FartingDog Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 12:47AM
Bring Our Children Home! Impeach and Imprison the Liars!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 12:52AM
Dude, you're too funny. You don't even have any children. Cindy Sheehan =
Attention Whore. In case you have been in a coma, her son joined the Army of
his own free will....hell, I got drafted during Vietnam....I had NO
choice.....when you join the Army, you could be injured, maimed, crippled or
even killed....you KNOW that when you join. What's her beef? Stupid bitch.
cat_tails Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 12:56AM
70198 u R funny. First I am not a dude. Second I have 2 children.
FartingDog Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 01:02AM
I think Anonymous@70198 was talkin about me. Well i am school teacher and some
of my former student could be there. Hopefully most could get financial aid for
community college.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 01:57AM
FUCK THIS BITCH. SHE IS A STUPID PAWN OF THE LEFT.
Anonymous5973 Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 02:07AM
no she is not Anonymous@5973
Anonymous@5973 is a pawn of the RightWing Nazi Bushites!
Veteran Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 02:18AM
Bush is affraid of a grieving mother!
Think you fuckup fascists if Bush simply met with Cindy Sheehan then she would
go away, but he is affraid to face the truth. The truth is he was adn is WRONG!
"W" stands for WRONG! He was wrong about weapons of mass destruction
and he was wrong about the war he started. He is the wrong man for the wrong job
at the wrong time!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 03:14AM
Leftist morons!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 05:29AM
Bush has caused grief to the world and deteriorated Americas integrity with
his senseless holy war .Americas reputation will never recover I only hope
there is a special place in Hell for him
Veteran Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 05:31AM
agree Anonymous@116197 The USA after Bush's fuck ups and senseless crusade
will destroy this country.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 09:28AM
To all-those-different-names@242130: why are you taliking to yourself?
DrFreud Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 10:20AM
Anonymous@21492 i have seen this before where several people will have the same
number. I think its a program glitch,cause I have had the same exact number as
someone else with a different name. it seems to run in patterns. So all those
242130 I think are different people.
DrFreud Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 10:22AM
I was once falsely accused of making a racist remark cause of that number
glitch thingy.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 11:20AM
For the guy who fought in Vietnam, that to was a political propaganda. Much
like this one. War is not an answer, its just good business! As for the person
who hopes Hell has aplace for him, well, when you are the devil yourself(Bush),
yes, it does have a place for him. In fact, B- stands for Being U- stands for
under S- stands for Satan and H- stands for hand. Being under Satan's Hand.
The many should run the few, instead, the few run the many. Let's take back our
country. I really like the post of George Washington. He was a true Patriot!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 11:54AM
I love Bush and all his policies so glad we have 3 more wonderful years to
weaken the NEA and start to drill through a reindeers head in Alaska and get
some cheaper oil. WEAKEN WEENEY LIBERAL LEFTISTS this must be the goal of every
RIGHT thinking AMERICAN.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 06:08PM
a byproduct of all war machines are political propaganda
duffy Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 06:10PM
DrFreud I have had that happen to me too. The glitch problem can be seen all
over the site with a same series of numbers coming for those not registered
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 07:14PM
Just checking to see if it happens to me
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 07:15PM
No, it didn't
duffy Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 07:47PM
sometimes it does and most of the time it does not. hence why its a glitch.
The nature of it is spuratic.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 12, 2005 10:13PM
There is no longer a draft. We have a voluntary service now. Her son was not
forced to join. I feel sorry for any parent who has lost a child, but her son
knew the risks inherrent with military service when he joined. If a taxi driver
is killed in an auto accident, you probably wouldn't see his parents holding a
"vigil" outside the home of the company president for "killing
their child."
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 13, 2005 03:28AM
That maybe correct about the draft, but most enter to receive an education
because they can't afford one in the real world. The military gives them that to
sweeten the pot. Maybe you have no children, or at least in the military, and we
are not saying they should not defend this great country, but the cause is not
justified. There has been more deaths since our fearless leader
declared,"Mission Accomplished". I mean who is he trying to kid... I
guess all of us. He will not pull troops out because he knows the oil is not
secure yet, because they have no real government yet. The bloodshed will
continue until we leave them alone totally and stay out of their business. Daddy
Bush should have finished the job in his term, not save it for his reject of a
son. He has drove every business he has in the ground, our country is headed in
that direction also. What a shame innocent lives are lost, both here and there.
Terrorism will never be totally wiped out, it has been going on for years. We
simply need to stay on guard.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 13, 2005 06:00AM
Maybe that leftist cunt Hillary and her husband Billy-Bob would be a better
choice? Lick my sweaty nutsack.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 13, 2005 09:45AM
Thanks for the definition of =glitch=, duffy. What is =spuratic=? - it isn't in
my dictionary.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 14, 2005 05:02AM
Anonymous@542 wants to be monica
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 14, 2005 06:04AM
No, I want YOU to be Monica! Now get on your Knees, Bitch!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 14, 2005 06:27AM
Anonymous@542 you fag!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 14, 2005 06:29AM
Anonymous@542 you can not deny that you are a closet poofter! You dream of hot
men all day you turd-rancher.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 14, 2005 10:56PM
There were 23 justifications given underlying our declaration of war. Of those
23 reasons, only 9 related to WMD. All you idiots out there who claim
"Bush lied and got us into this war" are fucking morons, with
incredibly selective memories (ummm, Clinton's declaration to go to war with
Iraq? And that was before 9/11). And all of you who declare "Iraq has
nothing to do with terrorism" are ABSOLUTE FUCKING CLOWNS. Iraq's
connection with al Quada are so well documented, I needn't go into it- just
amazed at how you pick and choose facts...
Needless to say, while you children over here squable and scream and cry,
honorable and noble men and women are over there keeping the bad guys busy so
you can sit here and bitch about them. Well, FUCK YOU YOU DAMNED INGRATES. I
almost wish we would pull out, so all the crazies in iraq could be free to come
over here and blow up berkeley.
Unfortunately, so many americans are too stupid to follow the long-range
geopolitical implications of supporting a free and democratic nation in the
heart of the middle east. The only solution for terrorism is to erase the
udnerlying political failure that creates these crazies- which is what we are
doing. Luckily, we have a president who is (a) smart enough to realize the
aforementioned, and (b) we have a president with the backbone enough to make the
hard and rather unpopular decision to carry out the aforementioned.
AND ALL YOU IDIOTS ON THE LEFT ARE TOTAL FUCKING FOOLS.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 15, 2005 12:33AM
124134 Could not have said it better myself. Thank you!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 15, 2005 12:37AM
Turd rancher! Ahahahaha!! that's just too funny.
