Persian Gulf (Feb. 26, 2006) - A pilot assigned to the “Fighting Redcocks” of Strike Fighter Squadron Two Two (VFA-22) is directed into launch position on the flight deck aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). Reagan and embarked Carrier Air Wing One Four (CVW-14) are currently on her maiden deployment conducting Maritime Security Operations (MSO) in the region and participating in the global war on terrorism. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate Airman Kathleen Gorby

Over at the Thunder Run is a post you need to see:

When I read articles about men like Sgt Mike Stokely and pass them on to others so they can know not only the truth but also the caliber of men and women in uniform these days, I often get the reply, “where do they make men like this anymore?” Well I’ll tell you it comes from being raised by men like Gold Star Father - Robert Stokely.Since my post about Cindy Sheehan’s planned trip to Landstuhl and my reference to Mike in a subsequent post, Mr. Stokely and I have been conversing about Mike and how he would feel about this entire fuss about him, taking place. Mr. Stokely stated, “Thanks again for honoring my son with your kind words - No doubt Mike would be overwhelmed by those who speak so highly of him - probably say ‘what's the big deal?’” What Mike might think of being no big deal is a big deal, for Mike and men and women like him embody the soul of what it is to be an American Soldier.

Read the rest over at The Thunder Run

It's pretty said that parents like Cindy Sheehan get all the coverage, when there are men like this.

Snipers keep eye on Operation Industrial Revolution
Lance Cpl. Christopher J. Zahn1st Marine DivisionCpl. Justin V. Novi summed up the mission with a simple statement. “It’s a huge building to clear.” Novi’s small team of Marines was just one part of Operation Industrial Revolution, a sweep performed by Marines from 2nd Battalion, 6th Marin ... Full Story

Thanks to all of you who are sending items for my adopted Airman’s program to help the children of Afghanistan and their families - Wings of Hope.

Here is an update on where things stand:

We now have a blog, located here: Wings of Hope
Phil and I will be posting updates there on how the program is going.

There is a page up at the Soldiers’ Angels site, with information on where to send your items, and how to donate funds.

Please also pass along the information on the program to your friends, families, etc. - anyone you think might be willing to help.

Programs like this are so important - in addition to just improving the lives of the people our Heroes come in contact with, they also help our Heroes with their work. The more the local people understand that our troops are there to help, the easier it is for them to do their jobs.

Thank you for continuing to help us with Wings of Hope!

Airmen with the 447th Civil Engineer Squadron's explosive ordnance disposal team explore a munitions bunker in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Feb. 20, 2006. The bunker was discovered after a previous detonation scorched the earth, revealing the entrance to a larger weapons cache. (U.S. Navy photo/Petty Officer 2nd Class Samuel Peterson) Download Full Image

by Staff Sgt. Joselito Aribuabo
March 1, 2006
Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 294th Infantry Regiment, Guam Army National Guard, fire a howitzer during an exercise in southern Leyte, Philippines.

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
An Eye for an Eye
Official: Islamic Army Holding Journo
Video: Violence Continues in Iraq
Car bombs in Baghdad, Saddam back in court
Official: Carroll Captors Freed 2 in 2004
Warnings of growing insurgency given in '03 — and ignored
Attacks, death toll climb as curfew's effects fade
Poll says troops back '06 withdrawal
US advisers warn threat of civil war mounting in Iraq
Prosecutors say documents link Hussein to mass execution
76 are killed, 179 wounded as violence spreads in Iraq

Operation Enduring Freedom
Surprise Visit
Bush lands in Afghanistan
Afghan Prison Rioters Threaten American's Life
Photos: Afghan Prison Riot
Bush Confident Bin Laden Will Be Captured
Fighting Resumes at Afghan Prison; 1 Dead
Outlook worsens in Afghanistan

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Pakistani Forces Kill, Wound at Least 25 Militants
Pa. Apartment Fire Kills Five
Patriot Act Vote Looms
Europe rights body urges new laws to control spies
Photos: Attack Attempted on Saudi Oil Facility
Leader of al-Qaida in Saudi Arabia Killed
Islamic Jihad Leader Said Killed in Attack

Welcome Home!!
At homecoming, a gift elicits wonder
Fairchild Airmen Return After Iraq Convoy Duty

Other Military News
1-in-10 US Iraq veterans have stress disorder: study
Hangar fire hurts 12 Guardsmen
Black WWII airmen to get Congressional Gold Medal
Gettysburg listed as endangered battlefield

Dubai Port Proposal
Bush Stands by UAE Port Deal
Congress eases demand for vote on port deal

