Free Republic

Just an update on the Letters from Home project. If you remember, I’m collecting letters for the men and women serving aboard the USS Russell. So far I’ve received a little over 50 letters. Remember, we’re looking for about 250, so we’ve got a long way to go yet. Once again, any help you all can give would be greatly appreciated. Please pass the word along to family and friends. Or, if you have a blog, please put up a post abou the project. Letters can be sent to letters@thinking-right.com.

Just an update on the Letters from Home project. If you remember, I’m collecting letters for the men and women serving aboard the USS Russell. So far I’ve received a little over 50 letters. Remember, we’re looking for about 250, so we’ve got a long way to go yet. Once again, any help you all can give would be greatly appreciated. Please pass the word along to family and friends. Or, if you have a blog, please put up a post abou the project. Letters can be sent to letters@thinking-right.com.

REPLENISHMENT AT SEA U.S. Navy Boatswain's Mate Seaman Apprentice Jacelyn Whitespeare mans a sound-powered telephone aboard USS Ronald Reagan March 26, 2008, during a replenishment at sea with USNS Yukon while under way in the Pacific Ocean with the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher D. Blachly Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. Soldiers, Airmen Help Afghan Police Hone Skills Army Sgt. Justin Koers, New York National Guardsman and deployed police mentoring...

Psalm 119:47-51 How I Love Your Laws! How I Enjoy Your Commands! "Come, Come to me," I Call to them, For I Love them and will Let them Fill my Life. Never Forget Your Promises to me Your Servant, For they are my Only Hope. They Give me Strength in All my Troubles; How they Refresh and Revive me! Proud men Hold me in Contempt for Obedience to God, But I Stand Unmoved.

Dreams of My Arugula by JohnHuang2 So, the final returns from West Virginia are in and Hillary has defeated the Prohibitive Favorite, The Runaway Front-runner by a teensy-weensy 41-point margin. Oh, no big deal — for the fall election, Obama’s written off West Virginia and Kentucky despite his vow to campaign in all 57 states. But, as they say, Obama has the nomination math on his side — recently underscored when he bagged another coveted superdelegate, Ahmed Yousef of Hamas. Obama got crushed despite a week of ‘Clinton dismisses calls to drop out’, ‘Hillary enters death-with-dignity phase’, ‘Clinton should...

Video here

THERE is a certain familiarity to the concomitant series of actions and reactions when disaster strikes in the world. The US stands ready, willing and able to offer assistance. It is often the first country to send in millions of dollars, navy strike groups loaded with food and medical supplies, and transport planes, helicopters and floating hospitals to help those devastated by natural disaster. Then, just as swift and with equal predictability, those wedded to the Great Satan view of the US begin to carp, drawing on a potent mixture of cynicism and conspiracy theories to criticise the last remaining...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The U.S. Navy has denied Chelsea Clinton permission to campaign for her mother on a former bombing range on a small Puerto Rican island. Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign wanted to use the land Wednesday as a setting to discuss the candidate's clean up plan for the region and call to give some areas to local residents. But Navy spokeswoman Lt. Lara Bollinger said no one is allowed to campaign on federal property. Chelsea Clinton is making her second campaign visit to Puerto Rico in the last three weeks. The U.S. territory has 55 delegates...

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

Stephen Baldwin, Gary Sinise, Robert Duvall, Namrata Singh Gujral lead Fest Line-upArlington, Virginia – Indo-American actress, Namrata Singh Gujral, will present the American Pride Films Award for “Encouragement of Films that Salute the heroism of the Armed Forces�, just one of the few highlights of the Second Annual GI Film Festival, which will be held May 14-18, 2008 at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC. Fellow actors Gary Sinise, Stephen Baldwin and Robert Duvall are all scheduled to attend the 2008 star studded festival line-up. Overall, the five-day festival will present both classic and premier films honoring the...

