How do the Moonbats celebrate Columbus Day?

With a protest, of course.

Oh, and the obligatory trolling.

Hmmmm...and do they stop to think of what exactly they'd do with their time if they didn't have the freedoms this country guarantees? Do they stop to be grateful that they have the freedom to protest at all? Naaaaaaaaaaah - that would make too much sense.

Deployment presents challenge for firefighters
SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- The sandy desert terrain and base infrastructures in Southwest Asia pose new challenges to Airman 1st Class Eric Theer, a firefighter deployed from Beale Air Force Base, Calif.
More

Eddie Rickenbacker
On October 8, 1890, in Columbus, OH, Edward Rickenbacher was born. Later adding the middle name "Vernon," and changing the spelling of his last name, Rickenbacker was the third of eight children; his parents were Swiss immigrants. In order to support his family, Eddie lied about his age to be able to work. After a series of jobs that left him unhappy and unfulfilled, Rickenbacker finally began work in an auto company, eventually entering the world of auto racing. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in May, 1917.

Initially assigned as staff driver for General John Pershing, Eddie eventually got some high-ranking AEF friends to pull some strings, and he enlisted in the Air Corps. He was assigned to the 94th Aero Pursuit Squadron, the first all-American air squadron to see combat. It was the start of a career that would end with him becoming the USA's first "Flying Ace." By the end of WWI, Rickenbacker had scored 69 air victories, with the last occuring just one day before the war ended.

During WWII, Eddie toured US Army Air Corps training bases to bolster morale, impress pilots with the seriousness of their mission, and secretly examine the bases and training pilots received. His close connection with the world of auto racing continued, as did his love of aviation - Eddie and a flying buddy founded what would become Eastern Airlines.

To read more about Eddie Rickenbacker, click here.

Sergeant York
Alvin York's life began unremarkably - there was certainly nothing to indicate that he would eventually be referrred to as "the war’s biggest hero" (New York Times), or "the greatest civilian soldier" of World War I (General John J. Pershing). He was born in a one-room cabin on December 13, 1887, in Pall Mall, Tennessee, the third of eleven children. He earned a reputation as a hell-raiser, gambler, and drinker. All that changed one night when he was confronted by his mother one evening, asking him "Alvin, when are you going to be a man like your father and your grandfathers?" He stated that he never drank, gambled, or cussed since then.

In 1915, York says he was "saved" by the preaching of a local evangelist; in fact, he took his newfound faith so seriously that he quickly rose to become a church elder. When he was drafted, York faced a serious inner conflict - he even wrote "I don’t want to fight" on his draft form. He attempted to be exempted from the draft, but it failed. After "two whole days and a night" of prayer, York eventually decided that God would allow him to "answer the call of my country."

By the time his unit arrived in the Argonne Forest in October of 1918, York was a corporal. Although credited with the single-handed capture of more than 100 Germans, and the killing of several dozen more, York never claimed to have acted alone. And while the story was exaggerated, the reality is still the stuff of heroes.

On October 8, 1918, the plan was for York’s men to advance across a valley and take the two hills on the other side. But the Germans were dug into the hills with machine guns and one heck of a view of that valley. York and the other squad commanders knew that advancing across that valley with their limited number of men wasn't going to work - after all, there were only 17 of them. They decided to attempt a sneak attack from the rear, advancing around the German flank.

They surprised the Germans, but the machine guns took out nine men, including an officer. Corporal York, an expert shot, was now in charge.

According to York, "(T)hose machine guns were spitting fire and cutting down the undergrowth all around me something awful…. I didn’t have time to dodge behind a tree or dive into the brush, I didn’t even have time to kneel or lie down…. As soon as the machine guns opened fire on me, I began to exchange shots with them."

York killed so many Germans that a German Major, who had already been captured, reportedly told York, "If you don’t shoot any more I’ll make them surrender."

At that point, Corporal York and his remaining seven men walked their more than 80 prisoners back to American lines - York with his pistol to the German Major's back. Along the way, York made the Major give the surrender order to other enemy troops they met, and the line had grown to 132 by the time they reached the American lines.

York was given the Medal of Honor, and was also promoted to the rank of Sergeant.

After he got home, he was much in demand from people wanting his endorsement. York, who was not seeking celebrity, and in fact downplayed his actions in Argonne, felt that to do so would be "selling his uniform."

Read more about Sgt. Alvin York here and here.

San Francisco, Calif. (Oct. 7, 2006) – The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) passes under the Golden Gate Bridge while entering San Francisco Bay during the Parade of Ships, a key event during San Francisco Fleet Week 2006. Since 1981, San Francisco Fleet Week has been an annual opportunity for Northern Californians to honor the men and women serving in the United States Navy, Coast Guard and Marines. This year approximately 9,000 crew members on visiting ships will arrive in the City to participate in Fleet Week. Ship’s tours and community service projects are scheduled throughout the Bay Area. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Charlemagne Obana

One of the most popular videoclips on the Internet the past few days hasn't been the Numa dancing video, or even the New Numa. Not the Star Wars Kid or Paris Hilton's sultry Carl's Junior television promo.

