Military News

I am so happy to read this and only someone in you...

2012-01-11T05:59:04.117-08:00

I am so happy to read this and only someone in your position could say it so well. As a staunch preventionist, I applause your words and apparent successes. The work I do as a social worker is NOT about abstinence (unless you are under 21, pregnant, nursing, on Rx...) or prohibition. I want people to learn to be responsible with alcohol, food, behavior and everything else in our lives. Thank you!

Lt. Foster, Thank you so much for sharing this ite...

2011-12-17T10:13:20.462-08:00

Lt. Foster, Thank you so much for sharing this item on your blog spot. I cannot express how much I appreciate and revel in our cause being supported and uplifted by the community. Many hugs, and many thanks for your hand in building awareness.

Sincerely,

Andrekka Lanier

You are spot on this entire article. I luckily hav...

2011-10-14T01:15:09.096-07:00

You are spot on this entire article. I luckily have not had to fight for my PTSD determination because it was very evident that my life was in danger after 3 days of intensive care. Despite that I still face judgemental comments from certain civilian providers. It is a hard process when it leaves you unsure of how you will react, it is a subconscious choice of fight or flight that your body makes.

It takes a lot of planning for any funeral, but on...

2011-08-19T21:00:30.053-07:00

It takes a lot of planning for any funeral, but one like this must be especially detailed. When on active duty many years ago, I served in a funeral detail for a short period. I had always thought a "firing squad" was used for executions, and was surprised to learn the same term applied to a guard of honor who fired in salute at a funeral. Thank you for providing this description. Although I wasn't at sea, the article brought to mind the sights and sounds of the first funeral where I was honored to serve. May these veterans rest in peace.

A good article and info that there is help is alwa...

2011-08-12T12:40:32.370-07:00

A good article and info that there is help is always welcome. Bottom line, our military needs more income in order to support their families. Those on the front line shouldn't have to worry if their family will have milk for the baby or need food stamps. These military soldiers give their all. The country needs to provide pay and benefits equal to the service they render. As a Navy vet, mother of a vet, and mother-in-law to another one, I can attest to the need.

Thank you for sharing this. I hadn't heard abo...

2011-08-12T12:37:13.069-07:00

Thank you for sharing this. I hadn't heard about it, but I'll go looking. I'm sure it won't be hard to find. What a legacy this man left for his son. The effects of his fatherhood are already being seen in the honor his son displays.

how can we greet the ship when it returns? I am a ...

2011-07-21T15:04:02.520-07:00

how can we greet the ship when it returns? I am a family member. Thanks.

Hmmm... let me rephrase that a bit -- I watched wi...

2011-07-18T20:13:03.191-07:00

Hmmm... let me rephrase that a bit -- I watched with my parents, not as he lifted off with them. Although they'd have been thrilled, no doubt. ^_^

I remember the first trip, and the last. I can'...

2011-07-18T20:12:09.988-07:00

I remember the first trip, and the last. I can't recall who said this, but it was certainly true. "You might be a baby boomer if you watched John Glenn lift off into space with your parents... and your children."

Hats off to a brave American.

Hi, Welcome to Brisbane. Is the ship open to the p...

2011-07-10T02:47:11.368-07:00

Hi, Welcome to Brisbane. Is the ship open to the public while in Brisbane

I'm glad to read about this. As both a former ...

2011-06-22T22:19:03.946-07:00

I'm glad to read about this. As both a former Navy petty officer and the wife of one who was deployed for almost a year, I can attest to the levels of stress, loneliness, and fears that assail those left behind. My husband dealt with a collision at sea, constantly interrupted sleep schedules, and other issues that he still won't (or can't) discuss. It's good to know the military is looking out for its personnel. Thanks for sharing this article.

Thanks, Lieutenant Foster, for including me in thi...

2011-06-14T11:23:23.314-07:00

Thanks, Lieutenant Foster, for including me in this great group of American heroes. - Valerie

Great article. Very informative.

2011-06-13T10:42:45.802-07:00

Great article. Very informative.

Dep Sec Def Lynn Says Future Wars Deadlier – I (&a...

2011-06-09T14:21:42.973-07:00

Dep Sec Def Lynn Says Future Wars Deadlier – I (& History) Disagree!

It was reported in the article in the 9 Jun 2011, Washington Times (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/jun/8/future-wars-seen-as-longer-deadlier/?page=all#pagebreak ) that Speaking on 8 Jun 2011 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III identified what he called “three strategic trends” that are shaping “our future national security environment: lethality, duration and asymmetry.” He opined that “the wars of the future will be longer, deadlier and waged against a more diverse variety of enemies than ever before …. “

I would contend that only a guy who has never spent a single solitary day in Uniform could come to his conclusion that future conflicts will be deadlier. While I might tend to agree future enemies may be more diverse and conflicts longer, there is absolutely no rationale for concluding they will be deadlier! As a matter of fact, recent experience indicates otherwise and regardless, I doubt the American public has the stomach anymore for combat losses of even the magnitude of Vietnam so it may be a moot point.

