I am not a veteran and I am not a military family member. But I have had the honor and privilege of knowing many military families over the last seven years. My father served in the Navy during WWII long before I was born. He …
Military Personnel
This Is Only a Test: Navy Women Donning Dixie Cups
The Navy’s personnel chief, after a survey of nearly 400 women in the sea service, says there’s room for improvement in the uniforms they wear.
“As a result of fleet feedback received from female sailors during Navy leadership …
Why Is Getting Out of the U.S. Army So Tough?
Awhile back, there was a post here on Battleland featuring U.S. Army Private Daniel Houten, who was contrasting his service in the Israeli Defense Forces with that of the U.S. Army. Private Houten stated that he feels the U.S. …
Coming Soon to Your Town: Sequestration Road Tour
Americans will celebrate Memorial Day next month, and honor those who’ve died while serving to protect the rest of us. But some concerned members of Congress are going to skip their hometown barbeques so they can hit the road: …
Los Angeles Times’ Atrocity Photos: Truth Teller, or Newspaper Seller?
I just read about another reprehensible incident that has come to light after two years. Photos of soldiers from the 82nd Airborne, based at Fort Bragg, N.C., posing with body parts of dead suicide bombers in Afghanistan, were recently published by the Los Angeles Times. The troops were stationed in Afghanistan in 2010.
Americans …
More Bucks, Fewer Bodies
This interesting chart surfaced last week at the Center for Strategic and International Studies Global Security forum. Note how the black line – representing the number of troops in the U.S. military by year – generally tracked the blue bars, representing how much money we spend on defense each year. Until 9/11, that is, when …
Sexual Assault in the Ranks Up 4% Last Year
The number of sexual assaults alleged by military personnel crept up slightly in 2011. The rise from 2,617 in 2010 to 2,723 represents a 4% increase. “One sexual assault in the military is one too many,” the Pentagon’s latest report on sexual assault in the ranks concludes. “While the Department has taken bold steps to prevent and …
Full Speed Ahead
This chart comes from a Government Accountability Office report released Thursday. It’s funny how some Pentagon costs seemed to have turned on their afterburners in the wake of 9/11.
The Army’s Report Card
The Army has just surveyed more than 40,000 of its people about how it’s faring, and gives itself an A, or something pretty close to it.
The Army Profession (AP) Campaign Annual Report (where do they come up with such titles?) spells out how the service has been able to come through more than a decade of war pretty much intact. There …
Get Women in the Picture!
I received an email from a doctoral student at the University of West Florida who is writing her dissertation on women military careerists born between 1940 and 1955. As a result, she has spent a good amount of time talking to retired service women, as well as visiting the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida. She …
Gays and Lesbians, OK. Transgender Folks, Wait Your Turn
The non-news that is the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” continues in a new Congressional Research Service report obtained by Battleland. The bar against openly gay men and women serving in the military has gone so smoothly, it seems like the good scholars at CRS have too look for controversy:
The repeal of the ban on
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21st Century Fragging: Sexual Assault
Navy Times reports this week that “Navy leaders are calling for educational standdowns in April to communicate the service’s policy of zero tolerance for sexual assault while encouraging sailors to work harder to prevent attacks.” It’s part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, an effort to raise awareness of the issue and what can be …
War Dog Roy Visits the Dentist
After three days of contentious debate before the Supreme Court on Americans’ right, or not, to health care, it’s nice to see that the Pentagon’s military working dogs get it for free. And get this – there’s no individual mandate, either.
Check out the full story of Roy, an eight-year-old Belgian Malinois, who broke his …