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Military Tag

Posted by Leslie Eastman on August 28, 2016 10 Comments
The Terminator is an iconic film that helped propel former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to stardom. The movie is also a basis for discussion about the future of military weaponry, as Air Force General Paul Selva, vice chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, uses the film as reference in describing autonomous weaponry systems that could be developed in the next decade.
The nation’s second-highest ranking military officer believes that our adversaries may try to build completely autonomous “Terminator”-like systems that can conduct lethal operations on the battlefield. “I don’t think it’s impossible that somebody will try to build a completely autonomous system, and I’m not talking about something like a cruise missile … or a mine that requires a human to target it and release it and it goes and finds its target,” Selva told an audience at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. when asked about such capabilities. “I’m talking about a wholly robotic system that decides whether or not, at the point of decision, it’s going to do lethal ops.”

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 20, 2016 15 Comments
Earlier this week, we highlighted the case of a sailor in the U.S. Navy who was being prosecuted for using his phone to take pictures in a nuclear submarine. His lawyer cited Hillary Clinton as a defense. At the time, I said:
Cases like these highlight the growing feeling among many Americans that there are two sets of rules in this country and that some people are above the law if they have the right connections.
Unfortunately for the sailor, the Clinton defense didn't work. U.S. News and World Report has the story:

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 16, 2016 50 Comments
A sailor in the U.S. Navy is facing prison for using his phone to take pictures inside a nuclear submarine. He claims that he just wanted to share the photos with his family and that he deserves leniency. His lawyer is citing Hillary Clinton as a defense. Politico reports:
Citing Clinton, sailor seeks leniency in submarine photos case A Navy sailor facing the possibility of years in prison for taking a handful of classified photos inside a nuclear submarine is making a bid for leniency by citing the decision not to prosecute Hillary Clinton over classified information authorities say was found in her private email account.

Posted by Mary Chastain on August 02, 2016 12 Comments
The Department of Defense inspector general found that the Pentagon cannot maintain proper bookkeeping on expenses, which means they have not audited $6.5 TRILLION they spent on wars, equipment, etc. Lorin Venable, the assistant inspector general wrote:
Army and Defense Finance and Accounting Service Indianapolis personnel did not adequately support $2.8 trillion in third quarter adjustments and $6.5 trillion in yearend adjustments made to the Army General Fund data during FY2015 financial statement compilation. We conducted this audit in accordance with generlly accepted government auditing standards.

Posted by Mary Chastain on August 01, 2016 6 Comments
Wyatt Gillette, 8, passed away on Sunday a day after the Marines made him an Honorary Marie at Camp Pendleton in California. He always wanted to become a Marine like his father. https://twitter.com/GinaAHarkins/status/759910248148705280

Posted by New Neo on July 13, 2016 12 Comments
Hillary Clinton has never adequately explained her decision to use an alternate and insecure email system. Her initial excuse (wanting to use one device) turned out to be untrue, and people have speculated ever since on the real reasons. But no one---not even Hillary herself---has ever offered a possible reason that was altruistic. Unlike the case of Jason Brezler, in which his motive was decidedly selfless.

Posted by Mike LaChance on June 25, 2016 13 Comments
The Pentagon is preparing to announce a lift of the ban on transgender people serving in the U.S. military on July 1st. The left will undoubtedly hail this as a sign of progress but it turns years of policy on its head and raises a host of issues. Will transgender troops be allowed to choose which barracks they live in? Which bathrooms will they use? These may sound like trivial questions but military life doesn't afford much privacy. USA Today reports:
Ban on transgender troops to be lifted July 1 The Pentagon plans to announce the repeal of its ban on transgender service members July 1, a controversial decision that would end nearly a year of internal wrangling among the services on how to allow those troops to serve openly, according to Defense officials.