Understand as a Vietnam combat Vet who spent 30 years in the Army (and was in Afghanistan as a civilian last year), I consider every service member’s life precious and I don’t wish to diminish the death of a single one but I wanted to put our present US Military Operations into a little perspective and refute our Deputy Secretary’s contention that future conflicts will be deadlier! I base my conclusions on my following analysis of the major US deployments since 1941.

Although theoretically the Vietnam War lasted10 years but 51,585 of the total 58,220 killed occurred during the real 5 years (1966-70) of the war when we were heavily engaged. At the height of the war in 1968 we were losing 50 a day killed!

The Korean War lasted 3 years and one month (Jun 1950 – Jul 53) and total US Killed was 36,516. That averages ~32+ killed a day

By comparison, in the almost 10 years we’ve been in Afghanistan (Oct 2001-present), as of the beginning of this month (Jun) we’ve had 1583 military killed from all causes in country and the surrounding regions (1106 Soldiers, 325 Marines, 83 Airmen and 69 Sailors). That averages less than ½ person lost per day but this year is shaping up to be the deadliest of the conflict. So far in 2011 we’ve lost 167 killed in 189 days or less than one per day.

In Iraq and the surrounding region we’ve been there for over 8 years (Mar 03-Present) and lost 4446 total to all causes (3263 Soldiers, 1022 Marines, 103 Sailors, 57 Airmen and 1 Coast Guardsmen). That’s less then 1½ lost a day. In the 210 Day First Gulf War (1990-91) US losses were 148 Combat and 145 Non-combat for a total of 293 killed.

Now if you want to talk about deadly, the US lost almost half a million men in World War II. The Battle of the Bulge alone lasted 40 days (16 Dec 44 – 25 Jan 45) with almost 90,000 U.S. casualties; 19,000 killed, 47,500 wounded, and 23,000 captured or missing. The 36-day Iwo Jima assault resulted in more than 26,000 American casualties, including 6,800 dead while the 82-day Battle for Okinawa lasted from early April until mid-June 1945 and U.S. (5 Army and 2 Marine Corps Divisions) casualties were over 62,000 with over 12,000 killed.

Like I said earlier, every service member’s life is precious and I don’t wish to diminish the death of a single one but I want to put our present US Military Operations into a little perspective and challenge our Deputy Secretary’s contention that future conflicts will be deadlier! Hopefully, the trend will continue to be just to opposite, each conflict will be less deadly than the one before.

If you want to know how I really feel about things, check out my Blog at: http://old-soldier-colonel.blogspot.com/

Many American citizens have no idea what it is lik...

2011-05-30T06:34:22.391-07:00

Many American citizens have no idea what it is like to serve their country and take for granted what our military service men and women go through to protect all Americans Freedoms. Many are complacent ignorant fools that say stupid things when they have no clue what it is like to be in the boots of the true American Hero’s that are fighting for them. True Americans will Never Forget your Incredible Valor. I say God Bless our Fallen Hero's and thank you from every fiber of my being.

I've always believed that every mom is a "...

2011-05-18T12:55:58.452-07:00

I've always believed that every mom is a "working mom" because there is so much that goes into caring for a child. I had three in less than four years, so I can speak with authority on that! It's good to see that this family works out decisions and childcare together. No doubt the future will hold many more chances to adjust. As someone said, "The only thing permanent is change."

OUTSTANDING...SGT Steley, OUTSTANDING. Sis

2011-05-04T06:03:47.349-07:00

OUTSTANDING...SGT Steley, OUTSTANDING. Sis

I've had the honor and the privilege to read J...

2011-04-26T05:06:09.991-07:00

I've had the honor and the privilege to read John's book and his "gritty, visceral, in-your-face account of the life of a grunt in Vietnam" is hard to put down. Kudos John, for a damn good book. Proud to have read it and proud to call you a friend.

A CPO Cutlass? Really! The 1860 style cutlass has ...

2011-03-20T11:37:24.797-07:00

A CPO Cutlass? Really! The 1860 style cutlass has never been a CPO weapon until now. It finally left inventoy in 1942 and finally gotten rid of in 1949. It was found in bootcamps as a symbol of the leading recruit in the company who is know as Recruit CPO (who is not a Chief). The CPO paygrade came into being in 1893 and still it was not designated as a CPO weapon. Senior Chief and Master Chief (of all levels) didn't come into being unitl 1959. I would be more in favor of it being a Petty Officer's (E-4 to E-9) weapon just like Corporals through to Saergent Majors in the Marine Corps and the Army. To me, this is just one more thing that makes the CPO community look like Officers, how sad it is the E-4 to E-6 folks are always left out. Thanks my beloved Navy.

