Free Republic

GATES MILLS, Ohio -- President George W. Bush made a pit stop on his way back to the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Tuesday evening. After leaving a fundraiser in Gates Mills, his motorcade passed a home with a sign asking the president to stop by -- so he did. Bush got out of the car and spent a few minutes with Ruth Harris, who was celebrating her 91st birthday with her family. Bush sat in a chair next to Harris and said "91 years old -- how special." When neighbors noticed what was happening, they soon surrounded the president for...

...the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School is not even “a pygmy in the lineup of TRADOC schools.” JFKSWCS is missing from the TRADOC listing of branch centers and schools altogether. It is an orphan, with neither guidance nor funding from the U. S. Army organization designed to support it. ***Snip**** ...senior Army leaders have crippled Special Forces doctrine, organization, training, material acquisition, leadership development, personnel management, facilities, and maintenance. “Center and School” is becoming a hollow title; SWCS is being degraded to the equivalent of Ranger School....

BUTLERVILLE, Ind., June 23, 2008 – The scene in Building 7 at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center here was chilling. Marines from Battalion Landing Team 2/6, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, move between buildings during training, June 10, 2008, at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, in Butlerville, Ind. The Marines were using the facility during the 26th MEU's realistic urban training exercise, part of the MEU's predeployment training period. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Aaron J. Rock  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Visitors were greeted by the sounds of a screaming man, covered in blood and missing his legs just...

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces captured a suspected Iranian-trained Special Groups commander and three other suspected criminals Sunday during operations in the Kadamiyah district of Baghdad. The targeted individual allegedly conducted attacks against Iraqi security and Coalition forces and was involved in extra-judicial killings in Baghdad. Reports also indicate the wanted individual was an associate of several senior-level criminal element leaders involved in attacks on Coalition forces. Intelligence led Coalition forces to the targeted individual’s location. En route, Coalition forces came under attack by small arms fire from unknown assailants. After arriving at the targeted individual’s location, Coalition forces came...

April 7, 2009 at 9:00am Oscar-winning actor, Interview, Special. The noted star of such epics as The Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur discusses his career. Hosted by Robert Osborne. TCM Schedule

<p>This animated video is presented with a Red Tailed Hawk and Song, also bird watchers that run into a divided scenario that result in verbal declaration.</p> <p>I am ramping up creating videos and this may be the last one for awhile but if you wish to see all or some of my videos go to my web-page revski.org at the link below and on YouTube - o7jimmy or YouTube - lotis333 my wife Cheryl's page and her videos.</p>

Hines has pleaded not guilty to a series of felonies that could bring him a life prison term. Police are still searching for the intended victims, who have not come forward. Hines is a Four Trey Crip, said Los Angeles Police Lt. Paul Stalker, commanding officer of detectives in the department's Newton Division, which covers 10 square miles of South Los Angeles, a shifting mosaic of gang territories. The gunman's intended victims, investigators believe, were probably Bloods, perhaps members of a branch called AFC, or "All for Crime." Generally, Bloods control the east side of Central and Crips the west....

BAGHDAD — The Special Olympics Torch Run kicked off March 15 with Coalition forces in Tikrit running a 5K race that will culminate with runners in Honolulu May 22. Soldiers from the 728th Military Police Battalion, 18th Military Police Brigade and Multi National Division – North sponsored the first-ever run at Contingency Operating Base Speicher. The run is in honor of the “Troy Barboza Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics” that has been held for 21 years on the Islands of Hawaii. “These are great American Soldiers doing something for a great cause,” said Lt. Col. Brian Bisacre, commander,...

FOR REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS - 14TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT (Vote for 1) Votes % of Votes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jim Oberweis 4332 52.86% Bill Foster 3798 46.35%

WASHINGTON, March 5, 2008 – The numbers of U.S. special operations forces are expected to grow in the years ahead as the United States continues its fight against global terrorism, a senior U.S. military officer told a Senate panel here yesterday. By direction of the president, U.S. Special Operations Command is the lead combatant command for synchronizing Defense Department planning for the global war against terrorism, Navy Adm. Eric T. Olson, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Today, special operators are posted in 58 countries, mostly in small numbers, Olson said. More...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2008 – A critical illness can stretch any family emotionally and financially, but when the patient is a child, the potential stresses are even greater. Stephen Jordan and his wife, Elena, spend time with their children, William (front left), Zachary (back left), Samuel (back middle) and Emma at one of Believe In Tomorrow National Children's Foundation's retreat facilities. All of the foundation's facilities give military families priority. Stephen serves in the Navy. Courtesy photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The Believe In Tomorrow National Children’s Foundation is helping ease those burdens. It provides, free...

