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unhappycamper
unhappycamper's Journal
unhappycamper's Journal
December 19, 2013
India Flap derives from America’s Gulag Practices and Far-Right Supreme Court
By Juan Cole | Dec. 19, 2013
The militarization of American police and humiliating practices of routine strip and cavity searches are the real culprits in the current diplomatic dispute between the United States and India. Police not only arrested the Indian deputy consul, Devyani Khobragade, who claims diplomatic immunity, on a minor visa and domestic labor charge, they put her in the general prison population and subjected her to a strip search.
Americans think of themselves as brave rugged individualists who enjoy the liberties of an Enlightenment constitution. In fact, they most often are timid and cowed in the face of the world’s most powerful government, which increasingly acts like a medieval tyrant. Americans don’t seem outraged that the government is spying on them. The government has put 6 million Americans either in prison or under correctional supervision, and has the highest per capita rate of incarceration in the world– more than Cuba, nearly twice that of Russia, and more than 4 times that of Communist China! Only 8 percent of inmates in Federal penitentiaries are there for violent crimes. In many states, former prisoners are stripped of the right to vote. These extreme penal practices of course primarily target minorities and function as a racial control mechanism. (Famously, penalties in the US for using cocaine powder, a favorite in the white suburbs, are much less than for crack cocaine, mostly used by poor minorities.)
Not only does the US have an enormous number of people in jail but they subject arrestees (people not convicted of a crime) to routine strip and cavity searches. Women are often forced to be naked in front of the other inmates and to spread their labia for a policewoman.
These practices have been challenged. The ninth district federal appeals court in California decades ago found LAPD routine body cavity searches unconstitutional. But last year, our Supreme Court– the same one that thinks corporations are people, that doesn’t think big money campaign donors should have to identify themselves, and thinks it is all right for traditionally discriminatory states to pass voter suppression laws against minorities– weighed in. It found constitutional routine strip searches even in minor traffic violations cases. A guy got a ticket. He paid it off, but it mistakenly stayed on his record. He bought a new house and went out with family to celebrate. He got stopped by police, who ran his registration and found the ticket. They handcuffed him in front of his family and hauled him off to six days in jail during which he was subjected to cavity searches. John Roberts thinks the whole thing perfectly reasonable. (The individual in question is an African-American).
India Flap derives from America’s Gulag Practices and Far-Right Supreme Court
http://www.juancole.com/2013/12/americas-practices-supreme.htmlIndia Flap derives from America’s Gulag Practices and Far-Right Supreme Court
By Juan Cole | Dec. 19, 2013
The militarization of American police and humiliating practices of routine strip and cavity searches are the real culprits in the current diplomatic dispute between the United States and India. Police not only arrested the Indian deputy consul, Devyani Khobragade, who claims diplomatic immunity, on a minor visa and domestic labor charge, they put her in the general prison population and subjected her to a strip search.
Americans think of themselves as brave rugged individualists who enjoy the liberties of an Enlightenment constitution. In fact, they most often are timid and cowed in the face of the world’s most powerful government, which increasingly acts like a medieval tyrant. Americans don’t seem outraged that the government is spying on them. The government has put 6 million Americans either in prison or under correctional supervision, and has the highest per capita rate of incarceration in the world– more than Cuba, nearly twice that of Russia, and more than 4 times that of Communist China! Only 8 percent of inmates in Federal penitentiaries are there for violent crimes. In many states, former prisoners are stripped of the right to vote. These extreme penal practices of course primarily target minorities and function as a racial control mechanism. (Famously, penalties in the US for using cocaine powder, a favorite in the white suburbs, are much less than for crack cocaine, mostly used by poor minorities.)
Not only does the US have an enormous number of people in jail but they subject arrestees (people not convicted of a crime) to routine strip and cavity searches. Women are often forced to be naked in front of the other inmates and to spread their labia for a policewoman.
