We will never know the truth .... because ......

I doubt that the Army will ever be allowed to pursue desertion charges. What a total embarrassment it would be to the current administration, to have exchanged five dangerous, convicted terrorists ... for a deserter. Ooooppppssss to say the least. This story will be buried and die, per a memo ... from the White House. "I don't want justice, I want silence."

The Army may still pursue an investigation that could lead to desertion or other charges against Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was freed from five years of Taliban captivity in a prisoner exchange last weekend, Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday.

Dempsey also told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from his plane that Bergdahl's next promotion to staff sergeant, which was set to happen soon, is no longer automatic because Bergdahl isn't missing in action any longer.

Speaking publicly for the first time about the case, Dempsey said he does not want to prejudge the outcome of any investigation or say anything that might influence a commander's decision.

But he said U.S. military leaders "have been accused of looking away from misconduct, and it's premature" to assume they would do so in Bergdahl's case, despite the soldier's five years as a Taliban prisoner.

Bergdahl was handed over to U.S. Army special forces Saturday in exchange for the release of five detainees at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba detention facility.

Service members who are missing in action routinely continue to be promoted on the same schedule as their peers. But, Dempsey said, "his status has now changed, and therefore the requirements for promotion are more consistent with normal duty status." As a result, he said, other things needed for promotion, such as proper levels of education and job performance, would now apply. That makes Bergdahl's promotion less automatic.

There are a variety of offenses related to an absence without proper approval, and a number of potential actions could be taken by the military. He could be tried by court martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice for desertion; he could be given a non-judicial punishment for a lesser charge, such as being away without leave. And he could be given credit for time already served while he was a prisoner.

Dempsey stressed that any decision would be up to the Army. (I doubt that!)

He said he has not yet spoken to Bergdahl or his parents since the release, noting that medical personnel want him to come to grips first with his new freedom and status.

Members of Bergdahl's unit and military officials have complained that Bergdahl's decision to leave his base unarmed put his fellow soldiers in danger and that some were killed in missions that included looking for him.

North Korea puts army on alert, warns U.S. of 'horrible disaster'

(Reuters) - North Korea said on Tuesday its military would be put on high alert and be ready to launch operations, stepping up tension after weeks of rhetoric against the United States and South Korea, whom it accuses of instigating hostility.

Reclusive North Korea has often issued threats to attack the South and the United States but has rarely turned them into action. Such hostile rhetoric is widely seen as a way to push its domestic and international political agenda.

A spokesman for the North's military warned the United States of "disastrous consequences" for moving a group of ships, including an aircraft carrier, into a South Korean port.

"In this connection, the units of all services and army corps level of the KPA received an emergency order from its supreme command to re-examine the operation plans already ratified by it and keep themselves fully ready to promptly launch operations anytime," the spokesman said, referring to the Korean People's Army (KPA).

"The U.S. will be wholly accountable for the unexpected horrible disaster to be met by its imperialist aggression forces' nuclear strike means," the spokesman said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.

South Korea's Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said later on Tuesday there was no indication of unusual activity by the North's military.

Washington brushed off the North's warning.

It ain't gonna work

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned this week that looming military spending cuts “will result in a serious erosion of readiness across the force.”

The caution comes as no surprise to Aaron Negherbon, whose nonprofit helps soldiers circumvent government fiscal challenges and red tape to get critical equipment to combat troops.

“I’ve been told by units that are over there, as well as units that are still stateside, that they are already feeling budget pinches as a result of the state of affairs in D.C.,” said Negherbon, TroopsDirect founder. “We’re hearing more statements that are along the lines of, ‘Our supply chains have been minimized, and we can’t get stuff in the time that we need.’”

For the past three years, Negherbon says his handful of volunteers near Oakland, Calif., have secured and expedited 60,000 pounds of vital supplies like stretchers, communications gear, protective goggles and more to infantry units and special operations forces around the globe. But then a few weeks ago, the former real estate broker fielded a call for something never requested before: bulletproof vests.

