The Los Angeles Times reports that: Pentagon officials will announce Friday that the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the military can be lifted without harming military readiness, a step that will likely bring the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy to an end in September, two Defense officials said, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are recommending to President Obama that he proceed with final repeal...

After calling Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) “vile, unprofessional, and despicable” and “not a lady;” after refusing to apologize for his crude remarks and after using these very same insults for fundraising purposes (below), Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) now blames his boorish conduct on his military service. Appearing on Fox Business Network, West said an apology is “not happening,” and then tried to blame his poor etiquette on the military. West, a veteran who was discharged from...

UPDATE: Gen. Ray Odierno, who has been nominated to be the next Army chief told Congress during his confirmation hearings, “I think it’s important that we provide [Iraq] the support they think is necessary.” Commenting on recent Iranian efforts to arm Shiite extremist groups in Iraq Odierno said, “It is clear that Iran is attempting to influence this decision with the actions they’ve taken, specifically over the last several months, in continuing to support, fund, train, equip surrogates...

UPDATE 2: The Austin American-Statesman reports that Medal of Honor nominee Dakota Meyer moved back from Austin to his home state of Kentucky in May. According to the Statesman, Meyer worked in Austin for a defense contractor from March to May. The Marine Corps Times had reported earlier that Meyer “now lives in Austin, Texas.” Regardless, whether Meyer lived in Austin one day or three months—or never—we are very proud of him. UPDATE: In a follow-up to this morning’s first news...

There is no denying that too many of our troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are having a very difficult time coping with their lives back home—emotionally, financially, medically, mentally and in so many other ways. Homelessness, suicide, domestic violence, divorce, drug and alcohol addiction and even serious crime are some of the symptoms and consequences. We have read, seen and heard such stories much too often. Equally all too often, those stories have very tragic endings or,...

Has the Cold War suddenly re-emerged? Are we facing another Cuban missile crisis? Is war looming between North and South Korea? Is a nuclear standoff between Iran and Israel imminent? And, who will blink first? The media is full of such questions and topics. Just Google “Who will blink first?” and you will get almost one hundred such headlines or topics for the past 24 hours, more than 800 for the past week and a whopping 15,300 “results” for the past month. But guess what, most of these...

Following up on Holly’s “Even More Fallout: Les Hinton of WSJ Announces Resignation“: Now, it appears that even Scotland Yard may have been in bed with those good ole Murdoch boys: Breaking News Alert The New York Times Saturday, July 16, 2011 — 1:38 PM EDT —– Taint From Tabloids Rubs Off on a Cozy Scotland Yard For nearly four years, six overstuffed plastic bags* containing possible evidence of phone hacking by the British tabloid, The News of the World, collected...

Its grasslands have absorbed too much blood. Its winds have carried away too many sounds of interethnic, religious and civil warfare and strife in which more than 2 million people have been killed and more than 5 million have become internally and externally displaced. Its tropical forests have witnessed too much grief and violence. But while its past is troubled and its future uncertain, yesterday the world community celebrated and the General Assembly applauded the new nation of South Sudan...

As a young U.S. Air Force airborne radio operator in the late 50s and early 60s, I became very good at using Morse code—you know, the art of sending dots and dashes in the form of short and longer bursts of radio energy through the atmosphere, and beyond. I became very good partially out of necessity. You see, as a recent immigrant to the United States, I still had a heavy accent when I spoke English. Thus, when trying to get through to a ground station “by voice,” especially when using...

CODA: Commenting on “Today, a Grateful Nation Presents Its Highest Military Honor,” Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés reminded us about a black regiment during the Civil War. This is the story of a member of New York City’s all-black 369th Infantry Regiment — the famous “Harlem Blackcats”—who distinguished himself through combat heroism during World War I on a French battlefield. Yesterday, Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry became only the second living recipient of the Medal...

At a White House ceremony today, Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Arthur Petry will receive the Medal of Honor. He’ll be the fourth soldier to receive that recognition for heroism in the Afghanistan War from President Obama and the second living recipient of the Medal of Honor from the Iraq and Afghan wars, following the award of the Medal to Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta last fall. While, in my opinion, too few Medals of Honor have been awarded to our deserving heroes, both during the peak of our...

As 46,000 U.S. troops still remain in Iraq, as McCain (who once said that it “would be fine with” him if the U.S. military stayed in Iraq for “a hundred years”) wants as many as 13,000 troops to remain in Iraq, and as our troops continue to be killed there, the new U.S. Secretary of Defense made his first trip to Iraq in that capacity. While Obama has promised to withdraw the remaining troops from Iraq by December 31, Leon Panetta attempted to walk a fine line between conflicting political...

On previous Independence Days I have expressed my thoughts and feelings about the day’s significance in several forums. As the day of independence of my adopted country, this occasion has always been very special to me. This year, I happened to spend the weeks leading up to this Fourth of July weekend in my native country visiting relatives, enjoying its magnificent natural beauty and variety and admiring the progress made by Ecuador in so many areas. That is why this somewhat abbreviated and...