Actually, I like women...especially ones who can field strip an M16 in under a
minute.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 15, 2005 08:59PM
Actually, if you 'educated' people would do a search for a reliable news
source, other that the Lame Stream Media (aBC, cBS, nBC, cNN), then you would be
aware that WMD HAVE been found and that the LSM has avoided discussing it like a
plague! Not only do they have to save their face... they also have to save
their own political party... go figure...
Not to mention the fact that there is SO much that is NOT reported that is
totally positiv eon how things are going over there... it was reported by a
radical liberal newspaper at that! go figure.. :/
[
www.nytimes.com]
And if the LSM reported the news as it happened and by what was actually said
without pulling a mikey moore (take everything out of context and make the total
oposite of what was really said and done), then maybe you would all KNOW what is
happening in the states AND the rest of the world.
I have served my country and have gone to a war... can you say the same? Can
you understand the honor it is to protect not only USA's freedom, but to protect
freedom throughout the world? In case you haven't figured it out yet.. FREEDOM
IS NOT FREE, it has to be fought for and protected..
advice: read up on your rules of your party.. and then place the communist
manifesto next to it... can you tell a difference?
Last word of advice: At least ATTEMPT to get the whole picture from ALL sides
before you do any childish name calling and it will save you face in more ways
than 1! AND, you won't look so gullable (are pulled into believing something
without doing your research).... then you may begin to understand how things
REALLY work in the world.
BTW, I have been overseas and have seen what people think of the US of A... You
might be suprised at how many 'foreigners' are behind the US or A 100%! I have
now lived in Japan for several years now.. not sure if I want to go back with
all the childish bickering going on over there (sure you won't invite me back,
oh well, so life goes on.. but I don't need to be invited back).
Just think of everything I mentioned, if you were able to read from the
beginning 'till the end... It might help many people.
MJ
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 15, 2005 09:05PM
Oh, I forgot to mention 1 thing:
"On August 12, 2005, 12:29 am Anonymous@116197 said :
Bush has caused grief to the world and deteriorated Americas integrity with his
senseless holy war .Americas reputation will never recover I only hope there is
a special place in Hell for him"
Bush hasn't caused any grief to anyone... once again, the LSM has done a great
job of it...
MJ
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 15, 2005 09:08PM
"Unfortunately, so many americans are too stupid to follow the long-range
geopolitical implications of supporting a free and democratic nation in the
heart of the middle east. The only solution for terrorism is to erase the
udnerlying political failure that creates these crazies- which is what we are
doing. Luckily, we have a president who is (a) smart enough to realize the
aforementioned, and (b) we have a president with the backbone enough to make the
hard and rather unpopular decision to carry out the aforementioned."
I agreed 100%, but suggest that you keep from stooping to their level by all of
the cussing and name calling >.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 16, 2005 07:29PM
Cindy sheehan is a stupid bitch and if i lived in texas i would walk up to her
and punch her in the face over and over and over
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 17, 2005 05:35AM
I'm FROM Texas, but been in Japan for the last 8 years..... can't quite swim
that far to take care of business :/
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 17, 2005 06:05AM
and I forgot to mention that she is a media hungry cunt
Combat_Vet Report This Comment Date: August 17, 2005 07:48AM
This BITCH is disgracing her son's name for her own bullshit agenda.
I'm sure Casey has long ago rolled over in his grave because of her idiotic
grandstanding.
And today, all the liberal media reported a man in a pickup
"DESECRATED" the crosses put up on the roadside.
"DESECRATED"....You desecrate graves. How the fuck can you desecrate
little wooden crosses with names written on them with a marker, stuck up in a
roadside ditch. If anything these crosses were dishonoring every name on them by
the way they were being used.
I feel she should be locked up.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 17, 2005 06:58PM
Damn cindy get over it! Her son signed up, die doing what maded this country
free in the first place. she should of said something before he joined and die
he trying to help people that don't have this freedom.
If people believe that war doesn't solve anything their full of shit yes it cost
greatly but AMERICA wouldn't be here if it wasn't for war. You can't talk to a
mad man and hope that he will become peacefull by talking and holding hands! You
Pussy ass left nut tree huggers!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 01:04AM
It certainly seems that this community of posters is well informed. Some even
seem to have inside knowledge. So... what's the answer to Sheehan's question:
Mr. President, exactly what is this NOBLE cause you always refer to?
Combat_Vet Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 07:37AM
To Anonymous@022,
"exactly what is this NOBLE cause you
always refer to?"
YOU KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT ALREADY. OF COUSE IT'S ONLY NOBLE TO
"LOYAL" AMERICANS, NOT TO DISGEACEFUL LIBERAL ASSHOLES LIKE SINDY
SHEHANDJOB(AND YOU)
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 08:24AM
Hmm, let's see... What has gone right that the main stream media DOESN'T
print:
[
www.alsabaah.com]
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
5 committees to support security, reconstruction
Baghdad, July 26, p1
Prime Minister Dr. Ibrahim al-Jaferri agreed to form five Iraqi-US joint
committees relating developing important strategies in Iraq to assist its boom
and progress, Zelmy Khalil Zada US ambassador t obaghdad said. In a US Embassy's
statement, Zada affirmed that negotiations with Jaferri were fruitful in order
to turn bilateral ties into a new era.He unleashed that the plan aims at
rehabilitation to Iraqi forces of defending the country and facing terror gangs
in addition to securing borders.
HASANI MEETS WITH BOYCOTTERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Baghdad, July 26, p1
Speaker of National Assembly Dr. Hachim al-Hasani with representatives of the
absent powers of the past elections who were also absent of the drafting
constitution committee.In a press conference, al-Hasani said that the three
authorities in the country have agreed on meeting the boycotters' demands in
condition to join the political process.One of the conditions was opening
investigation on murder of the late Musin sheikh Eissa.
JAFARRI VISITED MILITARY UNITS AND WITNESSED A TRANING CALLING UP FOR SPECIAL
FORCES
Baghdad, July 26. p2
Dr. Ibrahim Jafarri P.M has checked out numbers of Iraqi military units and
listened to the dealing express from the leaders and commanders of the units,
and the ability of their solders to face every emergency condition after the
hard serious training. Jafarri also has witnessed a festival graduation of the
9th turn of the Special Forces. On the other hand, he discussed with the P.M of
Australia, John Haward during his visiting to Iraq yesterday, and discussed the
bilateral ties and relations between the two countries.Meanwhile Jafarri has
point out that the Australia forces of 1400 solders, acting an important work in
the security side effect in Iraq and participated with the multi national forces
to keep security and peace in Iraq.
