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Posts Tagged military
Many Vets Are On Gun Ban List
From Townhall.com:
According to Grassley’s office, the VA “reports individuals to the gun ban list if an individual merely needs financial assistance managing VA benefits,” keeping them from exercising their Second Amendment rights. (Bolding is mine)
“The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is effectively a national gun ban list and placement on the list precludes the ownership and possession of firearms. According to the Congressional Research Service, as of June 1, 2012, 99.3% of all names reported to the NICS list’s “mental defective†category were provided by the Veterans Administration (VA) even though reporting requirements apply to all federal agencies.
Secretary of Defense Talks Future of the Military
From Defense.gov:
Defense Secretary Ash Carter spoke with students, faculty and leaders at Syracuse University in New York this morning, describing his vision and plans for building the “Force of the Future.â€
The secretary visited the university on the second day of his first official domestic trip, which began yesterday and included a stop in Pennsylvania to speak with students from his high school alma mater in Abington, near Philadelphia.
Russia Fortifying Arctic Border
Posted by Brian in News, Threat Watch on 29/Mar/2015 07:00
From Business Insider:
In order to capitalize on a changing Arctic, Russia is undertaking a major military upgrade of its northern coast and outlying Arctic archipelagos. These bases — which include search-and-rescue stations, military ports and airstrips, and military headquarters — are positioning Russia to become the dominant power in the region.
The Northern Fleet itself is due for a massive upgrade starting in 2015 that will last through the rest of the decade. The fleet has been upgraded to a unit called the Russian Joint Strategic Command North (JSCN), which, according to the Polish Institute of International Affairs, won’t be an ordinary naval force.
DARPA Looking For Lighter Night Vision Goggles
From KitUp:
The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) said today’s night vision goggles are too heavy and cumbersome for troops and have led to short term and long term neck injuries.
DARPA officials have put out a call to companies to issue proposals to build the next generation of night vision goggles. Proposals must put forth a plan to design goggles that look a lot like a bulky pair commercial sunglasses. The night vision glasses must be able to instantly switch from daylight to infrared.
President Caps Military Pay
From MOAA:
On August 29, President Obama sent a letter notifying Congress that he is using his authority under law to cap the active duty military pay raise at 1 percent in 2015.
Typically the active duty pay raise is determined by private sector wage growth, measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index (ECI). The ECI calls for a 1.8 percent pay raise in 2015.
However, the President has executive authority to make an alternative pay adjustment if he considers it necessary due to national emergency or economic concerns.
Is there a national emergency or economic crises that I didn’t know about?
2010 Presidential Directive Authorizes Military To Quell Civil Unrest
The directive, which can be viewed here, was issued in 2010 by President Obama.
The Washington Times reports:
“In these circumstances, those federal military commanders have the authority, in extraordinary emergency circumstances where prior authorization by the president is impossible and duly constituted local authorities are unable to control the situation, to engage temporarily in activities that are necessary to quell large-scale, unexpected civil disturbances†under two conditions.
The conditions include military support needed “to prevent significant loss of life or wanton destruction of property and are necessary to restore governmental function and public order.†A second use is when federal, state and local authorities “are unable or decline to provide adequate protection for federal property or federal governmental functions.â€
The militarization of federal agencies, under little-known statues that permit deputization of security officials, comes as the White House has launched verbal attacks on private citizens’ ownership of firearms despite the fact that most gun owners are law-abiding citizens.
Related links: Posse Comitatus Act
Joint Aircraft Are A Bad Idea
From RAND:
In short, we find no evidence that historical joint aircraft programs have saved money. We also find that joint aircraft programs have obliged the services to accept unwelcome design compromises, have contributed to the shrinking of the military aircraft industrial base, and might have heightened the strategic and operational risks for the services and their pilots. Consequently, unless the participating services have identical and stable requirements, the Defense Department should avoid taking a joint approach to acquiring future fighter and other complex aircraft.
Mystery Ranch Med Packs
Check out the Mystery Ranch IFAK and VLAK
Guardsman Gets Job Back At Postal Service
From The Los Angeles Times:
Last week, after a seven-year legal battle, Erickson was awarded reinstatement and back pay. A federal board denied a Postal Service appeal and ordered the agency to restore his job and give him 14 years of back pay and other benefits that could total about $2 million.
Is Obama Getting Rid of Generals?
From WorldNetDaily:
“Over the past three years, it is unprecedented for the number of four-star generals to be relieved of duty, and not necessarily relieved for cause,†Boykin said.
“I believe there is a purging of the military,†he said. “The problem is worse than we have ever seen.â€
…Boykin said the future of the military is becoming more and more of concern, since colonels who would be generals also are being relieved of duty, if they show that they’re not going to support Obama’s agenda, which critics have described as socialist.
General in Charge of Nuclear Missiles Relieved
From Talking Points Memo:
Maj. Gen. Michael Carey is being removed from command of the 20th Air Force, which is responsible for three wings of intercontinental ballistic missiles — a total of 450 missiles at three bases across the country.
Central Asia and Afghanistan: A Tumultuous History
“Central Asia and Afghanistan: A Tumultuous History is republished with permission of Stratfor.”
Summary
Editor’s Note: This is the first installment of a two-part series on the relationship between Central Asia and Afghanistan and the expected effects of the U.S. drawdown in Afghanistan on Central Asian security. Click here to read Part 2.
Contrary to popular perception, Central Asia is not likely to see an immediate explosion of violence and militancy after the U.S. and NATO drawdown from Afghanistan in 2014. However, Central Asia’s internal issues and the region’s many links with Afghanistan — including a web of relationships among militant groups — will add to the volatility in the region.
Analysis
Central Asia has numerous important links to Afghanistan that will open the region to significant effects after the upcoming U.S. and NATO drawdown. First and foremost, Central Asia is linked to Afghanistan geographically; Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan share borders with Afghanistan that collectively span more than 2,000 kilometers (about 1,240 miles). The Afghan border with Tajikistan, along the eastern edge of Afghanistan, makes up more than half of that distance, at 1,344 kilometers. The borders with Turkmenistan (744 kilometers) and Uzbekistan (137 kilometers) run along Afghanistan’s western edge. Most of the Tajik-Afghan border is mountainous and therefore poorly demarcated, and the topography of Afghanistan’s frontiers with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan is largely desert. Read the rest of this entry »