Thursday 10-25-12

Ronald Eugene Rosser (born October 24, 1929) is a former United States Army soldier who received the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in the Korean War.

Born on October 24, 1929, in Columbus, Ohio, Rosser was the second oldest of seventeen children. He joined the Army in 1946 at age 17 for a three year term of service. After one of his brothers was killed in the early stages of the Korean War, he re-enlisted from Crooksville, Ohio, in 1951 as a way of getting revenge. Initially stationed in Japan, Rosser requested to be sent into combat and was then deployed to Korea with the heavy mortar company of the 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division.
On January 12, 1952, Rosser, by then a corporal, was acting as a forward observer with Company L's lead platoon during an assault on a heavily fortified hill near Ponggilli. When the unit came under heavy fire, Rosser went forward three times and attacked the hostile positions alone, each time returning to friendly lines to gather more ammunition before charging the hill again. Although wounded himself, he helped carry injured soldiers to safety once withdrawal became necessary. For these actions, Rosser was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Rosser returned to the United States in May 1952 and was formally presented with the Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman a month later, on June 27, 1952.
In 1968, another of Rosser's brothers was killed in action, this time in the Vietnam War. Rosser requested a combat assignment in Vietnam but was rejected and subsequently retired from the Army.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_E._Rosser

Doubt you would find anything useful, but you might find something interesting, besides it is free

Coursera.org: Ivy league for free

WASHINGTON - Continuing your education can be pricey, even at schools with the most lax requirements. But what if you could take classes like Introduction to Mathematical Thinking or An Introduction to the U.S. Food System: Perspectives from Public Health - for free? And if that's not intriguing enough, what if you could take them from home? And from universities like Stanford or Johns Hopkins?
Well, it's not a "What if?" While you won't walk off with a college degree, Coursera.org offers classes that really are free and taught online by professors from Stanford, Duke, Princeton, Berklee College of Music, the University of Maryland and 28 other schools.
Coursera describes itself as a "social entrepreneurship company" with a goal of providing anyone and everyone with a world-class education - the type of education previously available only to a select few.
While some controversy surrounds how effective online classes can be, Coursera says 45 independent studies show online learning is at least as effective as face- to-face teaching. One study in particular, conducted by the U.S. Department of Education over a period of 12 years, showed students in online classes "performed modestly better."
Coursera also preaches the importance of immediate feedback and giving opportunities to redo homework so a subject can be mastered. Read more about Coursera's "pedagogy" here.
The best part about Coursera - well, other than that it's free - is the ability to take whatever class you want. This isn't for a degree, so you can take the fun classes. Or if you want to challenge yourself, you don't have to worry about bringing down your GPA if it doesn't work out.
Currently, there are 199 courses available. One that may pique the interest of radio lovers is Emory University's Introduction to Digital Sound Design, taught by Steve Everett. The four-week class has a full syllabus and starts Jan. 28.
A fun one I plan to take is The Language of Hollywood: Storytelling, Sound, and Color. This five-week course starts in February and covers the history of changes in film technology and their effects on Hollywood storytelling. Check it out here.
One class I have no plans to take from Stanford University is Probabilistic Graphical Models. (Yeah - it's a thing.) That 11-week course started in September and is taught by Dr. Daphne Koller. Check out her bio.
Another class I wouldn't be caught dead in - or at least sleeping through in a college classroom - is Coding the Matrix: Linear Algebra through Computer Science Applications. This data analysis class comes to you online courtesy of Brown University.
Part of me can't believe that there's anyone who knows what these course names mean, let alone that there are people who would pay for them. But there are, and they do. And you can do it for free.
You can check out other news coverage on Coursera here. I could say more - but you must excuse me. I've got to get to my Calculus: Single Variable class at Penn.
OK, not really. But if I wanted to, I could.

http://wtop.com/262/3089234/Where-to-take-free-college-courses

Friday 10-12-12

CSM Basil Plumley passes away at age 92

COLUMBUS, GA - A sad day today for the Fort Benning and Columbus communities. Army legend Command Sergeant Major Basil Plumley loses his fight with cancer at age 92.
In the 2002 film "We Were Soldiers," actor Sam Elliot plays Command Sergeant Major Plumley leading troops in the 1965 battle of Ia Drang during the Vietnam War.
But in 1965, Plumley wasn't reading off a script, he was living it.
"Some soldiers referred to it as the Valley of Death because they knew they were going to be in for a fire fight when they went in there," Frank Hanner, Director of the National Infantry Museum, says.
Plumley's bravery in the Vietnam War was just the last chapter of his 32-year military career. He passed away early Wednesday morning at Columbus Hospice, but his spirit lives on inside the National Infantry Museum.
"It would be such a sad museum if we didn't honor someone of his stature in the museum, he did so much for our country," Hanner says.
West Virginia native Plumley traveled to Fort Benning after he was drafted to train as one of the first army paratroopers in the 1940's.
"He found out he could get $50 extra a month to be on jump status so he joined the 82nd Airborne Division," Hanner says.
He would fight with the 82nd Airborne Division throughout WWII, making four combat jumps.
And when the Korean War began in 1950, Plumely was ready to fight again.
"The Army asked soldiers who had combat experience to volunteer to go over to Korea, and he was one of the first to volunteer," Hanner says.
In Korea, Plumley fought with the 187th Regimental Combat Airborne Team, where he completed his fifth combat jump.
Plumely was awarded dozens of awards for his service, including the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He is also one of only 325 men to receive the Combat Infantryman Badge Third Award since 1943. It is the army's most prestigious and least given award, reserved for soldiers who served in WWII and more than 30 days of combat in Korea and Vietnam.
After retiring from the Army, Plumely worked at the Martin Army Community Hospital on Fort Benning for 15 years.
Funeral arrangements are still pending.

http://www.wltz.com/story/19786094/fort-benning-mourns-local-hero

Report: Teens Using Digital Drugs to Get High

Kids around the country are getting high on the internet, thanks to MP3s that induce a state of ecstasy. And it could be a gateway drug leading teens to real-world narcotics.
At least, that’s what Oklahoma News 9 is reporting about a phenomenon called “i-dosing,” which involves finding an online dealer who can hook you up with “digital drugs” that get you high through your headphones.
And officials are taking it seriously.
“Kids are going to flock to these sites just to see what it is about and it can lead them to other places,” Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs spokesman Mark Woodward told News 9.
I-dosing involves donning headphones and listening to “music” — largely a droning noise — which the sites peddling the sounds promise will get you high. Teens are listening to such tracks as “Gates of Hades,” which is available on YouTube gratis (yes, the first one is always free).
Those who want to get addicted to the “drugs” can purchase tracks that will purportedly bring about the same effects of marijuana, cocaine, opium and peyote. While street drugs rarely come with instruction manuals, potential digital drug users are advised to buy a 40-page guide so that they learn how to properly get high on MP3s.
Oklahoma’s Mustang Public School district isn’t taking the threat lightly, and sent out a letter to parents warning them of the new craze. The educators have gone so far as to ban iPods at school, in hopes of preventing honor students from becoming cyber-drug fiends, News 9 reports.



Here’s a video of one wholesome kid getting high — startlingly so — on an MP3:



We at Threat Level are stunned and have hundreds of questions.
Will future presidential candidates defend their i-dosing past by saying, “But I had it on mute”? Are we supposed to declare a war on cyberdrugs or a cyberwar on cyberdrugs? How will police know if a teen is with headphones on is i-dosing or just listening to Justin Bieber? Is the iPod the bong of the future? What would happen if some ne’er-do-well took over the console of the Super Bowl and dosed the entire country? What if kids smoked dried banana peels and listened to these trippy tunes at the same time — could they OD? What happens if someone sells a tainted MP3?
Perhaps most importantly, what will happen if the kids move onto harder stuff like Steve Reich, Philip Glass or even Janet Cardiff’s installation, “The Killing Machine“?
Here’s a sample of the heavy stuff that some light experimentation with drug drone music could lead to. (Note: The following video is only for informational purposes and should only be viewed by responsible adults.)


http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/07/digital-drugs/

Wednesday 10-10-12

Many drugs are just fine years after they 'expire,' study finds


Chances are, your medicine cabinet contains some pills that are past their expiration date. You might even have some pain relievers, some cough syrup or some sleeping pills that were purchased back when Richard Nixon was in the White House. But you can’t seem to throw them away because you suspect they might still be OK to take.
If you’ve wondered whether medicines really do need to be tossed after their expiration date, you’re got some company at the California Poison Control System, UC San Francisco and UC Irvine. Researchers from those institutions decided to satisfy their curiosity by testing the effectiveness of eight drugs that had been sitting around, unopened, in pharmacies for years after they had supposedly gone bad.
These drugs were not just a few years past their prime, these medications were a full 28 to 40 years past their official expiration dates.
The eight drugs contained a total of 15 active ingredients. The researchers couldn’t find a standard test for one of them (homatropine), so they focused their analysis on the other 14.
The tablets and capsules were dissolved and subjected to chemical analysis using a mass spectrometer. That revealed how much of the active ingredients remained in the pills.
Out of the 14 active ingredients, 12 were still at high enough concentration – 90% of the amount stated on the label – to qualify as having “acceptable potency,” the researchers found. These included:
Acetaminophen (the pain reliever in Tylenol)
Codeine (an opiate that treats pain and coughs)
Hydrocodone (an opiate used to treat moderate to severe pain)
Phenacetin (an analgesic that’s not used much anymore)
Caffeine (a stimulant)
Chlorpheniramine (an antihistamine used to treat colds and allergies)
Pentobarbital (a short-acting barbiturate)
Butalbital (a barbiturate that lasts for an intermediate period of time)
Secobarbital (a barbituate used to treat insomnia)
Phenobarbital (a barbiturate that controls seizures and relieves anxiety)
Meprobamate (a tranquilizer to treat anxiety)
Methaqualone (a sedative and muscle relaxant known by the brand name Quaaludes)
The only active ingredients that missed that cutoff were aspirin and the stimulant amphetamine.
The expiration date on a drug is usually one to five years after it was manufactured. But those dates are often set arbitrarily, since the Food and Drug Administration doesn’t require pharmaceutical makers to test how long the active ingredients will last, the researchers wrote.
They noted that the Shelf-Life Extension Program allows drugs in federal stockpiles to be retained for up to 278 months after their stated expiration date if tests show they are still potent. But some of the ingredients tested in this study remained good for 480 months – so far.
The research team’s obvious conclusion? “Our results support the effectiveness of broadly extending expiration dates for many drugs,” they wrote.
“The most important implication of our study involves the potential cost savings resulting from lengthier product expiration dating,” they added. “Given that Americans currently spend more than $300 billion annually on prescription medications, extending drug expiration dates could yield enormous health care expenditure savings.”
The analysis was published online Monday by Archives of Internal Medicine. The full report is behind a paywall, but you can can read the first page here.
http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-expired-drugs-still-work-study-20121008,0,6591417.story

Devil's Brigade: Forefathers of Green Berets, SEALs    

In World War II, 1942 to be exact, the German Sixth Army rolled through Europe with impunity until a new bi-national unit called the "First Special Service Force" was created.
The group, referred to as "The Devil's Brigade" or "The Black Devils," was made up of lumberjacks, miners, trappers and outdoorsmen from the U.S. and Canada. They were an elite commando unit that trained at Fort William Henry Harrison near Helena, Mont.
Roughly 1,800 men learned how to sneak behind enemy lines after dark and as one member said, "raise hell until dawn," when they would slip back into their bases, leaving German soldiers either dead or scared.
Their enemies called them murdering bastards and throat-slitters. They took on missions that no other allied force could handle, or would want to. They routinely did what others said couldn't be done.
The brigade fought in the Aleutian Islands, Italy, and southern France before being disbanded in December 1944.
Modern American and Canadian special operations forces trace their heritage to this unit. And it quickly became one of the most feared fighting units in World War II.
They killed 25 of their enemies for every man they lost. They captured 235 enemy soldiers for every man of theirs taken prisoner.
To this day, the unit is revered as the very first Special Operations Unit. And they came to Washington last week to celebrate their 70th anniversary and 66th reunion.
They were honored at the Canadian Embassy on Sept. 27, and paid tribute to fallen members of the elite unit at Arlington Cemetery.

http://wtop.com/?nid=807&sid=3059597

Friday 08-03-12

Might not be to the importantance as the other heroes i put on here, but it is a shame

Lifeguard gets bill after ocean rescue



VANCOUVER, Wash. -- Seventeen-year-old John Clark, a senior at Hudson's Bay, says he didn't think twice about running into the ocean to save a drowning 12-year-old. But what he hasn't stopped thinking about, is the bill he received as a result of his effort.

What started at Rockaway Beach

The guardian angel is busy this week teaching Boy Scouts to tie knots. It's a far cry from the sand at Rockaway Beach nearly a month ago -- when John Clark heard screams for help from a 12-year-old swept out to sea.

The call for help came just five days after Clark had been certified as a lifeguard.


"He had to do something," said Dan Clark, John's dad.

So John Clark dove in -- through the breakers and heavy swells -- to reach the boy in the ocean. Then he calmed the boy down, and kept him afloat.

"I don't know exactly how big the swells were," Clark said, "but they were big enough to push both of us underwater -- all the way down to where we were touching sand."

Jet skis arrived and pulled both of them to shore.

John had a headache, and the 12-year-old was wrapped in a blanket to warm up. Into the ambulance they both went.

'When we got the bill it was a shock'

Clark thought the trip to Tillamook General Hospital was standard procedure; he didn't give it a second thought until several weeks later ... when the bill arrived.


"I am extremely proud of him," his dad tells KOIN. "When we got the bill it was a shock."


The emergency room bill came to $449. The physician's bill was $227. The 15-mile ride in the ambulance to Tillamook: $1,907. The total bill for saving a young man's life? Nearly $2,600.


"I had a feeling there would be a bill," Clark said. "But I didn't know how much it would be, and I kind of feel bad for the fact that it's so expensive. But I couldn't just let the kid go -- I had to do something."


John Clark is a lifeguard at the Firstenburg Community Center pool and the Marshall Community Center in Vancouver. He's the youngest of nine kids; his family is trying to make arrangements to get the bill paid.

http://www.koinlocal6.com/news/local/story/Teen-Rescue-Bill/1hLdhlt14kGX5C4GvnvKww.cspx

I very informative site


Gun Laws By State



Reciprocity and Gun Laws Quick Reference Guide

http://www.gunlawsbystate.com/?_escaped_fragment_=/home/terms-of-access-and-use/#!/home/terms-of-access-and-use/

Thursday 06-13-12

The Wounded Warrior Veterans Directory is an online website dedicated to promoting and assisting businesses owned by Service Disabled Veterans. The only businesses listed are those certified as Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).


The Wounded Warrior Veteran's Directory is the first of its kind and currently features almost 6,000 Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses. Visitors may find goods and services provided specifically by searching categories, search by city, State, company name, by relevant keyword or by using the North American Industry Classification System NAICS Codes.

http://www.veteransdirectory.com/

I could not agree more with the next article, glad i saw it on the Wood Pile Report

10 Signs That The Highways Of America Are Being Transformed Into A High Tech Prison Grid

Once upon a time, the open highways of America were one of our greatest symbols of liberty and freedom. Anyone could hop in a car and set off for a new adventure at any time and even our music encouraged us to "get our kicks on route 66". But today everything has changed. Now the highways of America are being steadily transformed into a high tech prison grid. All over the country, thousands upon thousands of surveillance cameras watch our highways and automated license plate readers are actually being used to track vehicle movements in some of our largest cities. Many state and local governments have come to view our highways as money machines and our control freak politicians have established a vast network of toll booths, red light cameras and speed traps to keep cash endlessly pouring in. If all of that wasn't enough, TSA "VIPR teams" are now hitting the interstates and conducting thousands of "unannounced security screenings" each year. Driving on the highways of America used to be a great joy, but now "Big Brother" is rapidly sucking all of the fun out of it. Eventually, it may get to the point where Americans simply dread having to go out on the highway.



The following are 10 signs that the highways of America are being transformed into a high tech prison grid....


#1 Surveillance Cameras

All over the United States, a vast network of surveillance cameras is carefully watching our highways. The following is an excerpt from a recent article in the Baltimore Sun about this phenomenon....

The room is large and well lit, and it buzzes with activity even though its occupants remain seated.

The video screen at the front of the room is as wide as an IMAX, though not quite as tall. It consists of 64 smaller screens – 16 columns of four apiece – that monitor every inch of interstate between Great Wolf Lodge and the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. There is an emphasis on tunnels and bridges, and one corner screen is tuned in to a 24-hour weather report.


If you are driving on an highway in Hampton Roads, VDOT is watching you.


#2 Automated License Plate Readers


In a previous article, I detailed how automated license plate readers are being used to track the movements of every single vehicle that enters Washington D.C.

A recent Washington Post article explained that most people do not even know that they are there....


More than 250 cameras in the District and its suburbs scan license plates in real time, helping police pinpoint stolen cars and fleeing killers. But the program quietly has expanded beyond what anyone had imagined even a few years ago.

With virtually no public debate, police agencies have begun storing the information from the cameras, building databases that document the travels of millions of vehicles.


Nowhere is that more prevalent than in the District, which has more than one plate-reader per square mile, the highest concentration in the nation. Police in the Washington suburbs have dozens of them as well, and local agencies plan to add many more in coming months, creating a comprehensive dragnet that will include all the approaches into the District.


A lot of police cruisers are being outfitted with this technology around the nation as well.


So if you see a police car pull up behind you, there is a very good chance that a computer has already read your license plate and is giving the officer all of your information.


#3 Ridiculous Regulations


Some of the new "auto safety laws" going in around the nation are absolutely absurd.


For example, do you buckle up your pet when you go for a ride? Well, in New Jersey you can now be fined up to $1000 for not having your pet properly restrained while you are out driving.


#4 Outrageous Fines


In many areas of the country, unpaid traffic tickets can rapidly become a major financial burden.

For example, the new tolls on the 520 floating bridge in Seattle are absolutely killing some commuters.....

Registered vehicle owners who do not pay their toll within 80 days or more will be mailed a $40 civil penalty for each unpaid toll transaction in addition to a $5 reprocessing fee.
WSDOT confirmed some tolls plus penalty fees have added up to more than $1,000.


#5 Oppressive Toll Roads


Toll roads have become one of the favorite "revenue raising tools" for our politicians.

At this point the tolls on some roads have become so incredibly oppressive that many people simply cannot afford to drive on them anymore.


And for some reason the toll increases are coming especially fast and furious this year.


A recent USA Today article summarized some of the oppressive toll increases that we are seeing all over the nation....
•California and Washington authorized high-occcupancy toll (HOT) lanes, where tolls rise or fall depending on traffic flow. Texas enacted laws authorizing private toll roads and allowing regional authorities to collect tolls. Indiana removed a provision requiring legislative approval for toll roads.

•Some Maryland tolls will double this year as the state seeks money to rehabilitate aging roads, bridges and tunnels.

The use of tolls on interstate highways also is spreading:


•Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican, just won approval from the Federal Highway Administration to add tolls on Interstate 95 in his state. The state estimates that tolls on the heavily traveled corridor could generate $250 million over the first five years for expanding, improving and maintaining the highway.


•New York and New Jersey recently announced that E-ZPass commuters will pay $1.50 more and cash customers $2 more to cross bridges and tunnels between the two states.


•Georgia just created toll lanes on Interstate 85 in suburban Atlanta.


The toll hikes are more than chump change: Cash tolls on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge jumped to $4 from $2.50, and to $12 from $8 on all the New York-New Jersey Hudson River crossings.


Toll roads are one of my pet peeves. Any time I see a toll booth it immediately puts me in a bad mood.

#6 Red Light Cameras


Red light cameras are another favorite "revenue raising tool" for the control freaks that run things.


Unfortunately, these cameras don't always work right so a lot of innocent people end up getting ticketed.


But politicians love them because they can raise a lot of cash. The following is from a recent Business Insider article....


According to U.S. PIRG (Public Interest Research Group), nearly 700 U.S. cities and towns installed the cameras, which accounted for more than 90 percent of tickets issued for illegal right turns, or rolling stops.


In one New Jersey town, PIRG found 2,500 tickets were issued at one intersection within the first two months of installing a camera.


#7 Speed Traps


In the old days, speed traps were mostly about making the roads safer.

Today, they are mostly about raising money.


One police chief up in Michigan has even admitted that the nature of his job has fundamentally changed....


"When I first started in this job 30 years ago, police work was never about revenue enhancement, but if you’re a chief now, you have to look at whether your department produces revenues."


Speed traps are becoming more common almost everywhere, but some areas of the country are worse than others.

A recent report from the National Motorists Association ranked how likely you are to get a speeding ticket in each of the 50 U.S. states....

After crunching the numbers, the NMA found that Nevada is the state most likely to issue you a traffic ticket, followed by Georgia and Alabama. In 2010 Florida took the top spot and Georgia and Nevada tied for second place.


The state where you’re least likely to get ticketed is Wyoming, followed closely by Montana. These two ranked at the bottom in 2010 as well.


#8 Government Spying


It has been revealed that the federal government has been secretly putting GPS tracking devices on thousands of vehicles in order to track the movements of people that they are interested in watching.


Most of the time the people involved have not even been charged with any crimes.

The following is a short excerpt from a recent Wired magazine article about this phenomenon....

The 25-year-old resident of San Jose, California, says he found the first one about three weeks ago on his Volvo SUV while visiting his mother in Modesto, about 80 miles northeast of San Jose. After contacting Wired and allowing a photographer to snap pictures of the device, it was swapped out and replaced with a second tracking device. A witness also reported seeing a strange man looking beneath the vehicle of the young man’s girlfriend while her car was parked at work, suggesting that a tracking device may have been retrieved from her car.

Then things got really weird when police showed up during a Wired interview with the man.

The young man, who asked to be identified only as Greg, is one among an increasing number of U.S. citizens who are finding themselves tracked with the high-tech devices.


The Justice Department has said that law enforcement agents employ GPS as a crime-fighting tool with “great frequency,” and GPS retailers have told Wired that they’ve sold thousands of the devices to the feds.


#9 Extraction Devices

If you get pulled over by police, you never know what to expect these days. Previously, I have written about how law enforcement authorities in some parts of the U.S. are using "extraction devices" to download data out of the cell phones of motorists that they pull over.


The following is how a recent article on CNET News described the capabilities of these "extraction devices"....


The devices, sold by a company called Cellebrite, can download text messages, photos, video, and even GPS data from most brands of cell phones. The handheld machines have various interfaces to work with different models and can even bypass security passwords and access some information.


#10 VIPR Teams


If all of the above was not bad enough, now we have to deal with TSA "VIPR teams" terrorizing us on the highways.

If you regularly travel across the country, there is a good chance that you have already encountered one of their "unannounced security screenings".

The following is from a local news report down in Tennessee about how local authorities are working with VIPR teams to fight "terrorism" on the interstates....

You're probably used to seeing TSA's signature blue uniforms at the airport, but now agents are hitting the interstates to fight terrorism with Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR).

"Where is a terrorist more apt to be found? Not these days on an airplane more likely on the interstate," said Tennessee Department of Safety & Homeland Security Commissioner Bill Gibbons.

Tuesday Tennessee was first to deploy VIPR simultaneously at five weigh stations and two bus stations across the state.


TSA VIPR teams now conduct approximately 8,000 "unannounced security screenings" at subway stations, bus terminals, seaports and highway rest stops each year.
Are you starting to see what I am talking about?


All of this "security" is becoming extremely oppressive.


We don't need "Big Brother" constantly watching us, tracking us and fining us on our highways.


So do you have any examples of how the highways of America are being transformed into a high tech prison grid to add to the list above?

Please feel free to post a comment with your thoughts below....

http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/10-signs-that-the-highways-of-america-are-being-transformed-into-a-high-tech-prison-grid

Saturday 04-14-12

'Battle of survival:' Special tactics officer awarded Air Force Cross

by Capt. Kristen D. Duncan
Air Force Special Operations Command Public Affairs

4/12/2012 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- In a harrowing 10-hour battle amidst more than 100 insurgents, a special tactics officer kept the enemy at bay with a little help from above.

Capt. Barry F. Crawford Jr. was awarded the Air Force Cross during a Pentagon ceremony April 12 for his heroic actions controlling the air space and calling in airstrikes during the 2010 battle in Afghanistan, which allowed his special operations team to get out of the kill zone and ultimately saved the lives of his American comrades.

While assigned to the 23rd Expeditionary Special Tactics Squadron, Crawford was the Joint Terminal Attack Controller for an Army special forces and Afghan commando team.

Crawford called in multiple fixed and rotary wing air assets, allowing for the safe return of all U.S. forces, the evacuation of two Afghan commandos killed in action, and the rescue of three other wounded Afghan commandos.

"Captain Crawford repeatedly and conspicuously disregarded his own safety to assist his United States and Afghan teammates," said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz shortly before presenting the captain the Air Force Cross during the ceremony. "It is not hard to be utterly impressed by his bravery and inspired by his selflessness."

According to his citation, "Crawford braved effective enemy fire and consciously placed himself at grave risk on four occasions while controlling over 33 aircraft and more than 40 airstrikes on a well-trained and well-prepared enemy force. His selfless actions and expert airpower employment neutralized a numerically superior enemy force and enabled friendly elements to exfiltrate the area without massive casualties."

The team of approximately 100 personnel flew into the steep mountains of Laghman Province early May 4, 2010. As soon as they were on the ground, they heard enemy chatter on the radios. Then, within 30 minutes, they found a substantial weapons cache inside the village. The enemy force was apparently dug in to defensive positions and just waiting for the sun to rise before beginning their assault on the Coalition Force.

"As soon as the sun came up, we started taking extremely heavy enemy fire," Crawford said in an interview. "Our placement in the middle of the village, and the enemy's superior fighting positions, required us to 'run the gauntlet' of enemy fire no matter where we were in the valley."

Enemy fighters were expertly using sniper and medium machine-gun fire to target the friendly force as insurgents were closing in on their location from all sides. As the force closed in, a high-volume of machine-gun and sniper fire initially wounded five commandos.

"Recognizing that the wounded Afghan soldiers would die without evacuation to definitive care, Captain Crawford took decisive action and ran out into the open in an effort to guide the [medical evacuation] helicopter to the landing zone," according to the citation. "Once the pilot had eyes on his position, Crawford remained exposed, despite having one of his radio antennas shot off mere inches from his face.

"Acting without hesitation, Crawford then bounded across open terrain, engaging enemy positions with his assault rifle and called in AH-64 strafe attacks to defeat the ambush."

When the weather cleared, the team moved along the steep terrain. To allow his team to freely move in the open and prevent further casualties, Crawford coordinated the delivery of danger-close AH-64 Apache Hellfire missiles, and 500- and 2,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munition bombs from F-15E Strike Eagles.

"Everyone there was on task and wanted to crush the enemy," Crawford said. "My teammates went above and beyond, and everyone's efforts really reenergized the entire assault force's morale."

As the U.S. and Afghan commandos left the burned-out village, Crawford's team once again came under attack. Stuck in an open, narrow valley with 300- to 500-foot sheer mountain cliffs around them, the team was forced to hold their position in poor weather conditions.

With the enemy merely 150 meters away, Crawford repeatedly called for danger-close 30 mm strafing, and rocket attacks from AH-64 Apaches overhead. To mark the enemy locations, Crawford ran into the open to engage the enemy while continuing to direct Apache airstrikes.

"The Apaches were our lifeline," Crawford said. "They were consistently engaging. It was a battle of survival for us, and they unleashed hell on the enemy."

The original mission was to collect intelligence from a remote village sympathetic to the Taliban. However, the village had been burned prior to their arrival. Their mission quickly turned into a battle for survival, which was remarkably successful. The SOF team suffered two Afghan Commando casualties, but more than 80 insurgents were killed during the engagement, including three high-ranking enemy commanders.

Crawford is currently assigned to the 104th Fighter Squadron in the Maryland Air National Guard's 175th Fighter Wing. He will soon attend pilot training to fly the A-10 Thunderbolt II.

The Air Force Cross is the service's highest medal, and second only to the Medal of Honor.

The last Air Force Cross was awarded to an Air Force combat controller, Staff Sgt. Robert Gutierrez Jr., on Oct. 27, 2011 at Hurlburt Field, Fla. Previously another Air Force combat controller, Staff Sgt. Zachary J. Rhyner, was presented the medal on March 10, 2009, at Pope Air Force Base, N.C.

http://www2.afsoc.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123297783

Just so there is no confusion, the article above is the one tagged "heroes" not the one below, on the one below, is abuse of power, i guess they are upset with the competition.

Feds raid Eagle Pass gun shop

Federal agents raided an award-winning gun shop in Eagle Pass on Tuesday, alleging it aided in sending guns and ammo across the border.

Agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations descended on Hesles Gun Store in the center of town on the heels of a federal indictment that alleges its operators were complicit with smugglers suspected of supplying drug gangs in Mexico.

The suspects, brothers Richard R. Hesles Jr. 32, and Damien R. Hesles, 22, had taken over the family business after their father — who previously ran the store — passed away in recent years.

“There was evidence that they were knowingly selling ammunition and firearms being taken to Mexico,” said Richard Durbin, chief of the criminal division for the San Antonio-based Western District of Texas. The federal district includes Eagle Pass.

It was the first time in recent memory that the federal government in the Western District has charged the operators of a gun store.

ICE-HSI special agent in charge Jerry Robinette and acting assistant special agent in charge Gary Orchowski with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said in a news release that the activity included smuggling more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition for assault and sniper rifles and hundreds of firearm components to Mexico. The activity allegedly occurred between March 15, 2010 and Feb. 17 of this year.

The release said Richard Hesles was charged with seven counts of smuggling ammunition, two counts of smuggling firearm magazines and one count of smuggling firearm sights. Damien Hesles is charged with three counts of ammo smuggling, one count of smuggling magazines and one count of firearm sights, the release said.

The indictment also seeks a monetary judgment against the Hesles for $100,000.

The defendants were scheduled to have their initial court hearings in federal court in Del Rio Wednesday and face up to 10 years on each charge if convicted.

In 2010, Gov. Rick Perry commended the shop for 76 years in business and issued the patriarch, Rick Hesles Sr., an award for the accomplishment, according to an article in the Eagle Pass Business Journal.

Perry recognized the Hesles family for its “entrepreneurship and service to the state of Texas.”

Also, in July 24, 2010, then-Congressman Ciro D. Rodriguez of San Antonio bought a custom-made shotgun there, the Business Journal reported.

The Business Journal reported that the shotgun was engraved with Rodriguez's name and the seal of Congress. Rick Hesles presented Rodriguez the shotgun in time for the 2010 hunting season, the story said.

Neither Perry nor Rodriguez responded to calls seeking comment Tuesday.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Feds-raid-Eagle-Pass-gun-shop-3471948.php

Wednesday 02-22-12

i guess there comes a point when a comman man says enough is enough

New Mexico Sheriffs Threaten To Arrest Obama’s Federal Agents If They Continue To Violate The U.S. Constitution.
have reported earlier that sheriffs in New Mexico are threatening to arrest federal agents if they attempt to enforce unconstitutional federal acts in contravention of state law.
The even better news is that Sheriffs in other states are doing the same.

Sheriff Brad Rogers of Elkhart County, Indiana has told Food and Drug Administration agents they will be arrested if they go on Amish farmer David Hochstetler’s land. Having falsely alleged that raw, unpasteurized milk sold by Hochstetler had caused several cases of food poisoning, the FDA filed a complaint in federal court to support their attack on the farmer.
I have consumed raw milk for years and can affirm that it is not only safe, but much healthier than pasteurized milk.
The threat of incarceration led the feds to withdraw their complaint against Hochstetler.

This was even after US Department of Justice attorney Ross Goldstein emailed the Sheriff that he would be arrested if he protected Hochstetler. When Sheriff Rogers refused to back down, the FDA cried uncle.

Rogers’s communication to the feds seemed to have been quite convincing: “Any further attempts to inspect this farm without a warrant signed by a local judge, based on probable cause, will result in Federal inspectors’ removal or arrest for trespassing by my officers or I.” The feds have gotten used to acting without due process — in this case, that means not bothering to get a search warrant.

Rogers’ campaign website listed his number one objective as “Upholding the Constitution.” He is also concerned about the heart condition of his inmates and is determined to help “Provide Hope to Change a Heart.” Under that header he says, “The Elkhart County jail has 74 church services a month and allows unprecedented access to ministry volunteers. Not only can we impact inmates for the here and now, but for eternity.”

United States Republic Constitution By We The People!
Sheriff Rogers requires his deputies to take three, two-day classes on the Constitution (at a tuition rate of $125 per person).
Rogers is not alone in his love for the Constitution.

Ellis County, Texas Sheriff Johnny Brown has stated that he would resist any effort by the federal government to confiscate firearms in his county.

Sheriff Joe Baca in Sierra County, California told his county commission that he will not enforce road closures on Bureau of Land Management and Gila National Forest Lands.

Sheriff Gil Gilbertson of Josephine County, Oregon has told the Forest Service that he will protect those using the forest in his county. He has written a short treatise entitled, “Unraveling Federal Jurisdiction within a State.” It is actually a scholarly piece based on citations from the Constitution, court cases and statutes and concludes that the Forest Service has no authority in any county.

Siskiyou County, California Sheriff Jon Lopey has said: “I have told federal and state officials over and over that, yes, we want to preserve the environment, but you care more about the fish, frogs, trees and birds than you do about the human race. When will you start to balance your decisions to the needs of the people?…We are right now in a fight for our survival.” Lopey spearheaded a coalition of eight sheriffs calling themselves: “Defend Rural America.”

In the days after Hurricane Katrina, power was out for days. Food and medicine were about to be lost. So Sheriff Billy McGee of Forrest County, Mississippi — a Democrat — took action when he realized that a federal shipment of six trucks of ice bound for Hattiesburg turned out to be only four. McGee went in search of the other two and found them being guarded by some Army reservists who possessed bureaucratic mindsets.

McGee took steps to secure the ice, but was told he was not authorized to take the vehicles. When a reservist would not get off one of the trucks, McGee had him handcuffed. The ice was delivered where it was needed in Hattiesburg, explaining why McGee is also known as The Ice Man.

Not surprisingly, the feds have brought suit against the Sheriff in federal court. Perhaps McGee will arrest any marshals seeking to interfere with the duties of a peace officer.

It is encouraging that men of integrity, who understand that the sheriff is the top law enforcement officer in his county, have been elected in counties around the country. We should be looking for more who fit this description.
Please let me know if you are aware of any constitutional sheriffs, and email me their names and stories at ldpratt@gunowners.org.

Liberation Wellness Blog

http://politicalvelcraft.org/2012/02/08/new-mexico-sheriffs-threaten-to-arrest-obama-federal-agents-if-they-continue-to-violate-the-u-s-constitution/

Tuesday 02-21-12

'Now it's my turn': Greenbrae man, 90, testifies about shootout with suspect

When a residential burglar fired a gun at Jay Leone last month, he was initially too angry to realize he had been shot in the head, he testified Friday.

"To tell you the truth, I never felt a thing," said Leone, 90, of Greenbrae. "I said, 'F—- you, you son of a bitch, now it's my turn.'"

Whereupon he shot five bullets at the suspect from his .38-caliber Smith & Wesson snubnose revolver, hitting the burglar three times in the abdomen. A scuffle ensued between the wounded men.

"Then he took the gun and put it to my head — click!" said Leone, who knew there were no bullets left in the gun. "And that was the end of that. He ran away."

Leone testified at the preliminary hearing of the suspect, Samuel Joseph Cutrufelli, who is charged with attempted murder, burglary, robbery and firearms offenses by a felon. After the hearing, Judge Paul Haakenson will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to hold a trial.

The shooting occurred at about 10:45 a.m. Jan. 3 at Leone's home on Via La Cumbre. Police said Cutrufelli entered the home, detained Leone at gunpoint and searched the residence for property.

After the gunbattle, Leone called 911 from his house, and Cutrufelli called 911 after stopping his car just over the San Rafael border. Cutrufelli, a 30-year-old Novato resident, said he had shot himself and needed medical attention, according to Twin Cities police.

Leone testified energetically, despite having been shot in the face just weeks ago. With his head shaved and a bandage on his left cheek, he described how the bullet entered his jaw area and exited the back of his neck, avoiding a fatal wound but eventually leading to a jaw infection, pneumonia and a breathing tube.

Under questioning from prosecutor Dorothy Chou Proudfoot, Leone described how the burglar entered his home, held a gun to his head and said there was a "contract out" on him.

"I said, 'How could there be a contract out on me?'" Leone said. "He said, 'I understand you're the guy with all the expensive cars.'"

While Leone had collected 1970s-era cars in the past, he had only a 1996 Mitsubishi and a 2005 Ford in his garage at the time. Then the burglar led him at gunpoint to the bedroom, which he allegedly ransacked for valuables while Leone sat on the bed.

Leone said he concocted a plan: He said he needed to use the bathroom, which is where his five guns were hidden. When the burglar refused, Leone pulled his pants down and said he would defecate on the spot.

The burglar let him leave for the bathroom but would not let him close the door, Leone said.

"I said, 'Do you like to watch people take a s—-?'" Leone testified. The burglar let him close the door, and Leone went for his Smith & Wesson snubnose.

Cutrufelli spent nine days at Marin General Hospital before he was well enough to be booked into jail. His public defender, Kathleen Boyle, has filed a motion to dismiss the charges, saying Cutrufelli was denied access to a lawyer while he was in the hospital, and the crime scene was contaminated in the interim.

The motion to dismiss is scheduled to be heard by Judge Andrew Sweet on March 15.

Outside the courtroom, Leone, a fitness buff and former member of the sheriff's air patrol, said he would like to go another round with Cutrufelli, perhaps in a classic duel at three paces.

"The doctor says I'm healing well," Leone said. "He said, 'For some reason, it didn't kill you.'"

http://www.marinij.com/novato/ci_19991503

Monday 02-20-12

He is someone that can be looked up to instead of some of these "athletes"

Editorial: John Glenn, endangered species

It was hard to take in Monday's 50th anniversary of John Glenn's historic space flight without feeling wistful.

Glenn, the fighter pilot turned astronaut turned U.S. senator, made his name in the types of bold national causes that now fall victim to petty squabbling. He fought fascism in World War II and communism in the Korean War before thrilling the nation as the first American to orbit the Earth.

After his space exploits, Glenn became the type of politician that today seems all but extinct. He eschewed bombast and invective in favor of getting things done in the U.S. Senate, where he served as a Democrat from Ohio and showed a willingness to break from party orthodoxy from time to time to position himself as a centrist.

No-nonsense from the beginning, Glenn was the straight arrow from small town Ohio in a Mercury Seven field of military aviators known for their swagger, fast cars and and purposeful partying. He was devoted to wife Annie, the high school sweetheart to whom he has been married for 69 years. In the Senate, he was a work horse among the show horses. In 1998, at age 77, he became the oldest person to fly in space, aboard the shuttle Discovery.

On Monday, Glenn, now 90, was honored at Ohio State University and chatted via video link with the crew of the International Space Station. Commander Dan Burbank said Glenn "paved the way for America to become a space power, and to go to the moon."

Today, it's hard to see what peaceful endeavor might unite Americans the way the space race with the Soviet Union did in the 1960s. Energy independence perhaps — a worthy goal that, like the moon program, could create a profound sense of national achievement. But it's not likely to be solved by a Congress barely able to agree that government shouldn't default on its debts. Nor is it prone to solution in just eight years — the eye-popping timetable John F. Kennedy set for the United States to go from ineptly earthbound to the moon.

The list of large-scale, festering problems that the nation faces now can be addressed only by leaders with vision and common purpose. That would take more people like Glenn, who do not confuse patriotism and partisanship.

That would also take a great overarching national cause — like what Glenn felt, indeed what the whole country felt, a half-century ago, when he climbed into a tiny capsule called Friendship 7.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/story/2012-02-20/John-Glenn-50th-anniversary/53181350/1

Monday 10-03-11

Does your vote really count, maybe not.

Diebold voting machines can be hacked by remote control
Exclusive: A laboratory shows how an e-voting machine used by a third of all voters can be easily manipulated

It could be one of the most disturbing e-voting machine hacks to date.

Voting machines used by as many as a quarter of American voters heading to the polls in 2012 can be hacked with just $10.50 in parts and an 8th grade science education, according to computer science and security experts at the Vulnerability Assessment Team at Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois. The experts say the newly developed hack could change voting results while leaving absolutely no trace of the manipulation behind.

“We believe these man-in-the-middle attacks are potentially possible on a wide variety of electronic voting machines,” said Roger Johnston, leader of the assessment team “We think we can do similar things on pretty much every electronic voting machine.”

The Argonne Lab, run by the Department of Energy, has the mission of conducting scientific research to meet national needs. The Diebold Accuvote voting system used in the study was loaned to the lab’s scientists by VelvetRevolution.us, of which the Brad Blog is a co-founder. Velvet Revolution received the machine from a former Diebold contractor

Previous lab demonstrations of e-voting system hacks, such as Princeton’s demonstration of a viral cyber attack on a Diebold touch-screen system — as I wrote for Salon back in 2006 — relied on cyber attacks to change the results of elections. Such attacks, according to the team at Argonne, require more coding skills and knowledge of the voting system software than is needed for the attack on the Diebold system.

Indeed, the Argonne team’s attack required no modification, reprogramming, or even knowledge, of the voting machine’s proprietary source code. It was carried out by inserting a piece of inexpensive “alien electronics” into the machine.

The Argonne team’s demonstration of the attack on a Diebold Accuvote machine is seen in a short new video shared exclusively with the Brad Blog [posted below]. The team successfully demonstrated a similar attack on a touch-screen system made by Sequoia Voting Systems in 2009.

The new findings of the Vulnerability Assessment Team echo long-ignored concerns about e-voting vulnerabilities issued by other computer scientists and security experts, the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (an arm of the Department of Homeland Security), and even a long-ignored presentation by a CIA official given to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

“This is a national security issue,” says Johnston. “It should really be handled by the Department of Homeland Security.”

The use of touch-screen Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) voting systems of the type Argonne demonstrated to be vulnerable to manipulation has declined in recent years due to security concerns, and the high cost of programming and maintenance. Nonetheless, the same type of DRE systems, or ones very similar, will once again be used by a significant part of the electorate on Election Day in 2012. According to Sean Flaherty, a policy analyst for VerifiedVoting.org, a nonpartisan e-voting watchdog group, “About one-third of registered voters live where the only way to vote on Election Day is to use a DRE.”

Almost all voters in states like Georgia, Maryland, Utah and Nevada, and the majority of voters in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Texas, will vote on DREs on Election Day in 2012, says Flaherty. Voters in major municipalities such as Houston, Atlanta, Chicago and Pittsburgh will also line up in next year’s election to use DREs of the type hacked by the Argonne National Lab.

Voting machine companies and election officials have long sought to protect source code and the memory cards that store ballot programming and election results for each machine as a way to guard against potential outside manipulation of election results. But critics like California Secretary of State Debra Bowen have pointed out that attempts at “security by obscurity” largely ignore the most immediate threat, which comes from election insiders who have regular access to the e-voting systems, as well as those who may gain physical access to machines that were not designed with security safeguards in mind.

“This is a fundamentally very powerful attack and we believe that voting officials should become aware of this and stop focusing strictly on cyber [attacks],” says Vulnerability Assessment Team member John Warner. “There’s a very large physical protection component of the voting machine that needs to be addressed.”

The team’s video demonstrates how inserting the inexpensive electronic device into the voting machine can offer a “bad guy” virtually complete control over the machine. A cheap remote control unit can enable access to the voting machine from up to half a mile away.



“The cost of the attack that you’re going to see was $10.50 in retail quantities,” explains Warner in the video. “If you want to use the RF [radio frequency] remote control to stop and start the attacks, that’s another $15. So the total cost would be $26.”

The video shows three different types of attack, each demonstrating how the intrusion developed by the team allows them to take complete control of the Diebold touch-screen voting machine. They were able to demonstrate a similar attack on a DRE system made by Sequoia Voting Systems as well.

In what Warner describes as “probably the most relevant attack for vote tampering,” the intruder would allow the voter to make his or her selections. But when the voter actually attempts to push the Vote Now button, which records the voter’s final selections to the system’s memory card, he says, “we will simply intercept that attempt … change a few of the votes,” and the changed votes would then be registered in the machine.

“In order to do this,” Warner explains, “we blank the screen temporarily so that the voter doesn’t see that there’s some revoting going on prior to the final registration of the votes.”



This type of attack is particularly troubling because the manipulation would occur after the voter has approved as “correct” the on-screen summaries of his or her intended selections. Team leader Johnson says that while such an attack could be mounted on Election Day, there would be “a high probability of being detected.” But he explained that the machines could also be tampered with during so-called voting machine “sleepovers” when e-voting systems are kept by poll workers at their houses, often days and weeks prior to the election or at other times when the systems are unguarded.

“The more realistic way to insert these alien electronics is to do it while the voting machines are waiting in the polling place a week or two prior to the election,” Johnston said. “Often the polling places are in elementary schools or a church basement or some place that doesn’t really have a great deal of security. Or the voting machines can be tampered while they’re in transit to the polling place. Or while they’re in storage in the warehouse between elections,” says Johnston. He notes that the Argonne team had no owner’s manual or circuit diagrams for either the Diebold or Sequoia voting systems they were able to access in these attacks.

The team members are critical of election security procedures, which rarely, if ever, include physical inspection of the machines, especially their internal electronics. Even if such inspections were carried out, however, the Argonne scientists say the type of attack they’ve developed leaves behind no physical or programming evidence, if properly executed.

“The really nice thing about this attack, the man-in-the-middle, is that there’s no soldering or destruction of the circuit board of any kind,” Warner says. “You can remove this attack and leave no forensic evidence that we’ve been there.”

Gaining access to the inside of the Diebold touch-screen is as simple as picking the rudimentary lock, or using a standard hotel minibar key, as all of the machines use the same easily copied key, available at most office supply stores.

“I think our main message is, let’s not get overly transfixed on the cyber,” team leader Johnston says. Since he believes they “can do similar things on pretty much every electronic voting machine,” he recommends a number of improvements for future e-voting systems.

“The machines themselves need to be designed better, with the idea that people may be trying to get into them,” he says. ” If you’re just thinking about the fact that someone can try to get in, you can design the seals better, for example.”

“Don’t do things like use a standard blank key for every machine,” he warns. “Spend an extra four bucks and get a better lock. You don’t have to have state of the art security, but you can do some things where it takes at least a little bit of skill to get in.”

http://politics.salon.com/2011/09/27/votinghack/

Would this be a bad thing with a worse thing coming?

Bombshell: DOJ Considering Elimination of ATF

Multiple sources, including sources from ATF, DOJ and Congressional offices have said there is a white paper circulating within the Department of Justice, outlining the essential elimination of ATF. According to sources, the paper outlines the firing of at least 450 ATF agents in an effort to conduct damage control as Operation Fast and Furious gets uglier and as election day 2012 gets closer. ATF agents wouldn’t be reassigned to other positions, just simply let go. Current duties of ATF, including the enforcement of explosives and gun laws, would be transferred to other agencies, possibly the FBI and the DEA. According to a congressional source, there have been rumblings about the elimination of ATF for quite sometime, but the move would require major political capital to actually happen.

“It’s a serious white paper being circulated, how far they’d get with it I don’t know,” a confidential source said.

After a town hall meeting about Operation Fast and Furious in Tucson, Ariz. on Monday, ATF Whistleblower Vince Cefalu, who has been key in exposing details about Operation Fast and Furious, confirmed the elimination of ATF has been circulating as a serious idea for sometime now and that a white paper outlining the plan does exist.

Sounds great right? Eliminating ATF? But there is more to this story. Remember, low level ATF field agents, like ATF whistleblower John Dodson, were uncomfortable conducting Operation Fast and Furious from the beginning, but were told by high level officials within ATF that if they had a problem with the operation, they could find a job elsewhere.

“Allowing loads of weapons that we knew to be destined for criminals, this was the plan. It was so mandated,” ATF Whistleblower John Dodson said in testimony on Capitol Hill on June 15, 2011.

In fact, not only were the ATF agents forced to carry out the operation, they were told to go against what they had been taught in training.

“This operation, which in my opinion endangered the American public, was orchestrated in conjunction with Assistant U.S. Attorney Emory Hurley. [Emory Hurley is the same Assistant U.S. Attorney who previously prevented agents from using some of the common and accepted law enforcement techniques that are employed elsewhere in the United States to investigate and prosecute gun crimes.] I have read documents that indicate that his boss, U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke, also agreed with the direction of the case,” Special Agent Peter Forcelli said in testimony on Capitol hill on June 15, 2011.

“I recall my first days at the ATF academy, where it was drilled into us as new agents that under no circumstances would any firearms, in any investigation, leave the control of ATF. Instructors stressed that even if a weapon was lost “by accident,” the agent was still subject to termination,” former ATF Attaché to Mexico Darren D. Gil said in testimony on June 15, 2011.

ATF field agents weren’t the problem with Operation Fast and Furious, high ranking officials within ATF and the Department of Justice were and still are. DOJ would eliminate ATF only to take the heat off of the Obama Administration. By eliminating the bureau, it makes it seem like DOJ is taking Operation Fast and Furious so seriously, they decided to “clear out the corruption, clean house,” however, it would only be a distraction away from the people at the top of the investigation. In fact, evidence shows the DOJ has been stonewalling the Oversight Committee investigation into the operation to protect Obama political appointees.

“It was very frustrating to all of us, and it appears thoroughly to us that the Department is really trying to figure out a way to push the information away from their political appointees at the Department,” former ATF Acting Director Kenneth Melson, who has since been moved to a position within DOJ, said of his frustration with the Justice Department’s response to the investigation in transcribed closed door testimony with the Oversight Committee in July 2011.

When I called the Department of Justice last week (five times) to request the white paper and receive a comment surrounding the idea of eliminating ATF, I received the following response: “Everyone is away from their desk right now.”

Up to this point, the Department of Justice has denied all allegations or involvement in Operation Fast and Furious, yet journalists and the House Oversight Committee have proved allegation after allegation to be true. For example, during a Congressional hearing in July, former ATF Special Agent in Charge William Newell, who has since been promoted to a position within the Justice Department, denied that his agency was trafficking guns to Mexico, despite overwhelming evidence and testimony from other ATF agents proving otherwise.

“At no time in our strategy was it to allow guns to be taken to Mexico,” Newell said on July 26, 2011, adding that at no time did his agency allow guns to walk.

We’ve heard this was a low level, “rogue” operation, turns out high level officials in the Justice Department, DEA, FBI, DHS, and even members of the White House national security team knew about Operation Fast and Furious.

Last week, ATF offered 400 agents buy outs to avoid budget cuts and is expecting 250-275 agents to take the offer through Voluntary Early Retirement. These buyouts come at a convenient time for the Justice Department, which can eliminate ATF, then say it’s because of budget cuts, when really, it’s to cover their tracks.

http://townhall.com/columnists/katiepavlich/2011/09/30/bombshell_doj_considering_elimination_of_atf/page/full/preview

JTAC: 3 Minutes to Change the World

HURLBURT FIELD, FL – As the only qualified Joint Terminal Attack Controller in an operation Oct. 5, 2009, an Air Force Special Operations Command combat controller knew the ground situation would be dire if he died. As an armor-piercing round entered his left shoulder and wrecked havoc throughout his chest, his focus wasn't on his young family in North Carolina, it was on his team.

"I've seen those types of injuries before and time isn't your friend," said the Air Force Cross recipient, Staff Sgt. Robert Gutierrez Jr. "I thought, I have three minutes before I'm going to die. I've got to do something big. Based on that time frame, I'm going to change the world in three minutes."

The team of 30 U.S. Army Special Forces and Afghan National Army commandos was surrounded in a 'Taliban-sympathetic village' in Herat province, Afghanistan. Reports show enemy fighters were positioned on rooftops just 10-feet from the team's position inside a neighboring building. Gutierrez was shot during the 4-hour firefight, which also included sniper and small-arms fire, as well as rocket propelled grenades.

As the combat controller, Gutierrez was the only qualified radio operator communicating with Airmen overhead, providing close air support and real-time battlefield surveillance, critical for the team mission and to be able to evacuate their wounded.

"Combat controllers are the air-to-ground interface, bringing the firepower and communications links to the ground force commander," Gutierrez said. "We bring an extraordinary amount of firepower in a small package, able to shoot, move and communicate at the same time."

Believing he was about to die, the San Diego native refused to remove his body armor, which held his radio, despite two medics repeatedly ordering him to take it off so his wounds could be treated. Gutierrez only relented momentarily, allowing the medic to insert a needle decompression tube just below his collar bone.

A sucking chest wound, common in gunshot victims, fills the chest cavity with blood, collapsing the lungs. The medic's procedure released the growing pressure on his collapsed lung, allowing Gutierrez to breathe and speak - so he got back on the radio. He continued to advise the ground force commander and request close air support of F-16 and A-10 aircraft overhead.

The A-10 pilot said Gutierrez's voice was calm the entire time, and he only knew of his injuries when the team was moving to the medical evacuation landing zone.

"I realized he was shot after the third (and final) strafe pass," said Capt. Ethan Sabin, then assigned to the 354th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron. "He said he would be off of the 'mic' for a few to handle his gunshot wounds, until that point he was calm, cool and collected."

Gutierrez will be awarded the Air Force Cross for extraordinary heroism, superb airmanship, and aggressiveness in the face of the enemy, according to the medal citation. Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Norton Schwartz announced the award Sept. 20 during the Air Force Association convention in Washington D.C.

"It is entirely fitting that the official awarding will occur later when his very proud family might join in the celebration, for this is truly a family affair," Schwartz said. "In the meantime, it gives me special pleasure to ask Sergeant Gutierrez to please rise here with his Air Force family, and allow us the privilege of expressing, in person, our tremendous respect and sincere gratitude for a job spectacularly well done."

In all, Gutierrez suffered a gunshot wound to the upper shoulder and triceps muscle, left chest and lateral muscle, resulting in two broken ribs, broken scapula, a softball-sized hole in his back, a collapsed lung and multiple blood infections, which required three chest tubes, three blood transfusions and seven surgeries. To top it off, the 'danger-close' 30-mm strafing runs ruptured both of his ear drums.

Despite losing five pints of blood and walking 1 ½ kilometers, Gutierrez stayed on the radio calling for his own medical evacuation and ensuring surveillance coverage for the safe return of the ground force team.

Gutierrez credits the U.S. Army Special Forces medic and U.S. Air Force A-10 pilot with saving their lives. During an interview in early 2010, Gutierrez said, "I don't care if I get an award or not. The team was outstanding. I'm just a product of what I've been taught and a product of AFSOC."

Since Sept. 11 there have been four Air Force Cross medals awarded, all to AFSOC Airmen. Gutierrez is the second living-recipient to receive the medal. Staff Sgt. Zachary Rhyner was awarded the Air Force Cross while assigned to the 21st Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C., as a combat controller for combat operations April 6, 2008, in Nuristan province, Afghanistan. During that operation, Gutierrez was also a fellow teammate and received the Bronze Star Medal with Valor and Purple Heart.

"There is no doubt his heroic actions under extremely dangerous circumstances, and despite being wounded, saved the lives of his teammates," said Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel, AFSOC commander. "His courage and character is unsurpassed. While I know he is a humble person that does not seek the spotlight, he is so deserving of the Air Force Cross. His actions are just a snapshot of what AFSOC Airmen are doing everyday in our current theater of operations."

Gutierrez was assigned to the 21 STS during the 2009 operation and is currently assigned to the Air Force Special Operations Training Center, instructing future Special Tactics Airmen, so that they may be 'First There...That Others May Live.'

http://www.shadowspear.com/special-operations-news/105767-jtac-cct-afsoc-gutierrez.html

Friday 09-16-11

More on class warfare, received this email from a friend says it pretty well. imo

*Class war at its best. *

*The folks who are getting the free stuff, don't like the folks who are
paying for the free stuff, Because the folks who are paying for the free
stuff, Can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own
stuff, And, The folks who are paying for the free stuff, Want the free stuff
to stop and the the folks who are getting the free stuff, Want even more
free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!*

**

*Now...The people who are forcing the people who Pay for the free stuff,** *
*have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff, That the people who
are PAYING for the free stuff, are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.*

**

*So... the people who are GETTING the free stuff, have been convinced they
need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff, by the people who
are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff, and giving them the
free stuff in the first place.*

*We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more
people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff. *

**

*Now... understand this. All great democracies have committed financial
suicide*

*somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded. The reason, the
voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by
electing*

*people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for
electing them.*

**

*The United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 231 years ago. The
number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the
free stuff. We have one chance to change that in 2012. Failure to change
that spells the end of the United States as we know it.*

White House Pressure for a Donor?

The four-star Air Force general who oversees Air Force Space Command walked into a highly secured room on Capitol Hill a week ago to give a classified briefing to lawmakers and staff, and dropped a surprise. Pressed by members, Gen. William Shelton said the White House tried to pressure him to change his testimony to make it more favorable to a company tied to a large Democratic donor.

The episode —confirmed by The Daily Beast in interviews with administration officials and the chairman of a congressional oversight committee —is the latest in a string of incidents that have given Republicans sudden fodder for questions about whether the Obama administration is politically interfering in routine government matters that affect donors or fundraisers. Already, the FBI and a House committee are investigating a federal loan guarantee to a now failed solar firm called Solyndra that is tied to a large Obama fundraiser.

Now the Pentagon has been raising concerns about a new wireless project by a satellite broadband company in Virginia called LightSquared, whose majority owner is an investment fund run by Democratic donor Philip Falcone.

According to officials familiar with the situation, Shelton’s prepared testimony was leaked in advance to the company. And the White House asked the general to alter the testimony to add two points: that the general supported the White House policy to add more broadband for commercial use; and that the Pentagon would try to resolve the questions around LightSquared with testing in just 90 days. Shelton chafed at the intervention, which seemed to soften the Pentagon’s position and might be viewed as helping the company as it tries to get the project launched, officials said.

“There was an attempt to influence the text of the testimony and to engage LightSquared in the process in order to bias his testimony,” Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH) said in an interview. “The only people who were involved in the process in preparation for the hearing included the Department of Defense, the White House, and the Office Management and Budget.”

Turner is chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee that oversees Shelton’s space command and GPS issues; the panel explored the issues between LightSquared and the Pentagon at a hearing Thursday.

On Thursday, LightSquared CEO,Sanjiv Ahuja told The Daily Beast that his company was not trying to use politics to affect the regulatory process and the firm's goal was to expand broadband access across America.

"Any suggestion that we have run roughshod over the regulatory process is contradicted by reality: Our plans to begin implementing America's first privately funded, wholesale, affordable, coast-to-coast wireless broadband service have been delayed for a year and we have been forced to commit more than $100 million to find a solution that will allow consumers to benefit from both our service and GPS,” Ahuja said.

"For a company that allegedly is ‘wired’ inside the Beltway, we've been unable to even get the House Armed Services Committee to allow us to have one representative today’s hearing — a hearing in which we are the subject,” he said.

Shelton finally gave his testimony Thursday, and made clear the Pentagon's concern about LightSquared's project.

The general told Turner's committee that preliminary tests of a new LightSquared proposal to use only a portion of the band that it was licensed originally in 2004 would cause significant disruptions to GPS.

He said the GPS spectrum was supposed to originally be a “quiet neighborhood,” meaning that lower strength signals could exist near the GPS spectrum. Speaking of the LightSquared plan, he said, “If you put a rock band in the middle of that quiet neighborhood, that’s a different circumstance.”

The White House confirmed Wednesday that its Office of Management and Budget suggested changes to the general’s testimony but insisted such reviews are routine and not influenced by politics. And it said Shelton was permitted to give the testimony he wants, without any pressure.

OMB “reviews and clears all agency communications with Congress, including testimony, to ensure consistency in the administration’s policy positions,” said White House spokesman Eric Schultz. “When an agency is asked by a congressional committee to testify, OMB circulates the agency’s proposed [draft] testimony to other affected agencies and appropriate [executive office of the president] staff. If a reviewer has a comment to the proposed testimony, that suggestion is typically conveyed to the agency for their consideration. When divergent views emerge, they are often reconciled through discussions at the appropriate policy levels of OMB and the agencies.” The general’s office declined to comment.