JALAL TALABANNI CONSOLE HOSNI MUBARAK
Baghdad, July 26. p2
Iraqi president Dr. Jalal Talabanni has carried a phone calling with the
Egyptian President Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, about the criminal operations aimed
Sharm Shiekh city,Talabanni has offered his consolation to the Egyptian people
and his leadership, and he has condemned such criminal operations aimed the
civilians, re-new His and Iraqi people's solidarity with the Egyptian brother
hood people,Talabanni has emphasized during His phone calling on the necessity
of carrying out a common arrangement for Arab countries in fighting terror
actions regards as epidemic all the area suffered from its harm effects.
DOCTORS CARRIED STAY-IN STRIKE AFTER SOME OF THEM EXPOSSED TO AGGRESSIVE HITS BY
SECURITY FORCES
Baghdad, July 26, p.2
General inspector at Ministry of Health Dr. Adil Mohsin, has demanded both of
National Assembly, Presidential Council, P.M, and Interior, Defense Ministries
to put an end for the breach situations and bad aggressions against doctors and
the medical staffs carried by the security forces in the hospitals of Baghdad
and differ provinces, besides the necessity of activating the issued decisions
from Interior and Defense Ministries.This demand had came after 150 doctors have
arranged a stay-in strike in four hospitals following to Medicine City
Collection Unity in Baghdad, besides other 40 doctors sharing in stay-in strike
from Yarmook Hospital for the second week.Dr. Mohsin has declared that the
aggressions on doctors had repeated several times by the security forces, while
hospitals of Kindi, Yarmook, Sho'ala, Imam Ali hospital in Sadr city had exposed
to aggression bit for the doctors cause them arranging a kind of sit-in of all
hospitals until government find a solution for the bad new condition towards
doctors and the medical staffs.
SECURITY FORCES ARRESTED 77 TERRORISMS
Baghdad, July 26. p2
Iraqi security forces had captured 77 terrorisms, including 3 men follow to
so-called (saraya al-addala al-islamiyah) i.e. (Islamic justification brigades),
and found leaflets and 2 swords and different weapons. A source at interior
ministry has said that, a force from the 6th team follow to the ministry of
defense had surrounded one of the wanted targets in Bob Shamn city in Baghdad
and captured 40 terrorisms, besides other has arrested in Dorah city in Baghdad,
and the rest at Mosul province.
UPDATING POWER PLANT IN SADR CITY
Baghdad, July 26, Page 3
General Department for electricity in Baghdad, one of electricity ministry's
departments, is continuing construct and rehabilitates electrical network and
putting up lighting poles in Sadr city. A reliable source in the ministry had
said that general department for electricity (Rasafa section) continues the
first level of work in sectors 38,39,48,49,72,73 and beginning work for second
level in sectors 50,47,33,37,71,74. He also said work still continues in streets
of Aldakhel, Alfalaah, Chauwader, and Kasra Atash; as the department been able
to set up 326 lighting poles in Alfalaah Street and laid 1375 meters of
cable.While the third level of working started in sectors 51, 46, and
35,36,70,75.
and there's MUCH more!!!!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 08:26AM
Oh,forgot to mention.. this was sritten BY an Iraqi IN Iraq!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 08:29PM
[
www.newsmax.com]
Bush Admin. Briefed on Able Danger After Attacks!
Two weeks after the 9/11 the attacks, the Bush administration was told that a
special military intelligence unit code named Able Danger had developed
actionable intelligence two years earlier that could have foiled the 9/11 plot,
a member of the Able Danger team revealed on Wednesday.
Among the Able Danger evidence shared with the Bush National Security Council: a
chart put together before 9/11 featuring a picture of lead hijacker Mohamed
Atta.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 08:30PM
It was under CLINTON'S belt!
Combat_Vet Report This Comment Date: August 18, 2005 08:51PM
Lemme see....2 years before 9-11..Hmmmm!!!
Oh yea! Thats about the time Hillary's Husband was preoccupied trying to save
his ass for smoking Monica flavored cigars.
Anonymous022 Report This Comment Date: August 19, 2005 04:44AM
To Combat_Vet
Rather presumptuous of you to assume that I know the answer... and that I'm a
liberal asshole. Instead of providing me with an answer to a perfectly
reasonable question... you attack me. Seems a bit defensive to me... but then,
perhaps it was just a bad day for you. No offense taken.
To everyone:
As I originally said, it seems like this community is well informed so I figured
that someone here could provide a simple straight forward answer.
Let me try again. What's the answer to Sheehan's question:
"Mr. President, exactly what is this NOBLE cause you always refer
to?"
Now if nobody here knows the answer... that's ok with me. There's no shame in
not knowing something.
So... if that's the case, either don't reply or politely tell me you don't
know... I'll look elsewhere for the answer. No big deal.
If I have to do that... if and when I do find the answer... I'll post my
findings here. I'm sure that if nobody here knows the answer... all of you
would also like to know. Isn't knowledge power?
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 20, 2005 04:12PM
"It is better to remain silent and appear a fool than to open your mouth
and remove all doubt"
QED
duane Report This Comment Date: August 21, 2005 11:12AM
Removing a brutal dick(tater),Bringing some stability to the region,Freeing the
Iraqi people,eliminating the chance of wmd's(even france and germany thought
they had them or played like they did so we would not ruin there financial
investment by attacking),providing Osamah with one less hidding place,making the
oil situation a little more stable.Then we find out those against war
France,Russia,Germany,and the U.N. were making money off starving Iraqi's in the
oil for food program.You people choose sides well.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 12:38PM
Vietnam vets in Iraq see 'entirely different war'
By Steven Komarow, USA TODAY
Posted 6/20/2005 10:22 PM Updated 6/21/2005 4:45 PM
TIKRIT, Iraq — Before dawn, the pilots digest their intelligence briefing with
coffee. The sun rises as they start preflight checks. Just after 7:30, they
start rotors turning on their UH-60A Black Hawk, and ease it smoothly into the
desert sky.
AUDIO:
Hear DeWayne Browning, left, and Randy Weatherhead talk about their experiences
in Iraq and Vietnam.
Chief Warrant Officers DeWayne Browning and Randy Weatherhead will take off and
land a dozen times this hot day, ferrying infantry troops battling Iraq's
insurgents in the Sunni Muslim heartland that Saddam Hussein calls home.
