military

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Obama Talks to Gates About Staying at Pentagon

Defense Secretary fulfill talk of bipartisan cabinet

(Newser) - Barack Obama and Robert Gates are negotiating policy issues with a view toward Gates remaining Defense secretary, the Financial Times reports, a move that would make the Bush appointee a key member of a bipartisan cabinet that resembles Abraham Lincoln's “team of rivals.” Gates, a former CIA chief,...

Silver Screen's Ray Guns Become Battlefield Reality

Ground troops testing laser weapons, tagged for missile-defense systems, too

(Newser) - Ray guns aren't just for Flash Gordon anymore, the Economist reports. The US military and defense contractors are experimenting with “directed energy” weapons systems on the battlefield and in labs, most of which help troops zap unexploded bombs and incoming fire. One model, the Zeus, is designed to more...

Mac Advisers Fear Powell Will Endorse Obama Sunday

National-security heavyweight's camp mum on surprise Meet the Press appearance

(Newser) - Colin Powell could endorse Barack Obama when he appears on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Republican sources tell Politico. No one is exactly sure what Powell will say, but McCain advisers seem convinced that the retired general will throw his considerable national-security heft behind Democrat.

McCain Ranks High With Military: Poll

Nearly 70% of career service members say he's their man in November

(Newser) - Career members of the military are nearly three times as likely to vote for John McCain for president in November as Barack Obama, reports the Military Times. In a survey of 4,300 subscribers of the Army Times, Navy Times, Marine Corps Times, and Air Force Times—mostly older and...

Missile Strikes Are Learning Tool: CIA

Chief says agency 'tickles' terrorist enemy to gauge reaction

(Newser) - The CIA purposely uses missile strikes to "tickle" enemy groups, often by targeting a single person, to learn from their responses, agency chief Michael Hayden said today. Hayden also told a gathering of Air Force members the CIA has "picked up insights" from working alongside the military, the...

Bush Pulled Rank on Military Over Surge

Joint Chiefs were pushed aside, new Woodward book says

(Newser) - In the months leading up to the Iraq surge, President Bush faced a revolt by frustrated Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Washington Post’s Bob Woodward writes in a new book, The War Within. Bush dumped the military leaders’ advice as Iraq spun out of control in fall of 2006,...

Storms Test New FEMA System
 Storms Test New FEMA System 
Sep 8, 2008 10:04 AM CDT

Storms Test New FEMA System

'Dynamic' approach distributes response burden

(Newser) - With three big storms hitting the US within about a week, FEMA is attempting to stay a step ahead, planning emergency response strategies and deploying supplies. The agency's new "dynamic regrouping" plan represents a real-time collaboration between military, civilian, and volunteer personnel, the Christian Science Monitor reports. "The...

Georgia Pushing to Rebuild Shattered Army Even Bigger

Nation hopes for US help in building modern military to face Russia threat

(Newser) - The dust has barely settled from the catastrophic clash with Russia but Georgia's leaders are already keen to start rebuilding the country's pulverized army, the New York Times reports. Ambitious plans are being made to remake the military bigger and better than before—with plenty of US help. But Western...

Mexican Drug Wars Spread to Touristy Yucatan

(Newser) - As drug violence soars in Mexico, casualties are spreading to the Yucatan peninsula, a major tourist destination and spring break hot spot. Twelve decapitated bodies were found near the popular ruins of Chichen Itza this week, the Los Angeles Times reports. That's because a government crackdown has heightened “a...

Scientists Closer to Invisibility Cloak

New material geared towards military, medical uses

(Newser) - Soon Harry Potter may not be the only one wearing an invisibility cloak. Researchers today announced a new material that bends light away from objects, causing "negative refraction" and "cloaking." The technology, which adds to earlier research veiling two-dimensional objects, will likely conceal military devices and improve...

US Surge Brigades Leave Iraq
 US Surge Brigades Leave Iraq 
Jul 22, 2008 10:47 AM CDT

US Surge Brigades Leave Iraq

147K troops now in country, down from about 170K at height of effort

(Newser) - The American troop surge in Iraq has ended, Reuters reports, with the departure of the last of five brigades deployed last year in an effort to curb sectarian violence. There are now just under 147,000 US troops left in the country, according to a military spokesman, down from a...

Army Pig-Shoot Angers Animal Rights Activists

Porkers shot and revived for medical training

(Newser) - The Army is butting heads with animal rights activists over a planned drill that involves shooting live pigs. As practice for battlefield medical care, soldiers will fire at the pigs, then rush to save them. "It's to teach Army personnel how to manage critically injured patients within the first...

Army Waivers Linked to Suspect Soldiers

Criminals allowed to fight in US wars likely to continue troubles

(Newser) - Dozens of US criminals who were granted Army waivers to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan have been linked to in-service problems, the Sacramento Bee reports. In a year-long study, the paper connected "suspect soldiers"—accused of beating prisoners, stealing weapons, and more—to troubles back home. Of 18...

Obama: I Must 'Earn the Trust' of US Military

Questions provisions for troops, use of civilian contractors

(Newser) - Because he hasn't served in the military, Barack Obama says, “I have to earn the trust of men and women in uniform.” In a wide-ranging interview with Military Times, the presumptive Democratic nominee vowed to raise pay and improve health care for service members, promised he would not...

Karzai Orders Inquiry Into Fatal US Airstrike

Military, Afghans spar over whether 15 victims were Taliban, civilians

(Newser) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai today ordered an investigation into a US-led airstrike on Friday that killed 15 people. At issue is whether the victims were armed Taliban, as the US military claims, or the innocent civilians that an Afghan governor believes died.

Top Engineers Shun Military
Top Engineers Shun Military
Jun 25, 2008 2:15 AM CDT

Top Engineers Shun Military

Costs soar as sought-after project managers head for private sector

(Newser) - Greater "geek cachet" and higher pay is diverting engineering managers from the military into places like Microsoft and Google, the New York Times reports. The result is a dearth of  managers overseeing military projects, which government investigators largely blame for long delays and $295 billion in cost overruns. The...

How to Transition Out of Iraq
 How to Transition Out of Iraq 
OPINION
Jun 19, 2008 1:37 PM CDT

How to Transition Out of Iraq

David Ignatius offers a strategy for scaling back in Iraq

(Newser) - It's time for the US to carve out a practical strategy in Iraq, David Ignatius argues in the Washington Post. At a cost of $400 million a day, the war is draining America's economy—precisely what Osama bin Laden hoped for. The solution will not be quick, simple, or easy,...

Robot Drones Have 'Changed War' in Iraq, Afghanistan

Unmanned vehicles help troops target trouble spots, keep casualties down

(Newser) - At the outset of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were little more than nifty, if sometimes helpful toys. They’ve since cemented a key role in US operations, Newsweek reports. Now hundreds of drones, some as small as model airplanes, keep an unblinking eye on militant...

May Iraq Death Toll Lowest in 4 Years

(Newser) - The death toll in Iraq plunged in May, with 21 US military dead the lowest monthly figure in more than 4 years. Iraqi civilians and troopers also saw a decline, with 532 deaths in May, compared with 1,080 the month before. But in the absence of lasting political agreements,...

Stress Disorder Surges Among US Troops

Number of diagnosed cases rises 46% to 14,000 last year

(Newser) - Post-traumatic stress disorder is surging among US troops sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. New cases rose by more than 46% to nearly 14,000 in 2007, reports Reuters. In the last five years, about 40,000 cases have been diagnosed, most of them in the Army.

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