Free Republic

Two Delaware residents are giving new meaning to the term "pushing" Obama, according to criminal drug charges filed Thursday. Fifty-two bags of heroin in bags stamped both with letters spelling out OBAMA and an image in the likeness of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama were confiscated following a routine car stop on Interstate 95 in Upper Chichester, according to Pennsylvania State Police.

Two Delaware residents are giving new meaning to the term "pushing" Obama, according to criminal drug charges filed Thursday. Fifty-two bags of heroin in bags stamped both with letters spelling out OBAMA and an image in the likeness of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama were confiscated following a routine car stop on Interstate 95 in Upper Chichester, according to Pennsylvania State Police

Councils are recruiting residents to report anyone who drops litter, fails to recycle their rubbish properly, or who allows their dog to foul the streets. Advertisements looking for people to sign up for the unpaid "environmental volunteer" jobs have been posted across the country in recent months. Critics said the scheme is encouraging a Big Brother society where friends and neighbours will be encouraged to "snoop" on one another. The recruitment drive follows news that the Home Office is granting police powers to council staff and private security guards, allowing then to hand out fines for low-scale offences and ask...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2008 – For more than 60 years, a group of California-based volunteers has worked to ensure that no hospitalized veteran anywhere in the country making a worthwhile request gets “no” for an answer. “United Voluntary Services is a national organization committed to recruiting volunteers and raising funds to help meet the needs of hospitalized veterans in Veterans Affairs Medical Centers,” said Mary Lee, the organization’s national president. “We have 43 units in 20 VA medical centers, with over 600 volunteers conducting varied programs for veterans that the hospitals do not and cannot financially afford.” United Voluntary...

    Political Director's Update 5th Edition August 14, 2008 Go Door to Door with Jim Gilmore! No summer slow-down for the Gilmore campaign this weekend!! Join us and our fellow GOP candidates as we go door to door around the Commonwealth! Details on staging locations are below. Also, for those in Fairfax County in the Braddock District, you can join Jim Gilmore for precinct walking at 10:00 am this Saturday. Information below. Join Jim Gilmore at Fairfax Republican Headquarters 4246 Chain Bridge Rd in Fairfax 10:00 am Click here for a map Albemarle CountyCharlottesville Saturday August 16th 10:00...

Sons of Iraq (Abna al-Iraq) wait in line outside the the Furat Iraqi Police Training Facility, June 17, to start the process of becoming IP recruits. The four day recruiting drive is part of the Multi-National Division - Baghdad plan of Iraqi police expansion. Photo by Sgt. Daniel Blottenberger. CAMP VICTORY — As a sandstorm blanketed Baghdad, June 17, an estimated 2000 Iraqi citizens endured the elements to start the process of becoming Iraqi police at the Furat Iraqi Police Training Facility. Iraqi police officials and military police Soldiers with the 18th Military Police Brigade, Multi-National Division - Baghdad set...

FORT HUACHUCA — B Troop, 4th U.S. Cavalry Regiment (Memorial) hosts a Cavalry Riding School Graduation Ceremony at 3 p.m. Friday on historic Brown Parade Field. The public is invited to attend the ceremony, which highlights Fort Huachuca’s Old West cavalry heritage. Graduates of the cavalry riding school will be presented brass spurs. Graduates are: • Capt. John Mark, Staff Judge Advocate’s Office • Capt. Franklin Kessler, 309th Military Intelligence Battalion • Spc. Andrew Tehvand, U.S. Army Medical Activity • Pfc. Kenneth Burcaw, 111th Military Intelligence Brigade Following the presentation of spurs, the graduates will conduct their first open field...

Regulating Volunteerism by Paul Weyrich Issue 104 - March 26, 2008When Alexis de Toqueville traveled through the United States in 1831 to observe American penal institutions, he wrote down his observations of American political and civil society. Four years later he published Democracy in America, one of the defining texts of early American history. He titled Section 2, Chapter 5, “Of the Use Which the Americans Make of Public Associations in Civil Life.” In it, he marveled that Americans “of all ages, all conditions, and all dispositions constantly form associations. They have not only commercial and manufacturing companies, in which...

