This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Author: Hondo

  • Three More Come Home

    During October, DPMO announced the identification of one US MIA from World War II, one US MIA from the Korean War, and one US MIA from Southeast Asia. Regrettably, I missed these announcements at the time they occurred.

    • Capt Richard W. Vincent, D Company, 2nd Battalion, 18th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, USMC, was lost 20 November 1943 on Tarawa. He was accounted for 21 October 2014.
    • PFC Anthony R. La Rossa, L Company, 3rd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, US Army, was lost 13 February 1951 in North Korea. He was accounted for Oct. 20, 2014.
    • Capt Richard L. Whitesides, 19th Tactical Air Support Squadron, 34th Tactical Group, 13th Air Force, USAF, was lost 26 March 1964 in Vietnam. He was accounted for 21 October 2014.

    All of these belatedly returned brothers-in-arms will be buried with full military honors. Information concerning the dates and locations of their interments is not readily available.

    Welcome home, my elder brothers-in-arms. Rest in peace.

    . . .

    Over 73,000 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,800 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; and over 1,600 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia (SEA). Comparison of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from recovered remains against mtDNA from a matrilineal descendant can assist in providing a positive ID for those recovered remains.

    Unfortunately, JPAC has recently reorganized their web site; they no longer seems to provide by-name lists of the MIAs for whom there is a need for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) samples to assist in possible identification of remains. So if you have a relative that is still MIA from World War II, Korea, or SEA – please consider reading this JPAC fact sheet to see if you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample.

    If you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample and have a relative from World War II, Korea, or SEA who is still MIA, please contact JPAC (there is an 866 number on the flier linked above) and see if they already have a mtDNA sample for your missing relative. If not, please arrange to submit a sample. By submitting a mtDNA sample, you may be able to help identify US remains that have been recovered and repatriated but not yet positively identified.

    Everybody deserves a proper burial. That’s especially true for those who gave their all while serving this nation.

  • Maybe It’s the French Who “Get It” These Days

    Many TAH readers have a low opinion of France. And in truth, the French have their faults.

    But in some respects, they seem to “get it” better than we do.

    First, they actually decided to do something meaningful about the recent Russian “adventure” in the eastern Ukraine. Specifically, they’ve suspended delivery of a warship they built for Russia . They’re also doing the same with a second ship under construction.

    And now, one of their politicians has recommended that the Devil’s Island prison near Guyana be reopened – and used to house French residents convicted of terrorism. He also said that it would be a good place for those who’ve fought for ISIS and/or al Qaeda.

    Makes sense to me, and the guy advocating this sounds like a smart man. I wonder if we could lease some space there – or work out a dual-use agreement?

  • “C’mon, Helga – From Now On, We Do It In the Dark!”

    Be glad you’re not in Germany, folks. Let’s just say that the Environmental minister has some, um, interesting ideas about how to “save the planet”. Oh, and in case you’re wondering: yeah, she’s a Socialist.

    The comments to the linked article make good reading.


    (Hat tip to Drudge for an indirect link to the source.)

  • Two More Are Home

    DPMO has announced the identification of two US MIAs from the Korean War.

     

    • PFC Paul L. Tingle, I Company, 3rd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, US Army, was lost 26 November 1950 in North Korea. He was accounted for Nov. 12, 2014. PFC Tingle will be buried with full military honors; funeral arrangements are not readily available.
    • 1LT Raymond O. Ball, E Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, USMC, was lost 27 November 1950 in North Korea. He was accounted for 13 November 2014. He will be buried with full military honors; funeral arrangements are not immediately available.

    Welcome home, my elder brothers-in-arms. Rest in peace.

    . . .

    Over 73,000 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,800 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; and over 1,600 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia (SEA). Comparison of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from recovered remains against mtDNA from a matrilineal descendant can assist in providing a positive ID for those recovered remains.

    Unfortunately, JPAC has recently reorganized their web site; they no longer seems to provide by-name lists of the MIAs for whom there is a need for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) samples to assist in possible identification of remains. So if you have a relative that is still MIA from World War II, Korea, or SEA – please consider reading this JPAC fact sheet to see if you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample.

    If you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample and have a relative from World War II, Korea, or SEA who is still MIA, please contact JPAC (there is an 866 number on the flier linked above) and see if they already have a mtDNA sample for your missing relative. If not, please arrange to submit a sample. By submitting a mtDNA sample, you may be able to help identify US remains that have been recovered and repatriated but not yet positively identified.

    Everybody deserves a proper burial. That’s especially true for those who gave their all while serving this nation.

  • Yeah, This IS Getting Interesting

    Remember that IRS scandal? You know, where the IRS was blatantly playing politics with nonprofit group applications for tax-exempt status – slow-rolling those from conservative groups, and fast-tracking those from liberal groups?

    Remember how that was supposed to be “IRS only”, with no involvement from the White House?

    Well, in response to a suit filed by Cause of Action (a government transparency watchdog group), the Treasury Department IG has apparently located a few relevant documents. Those documents apparently show that, “Yes, Viirginia – taxpayer info was sent to the White House by the IRS.”

    How many documents, you ask? Don’t worry; only a handful.

    Handful, as in around 2,500.

    This is in addition to the 30,000 “lost” emails to/from Lois Lerner, former head of the IRS Tax-Exempt Division and key player in the scandal, that have recently been discovered. Maybe now we’ll find out why she “pleaded the Fifth” when subpoenaed to testify before Congress.

    Stay tuned. This does seem to be getting quite interesting. It’s probably also getting quite uncomfortable for a number of folks in the current Administration, too. And that last . . . is a good thing. (smile)

    But I do have to wonder why all of this is coming to light right after the election this month – as opposed to before.