LightSquared has previously acknowledged it met with officials from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy as it tried to shepherd the project, which is consistent with President Obama’s goal of trying to expand broadband wireless access nationwide. That office has a mandate to meet with members of private industry.

Melanie Sloan, who runs the nonpartisan ethics groups Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said the emerging allegations about possible White House involvement in LightSquared’s matter seemed to mirror earlier allegations in the Solyndra case.

“With this new set of facts, it starts to sound like a pattern of the White House improperly pressuring people at agencies involving decisions that affect companies tied to donors and fundraisers,” Sloan said. “It’s always a problem when the White House is pressuring anyone’s testimony. I don’t care if you are a four-star [general] or a GS-15 [career employee], you should be giving your true opinion and not an opinion the White House is seeking for political expediency."

Sloan recalled similar instances during the Bush administration, when officials were accused of trying to meddle with climate scientists’ testimony. “It doesn’t matter what party is in charge, money frequently trumps good policy in Washington,” she said.

Mr. Ahuja gave a little more than $30,000 to both the Democratic and Republican parties in the last two years. Mr. Falcone and his wife have gave more than $60,000 in 2009 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Mr. Falcone has also given a smattering of money to Republicans.

At issue is a conditional Federal Communications Commission waiver granted in January to LightSquared to build cheap terrestrial wireless capacity in a section of the wireless spectrum close to the GPS bandwidth. Harbinger Capital, the hedge fund belonging to Falcone, owns a majority stake in LightSquared.

"There was an attempt to influence the text of the testimony and to engage LightSquared in the process in order to bias his testimony,” said Rep. Mike Turner.
The FCC license has come under scrutiny because technical experts have warned that LightSquared’s proposal to build tens of thousands of ground stations for a wireless network could drown out the GPS signal. On Tuesday, the FCC issued a public notice stating that LightSquared may not move forward on establishing its wireless service until further testing proves the GPS would not be harmed.

Falcone says the FCC waiver was spurred by the demands of the wireless industry. “LightSquared wanted the waiver because some of its wholesale partners wanted the choice of being able to sell devices with either satellite only, terrestrial-only or combined satellite-terrestrial service,” he told The Daily Beast. “The waiver allows us to meet the specific needs of our customers — but it in no way affected the spectrum issue.”

Falcone added, “The GPS industry decided not to oppose us in the early 2000's because they thought we'd never be successful. It was only after they realized we were not just a concept, but a viable technology with a viable business model, that they decided to oppose us. Meanwhile, LightSquared invested billions of dollars — that is money that comes from private individuals all over the country — based on the promise the FCC gave us under a Republican administration six years ago. The point is that any suggestion that the waiver created LightSquared out of thin air is both specious and absurd.”

Turner said Shelton told his committee that LightSquared had obtained his earlier prepared testimony. But Jeffrey J. Carlisle, Executive Vice President for Regulatory Affairs and Public Policy for LightSquared said Thursday that the company never received Shelton’s testimony scheduled for August 3.

A U.S. government official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the White House specifically asked Shelton to include a paragraph in his testimony that stated the military would continue to test the proposed bandwidth for ways LightSquared could still use the spectrum space without interfering with GPS. The proposed language for Shelton’s testimony also stated that he hoped the necessary testing for LightSquared would be completed within 90 days.

The White House has said it did not try to influence the licensing process for LightSquared at the FCC. Chairman Julius Genachowski also has said the White House never lobbied him about LightSquared. Republicans are now questioning whether the administration has been rushing approval of the project over the objections of experts ranging from GPS companies like Garmin to the military’s own advisory committee on satellites.

“The FCC’s fast-tracking of LightSquared raises questions about whether the government is rushing this project at the expense of all kinds of other things, including national security and everyone who uses GPS, from agriculture to emergency medical technicians,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA). “Without transparency, and with media coverage of political connections in this case, there’s no way to know whether the agency is trying to help friends in need or really looking out for the public’s interest.”

In April, Grassley asked Genachowski to hand over all records of communications, including emails between Falcone and the FCC, and LightSquared and the FCC. Genachowski declined to turn over those records.

The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization, published emails this week it had obtained showing meetings between White House technology advisers and LightSquared officials.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/15/lightsquared-did-white-house-pressure-general-shelton-to-help-donor.html

Defying orders, hero Marine saved other troops



WASHINGTON (AP) - Defying orders and tempting fate, Marine corporal Dakota Meyer charged five times in a Humvee into heavy gunfire in the darkness of an Afghanistan valley to rescue comrades under attack from Taliban insurgents.

On Thursday, Meyer was presented with the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military award, by President Barack Obama.

Meyer's courage during the six-hour ambush and firefight saved the lives of 36 people, both Americans and Afghans. He killed at least eight Taliban insurgents. Firing from a gun turret on top of the Humvee driven by a fellow Marine, he provided cover for his team, allowing many to escape likely death.

He was defying orders from his commanders, who told him to stay back. The kill zone, they said, was too dangerous. But the young corporal, just 21 years old at the time, knew his friends were trapped that early morning in September 2009.

"In Sgt. Dakota Meyer, we see the best of a generation that has served with distinction through a decade of war," Obama said during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.

Meyer, later promoted to sergeant and now out of the Marines, is the third living recipient and the first Marine to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The modest, soft-spoken 23-year-old now lives in his home state of Kentucky, working construction in the tiny town of Greensburg.

Obama praised Meyer for his humility and work ethic. When the White House tried to reach him in the middle of a workday to tell him his medal had been approved, he worried about whether he could take a call while on the job. So the White House arranged for the president to call during Meyer's lunch break. With a smile, Obama thanked him for taking the call.

On the eve of the Medal of Honor ceremony, Obama and Meyer met in person, chatting on a patio near the White House Rose Garden, over a beer.

Despite Meyer's heroism, four Americans died in the ambush: 1st Lt. Michael Johnson, a 25-year-old from Virginia Beach; Staff Sgt. Aaron Kenefick, 30, of Roswell, Ga.; Corpsman James Layton, 22, of Riverbank, Calif.; and Edwin Wayne Johnson Jr., a 31-year-old gunnery sergeant from Columbus, Ga. A fifth man, Army Sgt. Kenneth W. Westbrook, 41, of Shiprock, N.M., later died from his wounds.

Meyer says he has struggled with the national attention, with being recognized for the worst day of his life. He requested that memorial services for those who died that day be held in their hometowns at the same time he received the Medal of Honor.

The president assured Meyer that he had let no one down.

"Dakota, I know you've grappled with the grief of that day, that you said your efforts were somehow a failure because your teammates didn't come home," the president said. "But as your commander in chief and on behalf of everyone here today and all Americans, I want you to know it's quite the opposite."

For all the praise heaped upon Meyer, questions have also been raised about whether the military could have prevented the deaths of the five Americans. Two Army officers were reprimanded for being "inadequate and ineffective" and for "contributing directly to the loss of life" following an investigation into the day's events.

"You can't say this with any certainty, but the chances are, in my opinion, that yes they would have been" still alive, said retired Col. Richard Hooker, who led the investigation. Hooker spoke during an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes."

Meyer was part of a security team supporting a patrol moving into a village in the Ganjgal Valley on Sept. 8, 2009. Suddenly, the lights in a nearby village went out and gunfire erupted. About 50 Taliban insurgents on mountainsides and in the village had ambushed the patrol.

As the forward team took fire and called for air support that wasn't coming, Meyer begged his command to let him head into the incoming fire to help.

Four times he was denied before he and another Marine, Staff Sgt. Juan Rodriguez-Chavez, jumped into the Humvee and headed into the fray. For his valor, Rodriguez-Chavez, a 34-year-old who hailed originally from Acuna, Mexico, would be awarded the Navy Cross.

With Meyer manning the Humvee's gun turret, the two drew heavy fire. But they began evacuating wounded Marines and American and Afghan soldiers to a safe point. Meyer made five trips into the kill zone.

During that fifth trip into the kill zone, a helicopter arrived at last to provide overhead support. Troops aboard the chopper told Meyer they had spotted what appeared to be four bodies. Meyer knew those were his friends.

"It might sound crazy, but it was just, you don't really think about it, you don't comprehend it, you don't really comprehend what you did until looking back on it," Meyer said.

Wounded and tired, Meyer left the relative safety of the Humvee and ran out on foot.

Ducking around buildings to avoid gunfire, he reached the bodies of his fallen comrades.

Meyer and two other troops dodged bullets and rocket-propelled grenades to pull the bodies out of a ditch where the men had died while trying to take cover

http://wtop.com/?nid=209&sid=2544681