Ft. Rucker, Alabama, was hit hard by the recent tornadoes and storms. The local area, military families have lost loved ones and homes have been destroyed.

Soldiers Angels is on the job and will be establishing funds to support Ft. Rucker soldiers and families.

On March 1, 2007 a band of severe thunderstorms swept across the South. The storms were accompanied by tornadoes which left a swath of destruction in their wake. The agricultural town of Enterprise, Alabama was hit especially hard. The town newspaper, The Enterprise Ledger, reports, " The tornado struck downtown Enterprise around 1 p.m. Thursday, destroying homes, flipping vehicles and collapsing the ceiling and walls in parts of Enterprise High School. Reports concerning the number of dead and injured vary wildly, with state officials reporting as many as 5 possible deaths in the city." Its high school sustained a direct hit and many students were injured when a wall collapsed. Several of the injured students are from families stationed at nearby Fort Rucker. There are reports of deaths among the students, but the school system has yet to provide confirmation of this tragic news. Fort Rucker is the home of the United States Army Aviation Warfighting Center and many of its families live in Enterprise and their children attend its schools. The governor of Alabama has declared a state of emergency, but in a situation like this, with so many people in need, the government cannot immediately help everyone. Soldiers' Angels is determined to make sure that none of our military personnel or their families are overlooked.

Soldiers' Angels has several members who are in the area and they have rallied to provide aid and comfort to the military families who are suffering. Additionally, in an effort to help these families, Soldiers' Angels has established the Fort Rucker Military Family Relief Fund. This fund is dedicated specifically to helping the members of the Fort Rucker who have lost family and their homes as a result of this terrible event. Soldiers' Angels will use the fund to provide emergency relief to the families. Items such as clothes, food, personal items and even shelter will be provided. Please help the families and our soldiers at Fort Rucker.

How can you help?


To volunteer time please contact Bonnie- BonnieInBama @ gmail.com


FT RUCKER FAMILY RELIEF FUND
Donations through PayPal (SA-FT. RUCKER FAMILY RELIEF - Item #20-0583415)

or send GIFT CARDS: WalMart, Amex CREDITS OR VOUCHERS: Holiday Inn, Days Inn, Comfort Inn to:

ARMY COMMUNITY SERVICE, Attn: Sue
BUILDING 5700
NOVOSEL, ROOM 390
FT. RUCKER AL 36362




UPDATE 3/3: If you need to get an idea of just how bad the damage is, NOTR has pictures posted here.

UPDATE 3/4: Fort Benning families have also been affected by the devastating storms:

I am writing on behalf of the military tornado victims of Thursday night's storm in Columbus, GA beside Fort Benning. The housing shortages and inadequate housing at Fort Benning causes many military families to look off base for housing. While the base did not receive much damage in this recent storm, many houses of military families off base were impacted.

These families are in desperate need of help and are falling between the cracks in the system. Inexplicably, they are not receiving requested help from the Red Cross, Military One Source, or United Way. Each of these organizations has suggested calling one of the others.

The Army has a relief organization, Army Emergency Relief (funded by the Red Cross) and families are being directed there, but funds dispersed by AER for tornado relief are a loan, not a grant. These families cannot afford to pay back the loan. AER has the ability to give grants, but is not doing so for this situation. One of the families affected is a soldier and a single mother. Her roof was completely blown off of her house. Army Emergency Relief told her none of the money being given to families for tornado relief will be in the form of a grant.

FEMA has also denied any help citing that this area was not labeled a disaster area. They should see the pictures.

These families are experiencing a lot of stress and possible mild shock and are having to pay nightly for meals and hotels as insurance companies decide what they are entitled to and as that stretches out, the immediate expenses they are not being helped with is putting them in a dire financial situation. The insurance companies are assessing paying for repairs and loss of possessions, but are not paying for the hotel rooms or meal expense. These families live paycheck to paycheck and this setback could be devastating.

I know of one street in particular, Cardinal Landing, Columbus, GA, where at least three military families have houses now unlivable and need help.