These practices have been challenged. The ninth district federal appeals court in California decades ago found LAPD routine body cavity searches unconstitutional. But last year, our Supreme Court– the same one that thinks corporations are people, that doesn’t think big money campaign donors should have to identify themselves, and thinks it is all right for traditionally discriminatory states to pass voter suppression laws against minorities– weighed in. It found constitutional routine strip searches even in minor traffic violations cases. A guy got a ticket. He paid it off, but it mistakenly stayed on his record. He bought a new house and went out with family to celebrate. He got stopped by police, who ran his registration and found the ticket. They handcuffed him in front of his family and hauled him off to six days in jail during which he was subjected to cavity searches. John Roberts thinks the whole thing perfectly reasonable. (The individual in question is an African-American).
December 18, 2013
President Joachim Gauck's decision to cancel his visit to the Winter Olympics in Sochi has angered Chancellor Angela Merkel. The lack of coordination between Germany's head of government and its head of state makes relations with Russia even more difficult to manage.
By Ralf Neukirch
December 17, 2013 – 05:00 PM
Angela Merkel didn't want Joachim Gauck to be president. He's too independent for her liking. But she had to bow to pressure from her coalition partner at the time, the business-friendly Free Democrats. Still, her cooperation with him had been smooth -- until last week. That's when her fears were confirmed for the first time when he announced he would not travel to the Winter Olympics in Sochi.. Merkel learned of his decision in the media, according to people close to her.
SPIEGEL reported Gauck's decision, for which he didn't provide an official explanation. The cancellation was quickly interpreted as a protest against the human rights situation in Russua and the politics of President Vladimir Putin. Gauck's office didn't deny that view.
Gauck's decision didn't just provoke angry reactions in Russia. It also triggered a political debate within the government about the foreign policy of the president. The Chancellery and Foreign Ministry aren't happy about Gauck's behavior, to put it mildly.
Merkel was irritated about the furor the president triggered. She would have preferred to have been informed by him personally. She must have seen his action as grossly impolite, especially given the fact that the presidential office took it upon itself to inform the Russian embassy in Berlin.
Chancellor Vs. President: Sochi Boycott Stirs Up Tensions in Berlin
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/merkel-angry-at-president-gauck-for-cancelling-russia-visit-a-939560.htmlPresident Joachim Gauck's decision to cancel his visit to the Winter Olympics in Sochi has angered Chancellor Angela Merkel. The lack of coordination between Germany's head of government and its head of state makes relations with Russia even more difficult to manage.
By Ralf Neukirch
December 17, 2013 – 05:00 PM
Angela Merkel didn't want Joachim Gauck to be president. He's too independent for her liking. But she had to bow to pressure from her coalition partner at the time, the business-friendly Free Democrats. Still, her cooperation with him had been smooth -- until last week. That's when her fears were confirmed for the first time when he announced he would not travel to the Winter Olympics in Sochi.. Merkel learned of his decision in the media, according to people close to her.
SPIEGEL reported Gauck's decision, for which he didn't provide an official explanation. The cancellation was quickly interpreted as a protest against the human rights situation in Russua and the politics of President Vladimir Putin. Gauck's office didn't deny that view.
Gauck's decision didn't just provoke angry reactions in Russia. It also triggered a political debate within the government about the foreign policy of the president. The Chancellery and Foreign Ministry aren't happy about Gauck's behavior, to put it mildly.
Merkel was irritated about the furor the president triggered. She would have preferred to have been informed by him personally. She must have seen his action as grossly impolite, especially given the fact that the presidential office took it upon itself to inform the Russian embassy in Berlin.
December 18, 2013
Complex arms procurement projects, confused hierarchies and major reforms are just some of the issues facing future Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen. It's certainly a challenge -- but also a huge chance for the conservative politician to make her mark.
Military in Flux: What's In Store for Ursula von der Leyen
By Gordon Repinski
December 17, 2013 – 04:53 PM
When Ursula von der Leyen comes in for her first day of work at Berlin's historic defense ministry, walks through its columned halls, which less than three years ago witnessed Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg's resignation over a plagarism scandal, she will realize what she's let herself in for. It's a lot.
