Homosexuals and Lesbians in the Armed Forces: Is it Time?

By Fred Edwards | 01/17/09

We know that homosexuals and lesbians serve in the armed forces. Under the Clinton plan of Don't Ask. Don't Tell (DADT) they can stay unless they declare themselves. In fact their leaders aren't allowed to ask them about their sexual inclination even if they have suspicions. This sounds like hypocrisy at its worst. Consider an extreme case:Two off-duty, hard-charging, unmarried service men go to town, and one says, "I'm going to a place that has... read more »

Green Zone gets the green light: It sends a powerful signal that American warriors can soon depart Iraq

By Fred Edwards | 01/10/09

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewAt one point American occupation of Iraq was called a "quagmire." Many mistakes were made, but America's leaders got their act together. And along with the other nations forming the "coalition of the willing," they have given some 50 million Iraqis a chance for better lives than they had any hope for just eight years ago.The status of forces agreement effective New Years Day replaced the U.N. resolution... read more »

Purging the Pirates

By Fred Edwards | 01/03/09

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewMy post of December 28 ("The Pirate Plague") outlined the international piracy problem in stark terms. This one explores solutions. From the military point of view, defense of the more than 2.5 million square miles of the western Indian Ocean reminds one of the quandary T. E. Lawrence faced during World War I. He was tasked to find a way to defend up to 140,000 square miles of desert between the Levant and... read more »

The Pirate Plague

By Fred Edwards | 12/28/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewBy the close of the 18th century, the Barbary States of Morocco, Algiers, Tripoli and Tunis were extorting protection money from ships that crossed near their shores. The newly born United States of America went along with this to the tune of more than $2 million, until Tripoli jacked up the price in 1801. The U.S. government refused to pay more, and the pasha of Tripoli declared war against the United... read more »

Attacks in India sharpen strategic focus of the Islamic jihadists

By Fred Edwards | 12/21/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewIn Mumbai, India, on November 26, a small group of well-trained and technologically savvy terrorists attacked two luxury hotels, a train station and peripheral targets, killing 173 victims, torturing or mutilating some of them, and wounding hundreds of others. They departed from Karachi, Pakistan, and arrived by a pirated boat. Their strategy parallels the attacks against the United States Sept. 11, 2001,... read more »

Top Eight Groups Most Deserving of a Government Bailout

By Fred Edwards | 12/14/08

The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) has published the legislative update that follows. If the U.S. federal government can afford to throw out a few hundred billion dollars here and another few hundred billion there, it certainly can afford to fix the long-standing inequities for our service members, their families and survivors that MOAA has listed. MOAA's Top 8 Groups Most Deserving of a Government BailoutIf our country can... read more »

Facts about Iran for the incoming president

By Fred Edwards | 12/05/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewDuring his campaign, now president-elect Barack Obama indicated that, as president, he would talk with the Iranians about their nuclear programs and other issues with no pre-conditions. George Friedman, founder of Stratfor, wrote November 10 that just before the elections it was leaked that President George W. Bush might open diplomatic relations with Iran after the election regardless of who won. This... read more »

Bush legacy: Speak strongly -- and carry big sticks

By Fred Edwards | 11/28/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewTeddy Roosevelt updated the Monroe Doctrine of 1823 when he said, "Speak softly, and carry a big stick," in a speech Sept. 2, 1901. The original doctrine warned European powers not to interfere in the Western Hemisphere, and it proclaimed that the upstart United States -- not fifty years old -- reserved the right to intervene in the domestic affairs of its neighbors to the south. Twelve days after... read more »

North Korea won't sponsor terrorism. Trust them!

By Fred Edwards | 11/14/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewThe axis of evil lost a charter member Oct. 11 when the United States scratched North Korea off the State Department's list of terror-sponsoring states. But the State Department's verification expert had nothing to do with it. In fact less than two days before the agreement was announced, Paula DeSutter, the department's assistant secretary for the Bureau of Verification, Compliance and Implementation, said... read more »

A Veterans' Day salute to the new vets

By Fred Edwards | 11/08/08

Crosshairs - Military Matters in ReviewToo many of our wounded warriors underwent abysmal treatment at Walter Reed Medical Center until the problem got fixed. And too many others have suffered poor follow-on treatment because of the portability problem. VA Secretary, Dr. James Peake, saw it when he was hospitalized during a trip to Iraq: when wounded soldiers were evacuated, somebody would scrawl their diagnosis on a card or a piece of paper and... read more »