My great friends, Tony and Vicki D---- have three small children and the storm has left them homeless. They were in a lease renting a house managed by a real estate company. The real estate company did not put them into a hotel. They had to pay for it themselves. The Red Cross, through Army Emergency Relief, gave them a $1000 loan. Because the house they rented is now unlivable and needs major repair, they have asked the realtor if they are now free to just look for another house to live in. Day after day the realtor says she does not know and has no answer for them. They cannot afford to keep paying for a hotel night after night. And the whole family of five in a hotel room is not pleasant.

Many of the families on their street had just stocked the fridge and freezer and had no disposable income to pay for hotel and food in their checking account. And, of course, the storm damage and loss of power spoiled all the food they had just bought. Eating out every day is quickly depleting funds. And, the D----- family took the loan they received and immediately began feeding other families from the street with no money for food.

The D---- family had just moved into their house a few months ago when the Army relocated them from Fort Dix, NJ to Fort Benning, GA. They have a lot of unreimbursed expenses from the move. They were already barely surviving financially as the recouped from the move expense and now have this stress on top of that.

Please help me find help for these families for immediate relief and money to help pay back the Red Cross loans.

Christie F-----
(Army Spouse)


ADDITIONAL UPDATE 3/4: Be sure to check the commments for additional perspective / assistance suggestions. Americanmilitaryfamilies.org is also on the case and helping these families. Although I don't know them personally, Terri (see comments) does and can vouch for them. However you choose to help, please do so!

Labels: Alerts, disasters, Fort Rucker, military families, Soldiers' Angels, Supporting the troops

Day-by-Day cartoonist extraordinaire Chris Muir is back from Iraq - he gives his impressions over at Bill Roggio's The Fourth Rail. Some of my favorite bits are Chris' assessments of the media:

Pictured above is where Saddam fired his rifle from, a concrete- and - broken glass shell now. I take crappy photos, but no photographers (except Eric Bowers) would leave the media building to tour Iraq. They were all typing stories from their terminals inside. 'Stories', indeed.

I tried making chicken sounds to them, but it didn't take.

OK, I made that one up, but you get the picture, even if they wouldn't. Baghdad, like any large city, is largely quiet except where terrorist (gang) activity takes place. If you toured Watts in LA, only, well yes, there's violence. But 99.8% of the city is just fine. Then again, there aren't large amounts of US heavily armed soldiers touring through it, so...


Chris' very healthy sense of humor is on display throughout, and it's a great look at Iraq from an outsider's perspective.

Make sure you go and read the whole post.

Welcome Back, Chris!

H/T to the Brat via Blackfive

Labels: Chris Muir, Day-by-Day, Iraq, media coverage

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service


VAIL, Colo., March 8, 2007 – For the fourth consecutive year, 25 veterans wounded in the global war on terrorism will test their mettle on the slopes thanks to the Vail Veterans Program’s winter sports clinic that kicked off here yesterday.

“We’re really a stepping stone in their recovery. This is therapeutic for them to be here,” Cheryl Jensen, director of the Vail Veterans Program said during a kick-off dinner here yesterday. “By the time they leave here, they’re totally comfortable with themselves or have confidence that they never had.

“They grow emotionally and physically while they’re here in a matter of four days,” she added.

Army Maj. Dave Rozelle, administrator for Walter Reed Army Medical Center's Amputee Care Center, knows how true this is. He lost part of his right foot while serving in Iraq in 2003. He told the group that skiing had made him feel free and independent after his injury.

“I felt like an angel coming down that mountain,” he said. “I hope you all find the same freedom I did.”

Rozelle served a second tour in Iraq after being injured.

The Vail Veterans Program can offers this weekend to the servicemembers thanks, in part, to the generosity of this community, Jensen said. Lodging for the troops and the majority of the airfare to get them to the slopes here was donated. The story is the same for equipment rental, lift tickets, instruction for the veterans and their guests. Most meals, including a special meal on the final evening prepared by the local firefighters, are gratis, as well.