It began as a tip to America's Most Wanted: An anonymous caller said the No. 1 fugitive was holed up in a South Side house. With the TV show's cameras in tow, deputy U.S. marshals raided 788 Stambaugh Ave. on Jan. 7 looking for Manuel Penaloza, who was wanted in two killings and a carjacking in Pasadena, Calif. Instead, they found five undocumented immigrants in the tiny bungalow. The immigrants were deported; there was no evidence that Penaloza had ever been there. "Something's fishy," said Tom Genz, who supervises the Marshals Service office in Columbus. "As time goes by, I'm...

Political groups unaffiliated with the two major parties account for an increasingly large share of spending on federal campaigns -- 19% of the total in 2006, up from just 7% in 2000, according to an analysis of campaign-finance data by The Wall Street Journal. They now are horning in on crucial campaign activities once dominated by the parties, such as buying ads and getting out the vote. ...Over the past four years, the national Democratic and Republican parties have raised and spent less on elections than during the prior four years, when adjusted for inflation. At the same time, independent...

http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=7483075 TOLEDO (AP) — Republican state representative Bob Latta has been elected to fill a vacant congressional seat in northwest Ohio. The Associated Press called the race for Latta just before 9 p.m. With 65 percent of precincts reporting, Latta had 56 percent of the vote, compared to 44 percent for Democratic candidate Robin Weirauch. Latta will replace the late Paul Gillmor, who died in September from a fall at his Washington apartment. Latta’s father, Delbert, held the conservative and traditionally Republican 5th district seat from 1959 until 1989. The 51-year-old Latta won the GOP nomination November 6th following a...

SIERRA VISTA — For many young Marines, Saturday night was the first time they celebrated the Corps birthday — its 232nd. For others, the celebration on the day of the founding of the Marines in a Philadelphia tavern — Nov. 10, 1775 — has been part of their makeup for many years. It was the dedication of the Corps in its 23-plus decades of existence that retired Marine Col. Sean Del Grosso spoke about to more than 400 people at a birthday ball at The Palms. It was a night of pageantry, as young Marines assigned to the Marine Corps...

Looking at the calendar this morning, I noticed an entry -in my late wife's handwriting-for tomorrow's date: USMC- Semper Fi.

SACRAMENTO, (AP) -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Monday he will call a special session of the state Legislature to deal with health care, as lawmakers debated a Democratic plan he has pledged to veto. The state Senate passed that plan on a 22-17 vote and sent it to the Assembly shortly after the governor announced his intention. Health care is the governor's top priority this year, and the special session would buy time for him to strike a deal with Democrats on how to cover millions of uninsured Californians. The regular legislative session is scheduled to end this week, and...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 26, 2007 – Janet Southby has been a driving force behind the Walter Reed Society since the group’s beginning in 1996. The Walter Reed Society works to enhance patient support and improve morale by funding special unmet needs of soldiers and their families during treatment and recovery. Southby served as first vice president of the group until being elected president in 2001 and has held that position ever since. “I have been privileged to serve with a dedicated group of volunteers on the Board of Directors and in other volunteer positions for the past six years,” said...

...The family of Alba Somoza, who has cerebral palsy and speaks only with the help of a computer, filed one such case. Alba drew national attention in the 1990s when her family successfully pushed to include the then-third grader in a regular classroom. Then-President Bill Clinton backed her cause, and Alba, now 23, graduated with honors from a New York City high school in 2002. Last year, Alba and her family filed an administrative case claiming her education was a sham. A school report prepared weeks before she graduated showed she had language and math skills at an elementary school...

TAMPA, Fla., July 10, 2007 – The military paid tribute to a special operations leader at a retirement ceremony for Army Gen. Bryan “Doug” Brown here yesterday. U.S. Army Gen. Doug Brown, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, salutes during the singing of the national anthem during a change of command ceremony presided over by Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Fla., July 9, 2007. Brown, who has commanded USSOCOM since September 2003, is retiring from active duty after 40 years of service to the nation. Navy Adm. Eric T. Olson, who...

I am wondering if anyone here has an info on Special Forces training that isn't easily found on the Internet. I am very tentatively considering going for SF in maybe 12-18 months. I have to get in a lot better shape (plus I need to get promoted to at least E-4), in the meantime. I don't just intend to qualify for SF training, I want to get to the training, stay in it all the way through, and become SF qualified and wear the tab. I won't go unless my PT score is in excess of 275 (it's currently around...

