For those of you get the History Channel. Info supplied by Papa Art.

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Hi Marion,

Plan to invade Japan

History Channel

Monday Aug.15,2005

TIME: 20:00 hours (8 PM) EST

papa

By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer Fri Aug 12, 5:00 PM ET

WASHINGTON - More and better armor on trucks and other U.S. military supply vehicles in

Iraq has reduced casualties in supply convoys, even as roadside bomb attacks on the convoys have doubled, the general in charge of the logistics network says.

All vehicles used in supply convoys now have some degree of armor protection, and non-armored vehicles are restricted to secure bases, Brig. Gen. Yves J. Fontaine, commander of the 1st Corps Support Command, said Friday.

"Because we've up-armored our vehicles, the casualties have decreased significantly, even though the IED attacks have increased significantly," he said, using the initials for "improvised explosive devices," or roadside bombs. The number of bomb strikes on supply convoys has doubled to about 30 per week, he said.

"So now our soldiers are safe in their Humvees and their trucks, and they walk out of the incidents when the incident occurs," he said.

The 30 attacks per week that he cited are a relatively small part of the broader insurgent violence, which frequently includes the use of land mines and small arms as well as mortars launched against fixed sites such as the air base where Fontaine has his headquarters. U.S. military officials say there are about 500 attacks a week across Iraq, on average.

Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon from Balad air base north of Baghdad, Fontaine offered no figures to illustrate lower convoy casualties from roadside bombs. A spokesman for his command, Maj. Sean Wilson, said in a telephone interview later from Balad that there had been no recent fatalities from IED attacks on 1st Corps Support Command convoys, but he had no specific figures available.

Wilson said that when Fontaine took command last November his top priority was improving armor protection for supply troops, many of whom travel main supply routes from Kuwait that are targeted by insurgents.

In early December the issue of inadequate armor got wider attention when a soldier with the Tennessee Army National Guard asked Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld during a stop in Kuwait why troops preparing for duty in Iraq had to scrounge in junkyards for scrap metal to armor their vehicles.

Rumsfeld replied that the Army was doing all that was possible to provide more armor, although the exchange with the soldier is now better remembered for a phrase Rumsfeld uttered during a lengthy reply: "You go to war with the Army you have, not with the Army you might want or wish to have."

Fontaine said that although the armor protection for his soldiers is much improved, they are still adding armor to their fleet of M915-series tractor trailers.

"Bottom line: all our trucks are up-armored when they go out the gate to different levels, which protects our soldiers," he said.

To a degree, the addition of lifesaving armor to the thousands of combat, support and other vehicles in Iraq has worsened the logistics challenge for Fontaine. The extra weight on the vehicles creates more maintenance problems and lowers gas mileage, which means Fontaine must acquire and distribute more spare parts and fuel.

In mentioning that the number of roadside bomb attacks against his troops had grown to an average of 30 a week, Fontaine did not elaborate except to say that most of the strikes are in the Sunni Triangle north and west of Baghdad.

"Our main threat is the IED for the logistics convoys coming from Kuwait, Jordan and Turkey, and then going to the Baghdad area," Fontaine said.

He also said his force, which numbers about 18,500 troops based at five main hubs, has responsibility for helping the Iraqis develop their own military logistics system to sustain their combat forces.

So far two of the three existing Iraqi motorized transportation regiments are capable of operating on their own, Fontaine said. The goal is to have nine or 10 fully independent Iraqi support regiments by this time next year, he added.

Greetings.

The message below - "To Kill an American" - has been circulating around

the Internet. I don't know if the report it refers to is true but I

don't think it matters. It makes points that are worth considering.

Since our organization is named Spirit of America, I often reflect on

what the spirit of America is. For me, the spirit of America is about

freedom, opportunity and generosity. It's the belief that things can

be better than they are - a better mousetrap, a better government, a

better world, a better way to grill a hot dog. And it's the personal

initiative to try to make things better.

While America and Americans certainly don't own those ideals, we are a

pretty good example of them.

Our job here at Spirit of America is to reflect and help perpetuate

those ideals. Put more simply: we do our work so that freedom

prevails. Our projects in Iraq and Afghanistan are our way of

supporting those struggling for freedom and our way of fighting back

against those who want freedom to fail.

I'm writing this from Jordan so I'm more appreciative of the USA than

usual (though Jordan is a very nice country).

Thank you for your support.

All the best,

Jim Hake and the Spirit of America team

http://www.spiritofamerica.net

this message is also posted at:

http://www.spiritofamerica.net/site/blog/634

To Kill an American

You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was

actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a

newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any

American.

So an Australian dentist wrote the following to let everyone know what

an American is... so they would know when they found one. (Good on ya,

mate!!!!)

An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish,

Polish, Russian or Greek.

An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese,

Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani,

or Afghan.

An American may also be a Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache,

Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans.

An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or

Muslim.

In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The

only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of

them chooses.

An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will

answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming

to speak for the government and for God.

An American lives in the most prosperous land in the history of the

world.

The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of

Independence, which recognizes the God given right of each person to

the pursuit of happiness.

An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every

other nation in the world in their time of need.

When the Soviet army overran Afghanistan 20 years ago, Americans came

with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country!

As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any

other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.

Americans welcome the best, the best products, the best books, the best

music, the best food, the best athletes. But they also welcome the

least!

The national symbol of America, The Statue of Liberty, welcomes your

tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the

homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built

America.

Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September

11, 2001, earning a better life for their families. I've been told

that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 other

countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided

and abetted the terrorists.

So you can try to kill an American if you must.

Hitler did.

So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and every

bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world.

But, in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans

are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the

embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that

spirit, everywhere, is an American.

Author unknown

Pass this around the World

There is a great piece right now (9:00 PM EST) on the History Channel regarding the 60th Anniversary VJ DAY of WWII. If you get a chance, turn it on folks!

Delighted to be here. May I come in?

Our Combat Engineers excelled in building 'em up; our job was to knock 'em down; not the U.S. Combat Engineers construictions, just everything else. I'm a retired Tactical Air Command fighter pilot, but that doesn't make me a bad person.

As an exportee from HBO Band of Brothers and Wild Bill Guarnere Band of Brothers, I guess I go all the way back to the first day of the HBO forums, and I see several familiar names here. Hi, gang!

I am also Susan Smith Finn's uncle and Robert Burr "Mr. Clean" Smith's brother, so maybe you had better shoot me before I corrupt the site.

Some of you may know me as

LongJohn

OberGrumpenFuhrer

Das SS ShweinhundtDumpkopfBayonetBrigade

Y.o.s.,

LongJohn