For five of the veterans, this winter sports clinic is old hat, and they’ll serve as mentors, Jensen said. The other 20 servicemembers are patients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, in Washington, and this is the first major trip away from the facility for most of them.

Throughout the program, which concludes March 11, the wounded warriors receive private instruction in a number of snow sports, including skiing and snowboarding. To accommodate their injuries, which include missing limbs, the instructors help them learn to use adaptive equipment, Jensen said.

While the veterans are acquiring or polishing their skills, their guests participate in group lessons. While Willow Fesmire’s husband, former Marine Sgt. Christopher Fesmire, who has gone through the program three times, works with the first-timers, she’ll polish her snowboarding skills.

“(I’m) very excited,” she said about her first experience with the program.

Sgt. Fesmire, an avid snowboarder before his injury, was medically retired from the 1st Marine Division after losing both legs above the knee in Qaim, Iraq, in October 2004.

First organized in 2004 as a one-time event, the Vail Veterans Program has earned nonprofit status and doubled the number of veterans it invited the first year. Still, it remains small enough to provide the veterans one-on-one attention, and that’s what attracted the support of this year’s title sponsor, the Wounded Warrior Project. Defense contractor Lockheed Martin, an aerospace manufacturer, also is sponsoring this year’s event.

The Wounded Warrior Project is a member of America Supports You, a Defense Department program highlighting the ways Americans and the corporate sector are supporting the nation’s servicemembers.

“It’s a small-enough group to where everybody can know everybody and support one another,” Bruce Nitsche, executive vice president of the Wounded Warrior Project, said. “I think it’s more like being with your family, and I think when it’s really a community-based program … the level of caring comes through easier.”

Nitsche added that his organization has signed on to sponsor two summer sports clinics the Vail Veterans Program will offer this year. The first summer clinic was held in 2006.


Related Sites:
America Supports You
Vail Veterans Program
Wounded Warrior Project

Labels: Good News, Supporting the troops, Wounded Heroes

In an attempt to once again enforce political correctness, schools in Washington State are banning negativity at sports events.

They have "Boo Police," who monitor chanting and cheers to ensure that they're not too negative.

On the banned list:

booing
disrespectful chants or yells
foot stomping
waving when a player is shooting a free throw
full face paint
"#1" foam fingers

They allege that the ban is necessary because rowdy fans were causing fights.

So why not arrest the people that cause the fights? Naaah, we'll just use it as an opportunity to ban anything that makes anyone feel bad. You can see the video here

The big danger in rules like this is that they start to incorporate group thinking. Society becomes paralyzed because everyone is socialized to never criticize anyone or anything; never make anyone else feel bad. Weighed down in societal rules, it's easy to look for someone to tell you how to behave, how to live, how to think.

And then, of course, it's easier to accept a government controlling your life - at least you don't have to track all of those behavioral rules anymore, because someone will do it for you. Make no mistake about it - once you start instituting rules like this, it's easier to institute the next one. And the next. And the next. Until finally, individuality is bad, and personal rights are nonexistent. People live in fear of criticism, fear of being different, fear of standing out.

Start socializing an entire society this way, and you really have problems. Start indoctrinating group thinking, and you can really get things moving.

What happens when socialism, communism, and altruism are the reigning philosophies? Well, then liberty dies, and the great American Experiment is no more.

Enforcing group "niceness" seems benign if you only look at the surface. Look beneath the surface, and you see the inherent, glaring danger.

After all, this country wouldn't exist if a group of colonists had feared offending.

