At 1934 Zulu, there will be a moment of silence to reflect the carnage of the shootings at Ft. Hood. All military personnel will comply even those overseas.

The Army is sending support personnel to Ft. Hood. This includes 13 Ministry Teams, 35 Life Consultants, 13 Behavioral Therapists, 17 Critical Health Specialists and 5 Combat Control Teams. A muslim cleric is part of the Ministry Team.

A general biography on the shooter will be released later today.

The Army CID is currently heading the investigation but the FBI may take over the investigation.

Commanders of all military installations are looking at there Force Protection Procedures.

The shooter was not confirmed dead or alive for 4 hours yesterday. This was due to the fog and friction of the situation.

The Army will be releasing details of the investigation as they see fit to do so.The Army, Pentagon and other investigative bodies will not be releasing any information until they feel ready. Day to day details of the official investigation will not be given.

The shooter had never been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. He was in a deployment window.

An Army ballistics team is currently at Ft. Hood putting together a timeline of the type of weapons used as well as when and where.

Travis Martinez, University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

April Stephenson Director, of the Defense Contract Audit Agency, brought attention to the KBR Corporation Monday, stating that the large defense contractor could save the U.S. nearly $200 million by more effectively managing their work-force.

“In October 2009, we issued a report concluding that KBR’s drawdown was ineffective and KBR could save the government at least $193 million by improving the staff management and aligning their labor drawdown with the military drawdown,” said Stephenson during her testimony before the Commission on Wartime Contracting.

KBR has been in the spotlight recently for its inaction to reduce contract employees, which is now overstaffed by nearly 3000 employees. The KBR Corporation has continuously increased their employee levels while American troops steadily leave the Iraq.

Stephenson has recently moved from her position as Director of the DCAA to new position within the Department of Defense.

By Meagan Wiseley – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

At a press conference Tuesday, delegates from Alabama led by Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said they are disappointed with the Pentagon and U.S. Air Force’s Request For Proposal (RFP) for a next-generation aerial refueling tanker, the KC-X, arguing that the RFP is biased towards the manufacturer Boeing.

Also bidding for the KC-X is defense contractor Northrop Grumman, which if chosen by the Pentagon to carry out the project, plans to build a new assembly plant in Mobile, Alabama.

Rep. Jo Bonner, (R-Ala.), whose Congressional district includes Mobile, says the new plant would create nearly 48,000 new jobs in his state.

“We look forward to build the world’s best tanker…but that’s only if the Department of Defense is serious about giving us a fair shot and fair competition,” Bonner said.

Yesterday, every delegate from Alabama signed a letter that was sent to Defense Secretary Robert Gates requesting a new draft of the proposal. The letter argues that the RFP lacks an “assessment of risk associated with either schedule, past performance or price.”

The letter also states that the some of the RFP’s new requirements for the tanker could be satisfied by the KC-135 refueling tanker, which was designed over 50 years ago.

In February 2008, the U.S. Air Force chose Northrop Grumman’s bid for the KC-X project, but later that year the Department of Defense halted the project.

“This new request for proposal has changed…in so many ways. And in just about all those ways, it is tilting the process towards Boeing,” said Shelby.

John DuBois, University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Veterans Affairs Secretary Erik Shinseki spoke out Monday on the importance of treatment and prevention of post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD] among U.S. servicemen and women.

“Beyond waging the wars we are in, treatment of our wounded, their continuing care and eventual re-integration into every day life is my highest priority. I consider this a solemn pact between those who have risked and suffered and the nation that owes them its eternal gratitude,” said Gates during a mental health summit in Washington, D.C.

“Invisible wounds are as debilitating as the physical trauma sustained on those battlefields,” added Shinseki. “Warriors suffer emotional injuries just as they do physical ones.”

