For those of you familiar with milblogger American Soldier, this should be of particular interest:

Dear Soldier's Angels:

Thank you for all the wonderful work that you do. LBF Books will be releasing Soldier Life: A Day in the Life of an American Soldier, authored by American Soldier and his widely read blog http://www.soldierlife.com/

To show his appreciation, American Soldier along with LBF Books will be donating a portion of the proceeds to your organization.

Below you will find our press release.

Thank you for your hard work

Sincerely,
Jacqueline Druga-Marchetti
Editor in Chief
LBF BOOKS


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: LeeAnn Lessard, LBF Books, Public Relations
Pittsburgh, PA
www.lbfbooks.com

SOLDIER LIFE: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN AMERICAN SOLDIER
New Book Detailing the Everyday Life of an American Soldier’s Experience with The War on Terror from LBF Books


PITTSBURGH, PA, Aug. 18 - LBF Books to publish Soldier Life: A Day in the Life of an American Soldier (ISBN 1-885093-44-6). The book details the author’s experiences while deployed and back home, weaving a gut-wrenching, heartfelt tapestry of experiences and emotions unique to soldiers’ living and dying in this war. American Soldier's work comprised of elements drawn from his critically acclaimed and widely read weblog (http://www.soldierlife.com/), aims to bring the grim, yet human face of war to readers everywhere.

The author, writing under a pseudonym to protect his identity, delivers a first-person account of the constantly changing world of an American Soldier attempting to balance both family and responsibility while enduring the reality of war. Soldier Life: A Day in the Life of an American Soldier chronicles the events engulfing modern day patriots, and the hardships he willingly endured to ensure safety and security of family and country left behind.

Soldier Life: A Day in the Life of an American Soldier is required reading for those looking for an intimate insight into the minds of fathers, husbands, and warriors serving in this war.

LBF Books plans to release Soldier Life: A Day in the Life of an American Soldier in December, 2005.

American Soldier & LBF Books will be donating a large portion of the proceeds to Soldiers Angels (www.soldiersangels.org) and Operation Troop Appreciation (www.operationtroopappreciation.org). Both organizations are federally recognized programs that assist Troops abroad with care packages and items needed while deployed.


To LBF, and A.S. - Thank you, thank you, thank you.

UPDATE: Make sure to head on over to American Soldier to thank him - and to get the details on how to reserve your copy!

I can't say enough about Soldiers' Angels, and all the wonderful things that organization does for our troops, both when deployed and here at home. I've been involved for a little over a year now, and it's been the best thing I've ever done with my time, effort, and money.

Soldiers' Angels has a number of special projects in need of help right now:

Project Valour-IT: See the post about Valour-IT here, and Valour-IT's weblog here. A cooperative effort with Soldiers' Angels and the blogging community, Valour-IT looks to connect wounded heroes with laptops and voice-activated software. Inspired by milblogger Chuck Ziegenfuss, this project is a huge undertaking, and is in need of support. If you haven't donated, please consider doing so - and if you're a blogger, please consider post to help get the word out. Volunteers are also needed to assist with project operations.

Thanks to all who have donated funds to assist with this effort.

Armor-Up: provides Kevlar blankets to our heroes in the field. With each blanket costing nearly $1,000, funds are always in need. Help provide our heroes with much needed protection.

Healing Heroes: This program works to address the needs of our wounded heroes. One of the projects the program is currently working on involves helping to make sure Sgt. Joey Bozik and his wife Jamie have the honeymoon they deserve. Sgt. Bozik has had many surgeries, with more coming, and they were unable to have a honeymoon when they got married last year. Learn more here.

Soles for Souls: The creation of deployed hero Sgt. Gilbert Zepeda, Soles for Souls looks to provide much-needed shoes to Iraqi children. Proving that our heroes go beyond the call of duty on a daily basis to improve the lives of Iraqis, Soles for Souls is always in need of shoes to distribute. For more details, click here.

Soldiers Angels also has a number of other wonderful projects - Operation Top Knot, Blankets of Hope, the Wounded Project, Operation Outreach, Saving Soles, and of course direct support for our heroes through their Adopt-A-Soldier program. To learn how you can help, go to http://www.soldiersangels.org. You can also feel free to email me if you have any questions.



