Discussions should begin now about how the world should react if the North Korean government collapses, retired Army Gen. Walter “Skip” Sharp told a meeting of Pacific land forces in Honolulu. Speaking at the Association of the U.S. Army’s LANPAC Symposium and Exposition, the former commanding general of U.S. Forces Korea warned failure of North Korea’s government would leave a standing military of 1.3 million and 23 million civilians. Now manager of Sharp Advice LLC, the retired four star said the U.S., China, South Korea and the United Nations should be talking about dealing with Korean...
The Association of the U.S. Army’s Institute of Land Warfare (ILW) has recently released two new publications.“Delivering Materiel Readiness: From ‘Blunt Force’ Logistics to Enterprise Resource Planning” discusses the vital role that materiel readiness plays in the increasingly uncertain, complex and ambiguous security environment of the 21st century. The Torchbearer Issue Paper also looks at what steps are being taken to ensure that the Army is able to effectively and efficiently enhance asset visibility to be strategically responsive now and in the future. The United States military...
After more than a decade of expansive stability operations in the Middle East, the U.S. Army is embracing a more expeditionary posture. This shift finds America’s primary land power institution returning to its origins as a more modestly sized, but tactically effective, fighting force. During the final decade of the 18th century and throughout the 19th—with the exception of the Civil War—the Army predominantly operated in small garrisons across expanding frontiers while occasionally massing in distant theaters.
As the Army’s first successful major campaign far beyond home territory, the...
The Army’s top Pacific commander said “peace and prosperity have not always been guaranteed” in the Indo-Asia-Pacific Theater, with a growing need to strengthen military relationships. He also praised the outgoing president of the Association of the U.S. Army during a keynote speech at AUSA’s LANPAC Symposium and Exposition in Honolulu on May 24.Gen. Robert B. Brown, who became U.S. Army Pacific Command commanding general on April 30, said the AUSA three-day event is “especially relevant and timely” because of threats and challenges requiring a collaborative solution from land forces.“We live...
Whenever former Sgt. Aaron Carew had free time during the first of two deployments to Iraq, he binge-watched DVDs of TV programs. After discovering 24, the critically acclaimed counter-terrorism drama, “I knew I wanted to be a television writer,” said Carew, who had committed to the Army in 2002 as a high school senior. Today, the former logistics specialist who served for seven years is a staff writer for the Fox TV series Lethal Weapon, which premieres in the fall.
Former Cpl. Jeff Reyes was a criminal science major when he left college in 2004 to join the Army and “do my part.” Deployed to...
The following is a prediction for how this year will play out in Washington, D.C. Members of Congress will spend June and the first part of July trying to pass as many of the 12 appropriations bills as they can before the process breaks down. They will not pass all 12 bills. Next, they will leave town from mid-July through early September. This year’s summer recess is extra-long to accommodate the two presidential nominating conventions. The Republicans will hold theirs in Cleveland, Ohio, from July 18-21, and the Democrats will hold theirs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25-28...
The Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) sponsored the first ever Army writing award at the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama, that was presented during a ceremony on May 19. The Army award is named the Lieutenant General Elwood “Pete” Quesada Award, in honor of the legendary U.S. Army Air Forces leader, visionary airman, and staunch advocate of close air support to ground forces.The first recipient of the award was Lt. Col. Patrick M. O’Hara, an Army Special Forces officer, for his professional studies paper titled “Is the United States Ready to Use...
They are silent, stoic sentinels at the corners of the wire. A new weapons system is providing persistent surveillance, early warning and lethality for an enduring and successful Middle East peacekeeping mission.
The introduction of the containerized weapons system to the Multinational Force and Observers’ North Camp is a benchmark for this independent international organization, which was jointly created by Egypt and Israel and charged with peacekeeping responsibilities on the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt. Acquisition of these remotely operated weapons platforms is another step taken by Task Force...
The Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act provides our military force with a modernized retirement plan. The new system is a blend of the current 20-year cliff-vested defined benefit annuity with a defined contribution plan that allows service members to contribute to a portable Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) account. Quality and timely financial education (similar to a 401k savings plan) is the key to success in implementing the Blended Retirement System (BRS) on Jan. 1, 2018.DoD is on track to provide targeted information to prepare our 2.1 million service members and their families...
‘Tribe’ Is Shallow Dive Into Deep Topic
Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging. Sebastian Junger. Hachette Book Group. 168 pages. $22
Buy Now
By Laura Stassi
Assistant Managing Editor
An increasingly affluent and urban American society has led to emotional disconnection and isolation among individuals, making it more difficult for men and women in uniform to reintegrate. That’s the premise of Sebastian Junger’s Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging, a slim volume on post-traumatic stress disorder.
Junger is the best-selling author of several books including 2010’s War, which recounts the 15 months he spent...
Clarissa “T.C.” Freeman, known as the “Mother of Fort Campbell” for her devotion to soldiers and their families, died after a long illness May 19 at the Jennie Stuart Medical Center, Hopkinsville, Kentucky. She was 83.Appointed a civilian aide to the secretary of the Army for Central Kentucky in 2008, her service to the Army and to the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) and its Tennessee – Kentucky Chapter are legendary.Retired Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, AUSA president and CEO, said of her passing, “T.C. Freeman will always be remembered as a staunch supporter of and strong advocate for our...
The military spouse community has an abundance of riches – organizations that exist to support the educational, career and personal lives of those who love those who serve. In this vibrant community of military family nonprofits, many are run by military spouses – after all, there is no better subject matter expert. In the all-volunteer force, families are the ones who get drafted, moving from place to place with little say regarding their next destination, not only for love of country, but for love of their service member. To cope with this constant change, military spouses have learned to...
The military spouse community has an abundance of riches – organizations that exist to support the educational, career and personal lives of those who love those who serve. In this vibrant community of military family nonprofits, many are run by military spouses – after all, there is no better subject matter expert. In the all-volunteer force, families are the ones who get drafted, moving from place to place with little say regarding their next destination, not only for love of country, but for love of their service member. To cope with this constant change, military spouses have learned to...
Greetings from the Association of the United States Army (AUSA), our Army’s association for education and professional development, and a major supporter of the Army’s Soldier for Life efforts. The 3rd Bi-Annual Sullivan Cup Competition took place in May at Fort Benning, Georgia, with 16 tank crews competing to be the best of the best.The Sullivan Cup is named for Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan, USA, Ret., president and CEO of AUSA, and the 32nd Army Chief of Staff. The five-day competition allows the best tank crews from across the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps and select international partners from...
An amendment to the Senate’s defense policy bill that would have authorized additional funds to pay for extra personnel and equipment and a larger pay raise was shot down after Republicans rejected Democrats’ call for an equal boost for non-defense accounts.Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee John McCain, R-Ariz., wanted authorization to add $18 billion to the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account to pay for the items that were not included in the president’s budget request. However, Democrats refused to go along with him unless their demand for matching funds for non...