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MILITARY MATTERS
Newsletter #64
7/10/00
Howdy all, and welcome to the 64th edition of Military Matters, the newsletter for About.com's U.S. Military Information Page. If you need information about anything concerning the Military, please try http://usmilitary.about.com. If you know anyone who is interested in military matters, please feel free to email them a copy of this newsletter.
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BACK-ISSUES: Back-issues of Military Matters are available to read online at:
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Locating Military People.
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/weekly/aa082199.htm
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Previous Poll: When Should the Military Treat Adultery as a Criminal (Court-Martial) Offense? 23 percent said (A)
- Always [Military personnel should be held to a higher moral standard than civilians; 36 percent said (B) - Never
[Adultery is a private, civil matter - not a criminal offense]; 41 percent said (C) - Only when it negatively impacts
on the military [Current Policy]?
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/polls/bladultery.htm
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This Issue's Poll: Should Military Doctors Give Equal Priority to Enemy POWs as They do to U.S. Servicemembers?
(A) - Yes - Medical Ethics and our View on Human Rights Demand This; (B) - No - Combat Readiness Dictates that
U.S. Servicemembers be given Priority Treatment.
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/polls/blpowmedical.htm
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NEWS AND COMMENTARY:
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Fire Makes Los Alamos Lab a Better Neighbor: SANTA FE, N.M.--For decades, the Los Alamos National Laboratory has
operated behind a nearly impenetrable wall of secrecy. Now, in the aftermath of a May wildfire that scorched thousands
of acres on the 43-square-mile reserve and raised fears of nuclear contamination among residents, lab officials
are trying to be better neighbors. During the weekend, lab officials talked about the fire, the possibility that
it spewed toxins into the air and the threat that summer rains will wash nuclear and other pollutants into the
Rio Grande. They even opened the door to suggestions that ordinary New Mexico citizens be included in monitoring
the contamination. "It was unprecedented for our whole community," said Leslie Larsen, co-producer of
the conference sponsored by Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety that drew several hundred environmental activists
to a hotel in Santa Fe.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2903.1
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AF May Pay for Fire Caused by Bomb: WASHINGTON -- The war between New Jersey and
Pennsylvania was over after only one bomb. A Pennsylvania Air National Guard plane dropped it on April 30, 1999,
over eastern Burlington County, igniting a forest fire that burned 12,000 acres of Pinelands in four days before
being brought under control. But that accidental act -- the plane was aiming for a National Guard bombing range
-- set the stage for a much longer battle, this one for financial compensation. Last week, more than 14 months
after the blaze, the Air Force offered indications to Sen. Robert G. Torricelli, D-N.J., that it would reimburse
the state for the cost of extinguishing the fire. Torricelli had said it was "unbelievable" that the
Air Force at first had refused to pay costs incurred in fighting a fire "for which it was responsible."
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2902.1
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TriCare Could Save Millions by Streamlining, Cutting Waste: The Defense Department
could save hundreds of millions of dollars annually by improving Tricare claims processing, catching more fraud
and abuse and joining with the Department of Veterans Affairs to buy pharmaceuticals, according to a congressional
investigator. This is money -- $500 million to $1 billion -- that could go toward patient care instead of administration
or waste, Stephen Backhus, of the General Accounting Office, told Congress. Backhus and representatives of Tricare
and insurance companies testified June 22 before the House Budget Committee's Task Force on Defense and International
Relations.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2882.1
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Producer of Tailwind Report Sues CNN: WASHINGTON -- Jack Smith, co-producer of CNN's retracted Tailwind report,
has filed a fraud, wrongful termination, and defamation lawsuit against the Cable News Network. The suit seeks
$6 million in actual damages and $100 million in punitive damages. Smith claims in the suit that CNN fired him
"to appease high level military officials." CNN also fired April Oliver, who co-produced the Tailwind
report with Smith. The suit states "CNN management decided that the Tailwind report -- about a covert operation
30 years ago -- was not worth jeopardizing its valuable and lucrative contacts with senior military and Pentagon
officials. CNN publicly denounced and fired Oliver and Smith to mollify the military establishment and preserve
its good relations with, and consequent access to, military sources and operations." The suit further states,
"The Tailwind report was based on the statements of reliable and credible sources with actual knowledge of
the mission and military policy."