Labels: opinion, political correctness, politics

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
White House Threatens Veto of Dems' Timetable
Top General: Force Alone 'Insufficient' for Iraq
Dreams of bombs, bad guys haunt Baghdad's children
GIs, Iraqis capture suspected insurgents
Military.com Poll: Troop Withdrawal Deadline
More Troops Deployed to Baghdad
Petraeus: Force Won't End Iraq Unrest

Operation Enduring Freedom
Top Afghan Warlord Breaks With Taliban

Homeland Security / War on Terror / Hamas-Hezbollah Happenings
Israeli Firm Develops Armed Combat Robot
Rival Lebanese leaders hold political crisis talks
Palestinian leaders say unity government near
Mosque leaders sentenced in terror sting

Other Military News
Clinton calls for GI 'Bill of Rights' (this from the women who said, "I loathe the military.")
House panel told of warnings about VA
Hostages' families fear military rescue

Worldwide Wackos
Report: Former Iranian Deputy Defense Minister Defecting to U.S.
Russia, China, object to tough sanctions on Iran

Politics / Government
Gingrich Admits Affair
Bush Arrives in Brazil for Latin American Tour
Raising Cane - Photos
Firefighters Union Blasts Giuliani
Coulter Column Yanked Over 'Faggot' Remark
Clashes mar start to Bush's Latin America tour - Video
States rush to move up in 2008 primary calendar

Illegal Immigration / Border Control
Cubans sneak ashore during U.S. security drill
U.S. agents under greater attack on Mexico border
Pennsylvania trial is first test of local immigration law

In the Courts / Crime and Punishment / Law and Order
Decomposing Bodies of 2 Toddlers Found Under House in San Antonio
Man Gets 6 Years for Shoving Mobile Phone Down Girlfriend's Throat
Police: Student Kills Himself in Front of Peers in School Hallway
Groom Accused of Trying to Run Over Wife After Honeymoon in Vegas
Parents of Formerly Conjoined Twins Accused of Abusing One of Them
Rock Star Pulled Over With Arsenal in Trunk
Vonage to Pay $58M to Verizon in Patent Case
Blues Traveler Frontman John Popper Arrested After Cops Find Weapons Cache, Drugs in His SUV
Feds: Baggage Handlers Brought Guns, Drugs on Flight
"Prison Break" actor charged in fatal L.A. crash
Big-city murders jump more than 10 pct.

U.N. News
U.N. chief urges single world agency for women

Science / Medicine / Technology
Colorado Woman in Vegetative State for 6 Years Awakens for 3 Days
Mexico's 'Half-Ton Man' Sheds Nearly 400 Pounds... Just 575 to Go
"'Don't discuss polar bears": memo to scientists
Lawmakers weigh path to generic biologic drugs
Rock scientists to make map of the world
La Nina may form in Pacific by May as El Nino disappears
Robot salamander may give evolution clues
Inseminated elephant gives birth in Asia
Study probes odor, sleep and memory link

Oddities
Chicken-Eating Cow Makes Farmer Famous
School for skewers? Shish!
Yes, spitting in the face is crime, court rules

Other News of Note
Kids Playing Hooky? Parents, Pay Up!
Student Invents Beer-Tossing Fridge - VIDEO
8 Kids Killed in NYC Blaze - PHOTOS - VIDEO
Ga. moves closer on school Bible classes

Fox News
Largest U.S. Homebuilder: '07 Going to 'Suck'
Forbes Billionaires List Grows by 19 Percent
Town Nixes 'Sopranos' for Portrayal of Italians
Cause of Anna Nicole's Death Known - VIDEO
Celebrity Budgets Exposed: Stars Who Scrimp and Scrooge
Pop Tarts: Lindsay Lohan Rejected by Nightclub

Reuters: Top News
AIDS hits U.S. blacks harder than other groups
Main Northern Ireland parties take strong poll lead - Video
Richest donors neglect global emergency fund: Oxfam
Billionaires richer, Russia, India rise: Forbes
Apple may use flash memory for notebooks: analyst
Video game makers name "Gears of War" best game
NHL sets example for FIFA with video technology
Brain stimulation may ease headaches, studies find
Health costs to surge without better prevention
Rock guitarist Eddie Van Halen enters rehab
Nikkei gains on machinery stocks
Indexes end higher on retailers, financials
No snow makes Quiksilver profit fall, shares down
Nucor gives upbeat forecast, steel shares lifted
New Century slips after initially rising
Recession? What recession?
Modest jobs boost seen for Feb
New Century stops taking loan applications
CVS ups Caremark bid
Ripplewood among suitors for Chrysler: source
SEC probes possible abuse in exec trading plans
U.S. jury orders Vonage to pay $58 mln in patent case
Navistar, Ford to try to resolve engine dispute