She will be confronted with the complexities of managing the Bundeswehr's withdrawal from Afghanistan and about planes in development that just don't get finished. She will hear about grumbling in the ministry because thousands of staff still don't know where they'll be working in future. On the corridors she'll see men in uniforms with all kinds of epaulets and sleeve badges, stars and bars in silver and gold. Even though von der Leyen has years of experience as a minister, it's a new world.
For von der Leyen, 55, it's a spectacular career leap. As the first woman to head the defense ministry she is guaranteed a lot of attention. Von der Leyen has long been seen as a possible successor to Angela Merkel. Her new appointment allows her to edge one step closer to the chancellor.
Von der Leyen is taking over a ministry renowned for its complexity. A grand overhaul of Germany's armed forces is currently being implemented. Von der Leyen will be the third minister to have to deal with this reform process. In a highly complex reorganization program, the total number of troops is to be reduced to 185,000, and bases will be closed or merged. Many soldiers are still unsure where they are to be based in future. The 'Bundeswehrverband,' a body representing soldiers' interests, regularly carries out job satisfaction surveys among troops, and the results of future polls may well be unpleasant.
(German) Military in Flux: What's In Store for Ursula von der Leyen
http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/the-challenge-facing-new-german-defense-minister-von-der-leyen-a-939577.htmlComplex arms procurement projects, confused hierarchies and major reforms are just some of the issues facing future Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen. It's certainly a challenge -- but also a huge chance for the conservative politician to make her mark.
Military in Flux: What's In Store for Ursula von der Leyen
By Gordon Repinski
December 17, 2013 – 04:53 PM
When Ursula von der Leyen comes in for her first day of work at Berlin's historic defense ministry, walks through its columned halls, which less than three years ago witnessed Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg's resignation over a plagarism scandal, she will realize what she's let herself in for. It's a lot.
She will be confronted with the complexities of managing the Bundeswehr's withdrawal from Afghanistan and about planes in development that just don't get finished. She will hear about grumbling in the ministry because thousands of staff still don't know where they'll be working in future. On the corridors she'll see men in uniforms with all kinds of epaulets and sleeve badges, stars and bars in silver and gold. Even though von der Leyen has years of experience as a minister, it's a new world.
For von der Leyen, 55, it's a spectacular career leap. As the first woman to head the defense ministry she is guaranteed a lot of attention. Von der Leyen has long been seen as a possible successor to Angela Merkel. Her new appointment allows her to edge one step closer to the chancellor.
Von der Leyen is taking over a ministry renowned for its complexity. A grand overhaul of Germany's armed forces is currently being implemented. Von der Leyen will be the third minister to have to deal with this reform process. In a highly complex reorganization program, the total number of troops is to be reduced to 185,000, and bases will be closed or merged. Many soldiers are still unsure where they are to be based in future. The 'Bundeswehrverband,' a body representing soldiers' interests, regularly carries out job satisfaction surveys among troops, and the results of future polls may well be unpleasant.
December 18, 2013
In the first parliamentary speech of her third term, German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that Europe needs to take more action to make its single currency crisis-proof and urged states to undertake binding economic reforms.
Merkel Speech: Chancellor Urges Reforms to Preserve Euro
December 18, 2013 – 02:43 PM
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday called on European countries to agree to binding economic reforms to correct flaws in the makeup of the single currency.
In her first parliamentary speech since her re-election for a third term on Tuesday, she warned that Europe needed to take further action to make the euro zone crisis-proof.
"Clearly the euro-zone debt crisis is not yet overcome. One cannot emphasise this often enough. But we are seeing first successes and we are convinced it can be overcome permanently," she told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.
She said Ireland's successful exit from the bailout program last week and progress elsewhere showed that her approach of seeking reforms in return for aid had been the right one.
Merkel Speech: Chancellor Urges Reforms to Preserve Euro
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/merkel-calls-on-eu-members-to-agree-binding-reforms-a-939813.htmlIn the first parliamentary speech of her third term, German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that Europe needs to take more action to make its single currency crisis-proof and urged states to undertake binding economic reforms.