President Obama: Secretary Gates, Admiral Mullen and members of the Armed Forces, fellow Americans, family and friends of those that we lost this day — Michelle and I are deeply humbled to be with you. Eight Septembers have come and gone.  Nearly 3,000 days have passed — almost one for each of those taken from us.  But no turning of the seasons can diminish the pain and the loss of that day.  No passage of time and no dark skies can ever dull the meaning of this moment.  (more…)

Iraqi security forces have undertaken a broad self-assessment in the wake of series of deadly attacks in the Iraqi capital last month, a U.S. commander there said today.
A wave of truck bombings in Baghdad killed at least 100 people and injured more than 500 others in the deadly August 19th assault that exposed a lapse in security, according to U.S. defense officials. 
With the current tight economy, consensus exists among officials in the Pentagon, Congress and the White House, “to try to address some of these acquisition issues that have built up cumulatively over a large number of years” said Secretary Gates.
The new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is an all-purpose aircraft that makes financial sense, Gates said. The F-35 will be used by the Air Force, the Marines Corps and the Navy. Once in production, he said, the F-35’s unit price will be at less than half the cost of the F-22 Raptor fighter that is being tabbed for exclusive use by the U.S Air Force. 
The Defense Department is slated to purchase 187 F-22s, which Gates called “a great airplane.” But finite defense resources compelled the Pentagon to favor the F-35, he said.

Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the United States’ main objective in Afghanistan is protecting the Afghan people. (0:11)

 

 Standard Podcast [0:11m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says that the United States must turn the tide against the Taliban in the next twelve to eighteen months. (0:17)

 

 Standard Podcast [0:17m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

By Sam Wechsler – Talk Radio News Service

Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke Wednesday about the need for the U.S. to better protect its troops from being harmed in the war in Afghanistan.

Mullen stated that “the center of gravity is really the protection of the [Afghan] people.” He added that civilian casualties are not conducive to winning the war.

He explained that the largest threats to the U.S. military in Afghanistan are attacks from IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) employed by the Taliban, and post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by American soldiers.

“We’ve come a long way with respect to [IEDs], but this is an enemy that is very adaptive and very capable…and as they adapt, we adapt, and they adapt again,” said Mullen. In order to better equalize the threat of IEDs, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is sending upwards of 2,000 armored all-terrain vehicles that provide better protection from the explosives.

“When I visit troops there is also a great skip in their step because they know they’ve made a difference, they’ve turned it around in a place like Iraq, and they’re very confident that they can get the job done in Afghanistan,” said Mullen.

As for a timetable, Mullen said that military must “turn the tide” against the Taliban within the next twelve to eighteen months.

By Michael Ruhl, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

General David Petraeus
Photo By Michael Ruhl

According to General David Petraeus, an educated American soldier that can bridge the cultural divide with the Muslim world can more effectively fight the War on Terror. This soldier would understand the social context they are operating within, and would understand the broad implications and consequences of military action.

General Petraeus, Commander of U.S. Central Command, discussed U.S. military strategy in the Middle East and South Asia while testifying today before Congress.

“While additional military forces clearly are necessary (in Afghanistan), they will not by themselves be sufficient to achieve our objective,” said the General. America’s objective, he said, is to make sure extremists do not have a haven from which to plan and execute another attack on the level of the 9-11 attacks.

A smarter military can better understand the necessary social infrastructure to facilitate lasting peace within a region. This combined with intelligent military action, international cooperation, the building of infrastructure and a swath of other initiatives will help America secure the region, according to Petraeus. “You cannot kill or capture your way out of an industrial strength insurgency,” the General said.

“We also need to expand just the basic knowledge of Afghanistan among our forces,” Petraeus said. He continued that greater knowledge will lead to a “nuanced and granular understanding” that will enable the Army to undertake the kind of sophisticated reconciliation processes in Afghanistan that were important in Iraq.

Congressman Norm Dicks (D-Wash.) agreed that soldiers should be educated, and brought attention to the U.S. Army’s Homestead Program. Dicks said this program involves an Officer taking a year off from active service to live in a country, learn the language, and understand the culture. Retired Army General John Abizaid did a program similar to this. Abizaid was former Commander of U.S. Central Command.

The U.S. Army could not be reached for comment on the current funding of the program, but Dicks expressed concern on the small number of individuals enrolled in it.

The necessary approach to success involves placing security in the hands of the Afghans, Petraeus said, which means helping them collectively realize that the biggest security threat in the region comes from dissident extremist elements within the country, most notably Al-Qaeda. He emphasized that America’s presence in Afghanistan is not permanent, and that Afghanistan’s government and economy must be encouraged by its citizens.