A funny thing happens when you speak with a room full of school children–they have a tendency to say exactly what’s on their minds. When I returned from my first tour in Iraq, just before Christmas 2006, the principals in my …
Military History
Marines on Okinawa: Time to Leave?
TOKYO – More than six decades after U.S. Marines stormed ashore on Okinawa, it may finally be time for them to go home. Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on Friday fired his defense minister, in part for missteps and verbal …
“Prime Minister Maliki, May I?”
For nearly a decade, the U.S. Air Force flew anywhere over Iraq, whenever it pleased. For the decade before that – as it patrolled the northern and southern no-fly zones, over the top and bottom third of Saddam Hussein’s
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A National Guard Keepsake…
Of course, some folks disagree.
Dying to Withdraw…
On November 14th, two weeks before he was supposed to go home, Spc. David Emanuel Hickman became the last American service member to be killed in Iraq. While on a regular “presence patrol” in Baghdad, his vehicle was struck …
More Evidence of the Glorious Do-Loop That Is the East Asian Arms Race
WSJ lead story about Chinese developing a ballistic missile designed to fragment – like a cluster bomb – on the deck of a U.S. carrier and wipe out all aircraft and personnel. Naturally, it’s unbelievably provocative to us, …
The Changing of the Guard
I would never want to belong to any club that would have someone like me for a member.
The sentiment is usually attributed to Groucho Marx, but as of this week it works for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, too.
War of 1812: A Naval Turning Point
There’s going to be a raft of books on the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, and one of the first is a fascinating look at a pivot point in naval warfare. In Knights of the Sea, author David Hanna breathes life into the …
The `K Street Clausewitz’ Remembered
Mark Thompson’s 27 December posting, “General Newt,” alerted readers of Battleland to Karen Tumulty’s pastiche of mini portraits of Newt Gingrich’s martial prowess. Mark highlighted one the few passages that zeroed in on the insubstantial essence of the K Street Clausewitz.
Unable to contain my mirth, I immediately forwarded Mark’s …
“Clintonizing” Perpetual War
In the winter of 2002, a close friend, a liberal staffer on Capitol Hill, asked me if I thought the crazy fulminations of the neocons and the tough-guy rantings of an insecure President [1] could result in a war with Iraq? My answer was something like ‘read the Barbara Tuchman’s The Guns of August and you will get a good idea of …
Mettle of Honor?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jzJsXTXxiY]
Texas Governor Rick Perry has a new TV spot featuring a pair of Medal of Honor recipients endorsing his candidacy for President. Not sure if Americans will view this as a reason to vote for him – for the heroes’ heartfelt feelings — or against him, for turning the nation’s …
“We Had to Destroy the Airport In Order to Save It.”
As we finish, so to speak, our military mission in Iraq – and are looking toward the exit in Afghanistan – it’s worth noting that some war costs surface long after the fighting is over, and the U.S. troops who did that fighting have become grandparents:
The Medal of Honor: 150 Years of Valor
In 1861, Iowa Senator James Grimes proposed a medal to honor the bravery of Navy personnel, which Abraham Lincoln signed into law 150 years ago today, Dec. 21, 1861. That following summer, Lincoln signed authorization for an Army …