Merkel Speech: Chancellor Urges Reforms to Preserve Euro
December 18, 2013 – 02:43 PM
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday called on European countries to agree to binding economic reforms to correct flaws in the makeup of the single currency.
In her first parliamentary speech since her re-election for a third term on Tuesday, she warned that Europe needed to take further action to make the euro zone crisis-proof.
"Clearly the euro-zone debt crisis is not yet overcome. One cannot emphasise this often enough. But we are seeing first successes and we are convinced it can be overcome permanently," she told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.
She said Ireland's successful exit from the bailout program last week and progress elsewhere showed that her approach of seeking reforms in return for aid had been the right one.
December 18, 2013
AIR FORCE PLANT 4, FORT WORTH: No one should believe that the battle between Boeing and Lockheed for the right to build Navy fighters is over.
Lockheed Boasts F-35 Will Cost Less Than ‘Any 4th Gen Fighter’
By Colin Clark
on December 17, 2013 at 11:09 AM
Boeing keeps pushing the low cost, readiness and availability of the F-18. It’s here, it’s proven, and, they say, a new F/A-18E/F Super Hornet will cost just over $50 million for a fully equipped airplane, should the Navy decide to buy more.
During a briefing here before the rollout ceremony for the one hundredth Joint Strike Fighter, Lockheed Martin’s direct, articulate, and fittingly named general manager for the JSF, Lorraine Martin, made this bold pledge during a briefing for reporters: By 2019, the F-35A (the Air Force version) will cost $75 million a copy in current dollars ($85 million in good ole then-year dollars, i.e. counting future inflation), which will be “less than any fourth generation fighter in the world.” That means no other fighter already flying (one sold in US dollars or Euros) will cost less — not the famously inexpensive Gripen, not the French Rafale, the Russian MiG-35, the Boeing F-15 Eagle, or the European Typhoon.
And Martin, known for helping to right Lockheed Martin’s most important program — which had been very wobbly — went even further: “I think we can do even better.” Skeptics will, of course, note that her prediction can’t be tested for five years. That’s forever in Pentagon budget terms. In legislative years, it’s not quite as far away — only two elections. Is it marketing? Of course it is. But it’s also a clear sign that Lockheed continues to target the Navy above all other clients.
A battle has brewed inside the Navy and between the Navy and the Office of Secretary of Defense over when the service should start buying F-35Cs and how many it should buy. Most recently, the Navy “goofed” and issued and then withdrew a pre-solicitation offer for up to a mix of up to 36 F-18 Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers, the radar-jamming variant.
unhappycamper comment: I have NO idea where these numbers come from. I do know the FA-18F is around one hundred million dollars, delivered. The Growler version is around $120 million or so.
Lockheed Boasts F-35 Will Cost Less Than ‘Any 4th Gen Fighter’
http://breakingdefense.com/2013/12/lockheed-boasts-f-35-will-cost-less-than-any-4th-gen-fighter/AIR FORCE PLANT 4, FORT WORTH: No one should believe that the battle between Boeing and Lockheed for the right to build Navy fighters is over.
Lockheed Boasts F-35 Will Cost Less Than ‘Any 4th Gen Fighter’
By Colin Clark
on December 17, 2013 at 11:09 AM
Boeing keeps pushing the low cost, readiness and availability of the F-18. It’s here, it’s proven, and, they say, a new F/A-18E/F Super Hornet will cost just over $50 million for a fully equipped airplane, should the Navy decide to buy more.
During a briefing here before the rollout ceremony for the one hundredth Joint Strike Fighter, Lockheed Martin’s direct, articulate, and fittingly named general manager for the JSF, Lorraine Martin, made this bold pledge during a briefing for reporters: By 2019, the F-35A (the Air Force version) will cost $75 million a copy in current dollars ($85 million in good ole then-year dollars, i.e. counting future inflation), which will be “less than any fourth generation fighter in the world.” That means no other fighter already flying (one sold in US dollars or Euros) will cost less — not the famously inexpensive Gripen, not the French Rafale, the Russian MiG-35, the Boeing F-15 Eagle, or the European Typhoon.
