President Barack Obama will speak at the US Air Force Academy graduation on May 23rd.
The President traditionally speaks on a rotation at each of the service academies. President Obama has previously spoken at the Coast Guard Academy, Annapolis, and West Point, making USAFA his final stop.
Various reports indicate the US military has identified five soldiers (and an Afghan-American interpreter) who are “responsible” for burning the Quran at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. The Islamic holy texts (which were reportedly defiled by Islamic detainees) were among more than 1,600 books and other materials intended for destruction due to their apparent use by detainees to pass messages.
The probe launched by the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Marine Gen. John R. Allen, is still underway, but five soldiers were involved in the incident, NBC News reported Friday.
A careful reading of the reports indicates it is possible not a single one of the five involved knew there were Korans among the texts.
Obviously, the results of the American investigation were made public to some end, which may only fuel the calls for Americans to be put on trial in Afghanistan (including by the Afghan President):
Afghanistan’s senior religious leaders have said that an Read more
The much ballyhooed attempt by the US Air Force to provide Afghanistan with a light attack aircraft recently hit another roadblock.
Prior to December, there were two contractors vying for the award — Hawker Beechcraft’s AT-6 and Embraer’s Super Tucano. In December, the Air Force removed Hawker from the competition and awarded the contract to the sole remaining bidder.
The fighter pilot tradition of Mustache March has a website. Who knew? Of course, it’s a charity awareness website that seems to be unaware of its use of the military tradition most often attributed to USAF fighter pilot Gen Robin Olds.
Of course, the fact it’s a fighter pilot tradition doesn’t stop others from joining in — even the space community, famously known as blue-zipper-suited, leather aviation jacket wearing silo sitters.
Prominent milblogger BlackFive obtained a copy of a US Army memo from Afghanistan restricting the distribution of Qurans:
Qurans will only be distributed to US Servicemembers who are Muslim as indicated on their identification tags…Exceptions…will be granted if the Service Member has a memorandum signed by his Commander that states the reason for obtaining a Quran provided by the chaplain.
Qurans will not be placed in general literature distribution racks. They will be kept in a secure location…
The memo is signed by US Army Chaplain (LTC) Eric Albertson, a Catholic Read more
Chaplain Emilio Marrero, Jr.
FaithWalk Publishing
A Quiet Reality, subtitled A Chaplain’s Journey into Babylon, Iraq, with the I Marine Expeditionary Force, is not just another war story. A Quiet Reality is unique both for the perspective it lends — a chaplain to US Marines during the invasion of Iraq — and the story it tells — the interaction of the US military with the historic site of Babylon, Iraq.
Chaplain Marrero’s story isn’t told in pure narrative. Rather, each chapter follows an almost sermon-like style, with a well-told narrative followed by a more deliberate explanation and analysis, with a concluding faith-based story or analogy. In each case, no matter how dramatic the tale, Chaplain Marrero is able to articulate the “quiet reality” of his experiences. It is a formula that works very well.
The crux of the story is Chaplain Marrero’s work with local Iraqis and US Marines to protect and explore the historic site of Babylon, Read more
Update: The DoD article on the event can be seen here.
The Joint Base Lewis-McChord chapel will host the Buddhist New Year celebrations on 31 March 2012.
The event is being sponsored by Chaplain (Capt) Somya Malasri, one of the few Buddhist chaplains in the US military, and will feature Read more
Though an outcry over a Christian concert event at Fort Bragg inspired a demand for a non-religious equivalent, it turns out the US military has been quietly slipping non-religious events onto military bases for some time.
Mollie Gross, a comedienne and former military wife, recently visited Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, NC, to bring a little humor home.
“A lot of different comedians and musicians go overseas to Read more