Instead, one of the most popular video clips on the Internet for the past few days is the new television ad that rebukes President Bill Clinton for recently undermining the war against terrorism in several public comments.

VIEW THE NEW PRO-TROOP AD THAT REBUKES CLINTON - HERE

Get the full news release with statistics to back up these claims here: http://www.moveamericaforward.org/index.php/DailyFile/news_ad_targeting_clinton_explodes_on_internet/

And stay tuned as this week the television ad begins debuting nationwide, first on CNN and Headline News. Watch Move America Forward's website for more information - http://www.moveamericaforward.org/

by Spc. Eric Jungels
October 5, 2006
Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division patrol Nuristan Province, Afghanistan. Click here for related story. US Army photo.

Multi-National Corps – Iraq
Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20061008-05
Oct. 8, 2006

MULTINATIONAL DIVISION – NORTH PAO

BALAD RUZ, Iraq – Iraqi Security and Coalition Forces concluded a successful combined operation Tuesday, Oct. 3, which resulted in seven suspected insurgents being detained and discovery of two large caches of ordnance.

Iraqi Police of the Dali Abbas Police Station and Soldiers with the 1st Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division and 5-73 Cavalry, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, Task Force Lightning, set out to locate and detain explosives smugglers and confiscate their cargo in an effort to interdict the flow of arms to terrorist groups in the Diyala province.

The confiscated caches consisted of more than 159 individual pieces of ordnance to include, anti-tank mines, small arms munitions and other IED making material.

The detainees were taken for questioning and the two caches were destroyed.

The mission was one of several successful ISF-led combined operations during the past week in Diyala, with ISF demonstrating their ability to plan and lead counter-insurgency operations.

FALLUJAH MISSION — U.S. Marines conduct a cordon and search mission in Fallujah, Iraq, Oct. 2, 2006. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Chad Simon

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Up to 700 Iraqi Police Officers Poisoned
Iraqi VP's Brother Killed in Baghdad
Woman tells court Saddam forces buried family alive - Video

Operation Enduring Freedom
NATO Commander: Afghans Could Turn to Taliban
Dozens of Taliban said killed in Afghan battles - Video

Homeland Security / War on Terror
Somali government troops take pro-Islamist town - Video

Other Military News
Sports programs help disabled veterans

Worldwide Wackos
United States Confirms North Korean Nuclear Test
Test Could Spark Arms Race
Report: South Korea Suspends 4,000-Pound Aid Shipment to North Korea
South Korean Stocks Plunge After Reported North Korea Nuclear Test
Raw Data: North Korean Statement on Alleged Nuke Test
For U.S., Asian role key to next steps
Kim Jong-il flaunts nuclear prowess
Nuclear test overshadows South Korean's UN selection - Video
Japan, S.Korea agree N.Korea nuclear test a threat - Video
N.Korea may face more sanctions after nuclear test - Video
N.Korea jars markets, but only mildly - Video
Yen hits 8-mth low vs dollar on N.Korea jitters - Video
Gold jumps 1.5 percent on North Korea, higher oil
Fidel Castro Not Dying, Brother Says

Politics / Government
Republicans Attempt to Defend Hastert
Republican knew of Foley messages in 2000: Post - Video
Republicans hit by wave of political bad news
Convert seen winning disgraced U.S. congressman's seat
GOP losing advantage with married moms
AP: Allen failed to report stock options

U.N. News
UN rights chief says hundreds died in Darfur attack

Oddities
Reality Couples Head to Divorce Court ... but Why?

Other News of Note
Phelps wins 2006 Nobel prize for economics
Church Bells Toll for Amish Shooting Victims
Salinas Valley Lettuce Recalled for E. Coli
Reward offered to catch Russian journalist's killers - Video
OPEC ministers back first supply cut in two years

Fox News
Lesbian Couple Weds in Massachusetts
Musharraf Leads Pakistan Quake Memorial
Cardinals Beat Padres, Will Face Mets in NLCS
Stocks to Watch: Johnson & Johnson, McKesson

Reuters: Top News
Web video search site Blinkx signs Microsoft pact
"Click" here for first 50GB Blu-ray Disc
Exercise helps breast cancer patients avoid anemia
Genetic mutation doubles breast cancer risk: study
"Prada" leads parade at foreign box office
Dolan family to buy 100 pct of Cablevision
PNC to buy Mercantile Bankshares for $6 billion
Sony chairman Idei expects next CEO to be Japanese
Output from Exxon Russia field to decline from 2008
Two BA execs quit amid fuel surcharge probe

AP World News
Pitt, Jolie mobbed during rickshaw ride
Pa. wants to become 'Wall Street West'
T.O. silenced as Eagles dominate Cowboys
Service held for Anna Nicole Smith's son
Investors look to Fed minutes, earnings
Police search for missing UVM student
LA mayor opens tourism office in China
Obituaries in the news
Punk icon closing after 33 years
Loan could determine rail project's fate
Mental health treatment by video
Salmon fishing is back on Maine river