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on June 09, 2016 8 Comments
As U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was in Beijing this week, preaching the virtues of “peaceful resolution” of disputes between the neighbours in the South China Sea, fighter jets belonging to Chinese 'People's Liberation Army' carried out aggressive manoeuvres against a US plane. According to the U.S. Pacific Command, the reconnaissance plane was on a routine mission over the East China Sea when two Chinese J-10 fighters attempted an “unsafe intercept”, making it the second incident of this kind to take place in less than three weeks. Earlier in May, two Chinese fighter jets flew within 15 meters of a US reconnaissance plane flying over the South China Sea. As President Obama set about to reduce the U.S. footprint in the world and divert country’s military preparedness to chase the spectre of Climate Change -- seven years ago, Communist China has been investing in a massive project to build and militarise artificial islands beyond its recognised maritime borders. China now contests 80 percent of the South China Sea, staking its control over one of the busiest maritime route in the world.

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on June 02, 2016 18 Comments
According to UK Armed Forces Minister Penny Mordaunt, Britain must join a European Union Army under Brussels’s direct command if the country stays within the EU. The ominous revelation comes as British voters are heading towards a historic ‘in-out’ referendum on June 23. What could only be described as cynical manoeuvring, EU bosses intends to table the plan a day after the British referendum -- concealing the totalitarian nature of the ‘European Project’ from the British voters. Mordaunt made it clear that if her country were to stay in the EU as a result of a "remain vote", her government would be “powerless” to stop the formation of an EU Army. Furthermore, UK would be “bound to support” and bankroll such an Army under the provisions of existing Lisbon treaty. “As usual with the EU, the plan for this army would see Britain paying highest price and but getting a raw deal. They've done that with our budget, I'm not going to let that happen to our armed forces,” Minister Mordaunt told the UK voters. The preparations for new pan-European Army outside the framework of NATO are long under way. Germany and The Netherlands have reportedly merged their army and naval assets to form a core fighting force that would serve as the basis for a new EU Army. NATO officials had recently accused France of neglecting its commitment to NATO-alliance by diverting resources to build an EU Army.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on May 14, 2016 9 Comments
Back in January, Iran seized two U. S. Navy vessels and detained 10 of our sailors, and though they were released amid a flurry of genuflections and gushing gratitude from John Kerry, our sailors were purposefully and publicly humiliated by Iran.  Not only did they release photos, but they are going so far as to erect a statue to memorialize their "victory" over the United States. The Navy announced that Commander Eric Rasch who was the executive officer of the riverine squadron has been fired as a result of the Navy's "lack of confidence in his ability to command." The Navy Times reports:
The head of a riverine squadron at the center of an international incident in January was fired Thursday, the first officer to be publicly disciplined for errors that led to 10 sailors being captured by Iran after getting lost in the Persian Gulf — a debacle that nearly scuttled the U.S.-Iran nuclear deal at the 11th hour.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on May 10, 2016 25 Comments
As we at LI, like everyone else on both sides of the aisle, absorb the likelihood of a Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton face-off in November, the Military Times conducted its own survey of active-duty military personnel and learned that those in the military, if faced with the choice between Trump and Hillary, choose Trump by a wide margin. Disturbing to the Trump camp, however, is the fact that "more than one in five" of those military members surveyed may not cast a vote for president at all in November if Trump and Hillary are the only two choices and that Trump's troubles with women voters extends to females in the military. The Military Times reports:
In a new survey of American military personnel, Donald Trump emerged as active-duty service members' preference to become the next U.S. president, topping Hillary Clinton by more than a 2-to-1 margin. However, in the latest Military Times election survey, more than one in five troops said they’d rather not vote in November if they have to choose between just those two candidates. But given only those choices, 21 percent of the service members surveyed said they would abstain from voting.More than 54 percent of the 951 troops Military Times surveyed said they would vote for Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee, over Clinton, the Democratic front-runner. Only about 25 percent said they would vote for Clinton in that matchup.
Here's the Military Times graphic (via the above link):