If I told you that improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were the leading cause of U.S. casualties in Iraq, you'd expect the Pentagon would have mounted a major R&D effort to defeat this threat. And you'd be right. If I told you that helicopter crashes and shoot-downs were the leading cause of U.S. casualties in Afghanistan, you'd expect the Pentagon would have mounted a major R&D to defeat that threat as well. But you'd be wrong. Helicopter losses are the No. 1 cause of U.S. casualties in high-altitude, mountainous Afghanistan and the third leading cause in Iraq. Yet Pentagon R&D spending...

The Marine Corps far surpassed its recruiting goal last month, enlisting 2,233 people, which was 142 percent of its goal, the Pentagon said. The Army recruited 5,681 people, 101 percent of its goal. The Navy and Air Force also met their goals, 2,905 sailors and 2,435 airmen. A Defense Department spokesman, Bryan Whitman, said that if the Marine Corps continued its recruiting success, it could reach its goal of growing to 202,000 people by the end of 2009, more than a year early. end of article

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps far surpassed its recruiting goal last month and could eventually be more than a year ahead of schedule in its plan to grow the force to 202,000 members. All military services met or exceeded their monthly recruiting goals in April, with the Marine Corps signing 142 percent of the number it was looking for, the Pentagon said. The Army signed 101 percent of its goal, recruiting 5,681 against a goal of 5,650. The Navy and Air Force met their goals — 2,905 sailors and 2,435 airmen. The Marine Corps enlisted 2,233 recruits against a...

Psalm 136:1-5,23-26 Oh, Give Thanks to the LORD, for He is Good; His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. Give Thanks to the God of gods, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. Give Thanks to the LORD of Lords, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. Praise Him Who Alone Does Mighty Miracles, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. Praise Him Who Made the Heavens, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. He Remembers our Utter Weakness, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. He Saves us from our Foes, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. He Gives Food to Every Living Thing, for His Lovingkindness Continues Forever. Oh, Give Thanks...

Horror novelist Stephen King talking to High School students had this to say about literacy: "The fact is if you can read, you can walk into a job later on. If you don't, then you've got, the Army, Iraq, I don't know, something like that. It's not as bright." Now literacy is critically important and I applaud efforts to get people to read. But it’s the example he uses that is offensive. He assumes that people who go into the military do so because they have no other choices and because they are illiterate. This is clearly not true. If...

A Few of FR's Finest November 11, 2001 So many people have written me since my original Veteran's Day Tribute, asking how they, or a loved one, could be included in that tribute. Since I could no longer add the photos to the body of the thread, I have been including them here as I receive enough to make another collage. I think there's never been a better nor more appropriate time to keep the faces of our own Veterans and Active Military in front of FReepers--every day! That's why I wanted to do yet another Daily Thread .....ABOUT...

An Iranian-born United States citizen was sentenced here yesterday in US District Court to two years in prison and six months of home confinement for illegaly exporting US military aircraft parts to Iran via associates in Germany and the United Arab Emirates. Reza Tabib, 52, of Irvine, CA, pleaded guilty in June 2006 to violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), which prohibits the export and re-export to Iran of certain items of US origin. The prosecution is the result of a joint investigation by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS). In...

  ~ HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY ~        

During a business trip to the Middle East, Jason Araghi had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to bring Saudi Arabia its first gourmet coffeehouse, and opened the Art Nouveau Cafe in 1996. U.S. Army personnel at nearby Eskan Village caught word about the new coffeehouse, and soon after, invited Jason to open a cafe on the US Army base. Within months of operating at Eskan Village, the Air Force extended an invitation for a further 3 locations at the Prince Sultan Air Base, in Al-Kharj KSA. Today, GBCC Inc. serves military personnel in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Qatar, Uzbekistan, and Djibouti, Africa....

That's why it's time to consider a more serious option: invading Burma. Some observers, including former USAID director Andrew Natsios, have called on the U.S. to unilaterally begin air drops to the Burmese people regardless of what the junta says. The Bush Administration has so far rejected the idea — "I can't imagine us going in without the permission of the Myanmar government," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday — but it's not without precedent: as Natsios pointed out to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. has facilitated the delivery of humanitarian aid without the host government's consent in places...