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2865.1
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Officer's Wife Pleads Guilty in Baby's Death: SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) -- The wife of an Army officer at Fort Leonard
Wood pleaded guilty Friday to fatally smothering her five-month-old daughter and attempting to kill her son. Mary
Thorne Karch, 43, waived her indictment and pleaded guilty in federal court to the charges of voluntary manslaughter
and assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to harm, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. In October 1999,
military police were led to Karch's home on the base where they found the lifeless infant in a crib, with a cloth
covering her mouth and nose. Karch's 5-year-old son was found strapped in the front seat of a car Karch had driven
off the road near the east gate of the Army post. She had also placed an umbrella in the exhaust pipe of the vehicle.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2904.1
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Correctional Custody - Is This Any Way to Keep a Sailor?: Correctional Custody Unit, Norfolk, Va. -- For the chronic
slackers, smart alecks and rebels without causes the fleet sends here, this could be their last shot at redemption.
These are the sailors who can't get their acts together despite counseling, coddling and captains' masts. Once
they've been marched into the reception area here, strip searched and made to urinate in a cup for drug and alcohol
tests, the clock is running: They've got 30 days to shape up. Otherwise, there's a good chance they'll be told
to ship out -- an inglorious end to their hitch in the Navy. Despite being a heartbeat away from being drummed
out, the Navy wants to keep them in uniform. Following a military-wide trend, the Navy is making increasing use
of the CCU system as a retention tool.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2884.1
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Senate Applies Brakes to Proposed Tobacco Price Increase on Post: Senators applied the brakes to Defense Department
plans to raise the price of tobacco products sold in military stores. They also dampened defense officials' hopes
to eliminate restrictions on the sale of televisions, furniture, diamonds and some other products at military exchanges.
Citing the lack of any clear tobacco policy that they could review, lawmakers told defense officials "to continue
the current tobacco pricing practices." Lawmakers want to know what impact the policy would have on store
sales, and they want a say in big changes. The directive, written by Sens. Tim Hutchinson, R-Ark., and Max Cleland,
D-Ga., chairman and ranking Democrat, respectively, on the Senate Armed Services personnel subcommittee, was delivered
in a May 31 letter to Alphonso Maldon Jr., assistant secretary of defense for force management policy. Defense
officials notified House and Senate leaders in April of their intention to raise tobacco prices. Under the proposal,
cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco sold in the continental United States could not be priced lower than 5 percent
below the cheapest price in the civilian community. Prices overseas would have to be within the range of prices
at U.S. stores.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2890.1
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Okinawa Assembly Condems U.S. Marine Incident: TOKYO (Reuters) - The local assembly of Okinawa, the southern Japanese
island where the Group of Eight summit will be held in three weeks, passed a resolution on Wednesday protesting
the alleged molestation of a 14-year-old girl by a U.S. Marine. The marine was arrested on Monday in an incident
which is likely to fuel local resentment at the massive U.S. military presence -- already expected to result in
protests during the summit.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2856.1
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President Signs U.N. Pact for Children: UNITED NATIONS –– President Clinton today signed U.N. agreements that would
bar the U.S. military from sending minors into combat and would seek to curb the sexual exploitation of children
around the globe. Clinton said he would send the pair of agreements, which are optional protocols to the 1989 Convention
on the Rights of the Child, to the Senate later this month and would push for their ratification--even though the
Senate has refused to ratify the convention itself. The United States signed the convention in 1995, but congressional
Republicans have objected that it would infringe on the responsibilities of parents by granting children freedom
of religion, expression and association as well as the right to representation in court.Somalia, which has no functioning
government, is the only other country in the United Nations that has not ratified the convention.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2850.1
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Army to Develope Online College Degree Program: WASHINGTON -- The Army, hoping to reduce a major barrier to recruiting
and retaining talented young people, will announce today a new education program to help millions of soldiers earn
college degrees and technical certificates through a global system of online learning. As envisioned by Army leaders,
the system will offer educational opportunities from a consortium of colleges, universities and technical schools
linked by computer technology. Soldiers will be provided with computers, printers and Internet access. Money will
be available for textbooks and fees. New policies will make it easier for soldier-students to enroll, transfer
credits and meet degree requirements. Also, officials said, students will be assigned coaches to provide career
guidance and academic support.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2908.1
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Army Marching to a Different Beat: FORT LEWIS, Wash - In the evergreen foothills of the Cascade Mountains, among
the same forests of pine and fir where young men trained for the trench battles of World War I, soldiers like Spc.