Staff Sgt. Chuck Shuck and his K9 partner, Sgt. 1st Class Gabe, both with 178th Military Police Detachment, 20th Military Police Battalion, take a break to hydrate during a cordon and search operation in the village of Shukran, near Forward Operating Base Q-West. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Amanda Morrissey  More Photos K9 Team Brings Special Skills to the Fight Dogs also keep morale high for combat soldiers in Iraq. By Spc. Amanda Morrissey5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment SHUKRAN, Iraq, June 4, 2007 — For just about every cordon and search operation in Iraq, there is a special two-soldier...

SUN CITY — When Rose Sodergren of Sun City laid her eyes on piles and piles of camouflage-colored yarn, she knew exactly what her mission was — to weave scarves for soldiers. Since September, Sodergren, a member of the Oakmont Artistic Weavers Club, has woven more than 100 scarves for troops serving in Iraq. "It's the most rewarding thing I've ever done," she said. "I knew as soon as I saw the yarn what it was meant for." Sodergren works in the craft and fabric department of Wal-Mart. When a large shipment of the camouflage-colored yarn came in, she approached...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 20, 2006 -- Special Iraqi army forces, with coalition advisors, conducted a raid today in Baghdad’s Sadr City neighborhood against an illegal armed group responsible for kidnapping, torturing and murdering Iraqi civilians and soldiers. The cell has more than 30 members and allegedly uses a mosque compound as a place to conduct its illegal activity and store weapons. The cell is known to be targeting Iraqi soldiers, officials said. Iraqi forces entered the mosque in search of cell members, but no one was detained. There was minimal damage to the mosque, and Iraqi forces fired on and...

SIERRA VISTA — The city’s 50th birthday year may be drawing to a close, but a small part of the celebrations will continue thousands of miles away. A flag created by Sierra Vista citizens during the official anniversary weekend activities at Veterans’ Memorial Park in May, will soon be making its way to Fort Huachuca-based soldiers currently deployed in Iraq. And accompanying it will be a care package of food, cards and letters, thanks to Cub Scout Pack 445. The flag was created with the help of the Sierra Vista Arts Council, which asked members of the public to place...

Does anyone know who the sponsors of the Simpson special are yet? Is there a list I can access? I have every intention of boycotting every sponsor that funds this piece of garbage.

11/3/2006 - SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) -- Country music stars Vince Gill, Toby Keith, LeeAnn Womack and George Strait share their favorite holiday memories and traditions in a "Red, White and Air Force Blue Christmas" radio special, slated for release this month. Produced and marketed by the Air Force Recruiting Service's Strategic Communications Division, the one-hour show features in-depth interviews with each of the stars along with songs from their holiday albums. The program will be sent to American Forces Radio and Television Service affiliates and more than 3,300 country radio stations, according to Jimmy Spacek, AFRS broadcasting manager. The show,...

The pentagon announced TODAY the formation of a new 500-man elite fighting unit called the United States Redneck Special Forces (USRSF). These boys will be dropped into Iraq and have been given the following facts about terrorists: 1. The season opened today. 2. There is no limit. 3. They taste like chicken. 4. They don't like beer, pickups, country music or Jesus. 5. They are directly responsible for the death of Dale Earnhardt. The Pentagon expects the problem in Iraq to be over by Friday.

This war against terrorism has been going on since the '80's, but no one has really wanted to understand what it is. It is never going away. You can't wash it away, or rehabilitate it. They will destroy every man, woman, and child on this earth who does not believe in and adhere to their way of life. It is as simple as that. The problem is we have, thus far, not been willing to destroy them. They get medals for cutting our heads off, whereas we go to jail for putting underwear on their heads.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7, 2006 – Starbucks didn’t just wish then-Army Capt. Matt Parkinson well when he was activated to serve in Iraq as part of the Washington National Guard. Instead, the company went above and beyond what the federal law requires employers do for activated reserve-component personnel, Parkinson said. The company made up the difference between his civilian and military pay and maintained his benefits while he was activated, between November 2003 and February 2005. He said his supervisors and friends within the company offered him any support he needed, whether it was personal or job related. “It’s not just...