Only if those young troops look closely, past the jumble of struts and wires and
into the obstructive flight helmets, will they notice something odd: Browning's
gray, nearly white moustache and telltale furrows on Weatherhead's face.
Browning, 56, of Paradise, Calif., and Weatherhead, 57, of Elk Grove, Calif.,
are grandfathers. They first flew combat missions in Vietnam, before most of the
soldiers in the current Army were born. They and others their age are here with
the National Guard's 42nd Infantry Division, which includes some of the oldest
soldiers to serve in combat for the modern U.S. Army. Few soldiers or officers
in the military, other than the service's top generals, are as old.
If there are parallels between Iraq and Vietnam, these graying soldiers and the
other Vietnam veterans serving here offer a unique perspective. They say they
are more optimistic this time: They see a clearer mission than in Vietnam, a
more supportive public back home and an Iraqi population that seems to be
growing friendlier toward Americans.
"In Vietnam, I don't think the local population ever understood that we
were just there to help them," says Chief Warrant Officer James Miles, 57,
of Sioux Falls, S.D., who flew UH-1H Hueys in Vietnam from February 1969 to
February 1970. And the Vietcong and North Vietnamese were a tougher, more
tenacious enemy, he says. Instead of setting off bombs outside the base, they'd
be inside.
"I knew we were going to lose Vietnam the day I walked off the plane,"
says Miles, who returned home this month after nearly a year in Iraq. Not this
time. "There's no doubt in my mind that this was the right thing to
do," he says.
The Army says it's impossible to know exactly how many Vietnam veterans are
serving in Iraq, and there might be only a few dozen. Most of them came to Iraq
last winter with the 42nd Infantry, a National Guard division headquartered in
Tikrit, north of Baghdad.
Of the Vietnam veterans still in uniform, most are in the Guard. They once were
the backbone of that part-time force, but today fewer than 20,000 remain in
uniform from the Vietnam era, a definition that also includes many who never
actually served in that theater, according to the National Guard Bureau. Of
those, many are ineligible for service in Iraq, including those within two years
of the mandatory retirement at age 60.
'No such thing as a POW'
The Vietnam vets here share their insights and experience with the younger
troops. And they're learning some new tricks, too.
"I wish that I could take some of the things that I've learned (and) ...
take them back in time to that 20-year-old kid flying in Vietnam," Browning
says.
"There was a lot more action in Vietnam than there is here," says
Chief Warrant Officer Herbert Dargue, 57, of Brookhaven, N.Y. But the danger in
Iraq is higher for those who are shot down but survive. "There's no such
thing as a POW," he says, referring to the terrorists' penchant for
executing Westerners.
The enemy in Iraq has "absolutely no value" for life, Dargue says, who
flew Huey helicopters in Vietnam from June 1968 to June 1969.
Miles says the biggest difference he saw was that, over time, Iraqi civilians
grew more positive toward U.S. forces. He says he saw more people smiling and
waving near his base here than there were 10 months ago when he arrived.
1st Sgt. Patrick Olechny, 52, of Marydel, Del., an attack helicopter crew chief
and door gunner in Vietnam from March 1971 to February 1972, says the most
important difference to him is the attitude of the American public.
"Vietnam was an entirely different war than this one," he says. The
basic job of flying helicopters is the same, but the overall mission now is
clear when it wasn't then. "We thought in Vietnam we were doing the right
thing, and in the end it didn't seem that way," he says.
Now, "the people in the United States respect what the soldiers are
doing," says Olechny, who still fills in at the door gunner position when
he can get away from his administrative duties.
Browning, recently back from two weeks of R&R in the USA, says he was
overwhelmed by the reception he got stateside: More than a hundred people met
the airplane to help the soldiers and wish them well. "I can't tell you
what, as a Vietnam vet, that means to me," he said.
Old guys in a new Army
For the Vietnam veterans, this is not a trip down memory lane, though there's
the occasional reminder of old times.
The U.S. Army that took them to Vietnam was bigger, younger and virtually all
male. The few women were mostly limited to medical or administrative jobs.
The draft gave the Army masses of ground troops. At its peak the Vietnam War had
more than three times as many on the ground as the roughly 140,000 in Iraq
today.
The new Army that these vets serve in is all volunteer. There are women in
uniform all around, as pilots, MPs, mechanics and nearly all other jobs except
for infantry and armor units.
Most of the pilots learned their craft in the Huey, the iconic helicopter of the
Vietnam War. They now fly its successor, the UH-60 Black Hawk.
The Black Hawk, although much larger, is designed for similar missions,
including transporting ground troops and providing medevac missions for wounded
troops. Its design was based on lessons learned in Vietnam, Weatherhead
says.
The two-engine Black Hawk is less prone to crashes than the old Hueys, and if it
does go down it better protects passengers and crew.
Pilots also benefit from electronic assists, including GPS satellite guidance,
for staying on course. However, Iraq's frequent dust storms penetrate sensitive
parts, resulting in more maintenance headaches, Weatherhead says.
Flight planning is more thorough and time-consuming now. In Vietnam, helicopters
were still relatively new to war. Flight procedures were less formal. A pilot
would look at the assignment board in the morning and plan his mission almost on
his own.
Now, it takes a team, and the Black Hawks always travel in pairs for safety.
These veterans generally applaud the changes, even if they say in some ways
helicopter operations are more cumbersome with bureaucracy. And they especially
welcome technology such as the Internet. In Vietnam, pen on paper through the
U.S. mail was their main link to home.
But several of them quickly added that there is something they miss: the chance
to blow off steam the way they used to at the end of the day. They may be
eligible for AARP membership, but the Army still tells them they can't have a
beer here.
Worries about offending political and cultural sensitivities have "gone
overboard in my opinion," says Chief Warrant Officer Robert Frist, 54, of
Auburn, N.Y., who was in the Army during the Vietnam era but wasn't sent
there.
A vanishing breed
A good place to find the veterans in Iraq is in the helicopter units. There's
far less opportunity to fly like that in civilian life, so the soldiers who love
it stay on as long as they can. But even there, few remain.
"We're getting to be a rare breed," says Dargue, who flies corporate
helicopters in civilian life and wishes he could fly more in Iraq and spend less
time on his staff job at the 42nd Division headquarters in Tikrit. "I'm not
crazy about sitting behind a desk."
While they're eager to fly, these pilots don't see themselves as trying to
relive their sometimes wild and hard-charging youths.