Worldwide Wackos
Egypt's Mubarak says warns US against hitting Iran
Russia, Iran make new bid to break nuclear impasse - Video
Iran to Be Flexible in Russia Nuke Talks

Politics
Anti-Bush protests hit India ahead of landmark visit
EU lifts public procurement sanctions on US
Senate panel approves of more disclosure on travel, earmarks
Bush rock bottom in approval poll (A CBS poll with a majority of liberal respondents - what a surprise)

Supreme Court
Anna Nicole Smith Gets Day in Supreme Court
High Court Justices Wary of Campaign Finance Law- Abortion Protests Upheld

Mardi Gras
Fat Tuesday in Lean Times - Video
Partiers Ring In Fat Tuesday as Mardi Gras Ends
Photo Essay: Fat Tuesday Video: Law and Order
Reporter's Notebook: Fat Tuesday in Lean Times
New Orleans revelry closes post-Katrina Mardi Gras
Mending a broken heart in Big Easy

Oddities
'Brokeback' named Hollywood word of the year
Brown Sugar off the menu in China
Snoozing bears delay power line work
Potent 184-proof whisky will take your breath away -- in 10 years

Other News of Note
U.S., India Discuss Nuclear Agreement
We know Simpsons better than our 1st Amendment
'This is pretty not normal for me'

Fox News
Olympics Ratings Plummet 37 Percent From 2002 Games
Quebec Priests Oppose Vatican on Gay Marriage
German Cat Gets Bird Flu
Transgendered New Yorker Arrested in Bathroom Flap
Stocks to Watch: Fluor Corp.
Second-Grader Passes Cocaine Around Classroom
Judge Rules Cubans in Bridge Flap Can Come Back to U.S.
Storms Threaten West Coast
FULL SPORTS COVERAGE

Reuters: Top News
Putin puts energy security at heart of G8 presidency
S.Korean grandmothers get a kick out of taekwondo
No free lunch, but healthy diet improves productivity
Stem cells fail to help heart attack damage: study
Police probe shooting at Kanye West concert
Tank arrival buoys hopes for May NASA shuttle launch
Bio-diesel car rental opens in world's car capital
Apple rolls out new iPod home stereo box, Mac mini
Online piracy crackdown nets three guilty pleas
Slower growth warning
Google investors bristle at lack of forecast
Nasdaq down 1% on Google, weak data
Global handset makers locked in merger dance
Chevron aims for 25 pct of Russian Shtokman project
GM eyes breakeven in Europe this year
Pfizer's Celebrex raises heart attack risk -study
Spain's Telefonica 2005 net beats forecasts
Vivendi rewards investors with higher dividend
AOL sues over identity thefts, uses new law
Synchronoss Technologies files for $75 mln IPO
Stocks seen higher after steep fall
Temenos shares plummet as chairman sells shares
ABB shares higher after asbestos hearing
Ireland's Elan shares fall on research report
BOC at highs on talk of imminent Linde bid: dealers
Thomson CEO open to takeover talks
Samsung SDI sees plasma price fall
Summit blog: Corning loves New York

AP World News
Report: 7 Held Hostage in Jordan Prison
Mexico City Officials Try to Close Hotel
Quebec Priests Oppose Vatican on Gay Issues
Putin: Russia Still Regrets 1956 Crackdown
Sudan Seeks to Keep U.N. Out of Darfur
Ugandan Opposition to Challenge Election
Chechnya's Prime Minister Steps Down
Hu Jintao Warns Taiwan on Independence
New Chinese Cardinal: Beijing Must Change
Photo Slideshows:
Papuan Protesters Demand U.S. Mine Closure
Dozens Killed in Bangladesh Factory Fire

The Seattle Times
Moving back, and up, in India
Women learn to cast off old India's bondage
Group says states lag on unintended pregnancy
Mr. McBeth is allowed to teach as a lady
Fearing a shortage, Russians hoard salt

Chicago Sun-Times
Appointee with ties to Farrakhan won't quit
An optimistic NASA will shoot for 3 shuttle flights
Cubans who landed on Fla. bridge win case, but is it too late?
Shuttle pilot's dad dies in visit to hear her speech
Silver dollar to show Louis Braille
Coke-drinking Belgians cross border for 30-cent deposits
Indian trip about trade as much as politics
Chinese president: Taiwanese leader taking a 'dangerous step'
New German chancellor soaring in polls after 100 days
London mayor keeps his job for now

Boston Globe: World
China creates own Net domains
Suspected rebel attack kills 55; 20 are injured
Chadians seeking refuge in Darfur
Anticrime squads stir fears in Guatemala
Flamingo deaths worry Bahamas

