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Saturday, August 26, 2006

Marines Enhance Relationships in Iraq

This DefendAmerica photo essay features the USMC's 3rd CAG, one of the units that Soldiers' Angels SOS: KIDS program is working to support. To learn what you can do to help our heroes with efforts like these, visit the SOS: KIDS webpage.

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U.S. Marine Corps Capt. J.R. Rinaldi, a 37-year-old civil affairs group officer from Vancouver, Wash., briefs his Marines at Camp Habbaniyah, Iraq, Aug. 18, 2006. Rinaldi and other members of 3rd Civil Affairs Group, Marines of 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment and U.S. Army soldiers were on their way to speak to a water treatment facility owner. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Ray Lewis




U.S. Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Sergio Garza, a 33-year-old hospital corpsman from McAllen, Texas, examines an Iraqi man's scarred back in Sadiquiyah, Iraq, Aug. 18, 2006. Garza and other members of 3rd Civil Affairs Group, Marines of 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment and U.S. Army soldiers were on their way to speak to a water treatment facility owner. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Ray Lewis




An Iraqi boy is delighted with the gifts Marines and Army soldiers gave him in Khaladiyah, Iraq, Aug. 18, 2006. The group was on its way to speak to a water treatment facility owner when they stopped to hand out backpacks, soccer balls and Iraqi flags. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Ray Lewis




U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Andrew J. Meyers, a 40-year-old soldier from Plymouth, Mass., hands out flags to Iraqi children in Sadiquiyah, Iraq, Aug. 18, 2006. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Ray Lewis



Marines of 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 3rd Civil Affairs Group and U.S. Army soldiers speak to a water facility owner in Sadiquiyah, Iraq, Aug. 18, 2006. The servicemembers were making a joint effort to fix the facility to provide Iraqis with clean water. Marines of 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment are currently serving a seven-month deployment in the Habbaniyah area under Regimental Combat Team 5. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Ray Lewis

FedEx the Destroyer

So yesterday afternoon, I'm getting ready to head out to a medical appointment. A semi-truck drives down the road, which strikes me as odd, since we live on a dead-end street, and it's not the sort of place a semi needs to be.

As I come outside, I notice that the phone lines are snapped off my house. More accurately, half of the phone lines are hanging to the ground outside my house; the other half is hanging off the phone pole across the street. I look down the road, and Mr. Truck is turning around at the end of the road.

He comes up the street, and as nicely as I can, I flag him down and say, "Excuse me, but your truck snapped the phone lines to my house."

"I didn't hit anything - I was watching." says Mr. Truckdriver.

"Well," says I, looking up at the top of his truck, "you're hitting them now - what's left of them."

"Well what do you want me to do?" says Mr. Truckdriver. "It's a big truck."

"Well, you tore the phone lines off my house. I need your information, because I'm going to need to call someone."

"I didn't hit anything."

We go on like this for a few moments, and I repeat my request for his information so that I can make a phone call. Instead of providing me with the information, as required by law, Mr. Truckdriver drives away.

Now, remember, I'm on the way to a doctor's appointment, for an as yet undiagnosed condition - the only thing we know for sure - stress makes it worse. Good.

So I call FedEx, and am told someone will call me back.

Then, I call my husband, and then the police.

My husband called the police again later, and they're investigating. FedEx, upon my second call, is ticked off at me because although I got the license plate number, I couldn't remember whether it was FedEx Express, FedEx ground, etc. Their truck ripped lines off my house, and they're pissed at ME!

Called the phone company, and the lines won't be back up til probably Monday.

So here I am in Panera, eating breakfast and blogging.


But it has given me some ideas for new FedEx advertising slogans:

FedEx: When it absolutely, positively, has to be ripped off your house overnight.

FedEx: Delivering Destruction

FedEx: We delivereth, and we taketh away.

Please feel free to add your suggestions in the comments section...