"With 36 years of perspective, I look at this one a whole lot differently
than I look at that one," says Weatherhead, whose daughter, Sgt. Jennifer
Tommasi, 30, is on her second tour in Iraq as an Army medic. Compared to
Vietnam, "this is probably more difficult. In the big picture, this is
probably more important," he says.
"I'm more aware of the historical context here. I'm more aware of the
political context," he says. "There, I was a 20-year-old flying
helicopters and having a grand time."
"I'm not even sure I want to talk about some of the things we did
then," Browning says. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross for rescuing
the crew of another helicopter that had been shot down by enemy fire that also
soon forced his own Huey to land.
In Iraq, one of his proudest activities is volunteer work at a nearby children's
home.
Iraq probably will be the last chance for these older veterans to mentor the
younger ones on combat missions.
"Hopefully, we're role models for them and we do some mentorship,"
Browning says. What does he think of the younger pilots? "They're good,
they're really good," he says.
Warrant Officer Jessica Howey, 29, of San Diego, who finished flight school in
2002, says she's learning every day from the older guys. Weatherhead is her
instructor pilot and has schooled her on the changes made over the years. She
sounds amazed at how the pilots then would dash to their aircraft and rush off
to fight. "They just went." It was very different from the elaborate
preflight planning of today. Now it takes hours, sometimes days, to prepare for
a mission.
"They have a different mind-set," says Chief Warrant Officer James
Dunn, 39, of Manassas, Va., probably because "they got shot at on every
mission," something he says doesn't happen often in Iraq.
Chief Warrant Officer Ron Serafinowicz, 56, of Gilbert, Ariz., flew Hueys in
Vietnam from June 1970 to June 1971. He says that being shot at, and seeing the
results of weapons on others, changes a soldier's attitude. "Us old guys,
we've seen that before," he says. "It's not an adventure to us like it
was when we were young."
The last cattle drive
Col. Larry Wilson, a flight surgeon, says he's on the watch for hypertension,
cardiac disease and other maladies of age that would ground the older vets.
Mostly they're "a pretty healthy bunch" whose problems rarely exceed
"telling dirty old men stories," he says. He also says the Vietnam
veterans in Iraq have a good impact on the younger soldiers.
Weatherhead and Browning didn't know each other in Vietnam but have flown
together for 20 years in the California National Guard since then. In Iraq,
their careers have come full circle and their cockpit banter sometimes drifts
into warm nostalgia.
On the aircraft intercom, the two men remain perfectionists, taking turns at the
controls and discussing their own flying technique. They note improvements in
technique that could be made by the other Black Hawk, piloted by one of the
younger crews.
Weatherhead and Browning liken this deployment to the last cattle drive of a
couple of cowboys. They call each other Gus and Woodrow, from Augustus McCrae
and Woodrow Call, the retired Texas Rangers who lead a cattle drive in Lonesome
Dove, Larry McMurtry's Pulitzer Prize-winning Western novel. They talk about
baking biscuits and the annoyances of getting older.
"Gus, this is hard on the old butt," Browning says.
"Yeah, my tailbone is killing me right now," Weatherhead says.
On this day, there are a couple of reminders of Vietnam. One of the Iraqi
marshlands near the Tigris River looks a lot like the Mekong Delta, Weatherhead
says. They watch as the other helicopter swoops slowly over a village to drop
candy and toys for the kids, as they once did in Vietnam.
"Well, Augustus," Browning says. "It's a good day to be
flying."
P.S. I, BTW, have called no one any names. I don't plan to either, as
frustrated as I get sometimes it can be hard... but it is very childish.
The "Iraq Report" I posted above on the 18th of August answered your
question... and since that wasn't enough, I added this little article today.
PLEASE don't be blind and hide your eyes when the answer is right in front of
your face.
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 12:40PM
lol.... and this is what she is doing..
[
marknicodemo.mu.nu]
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 01:09PM
A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude
and spotted a man in a boat below.
She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I
would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."
The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air
balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea
level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees,
49.09 minutes west longitude.
She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."
"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"
"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is
technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and
I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."
The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Democrat."
"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"
"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where
you're going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air.
You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve
your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met but,
somehow, now it's my fault."
_________________
It's not up to America to forgive Hanoi Jane. It's up to Viet Nam Veterans and
POWS and she hasn't asked us yet!!!
Anonymous Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 01:14PM
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Proximity Delays , by blogger in Iraq, Michael Yon
Mosul, Iraq
During radio interviews, listeners sometimes call in with questions for me.
People who follow the war closely and read my dispatches might ask about events
covered by mainstream news but about which I've posted few details, if any.
Thousands of emails pour in.
"Did you know about the letter to Zarqawi?" (Yes, I was in the Deuce
Four daily briefing when it was first displayed and read, about a week before
the media learned about it. The letter was captured minutes down the road from
here.)
"Did you know about the Chemical Weapons Plant?" (Yes, and probably
more than most readers care to know. Turned out to be nothing of consequence.
The "Plant" was minutes down the road from here.)
"Did you know about the 'super secret spy plane' that crashed in
Mosul?" (Yes, I was on a mission in Mosul at the time. It was flying over
Mosul in support of operations.)
"There was a report that three terrorists were shot down in Mosul the other
day. Did you know about that?" (Yes, I was in the TOC when the blood first
started pumping through their skulls. Credit was given to the Iraqi police, but
American forces actually conducted the ambush minutes down the road from
here.)
Then comes the question: "Why didn't you write about that?"
The answer is simple. Often I am asked to withhold information due to the
immediate sensitivty. And so, I never release the slightest hint. But then
somebody in Baghdad--three steps removed from the action here in Mosul--
releases it to CNN and the rest of the world. What is seen on television and in
the papers is practically always inaccurate, or is at least poorly framed. But I
rarely waste a breath trying to correct the information. It's too late. Life is
busy here.
The greatest paradox I have seen in this war results from "proximity
delay." The proximity delay for me is caused by being embedded so closely
with Duece Four soldiers that I often see things unfolding before they happen,
and then I am in the thick of events as they occur. But then I am asked not to
write about events.
Much of the censorship is self-imposed because I will not write anything that
jeopardizes US, Iraqi or Coalition forces or civilians. This is not a game of
who gets the scoop; I am not per se a journalist. On some missions I've been the
first to spot the enemey. On others, I've been so close to the action, my face
gets smacked by flying shell casings. I come away with information and details
no other writer could possibly have.
