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Interesting Military News and Information From Around the World

Tuesday, May 31, 2005

 
American Airlines Military Discounts Extended
Received at MilitarySpot.com today:

"Traveling just got easier for America's military heroes to make it home to their loved ones. American Airlines is extending special travel offers available for active-duty military members. Now, members of the U.S. military and their families can take advantage of reduced fares until Jan. 31, 2006 to domestic and various international destinations.

American has eliminated Saturday night stay requirement. The airline is also inviting uniformed military personnel to pre-board with first-class passengers as a way to say "thank you." In addition, uniformed members who are participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom are welcome to be guests at American's Admirals Club facilities worldwide."

Complete information at: http://www.militaryspot.com/military-discounts.htm

4 comments

Sunday, May 29, 2005

 
WW II Japanese Soldiers Found in Southern Philippines?
If true, it would be a sensational story - two Imperial Japanese soldiers found on a remote Philippine Island after 60 years. (There have been other Japanese 'holdouts' discovered in the years after WW II, but none in the last several years.) But doubts are being cast on the current story, as the Japanese businessman who reported the find is dodging the media and Japanese government officials. Adding to the intrigue are reports that Philippine rebels are demanding $300,000 ransom for the return of the soldiers, but the Philippine Star reports that a Japanese embassy official has denied there is a ransom demand.

0 comments

Friday, May 27, 2005

 
Three U.S. Military Members Innocent of Iraq Abuses

It's been a bad week for military prosecutors:
USMC Lt. Pantano will not be charged in the deaths of two Iraqis, a Marine general has decided. An Army Sergeant has been cleared in the shooting death of an Iraqi. Also, a U.S. military jury found a Navy commando innoccent on Thursday of charges stemming from a 2003 incident in which members of his SEAL platoon beat a suspected Iraqi insurgent (photo above) before handing the prisoner over to the CIA where he died in custody.

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Terrorists tie bomb belt to dog in Iraq
Somebody call PETA!
According to various news reports, Insurgents in Iraq attached explosives to a dog and tried to blow up a military convoy near the northern oil centre of Kirkuk. The only casualty was the dog.

0 comments

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

 
Zarqawi and Bin Laden: World's Most Wanted


They are the world's most wanted men, but one (Zarqawi) is running a ruthless insurgency in Iraq while the other (bin Laden) is just plain running. Hopefully, their times are short. Zarqawi is said to be recently wounded, and bin Laden is reportedly on the run with a small band of fighters. Additionally, some foreign news outlets are reporting that a close aide to Osama Bin Laden and former Afghan Taliban leader Mulla Omar barely escaped before police raided his house in Pakistan's eastern Punjab province. Several weeks ago, al Qaeda's alleged number three man was arrested in Pakistan. But the latest Newsweek edition has raised the possibility that bin Laden may never be captured, according to unnamed sources (just kidding).

Our take: Bin Laden may never be found alive or dead and buried. After his natural death, bin Laden's most trusted advisors will bury bin Laden in a remote, unmarked location. These advisors will then be put to death by other al Qaeda members so that there will be no evidence or recollection of where bin Laden is buried. This scenario would frustrate intelligence agencies for years to come, as they would be left wondering if bin Laden is dead or alive.

0 comments

Sunday, May 22, 2005

 
Satellite image gives terrorists birds-eye view of Bush ranch


There's a reason why governments spend so much money on spy satellites. The images they provide can give users valuable information and insights not available elsewhere. Such is the case with the satellite images available at Google.com of President George Bush's Crawford, Texas ranch.

The images give detailed topographical information that could be used by terrorists to assault the ranch. Terrorists could use this information to determine types of assaults (air, ground), determine methods of assault (mechanized, vehicle borne, airborne, small unit infiltration, etc.), calculate distances and directions, and plan entry and egress routes. Let's hope the Secret Service is prepared for all possible threats against the ranch, including those derived from "outside the box" terrorist planners.

More interesting Google satellite images can be found at:
http://www.militaryspot.com/satellite-photos.htm

0 comments

Friday, May 20, 2005

 
Million Veteran March on Washington D.C.
Check this out:
Million Veteran March - June 8th, 2005
According to the Web site, the purpose of the march is to "demonstrate anger at the lack of adequate VA funding, VA performance and Veteran benefits in general."

0 comments

 
Iraqi Insurgent Sniper Training


ABC News reports: "Web sites maintained by Iraqi insurgents and their supporters contain chilling instructions that tell recruits how to become snipers and how to inflict the maximum damage, ABC News has learned. The document contains information from pro-insurgency Web sites, translated by Pentagon analysts, that instructs would-be snipers to target U.S. and coalition military commanders, officers and pilots because replacing them "may take two to four years and cost more than $500,000 to put someone through the famous West Point."

A PowerPoint version of the document in English has been posted at http://www.d-n-i.net. The document is also available below.
(Requires the PowerPoint Viewer: Free download at Microsoft.com)

Iraqi Insurgent Sniper Training Manual:
http://www.militaryspot.com/iraqi_insurgent_sniper_training.ppt

0 comments

Thursday, May 19, 2005

 
Brit Video, Military Discounts, Podcasts
Soldiers have always had a sense of humor. Here's a video from the Brits that proves it.
Go to: http://www.putfile.com/top10.php and see "Way to Armadillo"
(Direct link: http://www.putfile.com/media.php?n=way_to_armadillo)

NEW LISTINGS on our Military Discounts page ( http://www.militaryspot.com/military-discounts.htm)

Gemologica.com: Military members and their families receive free shipping. Use coupon code MS2005.
http://www.gemologica.com/

Carnival Cruise Lines: Active, retired, reserve, honorably discharged (min. 2 years) military personnel receive a 10-50% discount on select 2-12 day cruises through 2006. Contact Oscar Vergara at 1-800-819-3902 ext. 82614 or e-mail at overgara2@carnival.com.