And Martin, known for helping to right Lockheed Martin’s most important program — which had been very wobbly — went even further: “I think we can do even better.” Skeptics will, of course, note that her prediction can’t be tested for five years. That’s forever in Pentagon budget terms. In legislative years, it’s not quite as far away — only two elections. Is it marketing? Of course it is. But it’s also a clear sign that Lockheed continues to target the Navy above all other clients.
A battle has brewed inside the Navy and between the Navy and the Office of Secretary of Defense over when the service should start buying F-35Cs and how many it should buy. Most recently, the Navy “goofed” and issued and then withdrew a pre-solicitation offer for up to a mix of up to 36 F-18 Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers, the radar-jamming variant.
unhappycamper comment: I have NO idea where these numbers come from. I do know the FA-18F is around one hundred million dollars, delivered. The Growler version is around $120 million or so.
December 18, 2013
Report: Marine shooter had suffered brain injury
By Matthew Barakat
The Associated Press
© December 16, 2013
McLEAN
A distraught Marine who fatally shot his ex-girlfriend and a colleague before killing himself at the Quantico Marine Corps base was suicidal, had signs of traumatic brain injury and should have received better psychological care, a military investigation found.
Sgt. Eusebio Lopez was receiving treatment in North Carolina after his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device in Iraq, but his medical care stopped abruptly when he was transferred to Quantico in 2012, according to a report obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The reason appeared to be two-fold: His new doctors didn't know about his previous treatment and he didn't speak up.
The report also found problems with the response to the shooting because unarmed Marines were deployed to secure the perimeter around the barracks. Two of the bodies were not found until nearly four hours after the shots were fired.
Lopez shot Lance Cpl. Sara Castromata, 19, and Cpl. Jacob Wooley, 23, inside a barracks at the Officer Candidates School after a night of drinking. Lopez was upset Castromata had ended a relationship with him and had begun dating Wooley, according to the report obtained Thursday.
Report: Marine shooter had suffered brain injury
http://hamptonroads.com/2013/12/report-marine-shooter-had-suffered-brain-injuryReport: Marine shooter had suffered brain injury
By Matthew Barakat
The Associated Press
© December 16, 2013
McLEAN
A distraught Marine who fatally shot his ex-girlfriend and a colleague before killing himself at the Quantico Marine Corps base was suicidal, had signs of traumatic brain injury and should have received better psychological care, a military investigation found.
Sgt. Eusebio Lopez was receiving treatment in North Carolina after his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device in Iraq, but his medical care stopped abruptly when he was transferred to Quantico in 2012, according to a report obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The reason appeared to be two-fold: His new doctors didn't know about his previous treatment and he didn't speak up.
The report also found problems with the response to the shooting because unarmed Marines were deployed to secure the perimeter around the barracks. Two of the bodies were not found until nearly four hours after the shots were fired.
Lopez shot Lance Cpl. Sara Castromata, 19, and Cpl. Jacob Wooley, 23, inside a barracks at the Officer Candidates School after a night of drinking. Lopez was upset Castromata had ended a relationship with him and had begun dating Wooley, according to the report obtained Thursday.
December 18, 2013
Navy investigator pleads guilty in bribery case
By Julie Watson
The Associated Press
© December 18, 2013
SAN DIEGO
A senior U.S. Navy criminal investigator pleaded guilty Tuesday to bribery charges stemming from a multimillion-dollar fraud probe targeting an Asian defense contractor.
The conviction of Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent John Beliveau II is a first for federal prosecutors in the massive scandal that has ensnared six Navy officials so far and could lead to an expansion of the investigation if Beliveau cooperates with authorities as part of his plea agreement.
In federal court Tuesday in San Diego, Beliveau acknowledged keeping Malaysian contractor Leonard Glenn Francis abreast of the yearslong fraud investigation that NCIS agents were conducting on Francis' company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia Ltd., or GDMA.
In exchange, Francis paid for plane tickets, hotels and prostitutes for Beliveau, according to the plea agreement. Francis has pleaded not guilty in the case that alleges GDMA overbilled the Navy by at least $20 million for port services. GDMA has provided fuel, food and supplies for Navy ships for 25 years.