I've refused to write about incidents countless times, even when soldiers have
asked me to publish the details. My time traveling the world, following scent
trails and navigating on snippets of information has taught me that a person
with a seasoned imagination can coax a great deal of information from seemingly
innocuous tidbits. This enemy is smart and also reads the news.
Just why the military considers some information "classified" while
other information gets the "go ahead, write it" shrug, is not based on
logic, science, or even one of those absurd but iron clad rules that codify so
much of the military. Many explanations for the military's requests not to
publish certain information, do not hold up well to scrutiny.
For example, our soldiers capture or kill top terror figures in Mosul routinely.
Sometimes in stunning operations that display split-second timing. The
"higher ups" often say, almost reflexively, that they don't want the
enemy to know about these kills or captures.
Sounds reasonable. But whether soldiers sleek through dark allies with silenced
weapons, slipping over walls with padded ladders, snatching sleeping terrorists
from their beds before they can fully waken; or, whether they engage in a
gunfight at a busy intersection and drag terrorists from behind the wheels of
their cars--these are not anonymous men. Families notice when daddy's gone
missing.
If we aren't keeping it secret from the enemy--and we can't keep it secret from
them--who do we protect by keeping quiet? These are not illegal operations.
These are examples of the effectiveness of our forces. In Mosul alone there are
daily events where the Coalition gets things right, that I never write
about.
The "proximity delay" seems to be bi-directional. The higher-ups also
seem to have a disconnect with what the media eventually does with Coalition
successes. I kept silent for days on the Zarqawi-letter dispatch, ready to post
what was probably the single most important piece of insider information to drop
into our hands in quite some time. I requested clearance several times per day,
each time being asked to hold back. I complied.
But then, without even giving the leaders at Deuce Four a head's up, a typically
entralling military press release went out to major, mainstream, media outlets.
We all learned of it on CNN. The Zarqawi-letter story was almost unrecognizable.
Because, in the hands of a network that hasn't had a body in the field in Mosul
long enough to get their bearings, the best the media could do is paraphrase the
military press release. So what should have been a front page banner headline
story ended up buried on page 6.
Even CNN couldn't grasp the importance of the letter. They ended up giving more
coverage to the impending E-Bay auction of Jennifer Aniston's old love letters
than to the missive in which the top Al Queda leader in Mosul writes to the
second most wanted man in the world, and describes in amazing detail the
weaknesses and impending collapse of the terrorist network in Mosul and
surrounds. Only then, did the military ask if wanted to write about the
letter.
Every one, even a "higher up" deserves the benefit of the doubt, and
should be entitled to one mistake. But how many times, and how many major
stories have to be mangled into meaninglessness before someone connects the
cables and lets the information flow in a direction other than down the
mainstream media drain?
Meanwhile, by the time you read this, the US Army and the ISF will have launched
offensive operations in Mosul and I will be in the middle of it. Maybe this time
I will be able to write about matters while they still matter.
---------------
Post Script: The operation has begun. The Commander of Deuce Four, LTC Erik
Kurilla, was shot three times in combat yesterday in front of my eyes. Despite
being seriously wounded, LTC Kurilla immediately rejoined the intense and
close-quarter fight that ended in hand-to-hand combat. LTC Kurilla continued to
direct his men until a medic gave him morphine and the men took him away. I was
right there. When I returned to base, I was actually "ordered" not to
write about the fighting until given clearance, and was told that my phones
could be confiscated. I will ignore such "orders" at my own
discretion. I am preparing a dispatch now.
[
michaelyon.blogspot.com]
Japanese Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 06:27PM
And to continue on about the protection of OUR (and other people's) freedom,
which you obviously don't comprehend, I added this, from another poster:
"In contrast to the ideals, opinions and feelings of today's Hollywood
Half-wits, the real actors of yesteryear loved the United States.
They had both class and integrity. With the advent of World War II many of our
actors went to fight rather than stand and rant against this country we all
love.
They gave up their wealth, position and fame to become service men & women,
many as simple "enlisted men."
This page lists but a few, but from this group of only 18 men came over 70
medals in honor of their valor, spanning from Bronze Stars, Silver Stars,
Distinguish Service Cross', Purple Hearts and one Congressional Medal of
Honor.
So remember; while the "Entertainers of 2005" have been in all of the
news media lately I would like to remind the people of what the entertainers of
1943 were doing, (62 years ago).
Most of these brave men have since passed on.
Real Hollywood Heroes
Alec Guinness (Star Wars) operated a British Royal Navy landing craft on
D-day.
James Doohan ("Scotty" on Star Trek) landed in Normandy with the U. S.
Army on D-day.
Donald Pleasance (The Great Escape) really was an R. A. F. pilot who was shot
down,
held prisoner and tortured by the Germans.
David Niven was a Sandhurst graduate and Lt. Colonel of the British Commandos in
Normandy.
James Stewart Entered the Army Air Force as a private and worked his way to the
rank of Colonel.
During World War II, Stewart served as a bomber pilot, his service record
crediting him with leading more than 20 missions over Germany, and taking part
in hundreds of air strikes during his tour of duty.
Stewart earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, France's Croix de
Guerre, and 7 Battle Stars during World War II.
In peace time, Stewart continued to be an active member of the Air Force as a
reservist, reaching the rank of Brigadier General before retiring in the late
1950s.
Clark Gable (Mega-Movie Star when war broke out) Although he was beyond the
draft age at the time the US entered WW II,
Clark Gable enlisted as a private in the AAF on Aug. 12, 1942 at Los
Angeles.
He attended the Officer's Candidate School at Miami Beach, Fla. and graduated as
a second lieutenant on Oct. 28, 1942.
He then attended aerial gunnery school and in Feb. 1943 he was assigned to the
351st Bomb Group at Polebrook where flew operational missions over Europe in
B-17s.
Capt. Gable returned to the US in Oct. 1943 and was relieved from active duty as
major on Jun. 12, 1944 at his own request, since he was over-age for combat.
Charlton Heston was an Army Air Corps Sergeant in Kodiak.
Earnest Borgnine was a U. S. Navy Gunners Mate 1935-1945.
Charles Durning was a U. S. Army Ranger at Normandy earning a Silver Star and
awarded the Purple Heart.
Charles Bronson was a tail gunner in the Army Air Corps, more specifically on
B-29s in the 20th Air Force out of Guam, Tinian, and Saipan
George C. Scott was a decorated U. S. Marine.
Eddie Albert (Green Acres TV) was awarded a Bronze Star for his heroic action as
a U. S. Naval officer aiding Marines at the horrific battle on the island of
Tarawa in the Pacific Nov. 1943.
