BUSY TIKRIT NEIGHBORHOOD - Seen through a night vision device, a U.S. soldier keeps an eye on a busy neighborhood in Tikrit, Iraq, April 24, 2008, where local citizens are shifting their concerns from security to economics. The soldier is assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Richard Rzepka

Labels: 101st Airborne Division, Iraq, photos, Tikrit, US Army

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Iran Targeting GIs in Iraq
Iraq Sends Delegation to Iran to Discuss Concerns
Car Bombing Aimed at U.S. Patrol Kills Nine Iraqis
White House admits fault on 'Mission Accomplished' banner
Seeds Sow Progress in Busayefi
Iraqi Police Hone Skills with Coalition Help
Christians Sign Up to Join Iraqi Police
Arafia Canal Re-opens to Provide Vitale Irrigation Water
Australian wheat heading for Iraq
Iraq Oil Revenue May Top Outlook
Iraq's Tareq Aziz goes on trial
Muqtada Sadr says Iraq truce still stands (L.A. Times)

Operation Enduring Freedom
Afghan officials: Al-Qaida link in assassination plot

Homeland Security / War on Terror / Hamas-Hezbollah Happenings
Group: Al Qaeda Chief in Somalia Killed in Raid
Rice returns to Mideast amid few signs of progress
State Department on Terrorism in the Middle East, North Africa
State Department Report on Terrorism in the Western Hemisphere

Fallen Heroes
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
DoD Identifies Army Casualties (Baghdad)

Wounded Warriors
Troops Fear Mental Health Stigma, Survey Says

Supporting Our Heroes
Anti-War T-Shirter Sued for $40B

Other Military News
China to be focus of U.S. attention in Asia: CIA
Vets' attorney asks judge to help stem suicides
Deployment of second carrier to Gulf a 'reminder': Gates

Religion of Peace??
Critic accuses Hollywood of vilifying Arabs

Worldwide Wackos
Official: Iran Could Have Nuclear Bomb Know-How Soon
Iran complains to U.N. about Clinton comment

Politics / Government
Former DNC Chair Switches Teams
Clinton to O'Reilly: Obama Right to Condemn Pastor - VIDEO
FOX News Poll: Obama Slipping in Favorability
McCain Promises Billions in Tax Cuts, Federal Spending
Indiana voters in unexpected political spotlight
Obama says he grew up less privileged than rivals
Democratic battle shifts to Pacific at weekend
Obama's wife joins push to court working class
Obama hurt by furor over ex pastor: polls
Video: Obama's former preacher speaks out
McCain's balancing act
Blog: McCain meets "earmark"
Clinton's message to working class
DNC chairman under Bill Clinton: Unite behind Obama
Obama says public tired of hearing about his former pastor (Methinks HE's tired of the public hearing about his 'former' pastor)
The Indiana Congressional Candidate the GOP Wishes Would Go Away (What a nutcase)
Russia sends extra troops to Georgian rebel region
Child labor scandal highlights worrying trend in China

In the Courts / Crime and Punishment / Law and Order
Police From Seattle to Miami Uncovering Indoor Marijuana Farms, Often in Unexpected Places
Fugitive Mom Arrested in San Diego After 32 Years on the Lam
Friends Claim Man Killed by Houston Police After High-Speed Chase Was CIA Agent
Girl, 12, Dies From Methadone Bought From Boy, 15
Horror-House Dad Eyed in Unsolved Murder - PHOTOS
Police Piece Together Details of Austria Incest Case
Incest father pretended to be daughter in 1994 call
More questions than answers in Austria incest case
Families Defy FBI: 'Smiley Face Gang' Killed Our Kids
Indictment: Missing girl was beaten, denied medical care
Officials probing possible abuse of boys in polygamous sect

U.N. News
Russian climate plans show tough path to U.N. treaty

Media in the Media / Bloggers in the News / Watching the Web
Cher Dishes to Oprah on Romance With Tom Cruise
Craigslist a runaway bride?
Microsoft's board fails to decide on Yahoo: report