And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace. (Luke 1: 76-79)

Demonised in the West as goons guarding the Olympic torch along its chaotic world tour, these pictures show how China's paramilitary police learn their unwavering discipline. Officers of the People Paramilitary Police preparing for the Olympics are drilled on the parade ground with pins in their collars and crosses on their backs to ensure perfect posture. But instead of the blue tracksuits members wore while escorting the flame, they are kitted out in full dress uniform during the exercise at their base in Shenyang, Liaoning province.

The U.S. military is reinforcing the sides of its topline mine-resistant vehicles to shore up what could be weak points as troops see a spike in armor-piercing roadside bombings across Iraq, The Associated Press has learned.

Most military folks I know, even the Navy Seals and the Marines, admit that no war can be won without a lot of behind-the-scenes home-front help. Of course, there's home-front help, and then there's home-front battle. A lot of us are cut out for the former, and do our share of helping in myriad ways. Our troop-support efforts are as varied and ingenious as is the spirit of the American people. But only a few of us seem to be cut out for the home-front battles, those necessary confrontations with the anti-military leftists, the Cindy Sheehans and Medea Benjamins and...

      ***** ~ Canteen Music Dedication ~ ***** ~ Support The Artists ~   Support the artists you hear throughout the Canteen! Click on the links below! Keep the music going! ArtistDirect l  Internet Radio l  AOL Music l  Sonique (Lycos) l  Real Radio Live365 l  971TheRiver  l  GotRadio  l  Wherehouse  l  Target  l Shoutcast AFRTS l  VH1 l XM Radio l  BET l  audiophile l  Virgin Radio l  Soma (Alternative) Acaza l AudioRealm l VH1 l  Yahoo! Launch Music l  Radio Disney l  Live-Radio Net ITunes l Amazon l Salsa Radio l MTV l CMT l...

With United States warships and air force planes at the ready, and over 1 million of Myanmar's citizens left bedraggled, homeless and susceptible to water-borne diseases by Cyclone Nagris, the natural disaster presents an opportunity in crisis for the US. A unilateral - and potentially United Nations-approved - US military intervention in the name of humanitarianism could easily turn the tide against the impoverished country's unpopular military leaders, and simultaneously rehabilitate the legacy of lame-duck US President George W Bush's controversial pre-emptive military policies. Myanmar's ruling junta has responded woefully to the cyclone disaster, costing more human lives than would...

Caption photos of soldiers at Kremlin's Red Square.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

Let's say you're a young person working for a large, well respected corporation with a very pronounced global presence and an acute need for an increased workforce. Your job is difficult, but also very personally fulfilling. Despite the fact that you love your job, you find yourself thinking about moving on. Sensing this, your boss comes to you and says: "I hear you're thinking about quitting. We really value your work and we need you to stay. It's hard to find qualified employees like yourself so we'd definitely like it if you stayed on. But, just so you're aware, if...

LASTING MEMORIAL James Lee, who has engraved many names onto the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, uses a sandblaster to stencil Raymond C. Mason's name onto the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall during a ceremony, May 7, 2008, Washington, D.C.Defense Dept. photo by Sebastian J. Sciotti, Jr. Canteen Mission Statement Showing support and boosting the morale ofour military and our allies militaryand family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. May 6 airpower summary: B-1B destroys enemy compound A B-1B Lancer stands by for its mission at a Southwest Asia air base. One of the B-1B's missions is to...

LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas, May 8, 2008 – Wilford Hall Medical Center here has launched a new program emphasizing the importance of literacy to parents and children alike. Reach Out and Read, a national nonprofit organization, uses several methods to promote early literacy as part of routine pediatric care, including having volunteers reading aloud in pediatric waiting rooms. Its main approach, though, is to promote literacy during well-baby or well-child visits for children from ages 6 months through 4 years. Pediatric providers trained in the Reach Out and Read model offer age-appropriate tips to emphasize to parents and...