Military.com
National Guard Drained by Iraq
Air Force Wants $5.6 Billion More in '07

CENTCOM: News Releases
MORTAR ATTACK KILLS 9 IRAQIS, ESTIMATED 40 WOUNDED

TERRORIST ROCKET ATTACK KILLS 8 IRAQIS, WOUNDS 3

MND-B SOLDIERS DISCOVER, DETONATE ROADSIDE BOMB

Department of Defense
Bush: U.S., Italy Partners in Democracy - Story - Remarks
Strategy for Success in Iraq Is Working - Story
Terrorism Biggest Threat to Security - Story
Iran, North Korea, China Seen as Threats
Rumsfeld: Troops Serve as Role Models - Story
Defense Department to Join Ports Re-review - Story
Uncensored Gitmo Transcripts to Be Released - Story

ON THE GROUND
Bagram Airfield Celebrates Black History Month - Story
Baqubah General Hospital Upgrades Completed - Story
Ramstein Airmen Train Iraqis to Fly, Fix C-130s - Story

IN IRAQ
Joint Search of Farmland Yields Mortar Round - Photos
Iraq's Diyala Province Schools Get a Makeover

IN AFGHANISTAN
New Graduates Ready to Join Afghan Workforce
Team Brings Medical Care to Afghan Village

FACE OF DEFENSE
Marine Attains First for Career Field - Story

AMERICA SUPPORTS YOU
Former Soldier Helps Show Go On - Story
Marine Dad Offers Online Help - Story

TOP NEWS
IRAQ
2 U.S. Soldiers Killed
Terrorists Misjudge Iraqi Spirit
Bush: U.S. Must Pursue Democracy
ISF United Despite Violence
Iraqis Can Draw Hope From Tragedy
Diwaniyah: 32nd Police Station
Provinces Select Rebuilding Projects
Fact Sheet: Progress and Work Ahead
Report: Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Iraq Daily Update
This Week in Iraq (pdf)
Multinational Force Iraq
Eye on Iraq Update (pdf)
State Dept. Weekly Iraq Report (pdf)
'Boots on the Ground' Audio Archive
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps

AFGHANISTAN
Army Chief to Attend Symposium
Tripartite Commission Meets
Afghan Troop Wounded in Attack
Police, Coalition Respond to Attack
Afghanistan Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
U.S. to Review Port Ops Transaction
Bush, Governors Topic: Terror War
C-12s: Valuable Maritime Ops Asset
McHale Visits USNORTHCOM
USCG Defends Against Terror
Fact Sheet: Budget Request
Fact Sheet: War on Terror
Fact Sheet: Terror Plots Disrupted
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

MILITARY NEWS
Russia Lauds U.S. Officers for Help
Judge Blocks Personnel System
USS Emory S. Land Sailors Deploy
Gulf War Sacrifices Honored
Photos: Gulf War Ceremony
Bush: Vets Inspire Today’s Heroes
National Guard, Reserve Update