AL SHURTA CHECKPOINT — Iraqi National police officers provide security at a checkpoint in Al Shurta, Iraq, Aug. 24, 2006. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Steven Phillips

In Today's News - Saturday, August 26, 2006

Quote of the Day
"If a country is worth living in it is worth fighting for."
-- Manning Coles

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Complex Attack From Al Kilami Mosque
Iraq Tribal Chiefs Sign 'Pact of Honor' to End Violence
U.S. Death Toll in Iraq Declines
McCain Stresses Support for Iraq Mission

Operation Enduring Freedom
Two French soldiers killed in Afghan ambush

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Security Incidents Hit Airlines
U.S. man arrested in Texas over luggage - Video
Sri Lanka's Jaffna gets aid, troops die in blast
Two bombs injure four in Turkish city: agency

Troops on Trial
Sailor to Face Court-Martial

Mid-East Ceasefire
Israel Encourages Muslim Nations - Video
Hamas Hopes for 'Good News' on Kidnapped Journos
Israeli army kills Palestinian in W. Bank clash
Fox journlalists said unharmed as deadline passes - Video
Hizbollah says Israeli response was a surprise
Fatah agrees to government with Hamas

Worldwide Wackos
Iran launches new nuclear project
Iran Says Nuclear Program No Threat
Lawmaker: Israel Must 'Prepare'
Report: North Korea Won't Rule Out Nuclear Weapon Test
S. Korea, China fight N. Korea nuke test

Politics / Government
U.S. Senator Obama Publicly Takes AIDS Test in Kenya
Throngs greet Senator Obama in Kenya
Former President Ford undergoes angioplasty

In the Courts
Judge detains 5 over ringing cell phone

U.N. News
U.N. panel approves treaty on rights of disabled

Media in the Media
Race matters in U.S. "Survivor" series' media blitz
CNN.com to replay 9/11 attacks coverage

Mother Nature
Ernesto Takes Aim - Path
New Orleans to Require Cleanup of Katrina Homes
Small Businesses Struggle
After Katrina, black family warily adjusts to Utah
New Orleans awaits billions in fed aid

Oddities
North Dakota's Rising Lake
Beatles webcam helps foil burglary
Robber hid for 20 years as policeman
Mason sues Jews for Jesus over pamphlet

Other News of Note
23 hurt in Delaware chemical release
La. high court upholds 2 insurance laws
Neb. tries to oust trooper linked to KKK

Fox News
DNA Key in JonBenet Case
Laptop Stolen in Baltimore May Have Data of 193 Drivers
Wife: Pluto Discoverer Would Have Understood Demotion

Reuters: Top News
Uganda and LRA rebels to cease hostilities
Karr's lawyers try to stop DNA tests
NASA clears space shuttle for launch
Ice Age gives clues to global warming: study
Toshiba to make Zune media player: Microsoft
New rock stars use Web videos to win fans
Kenyan women fight back against rape
Antidepressants during pregnancy may affect baby
"Grey's Anatomy" favored over "West Wing" at Emmys
Blue chips fall on rising oil; H&R Block sinks - Video
H&R Block, other mortgage lenders' shares slump
XM gets FCC OK for 3 radios
Healthways' acquisition of LifeMasters on hold
Corcept drug fails late-stage trial
Downscale treatment
Possible deals at Ford not enough: analysts
Judge blocks Northwest attendants strike for now
Universal Health Services settles Katrina claims
Agency trims offshore drilling plan
Summer's end may be stormy for stocks

AP World News
Calif. city: Secondhand smoke a nuisance
5 hours of Welty footage discovered
Twins pass Chicago for AL wild-card lead
Napoli gives Angels 6-5 win over Yankees
Violent video games ban in La. blocked
Twins beat ChiSox, take wild-card lead
Idlewild: It's a lot more than a movie
Phillies end Mets' 7-game winning streak
Rubin quits Ford board over conflict
Agassi closes out career at U.S. Open
Venus Williams pulls out of U.S. Open
Online merchants see green in Pluto news
Patriots give Branch week to seek trade

Military.com
New Navy Nuclear Sub Debuts
Army Casualty Reports Pass First Test

CENTCOM: News Releases
COALITION FORCES RECOVER WEAPONS CACHE

IED FOUND IN KUNAR

CF SEIZE WEAPONS, MUNITIONS, DETAIN 6 SUSPECTED TERRORISTS

USJFCOM
Speech-to-speech translation capability makes its way to Iraq breaking down language barriers

Department of Defense
NEWS UPDATES
Coalition Recovers Weapons Caches - Story
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Joint Effort Decreases Terrorist Activity - Story
Pendleton Marines Prepare for Deployment - Story - Photos
Four-Legged Protectors Get Care Packages - Story
Community Takes Action Toward Peace - Story

IN IRAQ
Helping Iraqi Youth a Rewarding Experience
Operation Together Forward Improving Security
Civil Affairs Soldiers Monitor Progress

IN AFGHANISTAN
A-10 Thunderbolts Surge for Afghan Offensive
Chief Master Sgt. Praises Afghan Progress
Security Forces ‘Fly Away’ to Support Mission

BACKGROUND
IRAQ
Renewal In Iraq
Iraq: Security, Stability
Fact Sheet: Progress and Work Ahead
Report: Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Iraq Daily Update
This Week in Iraq
Multinational Force Iraq
State Dept. Weekly Iraq Report (PDF)
'Boots on the Ground' Audio Archive
Weekly Reconstruction Report (PDF)
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps

AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
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

CASUALTIES
Officials Identify Casualties - Story

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
55 BC - Roman forces, under Julius Caesar, invade Britain.
1346 - English longbowmen defeat the French in Battle of Cr‚cy
1791 - John Fitch is granted a U.S. patent for his working steamboat.
1846 - W.A. Bartlett is appointed as the 1st U.S. mayor of Yerba Buena (San Francisco).
1883 - Krakatoa erupts; its increasingly large explosions kill 36,000.
1907 - Houdini escapes from chains underwater - in 57 seconds.
1914 - The Germans defeat the Russians in the Battle of Tannenberg.
1920 - The 19th amendment passes, granting women the right to vote.
1942 - 7,000 Jews are rounded up in the Vichy Free Zone of France.
1957 - The U.S.S.R. announces its successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile.
1973 - The University of Texas at Arlington becomes the first accredited school to offer belly dancing.
1974 - Soyuz-15 carries 2 cosmonauts to the Salyut-3 space station.
1978 - Soyuz-31 carries 2 cosmonauts (one of them an East German) to the Salyut-6 space station.
1982 - NASA launches Telesat-F.

Birthdays
1676
- Sir Robert Walpole (Whig), British PM (1721-42)
1743 - Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry (Oxygen)
1820 - James Harlan (Rep-IA)/U.S. Seretary of the Interior (1865-66)
1850 - Charles Richet, French physiologist, Nobel Prize winner (anaphylaxis-1913)
1873 - Lee De Forest, inventor (Audion vacuum (radio) tube)
1875 - Sir John Buchan, Governor-General of Canada / writer
1884 - Earl Biggers, author ("Charlie Chan" detective series)
1901 - General Maxwell D. Taylor, former US Army Chief of Staff
1906 - Dr. Albert B. Sabin, discoverer of the polio vaccine.
1909 - Frank Gasparro, U.S. chief engraver (1965-81)
1917 - William French Smith, Attorney General (1981-85)
1932 - Joe H. Engle, Brigadier General USAF / astronaut (STS T-2, T-4, 2, 51I)
1935 - Geraldine Ferraro (Rep-NY), first female major-party VP candidate
1942 - John E. Blaha, Colonel USAF / astronaut (STS 29, 33, STS 43)
1960 - Ola Ray, Playboy Playmate (Jun, 1980), actress (Thriller)

Passings
1963
- Larry Keating, actor (George Burns Show, Roger-Mr Ed)
1974 - Charles Lindbergh, aviator
1981 - Roger Nash Baldwin, founder of the ACLU

Reported Missing in Action
1965

Davis, Edward A., USN (PA); A1H shot down, released by DRV February, 1973 - retired as a Captain - alive and well as of 1998

1967
Day, George Everette, USAF (NY); F100F shot down, released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a Colonel alive and well as of 1998
*** Medal of Honor winner, "most decorated officer since MacArthur," PFC/Corp WWII - South and Central Pacific April 1942 - November 1945, 2 Tours Air Defense F-84's, Radar tracking vs. Soviet radar, author of "Return with Honor" ***

Fuller, William Otis, USAF (TX); F4C shot down (w/Kilcullen), presumed KIA, body not recovered

Kilcullen, Thomas Michael, USAF (MD); F4C shot down (w/Fuller)

1971
Vennik, Robert N., US Army (NJ); APC ambushed, KIA, body not recovered

1972
Cordova, Sam Gary, USMC (CA); F4J shot down, remains returned December, 1988

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