Latest intelligence on the world situation, updates on US military capabilities, news that affects Military retirees, and news that will probably never be reported by the "Liberal American Media!"

Military Newsletter

 

Latest intelligence on the world situation, updates on US military capabilities, news that affects Military retirees, 

and news that will probably never be reported by the "Liberal American Media!"

 

Edited by Lt Col Kent Vasby, USAF, Ret

 

---

 

Editor's note:

 

Wow!  The power of prayer!

 

I brought my wife home this morning, just 24 hours after her surgery.

 

The doctor and nurses were amazed at her recovery - as am I!

 

The surgeon removed a calcified ovary, the size of a grapefruit, which was causing all the problems.

 

She's back at her computer desk, and behaving pretty much like nothing happened!

 

Thanks, again

 

Kent

 

---

 

 

 

Antagonism at sea, U.S.-Russia edition

 

Earlier this week, Russian aircraft ignored repeated U.S. warnings and flew within one nautical mile of the USS Ronald Reagan just east of the Korean peninsula

 

Two Tupolev Tu-142 Bear aircraft flew as low as 500 feet Tuesday morning near the Reagan.

 

 

The Reagan scrambled an F-18 just in case.

 

http://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/russian-aircraft-approach-uss-ronald-reagan-prompting-us-fighter-jet-scramble-1.375709

 

 

---

 

 

China: Will respond to US ships with all necessary means 

 

Beijing is officially steamed that the U.S. Navy sailed so close to two artificial islands in the South China Sea earlier this week. 

 

 

And China's military this morning vowed to use "all necessary measures according to the need" to deter a future passage like the one the destroyer Lassen made on Tuesday past the Subi and Mischief reefs.

 

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/1790ff8e187740e5a2d8a2d5a363c852/china-will-respond-us-ships-all-necessary-means

 

 

---

How the Rest of Asia Reacted to US Navy Patrol Near China's Man-Made Island

 

 

We know China wasn't happy. What about everyone else? 

 

http://thediplomat.com/2015/10/how-the-rest-of-asia-reacted-to-us-navy-patrol-near-chinas-man-made-island/

 

 

---

The student has become the master.​

 

 

At the third presidential face-off Wednesday night, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush tried to take out Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, his former protégé, and backfired. In Boulder, Colo., 

 

http://www.defenseone.com/politics/2015/10/weakened-bush-swings-rubio-rising-rubio-aims-clinton/123237/?d_brief_nl

 

---

 

Election Results Could Shift Polish Military Priorities

 

Conservatives take over Poland?

 

 

Rather an interesting party logo?

 

The landslide victory by Poland's Law and Justice Party, which had promised to boost defense spending and prioritize domestic industry, will allow it to be the first party in Poland's history able to form a government without any coalition partners. 

 

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/policy-budget/budget/2015/10/28/election-results-could-shift-polish-military-priorities/74761820/

 

 

---

 

DOD Announces Stop Doing Dumb Shit Challenge

 

WASHINGTON Jumping on the social media challenge bandwagon, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter last week released a video of himself doing nothing stupid, reckless, dangerous, or in any way interesting, and challenged the men and the women of the armed forces to do likewise.

 

SATIRE:  http://www.duffelblog.com/2015/10/dod-stop-doing-dumb-shit/?

 

 

---

 

The Ranger the Taliban called the giant got his first NFL start this past week-end.

 

Alejandro Villanueva is a former West Point lineman and Army Ranger who got his first start at tackle on Sunday as the Pittsburgh Steelers faced the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.

 

A firefight had broken out between the Taliban and Afghan civilians, and, in trying to protect them, Lt. Villanueva had unknowingly led his troops into an ambush. The Taliban was waiting in the dark for Villanueva, the 6-foot-9 man known as The Giant, and opened fire, wounding three soldiers. 

 

Continue:  http://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/the-ranger-the-taliban-called-the-giant-is-getting-his-first-nfl-start-today?