CASUALTIES
Officials Identify Casualties - Story

Today in History
0293 - Roman emperor Maximianus introduces tetrarchy
0492 - Felix III ends his reign as Catholic Pope; St. Gelasius I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
0705 - John VII begins his reign as Catholic Pope
0743 - Slave export by Christians to heathen areas prohibited
1260 - Hulagu Khan, grandson of Genghis, conquerors Damascus
1420 - Pope Martinus I calls for crusade against the hussieten
1562 - Blood bath at Vassy; General de Guise allows 1200 huguenots murder; Spanish occupier Estacio de Sá founds Rio de Janeiro
1587 - English parliament leader Peter Wentworth confined in London Tower
1591 - Pope Gregory XIV threatens to excommunicate French king Henri IV
1634 - Battle at Smolensk; Polish King Wladyslaw IV beats Russians
1642 - Georgeana (York) ME became the 1st incorporated American city
1780 - Pennsylvania becomes 1st US state to abolish slavery (for new-borns only)
1781 - Continental Congress adopts Articles of Confederation
1790 - 1st US census authorized
1792 - US Presidential Succession Act passed
1796 - 1st National Meeting in the Hague
1803 - Ohio becomes 17th state
1809 - Embargo Act of 1807 repealed & Non-Intercourse Act signed
1811 - Egyptian King Muhammad Ali Pasha oversees ceremonial murder of 500
1845 - President Tyler signs a resolution annexing the Republic of Texas
1847 - Michigan becomes 1st English-speaking jurisdiction to abolish the death penalty (except for treason against the state)
1854 - SS City of Glasgow leaves Liverpool harbor & is never seen again
1864 - Louis Ducos du Hauron patents movie machine (never built)
1866 - Paraguayan canoes sink 2 Brazilian ironclads on Rio Parana
1867 - Most of Nebraska becomes 37th US state (expanded later)
1869 - Postage stamps showing scenes are issued for 1st time
1871 - J. Milton Turner named minister to Liberia
1872 - Yellowstone becomes world's 1st national park
1875 - Congress passes Civil Rights Act; invalidated by Supreme Court, 1883
1893 - Diplomatic Appropriation Act, authorizes the US rank of ambassador
1896 - Battle of Adua: 80,000 Ethiopians destroy 20,000 Italians
1910 - 3 passenger trains buried at Steven's Pass in Cascade Range: 118 die; Worst snowslide in US history
1912 - Albert Berry makes 1st parachute jump from an airplane
1913 - Federal income tax takes effect (16th amendment)
1914 - Dutch Minister of war H. Colijn named director of British Petroleum
1916 - Germany begins attacking ships in the Atlantic
1919 - Demonstrations for Korean independence from Japan begin
1920 - Austria becomes a kingdom again, under Admiral Horthy
1921 - Rwanda ceded to England; Sailors revolt in Kronstadt, Russia
1923 - Allies occupy Ruhrgebied; killing railroad striker
1924 - Germany's prohibition of Communist Party KPD lifted
1932 - Charles Lindbergh, Jr. (20 months), kidnapped in New Jersey; found dead May 12
1933 - Bank holidays declared in 6 states, to prevent run on banks
1934 - Henry Pu Yi crowned emperor Kang Teh of Manchuria
1937 - 1st permanent automobile license plates issued (Connecticut)
1941 - "Captain America" appears in a comic book; 1st US commercial FM radio station goes on the air, Nashville, TN; German troops invade Bulgaria; Himmler inspects Auschwitz concentration camp
1942 - 3 day Battle of Java Sea ends, US suffers a major naval defeat; Baseball decides that players in military can't play when on furlough; Japanese troops occupy Kalidjati airport in Java; Suriname camp for NSB people opens to save Jews; Tito establishes 2nd Proletarit Brigade in Bosnia
1943 - Jewish old age home for disabled in Amsterdam raided
1944 - Massive strikes in Northern Italian towns; U-358 sinks in Atlantic
1945 - British 43rd Division under General Essame occupies Xanten; Chinese 30th division occupies Hsenwi; FDR announces success of Yalta Conference; Fieldmarshal Kesselring succeeds von Rundstedt as commander; US infantry regiment captures Mönchengladbach
1946 - Panamá accepts its new constitution
1950 - Chiang Kai-shek resumed the Presidency of National China on Formosa; Klaus Fuchs sentenced to 14 years for atomic espionage (London)
1950 - USSR issues golden rubles
1952 - Egyptian government-Ali Maher Pasja resigns
1954 - 4 Puerto Ricans open fire in US House of Representatives injuring 5 Representatives; Rebellion during visit of President Naguib in Khartoum Sudan, 30 die; Ted Williams fractures collarbone in 1st game of spring training after flying 39 combat missions without injury in Korean War; US explodes 15 megaton hydrogen bomb at Bikini Atoll
1955 - Israeli assault on Gaza, kills 48
1959 - Archbishop Makarios returns to Cyprus after 3 years
1961 - President Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps
1962 - American Airlines 707 plunges nose 1st into Jamaica Bay, NY, killing 95; K-Mart opens; Uganda became a self-governing country
1963 - 200,000 French mine workers strike
1966 - Ba'ath-party takes power in Syria; Venera 3 becomes 1st man-made object to impact on a planet (Venus)
1967 - Dominica & St Lucia gain independence from Britain; House of Representatives expels Representative Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. (307 to 116)
1968 - Political Party Radikalen (PPR) established in Netherlands
1969 - New York Yankees' Mickey Mantle announces his retirement from baseball
1970 - End of US commercial whale hunting; Kreisky's social-democrats win Austrian parliamentary election; White government of Rhodesia declares independence from Britain
1971 - Bomb attack on the Capitol in Washington, DC
1974 - Watergate grand jury indicts 7 Presidential aides
1977 - US extends territorial waters to 200 miles
1980 - CTUC, Commonwealth Trade Union Council, established
1980 - Snow falls in Florida
1981 - Bobby Sands, IRA member, begins 65-day hunger strike in Maze Prison (he dies)
1982 - Russian spacecraft Venera 14 lands on Venus, sends back data
1983 - Tornado tears through Louisiana, injuring 33 people
1984 - NASA launches Landsat-D Prime (Landsat 5) to thematic map the Earth
1985 - Pentagon accepts theory that atomic war would cause a nuclear winter
1988 - Iraq says it launched 16 missiles into Tehran
1989 - Comet du Toit at perihelion
1990 - Benin nullifies its constitution; Luis Alberto Lacelle sworn in as President of Uruguay
1991 - US Embassy in Kuwait officially reopens
1993 - Authorities in Waco, TX negotiate with Branch Davidians
1994 - Martti Ahtisaari inaugurated as President of Finland; Senate rejectes a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution
1995 - Belgium ends military conscript; Jozef Oleksy succeeds Waldemar Pawlak on as premier of Poland; Julio María Sanguinetti sworn in as President of Uruguay
1996 - New toll-free 888 area code introduced

