I wanted to comment briefly on Mark Benjamin’s piece about casualty announcements being a painful as ever. Mark noted that three soldiers killed on July 18th in Afghanistan were all from a Pennsylvania National Guard unit, and that one of them, Sgt Brian K. Mowery, at age 49 could easily have been a grandfather. Lots of Guard and …
Army
General John Shalikashvili, 1936-2011
When Army General John Shalikashvili’s became chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1993, even his staff didn’t know how to say his name. “I’m saying it the way the other people on my staff are saying it: shah-lee-KASH-villy, with the emphasis on the KASH,” said Maj. Nino Fabiano, a spokesman for the Joint Chiefs. “But let me …
The Shrinking Enemies List
General Ray Odierno appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday for his confirmation hearing to become the Army’s 38th top officer. In his prepared opening statement, after thanking his family for its support, he turned to the threats the country faces today:
We face a multitude of security challenges, such as
…
Stand By to Stand By
This is all getting very confusing. Within the past few weeks there have been some major developments in the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal process, all of which I have failed to mention here. Each turn in events has had its own reason for staying out of my blog, and I’m not going to use my packed schedule as an excuse.
Earlier this …
Military Suicides: The Families Left Behind
In the recent swirl of articles and blogs about the new Presidential policy on honoring those who suicide in combat with a condolence letter, there are some who may be lost: the Families. The controversy seems to be about whether or not you should “honor” the Soldier who died with a letter of condolence. Recently the White House …
Military Housing: Trials and Tribulation
Compared to many of my gay and lesbian colleagues, my time in service has treated me well. In general gay officers have it easier than our enlisted counterparts, and our options with housing play a large role.
Many newly enlisted troops are forced to live in small dorms with roommates. It’s usually not the barracks scene that …
Leroy Petry, the Medal of Honor and Intrepidity
This past weekend, I attended the wedding of my Army roommate who’s still on active duty. Among the many conversations of the assembled veterans, all junior officers who fought together in Iraq, was the award of the Medal of Honor to Sgt. First Class Leroy Petry, who sacrificed his hand to save his fellow Rangers in Afghanistan. …
Afghan Steppingstone: Slippery When Wet
The Medal of Honor: How It Happened
President Obama awarded the nation’s highest award for valor to Army Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry Tuesday afternoon. He earned it en route to losing his right hand in 2008 when he and his fellow soldiers came under attack in Afghanistan. The Army has put together a visual account of how this Ranger became a hero.
Hey Mate: Scrapping Gender Barriers in Australia’s Military
The story seems too good to be true, at least for this old (female) salt: a truly gender-neutral military, based on capabilities and not gender!
Wow. But here’s the catch…gender norms are still being applied, and the same old anti-women-in-combat arguments are surfacing:
If I see that it’s a woman on the receiving end of …
Inside the Battle for Kandahar
Army Major Rusty Bradley was commanding a Special Forces unit in Afghanistan that served as Taliban bait during 2006’s Operation Medusa, the largest offensive in NATO’s history. In his new book, Lions of Kandahar (co-written with journalist Kevin Maurer), Bradley takes the reader into battle. His goal: a patch of high ground called …
Suicide Bombs Away!
This Pentagon purchase caught my attention Wednesday night: the Army has awarded Science, Engineering and Technology Associates of Arlington, Va., a $48.2 million contract for “the procurement of the counter-bomber system to provided detection capability of suicide bombers approaching a controlled access site.” The company says “the …
Talk Is Cheap…
…unless you’re interpreting for the Pentagon, apparently. Check out this list of contract awards made Tuesday by the Army: