Theodore's World

Landstuhl Army Medical Center.

Sheehan to protest at U.S. posts in Germany in March
Cindy Sheehan is going to bring her protest to Germany outside of Landstuhl Army Medical Center. Landstuhl is usually the first stop for our wounded coming back from the war on their way to Walter Reed or Bethesda or Brooke (San Antonio).
“[We’ve already heard] that Cindy Sheehan is like Hanoi Jane [Fonda] coming here,” said Elsa Rassbach, an event organizer with American Voices Abroad, which is supporting Sheehan’s trip.

When asked for comment Wednesday on Sheehan’s upcoming visit, several soldiers in Kaiserslautern asked if they could be quoted anonymously.
One soldier, who recently returned from Iraq, did give his name but didn’t have much to say about Sheehan.
“Anything I would have to say about her, you couldn’t print,” Army Staff Sgt. Mark Genthner said.

March 9: News conference in Frankfurt; panel discussion in Aachen
March 10: Reception of the mayor and news conference in Aachen
March 11-12: “Camp Casey” events at Landstuhl/Ramstein
March 13: Press conference and various events in Paris
March 14: News conference and hearing with European Union parliament in Strasbourg, France
March 15: News conference and various events in Berlin
Stars and Stripes has the rest of the article.
The Landstuhl hospital is for troops with serious injuries or illness requiring surgery and hospitalization. Landstuhl Post is a permanent U.S. Military installation located in the German State of Rheinland-Pfalz, 5K south of Ramstein Air Base.

* Blackfive
* Mudville Gazette
* Soldier’s Angels Germany
Wild Thing’s comment…..
To get to Ramstein the ride is up a winding road through the wooded hills overlooking the picturesque town of Landstuhl and there is the sprawling hospital complex.

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I wonder how ole Mickey Mouse would feel about this. LMAO I doubt Minnie wants to end up in a burka.
heh heh

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* Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
* Wood’s News & Views

“Dude, you just got your ass kicked in battle. What happened?”
“It was the flying nun’s hat…”

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It floats, it flies, it eliminates enemy targets—meet the water-launched unmanned enforcer

Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works, famed for the U-2 and Blackbird spy planes that flew higher than anything else in the world in their day, is trying for a different altitude record: an airplane that starts and ends its mission 150 feet underwater. The Cormorant, a stealthy, jet-powered, autonomous aircraft that could be outfitted with either short-range weapons or surveillance equipment, is designed to launch out of the Trident missile tubes in some of the U.S. Navy’s gigantic Cold War–era Ohio-class submarines. These formerly nuke-toting subs have become less useful in a military climate evolved to favor surgical strikes over nuclear stalemates, but the Cormorant could use their now-vacant tubes to provide another unmanned option for spying on or destroying targets near the coast.
This is no easy task. The tubes are as long as a semi trailer but about seven feet wide—not exactly airplane-shaped. The Cormorant has to be strong enough to withstand the pressure 150 feet underwater—enough to cave in hatches on a normal aircraft—but light enough to fly. Another challenge: Subs survive by stealth, and an airplane flying back to the boat could give its position away.
The Skunk Works’s answer is a four-ton airplane with gull wings that hinge around its body to fit inside the missile tube. The craft is made of titanium to resist corrosion, and any empty spaces are filled with plastic foam to resist crushing. The rest of the body is pressurized with inert gas. Inflatable seals keep the weapon-bay doors, engine inlet and exhaust covers watertight.
The Cormorant does not shoot out of its tube like a missile. Instead an arm-like docking “saddle” guides the craft out, sending it floating to the surface while the sub slips away. As the drone pops out of the water, the rocket boosters fire and the Cormorant takes off. After completing its mission, the plane flies to the rendezvous coordinates it receives from the sub and lands in the sea. The sub then launches a robotic underwater vehicle to fetch the floating drone.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) is funding tests of some of the Cormorant’s unique systems, including a splashdown model and an underwater-recovery vehicle. The tests should be completed by September, after which Darpa will decide whether it will fund a flying prototype.

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Saudis Tell Rice They Won’t Isolate Hamas
Fox News
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia —

Saudi Arabia on Wednesday became the second Arab ally in as many days to reject the U.S. strategy of financially isolating Hamas if the terrorist group does not moderate its policies as leader of the Palestinians.
As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sat nearby, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said through a translator, “We wish not to link financial assistance to the Palestinian people to issues other than their dire humanitarian needs.”
A day earlier, Rice had stood by as Saud’s Egyptian counterpart said it was premature to cut off aid to a Hamas-led government.
Saud and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the world should not “prejudge” Hamas, whose sweep in Palestinian elections last month stunned Washington and threw the Israeli-Palestinian peace process into new turmoil.
Earlier Wednesday, Rice pledged to a group of Egyptian democracy activists in Cairo that the United States would continue applying pressure on Egypt’s government to meet its promises of reform.
“One good thing about having the president stand for election and ask for the consent of the governed is that there is a program,” Rice told a group of dissidents, editors and professors.

