve a plan to increase Stryker vehicles’ survivability by adding a double V-shaped hull, Lt. Gen. Robert Lennox, deputy chief of staff for Army programs, told members of the House Armed Services air and land...
SLEP to keep LCACs in service for an extra decade
In Navy Times: Officials are counting on the SLEP to buy at least 10 more years, and maybe longer, beyond the landing crafts’ initial 20-year service life. The first LCACs entered the fleet in 1987, and the 91st and final craft was delivered in 2001. The Navy, which began the SLEP...
Newsweek: Why we should nix the filibuster You. Cannot. Make. This. Stuff. Up....
A reader sends this: Beware United Airlines’ tricksy check-in kiosks or you’ll pay hundreds more If I had pressed the wrong buttons on a recent cross-county flight I took, I would have accidentally paid another $523.68. How did I know they were the wrong buttons? Simple: They were colored and placed to...
MO back on the air. Some terrible problem at my host that took days to recover from. Not terribly pleased, but what can you do? Murdoc’s apologies for the problems. UPDATE: Also, I want to thank those who emailed with concern for old Murdoc. Everything is fine and blogging will resume shortly. UPDATE 2:...
AF.mil Top Stories
Day 34 of '30+ Days Through Afghanistan'
...
Day 33 of '30+ Days Through Afghanistan'
...
Airmen expand local hospital to meet Chileans' medical needs
...
NSPS Web site adds features to track transition
New features on the redesigned NSPS Web site give employees the opportunity to follow the progress as Air Force officials prepare to transition more than 44,000 current Air Force National Security Personnel System employees into non-NSPS personnel systems. To enhance transparency in operations, the Web site designers incorporated a transition section that includes...
Air Force Reserve to get C-17s at Wright-Patt
...
Maintainers remove 26-year-old engine
...