The idea of digging-in disgusted Patton. A victorious army, in his mind, was always on offense, never on defense. It was one of the myriad reasons Patton was such a successful combat commander. It didn’t always make him popular with his subordinates and peers, and he frequently caught hell from the media, but the man knew how to fight and win wars. He was neither a ticket puncher nor a politician. He would have scoffed at modern political correctness. And his only objective was always the combination of a decisive defeat of the enemy and the utter annihilation of his...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 – The Army has authorized award of the Bronze Star Medal for Service to the living Canadian veterans of the 1st Special Services Force for their service to the U.S. Army during World War II. The unit was known as “the Devil’s Brigade” during the war and was one of the first U.S. special operations forces units in the war. The unit included U.S. Army soldiers and soldiers of the 2nd Canadian Parachute Battalion and 2nd Canadian Special Service Battalion of the Special Operations Group. From 1942 to 1944, about 2,500 soldiers served in the unit...

But we Americans seem to have short memories. What else could explain the fact that we, generally speaking, so-often lambaste the French, calling them “cowards” for not allying themselves fully with us in every instance? We constantly throw in their faces the fact that we came to their rescue in World Wars I and II. And we’ve all heard the jokes: “Surplus French military rifles for sale. Never fired. Dropped once.”

WASHINGTON, July 27, 2006 – Soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division's 4th Brigade Combat Team are working to set conditions for the Iraqi government to take charge of essential services and public works within Baghdad. Army Lt. Col. Joe Gandara, commander of Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, meets with neighborhood representatives in the Doura Baladiya, in southwestern Baghdad. Local representatives often detail the most pressing needs of their neighborhoods and communities. Photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, USA  '(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The brigade's Special Troops Battalion has taken the lead in...

Outsiders often view SEALs as supermen. Perhaps they are in the sense of infused commitment to both achieving the objective and never quitting. But ordinary, according to insiders, in the sense that they are just highly trained men doing extraordinary things. “Definitely not Supermen, my classmates particularly,” says Worthington. “One guy, however, could hold his breath five minutes. Another was a two-pack-a-day smoker who still survived BUDS. “BUDS, incidentally, is between your ears. Sure, you have to make times on the O-Course [obstacle course], the four-mile run, etc., but the kid who sticks in there, survives. It’s a mindset of...

"So often we try to put pirates and terrorists in two different categories. We do this because the primary objectives of both are different. Pirates are primarily seagoing bandits with a goal of theft of valuables. Terrorists are essentially killers who want to inflict as many human casualties – in as dramatic a fashion as possible – in order to influence mass audiences. But both pirates and terrorists are in many ways the same, and they certainly have similar sub-objectives, which goes to the heart of your question. "

CAMP AL QAIM, Iraq, June 12, 2006 – Two empty houses in a neighborhood for engineers at a local power plant are proving to be a perfect training ground for Iraqi soldiers. Iraqi soldiers prepare to storm into a room during a house-clearing exercise at Camp Al Qaim, Iraq, June 6. Photo by Jim Garamone  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. During a recent exercise, U.S. Special Forces soldiers watched as Iraqi soldiers patrolled a street carrying brightly painted AK-47 assault rifles. The Iraqis eyed the rooftops and held their garishly painted weapons correctly -- with two hands and...

The vehicle, if close enough to the blast, flips into the air, snapping necks and spinal cords. Heads and limbs are torn from bodies. Gasoline ignites and ammunition cooks off, burning any survivors to a crisp. Those soldiers and Marines (many of whom are still teenagers) who witness the action are instantly shocked, physically sickened, grief-stricken, and enraged over the horror of having watched buddies—who have become closer than any sibling might ever hope to be—torn to pieces. Badly wounded buddies are screaming in agony. Yet the ones uninjured or with minor injuries have to respond as trained. They are...

All sailors are not created equal. And in the purest sense of the word, the best-trained “sailors” in the world may well-be the U.S. Navy’s Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC). They are certainly some of the most skilled seaborne warriors in the U.S. Special Operations Command. Yet few outside of military circles have heard of them, and those who have, see them only as post-9/11 bluejackets driving fast boats in dangerous waters. They are much more.

CORONADO, Calif. (NNS) -- Secretary of the Navy Dr. Donald C. Winter presented one of the nation’s highest military awards to a Naval Special Warfare task group and its subordinate tactical and support elements May 10 during a ceremony at Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Command. SECNAV praised the Sailors’ bravery and dedication as he presented the Presidential Unit Citation to NSW Task Group-Central, NSW Squadron 3, and NSW Unit 3 for their actions during Operation Iraqi Freedom. “I hope people get a sense of the significance of what these men have done, and the tremendous contribution that it has provided...

