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The Navy has decided that it will not repair the nuclear-powered submarine USS Miami after concluding that the cost of repairing damage from a fire set by a civilian worker is more than it can afford due to mandated budget cuts.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned on Monday that U.S. troops are “close to the breaking point,” after many deployments — and Congress risks worsening the situation if it doesn’t help the Pentagon with its budget. “Our people are strong and resilient after 12 years of war, but they are under stress — and so are the institutions that support them,” Hagel told the Veterans of Foreign Wars at the group’s annual convention in Louisville, Ky. “Last week at Fort Bragg’s Soldier and Family Assistance Center, I met a first sergeant who told me that in Afghanistan, he froze up and...

Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz have joined an upstart effort to remove the chain of command from military sexual assault cases, POLITICO has learned. The tea party favorites give the bill’s lead sponsor, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, critical conservative cover as she battles the Pentagon and hawks in both parties on her proposal to create a new prosecution system for major military crimes. Paul is scheduled to attend a press conference Tuesday in the Capitol with Gillibrand and other bill backers, including Sens. Chuck Grassley and Barbara Boxer, to discuss his new position, which inches the New York Democrat closer...

Hours after the Supreme Court ruling, the Pentagon announced that it would move to quickly extend all benefits given to opposite sex spouses to same-sex couples including medical, dental and housing allowances. Defense officials also said that same sex spouses would have the same rights to be buried alongside war veterans buried at Arlington National Cemetery. “The Department of Defense, will move very swiftly, expeditiously, on implementing the law, the decision of the Supreme Court,” said Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. “We think it’s the right decision, and we’re looking forward to taking that decision and implementing the required next steps.”...

Eric Fanning, the acting secretary of the U.S. Air Force and the first openly homosexual to hold the post, touted how “gay pride” events were being celebrated around the globe, including in Afghanistan. Fanning said he wanted to give “a shout-out to all the other DOD Pride events” at the Department of Defense’s LGBT Pride Month event at the Pentagon on Tuesday.Eric Fanning, acting secretary of the U.S. Air Force and openly homosexual.(VIDEO-AT-LINK) “This is not the DOD pride event,” Fanning said. “They're all over the world, including in Kandahar and Bagram this week in Afghanistan.” The U.S. State Department’s...

(CNSNews.com) - Why shouldn't women in the military have the same opportunities as men do? Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel asked on Thursday. It's not a matter of lowering standards, he said. In remarks at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, Hagel was asked how he feels about putting females on the front lines of combat -- "based on our social background of men being the protectors of women," as the questioner put it. Hagel's reponse: First, I think everyone understands, and this is the right thing, we can't lower standards. We have high standards. We should have high standards. Our...

In line with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel’s order for troops to have their workplaces searched for “degrading or offensive” materials—part of an attempt to curb sexual assault in the military—the Navy will inspect even its bathrooms. While what’s degrading or offensive is open to interpretation, the material can include song lyrics and “inappropriate cartoons.” In a memo sent on June 13, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus ordered that all sailors, Marines, cadets and civilian employees have their workplaces searched by June 28. The “comprehensive visual inspections” of the workspaces conducted by commanding officers will “ensure they are free from materials that...

President Obama has said the outrage over the federal government’s decision to monitor citizens’ phone activity is all “hype.”

A Congressional committee voted Wednesday to end service-specific camouflage in an amendment that would push the military toward creating joint combat uniforms by 2018. House Armed Service Committee members want the Pentagon to develop a joint combat uniform over the next five years. Moving to one joint combat uniform doesn't mean there would only be one camouflage pattern. Different patterns could still be designed for specific geographic requirements such as the woodland or desert patterns. However, each service would not design their versions. The amendment restricts the creation of any further camouflage patterns for combat uniforms unless the intention...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tt3zvlU3XEI

The U.S. Air Force directed a military base to remove a video tribute to First Sergeants because it mentioned the word ‘God’ and might be offensive to atheists or Muslims. The tribute was created by a chaplain at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. The chaplain wrote a poem titled, “God Created A First Sergeant.” It was later adapted into a video with a narration. The video was modeled after the Dodge Ram Super Bowl commercial titled, “God Created A Farmer.” “On the eighth day, God looked down on His creation and said, ‘I need someone who will take care of the Airmen,’”...