Brian Keith served as a US Marine rear gunner in several actions against the
Japanese on Rabal in the Pacific.
Lee Marvin was a US Marine on Saipan during the Marianas campaign when he was
wounded earning the Purple Heart.
John Russell: In 1942, he enlisted in the Marine Corps where he received a
battlefield commission and was wounded and highly decorated for valor at
Guadalcanal.
Robert Ryan was a U. S. Marine who served with the O. S. S. in Yugoslavia.
Tyrone Power (an established movie star when Pearl Harbor was bombed) joined the
US Marines, was a pilot flying supplies into, and wounded Marines out of, Iwo
Jima and Okinawa.
Audie Murphy, little 5'5" tall 110 pound guy from Texas who played cowboy
parts?
Most Decorated serviceman of W.W.II and earned: Medal of Honor, Distinguished
Service Cross, 2 Silver Star Medals, Legion of Merit, 2 Bronze Star Medals with
"V", 2 Purple Hearts, US Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal, Good
Conduct Medal, 2 Distinguished Unit Emblems, American Campaign Medal,
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with One Silver Star, Four Bronze
Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead
(representing assault landing at Sicily and Southern France) World War II
Victory Medal Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, Armed Forces Reserve
Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar, Expert Badge with
Bayonet Bar, French Fourragere in Colors of the Croix de Guerre, French Legion
of Honor, Grade of Chevalier, French Croix de Guerre With Silver Star, French
Croix de Guerre with Palm, Medal of Liberated France, Belgian Croix de Guerre
1940 Palm.
So how do you feel the real heroes of the silver screen acted when compared to
the Hollywood Half-wits today who spray out anti-American drivel, as they bite
the hand that feeds them? Can you imagine these stars of yesteryear saying they
hate our flag, making antiwar speeches, moving to foreign countries, marching in
anti-American parades and saying they hate our president?
I thought not, neither did I!
Carry On The Message To Others. Carry On!"
Japanese Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 06:47PM
'Peace Mom's' marriage a metaphor for Dems
August 21, 2005
BY MARK STEYN SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST
Cindy Sheehan's son Casey died in Sadr City last year, and that fact is supposed
to put her beyond reproach. For as the New York Times' Maureen Dowd informed us:
''The moral authority of parents who bury children killed in Iraq is
absolute."
Really? Well, what about those other parents who've buried children killed in
Iraq? There are, sadly, hundreds of them: They honor their loved ones' service
to the nation, and so they don't make the news. There's one Cindy Sheehan, and
she's on TV 'round the clock. Because, if you're as heavily invested as Dowd in
the notion that those "killed in Iraq" are "children," then
Sheehan's status as grieving matriarch is a bonanza.
They're not children in Iraq; they're grown-ups who made their own decision to
join the military. That seems to be difficult for the left to grasp. Ever since
America's all-adult, all-volunteer army went into Iraq, the anti-war crowd have
made a sustained effort to characterize them as "children." If a
13-year-old wants to have an abortion, that's her decision and her parents
shouldn't get a look-in. If a 21-year-old wants to drop to the broadloom in Bill
Clinton's Oval Office, she's a grown woman and free to do what she wants. But,
if a 22- or 25- or 37-year-old is serving his country overseas, he's a wee
"child" who isn't really old enough to know what he's doing.
I get many e-mails from soldiers in Iraq, and they sound a lot more grown-up
than most Ivy League professors and certainly than Maureen Dowd, who writes like
she's auditioning for a minor supporting role in ''Sex And The City.''
The infantilization of the military promoted by the left is deeply insulting to
America's warriors but it suits the anti-war crowd's purposes. It enables them
to drone ceaselessly that "of course" they "support our
troops," because they want to stop these poor confused moppets from being
exploited by the Bush war machine.
And if you are MAN enough to read the rest:
[
www.suntimes.com]
Japanese Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 06:54PM
"A young woman was about to finish her first year of college. She
considered herself to be a very liberal Democrat, but her father was a staunch
Republican. One day she was challenging her father on his beliefs and his
opposition to high taxes and welfare programs. He stopped her and asked how she
was doing in school.
She answered that she had a 4.0 GPA, but it was really tough. She had to study
all the time and never had time to go out and party. She didn't have time for a
boyfriend and didn't really have many college friends because of spending all
her time studying. On top of that, the part-time job her father insisted she
keep left absolutely no time for anything else.
He asked, "How is your friend Mary?"
She replied that Mary was barely getting by. She had a 2.0 GPA, never studied,
but was very popular on campus, didn't have a job, and went to all the parties.
She was always complaining about not having any money, but didn't want to work.
Why, she often didn't show up for classes because she was hung over.
Dad then asked his daughter why she didn't go to the Dean's office and request
that 1.0 be taken off her 4.0 and given it to her friend who only had a 2.0.
That way they would both have a respectable 3.0 GPA. Then, she could also give
her friend half the money she'd earned from her job so that her friend would no
longer be broke.
The daughter angrily fired back, "That wouldn't be fair. I worked really
hard for my grades and money, and Mary just loafs. Why should her laziness and
irresponsibility be rewarded with half of what I've worked for?"
The father slowly smiled and said, "Welcome to the Republican
Party.""
REPUBLIFUCKS Report This Comment Date: August 22, 2005 07:58PM
Most of you people have your head up your ass.
Disguised greed is still greed.
The idea of "Commonwealth" was well respected for centuries until you
folks "character assassinated it with a bunch of shit like that which
nobody believes in.
Dumbasses.
AntiMoonbat Report This Comment Date: August 23, 2005 06:06PM
See what I mean!? you are so brainwashed and clueless... Thank God we got a
REAL POTUS in the office instead of the fake and her husband!
AntiMoonbat Report This Comment Date: August 23, 2005 06:11PM
Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2005 10:12 a.m. EDT
CENTCOM: Successes in Iraq
U.S. military commanders on the ground in Iraq must be scratching their heads in
bewilderment over Sen. Chuck Hagel's recent comments painting their efforts as
an abject failure.
A day after Hagel trotted out his message of doom and gloom on ABC's "This
Week," CENTCOM officials issued a press release listing some of their
recent accomplishments - a list of achievements that has somehow escaped the
notice of the establishment press.
Story Continues Below
Before Sen. Hagel does anymore damage to the war effort, we'd urged him to
review the CENTCOM release for the week of August 22.