Navy investigator pleads guilty in bribery case
http://hamptonroads.com/2013/12/navy-investigator-pleads-guilty-bribery-caseNavy investigator pleads guilty in bribery case
By Julie Watson
The Associated Press
© December 18, 2013
SAN DIEGO
A senior U.S. Navy criminal investigator pleaded guilty Tuesday to bribery charges stemming from a multimillion-dollar fraud probe targeting an Asian defense contractor.
The conviction of Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent John Beliveau II is a first for federal prosecutors in the massive scandal that has ensnared six Navy officials so far and could lead to an expansion of the investigation if Beliveau cooperates with authorities as part of his plea agreement.
In federal court Tuesday in San Diego, Beliveau acknowledged keeping Malaysian contractor Leonard Glenn Francis abreast of the yearslong fraud investigation that NCIS agents were conducting on Francis' company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia Ltd., or GDMA.
In exchange, Francis paid for plane tickets, hotels and prostitutes for Beliveau, according to the plea agreement. Francis has pleaded not guilty in the case that alleges GDMA overbilled the Navy by at least $20 million for port services. GDMA has provided fuel, food and supplies for Navy ships for 25 years.
December 18, 2013
Army defections as South Sudan violence spreads
By RODNEY MUHUMUZA
Associated Press
Dec 18, 7:25 AM EST
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) -- Clashes between military factions in South Sudan have spread from the capital to the rural state of Jonglei, a South Sudanese military official said Wednesday. Up to 500 people are reported to have been killed since Sunday in the world's newest country.
South Sudanese military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer told The Associated Press that there was fighting overnight among troops in Jonglei, the largest state in South Sudan, and he was trying to confirm reports there of desertions from the military.
United Nations diplomats said as many as 500 people have been killed in violence that is believed to be largely along ethnic lines. About 20,000 people have sought refuge at U.N. facilities in Juba, the capital, since fighting started on Sunday, and on Tuesday the United States ordered its citizens to leave South Sudan immediately.
Meanwhile, EgyptAir said it resumed its flights to Juba after a three-day suspension. Head of EgyptAir holding company Hossam Kamal said the flights were resumed after ensuring that conditions are stable in the Juba airport
Army defections as South Sudan violence spreads
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AF_SOUTH_SUDAN_VIOLENCE?SITE=VANOV&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULTArmy defections as South Sudan violence spreads
By RODNEY MUHUMUZA
Associated Press
Dec 18, 7:25 AM EST
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) -- Clashes between military factions in South Sudan have spread from the capital to the rural state of Jonglei, a South Sudanese military official said Wednesday. Up to 500 people are reported to have been killed since Sunday in the world's newest country.
South Sudanese military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer told The Associated Press that there was fighting overnight among troops in Jonglei, the largest state in South Sudan, and he was trying to confirm reports there of desertions from the military.
United Nations diplomats said as many as 500 people have been killed in violence that is believed to be largely along ethnic lines. About 20,000 people have sought refuge at U.N. facilities in Juba, the capital, since fighting started on Sunday, and on Tuesday the United States ordered its citizens to leave South Sudan immediately.
Meanwhile, EgyptAir said it resumed its flights to Juba after a three-day suspension. Head of EgyptAir holding company Hossam Kamal said the flights were resumed after ensuring that conditions are stable in the Juba airport
December 18, 2013
In this Dec. 24, 2012, file photo, NORAD Deputy Commander Lt. General Alain Parent, center, of the Royal Canadian Air Force, takes phone calls from children asking where Santa is and when he will deliver presents to their house, during the annual NORAD Tracks Santa Operation, at the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, at Peterson Air Force Base, in Colorado Springs, Colo. Also fielding calls are U.S. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, left, and U.S. Air Force Maj. Chris Bendig. The U.S. and Canadian military will entertain millions of kids again this Christmas Eve with second-by-second updates on Santa’s global whereabouts.