AP World News
'American Idol' whittled down to 12
Gates, Buffett top billionaires ranking
Cal stuns No. 4 UCLA in Pac-10 tourney
Bills trade Willis McGahee to Ravens
No. 9 Hoyas advance to Big East semis
Madison, Wis., named 'most walkable'
Stocks recover amid signs of stability
'Morning after' access sought at Kroger
Michael Jackson 'wouldn't change' career

Military.com
Slideshow: Battle Rattle
Def Tech: Track the Trucks
Op-ed: Doing Right by the Troops
World's Largest Veteran Job Board
Blog: On the Move in Waziristan

CENTCOM: Press Releases
SEVEN TERRORISTS KILLED DURING RAID ON SUSPECTED VBIED CELL
CCCI CONVICTS 18 INSURGENTS, 3 SENTENCED TO LIFE, 2 SENTENCED TO 30 YEARS IMPRISONMENT
AIRPOWER SUMMARY FOR MARCH 7
SUICIDE BOMBER KILLS 28, WOUNDS 31 IN BALAD RUZ COFFEE SHOP
IRAQI ARMY, ATTACK HELICOPTERS CAPTURE 32 INSURGENTS
COMBINED JOINT TASK FORCE-76 RE-DESIGNATED TO CJTF-82
OPERATION WHITE ROCKETS NETS TWO CACHES, TWO SUSPECTS SOUTH OF BAGHDAD
STRYKERS CAPTURE 22, SECURE AMMUNITION AND EXPLOSIVES
24 SUSPECTED TERRORISTS CAPTURED THROUGHOUT IRAQ
TERRORIST FACILITATOR, IED EXPERT CAPTURED
AFGHAN, COALITION FORCES PREVENT VBIED ATTACK IN KAPISA PROVINCE
ROUTE CLEARANCE MISSION ATTACKED BY ROADSIDE BOMB
AIRPOWER SUMMARY FOR MARCH 6

USJFCOM
NATO military committee visits USJFCOM
More about USJFCOM and Allied Command Transformation
JIOC-X continues to improve intelligence support for joint warfighter - podcast
New data technology makes aerial reconnaissance video available to users in the field - podcast
Congressman calls command modeling and simulation hub - podcast

DefenseLink
Gates: China Not Strategic Adversary of U.S - Story
Iraq Security Plan Can Work, But Will Take Time - Story
Baghdad Security Efforts Seem to Yield Results
U.S. General in Iraq Decries ‘Barbaric’ Insurgent Attacks
Petraeus: Additional MPs in Iraq Was Anticipated
Disability System Needs ‘Top-Down’ Overhaul - Story
Walter Reed Problems Could Damage Staff Morale - Story

More Headline News
Petraeus: Additional MPs in Iraq Was Anticipated
DoD, State Department Criticize Red Cross Study
Commander Optimistic About Pacific Region
Gates, Pace Discuss Way Forward at Walter Reed

Military News
Commander Wants to End One-Year Tours
Multi-service Crew Fights War on Terror in Afghanistan
U.S. Military Airlifts Relief Supplies to Bolivia

War on Terror
33 Detained in Iraq - Story
Three Soldiers Killed in Iraq
U.S. to Send More Troops to Iraq
Forces Detain 48 Suspects

America Supports You
Colo. Town Welcomes Troops - Story
American Legion Honors TV Show
Families Stand United in Support
Shops Offer Free Oil Change

Transformation
Cadets Conducting Research - Story
Navy to Commission Transport
F-35 Production Inches Closer
Security Model Stresses Partnership

Face of Defense
Reunion After 20 Years - Story
Brothers Share Childhood Dream
Troop Keeps Soldiering
Woman Gunner Protects Unit