Ragnar Schuett are leading the Army's march to a new approach to fighting. There is an air of anticipation on the
shores of Puget Sound - and strong hints of anxiety, too. "I'm not quite sure how it's going to work out,"
Schuett, 28, says as he stands atop a Light Armored Vehicle, a stand-in borrowed from the Canadian army to enable
his 3rd "Arrowhead" Brigade to begin experimenting with new ways of maneuvering on the battlefield without
today's behemoth tanks. "We are like guinea pigs to see what works and doesn't work," he says. The Army
is in the early stages of a transformation that its chief architect, Gen. Eric Shinseki, believes will finally
break the Cold War mold. It shaped the Army into the most powerful land force on the planet but that no longer
fits for smaller-scale, come-as-you-are security crises like Kosovo.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2907.1
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Are you Ready for a Jujitsu Army?: FORT LEWIS, Wash. -- A weak sun rises over the firs that blanket this post on
the Puget Sound, illuminating a scene that soon could be commonplace on every installation: several dozen soldiers
in BDUs and running shoes grappling in pairs as they roll this way and that on the dew-slick grass of a sports
field. The troops sweating in the chilly dawn air are officers and NCOs from 2nd Infantry Division's 1st Battalion,
32nd Armor Regiment. As part of the establishment of two medium-weight brigades here, the battalion is transitioning
to a new design as the Army's first reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition squadron. But as its leaders
come to grips with an organization designed for war in the 21st century, they also are coming to grips -- literally
-- with a new approach to the oldest form of combat: hand-to-hand fighting. The regiment and battalions in 2nd
ID's 3rd Brigade are the first nonspecial operations units to learn a new style of hand-to-hand combat modeled
on a Brazilian variant of the Japanese martial art of jujitsu.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2889.1
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Commadant Changing Marines "One Step at a Time": Those waiting for Marine Commandant Gen. James L. Jones
to announce a sweeping set of changes for the Corps may be missing the forest for the trees. Rather than release
a manifesto, Jones works behind the scenes, building support one plan at a time. "I've said many times that
being commandant is getting into the art of consensus building," Jones said during an editorial board meeting
June 28 with Marine Corps Times' editors and staff writers at the Pentagon. "It's too easy to just say 'do
this because I said so.' That's probably the best guarantee that after you leave, it won't survive." Jones'
vision for the Corps has filtered out slowly over the past year -- the return of the Marine Expeditionary Brigade,
the shifting of Marines from staff jobs to operational billets, the abolition of brown T-shirts and the possibility
of a whole new Marine-unique camouflage uniform. These incremental changes are Jones' roadmap for rekindling the
Corps' warrior spirit.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2880.1
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Military Imposes Curfew & Bans Drinking for Troops in Okinawa: OKINAWA CITY, Japan - The U.S. military imposed
an indefinite late-night curfew and a drinking ban on all its service members in Okinawa on Monday after several
of them allegedly committed crimes that have enraged Japan. The order seemed aimed at calming the community ahead
of President Clinton's visit to the island for an international summit July 21-23. He will be the first U.S. leader
to go to Okinawa since the island, captured during World War II, was returned to Japan in 1972.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2909.1
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Weather Setting off UXOs in Kosovo: PRISTINA, Yugoslavia (AP) - Flames fanned by hot, gusty winds swept Sunday
over hills parched by the recent Balkan heat wave, burning some houses in Kosovo and setting off unexploded ordnance
left over from last year's conflict here. NATO spokesman Maj. Scott Slaten reported fires in four of Kosovo's five
military sectors, including one blaze which destroyed houses near Planeja in southern Kosovo. Residents in several
areas were evacuated. Slaten said ethnic Albanian and international firefighters were hampered by the large number
of land mines and unexploded ordnance. The explosives were left behind after the conflict in this southern Serbian
province, which ended in June 1999 when Yugoslav forces withdrew following the 78-day NATO air campaign.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2905.1
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Sounding the Alarm on Sub Shortages: The Navy's submarine force is stretched so thin, and future budget predictions
are so dire, the Silent Service may one day fall dangerously below the amount of boats needed to carry out its
mission, Navy officials told lawmakers June 27. "I'm hurting right now. I'm hurting big time," said Rear
Adm. Albert Konetzni, commander of the Pacific submarine force. "It's a tragedy to me that we've gotten to
this point." Konetzni, addressing the Military Procurement Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee,
said the operations tempo of the 26 attack boats in his fleet has been stretched from the optimal 65 percent to
a weary 80 percent. Moreover, the lack of boats means lack of presence, forcing the United States to snub foreign
fleets during joint exercises and wearing out crews expected to do too much with too little.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2887.1
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Air Force Running out of Cruise Missiles: The U.S. Air Force is running out of cruise missiles. In response, Air
Force officials, concerned that the current inventory of air-launched cruise missiles will not be enough for a
future conflict, have decided to re-start production of the Cold War-era weapon. The service decided to restart
production of the air-launched cruise missile after the U.S.A.F. arsenal dropped to an all-time low of 60 weapons.
