Army demands $700 from Soldier for bloody armor.

02-07-2006 • By Eric Eyre - Charleston Gazette

The last time 1st Lt. William “Eddie” Rebrook IV saw his body armor, he was lying on a stretcher in Iraq, his arm shattered and covered in blood.

Hawks have warplanes ready if the nuclear diplomacy fails

• www.timesonline.co.uk - February 07, 2006

US forces virtually surround Iran with military air bases to the west in Afghanistan, to the east in Iraq, Turkey and Qatar and the south in Oman and Diego Garcia. The US Navy also has a carrier group in the Gulf, armed with attack aircraft and Tomah

Bahgdad suffering US made drought

2-6-2006 • Reuters

Residents of Baghdad's suburbs have been experiencing serious water shortages for a month due to poor infrastructure, leaking pipes and wastage. In some areas, water is available for only a few hours at night and for less than 2 hours during the

US excitedly launches next generation of nukes

2-7-2006 • Oakland Tribune

In 20 or 25 more years, the US would have an entirely new nuclear arsenal, and a highly automated factory capable of turning out more warheads as needed, as well as new kinds of warheads. "We are on the verge of an exciting time," the natio

I ended my career perpetrating a hoax on the American public

2-6-2006 • Raw Story

In an interview that aired on PBS on Friday, Feb. 3, Colin Powell's former chief of staff claimed that the speech Powell made before the UN on Feb. 5, 2003, laying out a case for war with Iraq, included falsehoods of which Powell had never been m

US triples spending to stop Iraq bomb attacks

2-6-2006 • New York Times

The Pentagon is tripling its spending to about $3.5 billion, on a newly expanded effort to combat the rising number of increasingly powerful homemade bombs that are the No. 1 killer of U.S. troops in Iraq.

Iraqi Mutual Neighborhood Defense Pact: Gov. Can't Have This

2-6-2006 • Knight Ridder

Alarmed at an outbreak of brazen killings in their once relatively peaceful enclave of Hai al-Salam, Shiite Muslims, Sunni Muslims and Christians have begun working side-by-side to guard their western Baghdad neighborhood. [Best wishes!]

U.S.: World can sanction Iran without the UN

2-6-2006 • Reuters

Applying economic sanctions on Iran without U.N. backing would be legitimate if other efforts failed to convince Tehran to halt uranium enrichment, a senior U.S. State Department official said.

Russian press warns of escalating Iran crisis

2-6-2006 • Agence France Presse

The use of military force to quash Iran's nuclear plans appeared more likely after a UN agency resolution on the issue and amid Tehran's continued resistance to a Russian compromise solution, Russian media said.

Security Council Members Differ Over How to Deal with Iran

2-6-2006 • Associated Press

The campaign to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon has now moved to the U.N. Security Council, but countries there have vastly different ideas of what the council should do.

Senators considering constitutional amendment to limit war powers

2-6-2006 • Raw Story

[It is called the Constitution morons!] As Capitol Hill prepares to battle the White House over George Bush's expanding war powers, moderate Senators on both sides of the aisle are quietly considering a range of options that would attempt at the

New Strategy: Track the terrorists we create

2-6-2006 • New York Times

A new counterterrorism strategy devised by the Pentagon will measure and review military operations to determine whether or not more terrorists are being stopped or "created," the plan "orders the military to focus on 9 areas identifie

Army Teaches Troops How to Pick a Spouse

2-5-2006 • Associated Press

The matchmaking advice comes as military family life is being stressed by two tough wars. More than 56,000 in the Army have divorced since the campaign in Afghanistan. Blame long and repeated deployments and life-altering injuries.

Iran is reported to security council over nukes

2-5-2006 • BBC News

The United Nations nuclear watchdog has voted to report Iran to the Security Council over its nuclear activities. Twenty-seven states out of 35 on the IAEA board backed the move, with three against and five abstentions.

New Pentagon War plan envisions long war

2-5-2006 • Washington Post

The Pentagon, readying for what it calls a "long war," yesterday laid out a new 20-year defense strategy that envisions U.S. troops deployed, often clandestinely, in dozens of countries at once to fight terrorism and other nontraditional th

Oil Graft Fuels the Insurgency

2-5-2006 • New York Times

[What oil money?] Iraqi and American officials say they are seeing a troubling pattern of government corruption enabling the flow of oil money and other funds to the insurgency and threatening to undermine Iraq's struggling economy.

Iraq War Sign Next to Army Office Removed

2-5-2006 • Associated Press

A sign tallying the American troops killed and wounded in Iraq has been removed from its spot right next to an Army recruiting office. The sign was taken down to make amends with offended Iraq war veterans and the building's other occupants.

Pentagon recommends cutting nuclear missile stockpile

2-4-2006 • Associated press

The Pentagon recommended reducing the nation's nuclear missile stockpile by 10 percent, but left open where the reductions would be made. Five-hundred Minuteman III missiles are based at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota, Malmstrom Air Force B

Seebees building bases in Iraq

2-4-2006 • Washington Times

A U.S. Navy construction battalion is battling the elements and daily insurgent attacks to build permanent bases in the dangerous Anbar province. At Al Taqaddum air base, one of two large airfields in the province used by the US and destined

Bush asks for $120 billion more for war

2-3-2006 • Associated Press

The Bush administration said it will ask Congress for $120 billion more for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and $18 billion more for hurricane relief this year. The White House says total spending on the wars to soar well past the $400 billion mark

Blair-Bush deal before Iraq war revealed in secret memo

2-3-2006 • The Guardian

Tony Blair told President George Bush that he was "solidly" behind US plans to invade Iraq before he sought advice about the invasion's legality and despite the absence of a second UN resolution, according to a new account of the build-

Bush — Blair discussed using Spyplane to lure Saddam into war

2-3-2006 • Channel 4

Minutes from that meeting, which took place in the White House on 31 January 2003. The two leaders discussed the possibility of securing further UN support, but President Bush made it clear that he had already decided to go to war.

Bush move closer to war with Iran

2-3-2006 • Agence France Presse

ElBaradei said the showdown over Iran was "reaching a critical phase but it is not a crisis situation." Iran's nuclear program "is not about an imminent threat. I should make that very clear." US Intelligence said Iran does no

Bush 'plotted to lure Saddam into war with fake UN plane'

2-3-2006 • The Independent

Bush considered provoking a war with Saddam Hussein's regime by flying a US spyplane over Iraq bearing UN colours, enticing the Iraqis to take a shot at it. Worried by the lack of evidence that Hussein had broken UN resolutions

Military waived restrictions for 21,880 recruits last year

2-3-2006 • Salon (via Raw Story)

The Guard waived their usual prohibition on "criminal offenses" to let people join. In order to boost recruiting, the military has waived regulations for 17 percent of its new recruits—or 21,880 new soldiers—in 2005. Waivers allow recruiter

Official to Plead Guilty in Iraq Scheme

2-2-2006 • Associated Press

A former U.S. occupation official in Iraq has agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to steal more than $2 million in reconstruction money and award contracts to a businessman in exchange for more than $1 million in cash and goods.

Rumsfeld: US fighting in Middle East for many years to come

2-2-2006 • Washington Post

"Just as the Cold War lasted a long time, this war is something that is not going to go away," Rumsfeld said. This does not mean U.S. troops will be in Iraq indefinitely, but that we will be fighting violent extremists for many years to com

Iran's own ultimatums

2-2-2006 • The Guardian

Accused the US of manufacturing the crisis and insisted there was still time to avoid a collision. Warned that any military action by the US or Israel against Iran would have "severe consequences" and would be countered "by all means**

Iran holds illicit nuke document

2-1-2006 • Associated Press

A document obtained by Iran serves no other purpose than to make an atomic bomb, the IAEA said. Instructions on how to mold highly enriched grade uranium into metal was "related to the fabrication of nuclear weapon components," and had no o