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Biden: Killing of Al-Qaida Leader Is Long-Sought ‘Justice’
President Joe Biden announced Monday that al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Kabul, an operation he said delivered justice and, he hopes, “one more measure of closure” to families of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
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US Military-Run Slot Machines Earn $100 Million a Year From Service Members Overseas
The slot machines, operated by the U.S. Department of Defense, earn the DOD more than $100 million each year in the name of “morale, welfare, and recreation” for service members, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office that was written in response to demands from Congress.
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Hicks Taps Air Force to Oversee Cruise Missile Defense
Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks has selected the Air Force to oversee the development of a cruise missile defense to protect the United States. The move bypasses the Missile Defense Agency, which had been angling for the proposed multibillion-dollar mission.
Hundreds of Navajos were recruited from the vast Navajo Nation to serve as Code Talkers with the U.S. Marine Corps. Only three are still alive today: Peter MacDonald, John Kinsel Sr. and Thomas H. Begay.
The blast took place in the port city of Sevastopol in Crimea, which was seized from Ukraine by Russia in 2014. Observances of Russia’s Navy Day holiday were canceled in Sevastopol.
Checking in on you. How are you doing? Is everything going OK, or are you fighting back memories?
FEAR NOT!
There are over 15,219 Veterans on this site who have your back.
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The Russian invasion of Ukraine is the immediate concern for global leaders, but the U.S. will continue to focus on China and the Indo-Pacific as its most important competitive arena, international relations experts said.
NATO is activating nuclear, biological and chemical defenses in response to concerns that Russia may be preparing a chemical attack on Ukraine, a potential action that the alliance’s top official said Thursday could put neighboring nations at risk.
South Korea answered its northern neighbor’s latest intercontinental ballistic missile test Thursday with a volley of its own as a show of force, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
An independent review ordered this week by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will seek out ideas to stem the increasing number of suicides among soldiers stationed in Alaska and South Korea, as well as some stateside installations.
Ukraine’s stiff resistance to the Russian invasion, which has turned Moscow’s advance into a grinding war of attrition, has underscored the importance to American allies of the need to be prepared for any eventuality, the top U.S. Army commander in the Pacific said Friday.
President Joe Biden on Saturday dramatically escalated his rhetoric against Vladimir Putin, calling for the Russian leader to be removed because of his brutal invasion of Ukraine.
Sitting on a Military Plane Ready to Fly to the Bay of Pigs
I know of some of the fears you face or have faced as a soldier. I have had my share of scary times while in uniform for my country.
I had put in three years of active duty, and was very near to my discharge date while at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. As a matter of fact the discharge date was just days away.
It seemed like a normal day of “putting in your time,” but then there came a sound that I never want to hear again. It was the intercom in our section of the company I was stationed with saying, “This is an alert.” This is not a drill, all personnel report to headquarters for a briefing right away.”
I couldn’t think of why there would be any problems that serious happening, and still thought it was a drill as I ran towards the headquarters building.
When we all assembled, the commander went to the podium and spoke.
“I am here to inform you that all leaves and weekend passes are concealed. We have received a message from the commanding General of the Army to stand by for a possible mission to the Bay of Pigs. This is a very serious mission, which will put you in combat and in harm’s way. Our unit is being deployed, to help monitor the security of the communications while there. We will serve in the field headquarters of the mission. You have about two hours to go home to pack your full field clothes and equipment. Dismissed!”
That was it. No more explanations or chances to ask questions.
I drove home quickly, packed all my gear in a duffel bag.
I got back to the headquarters, and it looked like pandemonium and chaos had sat in, with soldiers running everywhere.
A few minutes later everyone had made it there and we were all in formation. The commander then told us to come to attention.
We all headed to buses that were waiting to take us to the military airport on base. When we got there, we unloaded and marched to the area of several planes. They had us board the planes with full gear and field uniforms on. The pilot came on to tell us that we will be in a combat area when we land at the Bay of Pigs.
I sat down in my area, and was holding my weapon (M-1 rifle) between my legs. I was numb with fear and anxiety. I had never thought I would actually be in a conflict where I could die.
The plane started its engines. The plane shook as the engines roared to get up to the speed they needed to get off the ground. It taxied to the runway and stopped.
Then we waited for the pilot to push the throttle. We sat there for what seemed like hours. I could see the fear, in the eyes in the soldiers around me. I was only about twenty years old then, and began to see my life unfold before me. I had thoughts of not coming back. I had thoughts of my loved ones I would never see again.
The plane was shaking from the vibrations of the motors. I said a prayer because it looked like we were going to take off. The plane was moving. However, it was not going done the runway. It was heading back to the area where we boarded.
The pilot came on the intercom and said that the mission had been aborted, and we were going back to our companies.
I felt such relief along with men and women around me who were yelling for joy. We were safe and heading back to our homes.
I only shared this story because I know some of you have gone through the same thing. You also have been sent into combat, and faced the fear of not coming back. I was very lucky, but many of you actually left the ground in your plane, and headed into harm’s way.
Fear is something that is hard to control. Even the most-brave face it. We all have been there in some capacity.