Here's a few highlights:
• More reconstruction projects in Sadr City started this week, including the
$13 million electrical distribution project for sectors one through eight. When
complete, an estimated 128,000 people will have a reliable source of
electricity. The project includes installation of power lines, 3,040 power
poles, 80 transformers, 2,400 street lights, and power connections to individual
homes, complete with meters.
• Construction started on the $3.8 million Al Rayash Electricity Substation
project in Al Daur District of Salah Ad Din Province, located between Tikrit and
Bayji. The project, which is expected to be completed in early December, will
provide reliable service to 50,000 Iraqi homes and small businesses. An electric
distribution and street lighting project in Daquq was completed on Aug. 17,
providing new overhead distribution lines and street lighting in the
community.
• Approximately two million people will benefit from the Baghdad trunk sewer
line, which was completed this week. Workers cleaned and repaired the Baghdad
trunk sewer line and its associated manholes and pumping stations. The $17.48
million project restored principal sewage collection elements in the Adhamiya,
Sadr City and 9-Nissan districts of Baghdad, and will provide for the intended
sewer flows to the Rustamiya wastewater treatment plant.
• More than 600 children will return to renovated or rebuilt schools in Maysan
Province when school starts this fall. This week, renovation on the Al-Eethnar
Mud School was completed, and the Al Eethar Mud School was replaced at a cost of
$87,000, benefiting 500 students who attend classes there.
• Children in Dobak Tappak village of Al Tamim Province received much-needed
school supplies, clothing and toys from the Nahrain Foundation, a
non-governmental organization that focuses on providing proper nutrition, decent
clothing and medical supplies to Iraqi women and children. The foundation
received its supplies as part of a joint effort between American donations and a
Coalition forces-run program known as "Operation Provide School
Supplies,” which accepts donations from private citizens and corporations in
the U.S.
• In Basrah, construction is complete on phase one of the $865,000 Basrah
courthouse project. This five-phase project is expected to be entirely complete
in October of 2005. This main courthouse in Basrah, expected to hold a number of
high profile trials, continues to operate during construction. Iraqi
subcontractors are working on the project, and employing an average of 70 local
Iraqi workers daily.
• Iraqi security forces benefited from reconstruction projects this week as
well. A patrol station in the Karkh district of Baghdad Province was completed,
as was a $390,300 border-post project on the Saudi Arabian border. A division
headquarters building for the Iraqi Army in Salah Ad Din Province was also
completed this week. The $7 million project includes a single-story building
with a concrete roof and interior office space to accommodate the unit.
Additionally, a $2 million firing range in Taji was completed this week.
• To accommodate additional detainees, a new prison project was started in
Khan Bani Sa’ad, a mountainous municipality in the Ba’quba District of
Diyala Province. The $75 million project will house up to 3,600 inmates. The
entire site is approximately 550,000 square meters, which includes an
educational center, medical facilities and administration buildings. The project
will employ approximately 1,000 Iraqi workers during construction.
• In another move that highlights the increasing turnover of security
responsibilities to Iraqi forces, generals from Iraqi and Coalition forces
joined local tribal leaders at a ceremony where Forward Operating Base Dagger in
Tikrit, one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces, was officially handed over to
the 4th Iraqi Army Division this week.
• Iraqi Security Forces continued training this week. In Taji, Iraqi soldiers
completed a Strategic Infrastructure Battalion Train-the-Trainer course. The 90
graduates will go on to serve as instructors at an Iraqi Army training base. A
class of future IA non-commissioned officers graduated from their primary
leadership development course on Aug. 15 in Tikrit. Iraqi Army unit training
also included combat lifesaving, staff training, computer skills and weapons
training.
• This week, the 1st Iraqi Army Brigade succeeded at implementing the first
Non-commissioned Officer Academy in the country. Iraqi soldiers from the most
recent class were the last group to be instructed by the U.S. Soldiers who had
developed the training. During Saddam Hussein’s regime, an NCO corps did not
exist in the Iraqi Army. The class will continue after the U.S. instructors
leave, and will be taught by NCOs from the 1st IA who assisted earlier
courses.
• Baghdad police continued to demonstrate their capabilities this week. Iraqi
Police Service officers in the New Baghdad District conducted a variety of
operations including raids involving over 450 officers. Police confiscated 30
AK-47 rifles, two hand guns, and one machine gun during the raids.
• They also arrested 30 suspected insurgents, three of whom were targeted in
the raids. In addition, police at the Al Khanssa Police Station in Baghdad
captured a kidnapper involved in the abduction of a local physician, whose
family paid a ransom to have the victim released. Following the arrest, police
officers recovered the doctor’s vehicle as well as the ransom money paid by
his family.
• Iraqi Army soldiers found a weapons cache under a vehicle in Rawah this
week. The cache contained two light machine guns and 3000 rounds of ammunition,
nine AK-47 rifles and 500 rounds of ammunition, one NATO machine gun and 200
rounds of ammunition, four concussion grenades, one fragmentary grenade without
fuses, and various other ammunition.
• Based on two separate tips from Iraqis, Coalition forces discovered weapons
caches that contained rocket-propelled grenades and two launchers, 16 mortar
rounds and a launcher, and five boxes of anti-aircraft ammunition hidden in
northwest Baghdad.
• Another tip led Coalition forces to a large cache of artillery shells in the
early hours of Aug. 16. The shells were apparently intended for use as
improvised explosive devices. The 25 to 30 individual rounds, located inside a
building within Al Anbar Province, were destroyed after security forces
confirmed there was no one in the building.
• After a local Iraqi identified his neighbors as insurgents, Iraqi Army
soldiers and Coalition forces conducted a joint cordon and search operation in
northwest Fallujah and detained two suspects.
• Iraqi Security Forces killed terrorist Abu Zubair, also known as Mohammed
Salah Sultan, in an ambush in the northern city of Mosul this week. Zubair, who
was wearing a suicide vest when he was killed, was a known member of Al Qaeda in
Iraq and a lieutenant in Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab Zarqawi’s terrorist
operations in Mosul. He was being sought for his involvement in a July suicide
bombing attack of a police station in Mosul that killed five Iraqi police
officers. He was also suspected of resourcing and facilitating suicide bomber
attacks against Coalition, Iraqi Security Forces and Iraqi citizens throughout
the country.
_________________
Peace is acheived through victory
i_hate_you_cunts Report This Comment Date: August 24, 2005 06:20PM
William_Leatherwood@23916:Amen,brother.
This woman is a perfect example of why only qualified people should have an
opinion on certain things.She's a misinformed,dull-witted media whore.