MilitarySpot.com has a new Military Podcast page at:
http://www.militaryspot.com/military-podcast.htm
If you know of a military/war-related podcast please let us know so that we can include it on this page.

Thanks, The MilitarySpot.com Team

0 comments

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

 
German Engineering: Arab Technology
This video is a killer! (Thanks to Jim for the video)

0 comments

 
Star Wars III Opens!


Believe it or not this very funny cartoon by Mike Luckovich of the Atlanta Journal Constitution has upset a few military folks. Elsewhere, one of today's top stories is an article about how the U.S. Air Force is seeking aproval for a space weapon's program. Hmmm. I remember when the original Star Wars opened and the U.S. Military gained press coverage by commenting on how it was considering using ideas from the movie for developing new military technologies, including the X-Wing configuration.

0 comments

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

 
Army Offers 15-Month Enlistment*
* Check fine print about Stop-Loss. Terms of service may be extended at discretion of U.S. Army.

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Monday, May 16, 2005

 
Godfather Movie Provided Inspiration for Hussein's Protection Strategy


According to The Military Channel's Ace in the Hole cable TV program that aired May 12th, Saddam Hussein employed tactics from his favorite movie "The Godfather" for his three-tiered protection strategy. The top tier included many names on the 55 Most Wanted list. The middle tier consisted of 25 bodyguards and 40 personal employees. "Route clearers" composed the bottom tier. Saddam was caught after Army intelligence started to identify and round up key players in the "families." More information about upcoming Military Channel programs can be found at:
http://www.militaryspot.com/military-channel.htm.

Operation Red Dawn:
http://www.centcom.mil/operations/iraqi_Freedom/reddawn/OperationRedDawn_files/frame.htm

0 comments

Sunday, May 15, 2005

 
Newsweek Backs off Quran Desecration Story
On the highways in Dallas I often see "Bush lied, people died" and "No one died when Clinton lied" bumper stickers. Today, I saw several "Newsweek lied, people died" blog headlines.

There will be those who will crucify Newsweek because the story contained unsubstantiated accusations. But the greater error is that Newsweek decided to publish the story in the first place, even if the claims were substantiated. Freedom of Speech is one thing, but being responsible with information is another. I doubt such a story would have seen the light of day in American newspapers in World War II!

1 comments

 
Drop murder charges, Pantano prober urges


"An investigating officer has recommended that the Marine Corps drop murder charges against 2nd Lt. Ilario Pantano, who shot to death two Iraqi insurgents a year ago during a raid on an insurgent hideout in the "Triangle of Death. Col. Winn recommended that Lt. Pantano face administration punishment for firing too many rounds at the two men."

What!? Too many rounds at the enemy!? This is the Marine Corps! This is war!

"Airwinger," in a post at http://www.military-forums.net/eve couldn't have said it better:

"So the old adage from so many T-shirts, "When in doubt, empty the magazine" rang true... when it's your Six on the line and you're not 100% sure, don't just empty the magazine, empty two of them. That way they can't pull a grenade pin with their dieing breath."

You can show your support for Lt. Pantano at: http://www.defendthedefenders.org/

0 comments

Saturday, May 14, 2005

 
The Mystery of the Insurgency


This New York Times article tries to make sense of the Iraqi insurgents' new tactics of attacking their own people. But there is a simple explanation for their motives - any bad news from Iraq is bad news for the United States. Though the insurgents are killing their own people in droves, the insurgents know that many in Iraq and around the world will hold the U.S. personally responsible for these killings, either because of America's failure to provide adequate security or just because of America's very presence in Iraq. The insurgents don't have to adopt the same tactics as those of the North Vietnamese, they just have to make Iraq look like Vietnam any way they can! Photo: Black Hawks over Baghdad after a suicide bombing.

0 comments

Friday, May 13, 2005

 
Filipino Gunsmiths Are Making a Killing


"Self-taught gunsmiths in the Philippines are churning out faithful working replicas of combat arms, from Israeli UZIs to 45-caliber handguns and KG-9 assault rifles used by Navy SEALs."

I visited the PI (as the Philippine Islands are known to the U.S. Navy and Marines) more than a few times during WestPacs with MEUSOCs in the late 1980s. Each time we went to the field to train, a variety of vendors would set up camp nearby to sell "bush bunnies," lumpia and rice, and knives!

This story about the gunsmiths reminded me of the resourcefulness of the Filipino people and their struggles to earn a meager existence. The locals had a variety of knives available to barter for food (MREs) and other items. These knives were made from scratch. Filipinos would scavenge old auto coil springs for the steel blades. The handles were made from water buffalo horns or brass from empty shell casings. The knife (photo above) has a handle made from the plastics of an automobile interior.

My friend traded his Burger King digital watch for a machete and a couple of knives. I think I traded a can of tuna and a pair of cammie bottoms for the couple of knives I have.

Another friend traded a pair of cammies for a bush bunny, but that's another story.

1 comments
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