The Air Force missile shortage reportedly was caused by the Clinton administration, which used large numbers of
the robot missile weapons for strikes against Iraq and Kosovo. In 1996, Air Force officers were openly critical
of the Clinton administration for wasting missiles, following strikes against Iraq. One specific example cited
was the unsuccessful "Desert Strike" operation, in which air-launched cruise missiles with fragmentary
warheads were mis-targeted against hardened Iraqi bunkers on White House orders. The missile fragmentary warheads,
designed to destroy "soft" targets such as trucks, are ineffective against hardened concrete bunkers.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2912.1
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Clinton Urged to let Sucessor Decide on Missile Defense System: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawmakers urged President
Clinton on Sunday to let his successor decide whether to build a missile defense system after Saturday's failed
test left him little wiser about whether the system will work. Clinton is under some domestic pressure to take
steps to construct a National Missile Defense System (NMD) at a cost of up to $60 billion to shield the United
States from attacks from so-called ``rogue'' states like North Korea, Iran and Iraq. But Russia and China have
both weighed in against such a system, with Moscow arguing that it will undermine the deterrent force of the 1972
Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty and Beijing saying it will trigger a new global arms race.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2910.1
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AF Looking at Lasers for Cruise Missile Defense: WASHINGTON - As many military eyes focus Friday on a pivotal test
of a U.S. shield against a long-range missile attack, the Air Force is turning its attention toward a decidedly
different threat. The high-profile test this week of a key component of a ballistic missile shield concentrates
on the daunting task of defanging a long-distance attack aimed at U.S. soil or soldiers by a handful of rogue nations
believed to be working toward such a capacity. But the Air Force has begun to study whether, with a little jiggering,
it could offer a new way to defend against another potential threat - low-flying enemy-launched cruise missiles.
The service is examining the possibility and feasibility of adapting the Airborne Laser now under development to
be used against cruise missiles of the sort the United States and its NATO allies lobbed at Yugoslavia last year.
Because they are easier and cheaper to build than long-range ballistic missiles that must travel thousands of miles,
shorter-range cruise missiles are expected to enter more hostile arsenals far sooner than the more complex and
costly intercontinental sort, according to defense experts.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2862.1
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Navy Forcasts Massive Ship Shortage: The Navy is forecasting a massive gap between the number of ships it needs
in the future and the amount of gray-hulls Uncle Sam is willing to bankroll. In a 30-year shipbuilding plan released
to Congress June 26, the Navy said it needs a whopping 360 ships to carry out warfighting requirements throughout
the world. That number is 55 more ships than the magic number chiseled out in the 1997 Quadrennial Defense Review.
"The high demand for surface combatants is taking a toll on both our people and platforms," said Rear
Adm. Mike Mullen, director of surface warfare. "Numbers do matter and we cannot afford to get any smaller."