    Nah, I’m kidding. I don’t wonder much at all about the reason behind the timing.

  • Another SECDEF Candidate?

    Well, we seem to have a new candidate for SECDEF.  Reportedly the current secretary of DHS, Jeh Johnson, is now on the POTUS’s “short list” for appointment to that position.

    Yeah, that Jeh Johnson – the same Jeh Johnson who seems to have a problem being particularly truthful when speaking to the press.  And who assured everyone months ago that DHS could “stem the tide” of illegal immigration.  And as General Counsel for DoD, who gave the SECDEF some truly “head-scratching” advice?
    Yeah, that Jeh Johnson.

    Sounds like he’ll “fit right in” in the new job, doesn’t he?  Well, at least in this Administration he will.

    Then again, since he’s already a longtime      DC clown krewe member      Administration insider, that’s kinda a foregone conclusion.

  • A Modern Thanksgiving Tradition – of Sorts

    Because of the date of the original incident, this song has become a minor Thanksgiving tradition on many modern radio stations. This should also bring back a few memories for our Vietnam-era readers; hopefully, at this point, the passage of time has made them reasonably mellow ones. Enjoy.


     

    For what it’s worth: the song actually is based – loosely – on a real event. Alice was a real person (Alice Brock); Alice had indeed purchased an old church (Trinity Church) and lived in same with her husband Ray as depicted in the song.

    Arlo Guthrie and a friend, Richard Robbins, really were arrested for illegal littering in Stockbridge, MA, on Thanksgiving Day, 1965 – after they hauled off some of the Brocks’ garbage, found all local dumps closed, and illegally dumped the trash elsewhere. The arresting officer actually did look through the garbage to find a clue (the Brock’s address on an envelope), leading to Guthrie’s and Robbins’ arrest.

    The judge that later heard the case actually was blind, and the arresting officer was named William J. “Obie” Obanhein – sometimes referred to as, yes, “Officer Obie”. (The judge’s use of a seeing-eye dog, the famous “twenty-seven 8 by 10 color glossy photos”, and much of the rest of the song’s purported dialog and/or events may well be satirical exaggeration on Guthrie’s part). They pleaded guilty to littering and creating a public nuisance and were indeed fined $25 each – or $50 total.

    Guthrie was later called for the draft (some accounts say he tried to voluntarily enlist).  Whether his attempted entry into the military was voluntary or not, he was indeed disqualified for military service based on his criminal record (his guilty plea to the crimes of littering and creating a public nuisance and resulting in the payment of a $25 fine).

    Though the song was at the time considered anti-war and adopted by the antiwar movement, Guthrie has long said the song was not written as an antiwar song. Rather, he says he wrote it more as an “anti-stupidity” song.

    I have to say he has at least a partial point.  Disqualifying someone for military service because of a guilty plea to the crime of littering at a time of manpower demand so extreme it led to Project 100,000 (AKA MacNamara’s “Moron Corps”) does seem to fail the “WTF?” test.  Then again, all of us who’ve served already know that the Five-Sided Asylum often seems to regard common sense as a disqualifying trait for, well, pretty much anything.  (smile)

    Happy Thanksgiving, all. And remember:

    You can get anything you want, at Alice’s Restaurant
    (Excepting Alice)
    You can get anything you want, at Alice’s Restaurant
    Walk right in it’s around the back
    Just a half a mile from the railroad track
    You can get anything you want, at Alice’s Restaurant

  • About Those “9,800” US Troops Staying in Afghanistan Next Year . . . .

    Jonn wrote earlier today about US troops remaining in Afghanistan after the end of this year. Specifically, the word was we’re leaving “nearly 10,000” troops (9,800, specifically) there after the end of this year – 8,000 to support the NATO mission, with the rest dedicated to antiterrorism and/or other actions.

    But it turns out that figure the POTUS and Pentagon keep throwing out there is a bit . . . . misleading. So I thought I’d help clarify.

    The figure of 9,800 remaining in Afghanistan is consistent with what the POTUS claimed in May. Then, the claim was that we’d draw down below 10,000 troops by the end of this year; by another 50% (to less than 5,000) by the end of 2015; and to just those troops necessary for embassy security by the end of 2016.

    And that would be all well and good. Except . . . I checked some recent news stories about the subject.

    Guess what? My trouser leg is wet – yet again. And once again, it ain’t rain.

    Seems as if some of our NATO allies have recently indicated there will be a delay in fulfilling their commitments to the Afghan mission. That delay will leave a gap in the short-term – in early 2015, to be precise.

    Wanna guess who’s going to step in and fill that gap – to the tune of up to another 1,000 troops beyond those 9,800 originally planned? Naw, don’t bother to guess. Just read this link from Reuters carefully.

    The Pentagon is calling this “a ‘bridging solution’ until other nations fulfil their pledges later in the year or the troops are no longer needed”. But don’t worry. While the Pentagon acknowledged holding discussions with NATO partners, spokesman RADM John Kirby stated, “As we stand here today, there is no change in the 9,800 force level.”

    Look, we who’ve been in the military understand reacting to changes. And we understand that “the enemy has a vote”, and their actions can change our plans. The same is true of our allies.

    But GMAFB, Admiral. We weren’t supposed to send combat troops to Vietnam either, – just a few “advisers”. You’d think the Pentagon would have learned from Vietnam that misleading the US public about how many troops we’re sending to a foreign war is a “seriously bad idea”. So how about you just tell us the truth about what’s going on here, OK?

    Sheesh. This clueless DC clown krewe current Administration doesn’t appear to know its butt from a hole in the ground when it comes to national security and international relations. January 2017 can’t get here fast enough.