Science / Medicine and Health / Technology
Girl, 15, Prepares for Surgery to Correct Upside-Down Feet
Girl Formerly in Vegetative State Gives Abuse Testimony
Sootiest City? Take a Guess, It's Not Los Angeles...
Ancient meteorite goes unsold in N.Y. as dung sells
Turn-ons, turn-offs, desire varies widely among men
Peer pressure brings docs up to speed: study
Scientists develop new type of memory circuit
New type of stem cells coaxed into heart tissue
Studio films going day-and-date at iTunes Store
IBM launches "green energy" tools for data centers
Scientists develop new type of memory circuit
Nokia confident free music downloads will profit
Video: Can Hi-Tech bring families closer?
Scientist rediscovers rare plant unseen since 1985
AT&T launches TV service on new phones, rivaling Verizon

Mother Nature
Raging Maine River Floods Homes, Threatens Historic Event
Colossal Squid Has Eye Large as Dinner Plate
Hawk Clawed Open by Own Last Meal
Arctic sea ice forecast: another record low in 2008
World's largest lake warming rapidly: scientists
Natural changes may offset global warming briefly
Video: Baby rhino poses for the camera

News from My Neck of the Woods
Appeals court dismisses NY suit vs. gun industry
New York hopes cards for inmates will solve crimes

Oddities
130-Million-Year-Old Dung Sells for $960
Indian cricket in cheerleader cover-up
Families sue undertakers in body parts scandal
Web sites promote "hypermiling" to save on fuel
Pink Floyd's missing giant pig has landed
Guy tears hair out over hairdresser's phone
Video: Head lice art opens in Israel

Other News of Note
David Blaine Breaks World Record for Holding One's Breath
Native Hawaiians Blockade Historic Palace
Official: DNA is that of czar's children, ending mystery

Fox News
Spate of 'Detergent Suicides' Sends Hundreds Fleeing
FOXBusiness: Futures Up Ahead of ExxonMobil Earnings
Reality Check: 'Idol' Says Bye Bye Brookie
Girl Burned in Northern India in Possible Inter-Caste Violence

Reuters
U.S. Hispanic population hits 45.5 million: agency
Oil steady after giving up gains - Video
March personal spending beats forecast
Pakistan's Sharif says talks yield positive results
Plotlines: A murky inflation signal
Waiting for Icahn's blog
Play it smart
Global Finance: An emerging love
Sell in May, go away?
Small Business: Tax benefits
Jobless claims jump but consumer spending up
Comcast quarterly profit declines, loses subs
Thomson Reuters posts quarterly operating profit
Disney buys back North American Disney Store chain
Apple's iTunes sells movies on DVD release date
Cerberus may buy $200 mln stake in Blackwater: ABC
H&R Block closes Option One sale to Ross
Studios and actors remain at odds
Moviegoers have "Sex" on the brain: poll
Paula Abdul hits a sour note on ailing "Idol"
CBS and "Young and the Restless" lead Emmy nominees
Video: Madonna & Justin's free gig
Every album "feels like the first time" for Madonna
Grand Theft Auto IV breaks UK first day record
Turn-ons, turn-offs, desire varies widely among men
For cult artist Banksy, graffiti "better than sex"
Neville Bros. return to New Orleans jazz fest
Video: Blind cricket arrives in Bangladesh

AP World News
Consumer spending up but much of gain reflects higher prices
'American Idol' boots another finalist; 4 singers remain
Butler's late basket helps Wizards win Game 5 in Cleveland
Stocks up slightly after ExxonMobil report, spending data
Consumer may get benefits from a Fed rate pause
Pierce, Celtics top Hawks 110-85 and take 3-2 lead in series
Mexican bus drivers want tips despite harrowing rides
McCready back to recording after Clemens report
Mavericks fire Avery Johnson after another playoff flop
Rangers lose Avery, still hope for big comeback against Pens

News Blaze
NP Takes Lead in Combined Cordon, Search Operation With MND-B Soldiers
Guardian FARP pumps 1,000,000 gallon of fuel
Soldiers' Angels and Patriot Guard
Iraq News
Read about Operations in Iraq
FOB Warhorse Memorial Photos
Videos

