Another Attack on Recruiters

According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, a few hundred protesters gathered near the University of Minnesota to protest the war in Iraq. Apparently it started rather peacefully (don't they all), but after vandalizing a recruiting station with red paint one protester was arrested and several were cited for disorderly conduct.

As a graduate of the University of Minnesota, the Humble Patriot knows there have been a lot of anti-war protests on/around the University of Minnesota dating back to the 1960s. Yesterday's vandalism was relatively minor compared to the one in 1972 when hippies ripped fences out of the ground and threw rocks and firebombs.

US Air Force Revamps Basic Training

Last year the USAF leadership finally decided it was time to modify the Air Force Basic Military Training that every enlisted person receives when they enter the Air Force. Less emphasis is placed on folding underwear and making beds; considerably more emphasis is placed on weapons training and field skills. Read about the Scorpions Nest and Warrior Week at DefenseLink.mil.

New White House Press Secretary

Fox News confirms that an announcement will be made this morning (Wednesday) that Tony Snow will be the next White House Press Secretary. This photo was made by David Lunde for Michelle Malkin.

CIA Leaker:

The Traitorous Mary McCarthy

We finally found out who was leaking our war plan info to Sy Hersh: veteran CIA officer Mary McCarthy. This is a complicated story, so I'm going to refer you to Michelle Malkin's Hotair.com. There is a comprehensive primer on the subject here.

Prince Harry Determined to See Action

Prince Henry of Wales, third in the line of succession to the British throne, apparently told top brass that if he is not allowed to join his unit in a war zone he will turn in his uniform. Harry is a second lieutenant in the Blues and Royals, and has been trained as a reconnaissance troop commander. The Blues and Royals are likely to deploy to Iraq in May 2007 to patrol the governorate of Mayson on the Iran-Iraq border.

Link to story at News.com.au

Lt Richard Palmer

Lt Palmer was serving with the Scots Dragoon Guard in the Basra area of Iraq when a lethal roadside bomb attack ended his promising military career at age 27. Read about it in the Scotsman. The Humble Patriot salutes this heroic soldier, and all others who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom.

Why the Attacks Against Rumsfeld?

"So when did Generals cease to be responsible for outcomes in war?" asks an editorial in today's Wall Street Journal. In the last several days a few retired flag officers have called for the retirement of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. In the opinion of the Humble Patriot, sacking the Secretary of Defense in the middle of a military conflict is at best bad form. At worst it could damage the credibility of our Defense Department just when we need it the most, when these Iranian crazies are doing some serious saber rattling. As I mentioned in my Last Helicopter article on March 29th, Hassan Abbasi (the "Dr. Kissinger of Islam") is convinced that Americans have no stomach for a protracted military engagement. Clearly, some Americans (Cindy Sheehan?) have no stomach for any military engagement that involves killing an enemy. I'm glad to see that President Bush publicly announced his continued confidence in Secretary Rumsfeld.

Fran O'Brien's

A restaurant with the name Fran O’Brien’s Stadium Steakhouse has been a popular hangout for decades, serving fine food and drinks to the Capital Hill crowd. What the Humble Patriot really likes about O'Briens, however, is their support for U.S. troops. For a few years Hal Koster, co-owner/manager of the restaurant and Vietnam vet, has been serving steak dinners every Friday evening to severely wounded troops who are convalescing at nearby Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Here is a Stars and Stripes article about it. Unfortunately, O'Brien's is located in the basement of the Capital Hilton hotel and the Hilton management has chosen not to renew their lease. There is speculation that the Hilton was unhappy about the "spectacle" each Friday of hundreds of severely disabled soldiers coming into the building. Regardless of the reason, O'Briens is closing its doors later this month. The O'Brien's owners are looking for a suitable location to move the restaurant, but for now their future is uncertain.

This situation has received a lot of attention, primarily from the blog community. I saw it first at Michelle Malkin's website. Andi's World and Blackfive are both known as "milbloggers" because of their interest and support of the U.S. Military, and both have taken up this issue.

I hope O'Brien's finds a new location for their restaurant, and that they can continue helping our troops heal both body and spirit.

Justifiable Disclosure

David Limbaugh is great at getting to the heart of a matter, no matter how complex. It's easy for the left to spin really complex issues, because the average person does not understand them in the first place. The recent charge from the left that President Bush "leaked" classified information is ridiculous. Read Mr. Limbaugh's column on Townhall.com.

Nuclear Attack on Iran?

The latest from Drudge is that someone in the Pentagon leaked to Sy Hersh our war plans to attack Iran's budding nuclear capability using nuclear weapons. Hersh became famous as an investigative journalist who broke the story on the 1969 My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War.

So how would the U.S. strike deal a death blow to Ahmedinejad's nuclear weapons program? Part of the alleged plan would be to attack Iran's main centrifuge plant at Natanz, 200 miles south of Teheran. U.S. Strategic Command would likely employ a USAF B-2 bomber armed with the B61 mod 11. The B61-11 can penetrate the earth several meters before it detonates its thermonuclear payload. The yield of the B61-11 physics package is classified, but some suggest it is the same as the maximum yield of the B61 mod 7, which is 370 kilotons.

Here are some links:
Story in Britain's Telegraph
Info on B61 nuclear bomb from Wikipedia
Fact sheet on B-2 Spirit from af.mil
U.S. Strategic Command