“The Obama administration is considering dropping the president’s commitment to withdrawing all US troops from Iraq by the end of the year in favor of keeping several thousand military trainers there.

The plan is already running into roadblocks in Iraq and in the US. In Washington, some political leaders are calling on President Obama to leave no troops behind, while others say the president should heed his military commanders on the ground and keep far more troops than the 3,000 to 4,000 he is considering.”

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Policy/2011/0907/Iraq-withdrawal-How-many-US-troops-will-remain

“The philosophy of gun control: Teenagers are roaring through town at 90 MPH, where the speed limit is 25.

Your solution is to lower the speed limit to 20.”

– Sam Cohen, inventor of the Neutron Bomb

“The top coalition commander in Afghanistan told USA TODAY on Wednesday that he has ordered a “surge” in efforts to get Taliban fighters to renounce violence and return to village life based on recent intelligence suggesting they feel abandoned by their leaders.

Marine Gen. John Allen said the effort aims to quickly capitalize on plunging morale among insurgents in southern Afghanistan, once the backbone of the Taliban movement, and to lure militants back to their homes with jobs and other incentives.

“Now is the moment,” Allen said in an interview from Kabul.

Success on the battlefield is an important component of persuading fighters to lay down their arms and rejoin society, commanders say.

“Nobody reintegrates to the losing side,” said Marine Gen. James Mattis, commander of Central Command, which oversees operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. “That’s just not human nature.”

http://www.usatoday.com/news/usaedition/2011-09-01-afghanistan_st_u.htm?csp=obinsite

“…not just one, but three White House advisors knew about Operation Fast and Furious:

Newly obtained emails show that the White House was better informed about a failed gun-tracking operation on the border with Mexico than was previously known.

Three White House national security officials were given some details about the operation, dubbed Fast and Furious. The operation allowed firearms to be illegally purchased, with the goal of tracking them to Mexican drug cartels. But the effort went out of control after agents lost track of many of the weapons.

The supervisor of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives operation in Phoenix specifically mentioned Fast and Furious in at least one email to a White House national security official, and two other White House colleagues were briefed on reports from the supervisor, according to White House emails and a senior administration official.

He identified the three White House officials who were briefed as Kevin M. O’Reilly, director of North American Affairs for the White House national security staff; Dan Restrepo, the president’s senior Latin American advisor; and Greg Gatjanis, a White House national security official.”

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2011/09/02/at_least_three_white_house_officials_knew_about_operation_fast_and_furious

“A lone Tomb Sentinel, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), walks his tour in humble reverence during Hurricane Irene in Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Aug 27. Members of The Old Guard have guarded the Tomb every second, of every day regardless of weather or holidays since April 6, 1948.”

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/elisabethmeinecke/2011/08/28/tomb_of_the_unknown_soldier_guarded_despite_hurricane