 

 

---

 

 

Thousands Of Soldiers With Mental Health Disorders Kicked Out for 'Misconduct'

 

The U.S. Army has kicked out more than 22,000 soldiers since 2009 for "misconduct," after they returned from Iraq and Afghanistan and were diagnosed with mental health disorders and traumatic brain injuries. That means many of those soldiers are not receiving the crucial treatment or retirement and health care benefits they would have received with an honorable discharge.

 

 

Ed:  It's an NPR report so I question some of its conclusions.

 

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/10/28/452652731/thousands-of-soldiers-with-mental-health-disorders-kicked-out-for-misconduct

 

 

---

 

Americans Encouraged to Greenlight Opportunity for Transitioning Veterans 

 

Anyone can Greenlight A Vet: 

Hire one today. Or help a veteran find a job. 

Volunteer and serve with veterans groups in your local community. 

Start a mentor/mentee relationship with a returning veteran. 

Raise awareness on social media. 

Or simply signal support by changing your porch light to green. 

 

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/americans-encouraged-to-greenlight-opportunity-for-transitioning-veterans-2015-10-26

 

 

---

This little-known federal agency can't explain why it needs a fleet of 1,100 flashy SUVs

 

 

The Federal Protective Service (FPS) is a relatively unknown division of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) which is primarily concerned with providing facility security for federal buildings. It's also the not-so-proud manager of a fleet of more than 1,100 pricey vehicles which a new audit finds the agency can't justify. 

 

http://theweek.com/speedreads/585608/littleknown-federal-agency-cant-explain-why-needs-fleet-1100-flashy-suvs

 

 

---

 

Mexico deploys its navy to face its latest threat: Monster seaweed

 

The Mexican navy has deployed its oceanographers to track the seaweed and launched research voyages to study "what provoked this arrival," said Rear Adm. Fernando Alfonso Angli Rodriguez.  

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/mexico-deploys-its-navy-to-face-its-latest-threat-monster-seaweed/2015/10/28/cea8ac28-710b-11e5-ba14-318f8e87a2fc_story.html?

 

 

---

 

Let's Talk About Sex (in the Military)

 

Oh shucks, It's about issue of women in combat roles

 

http://warontherocks.com/2015/10/lets-talk-about-sex-in-the-military/

 

---

 

Ole & Lena

Thanks, Marty

 

Ole walks into David Jones to purchase a sheer negligee for Lena.

 

He is shown several possibilities that range from $250 to $500 in price -- the more sheer, the higher the price.

 

Naturally, he opts for the most sheer item, pays the $500, and takes it home.

 

Ole presents it to Lena and asks her to go upstairs, put it on, and model it for him.

 

Upstairs - Lena thinks (she's no dummy), 'I have an idea.

 

It's so sheer that it might as well be nothing.  I won't put it on, but I'll do the modeling naked,

return it tomorrow, and keep the $500 refund for myself.'

 

Lena appears naked on the balcony and strikes a pose.

 

Ole says, 'Good Grief! You'd think for $500, they'd at least iron it!'

 

Ole never heard the shot.

 