“We need body armor,” Negherbon recalls the veteran Army sergeant saying. “He said, ‘We’re getting ready to deploy, and they are only giving us 30 of the 60 vests that we need.’ The way he laid it out to me … it was part budget and part just general policy of what the unit was going to be issued as opposed to what they needed to have issued.”

The sergeant told Negherbon 60 soldiers in his unit, which deploys to Afghanistan in early April, are route-clearing specialists assigned to eliminate roads of obstacles, primarily improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

“It’s not like they are chefs or secretaries,” Negherbon said. “They are the guys that go out there and identify and defuse the bombs."

The Army Nurse Corps in World War II

More than 59,000 American nurses served in the Army Nurse Corps during World War II. Nurses worked closer to the front lines than they ever had before. Within the "chain of evacuation" established by the Army Medical Department during the war, nurses served under fire in field hospitals and evacuation hospitals, on hospital trains and hospital ships, and as flight nurses on medical transport planes. 

The skill and dedication of these nurses contributed to the extremely low post-injury mortality rate among American military forces in every theater of the war. Overall, fewer than 4 percent of the American soldiers who received medical care in the field or underwent evacuation died from wounds or disease.

The tremendous manpower needs faced by the United States during World War II created numerous new social and economic opportunities for American women. Both society as a whole and the United States military found an increasing number of roles for women. As large numbers of women entered industry and many of the professions for the first time, the need for nurses clarified the status of the nursing profession. The Army reflected this changing attitude in June 1944 when it granted its nurses officers' commissions and full retirement privileges, dependents' allowances, and equal pay. Moreover, the government provided free education to nursing students between 1943 and 1948.

Military service took men and women from small towns and large cities across America and transported them around the world. Their wartime experiences broadened their lives as well as their expectations. After the war, many veterans, including nurses, took advantage of the increased educational opportunities provided for them by the government. World War II changed American society irrevocably and redefined the status and opportunities of the professional nurse.

EVERYONE should listen to THIS

As Veterans Day approaches, PLEASE take the time to listen to this.

THE NATIONAL ANTHEM AS IT SHOULD BE HEARD

I "tear up" every time I listen to it ....

and

I try to listen to it at least once a day.

So Should YOU!

The New AMV

It may look like something you might have pulled out of a Kenner G.I. Joe package during your salad days in the '80s, but the "Aggressor" off-road Alternative Mobility Vehicle is no toy. In fact it's very real, and the first prototypes are ready for testing by the men in green.


The tough-looking buggy uses a diesel-electric hybrid powertrain developed by Quantum Technologies. Green and mean, the setup provides strong performance credentials (0-40 mph in 4 secs) and affords the vehicle a level of stealthiness not found in conventional machinery. How so? It can run in a battery-only mode that allows the AMV to run silently and with a reduced heat signature, making it much more difficult to detect when it's operating covertly. Seems like a no-brainer for the military, as quieter will always be better when working in hostile environments.

The vehicle and its powertrain, according to Popular Mechanics, have also been talked about for potential use domestically in roles such as border patrol and park service duty. The quieter operations of hybrid vehicles is often touted as a nice side benefit when discussing passenger cars and commercial vehicles. For the military, however, it's clearly a big selling point. In a bit of a role reversal, the rest of the drivetrain's advantages are the gravy.

Don't know who they are, but God love 'em.

Just think where they could be, and what they could be doing, instead, they are serving their country in a hostile environment, they can be in harms way, but they are not supposed to be in combat.

I hold out hope for this country when there are gals like this, and some guys.

I have no idea who they are, but I will say a prayer for them tonight.

You do the same.

The Army-Navy Game

The Army Navy Game today. We see a group of young people who hopefully will be leading the country in the future. They come running out, carrying the American Flag, the jets fly overhead, the Corp is on the field, certainly brings tears to my eyes, the West Point Glee Club sang the National Anthem, the way it should be sung. And one thing that is so evident, that we rarely see today, RESPECT.

We will be seeing a lot of football in the next few weeks, but none will be a finer example of the youth of America than we see today in this game. If there is hope for this country, we are watching what could be a major portion of that hope.

GO Navy!