It could be the doctor’s appointment that has information on your health. It also could be the times when you have to leave your loved ones for any mission. It may be the crises of your marriage when your spouse is tired of going through the pain of wondering if you will come back alive.
Did you know that Jesus faced fear? He even asked God to take away the fear by relieving Him of the cup of the responsibility God had placed on Him. He sweated blood during that prayer. God heard the prayer, but let Jesus go through the fear, pain and agony of going to the cross and dying for you and me.
I am not making it sound like we shouldn’t be afraid. I know we are quite often. I am not saying you are a bad person if you are afraid of something. We all have our spots where we fear the unknown.
I think that is the key. It is the “unknown.” It’s not knowing what will happen next.
What I have learned from so many times of facing fear is that 99% of what we fear never happens. We just need to give the other 01% over to God.
Is it that simple? I can honestly tell you that it is. God has big shoulders. He wants to take the burdens of our day away from us. We just need to depend on Him to keep His promises and know that He will never put us in a situation that we can’t handle with His help.
IWILL
Facing the unknown in life can be very hard. We aren’t built to take on such scary things at times. We just need to rely on God to see us through the dark clouds we face. He knows which way we need to go to avoid harm.
Think on this
Isn’t it interesting that having fear is what we really need to fear?
If you are battling mentally, but you are losing, GET HELP!!
Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highlyqualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.
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Military news…
US Says Russia Has a List of Ukrainians to Kill or Detain After an Invasion
U.S. officials told the U.N. human rights chief of “credible information” that Russian forces have a list of Ukrainian citizens to be killed or sent to detention camps following an invasion and occupation of the country.
Has there been a time in the military that you weren’t proud of? I had an incident that still bothers me to this day. On one of my days off in Korea I was invited to ride with a courier to the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone.)
I thought it would be very interesting, so I accepted the invite. The driver drove pretty fast in the open area. I was white knuckling it much of the way. We did slow down when we went through some villages. The people saw us and yelled at us because they didn’t want us there. This was hard to understand since we were saving them from the enemy. I was glad I couldn’t hear what they were saying.
We came to a farm area which had thousands of acres of rice paddies. In each field there was a deep hole with human waste in it. The people used their own human waste to fertilize the fields. We also saw the local farmers dipping the “honey buckets,” into the hole to get some of the waste out.
I saw an older farmer walking along the road with along pole across his shoulder that had a bucket on either side full of the waste. The driver dared me to spin the farmer with my hands. At that time of my life, I did stupid things to be accepted.
I reached out as far as I could as we passed the farmer. I caught one of the buckets, and this caused the farmer to completely spin around. I looked back and the farmer was screaming at us with human waste dripping from him.
The driver said, “Welcome to the club!” I guess there was a group of people that thought they were special being the one that knocked a defenseless old man down.
I immediately felt remorse for what I had done. I found out I was taken advantage by a guy, who hated the Korean people and did whatever he could to make their lives miserable. That made me even more remorseful.
I learned from this that you need to respect others and what they are doing to help their families. I realized in retrospect that if someone asks you to do something you know isn’t right for you to do it isn’t a group of people you want to be a part of.
We got to the DMZ. What a depressing place that was! It was a very small outpost with guards watching the North Korean soldiers on the other side of the DMZ.
They let me look through some powerful binoculars and I could see a North Korean soldier looking through his binoculars back at me. It was a very odd feeling. He was just another guy like me, but he would probably shoot me if he could.
Today, there is still strife between the two countries, and North Korea seems to be taking on the world on their own. There is still the DMZ. There are still soldiers looking at each other through binoculars. Nothing much has changed except the lives of those who had to serve in Korea.
They had to come home to try to cope in the private sector. They had/have to adjust just to survive.
I can say that it is hard to block out some of the negative aspects of our military service. It is hard to change thoughts from the active duty mind-set to the different world of the private sector. It took me a while to clear my mind and concentrate on the future. I had to realize that I needed to move on and start a new adventure. I needed to think about the next day of my life and all the days after that instead of dwelling on days gone by.
I never regretted serving my country. I would do it again if I were able. I’ve learned that I just need to be thankful that I have another day on this earth and should seek what I can do to better my life and the lives of others.
IWILL
We have all done some things we are not proud of. We need to correct any wrong doings we have done, by asking for forgiveness or making sure we show others the negative consequences of what we do to others.
Some soldiers, returning to the private sector, have issues that stay with them from their time in the service. I understand this. I have had to re-group myself. The key is to do something about it. Don’t hide your feelings. Get the right help to get you back on track in life. There are many resources in the back of this book to help you on your way down your new path.
Think about this
Isn’t it sad how people think they’re cool when they bully or belittle someone?
There will be more excerpts coming. Come back often to read them. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on “Subscribe.” When you do all future posts will come directly to your inbox.
Checking in on you…How are you doing? Are you struggling with memories?
FEAR NOT!
There are over 13,9010 fellow veterans here who have your back.
If you are battling mentally, because of your love for others, but it isn’t working, GET HELP!!
Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highlyqualified counselors there to help you, and they will no hang up until they know you are OK.
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