Advocacy groups say fighter jets and Santa don't mix
Posted: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 1:35 pm | Updated: 2:05 pm, Tue Dec 17, 2013.
DENVER (AP)- The U.S. and Canadian military will entertain millions of kids again this Christmas Eve with second-by-second updates on Santa's global whereabouts. But there's something new this year: public criticism.
A children's advocacy group says an animated video on the NORAD Tracks Santa website injects militarism into Christmas by showing fighter jets escorting Santa's sleigh. It's a rare swipe at the popular program, which last year attracted a record 22.3 million unique visitors from around the world to its website.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command defends the video as nonthreatening and safe for kids.
~snip~
The Boston-based Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood said the video brings violence and militarism to a beloved tradition. Others had similar criticism. Blogs and Twitter lit up with volleys from both sides.
Advocacy groups say fighter jets and Santa don't mix
http://www.fayobserver.com/military/article_ff605654-376f-5978-a99c-a0cbd4079bbe.htmlIn this Dec. 24, 2012, file photo, NORAD Deputy Commander Lt. General Alain Parent, center, of the Royal Canadian Air Force, takes phone calls from children asking where Santa is and when he will deliver presents to their house, during the annual NORAD Tracks Santa Operation, at the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, at Peterson Air Force Base, in Colorado Springs, Colo. Also fielding calls are U.S. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, left, and U.S. Air Force Maj. Chris Bendig. The U.S. and Canadian military will entertain millions of kids again this Christmas Eve with second-by-second updates on Santa’s global whereabouts.
Advocacy groups say fighter jets and Santa don't mix
Posted: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 1:35 pm | Updated: 2:05 pm, Tue Dec 17, 2013.
DENVER (AP)- The U.S. and Canadian military will entertain millions of kids again this Christmas Eve with second-by-second updates on Santa's global whereabouts. But there's something new this year: public criticism.
A children's advocacy group says an animated video on the NORAD Tracks Santa website injects militarism into Christmas by showing fighter jets escorting Santa's sleigh. It's a rare swipe at the popular program, which last year attracted a record 22.3 million unique visitors from around the world to its website.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command defends the video as nonthreatening and safe for kids.
~snip~
The Boston-based Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood said the video brings violence and militarism to a beloved tradition. Others had similar criticism. Blogs and Twitter lit up with volleys from both sides.
December 18, 2013
3 former special operations soldiers plead guilty to illegal profiting as Army contractors
Posted: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 1:13 pm
SALT LAKE CITY- Three former Special Forces soldiers have pleaded guilty to charges of using inside bid information to profit from U.S. Army contracts in Afghanistan.
~snip~
The partners were ultimately paid $54 million to supply Afghan troops with weapons.
The Army has no complaints about the service, but the government says the deal was tainted. One defense lawyer says the case shows how easily the Army throws money at contractors.
The latest plea agreement came Friday from former Army Reserve Lt. Col. David Young, who acknowledged he leaked bid information. Young agreed to forfeit millions of dollars in cash and assets. Another defendant, Christopher Harris, says he pocketed $17 million from the Afghan contracts and shared more than half with Young.
3 former special operations soldiers plead guilty to illegal profiting as Army contractors
http://www.fayobserver.com/military/article_799c1933-da5a-5449-9e31-98f2e4b94cd8.html3 former special operations soldiers plead guilty to illegal profiting as Army contractors
Posted: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 1:13 pm
SALT LAKE CITY- Three former Special Forces soldiers have pleaded guilty to charges of using inside bid information to profit from U.S. Army contracts in Afghanistan.
~snip~
The partners were ultimately paid $54 million to supply Afghan troops with weapons.
The Army has no complaints about the service, but the government says the deal was tainted. One defense lawyer says the case shows how easily the Army throws money at contractors.
The latest plea agreement came Friday from former Army Reserve Lt. Col. David Young, who acknowledged he leaked bid information. Young agreed to forfeit millions of dollars in cash and assets. Another defendant, Christopher Harris, says he pocketed $17 million from the Afghan contracts and shared more than half with Young.
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