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2888.1
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Pentagon has Known about Bad Gas Masks for Six Years: A day before President Clinton reviewed a Fourth of July
armada assembled in New York from the decks of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy, a military publication
revealed that a key piece of equipment in America's war on terrorism has been known to be defective for six years,
leaving the U.S. military woefully unprepared to defend against biological, chemical and even nuclear attack. "The
Pentagon acknowledges that more than half the protective masks for chemical and biological warfare it tested flunked
inspections and could kill the troops they're meant to save," reported the Marine Corps Times on Monday. "Responding
to a Defense Department hotline tip, the Pentagon inspector general in 1994 found widespread problems in chemical
war training and equipment, particularly with the M40/42 series protective mask," reported the Times. The
results of those earlier tests were classifed because "senior leaders denied there was a problem, suppressed
bad news and argued over blame."
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2858.1
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The New MREs - Do They Pass the Taste Test?: Senior Airman Chad Padgett didn't much like the Meals, Ready-to-Eat
he ate last year while stationed at Osan Air Base, Korea. In fact, he said, a hot packet of beef stew, chicken
or "one of those frankfurter things" is better used as a hand warmer during a cold Korean night than
as dinner. So Padgett, now a writer for the Andrews Air Force Base newspaper, was downright surprised when he sampled
an MRE packet of chicken tetrazzini and discovered that he liked it -- a lot. "It's not runny. It's not little
pieces of chicken. It's not like half water," Padgett said. He's one of five airmen at the Maryland base who
sampled and critiqued the tetrazzini and three other new dishes -- beef with mushroom gravy, minestrone and jambalaya
-- that will be among eight new meals packed into MRE pouches between now and 2002. During the unofficial Air Force
Times taste test, they didn't get to try the Country Captain chicken, beef enchilada, mashed potatoes or field-ready
cheeseburger, the latter in response to numerous requests from troops. Should troops overwhelmingly dislike any
of the new MREs after they reach the field, it could be replaced by meat lasagna, which the Andrews airmen sampled,
too.
http://forums.about.com/ab-usmilitary/messages/?msg=2896.1
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You can read more military news on the About.com U.S. Military Site at:
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Around and About:
Beat the Summer Heat: Let Gulf War Vets teach you to beet that 100 degree plus heat.
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/weekly/aa072899.htm
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Link</A>
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Military Sounds: From marching music to the sound of an F-16 flying overhead.
http://usmilitary.about.com/msubmenumilsounds.htm
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Link</A>
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Genealogy: Using military records to trace your family tree.
http://genealogy.about.com/msubmilgen.htm
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CHAT: Dennis Fauchier (DennisHOST) will be hosting General Military Chats every Saturday from 6:00 PM (EST) to
7:00 PM (EST) and every Wednesday from 12:00 PM (EST) to 1:00 PM (EST). Edward Hanrahan (AssassinHOST) will host
every Saturday night from 9:00 PM (EST) to 1:00 AM (EST).
http://usmilitary.about.com/mpchat.htm
A HREF="http://usmilitary.about.com/mpchat.htm">(AOL Link)</A>
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MILITARY HUMOR: The chief of staff of the US Air Force decided
that he would personally intervene in the recuiting crisis affecting all of our armed services. So, he directed
that a nearby Air Force base be opened and that all elgible young men and women be invited. As he and his staff
were standing near an brand new F-15 Fighter, a pair of twin brothers who looked like they had just stepped off
a Marine Corps recruiting poster walked up to them.
The chief of staff walked up to them, stuck out his hand and introduced himself. He looked at the first young man
and asked, "Son, what skills can you bring to the Air Force?"
The young man looks at him and says, "I'm a pilot!"
The general gets all excited, turns to his aide and says, "Get him in today, all the paper work done, everything,
do it!" The aide hustles the young man off.
The general looks at the second young man and asked,"What skills to you bring to the Air Force?"
The young man says, "I chop wood!"
"Son," the general replies, "we don't need wood choppers in the Air Force, what do you know how
to do?"
"I chop wood!"
"Young man," huffs the general, "you are not listening to me, we don't need wood choppers, this
is the 20th century!"
"Well," the young man says, "you hired my brother!"
"Of course we did," says the general, "he's a pilot!"
The young man rolls his eyes and says, "Dang it, I have to chop it before he can pile it!"
For more military humor, check out the Military Humor Netlink on the About.com U.S. Military Site at
http://usmilitary.about.com/msubmenujokes.htm
A HREF="http://usmilitary.about.com/msubmenujokes.htm">(AOL Link)</A>
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With those words of wisdom, I once again leave you.,
Rod Powers
About.com's U.S. Military Information Site