CENTCOM
Sons of Iraq help secure Fuhail village
Poultry means prosperity in Hawr Rajab
Troops treat Afghans near Tag Ab
Poultry means prosperity in Hawr Rajab
Sons of Iraq help secure Fuhail village
Admiral: ISF fight well in Basra, Baghdad battles
Marines open up 'Road to Peace'

USJFCOM
USJFCOM signs agreement with Old Dominion University Research Foundation
Learn more about CRADAs - podcast
Follow USJFCOM news on Twitter
Joint Knowledge Online earns prestigious award for distance learning
Joint Knowledge Development and Distribution
Interoperability assessment begins - podcast
Learn more about JSIC
DoD honors USJFCOM efforts to improve command and control linkages - podcast
Provincial reconstruction team supports Iraqi farmers
Task Force Ramadi gets fuel flowing
Joint Urban Warrior 08 comes to a close
USJFCOM signs letter of intent to support interagency online training
Phase two of Multinational Experiment 5 kicks off

Multi-National Force - Iraq
MND-B soldiers kill 8 criminals
Coalition forces strike Iranian-sponsored Special Groups leader in Sadr City
MND-B Soldiers kill 9 criminals in separate clashes (Baghdad)
Christians sign up to join Iraqi Police force (Mosul)

DefenseLink

TOP NEWS
U.S. Strikes al-Qaida Target in Somalia
Gates Announces Change To Security Clearance Question
DoD Changes Question to Encourage Counseling
Photos: Gates Visits Fort Bliss
Photos: Gates Visits Mexico, April 30
Photos: Gates Visits Mexico, April 29
Gates Lauds U.S.-Mexico Partnership

MILITARY NEWS
Joint Chiefs Panel Evaluates Care of Wounded Warriors and Families
Command Aids Micronesian Efforts

IRAQ NEWS
Soldiers Patch Roads After Baghdad Bomb Blasts
Troops Kill 11, Disrupt Rocket and Bomb Attacks

