The U.S. government can’t make up its mind when it comes to Osama bin Laden. Last Saturday, it held an unusual press conference where it released a snippet of video showing a feeble, aging terrorist staring at his flickering image on a small TV screen. On Wednesday, government officials were whispering about bin Laden’s bloody diary …
Gaddafi Unheard from in Days Following Air Strike
Libya’s Col. Muammar Gaddafi hasn’t been seen or heard from publicly since a NATO air strike 11 days ago that reportedly killed his son, Saif al-Arab. Gaddafi was apparently in the home when at least two NATO bombs hit. He also did not attend his son’s funeral.
Gaddafi may very well be keeping a low profile in order to stay alive. A …
Syria Slaughter Videos Highlight White House Inaction
Late last month the White House hit Syria’s intelligence agency and two relatives of President Bashar al-Assad with sanctions because of Assad’s crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. President Obama did not target Assad himself with those sanctions, nor did Obama call for Assad to step down. A White House aide told Reuters that Obama …
Kiddie Boot Camp
The U.S. Army recently held a boot camp for soldiers’ kids, some still in kindergarten, at a German post. “It’s a little tough being a soldier,” a 10-year old said following his three-hour stint. “But it’s worth it.” The tykes were led by real soldiers, who enjoyed the experience, too. “The idea of bringing the kids out and doing a …
Where I Failed
“The VA’s unchecked incompetence has gone on long enough; no more veterans should be compelled to agonize or perish while the government fails to perform its obligations.”
Judge Reinhardt, Ninth Circuit.
Well, it’s official: denying veterans medical treatment is unconstitutional according to the ninth circuit court of …
A Sobering Read on Afghanistan
Over on Small Wars Journal this morning, AfPak vet Paul Overby is asking tough questions about the way forward in Afghanistan:
In the challenge of extricating ourselves from the war in Afghanistan, the most critical element is the actual and emotional heart of the opposition we are facing–the Taliban. This war which is taking an
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Tet II: Vietnam, 1968 = Afghanistan, 2011?
Are the Afghan insurgents stealing from the Viet Cong’s playbook? Colleague Tony Karon thinks so, over at Time‘s Global Spin blog.
Aye-Aye Captain: Reverse Course!
The Navy always seems to have troubles with sex and gender relations. Doesn’t matter if it’s the hetero- or homosexual, they just seem to flub it more than the other services. So it has happened once again: the sea service has just changed its mind on telling its chaplains they will be allowed to conduct same-sex marriages and civil …
New Guy
In Vietnam, I’m told, soldiers and marines in infantry units didn’t make a special effort to learn the names of new guys joining the unit. They called them FNGs. New guys were welcome because they filled ranks; there were more people to pull security and hump ammo on patrol. But they were also viewed suspiciously; they were untested …
Counter-terrorism beats nation-building? Are we going to bury COIN all over again?
My old classmate Fareed Zakaria recently made the argument that counterterrorism beats nation-building when it comes to winning the war on terror. Taking Osama Bin Laden’s killing as a point of American pride, he says that sort of military/intelligence operation is what we’re good at, and so we should stick with it versus pursue the …
Appellate Court Rules Poor VA Mental-Health Care for Vets Is Unconstitutional
The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq potentially got a lot more costly Tuesday. That’s because a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has concluded that the Department of Veterans Affairs’ treatment of mentally-ailing vets is so poor it is unconstitutional.
“Among other issues, Veterans ask us to …
As Cash Payments Disappear in Iraq, Militants Join al-Qaeda Again
A few years back I was having dinner with a former Special Forces soldier who had just recently returned from Iraq. This time he was working as a contractor there. It was sometime during 2008, because I recall remarking about how successful the surge of U.S. troops had been in Iraq. I had been extremely skeptical before the surge, I told …
“Under The Sea” With bin Laden
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dDtRnstrefE]
OK…so it’s juvenile. But it includes a nice shot of our X’ed-out Osama bin Laden Time cover, so it can’t be all bad.