H&I* Fires, 26 MAR 2008

Open post for those with something to share, updated through the day. New, complete posts come in below this one. Note: If trackbacking, please acknowledge this post in your post. That's only polite.

Time to add a new caveat, because from email it's not clear to some folks (mind you, if you don't read this it won't matter...) Being an open post, people (collectively, the Denizens) other than I post in the H&I. They sign their work (most of the time) - keep that in mind when you want to flame someone in email please - if it doesn't say "The Armorer" or "John" then I didn't write it! And honestly - if you don't like something said or posted... leave a comment, and hash it out (within the context of The Rulez which are clearly posted on the comment form, I would add).

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I knew a number of military people didn't care much for retired Air Force General Merrill McPeak, but didn't really know why. I think I do now. I think the nicest word that could be used to describe him accurately is "vacuous," which is obviously not a quality one likes to see in a general... or a guy angling for SECDEF.

Iraq economic development (notice the lack of a prefix to that last word): Iraq opens electronic stock exchange for the first time.

Interesting cross-section of quotes from AD personnel on the subject of a number -- 4,000. - FbL

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For every Ying, there is a Yang. If this here Castle is the Mil Blogging Ying, THIS other subject is the Peacenik Yang. I did learn a couple things out of it though. - BOQ

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From an email:

Preteen & Shotgun vs. Illegal Alien Home Invaders Butte, Montana, November 5, 2007

Two illegal aliens, Raphael Resindez, 23, and Enrico Garza, 26, probably believed they would easily overpower home-alone 11 year old Patricia Harrington after her father had left their two-story home.
It seems the two crooks never learned two things: they were in Montana and Patricia had been a clay shooting champion since she was nine.
Patricia was in her upstairs room when the two men broke through the front door of the house. She quickly ran to her father's room and grabbed his 12 gauge Mossberg 500 shotgun.

Resindez was the first to get up to the second floor only to be the first to catch a near point blank blast of buckshot from the 11-year-old's knee crouch aim. He suffered fatal wounds to his abdomen and genitals.

When Garza ran to the foot of the stairs, he took a blast to the left shoulder and staggered out into the street where he bled to death before medical help could arrive.

It was found out later that Resindez was armed with a stolen 45 caliber handgun he took from another home invasion robbery. That victim, 50-year-old David Burien, was not so lucky. He died from stab wounds to the chest.

(Wonder why good stuff like this never makes NBC, CBS, PBS, MSNBC, CNN, or ABC news.... Now that is Gun Control.)

Thought for the day:

Calling an illegal alien an "undocumented immigrant" is like calling a drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist"

I admit my first thought was - "I'm sorry for the kid, getting to process that event, and coping with the consequences." I admit my second thought was... well, "Gee, tough noogies for the bad guys. Shoulda stayed home." H/t, Mel C. That part's still true - which just shows how I let my prejudices get in the way. Mind you follow the Snopes link - this story is probably not true - but there are two others which are true, just different. Still. Grumble grumble gripe gripe. -the Armorer

Update: Yanno - as someone quick to hit Snopes, I hate it when I let my own predjudices cause me to post without checking. This is bogus (my BS alarm failed me this time... )

Updated update: I see the New Guy busted me in the comments, too. I will still sleep well knowing I figured it out *before* I read his comment, but it's still a good catch. Which just goes to show I need to get the comment notifier fixed... Argghhh! -the Armorer

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D.B. Cooper's parachute found? If so - cool. -the Armorer

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Today is National Medal of Honor Day (wow! shoot me for not remembering and having an appropriate post up) Read some stories about our national heroes at the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. These are the most recent recipients and their stories.

My nephew once asked me why so many men received the medal of honor for carrying the flag into battle during the civil war. I told him because it took a special kind of strength and courage to carry a giant target on a stick that everyone was going to be shooting at while knowing at the same time that the flag would direct the men where to go and stand in the heat of battle and when to retreat if necessary when no bugle calls or shouting could be heard above the din. Finally, the flag was a symbol of the morale and fortitude of the unit. If the flag fell, the unit would fall. All of these are the reasons why men would run forward to catch the flag if the bearer fell. Why a bearer would be shot many times and still stand, kneel or crawl to move the flag forward or back as he was commanded.

It is the reason why passing the flag of command is such an important ceremony today. It symolizes continuity of these forces and their capabilities and, with them, the continuity of our nation. For, as long as they stand, so do we. -Kat
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One more example of our "eeeeevil" military doing nothing but wonderful things in Iraq: Baby Noor receives the first of three lifesaving surgeries. ~AFSis

*A term of art from the artillery. Harassment and Interdiction Fires.

Back in the day, when you could just kill people and break things without a note from a lawyer, they were pre-planned, but to the enemy, random, fires at known gathering points, road junctions, Main Supply Routes, assembly areas, etc - to keep the bad guy nervous that the world around him might start exploding at any minute.

*Not really relevant to today's operating environment, right? But, it *is*

The UAVs (oops, can't call 'em UAVs anymore - they're now Unmanned Aerial Systems... some Colonel got his Legion of Merit for that change...), er, um UAS's we fly over Afghanistan and Pakistan looking for targets of opportunity are a form of H&I fires, if you really want to parse it finely. We just have better sensors and fire control now.

I call the post that because it's random things posted by me and people I've given posting privileges to. It's also an open trackback, so if someone has a post they're proud of, but it really isn't either Castle kind of stuff, or topical to a particular post, I've basically given blanket permission to use that post for that purpose. Another term of art that might be appropriate is "Free Fire Zone."