AFGHANISTAN NEWS
Coalition Forces Provide Medical Care in Village

AMERICA SUPPORTS YOU
Football Hero Helps Troops With Life After Combat

FACE OF DEFENSE
Chaplain Meets the Pope

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

Today in History
0305 - Emperor Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus Jovius of Rome resigns
1006 - Supernova observed by Chinese & Egyptians in constellation Lupus
1048 - Bishop Bernold flees St Pieterskerk for Utrecht Netherlands
1394 - Ekiho, exorcised the Zen temple & its surroundings from an old badger
1523 - Danish king Christian III arrives in Veere
1528 - Pánfilo the Narvaéz begins exploration to with 350 men to Florida
1544 - Turkish troops occupy Hungary
1551 - Council of Trente resumes
1598 - Jacob van Necks merchant fleet departs for Java
1625 - Portuguese & Spanish expedition recaptures Salvador (Bahia); Prince Frederik Henry appointed viceroy of Holland
1682 - Louis XIV & his court inaugurate Paris Observatory
1703 - Battle at Rultusk: Swedish army beats Russians
1704 - Boston Newsletter publishes 1st newspaper ad
1707 - England, Wales & Scotland form UK of Great Britain
1711 - Arch duke Karel of Austria/Hungarian rebellion sign Peace of Szatmar
1715 - Prussia declares war on Sweden
1725 - Spain & Austria sign trade treaty
1757 - Austria & France divide Prussia
1759 - British fleet occupies Guadeloupe, West-Indies
1776 - Adam Weishaupt founds the secret society of Illuminati
1781 - Emperor Jozef II decrees protection of population
1822 - John Phillips becomes 1st mayor of Boston
1834 - Belgian parliament accept railway laws
1840 - 1st adhesive postage stamps ("Penny Blacks" from England) issued
1841 - 1st emigrant wagon train leaves Independence, MO for California
1844 - Samuel Morse sends 1st telegraphic message; Whig convention nominates Henry Clay as presidential candidate
1846 - Ida Pfeiffer (48) begins trip around world
1850 - John Geary becomes 1st San Fransisco mayor
1853 - Argentina adopts its constitution
1854 - Amsterdam begins transferring drinking water out of the dunes
1857 - William Walker, conqueror of Nicaragua, surrenders to US Navy
1861 - Lee orders Confederate troops under T.J. Jackson to Harper's Ferry
1862 - Union captain David Farragut conquers New Orleans
1863 - Battle of Chancellorsville VA (29,000 injured or killed); Battle of Port Gibson, Mississippi; Confederate "National Flag" replaces "Stars & Bars"; Confederate congress passed resolution to kill Black Soldiers
1864 - Atlanta campaign, Georgia; Battle at Alexandria, LA (Red River Campaign); Wilderness campaign
1866 - American Equal Rights Association forms
1867 - Reconstruction of South begins, black voter registration
1869 - A colt is reported killed by a meteorite near New Concord, OH
1873 - 1st US postal card issued; Emperor Franz Jozef opens 5th World's Fair in Wien (Vienna)
1875 - 238 members of "Whiskey Ring" accused of anti-US activities
1883 - "Buffalo Bill" Cody put on his 1st Wild West Show
1883 - Amsterdam World's Fair opens
1884 - Construction begins on Chicago's 1st skyscraper (10 stories); Moses Walker became 1st Black player in the major league
1885 - Maria "Goeie Mie" Swanenburg sentence to life for killing 27 in Netherlands
1886 - US general strike for 8 hour day, begins
1889 - 1st International Workers Day, according to the 2nd International; Bayer introduces aspirin in powder form (Germany)
1892 - US Quarantine Station opens on Angel Island, San Fransisco Bay
1898 - George Dewey commands, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley" as US route Spanish fleet at Manila
1900 - Premature blast collapses mine tunnel killing 200 at Scofield, UT
1907 - Belgian Government of De Trooz forms
1909 - Netherlands begins unity with Belgium
1914 - China's 1st president Yuan Shikai wins dictatorial qualification
1915 - British Lusitania leaves New York, for Liverpool; German submarine sinks US ship Gulflight
1919 - Mount Kelud (Indonesia) erupts, boiling crater lake which broke through crater wall killing 5,000 people in 104 small villages
1921 - Drusian sultan Pasja al-Atrasj elected Governor of Suwayda
1924 - Admiral Paul Koundouriótis becomes President of Greece
1925 - Cyprus becomes a British Crown Colony
1926 - British coal-miners go on strike; Satchel Paige makes pitching debut in Negro Southern League
1927 - 1st British airliner to serve cooked meals (Imperial Airways)
1928 - 6 children die & 10 injured by hailstones in Klausenburg, Romania; Drunken fascist Erich Wichman attacks VARA-radio transmitter; Lei Day begun (a Hawaiian celebration)
1929 - Farm workers strike begins in East-Groningen; Police kill 19 Mayday demonstrators in Berlin
1931 - Empire State Building opens in New York, NY; Norway claims Peter I Island
1932 - 1st Suriname union congress at Paramaribo
1934 - Austria signs pact with Vatican; Philippine legislature accepts US proposal for independence
1935 - Boulder Dam completed; Canada's 1st silver dollar is circulated
1936 - Emperor Haile Selassie leaves Ethiopia as Italian invades; FBI's J. Edgar Hoover arrests Alvin Karpis
1937 - FDR signs act of neutrality
1939 - Batman Comics hit the street
1940 - 140 Palestinian Jews die as German planes bomb their ship; the 1940 Olympics are cancelled
1941 - General Mills introduces Cheerios; German assault on Tobruk
1942 - Radio Orange calls to defy order to wear "Jewish star"
1943 - 1st edition of illegal "The Free Artist" appears in Amsterdam; Food rationing begins in US; German plane sinks boat loaded with Palestinian Jews bound for Malta; German Wehrmacht deployed in order to break Dutch strikes
1944 - Messerschmitt Me-262 Sturmvogel, first operational jet aircraft (twin-jet fighter), makes 1st flight; Surprise attack on Weteringschans Amsterdam, fails
1945 - 900 occupiers of Demmin Vorpommeren commit suicide; Admiral Karl Doenitz forms German government; Australian & Dutch troop lands on Tarakan; General Belgian Labor Union (ABVV) party forms; Radio Budapest, Hungary re-enters shortwave broadcasting after WWII; Seys-Inquart flees to Flensburg; Soviet army reach Rostock
1946 - Fieldmarshal Montgomery appointed British supreme commander
1947 - Lieutenant General Hoyt S Vandenberg, USA, ends term as 2nd head of CIA; Radar for commercial & private planes 1st demonstrated; Rear Admiral Roscoe H Hillenkoetter, USN, becomes 3th director of the CIA
1948 - Glenn Taylor, Idaho Senator, arrested in Birmingham AL for trying to enter a meeting through a door marked "for Negroes"; North Korea proclaims itself People's Democratic Republic of Korea
1949 - Gerard Kuiper discovers Nereid, (2nd satellite of Neptune)
1950 - Gwendolyn Brooks, is 1st Black awarded a Pulitzer Prize (poetry); Mayor of Brussels reluctantly bans May Day parade; New marriage laws enforced in People's Republic China
1951 - 600,000 march for peace & freedom in Germany
1951 - Mickey Mantle's 1st homerun; Minnie Minoso becomes the 1st Black to play for the White Sox
1952 - Marines take part in an atomic explosion training in Nevada; Mr Potato Head, introduced; TWA introduces tourist class
1957 - Larry King's 1st radio broadcast; US give Poland credit of $95 million; Vanguard TV-1 booster test reaches 195 km
1958 - Ambonese rebellion bombed Ambon/conquer Morotai; Arturo Frondizi sworn in as President of Argentina
1959 - West Germany introduces 5 day work week
1960 - India's Bombay state split into Gujarat & Maharashtra states; Russia shoots down Francis Gary Powers' U-2 spy plane over Sverdlovsk
1961 - 1st US airplane hijacked to Cuba; Fidel Castro announces there will be no more elections in Cuba
1961 - Tanganyika granted full internal self-government by Britain
1962 - JFK authorizes Area Redevelopment Act (ARA)
1963 - 1st American (James Whittaker) conquers Mount Everest
1964 - 1st BASIC program runs on a computer (Dartmouth)
1965 - USSR launches Luna 5; later impacts on Moon
1966 - US troops shooting targets in Cambodia
1967 - Anastasio Somoza Debayle becomes President of Nicaragua
1971 - Amtrak railroad begins operation
1972 - North Vietnamese troops occupy Quang Tri Activities Committee
1978 - 1st black mayor of New Orleans (Ernest Morial) inaugurated; Naomi Uemura became 1st to reach North Pole overland alone
1979 - Elton John becomes 1st pop star to perform in Israel; Home rule introduced to Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland); Marshall Islands (in the Pacific) become self-governing
1981 - Harrison Williams (Senator-D-NJ) convicted on FBI Abscam charges; Radio Shack releases Model III TRSDOS 1.3
1982 - World's Fair in Knoxville, TN opens
1985 - "Communist" bomb attack kills 2 firemen in Brussels; US President Reagan ends embargo against Nicaragua
1986 - Tass reports Chernobyl nuclear power plant mishap; Will Stegers expedition reaches North Pole
1987 - Pope John Paul II beatifies Edith Stein, a Jewish born nun
1988 - IRA attack in Roermond, kills 3
1989 - 135 acre Disney's MGM studio officially opens to the public
1989 - US Supreme Court rules employers have legal burden to prove non-discriminatory reasons for not hiring or promoting
1991 - Angola's civil war ends; Skin-Spit-Skin featuring lesbian, homosexual & heterosexual nude couples caressing, is seen by 5,000 in NYC
1992 - Eric Houston kills 4 in a California HS where he failed history 4 years prior; Los Angeles Dodgers postpone 3 games due to racial riots due to Rodney King
1993 - Bomb attack on Sri Lankan President (26 die)
1994 - Charles Kuralt retires as CBS newsman (On the Road); Tornado & hail storms hit Jiangxi China, 95 killed
1997 - Toni Blair elected PM of UK