4/1/2008 - NAVAJO, N.M. (AFPN) -- Air Force Academy cadets, civil engineering professors and family members performed volunteer work during the Academy's spring break March 24 to 28 on a Navajo reservation here. Organized by the Academy's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Southwest Indian Foundation, one of this year's spring break projects took the Academy volunteers to the home of Korean War veteran Hoskie Bitsilly, Sr. Mr. Bitsilly's wife, Grace, suffered a stroke recently and is now wheelchair-bound, but their home was not wheelchair-accessible. "The cadets are trying to renovate the deck, to extend out the deck...

Two applicants at the police recruiting drive in Tameem sprint 300 meters during a physical fitness test March 23 as Soldiers from the 59th Military Police Company, from Fort Carson, Colo., currently attached to the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, look on. One hundred and seventy-five applicants attended the event. Photo by Spc. Ben Hutto. COMBAT OUTPOST CASHE — One hundred and seventy-five Iraqi men waited for their opportunity to join the police force during a recruiting drive at the 3rd Battalion, 1st National Police Brigade headquarters in Tameem, a town southeast of Baghdad, March 22. Prospective policemen went through...

WASHINGTON, March 7, 2008 – Vice President Richard B. Cheney thanked recruits and sailors at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill., today for choosing to serve a cause greater than themselves in the struggle against terrorism. Cheney talked with about 4,000 recruits and sailors at the center outside Chicago, where his own father trained for his Navy service during World War II. The vice president compared today’s military members who, like their World War II predecessors, put their own interests aside to serve “when the country needed you most.” “Your presence at Great Lakes proves that you understand the core Navy...

Americans worked a median of 52 hours last year without pay. They’re called volunteers. Many organizations can’t survive without unpaid labor, and many people are glad to provide it. Sadly, though, data released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that both the number of volunteers and the volunteer rate — the percentage of the population that volunteers — declined in 2007 from 2006. Volunteering also had fallen in 2006 from 2005. About 60.8 million Americans, age 16 and up, volunteered in 2007, compared with a high of 65.3 million in 2005. The proportion of that population that...

BAGHDAD — Dispelling rumors of a rift between the Iraqi Army (IA) and the local Concerned Local Citizens (CLC) group, leaders from both groups pledged to work together to bring security to Baghdad’s Adhamiyah neighborhood at a ceremony honoring the birthday of the Iraqi Army, Jan. 6. The ceremony proved the bond between the two groups was stronger than ever, said officials at the ceremony. “We, the Iraqi Army, stand with you, our new brothers, to protect Iraq,” Iraqi Army Col. Tariq Abdul Kareem Nasser, commander of the 1st Brigade, 11th Iraqi Army Division, vowed in a speech to more...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE RELEASE No. 20080106-05 January 6, 2008 Iraqi Army, Iraqi Security Volunteers strengthen their unity 2nd BCT Public Affairs, 82nd Abn. Div. Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO BAGHDAD – Key leaders from the Iraqi Army and the local volunteer security force in Baghdad’s Adhamiyah neighborhood held a summit Jan. 3 to discuss the way forward. The meeting was attended by Maj. Gen. Mushir, commander of the 11th Iraqi Army Division, and Col. Riyad Al Samarrae, the contractor in charge of the local Iraqi Security Volunteers, as well as the IA and ISV leaders. At the meeting, IA and...

I've been involved with the military since 1984. I've served with the 82nd Airborn Divison, 19th Special Forces Group and 145 FA as an FO. My civilian job is quite the opposite of this life, I work around women and make them look good (a hair stylist). I have a tiny little salon called Lucky Seven and I've been fortunate to have done hair for some rather famous models. My hobbies include building custom bikes and cars,photographing the custome car world.

BAGHDAD — Iraqi security forces recently began manning checkpoints in Saydiyah, a neighborhood in southwest Baghdad in the province of Rashid, in an effort to bring security and stability to a troubled area. “The residents of Saydiyah have said security was best when the ISV (Iraqi security volunteer) checkpoints were manned. Evidence of this was the robust market activity during that period. We hope to return to that type of activity soon, but it’s going to take some time for this effort to bear some fruit,” said Lt. Col. Johnnie Johnson, commander of 4th Battalion, 64th Armored Regiment, 4th Brigade,...