Funeral on Thursday at Noon. Closed coffin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Iran's New Palestinian Terror Group: Al-Sabireen by Khaled Abu Toameh  •  October 28, 2015 at 5:00 am The Iranians are also believed to have supplied their new terrorist group in the Gaza Strip with Grad and Fajr missiles that are capable of reaching Tel Aviv. The leader of Al-Sabireen, Hisham Salem, is a former commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip. His activities and rhetoric have worried many in Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, who fear that his group is beginning to attract many of their followers. Salem has been accused by many Palestinians of helping Iran spread Shia Islam inside the Gaza Strip, where all Muslims belong to the rival Sunni denomination. This, of course, is bad news for [Palestinian President Mahmoud] Abbas, who is now watching as many of his former loyalists have become on Iran's payroll and are sharing its radical ideology. Many Palestinians and Arabs in the region are already voicing concern. The last thing Abbas, Egypt's President Sisi and Jordan's King Abdullah need is another Iranian terror group such as Hezbollah in the Middle East. It now remains to be seen whether the Obama Administration and other Western powers will wake up and realize that the Iranians are continuing to fool them, not only regarding Tehran's nuclear program, but also concerning its territorial ambitions in the Middle East. Unless the U.S. and Western powers realize that Iran remains a major threat to world peace, Al-Sabireen and other terrorist groups will one day manage to establish a UN-recognized Palestinian state that would pose an existential threat to Israel and destabilize the entire Middle East. Al-Sabireen commander Ahmed Sharif Al-Sarhi (left) was responsible for a series of shooting attacks on Israel before he was fatally shot two weeks ago by IDF snipers along the border with the Gaza Strip. The Iranians are also believed to have supplied their new terrorist group in the Gaza Strip with Grad and Fajr missiles (right) that are capable of reaching Tel Aviv. The nuclear deal between Iran and the world powers has paved the way for the Iranians to resume their efforts to spread their influence throughout the Middle East. As the Obama Administration and the rest of the international community choose to look the other way, Iran evidently feels that this is the appropriate time to meddle in the internal affairs of Arabs and Muslims Iran's main goal, from all appearances, is to dominate the entire Middle East by destroying Israel and most of the Arab and Islamic regimes that are considered too "moderate" and "pro-West." So far, thanks to the indifference of the Obama Administration and most Western countries, the Iranians seem to be marching in the right direction toward achieving their goal. Continue Reading Article

South China Sea: Beijing 'not frightened to fight a war' after US move...

South China Sea

State-run media in belligerent mood after USS Lassen challenges Beijing’s territorial claims in disputed Spratly archipelago 

Mute

Current Time0:00

/

Duration Time0:59

Loaded: 0%

Progress: 0%

China warns US not to ‘make a fool of itself’ over South China Sea manoeuvres.

Tom Phillips in Beijing

Wednesday 28 October 2015 03.16 EDTLast modified on Wednesday 28 October 2015 21.10 EDT

• Share on Pinterest
• Share on LinkedIn
• Share on Google+

Shares

6,120

Comments

3,925

 Save for later

China is not afraid of fighting a war against the United States in the South China Sea, a state-run newspaper with links to the Communist party has claimed.

Analysis How China's artificial islands led to tension in the South China Sea

Beijing is attempting to build artificial islands, while other states in the region are looking to the US to flex its military muscle on their behalf

 

Read more

Twenty-four hours after Washington challenged Beijing’s territorial claims in the region by deploying a warship to waters around the disputed Spratly archipelago, the notoriously nationalistic Global Times accused the Pentagon of provoking China.

“In [the] face of the US harassment, Beijing should deal with Washington tactfully and prepare for the worst,” the newspaper argued in an editorial on Wednesday.

“This can convince the White House that China, despite its unwillingness, is not frightened to fight a war with the US in the region, and is determined to safeguard its national interests and dignity.”

The People’s Liberation Army Daily, China’s leading military newspaper, used a front-page editorial to accuse the US of sowing chaos in countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq.

“Cast-iron facts show that time and again the United States recklessly uses force and starts wars, stirring things up where once there was stability, causing the bitterest of harm to those countries directly involved,” the newspaper said, according to Reuters.

 Competing claims in the South China Sea.

Tuesday’s manoeuvre, which saw the guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen sail close to artificial Chinese islands, came after Barack Obama and Chinese president Xi Jinping failed to find common ground over the issue during recent talks at the White House.

US defence secretary Ash Carter warned that further “freedom of navigation” operations in the region were planned. “We will fly, sail and operate wherever international law permits,” he told a congressional hearing.

Mute

Current Time 0:00

/

Duration Time1:01

Loaded: 0%

Progress: 0%

FacebookTwitterPinterest

US defence secretary Ash Carter acknowledges that a US ship did enter disputed waters 

China reacted to Tuesday’s long-anticipated mission by hurling a barrage of accusations at Washington.