In 10 years, Russia's national defense spending has risen by more than 965 percent as its military renews strategic air patrols, reasserts its interests throughout the former Soviet space, and actively pushes back against competing security interests from the U.S. and Europe. Last year, Russian national defense spending surpassed $32 billion, compared with less than $3 billion in 1998. Looking forward, Russian defense spending is expected to trend upward; however, Moscow's strategic bandwidth may be constrained by a confluence of defense economic factors.

   Freeper Canteen:  Computer Geeks Unite!         Today We Want To Know... Are You A Computer Geek? Click here and take the quiz! At the last question, choose HTML, then submit, to get your answer. After you do so, please post your findings in the Canteen! *Be warned--this is a longer test than normal for the Canteen!   Have fun!  

Sunday, May 11, is Mother’s Day — a day designated to show appreciation to our moms for everything they do for their families. Thanks will be given for all the miles traveled, the cookies baked, the costumes made, the stories read, the balls pitched and the hugs doled out.There are many moms who have gone one step further in motherhood commitment — they gave their blessing to their sons and daughters who enlisted in the United States Armed Forces.In honor of Mother’s Day, the Burns Times-Herald offered a few local military moms a chance to share their story, brag a...

Legislation that would restrict the sale of certain men's magazines on U.S. military bases around the world would be bad for morale, according to soldiers at Grafenwöhr. U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., has introduced legislation that would close a loophole in the current law that allows the sale of some sexually explicit material on military bases by lowering the threshold required to deem material "sexually explicit." A Department of Defense committee that reviews materials sold on bases ruled last year that magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse are not pornographic. But Broun's Military Honor and Decency Act includes language that...

Perhaps some insiders (or those unwillingly part) of the Clintonistas’ administration realized that what we (the USA) were doing was just not right - and so the award/medal could not be called/designated in more accurate terms as the “Re-establishment of the Islamic Caliphate” Medal… So better to have sent in the Girl Scouts - as things would have ended up basically the same as they have, except perhaps with less loss of innocent life. Anyway, it’s is also off of my uniform forever. My only desire is that in some very small way it may help people to become aware...

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2008 – Military Spouse magazine honored Michelle McIntyre-Brewer as the 2008 Military Spouse of the Year here today. The wife of an Army second lieutenant, McIntyre-Brewer somehow finds time to volunteer at the United Service Organizations, Soldier’s List, American Red Cross, American Heart Association, and March of Dimes, all while raising two young children, including a daughter born with a heart defect. During the award ceremony today, McIntyre-Brewer, 29, said the award represents the idealized military spouse, one who supports the mission of an American military that aims to improve conditions in parts of the world less...

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2008 – President Bush presented six military spouses the Presidential Volunteer Service Award today for exceptional support to their communities and the nation. Video Bush made the presentation as 1,100 military spouses gathered for a Military Spouse Recognition Day celebration on the White House South Lawn. This year’s awardees were: Colleen Saffron, an Army wife; Ramona Vazquez, a Coast Guard wife; Bob Davidson, an Air Force husband; Ellen Patton, a Navy wife; Dawnle Scheetz, an Army Reserve wife; and Kaprece James, a Marine Corps wife. “The six individuals we honor here today have earned the respect...

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2008 – President Bush and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates paid tribute today to about 1,100 military spouses who gathered for a Military Spouse Day celebration at the White House, where Bush promised to continue pushing for more benefits for military families. Alex Loudon, wife of Navy Command Master Chief Petty Officer Michael Dyer, left, and Amanda Villiers, wife of Army Staff Sgt. Stan Villiers, join about 1,100 military spouses at the White House for a Military Spouse Day celebration, May 6, 2008. Defense Department photo by Donna Miles  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Following...

CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C., May 6, 2008 – Drama can occasionally creep into the lives of military families, but since last season, it’s been a sure thing for the military families portrayed on Lifetime Network’s top-rated show. Natalie McQueen and her daughter, MacKenzie, 5, holding a "Welcome Home" sign, were extras during filming for "Army Wives" on May 5, 2008, at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. The Lifetime Network show, which normally films on a former military installation in the area, was filming the fourth episode of its second season on the base. Defense Department photo by Samantha...

Today President Bush signed H.R. 4286, This is a bill passed by the leaders of the Senate and House to honor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi with the Congressional Gold Medal. She is Myanmar's detained opposition leader who has spent nearly 12 of the last 18 years in prison or under house arrest. He also expressed his heartfelt sympathy to the people of Burma in the wake of their natural disaster. LINKPresident Bush took part in an event commemorating Military Spouse Day on the South Lawn at the White House. LINK President Bush met with Panama's President Martin Torrijos in...

Like in a scene from one of his horror novels, writer Stephen King channeled the spirit of John Kerry while addressing a group of high school students at the Library of Congress recently: I don't want to sound like an ad, a public service ad on TV, but the fact is if you can read, you can walk into a job later on. If you don't, then you've got, the Army, Iraq, I don't know, something like that. It's, it's not as bright. So, that's my little commercial for that.What mysterious and evil force compels liberals to morph into complete...

My 17 year old son has announced that he wants to join the Army right out of high school and become a Ranger. Today a friend of his took him to the National Guard to talk to a recruiter who told him it would be no problem becoming a Ranger through the Guard. Based on the conversation he relayed to me, the recruiter also made it sound like an MP is a great MOS. I have a brother in Iraq right now with Black Water, he is too emotionally involved to get a straight answer out of. Everyone has an...

DETROIT, May 5, 2008 – Patriotism was in full gear at the Chrysler headquarters today, as hundreds gathered inside the star-spangled atrium of the automaker’s main hub to honor America’s men and women in uniform. Robert Nardelli, chairman and chief executive officer of Chrysler, signs a 5-Star Military Support Agreement on May 5, 2008, in Auburn Hills, Mich., pledging the automaker's commitment to continue supporting employees who are called into active military service. Defense Department photo by John J. Kruzel  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. On the tiered floors of the glass-enclosed plaza here, employees hung over railings...

Psalm 95:1-3,6,7 Come, Let us Rejoice Unto the Lord: Let us Sing Aloud Unto the Rock of our Salvation. Let us Come Before His Face with Praise: Let us Sing Aloud Unto Him with Psalms. For the LORD is a Great God, And a Great King Above All Gods. Come, Let us Worship and Fall Down, Let us Kneel Before the LORD our Maker. For He is our God, And we are the People of His Pasture, And the Sheep of His Hand.

A Few of FR's Finest November 11, 2001 So many people have written me since my original Veteran's Day Tribute, asking how they, or a loved one, could be included in that tribute. Since I could no longer add the photos to the body of the thread, I have been including them here as I receive enough to make another collage. I think there's never been a better nor more appropriate time to keep the faces of our own Veterans and Active Military in front of FReepers--every day! That's why I wanted to do yet another Daily Thread .....ABOUT...

Any Harvard student with the balls to participate in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) deserves our respect. Quite frankly, ROTC doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun. For four years, cadets and midshipmen wake up obscenely early in order to trek to MIT and get yelled at by their instructors. That’s an indignity that Harvard usually reserves for accounting students. If you want to know what visceral discomfort looks like, watch a Harvard ROTC student shuffle across campus in his military uniform. Banished by the Faculty in 1969 amid a rising tide of anti-war sentiment on Harvard’s campus,...

Our Troops Rock!  Thank you for all you do!   For the freedom you enjoyed yesterday... Thank the Veterans who served in The United States Armed Forces.   Looking forward to tomorrow's freedom? Support The United States Armed Forces Today!     ~ Hall of Heroes ~ SGT Finnis D. McCleery Info from this website.             Finnis Dawson McCleery (December 25, 1927 – July 11, 2002) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Vietnam War.McCleery joined the Army from San...