A soldier who served Chick-fil-A sandwiches at a party he threw to honor the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and his promotion to Master Sergeant has received a letter of reprimand. The soldier received his promotion last summer, and since "it coincided with national controversy surrounding Chick-fil-A's support of traditional marriage," he decided to serve their sandwiches and celebrate DOMA while he was at it. According to a Fox News report, the invitation to the soldier's party read: "In honor of my promotion and in honor of the Defense of Marriage Act, I'm serving Chick-fil-A sandwiches at my promotion party."...

Not only did former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta leak the name of the Navy SEAL group responsible for the killing of Osama Bin Laden in 2011, but the release of the Pentagon Inspector General’s (IG) report revealing the incident, which was ready in July 2012, was delayed until now. In the spring of 2012, GOP members accused Barack Obama’s administration of leaking national security secrets to help Obama get reelected, but the administration denied it. At a CIA awards ceremony on June 24, 2011, Panetta named the SEAL group and its commander. Among those present were 1300 military and...

Marines at Camp Leatherneck in Afghanistan will lose a key daily meal starting Saturday, causing some to forgo a hot breakfast and others to work six-plus hours without refueling on cooked food, according to Marines at the base and Marine Corps officials. The midnight ration service — known there as “midrats" — supplies breakfast to Marines on midnight-to-noon shifts and dinner to Marines who are ending noon-to-midnight work periods. It's described as one of the few times the Marines at Leatherneck can be together in one place.

The Obama Department of Defense is going to spend nearly $700 million to buy Russian Mi-17 helicopters for the Afghan Air Force. That’s right, $700 million of U.S. taxpayer money is going to fund our enemy’s air force. However, not only could this be considered treasonous, but even by the federal government’s 2013 National Defense Authorization Act they are in violation of their own legislation. According to Riz Novosti: WASHINGTON, April 4 (By Maria Young for RIA Novosti) – The US Department of Defense said Thursday it plans to sidestep a Congressional ban to purchase 30 helicopters from Russian state-owned...

Chinese Hackers Have Stolen Plans For Pretty Much The Entire US Military Geoffrey Ingersoll May 28, 2013, 11:11 AM Hackers have accessed designs for more than two dozen major U.S. weapons systems, according to a devastating classified report from a Pentagon advisor shared with the Washington Post. Although the report from the Defense Science Board did not identify the hackers, senior military and industry officials with knowledge of the breaches say they come primarily from China, according to Ellen Nakashima of the Post. A public version of the report released in January warned of an "existential cyber attack" with "potentially...

I look forward to Fleet Week on Memorial Day Weekend every year. The city is transformed by our heroes in the armed forces. But thanks to Obama, the 2013 Fleet Week has been cancelled. 2012 Fleet Week Event Schedule | Parade of Ships USS Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum Visitors Guide His pigs feed at trough (the unions, SEIU, "green companies," etc.) -- while decent, hard working Americans, along with our troops and assorted targets of the enemy administration, continue to be punished by the traitor in the White House. Obama and his entourage feast on Kobe steaks, holding...

A recent military report on sexual assault in the military shocked many in Washington and around the nation, but a leading expert on military personnel revealed the prevalence of men assaulting other men is one of the major headlines in this study.[snip] Women are identified as the attacker in just two percent of all assaults, meaning most men who suffer assault are targeted by other men.

<p>The International Monetary Fund on Monday said the United States was getting carried away with a government austerity drive, offering some of the institution's bluntest criticism yet of Washington's rush to cut its budget deficit.</p> <p>Despite high unemployment, Washington is on track to slash its budget shortfall this year by the most in nearly a half century.</p>

Well, it appears that TRADOC is now well into the process of attempting to destroy the greatest armed force that the world has ever known. Training and Doctrine Command has launched “two major efforts in support of this full integration of women soldiers.” TRADOC has started a scientific review working with U.S. Army Medical Command, U.S. Army Research Institute for Environmental Medicine and Army Research Institute to assist in the development of gender-neutral physical standards for all Areas of Concentration for commissioned officers and military occupational specialties for enlisted soldiers.In addition, the “TRADOC Analysis Center is examining the institutional and cultural...