Birthdays
1238 - Magnus VI Lagabuter, King of Norway (1263-80)
1245 - Philippe III, King of France (1270-85)
1493 - Phillippus Paracelsus, physician/alchemist
1735 - John H. van Kinsbergen, Dutch Lieutenant-Admiral/founder of Dutch Marines Corps
1769 - Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, British PM (C) (1828-30)
1800 - Ret Thomas Aloysius Dornin, Commander (Union Navy)
1807 - John Bankhead "Prince John" Magruder, Major General (Confederate Army)
1819 - William Steele, Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1830 - Mary Harris Jones [Mother Jones], hell-raiser
1835 - Alfred Napoleon Alexander "Natti" Duffie, Brigadier General (Union volunteers)
1839 - Chardonnet, inventor (rayon)
1852 - Calamity [Martha] Jane [Burke], frontier adventurer/Indian fighter
1887 - Alan Gordon Cunningham, Irish/British general/director of Palestine (1945-48)
1898 - Eugene R. Black, President of World Bank (1953-62)
1905 - Nikolai Tikhonov, Soviet PM (1980-85)
1916 - Jack Parr, TV host (Jack Paar Show)
1924 - Patricia Roberts Harris, 1st US Black woman cabinet member
1925 - Malcolm Scott Carpenter, astronaut (Mercury 7-Aurora 7)
1927 - Harry [Harold George, Jr] Belafonte, calypso singer (The Banana Boat Song)
1957 - Dick Swett (Representative-D-NH); Paul D. Ronney, ScD/astronaut (STS 83 alternate)