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on April 30, 2016 16 Comments
In August of last year, the United States Army was moving to kick out a decorated Green Beret for defending a young boy who had been repeatedly raped by an Afghan police commander.  This Afghan reportedly also beat the young boy's mother when she complained about the repeated vile sexual attacks on her son. Fox News reported at the time:
The U.S. Army is kicking out a decorated Green Beret [Sgt 1st Class Charles Martland] after an 11-year Special Forces career, after he got in trouble for shoving an Afghan police commander accused of raping a boy and beating up his mother when she reported the incident. . . . .  One day in early September 2011 at their remote outpost, a young Afghan boy and his Afghan-Uzbek mother showed up at camp. The 12-year-old showed the Green Berets where his hands had been tied. A medic took him to a back room for an examination with an interpreter, who told them the boy had been raped by another commander by the name of Abdul Rahman. After learning of the meeting, Rahman allegedly beat the boy's mother for reporting the crime. It was at this point, the Green Berets had had enough. Quinn and Martland went to confront Rahman. "He confessed to the crime and laughed about it, and said it wasn't a big deal. Even when we patiently explained how serious the charge was, he kept laughing," Quinn said.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on April 16, 2016 20 Comments
Here at LI, we've been covering the move to place women in combat positions within the military.  Despite studies that have concluded that this is a bad idea, the military is moving forward.  To that end, the Army has approved  22 female officers for combat training. USA Today reports:
The Army announced Friday the first 22 women to be commissioned as infantry and armor officers under new rules that open all ground combat jobs to females this year. The move is a major step toward integrating women into so-called ground combat jobs, placing them in leadership roles in occupations that were never open to them.
In a move called "pretty historic" by acting Army Secretary Patrick Murphy, the women will eventually serve as infantry or armor officers.

Posted by Taryn O'Neill on April 14, 2016 20 Comments
A career U.S. naval officer with an extensive background in signals intelligence has been accused of mishandling and passing on sensitive information to the Chinese and Taiwanese governments. A charge sheet released Friday revealed that Lt. Cmdr. Edward C. Lin, 39, faces several counts of espionage and attempted espionage "with intent or reason to believe it would be used to the advantage of a foreign nation." A native of Taiwan, Lin moved to the United States with his parents at age 14. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1999 after being naturalized as a citizen that same year.

Posted by Mike LaChance on April 14, 2016 15 Comments
Vladimir Putin is acting out aggressively again. On Tuesday, Russian military jets flew extraordinarily close to a U.S. Navy ship in the Baltic Sea. This wasn't an isolated incident, either. According to various reports, the Russians carried out this maneuver multiple times over two days and American defense experts are stunned. This report from the Military Times puts the incident in perspective:
Russian attack aircraft just flew within 30 feet of a U.S. Navy ship In one of the most aggressive actions in recent memory, Russian warplanes conducted “simulated attacks” on the a U.S. Navy vessel in the Baltic Sea on Tuesday, repeatedly flying within 30 feet of the ship, according to a defense official.

Posted by Mike LaChance on April 09, 2016 17 Comments
Bret Baier of FOX News recently did a report on how the military has shrunk under Obama, and the response was so great, he went back and aired interviews that didn't make it into the program. Baier spoke with three of Obama's former secretaries of defense, and they all told a similar story. The Washington Free Beacon has more:
Obama’s Former Pentagon Chiefs: Military Suffered From Overbearing, Inexperienced White House The U.S. military has been hindered by an overbearing and inexperienced White House under President Barack Obama, according to each of his three former defense secretaries, causing the Pentagon to struggle to carry out operations and make decisions.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on March 17, 2016 7 Comments
Last week I wrote about the fact that Navy SEALs are forced to share combat rifles, are short on live ammo for training, and are purchasing their own gear.  This week, assistant commandant of the United States Marine Corps, General John Paxton, told Congress that he does not believe the Marines are ready for another war. The Stars and Stripes reports:
If the Marines were called today to respond to an unexpected crisis, they might not be ready, a top Marine general told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

Gen. John Paxton, assistant commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, testified to lawmakers that the Marines could face more casualties in a war and might not be able to deter a potential enemy.

“I worry about the capability and the capacity to win in a major fight somewhere else right now,” he said, citing a lack of training and equipment.

Paxton, along with the vice chiefs of the Army, Navy and Air Force, spoke to the Senate committee on the readiness challenges facing each service after 15 years of war and recent budget cuts.

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