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Secretary Gates & Adm. Mullen Discuss Wikileaks

In a Department of Defense (“DoD”) News Briefing at the Pentagon, Secretary Gates and Admiral Mullen discussed the latest release of classified documents on Wikileaks.

Secretary of Defense Gates’ answer to a Wiki-dump related question was in fact an artful dodge.  There were in fact significant differences on what the US public was informed of and what the stark reality of events in Iraq were and the same type of misinformation is bleeding out of Afghanistan.  Does it rise to the ...

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Did A.J. Hughes Screw the Troops?

In a solid piece of investigative reporting, WHEC of Rochester, New York reports that local firm A.J. Hughes Screw Products may have supplied defective screws for combat helmets.

I-Team 10 Investigative Reporter,  Brett Davidsen, reports that the now defunct A.J. Hughes Screw Products was sub-contracted by Gentex Corporation to make parts for Army and Air Force helmets.   According to court filings unearthed by WHEC investigative reporters,  A.J. Hughes was subcontracted to supply screws that attach the chin strap of the Advanced ...

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What’s inside a Taliban Gun Locker

In an interesting article published on the New York Times “At War” Blog, we recently had an opportunity to reflect on

Want to know what type of small arms the enemy uses to fight us with in Afghanistan?  Specifically in Helmand province?  

No one should be shocked at the simple and rudimentary arsenal that is being used against our troops – bolt-action rifles, Kalashnikov assault rifles, and PK machine guns, all of which are resilient and adaptable firearms for the area ...

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Stryker Afghan War Crimes Probe

Months after allegations and the start of UCMJ proceedings, investigations have finally been started of Stryker Brigade officers and leaders of those Stryker soldiers suspected of committing war crimes in Afghanistan.  The focus of the probe is determine whether the leaders of the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division should have known sooner about the alleged crimes and illegal activity ongoing in the unit as well as the level and type of training the unit underwent prior to its ...

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Growing steroid problem in the US Army

New evidence emerges that the Army is facing a growing steroid use problem. 

Well the cat is out of the bag.  What has been known for a long time in the ranks is finally being made public.  Troops have been using steroids to “get stronger” and prepare themselves for the toils of combat.  But we shouldn’t be surprised since steroids are ridiculously easy to obtain, and as we are learning, have proven difficult for leaders to monitor their use due to ...

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Tanks to Afghanistan, a Soldier’s Perspective

A recent blog post picked-up by the New York Times entitled Tanks to Afghanistan, a Soldier Writes provokes some interesting perspective by SFTT on the promotion prospects of officers deployed after 9/11.

If you want to talk tanks, talk to a tanker.  LT Rajiv Srinivasan, a US Army Armor officer has been blogging on his recent deployment and experiences in Afghanistan.  His “ground-level” analysis on the benefits and employment of tanks in Afghanistan is required reading and a better alternative to ...

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Karzai still against NATO Night Raids

The New York Times reports that Afghan President Karzai is still against NATO night raids.  In President Karzai’s first press conference since returning from Lisbon and the NATO conference had the following to say:

“The position and stance of the Afghan government was very clear and is very clear, those night raids which cause civilian houses to be destroyed, cause civilian causalities or they are entering people’s houses without coordinating with the Afghan forces … we are against them. ...

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Taliban Leader in Secret Talks was Imposter

The New York Times reports that the “Taliban Leader in Secret Talks Was an Impostor.”  The headline says it all, and I didn’t make it up either. We’ve been duped. No legitimate peace talks have been taken place. So I guess the Power Point slide used for the ongoing Afghanistan policy review describing these peace talks will simply be put on “Hide” mode now. Maybe we should take heed of what Sayed Amir Muhammad Agha, a onetime Taliban ...

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