Passings
1171 - Dermot MacMurrough, last Irish king of Leinster
1277 - Stefanus IV Uros I de Great, King of Serbia (1243-76)
1308 - Albrecht I van Habsburg, German King (1298-1308), murdered
1447 - Louis VII, Duke of Baveria (1413-43)
1456 - Hugues de Lannoy Flemish viceroy of Holland/Zealand
1555 - Marcellus II [Marcello Cervini], Italian Pope (1555), at 53
1572 - Pius V [Antonio Ghislieri], great-inquisiteur/Pope (1566-72)
1703 - Kiva Yoshinaka Japanese monarch, murdered
1863 - Edward Dorr Tracy, US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle at 29
1869 - ? colt reported killed by a meteorite near New Concord OH
1870 - Francisco Solano López, fieldmarshal/President of Paraguay
1896 - Naser ed-Din shah of Persia (1848-96), murdered at 65
1932 - Paul Doumer, President of France (1931-32), assassinated by Russia's Paul Gargalov
1945 - Paul Josef Goebbels, Nazi minister on propoganda, commits suicide
1947 - Sanner leader of Norger blood bath, executed
1948 - Christos Ladas, Greek minister of Justice, murdered
1959 - Oscar Torp, Norwegian premier
1989 - David Webster, South African white anti-apartheids activist, murdered
1993 - Pierre Bérégovoy, PM of France (1992-93), commits suicide at 67; Ranasinghe Premadasa, President (Sri Lanka, 1989-93), assassinated at 68
1997 - Bebe, AKA Flipper, dolphin, at 40

Reported Missing in Action
1967
The following USMC personnel Killed when the CH46A they were being evacuated in was shot down; all KIA/BNR:
Bailey, John Howard (AL); passenger

Corfield, Stan L. (NM); passenger

Gaughan, Roger Conrad (MA); crew

Guajardo, Hilario H. (TX); passenger

Smith, Carl Arthur (NY); passenger

Soulier, Duwayne (WI); passenger

1968
The following US Army personnel reported Missing when their UH6A crashed while on a reconnaissance mission (possibly shot down):
Gervais, Donald P., (TN)

Martin, Richard D., (HI)

Whitmire, Warren T., Jr., (VA)

Labels: Headlines, History