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 16, 2007 – They came from around the country, some with tears in their eyes, putting holiday demands on hold to honor veterans most never knew. In a few hours in freezing temperatures, about 3,000 volunteers yesterday placed more than 10,000 balsam fir wreaths with blazing red bows on graves at Arlington National Cemetery here. “I wish I could lay one on all of them,” said Charles Wright, a Vietnam War Marine veteran and commander of the Kansas City Composite Squadron, a civil air patrol unit. “This is a tribute I’ll remember forever.” Morrill Worcester, owner...

Watch Now USAID Scholarships – USAID’s scholarship program for Iraqis. Iraqi Nat Police Course – INP go through intense 4-day course at FOB Rustamiyah. The “Raid Report” – Daily update on Iraqi and Coalition security progress. Weather News Desk – Car Bombs Kill At Least 41 In Amarah; Police Chief Fired. 400 Billion Iraqi Dinars Pledged For Basra Reconstruction. Awakening’ Meets Resistance From Local Government. Iraqi River Patrol Graduation – Iraqis graduate from River Boat Patrol Course. From Volunteers to Police – Security volunteers make the next step to Iraqi Policemen.

Join us December 13th for a Phone for Fred Party! We get thousands of emails every week from regular folks asking how they can get involved and make a big difference even though they don't live in the early states. Next Thursday, December 13th, we are having a nationwide phone bank for Fred. Hosting a phone bank on the 13th is the best way to make a real difference in the final month going into the Iowa Caucus. Take a group picture of everyone at your party, and if your party makes the most calls we'll make it the feature...

By now I'm sure the majority of you are aware of who most of the 2008 presidential candidates are. I'm also sure that by now you may be just a little bit sick and tired of the rhetoric that some of these folks are spewing forth. Not a day goes by that we aren't bombarded with the media's biased reports of certain candidates, whether good or bad. If you are one of the people who are undecided but want to really learn about a particular candidate, I would invite you to take a look at former Sen. Fred Thompson. When...

Welcome to our Phone for Fred online phone bank! Person to person contact is the most effective way to make a difference in an election. We created the Phone for Fred program for all of you Friends of Fred who want to volunteer and do more for Fred! We need your help in the early primary states. Our Phone for Fred online phone bank makes it easy for you to make a difference! Fred only needs a small commitment of time and you will soon see that your phone calls and person to person contact will help Fred win! Pick...

Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson isn't faring particularly well in polls of early voting states Iowa and New Hampshire, but his campaign has devised a novel way of using volunteers to help reach voters. Yesterday, the Thompson campaign introduced "Phone for Fred," an online phone bank that allows volunteers nationwide to download names and phone numbers of potential voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Florida. Supporters are urged to call during evening hours -- on their own dime -- asking voters a series of questions about important issues, such as the economy and illegal immigration, and whether they...

Fred Thompson's campaign named a handful of volunteer grassroots leaders in Miami-Dade to help boost its outreach to Latino voters -- a territory rival Rudy Giuliani is putting great effort in reaching. County leadership positions announced today include co-chairs: Homestead Mayor Lynda Bell and Miami-Dade Commissioners Joe Martinez and Natacha Seijas. The latter two previously endorsed Thompson when he appeared at Miami's Urbeita Oil in October. Other's involved Lois Jones, Chris Miles and Luis Rodriguez.

The State Department expects to announce, perhaps as early as today, that volunteers have filled all 48 open jobs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad for next year and that it will not order any foreign service officers to work there against their will, officials said yesterday. Volunteers for the last three or four positions are currently being vetted. Once that process is completed, a senior department official said, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will ask personnel officers to assure her that everyone selected "does in fact have the right skill sets" and meets all requirements before an announcement is...

Mitt Romney supporter Paul Weyrich, one of the founders of the Moral Majority, is pretty upset that Fred Thompson got the endorsement from the National Right to Life Committee. He's so mad he's made a spurious charge against the Thompson campaign and the NRLC which is bound to hurt Romney: Fred Thompson's campaign lashed out at Mitt Romney Wednesday after one of Romney's key supporters suggested Thompson's recent endorsement by the anti-abortion National Right to Life Committee was traded for cash. In an article in The Washington Times on Wednesday, Paul Weyrich — the socially conservative co-founder of the Moral...