I have bemoaned the fact that so very few Medals of Honor were being awarded to our deserving heroes, both during the peak of our fighting in Iraq and during the entire first seven years of the Afghanistan War. While nearly 250 of our troops received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Vietnam War, only four heroes were so recognized for actions in Iraq during the Bush administration and a single Medal of Honor was awarded for heroism in the Afghanistan War. When Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class...

Would you—if you were a politician—be thrilled to get a thank you letter from Osama bin Laden? Well, according to the New York Times, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has sent exactly such a letter to members of Congress. The three-page letter thanks members of Congress for criticizing President Obama last week over his involvement in the NATO-led military campaign in Libya: “I want to express my sincere gratitude for your thoughtful discussion of the issues,” Colonel Qaddafi wrote in the...

With reference to “That Mutiny on the Gingrich,” (not mine) and quoting Matt Lewis at the Daily Caller, the Peach Pundit has more to say about the Gingrich Mutiny-Perry 2012 connection: Two separate and reliable sources in Texas tell me serious preparations are being made for Governor Rick Perry, 61, to seek the Republican nomination for president. Dave Carney and Rob Johnson — the former top Perry aides who on Thursday left Newt Gingrich’s floundering campaign — are said to be heading...

Fellow contributor Patrick Edaburn has just reported on the breaking news that Newt Gingrich’s Presidential campaign top staffers have resigned en masse. (Other news sources call this an “implosion” of his campaign—the end.) While Edaburn gives a couple of possible reasons for this collapse—a badly timed two-week Greek vacation and a possible Perry run—the media is awash with other possible reasons: The Washington Post: * Expanding on the two-week Greek vacation: “Coming...

About three years ago, I took then-Presidential candidate John McCain to task for saying during a town hall meeting that it “would be fine with” him if the U.S. military stayed in Iraq for “a hundred years.” I was not only taken aback by McCain’s apparent level of comfort with prolonging a war where we were losing young Americans on a daily basis, but also by his continued, stubborn support for an ill-conceived, ill-planned and ill-managed invasion and occupation of...

Some of the most idyllic and memorable times of my early youth are the days and weeks I spent in the late 1940s with my parents and sister in the Oriente of my native Ecuador. The Oriente is Ecuador’s magnificent jungle region on the East side of the majestic Andes Mountains. It is the beginning of the Amazon rain forest basin — some parts still pristine — and one of the most biologically diverse regions on earth, an ecological miracle. My sister and I visited our parents in...

Last Memorial Day our nation was in the midst of a bitter debate over the repeal of “Don’t ask, don’t tell” (DADT); over whether women should serve aboard our nuclear submarines and in combat; over immigration, in particularly whether to provide a path to citizenship to certain undocumented immigrants who have come to our country as children and who go on to serve honorably in our armed forces. An article I wrote on that occasion had the following epilogue: I [also] hope...

Some spent the night outside, in sleeping bags or just under the Texas stars. Many more showed up just after dawn. Close to opening time there were more than 200 people waiting and more were arriving. It might have been my imagination, but as we stepped through the crowd I thought I heard some piano music coming from inside the building. Also, I caught a whiff of food cooking. Were these people waiting for Best Buy to open its doors, premiering the latest fad in electronic gadgets? Could they be...

Last fall we traveled throughout France, enjoying the beauty of her countryside, her idyllic villages and pastoral hamlets, her historic castles and abbeys, and the glitz of places like Cannes, Nice and St. Tropez. I could tell you all about it, but I am sure you’ve heard it all before. Instead, on this Memorial Day weekend, permit me to write a few words about a sight that brought home to me the ultimate sacrifice rendered by our troops during World War II. On the side of a narrow country road...

As an Aggie, as a Texas resident, and as someone who disapproves of Gov. Rick Perry’s views and policies, of course my attention was immediately drawn to an editorial in the (Bryan-College Station) Eagle with the title: “Gov. Perry is doing irreparable harm to A&M” While my alma mater has had its ups-and-downs when it comes to football (two unforgettable “ups” occurring during my attendance there when the Aggies, as South West Conference champions went on to beat Alabama in the Cotton...

As we approach Memorial Day 2011, we will be remembering and honoring all our fallen warriors, with those who have died in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars fresh on our minds. But we will be equally remembering our fallen military from every other war and, also, veterans from the “old wars” who are still with us. Especially those from World War II who are passing away at a rate of 1,000 every day! “Operation Resolve” is a campaign to have as many as possible of these living World War II veterans...

Osama bin Laden’s burial at sea by the crew of the San Diego-based aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, on deployment in the North Arabian Sea, drew a lot of attention and plenty of press. The burial evoked criticism, controversy and raised many questions as to the motives of the U.S. government, ranging from whether it was appropriate and legal to whether such violated religious and social traditions and customs. While the debate over these issues will continue for the foreseeable future, there is...