Friday, January 27, 2012

Defense Cuts: Military Retirees In the Crosshairs Again

As our military faces deep, possibly crippling cuts, those that have spent the better part of their adult lives serving our nation are, once again, being targeted.

SecDef Leon Panetta outlined his plan for saving dollars and many are concerned that it will adversely affect our defense capabilities and readiness.  He centered on the fact that draw-downs would  keep our forces above pre-9/11 levels, but not by much.

In addition, "the Pentagon recommended an increase in health care fees, co-pays and deductibles for retired military members."  Really?  I'm sure that a few stuffed suits will argue that this is smart business because it won't have any effect on readiness.  I disagree, and here's why:  Retirement benefits are incentives that directly affect long term retention of quality personnel.  If retention suffers, readiness will suffer. Get it?

It's not rocket science, but this sort of thing sure seems to be beyond the grasp of those holding the purse strings.
Article here

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Wikipedia to Go Dark. Who Cares?

I came across an article that informed me of Wikipedia's intent to "blackout" for a day in protest of some pending asinine legislation that many search engines and online providers of various media are in opposition to.  To this announcement I say, "Well then, I guess lazy students and bloggers everywhere will have to use real references and sources for a day!"  (article here)  Perhaps I'm missing out on the significance of this event, but I think the sun will still rise tomorrow without this glorified social media site being up and running.  Well, there could be some entertainment value to this; we'll see...

UPDATE: It seems that our elected tormentors have had a brief moment of clarity and have abandoned (for now) their efforts to pass idiotic and freedom-stomping SOPA legislation (article here). I do, however, doubt that Wikipedia is the source of this rare dose of common sense.  There are far better ways to get the word out than by adopting an "I'll show you!  I'll take my ball and go home!" approach.  Other, more realistically managed websites simply encouraged patrons to contact their legislators.  THAT is what got the attention of our slimy politicians.  Hollyweird's tantrums bore no fruit...this time.  

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Comments on Marines Urinating on Taliban Bodies

I watched the video that allegedly shows Marines urinating on dead Taliban bodies.  My initial reaction was, "You guys are idiots; I can't believe you filmed that crap."  What those Marines did was wrong, but the words "mountain" and "mole hill" come to mind right now.    The incident is being investigated, and those responsible will be punished accordingly. 


The emotion-based condemnation of these Marines is off the mark.  Representative Allen West weighed in and I agree with him on a couple of points (article here).  He initially states in his letter that what the Marines did was wrong; I agree with that.  He also points out that there is a double standard in the media (and D.C.) by asking where all of the outrage was when American bodies were mutilated by our enemies; I agree with him on that, but I don't believe that the blatant media bias in any way lessens what has been done. 

What do I think should be done about the incident?  First off, let me say that the actions of these Marines is not in keeping with the high standards that we set for members of our Corps.  Beyond that, I say let their command handle the situation with appropriate punishment and let's get our eye back on the ball.