MC LEAN, Va., Nov. 14 /Standard Newswire/ -- Today the Fred Thompson campaign announced its Students For Fred National and State Leadership Teams. These student volunteers will be actively leading the Fred Thompson grassroots efforts on college campuses across the nation. Matthew Farrar will serve as the Florida Chairman as well as a National Co-Chair of Students for Fred Thompson. A senior political science major at Florida State University, Farrar has previously served on the 2006 Charlie Crist Gubernatorial campaigns and has worked on numerous state races throughout Florida. "Sen. Fred Thompson has made it clear that he is the...

Responding to the National Right to Life Committee's endorsement of Fred Thompson, Paul Weyrich suggested that Thompson's backers greased some palms. "I think in all probability the Thompson people were engaged with the National Right to Life people in financial dealing," Weyrich told the Washington Times. That's a pretty tough charge and almost certainly not what Romney's campaign wanted their big social conservative "get" to suggest (at least not publicly). Sensing opportunity to win more points from their own big "get" (the group's nod) Thompson communications director Todd Harris unloaded: "Gov. Romney is new to the pro-life movement and his...

Fred Thompson is the Republican most likely to beat abortion-rights supporter Rudy Giuliani, the National Right to Life Committee said Tuesday, announcing its endorsement of the former Tennessee senator for president. "While there are various polls, and some are up-and-down, the overwhelming consensus has been that he is best-positioned to top pro-abortion candidate Rudy Giuliani for the Republican nomination," the group's executive director, David N. O'Steen, said at a news conference. ...By emphasizing Thompson's political potential _ he ranks second behind former New York Mayor Giuliani in national Republican polls _ the anti-abortion group played down its own differences with...

FOB KALSU — A Concerned Local Citizens (CLC) group played a key role in removing insurgents and their resources from the Hawr Rajab and Arab Jabour regions, Nov. 8. In Arab Jabour, the group brought a large weapons cache to Soldiers of Company D, 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga., conducting operations in the area. The cache consisted of (200) heavy machine gun rounds, two gas masks, three former regime Iraqi Army uniforms, five former regime Iraqi Army flak vests, a notebook, two rolls of command wire, a 57 mm projectile,...

The holidays are a difficult time of the year for families with soldiers deployed overseas in the military. Now a VFW Ladies Auxiliary is leading an effort to "sew" some cheer. Judy Mattson is known as the cut up. Mattson says her job is, "Cutting the material and putting the kits together so that people could just go ahead and sew as fast as we could." Mattson belongs to Friday's SaddleBrooke Quilters, whose members are helping sew Christmas stockings for every Arizona Army National Guard soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. There are 1,200 of them. Jeanne Soling, a Quilters member,...

Spc. Donald Williams helps an Iraqi Boy Scout tie off his tent Saturday during an Iraqi Scout event in Baghdad. BAGHDAD — In a sunny grove in the International Zone in Baghdad Saturday, excitement and laughter filled the air as Iraqi Scouts, leaders and Coalition volunteers of the Green Zone Council enjoyed a day of socializing and outdoor scouting activities. Blankets, tables, and scout-made tents were sprinkled among the trees, and the upbeat mood was contagious – there wasn’t a frown to be seen.“You almost forget we’re in Iraq!� said Lt. Col. Tina Flanagan, a Coalition Soldier who has been...

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq , Nov. 1, 2007 – Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, hosted a social gathering, including a cookout and a soccer tournament, for Iraqi army troops and a volunteer group from Ameriya, a neighborhood in the Mansour district of western Baghdad on Oct. 28. Army Lt. Col. Dale Kuehl, commander of the 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, presents the first-place trophy to Rafeid Khaleiel, the coach of the Forsan Al Rafadeen soccer team at the end of a soccer tournament hosted by his unit at Camp Liberty in...

I just got an email from a realtor I had talked to a while back. I thought some of us MN Freepers might want to go over and watch or volunteer. They began construction today, Aug. 21 and will go for, of course, the next seven days. Click here to volunteer. If you want to just watch, Click here for maps on how to get there if you just want to be in the crowd!