JackArmy also has the scoop on a group looking to send some holiday cheer overseas:
www.stockingsfortroops.com

Staff Sgt. Logan Griffith, from 2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, and his Iraqi interpreter, from the Hilla SWAT team, search a home in Diyara, Iraq, for insurgents and weapons. Photo by Lance Cpl. Nicholas Lapinski.

565 - St. Columba reports seeing a monster in Loch Ness.
1454 - Jews are expelled from Brunn Moravia on the order of King Ladislaus.
1485 - Richard III, last of the Plantagenet kings, is slain at Bosworth Field.
1775 - King George III proclaims the American colonies to be in open rebellion.
1791 - The Haitian Revolution begins.
1846 - The U.S. annexes New Mexico.
1864 - Twelve nations sign the Geneva Convention.
1902 - President Teddy Roosevelt becomes the first U.S. chief executive to ride in a car.
1910 - Japan annexes Korea.
1911 - The "Mona Lisa" is stolen from the Louvre.
1963 - NASA civilian test pilot Joe Walker reaches an altitude of 67 miles (106 km) in the X-15.
1969 - Hurricane Camille strikes the U.S. Gulf Coast, killing over 250.
1982 - General Ariel Sharon urges the Palestinians to discuss a peaceful coexistence with Israel.
1989 - The first complete ring around Neptune is discovered.
1990 - President George H.W. Bush calls up military reservists.

Birthdays
1836 - Archibald M Willard US, artist (Spirit of '76)
1862 - Claude Debussy St Germain-en-Laye, composer (La Mer, Clair de lune)
1904 - Deng Xiaoping Chinese leader (1976-1983)
1917 - John Lee Hooker Mississippi, blues musician (Canned Heat)
1920 - Dr Denton Cooley heart surgeon (1st artifical heart transplant); Ray Bradbury, science-fiction author ("Fahrenheit 451")
1932 - Gerald P. Carr, Colonel USMC/astronaut (Skylab 4)
1934 - Norman Schwartzkopf, U.S. General (Desert Storm)

Passings
1818 - Warren Hastings, first governor-general of India (1773-84)
1922 - Michael Collins, Sinn Fein leader, killed by rebels
1978 - Jomo Kenyatta, president of Kenya

Reported Missing in Action
1967
Kerr, John C., USAF (FL); A26A disappeared during mission over Laos (pilot) ; Killed, body not recovered

Morgan, Burke H., USAF (CO); A26A disappeared during mission over Laos (navigator) ; Killed, body not recovered

1968
Acosta-Rosario, Humberto, US Army (P.R.); separated from his unit when they withdrew under heavy attack

1972
Crockett, William J., USAF (NM); F4E shot down (w/Tigner), KIA, body not recovered

Tigner, Lee M., USAF (Washington, D.C.); F4E shot down (w/Tigner), KIA, body not recovered

SIGHTING— U.S. Army Pfc. Keith Carter, Heavy Duty Engineer Operator, 501st Military Intelligence Battalion, looks threw his scope, August 17, 2005. His unit took part in Alaska Shield/ Northern Edge 2005, the largest homeland defense/homeland security exercise ever conducted in Alaska. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Anthony Nelson Jr

News of Note
Gaza Withdrawal
End of an Era
Israel evacuating last Gaza settlement
Video: Withdrawal Nears Completion
Stories: Officials Fear West Bank Fight
Israeli army, settlers fighting media war
Palestinians have hopes for Gaza airport
Israeli officials fear fight with settlers

Operation Iraqi Freedom
'Major Breakthroughs'
Iraq constitution talks go on
Bush to Speak on Iraq
Fast Facts: Iraqi Constitution Issues
Fast Facts: Top Cabinet Members
International flight lands in Basra
Iraq TV's 'Cops' Breaks New Ground

Operation Enduring Freedom
40 Taliban Killed in Battle
U.S. says 105 militants dead in recent Afghan action
Four U.S. Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan

Homeland Security / War on Terror
U.K.: Parliament Plot Foiled- Video: Gas Attack Thwarted?
Eric Rudolph to Be Sentenced for Atlanta Bombings
Egyptian police hunt Sinai for terrorists

Other News of Note
Navy to probe ambassador cousin's death

Fox News
Huge Stem-Cell Breakthrough
U.S., S. Korea War Games
49er's Death Still Unsolved
Ex-NFL Player Arrested
Autopsy Finds Cypriot Crash Victims All Died on Impact
Lance Armstrong Lobbies Bush on Cancer Research
Hagel: Iraq Destabilizing Mideast
Saddam: My Soul to Be 'Sacrificed'
Army Ready For Iraq Long Haul
Video
Monday Deadline
Four More Years for GIs?

Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Iraq leaders negotiate over constitution
Electricity cut halts Iraq oil exports
Muslim Brotherhood urges Egyptians to vote
Iran's leader raps Europeans over nuke talks

Reuters
CNPC to buy PetroKazakhstan for $4.2 bln
Bush to face protests as he defends Iraq policy
U.S., S.Korea hold military drills ahead of nuclear talks
Pakistan says arrests 10 militants in tribal belt
Folk legend Baez joins protesters near Bush ranch
Republican senator likens Iraq war to Vietnam
Abbas says aims to promote peace culture
U.S. base panel seen refusing some Pentagon closings

Yahoo! News - War in Iraq
Deadlock, doubts as Iraq ticks down to deadline
Bush to Visit Veterans in Salt Lake City
Kurds Fault U.S. on Iraqi Charter
Sufis Under Attack as Sunni Rifts Widen

Department of Defense
President Thanks Veterans for Sacrifices — Story
Coalition Officials in Iraq Report on Successes — Story
Iraqi Forces Assume More Security Missions

ON THE GROUND
Vintage World War II Footlocker Serves in Iraq — Story

FACE OF DEFENSE
Sergeant Major Volunteers for Iraq — Story

AMERICA SUPPORTS YOU
Scholarship Helps Sergeant — Story
Man's Mission Supports Troops

TOP NEWS
IN IRAQ
Iraq Security Forces Make Strides
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps
Iraq Daily Update
Multinational Force Iraq
Iraq Progress Fact Sheet (pdf)
Weekly Progress Report (pdf)

IN AFGHANISTAN
U.S. Details Afghan Election Effort
Afghanistan Daily Update
Maps
Afghan Reconstruction Group Recruiting

WAR ON TERRORISM
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

MILITARY NEWS
Chairman, USO Visit South Korea
National Guard, Reserve Update

Weather
Iraq
Al Azamiyah Al Basrah Al Hillah Al Karkh Al Kazimiyah Al Kut An Nasiriyah Baghdad Baqubah Mosul Najaf Nineveh Tall Kayf

Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar

Gitmo

***Today in History to be posted later***

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - August 21, 2005

Free Republic Joins
“You Don’t Speak for Me, Cindy” tour

(SACRAMENTO) – The national organization that supports our troops and the war against terrorism, Move America Forward (website: http://www.moveamericaforward.org/), is pleased to announce that the powerhouse organization, Free Republic (website: http://www.freerepublic.com/) is joining the “You Don’t Speak for Me, Cindy” Tour.

Move America Forward will lead a caravan of military family members opposed to the anti-military antics of Cindy Sheehan (the anti-war activist) to Crawford, Texas. The caravan will depart for Crawford early next week from different locations around the country. Leading the caravan will be Deborah Johns of Northern California Marine Moms. Ms. Johns’ son, William, has served 2 tours of duty in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The caravan route and itinerary can be found online at http://www.moveamericaforward.org/

The main group will depart from San Francisco Monday morning, launched by Move America Forward’s Chairman, Melanie Morgan, from her radio show on KSFO Radio. The trip will culminate in a rally in Crawford on Saturday, August 27, 2005 to support our troops AND their mission in Iraq.

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Jim Robinson, Founder and President of FreeRepublic.com issued the following statement about the group’s participation in the “You Don’t Speak for Me, Cindy” Tour:

"Free Republic is proud to support the "You Don't Speak for Me, Cindy" Tour and we are excited about joining the caravan to Crawford, Texas. Our local Free Republic chapters have held thousands of "Support our Troops" rallies in hundreds of cities all across the nation in these last four years since we were attacked on 9/11.

Our troops are fighting for our freedom and our very right to exist and deserve all the support we can possibly give them. God bless them one and all." "I urge all who can join the caravan to do so and those who can't go all the way to Crawford to join us at the rally points along the caravan route and perhaps to ride along with us for part of the way." "See y'all in Texas!"

To find out more, go to http://www.moveamericaforward.org