Review Written By Bernie Weisz, Historian, Vietnam...

2011-01-21T01:10:43.176-08:00

Review Written By Bernie Weisz, Historian, Vietnam War January 21, 2011 Pembroke Pines, Florida, USA E Mail Contact: BernWei1@aol.com Title of Review: "In Vietnam I Was Important. Once Back in The U.S., I Was A Baby Killer!" in this memoir, author Clyde Hoch both doled out and escaped death. Clyde Hoch watched a RGP (rocket propelled grenade) shoot right at him and narrowly miss killing him as well as watch 600 hardened, fully outfitted N.V.A. soldiers stand up and start walking towards his tank position. He wrote about that, describing: "It was probably what Custer felt like, seeing hundreds and hundreds of the N.V.A. stand up and start walking towards us." Out in the jungle, he wrote: "We got so used to drinking warm beer, that once we had a cold one, it didn't taste right." Shortly before his tour ended, Clyde Hoch was in for a surprise. Conversing with a soldier that just returned from "the World" (the U.S.) he was told the following: "They hate us over there. They spit at us and call us baby killers. They throw dirty diapers at us." Hoch's reaction: I could not believe what I was hearing! We were risking our lives every day, living in sometimes horrendous conditions so they could have their freedom. What the hell is wrong with those people? It was a great shock for us. I thought we were kind of heroes. Instead we were viewed as idiots and barbarians." As a foreshadowing of what Jane Fonda would later do when she toured North Vietnam in 1972, during which she cozied up to the enemy, posing for photo op's with communist troops and broadcasting anti-American rhetoric, Hoch wrote: "I had heard later that college kids and some actors were hoping for the N.V.A to kill all of us Americans. They were wishing for our death while we felt we were protecting them. They were actually supporting the North Vietnamese. This seemed so unpatriotic to me. They did not know me. I was there to help my country." The balance of this memoir underscores this ambiguity. It is actually impossible for the reader to not be in Clyde Hoch's tank with him, to watch the carnage, the bonds formed with his fellow tankers and to vicariously experience the anguish he felt when the very people he was protecting treacherously turned on him. "Tracks" is a memoir that reads like a novel but stirs your gut like very few others will. It is an absolute "must read" for every American to read, particularly with our forces now coming back from the Middle East. The disappointing return home to the country and people Clyde Hoch and others gave so much for will stay with you not only after you have finished "Tracks," but forever. An absolute essential read for any historian of the Vietnam War!

This is very inspiring. =] I've been trying to...

2011-01-01T20:11:39.745-08:00

This is very inspiring. =]
I've been trying to find a way to help our troops, without spending too much money. I currently am without a job, and my dad is in the middle of keeping a new one. I hope there are many out there like you, and will want to help our troops! You are awesome for what you are doing!

Remember Pearl Harbor -- Keep America Alert! (Now...

2010-12-09T08:47:27.309-08:00

Remember Pearl Harbor -- Keep America Alert!

(Now deceased) America's oldest living Medal of Honor recipient, living his 101st year is former enlisted Chief Petty Officer, Aviation Chief Ordnanceman (ACOM), later wartime commissioned Lieutenant John W. Finn, U. S. Navy (Ret.). He is also the last surviving Medal of Honor, "The Day of Infamy", Japanese Attack on the Hawaiian Islands, Naval Air Station, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii, 7 December 1941.

(Now deceased) 'Navy Centenarian Sailor', 103 year old, former enlisted Chief Petty Officer, Aviation Chief Radioman (ACRM, Combat Aircrewman), later wartime commissioned Chief Warrant Officer Julio 'Jay' Ereneta, U. S. Navy (Ret.), is a thirty year career veteran of World War One and World War Two. He first flew aircrewman in August 1922; flew rearseat Radioman/Gunner (1920s/1930s) in the tactical air squadrons of the Navy's first aircraft carriers, USS LANGLEY (CV-1) and USS LEXINGTON (CV-2).

Visit my photo album tribute to these centenarian veteran shipmates and other Pearl Harbor survivors:

http://news.webshots.com/album/123286873BFAAiq

http://news.webshots.com/album/141695570BONFYl

San Diego, California

This is a local policy for the hospital in MD., no...

2010-11-23T06:23:25.677-08:00

This is a local policy for the hospital in MD., not a Navy wide policy.

This is a local policy for the hospital in MD., no...

2010-11-23T06:22:58.571-08:00

This is a local policy for the hospital in MD., not a Navy wide policy.

Bravo Zula Oakland Navy League !!!!!

2010-10-17T14:58:06.028-07:00

Bravo Zula Oakland Navy League !!!!!