NACO, Ariz. -- Chainsaws and weed-eaters buzzed as volunteers swarmed over an old Army border post Saturday. Local historians searched for clues to the past as they cleared decades of debris and desert vegetation that have nearly enveloped Camp Naco. “No task is too big,” said volunteer David Lawson, a 22-year-old Army second lieutenant from Cedar Falls, Iowa. The volunteers ��” soldiers from Fort Huachuca, neighbors, local firefighters and others ��”� heaved old mattresses and other junk out of the old buildings. As they removed linoleum, they discovered old newspaper articles, forgotten pieces of mail and other tantalizing scraps from...

Boston, MA - After nearly 1,000 Debate Watch House Parties and a highly successful national call day during "Sign Up America!", Governor Mitt Romney has signed up over 24,000 new supporters from across the country in just 24 hours. The success of this event is an indication of Governor Romney's broad-based grassroots and finance support and will help him spread his vision for conservative change in Washington. Addressing today's success, Governor Romney said, "Over the past 24 hours, hundreds have gathered at house parties and manned phone banks across the country in our successful effort to sign up 24,000 new...

The Romney campaign has set a goal of signing up 24,000 new volunteers by the end of today, May 16th. As of last update, 20,084 have signed on! If you wish to join the team, go to Sign Up America! and follow the simple instructions there. There's a brief message from Mitt and a video from Tagg and Matt (Mitt's sons) from about an hour ago. Vote for the Romney of your choice, but vote!! ;-) Go Mitt!

DULUTH, Minn. — It would be easy to understand if Nancy Solem-Reisinger, at 45, were more interested in punching the clock at her regular job and spending time with her husband, three sons and two granddaughters. But instead, the Duluth woman who describes herself as a "chubby grandmother" recently enlisted in the Army Nurse Corps and volunteered to serve as a nurse in Iraq. "Our young people are over there and need nurses," she said Friday, after being commissioned as a second lieutenant. "I feel compelled, I feel called. It's a privilege to go over there and serve." Solem-Reisinger joined...

Some California high school students are discovering they don't have to travel to foreign lands to make a positive difference in the lives of others. The juniors and seniors from The King's Academy in Sunnyville, California are used to the hard work that goes along with building and repairing houses, but they're used to doing it in Mexico. High school junior Spencer Nolet said, "When you go down there and you see what these people are living in, tarps and cardboard walls, it's pretty amazing." This is Community Service Week at The King's Academy. While some students still went south...

SNOWMASS VILLAGE, Colo., April 3, 2007 – As hundreds of severely disabled veterans attending the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic here discover new capabilities they never had or thought they’d lost, they’re also learning a thing or two about the giving spirit of volunteers supporting them all the way. Dave Gitchell, a volunteer instructor at the Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic in Snowmass, Colo., shows veteran Ricky Olson how to scuba dive. Photo by Donna Miles  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson and event organizers say the clinic, now in its 21st year,...

WASHINGTON, March 6, 2007 – Hundreds of volunteer buglers and trumpeters are being sought to participate in Armed Forces Day observances held at veterans’ cemeteries nationwide and overseas, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs official said here yesterday. The event, called “Echo Taps Worldwide,” will be held May 19 and is co-sponsored by the VA’s National Cemetery Administration and “Bugles Across America,” a volunteer group, said Michael Nacincik, the cemetery administration’s chief of communications and outreach support. “Echo Taps” will take place at VA-operated national cemeteries, U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service national cemeteries, and American Battle Monuments...

Air Force 1st Lt. Christine Anouchian, 24, Glendale, Calif., plays with Iraqi children on a playground at a Civil Military Operations Center in Baghdad. The foreign disclosure officer, Yokota Air Force Base, Japan, tries to visit the CMOC at least once a month.CAMP VICTORY — In a place where violence can be part of everyday life, a smile can make a world of a difference. When humanitarian assistance is thrown in, combined with a desire to help others, lives can be changed for the better. Servicemembers and civilians here realize this, and spend their time helping and working with Iraqis...

Volunteers Spark Warmth at Burn Center Troops deployed to Afghanistan give there off time to help local burn victims. By Sgt. Victoria Willoughby 345th Mobile Public Affairs FORWARD OPERATING BASE SALERNO, Afghanistan, Jan. 16, 2007 -- An all too familiar call echoed through the Forward Operating Base Salerno burn clinic and medical staff and hospital volunteers scrambled to receive two young Afghan sisters badly burned in a heater explosion at their home. "A heater in their home had a malfunction and it exploded, burning all four of the children and burning down the entire house. Two of the children...