Military.com
Battered Marines Adjust to Civilian Life

CENTCOM: News Releases
7-10 CAV. REGT. RESPOND TO ATTACK WITH MORTAR FIRE

MND-B SOLDIERS FIND 14 WEAPONS CACHES, IEDs AND BODY ARMOR

IA, MND-B SOLDIERS SEIZE MULTIPLE WEAPONS CACHES, DETAIN THREE SUSPECTS

USJFCOM
USJFCOM commander discusses reserve force issues - podcast
USJFCOM sends support teams to CENTCOM - podcast
Newsmaker Profile: Col. Eugene V. "Gene" Bonventre - podcast
Command working to meet the warfighter's needs with focused efforts - podcast
Command seeking information from industry on access management

Department of Defense
NEWS UPDATES
Nation Marks Fifth Anniversary Of Enduring Freedom, Terror War - Story
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Senior NCO Visits 10th Mountain Division Soldiers - Story
Iraqi Engineer Juggles Family's Safety with Job - Story
'America's Battalion' Returns to Families in Hawaii - Story
Exercise Teaches Marines How to Thwart Attacks - Story

IN IRAQ
U.S. Soldiers Teach Iraqis About Fiber Optics
Local Doctors Treat Ghazaliyah Residents
Iraqi Army Medics Train to Save Lives
Teams Teach Contracting, Budgeting, Planning
Iraqi Army Gives Civilians Lease Payments
Iraqi Soldiers Graduate from Combat Training
Water Facility Will Deliver Millions of Gallons

IN AFGHANISTAN
Afghan NCOs Complete Drill Sergeant Course
Afghan Laborers Continue Work on Local Dam

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
Three Soldiers Killed in Iraq - 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

National Hurricane Center

Today in History
0680 - Husain ibn 'Ali, Shi'ite religious leader, is brutally killed (along with his family), in Karbala (the Muslim holy day of Ashurah is based on this).
1000 - Ericson discovers "Vinland" (possibly New England).
1635 - Religious dissident Roger Williams is banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
1701 - The Collegiate School of CT (Yale U) is chartered in New Haven.
1837 - The steamboat Home sinks off NC, killing 100.
1876 - The first two-way telephone conversation occurs (also the first over outdoor wires).
1877 - In Cleveland, the American Humane Association is organized.
1888 - The public is first admitted to the Washington Monument.
1903 - New York City sees 11" of rainfall in 24 hrs.
1915 - Woodrow Wilson becomes the first U.S. President to attend a World Series game (World Series #12).
1930 - Laura Ingalls (not that one) completes the first transcontinental flight by a woman. completed, Laura Ingalls
1936 - The Hoover Dam begins transmitting electricity to Los Angeles.
1947 - The first telephone conversation between a moving car and a plane takes place.
1960 - Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Eddie LeBaron throws the shortest ever touchdown pass (2").
1961 - Tanganyika becomes independent within the British Commonwealth.
1962 - NASA civilian test pilot John B. McKay takes the X-15 to 39,200 m.
1963 - Uganda becomes a republic within the British Commonwealth.
1970 - The Khmer Republic (Cambodia) declares independence.
1975 - Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov wins the Nobel Peace Prize.
1977 - Soyuz-25 is launched to Saluyt-6, but returns after it fails to dock.
1983 - Four South Korean cabinet ministers are assassinated in Rangoon, Burma.
1984 - Kathy Sullivan becomes the first American woman to walk in space.
1986 - The U.S. Senate convicts U.S. District Judge Harry E. Claiborne, making him the fifth federal official to be removed from office through impeachment.
1990 - Saddam Hussein threatens to hit Israel with a new missile

Birthdays
1547 - Miguel de Cervantes, novelist (Don Quixote)
1757 - Charles X, reactionary king of France (1824-30); deposed
1782 - Lewis Cass (Gov-MI)
1899 - Bruce Catton, civil war historian
1908 - James E. Folsom (Gov-AL 1947-51, 1955-59)
1918 - E. Howard Hunt, involved in the Watergate break-in
1924 - Robert Rushworth, pilot (X-15)
1940 - Gordon Humphrey (Sen-NH); John Lennon, musician (The Beatles)

Passings
1934 - King Alexander of Yugoslavia, assassinated by Georgief, a Croatian terrorist
1958 - Pope Pius XII
1967 - Che Guevara, executed in Bolivia
1988 - Felix Wankel, developer of the Wankel rotary engine

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Tanner, Charles N., USN (TN); F4B shot down (pilot, w/Terry), released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a Captain - alive and well as of 1998

Terry, Ross R., USN (FL); F4B shot down (RIO, w/Tanner), released by DRV March, 1973 - alive as of 1998

1967
Clements, James A., USAF (TX); F105 shot down, released by DRV March, 1973 - R.I.P. March, 1997.

1969
The following lost when the rotor blades of a UH1D struck trees during an extraction, and it crashed in Long Khanh Province, Vietnam.

Driver, Dallas A., US Army (VA)

Garbett, Jimmy R., US Army (FL)

Moore, Raymond G., US Army (OH)

Suydam, James L, US Army (NJ)

Turner, James H., US Army (OH); crew