“The United States has been very irresponsible,” defense ministry spokesperson Yang Yujun said, according to Xinhua, China’s official news agency.

“We will take any measures necessary to safeguard our security.”

Lu Kang, a foreign ministry spokesperson, said China would “resolutely respond” to any deliberate provocations but declined to be drawn on any potential military response.

“I advise the US not to make a fool out of themselves in trying to be smart,” Lu said.

But despite the angry rhetoric coming out of Beijing, experts say China’s response has been relatively muted.

“It seems like China’s reaction – at least initially – has been to respond in a restrained, operational way. The Chinese have absolutely no interest in sparking a tactical crisis or any kind of confrontation with the Americans,” said Ashley Townshend, a South China Sea expert from the University of Sydney’s United States studies centre.

China’s military buildup in the South China Sea – including the construction of a 3km runway capable of supporting fighter jets and transport planes – has become a major source of tension between Beijing and Washington.

China claims most of the South China Sea, one of the world’s busiest sea lanes, although Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. Beijing says the islands will have mainly civilian uses as well as undefined defence purposes.

US threatens further naval incursions despite furious reaction from China

 

Read more

But satellite photographs have shown the construction of three military-length airstrips by China in the Spratlys, including one each on Mischief and Subi reefs.

Washington hoped Tuesday’s mission would encourage Beijing to step back from its controversial island building campaign, which China claims is for civilian purposes but critics believe is an attempt to use military power to cement its grip over the region. 

However, Townshend warned that sending US warships to the South China Sea could have the opposite effect.

“I think these freedom of navigation missions may play into the hands of the hardliners in the [Chinese] military or in the regime … It will be harder for moderates in the regime to say no to People’s Liberation Army hawks and others if the Americans are [seen as] being provocative.”

Townshend said the US mission may have temporarily strengthened Washington’s hand. “[But] there’s an element of you win the battle but you lose the war if actually these freedom of navigation missions make China more determined to militarise these islands,” he added.

“These islands are not going away – unless global warming takes them out.”

Russian Airstrikes in Syria: September 30 - October 28, 2015...

Russian Airstrikes in Syria September 30 - October 28, 2015

By Genevieve Casagrande and Jodi Brignola    Key Takeaway: Russian airstrikes near Aleppo targeted rebels from October 27-28 as the Syrian regime's ground offensives suffered setbacks. Syrian regime ground offensives against rebels in the southern countryside of Aleppo and against ISIS near the besieged Kuweires Airbase east of Aleppo City largely stalled followingISIS's offensive against the regime-held town of Safira in the southeastern Aleppo countryside on October 26. Russian airstrikes, however, largely concentrated in rebel-held areas south of Aleppo City and within the city center according to local activist reporting. Rebel forces have historically leveraged ISIS's offensives against the regime in Aleppo in order to advance against both the regime and ISIS elsewhere in the province. The intensity of Russian airstrikes in Aleppo may limit the Syrian opposition's ability to capitalize on regime's stalled offensive.    Iranian state news claimed that Russian warplanes targeted ISIS and Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra near the Syrian Golan Heights on October 28. Local reporting in Syria has not yet substantiated these claims. ISW therefore does not assess these strikes with even low-confidence at this time. If confirmed, Russian airstrikes in southern Syria could be a sign of Russian cooperation with Israel and Jordan after both countries established independent coordination "mechanisms" with Russia on September 21 and October 23, respectively. The strikes could alternatively represent an escalation against Syria's southern neighbors if not coordinated with Amman and Tel Aviv.  The following graphic depicts ISW's assessment of Russian airstrike locations based on reports from local Syrian activist networks, Syrian state-run media, and statements by Russian and Western officials. High-Confidence reporting. ISW places high confidence in reports corroborated both by official government statements reported through credible channels and documentation from rebel factions or activist networks on the ground in Syria deemed to be credible. Low-Confidence reporting. ISW places low confidence in secondary sources that have not been confirmed or sources deemed likely to contain disinformation.          Read this update online