Today, President Bush and First Lady Laura went to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. to visit with volunteers and our brave troops. He awarded sixteen Purple Hearts. Here he is seen helping volunteer children wrap Christmas presents for children of families whose parent have been wounded in service to our country. Quote of the Day In leiu of a quote of the day, I offer you the complete text of his remarks: THE PRESIDENT: Laura and I are honored to be here to thank the folks working here at this service project. What you're seeing is some...

Autopsy shows Mt. Hood climber not injured after all 04:59 PM PST on Wednesday, December 20, 2006 By kgw.com and AP Staff HOOD RIVER, Ore. -- Autopsy results Wednesday showed that Mt. Hood climber Kelly James, whose body was recovered Monday, was not injured as previously thought. AP Photo Brian Hall's sister, Angela Hall (left) and Sheriff Joe Wampler speak to the media. James did not have a dislocated shoulder as reported by authorities earlier this week. Furthermore, James' body showed no broken bones or injuries that would have prevented his mobility, according to the state medical examiner, Dr. Larry...

BISBEE — The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps has often issued calls for volunteers to join up with its civilian border watch campaigns or to help build border fencing on private land along the U.S.-Mexico border. But now the Minutemen are on the lookout for a new type of volunteer: attorneys. In an e-mail memo sent to members this week, the general counsel for the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, Gary Kreep, sought help from lawyers willing to work pro bono — or at least at a substantially reduced rate — on a new program to provide legal assistance to Minuteman members....

For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryNovember 25, 2006 President's Radio Address       Audio      Thanksgiving 2006      THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week, Americans across our Nation gather with loved ones to give thanks for the many blessings we share. We're grateful for our friends and families, who fill our lives with meaning and purpose. We're grateful to live in a land of plenty and during a time of great prosperity. And we're grateful to Almighty God for the freedom to enjoy all these gifts. Every Thanksgiving, we remember the story of the Pilgrims who came to America in search...

Recent natural disasters have underscored the need for skilled volunteer workers. In every state, there are hundreds- if not thousands- of Nursing students who can be useful to healthcare organizations during public health crises. Yet some states, such as Washington, ignore the large group of people who can effectively augment and enhance a disaster response. In particular, senior-level nursing students can provide a broad spectrum of services due to their advanced level of training. Furthermore, senior Bachelor's Degree nursing students are capable of performing not only basic healthcare, but also of performing more advanced work such as community health assessments,...

10/19/2006 - BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- A patient being rolled into Balad AB's Air Force Theatre Hospital shouldn't be surprised if the Airman drawing his or her blood is an F-16 Fighting Falcon crew chief. And, if the patient is a little uneasy about that, there likely is an air traffic controller or an administrative specialist standing nearby to offer words of encouragement while a structural engineer fluff's the patient's pillow. The patient needn't worry. The Balad AB hospital isn't outsourcing its medical staff. It is simply using volunteers, of which there seems to be no shortage. On...

CAMP FALLUJAH — The Army Corps of Engineers was recently augmented by some senior enlisted Navy members who volunteered to help rebuild cities within the Al-Anbar province in Western Iraq. Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Handler Michael Yule has now found himself playing a vital role in the rebuilding of the provincial cities of Al-Asaad, Ramadiand and Fallujah. “Right now we’re rebuilding more than 50 new houses in Fallujah,” said Yule, a native of Pittsburgh. “We’re also repairing roads and coordinating the expansion of office and living spaces on camp and building billboards that promote the Iraqi army and police.” The...

New groups plans to concentrate on Texas immigration. Thursday, The former leader of the Texas branch of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps said Wednesday that he and other members split from the national watchdog group last month to form their own private patrol organization opposing illegal immigration: the Texas Border Volunteers. Mike Vickers, a Falfurrias veterinarian and rancher, had been state director of the civil defense corps since March. He said the new group, which he heads as chairman, will focus its efforts in Texas and form a political action committee to influence statewide elections and public policy. The committee...