ABOARD USS RONALD REAGAN, At Sea (NNS) -- Mothers aboard USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) received a warm embrace from Sailors from the Supply Department as a special luncheon celebration was prepared for them on the aft mess decks May 10. The ceremony was designed to celebrate Mother’s Day for the hundreds of mothers assigned to Ronald Reagan, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 14, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 7 and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 7, who will be away from their children on the special day. Culinary Specialists, food service attendants and members of the ship's 3 & 2 Association provided the...

OKLAHOMA CITY Republicans picked up a seat in the state Senate today when Oklahoma Farm Bureau representative Mike Schulz beat Democrat Robbie Kerr in a special election in southwest Oklahoma. Unofficial results had Schulz with 56-point-eight percent of the vote and Kerr with the other 43-point-two percent. The two had combined to raise more than 500-thousand dollars in a campaign to replace Kerr's late husband. Senator Robert -M- Kerr died earlier this year after a long fight with cancer. The victory gives Republicans 23 seats in the 48-member house. Democrats still maintain a majority with the remaining 25 seats. Democrats...

PHOENIX — A special legislative panel is preparing to seek an Attorney General's Office investigation into whether the Tucson Unified School District and a guest speaker broke state laws against using school resources to influence elections. A draft report obtained Friday also concludes that TUSD should remove the audio of what the panel called a "hate speech" by Dolores Huerta from its Web site immediately. It also says the district should apologize to students who were at the April 3 assembly where Huerta spoke — and their parents. The preliminary findings by the House Select Committee on Government Operations, Performance...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Army News Service, May 5, 2006) – Members of Hillah Special Weapons and Tactics team and a U.S. Special Forces Medic saved the life of a four-year-old Sunni boy during an operation south of Baghdad on April 29. The Hillah SWAT was operating in the Yusafiyah area south of Baghdad as part of a larger operation meant to capture suspect terrorists in the city of Hillah. During a sweep through one of the houses, U.S. Army Special Forces advisers accompanying Hillah SWAT team members noticed a boy who was lethargic and looked ill. Upon seeing the young boy,...

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2006 – When the USS James E. Williams sets sail from Norfolk, Va., tomorrow, it will be a special moment for the family of a top Army noncommissioned officer. Army Command Sgt. Maj. William J. "Joe" Gainey poses in his Pentagon office next to a portrait of his cousin, James E. Williams, a Medal of Honor recipient and the most decorated sailor in Navy history. A ship named for Williams, the USS James E. Williams, sets sail on its maiden voyage from Norfolk, Va., May 2. Photo by Kathleen T. Rhem  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image...

WASHINGTON - Everyone is saying that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s days are numbered, thanks in part to increasing calls by some former generals for Rumsfeld’s resignation. But Rumsfeld was hired by George W. Bush to do precisely what he has done to the consternation of the generals who are now coming out to complain about him. When President Bush brought Rumsfeld back to the Pentagon, the president told him to shake up the Pentagon, to transform it from the Cold War structure and culture that it was stuck in to a new force with strategies that could respond to...

ST. PETER, Minn. (AP) - A rapist who broke out of a state treatment center here along with three other men remained on the lam Sunday, authorities said. Michael Dale Benson, 42, squeezed through a broken window Saturday night with the three others, who were later caught. Police scaled back their ground search efforts in the city after 3 p.m. Sunday, believing Benson may have left the area in a stolen car, said police Chief Matt Peters. "We feel that we've run out of our leads in all that regards," he said. Authorities had contacted other law enforcement agencies in...

WASHINGTON, April 5, 2006 – Ultimate victory in the Long War requires the U.S. military to adopt more unconventional and indirect approaches in the way it fights, and the Defense Department is doing just that, the Pentagon's top special operations official told a Senate panel here today. In testimony prepared for delivery to the emerging threats and capabilities subcommittee of the Senate Armed Service's Committee, Thomas W. O'Connell said the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review sets a course for continued special operations transformation from a reactive force with regional capabilities to a pre-emptive global force. O'Connell is assistant secretary of...

SACRAMENTO – During his congressional campaign, Howard Kaloogian has portrayed himself as an aggressive conservative willing to go the extra mile, or in this case, 7,000 miles, to show that the war in Iraq is going well. But a funny thing happened on the way back from Baghdad – at least according to Kaloogian: His group stopped in Istanbul, their pictures got confused and now he's at the center of a national Internet photo scandal. For weeks, Kaloogian's campaign Web site featured a photo of a peaceful city block to help make his case that things are going well in...