DefendAmerica
NEWS UPDATES
Petraeus: Iraq Security Plan Can Work, But Will Take Time - Story
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Radio, Television Network Hits Iraq Airwaves - Story
Class Helps Soldiers Care for Combat Casualties - Story
More than 60 Sign Up for Iraqi Police Force - Story
Army Engineers Plan Well for People of Assama - Story
Soldiers Deliver Supplies for Women's Day Event - Story
Explosive Ordnance Marines Destroy Caches - Story

IN IRAQ
Marines Build Trust, Lend Helping Hand to Locals
Brigade Combat Team Opens Sixth Water Plant
Army Engineers Complete 64 More Projects
U.S., Iraqi Troops Work to Secure Sadr City
Hospital Offers Advanced Care in Afghanistan

IN AFGHANISTAN
Afghan Workers Keep Vehicles in Prime Condition
Paratroopers Trade Shop Tools for Security
Air Defense ‘Family’ Returns to Afghanistan

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
'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: Terror Plots Disrupted
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

Weather
Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar

Germany
Ansbach Aschaffenburg Berlin Berlin-Tempelhof Berlin/Schonefeld Bremerhaven
Darmstadt Frankfurt Frankfurt/Main Freiburg/Breisgau Garmisch
Garmisch-Partenkirchen Geilenkirchen Gelnhausen Giessen Kitzingen
Hanau Am Main Heidelberg Mainz Mannheim Nurnberg Stuttgart Trier
Wiesbaden Wurzburg

Gitmo

Guam
Agana Agana Heights Agat Andersen AFB Asan Barrigada

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

Japan
Kadena Air Base Okinawa Tokyo Yokohama

Philippines
Baler Radar Site Catanduanes Radar Site Manila

South Korea
Cheju Upper/Radar Chonju Chunchon Inch'on Kunsan Masan Mokp'o
Osan Pusan Seoul Suwon Taegu Taejon Tonghae Radar Site Ulsan Yosu

Today in History
1452 - Pope Nicolaas I crowns Frederik III Roman Catholic-German emperor
1496 - Jews are expelled from Carintha, Austria
1497 - Nicolaus Copernicus 1st recorded astronomical observation
1562 - Kissing in public banned in Naples (punishable by death)
1617 - Sweden & Russia sign Peace of Stolbowa
1697 - Czar Peter the Great begins tour of West-Europe
1701 - France, Cologne & Bavaria sign alliance
1721 - English Chancellor Exchequer John Aislabie confined in London Tower
1741 - English fleet under Admiral Ogle begins assault on Cartagena
1745 - Bells for 1st American carillon shipped from England to Boston
1791 - George Hayward, US surgeon, 1st to use Ether
1798 - Dr. George Balfour becomes 1st surgeon in the US Navy
1820 - Philippines chases out foreigners; about 125 die
1822 - Charles M. Graham of New York patents artificial teeth
1839 - Prussian government limits work week for children to 51 hours
1841 - US Supreme Court rules that the Amistad's rebellious slaves are free
1858 - Albert Potts of Philadelphia patents the street mailbox
1860 - 1st Japanese ambassador arrives in San Francisco en route to Washington, DC
1861 - Confederate currency authorized-$50, $100, $500, $1,000
1862 - Monitor (Union) & Merrimack (Rebel) battle in Hampton Roads
1864 - Ulysses S. Grant is appointed commander of Union Army
1873 - Royal Canadian Mounted Police founded
1889 - Battle at Gallabat (Metema); Mahdi's beat Abyssinian emperor John IV; Kansas passes 1st general antitrust law in US
1893 - Congo cannibals kill 1000s of Arabs
1907 - 1st involuntary sterilization law enacted, Indiana
1914 - US Senator Albert Fall (Teapot Dome) demands "Cubanisation of Mexico"
1916 - General Fransisco "Pancho" Villa leads Mexican band raid on Columbus, NM (17 killed); Germany declares war against Portugal
1918 - Russian Bolshevik Party becomes the Communist Party; Ukrainian mobs massacre Jews of Seredino Buda
1924 - Italy annexes Fiume; South Slavia aproves Italy's annexation of Fiume (Rijeka)
1926 - Bertha Landes elected 1st woman mayor of Seattle
1932 - Eamon De Valera becomes President of Ireland; Former Chinese emperor Henry Pu-Yi installed as head of Manchuria
1933 - Bulgarian communists Dimitrov, Popov & Vassili arrested in Berlin; Congress is called into special session by FDR, & began its "100 days"
1942 - Construction of the Alaska Highway began
1943 - Delft opposition group-Pahud de Mortanges overthrown; Greek Jews of Salonika are transported to Nazi extermination camps
1945 - 334 US B-29 Superfortresses attack Tokyo with 120,000 fire bombs; Japanese proclaim the "independence" of Indo-China
1946 - Dutch troops land at Batavia/Semarang
1948 - Provisionary Indonesian government installed in Batavia
1949 - Brigadier General Edwin K. Wright, USA, ends term as deputy director of CIA
1950 - Willie Sutton robs Manufacturers Bank of $64,000 in New York NY
1953 - Josef Stalin buried in Moscow
1954 - Edward R. Murrow criticizes Senator Joseph McCarthy (See it Now)
1956 - Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus arrested & exiled to Seychelles; Weather forecasting phone line set up in London England
1957 - 8.1 earthquake shakes Andreanof Islands, Alaska
1959 - 1st known radar contact is made with Venus; Barbie, the doll, debuts - over 800 million sold
1961 - Mine cave-in in Japan kills 72; Sputnik 9 carries Chernushka ("Blackie" - a dog) into orbit
1962 - Egyptian President Nasser declares Gaza belongs to Palestinians; US advisors in South-Vietnam join the fight
1964 - 1st Ford Mustang produced; Supreme Court issues "New York Times" vs Sullivan decision, public officials must prove malice to claim libel & recover damages
1966 - Andrew Brimmer becomes 1st Black Governor of Federal Reserve Board
1967 - Svetlana Allilueva, Stalin's daughter, defects to the West
1974 - Last Japanese soldier, a guerrilla operating in Philippines, surrenders, 29 years after World War II ended
1976 - 1st female cadets accepted to West Point Military Academy
1977 - Admiral Stansfield Turner, USN (Ret), becomes 12th director of CIA replacing acting director Knoche; Hanafi Muslims invade 3 buildings in Washington, DC - siege ends March 11th
1980 - Flemish/Walloon battles in Belgium, 40 injured
1981 - Dan Rather becomes primary anchorman of CBS-TV News
1983 - Zimbabwe opposition leader Joshua Nkomo flees to Botswana; Emile Gumbs' Anguilla National Alliance wins elections
1986 - NASA announces searchers found remains of Challenger astronauts; Soviet probe Vega 2 flies by Halley's Comet at 8,030 km
1988 - President Reagan presides at unveiling of Knute Rockne stamp
1989 - Eastern Airlines files for bankruptcy; Senate rejects Bush's nomination of John Tower as Defense Secretary; Soviet Union officially submits to jurisdiction of the World Court
1990 - Dr. Antonia Novello sworn-in as 1st Hispanic/female US Surgeon General

1991 - US 70th manned space mission STS 39 (Discovery 12) launches into orbit
1994 - IRA launch 1st of 3 mortar attacks on London's Heathrow Airport
1995 - President Konstantine Karamanlis (88) of Greece resigns
1996 - STS 75 (Columbia 19) lands

Birthdays
1454 - Amerigo Vespucci, explorer
1564 - David Fabricius, astronomer (discovered variable star)
1568 - Aloysius "Luigi" van Gonzaga, Italian prince/Jesuit/saint
1753 - Jean-Baptiste Kléber, French General/architect (Mainz, Fleurus)
1758 - Franz Joseph Gall, German/French physician (frenology)
1824 - Leland Stanford, Governor / Senator / founder of Stanford University
1839 - Felix Huston Robertson, Confederate Brigadier General
1881 - Enver Pasja, Turkish General/politician
1881 - Ernest Bevin British minister of Labour/Foreign affairs
1890 - Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov, Soviet foreign minister (UN)
1900 - Aimone, Duke of Spoleta/Aosta, Italian king of Croatia (1941-43)
1902 - Edward Durell Stone, US architect (US Embassy, New Delhi)
1913 - Ger[ar]da Brautigam, journalist/Dutch 2nd Chamber (PvdA)
1917 - Dante B. Fascell (Representative-FL)
1923 - André Courréges, French fashion designer (introduced the miniskirt); James Buckley (Senator-NY)
1929 - Hugh Desmond Hoyte, president (Guyana, 1985-92)
1930 - Harrie J.B. Aarts, Dutch 2nd chamber member (CDA)
1934 - Yuri Gagarin, Russian cosmonaut, 1st man into space (aboard Vostok 1)
1940 - Raul Julia, actor (Addams Family, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Eyes of Laura Mars)
1943 - Bobby Fischer, world chess champion (1972-75)
1946 - Gherman Semyonovich Arzamazov, Russian cosmonaut (backup TM-6)
1957 - Faith Daniels, news anchor (CBS-TV)
1959 - Barbie doll (Mattel); Kato [Brian] Kaelin actor (Beach Fever)/OJ houseguest/witness
1970 - Melissa Rathburn-Nealy, US soldier (Iraqi POW)

Passings
1661 - Jules Cardinal Mazarin, chief minister of France
1693 - Antonio Caraffa, Italian General (Eperieser Bloedgericht), dies at 46?
1918 - [Benjamin] Franc[lin] Wedekind German writer/press secretary, dies at 53
1943 - Oskar Hêks Czechoslovakian marathon runner/antifascist, dies in Auschwitz
1955 - Matthew A. Henson, met Peary on 6/4/1909 at North Pole, dies at 88
1962 - Dr. Howard Engstrom, a designer of Univac computer, dies at 59
1964 - Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, Prussian General/politician, dies at 93
1969 - Riad, chief of staff (Egyptian army)
1974 - Earl W. Sutherland, Jr., US pharmacologist (Nobel 1971), dies at 58
1981 - Max Delbrück, German/US biologist (Nobel 1969), dies at 74
1982 - Richard A. Butler, English minister of Finance, dies at 79
1988 - Kurt Georg Kiesinger, West German chancellor (1966-69), dies at 83
1989 - Robert Mapplethorpe, US photographer, dies at 42
1992 - Menachim Begin, Israeli prime minister (1977-1983, Nobel 1979), dies at 79
1994 - John Harrison, South African correspondent (BBC), dies at 48; Lawrence E Spivak journalist (Meet the Press), dies at 93
1996 - Elman Ali Ahmed, peace campaigner, dies at 42
1997 - Notorius B I G [Biggie Small Chris Walkin], rapper, shot dead at 24

Reported Missing in Action
1966
The following USAF personnel reported MIA when their AC47 was shot down:
Collins, Willard M. (IL); KIA

Foster, Robert E. (NY); KIA

Peterson, Delbert R. (NM)

1967
Graening, Bruce A., US Army (OH); escaped March, 1967

Putnam, Charles L., USN (FL); RA5C shot down (w/Prendergast) - remains returend November, 1988

Prendergast, Francis S., USN; RA5C shot down (w/Putnam), captured, escaped, rescued - deceased as of 1998

1969
Rex, Robert F., USAF (IA); O2A shot down (w/Walters) - KIA, body not recovered

Tinsley, Coy R., US Army (TN); released November, 1969

Walters, Tim L., USAF (IN); O2A shot down (w/Rex) - remains ID'd August, 1999

1970
Cotten, Larry W., USAF (TN); F4E shot down (w/Terla), KIA, body not recovered

Parcels, Rex L., Jr., USN (CA); F4J shot down (w/Schoeppner), KIA, body not recovered

Robinson, Edward, US Army (MO); disappeared while rafting (off duty)

Schoeppner, Leonard J., USN (OH); F4J shot down (w/Parcels), KIA, body not recovered

Terla, Lothar G., USAF (PA); F4E shot down (w/Cotten), KIA, body not recovered

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