That’s what former defense secretary Robert Gates said about Pentagon health-care costs. A just-released Congressional Budget Office chart makes that stunningly clear: Defense Department medical costs have skyrocketed over the past 30 years, going from about $10 billion in 1980 to $50 billion annually now — and are on track to reach …
Pentagon
Focusing on Skills, Not Gender, in the Military
The latest issue of the Association of the United States Navy’s magazine sits down with Vice Admiral Ann Rondeau, the Navy’s senior three-star officer and president of the National Defense University, to chat about how far women have come in the military — and how far they have yet to go. She discusses the myriad of changes in …
Droning On To a New Way of War
So the U.S. government — if not the military, then the CIA — is now using drones to kill suspected terrorists in at least six different countries — Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. Congress — the entity charged with declaring war, according to the Constitution — has basically green-lighted only the attacks …
Meet The New Boss
Leon Panetta became defense secretary Friday. He has just sent a message to U.S. troops around the world, including the 150,000 in combat zones in Afghanistan and Iraq:
Today, I was honored to take the oath of office to become the 23rd Secretary of Defense. I am mindful of the great responsibility the President has entrusted to
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Ahoy! The Doctor Will See You Now…
Two new voices here on Battleland — both important. Both historic. Both women.
Our newest Battleland crew member is retired U.S. Navy commander Darlene Iskra. Not only was she the first woman ever to command a Navy ship, she’s also been an answer — or is that a question? — on Jeopardy (check it out here — she’s the $1,600 clue …
Bravo Zulu, Mr. Secretary
Departing defense secretary Robert Gates is the 10th military chief I have covered since Harold Brown was running Jimmy Carter’s Pentagon. After a private dinner at the White House on Wednesday night, and a final ruffles and flourishes sendoff at the Pentagon on Thursday, Gates will fly off for his home in Washington state and never …
Afghan War Just Got Cheaper
OK. It’s not much, but every little bit helps. Thanks to a new airspace access deal with Russia — with Russia! — a U.S. KC-135 refueling tanker was able to fly from Washington state to the big U.S. base in Kyrgyzstan via the North Pole last week. The Manas base in Kyrgyzstan is a major support hub for the war in Afghanistan. The …
Pakistan: More Grim Reading…
Boeing Spins Like a Helicopter in Response to Leaked Spare Parts Audit
The Boeing Company made around $13 million in windfall profits off of selling grossly overpriced spare parts to the Army for its AH-64 Apache and Ch-47 Chinook helicopters, according to a 142-page leaked “For Official Use Only” audit conducted by the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DoD OIG). Of $23 million Boeing …
Which Military Service Is Most Important to National Defense – And the Most Prestigious?
Gallup is out with its periodic poll on which military service is the “most important” to national defense. Makes about as much sense as pointing to a toolbox and asking: what tool in there is most important? It all depends on the job at hand. A hammer makes little sense when you need to cut a 2-by-4. But common sense like that might …
Not Going Anywhere Soon…
Former USA Today military reporter Kirk Spitzer finds the recent uptick in chatter about U.S. forces leaving Afghanistan and Iraq just a little bit funny — because he now lives in Japan:
The wars are over. The occupations are done. It’s time to bring the troops home. But anyone who thinks US forces will depart Iraq or Afghanistan any
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F-35 Bacon Bits
While the Pentagon stresses the need for new weapons to defend the nation, contractors — and their congressional representatives — know that the need for new armaments alone doesn’t keep them rolling off the assembly line. That takes jobs. Contractors aren’t being coy about it anymore. Check out this nifty map of the United States …
Deadly Infiltrators on Both Sides of the Durand Line
The historically-porous frontier dividing Afghanistan from Pakistan — all 1,600 miles (2,400 km.) of it — has long been easily crossed by Taliban fighters seeking to attack U.S. troops in Afghanistan, who then withdraw back into the relative safety of Pakistan. If that constant border crossing isn’t headache enough for local …