Free Republic

Sgt. Richard A. Darvial and Spc. Corey C. Canterbury, Bayonet Company, 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, Task Force No Slack, fire mortar rounds from a ridge overlooking the Ganjgal Valley in eastern Afghanistan's Kunar Province. Dec. 2010.U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Mark Burrell.

UK armed forces cuts will limit the country's ability to be a major player on the world stage, ex-US defence secretary Robert Gates has warned. The UK plans to cut 30,000 armed forces personnel by 2020, leaving 147,000. ...On the UK's military cuts, Mr Gates told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "With the fairly substantial reductions in defence spending in Great Britain, what we're finding is that it won't have full spectrum capabilities and the ability to be a full partner as they have been in the past." The spectrum refers to the ability of a country's military to fight...

RCP77, (2nd Platoon, A Co., 2/34 BSTB, 2nd BCT, 34th ID) clearing a route east of FOB Mehtlar Lam, Laghman Province. June 2011.Submitted by the photographer, Sgt. Chuck Soliday, U.S. Army.

Since Barack Obama has been in the White House, high ranking military officers have been removed from their positions at a rate that is absolutely unprecedented. Things have gotten so bad that a number of retired generals are publicly speaking out about the “purge” of the U.S. military that they believe is taking place. As you will see below, dozens of highly decorated military leaders have been dismissed from their positions over the past few years. So why is this happening? When I was growing up, my father was an officer in the U.S. Navy. And what is going on...

U.S. Army Soldiers from Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, engage enemy forces during Operation Moshtarak in Badula Qulp, Afghanistan. Feb 2010.DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Efren Lopez, U.S. Air Force.

U.S. Army Col. Benjamin J. Corell, Task Force Red Bulls commander, takes cover as a UH-60 Blackhawk lands upon a mountaintop during Operation Bull Whip in Laghman province, Afghanistan. March 2011.U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Erick Saks.

"It is with a heavy heart that I come to you all asking for assistance. The Warfighter community received a message yesterday that could not go unnoticed. A young spouse of one of our Brothers passed away at the young age of 24. They have transported her back to Maryland for her viewing and funeral. They do not have any close family and there will be little to no emotional support for the Soldier in his darkest hour. I ask that if you are in the Lansdowne Maryland area or know anyone around there please go show your support and...

The U.S. is sending an additional Army combat force of 800 soldiers to South Korea with tanks and armored troop carriers. A brief Pentagon announcement said the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment from the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas, will deploy to two locations in South Korea on Feb. 1....

The Georgia Division Sons of Confederate Veterans will again sponsor their annual Robert E. Lee Birthday Commemorative on Saturday January 18, 2014 at the Old Capitol Building, 201 E. Greene St., Milledgeville, Georgia.

Cpl. Barrett Helzer from Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, kneels in front of Canadian soldier Pvt. Alexandre Douville as he fires an 84mm high explosive anti-tank round from a Carl Gustav recoiless rifle. June 2013.U.S. Marine Corps Photo.

U.S. Army Sgt. Nick Andrews, Infantry squad leader with Company C, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, from Marshalltown, Iowa, looks into the valley from a mountaintop outside the village of Nengaresh, Afghanistan. Jan 2011.U.S Army photo by Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Matson.

A World War II fighter pilot who gained fame for dramatically flying beneath the Eiffel Tower's arches to take down a German aircraft has died aged 92. William Overstreet Jr. died on Sunday at a hospital in Roanoke, Virginia, according to his obituary, but there was no indication of the cause of his death. Overstreet's famously flew his P-51C 'Berlin Express' beneath the Eiffel Tower in Nazi-occupied Paris in 1944, which has been credited with lifting the spirits of French Resistance troops on the ground. For his valiant service, the French ambassador to the United States presented Overstreet with France's...

US soldiers gather near a destroyed vehicle and protect their faces from rotor wash, as their wounded comrades are airlifted by a Medevac helicopter from the 159th Brigade Task Force Thunder to Kandahar Hospital. Aug 2011.Johannes Eisele - AFP/Getty Images

<p>The Army got a stern warning from a Defense Department representative recently. Avoid the word “Christmas” under all circumstances.</p> <p>An equal opportunity officer delivered the message to leaders of the 158th Infantry Brigade at Mississippi’s Camp Shelby, according to Fox News.</p>

Tears of joy flow when more than 300 Soldiers from XVIII Airborne Corps and 82nd Airborne Division reunite with their loved ones after serving a year-long deployment to Iraq during a ceremony at Pope Army Airfield on Fort Bragg, N.C. Dec 2011.U.S. Army Photo by Staff Sgt. JaJuan S. Broadnax.

(CNN) -- A U.S. general who oversaw nuclear weapons boozed, fraternized with "hot women" and disrespected his hosts during an official visit to Russia this year, an investigative report shows. Maj. Gen. Michael Carey led the 20th Air Force responsible for three nuclear wings. He was relieved of duty in October because of loss of confidence in his leadership, the Air Force said at the time without providing specific details. But an Air Force Inspector General report released Thursday sheds more light into the case. It details the events of a July trip to Moscow in which witnesses recalled Carey...

MADISON, Wisc. – He was a little guy, not much bigger than James Madison in high school. Ryan Larson wrestled for his Adams-Friendship High School team at 103 pounds. He joined the Army in his junior year. Ellen Larson said her grandson made the minimum weight requirement, maybe, in uniform with a fully loaded backpack. He was a little guy, but like the fourth U.S. president, Ryan Larson, according to his family and friends, had an inner strength and perseverance that was unstoppable. That’s a big reason why he enlisted and looked forward to serving his country in Afghanistan. Larson’s...

Spc. John Bates, from the 453rd Inland Cargo Transfer Company, waves to a C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft departing Forward Operating Base Shank, Logar Province, Afghanistan. June 2010.U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Russell Gilchrest.

"The questions as to why we load five rounds in a six-chambered revolver never dies. I attempt to give some graphic insight into why we do this. The S&W Top-Break replica is from Taylor's & Company, made by Uberti."

U.S. Army Spc. Adam Supino, M249 squad automatic weapon gunner assigned to the Laghman Provincial Reconstruction Team, takes a break while on a security halt during an operation in the Alingar district in Afghanistan. Aug 2011.U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Ryan Crane.