Birthdays
0772 - Po Tjiu-i, Chinese poet/Governor of Hang-tsjow
1456 - Wladyslaw Jagiello, King of Bohemia/Hungary (1471/90-1516)
1528 - Albrecht V von Wittelsbach [the Generous], duke of Bavaria
1780 - Léonard P.J. du Bus de Gisignies, Governor-General of Netherland Indies (1826-30)
1811 - Robert Christie Buchanan, Union Brevet Major General
1820 - George Davis, Confederate Attorney General
1822 - Albin Francisco Schoepf, Union Brigadier General, died in 1886; Charles Champion Gilbert, Union Brigadier General
1828 - James Fleming Fagan, Confederate Major General
1831 - Hiram Bronson Granbury, Confederate Brigadier General
1841 - Blanche Kelso Bruce, (Senator-MS, 1875-1881)
1864 - Rebecca Lee 1st black woman to get a medical degree
1922 - William M. Gaines, publisher (MAD Magazine); Yitzak Rabin, premier (Israel, 1992-95, Nobel 1994)
1924 - Donald "Deke" Kent Slayton, Major USAF/astronaut (Apollo 18)
1927 - Robert Heron Bork judge, nominated for supreme court
1941 - Michael L. Lampton, astronaut (STS-45)
1944 - John B. Breaux (Representative - LA, 1972-88)

Passings
0965 - Leo VIII, Italian (anti-)Pope (963-65)
1131 - Stephen II, King of Hungary (1116-31)
1383 - Amadeus VI (Green Earl), earl of Savoy, dies at 49
1510 - Francisco d'Almeida viceroy of India, dies in battle at about 59
1865 - Anna Paulowna Romanova, great monarch of Russia, dies at 70
1870 - Francisco S. López, President of Paraguay (1862-70), dies at 43
1896 - ... Albertone Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle; ... Arimondi Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle; ... Dabormida Italian General (Eritrea), dies in battle
1899 - György earl Apponyi Hungarian MP, dies at 90
1911 - Jacobus H. van't Hoff, Dutch chemist/physicist (Nobel 1901), dies at 58
1920 - Joseph Trumpeldor, killed defending Tel-Mai against arab attack
1921 - Nicholas Petrovic Njegos, King of Montenegro (1910-18), dies at 79
1924 - Louise-Marie Amélie, princess of Belgium, dies at 66
1979 - Molla Mustafa Barzani, Iranian Kurd leader (KDP), dies at 75
1984 - Jackie Coogan, actor (Uncle Fester-Addams Family), dies at 69
1993 - Luis Kutner, co-founder (Amnesty International), dies at 84
1996 - Margaret McKay, politician, dies at 85

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Christensen, William M., USN (MT) ; F4B believed shot down (w/Frawley)

Frawley, William D., USN (MA); F4B believed shot down (w/Christensen)

Woloszyk, Donald J., USN (MI); A4E shot down

Lannom, Richard C., USN (TN) ; A6A shot down (w/Scheurich)

Scheurich, Thomas E., USN (NE); A6A shot down (w/Lannom)

1969
Campbell, Clyde W., USAF (TX); A1J shot down, KIA, body not recovered

Keller, Wendell R., USAF (ND); F4D shot down (w/Meroney)

Lovegren, David E., US Army (OR); UH1H crashed, Killed, body not recovered

Meroney, Virgil K., USAF (AR); F4D shot down (w/Keller)

1971
Black, Paul V., US Army (CA); UH1H shot down

Zubke, Deland D., US Army (ND); presumed Killed in friendly air strike

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

MOSUL DUTY — U.S. Army Pfc. Richard Enz, with the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, posts security during a search for weapons caches in Mosul, Iraq, Feb. 25, 2006. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. John M. Foster