Wild Thing’s comment…………
But let’s look at the rest that say kumbaya let’s give Hamas a chance.
Hamas’ Amen Corner from Frontpage

Most of the Muslim world is vying for opportunities to court Hamas, to curry favor with Hamas, to cut deals with Hamas. Muslim countries that virtually abandoned the Palestinian people under the leadership of Arafat and Abbas have embraced the new Hamas leadership.
Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey
Jordan has invited Hamas for a visit, but only if their diplomatic mission is led by the number two diplomatic man, Abu Marzouk, and not by number one Khaled Mashal. In other words, Jordan will not permit Khaled Mashal, the chief diplomat for Hamas entry into their country. Jordan considers Mashal a destabilizing force, an irresponsible leader and a terrorist.
Turkey has just finished a sit-down with Hamas. The meetings took place in Syria. Turkey is trying to straddle the fence. They are a democracy but they are also a Muslim state.
Russia….On the surface it would seem somewhat surprising, even perplexing, to learn that Russia has extended a welcoming hand to Hamas.
Hamas would be happy to have it all. But above all comes ideology. And Hamas has done nothing, nothing at all, to suggest even the smallest modification in their ideological foundation. And that, my friends, does not bode well for our future.

Thank you Bob for telling us about this.

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A chapter in naval aviation history drew to a close aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) with the last recovery of an F-14 Tomcat from a combat mission.

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Piloted by Capt. William G. Sizemore II, commander, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8, Fighter Squadron (VF) 213’s aircraft 204, was trapped at 12:35 a.m. February 8, and marked one of the final stages of the Navy’s transition from the F-14 to F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet.

“It’s the end of an era and it just kind of worked out that I was the last trap,” said Sizemore. “This is one of the best airplanes ever built, and it’s sad to see it go away. It’s just a beautiful airplane. It’s powerful, it has presence, and it just looks like the ultimate fighter.”

Lt. Bill Frank, a VF-31 pilot, also took part in the last mission, and is credited with being the last pilot to ever drop a bomb from an F-14 Tomcat.
The decision to incorporate the Super Hornet and decommission the F-14 is mainly due to high amount of maintenance required to keep the Tomcats operational. On average, an F-14 requires nearly 50 maintenance hours for every flight hour, while the Super Hornet requires five to ten maintenance hours for every flight hour.
The F-14 entered operational service with Navy fighter squadrons VF-1 Wolfpack and VF-2 Bounty Hunters onboard USS Enterprise (CVN 65) in September 1974. The Tomcat’s purpose was to serve as a fighter interceptor and it eventually replaced the F-4 Phantom II Fighter which was phased out in 1986.
From its initial combat air patrol mission during the 1975 U.S. Embassy evacuation in Vietnam, to its recent missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Maritime Security Operations in the Arabian Gulf with VF 31 and 213 of CVW-8 the F-14 Tomcat has played a vital role with the Navy for 32 years.
During its first 17 years of operational service in the Navy, the Tomcat played a vital role as an interceptor with its air-to-air capabilities. However, during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, the need for the Tomcat’s air-to air-capabilities diminished as air-to-ground capabilities proved to be more effective.
Shortly following the Persian Gulf War, Navy leaders decided to devise removable bomb racks for the Tomcat’s to allow them to carry MK-80 “dumb” bombs. With its new upgrades the Tomcat’s were soon dubbed as the “Bombcats.”
Shortly following the addition of bomb racks, Tomcats were equipped with Low-Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN) targeting system to allow for delivery of laser-guided bombs. During the proceeding years the F-14s took on a new, more effective role as a fighter-bomber.
“I will never forget flying a ‘Show of Force’ over a city in Iraq where our troops were taking fire from insurgents,” said Lt. Cmdr. Gregory Knepper, a VF-31 pilot referring to a recent Tomcat mission.
“After making a high speed/low altitude pass over the shoot-out, the insurgents fled and hopefully we saved the lives of some of our soldiers.”
In keeping with its history of being adaptable to new challenges, the Tomcat soared to a new level during its last deployment when it became the first Navy aircraft to make use of the Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receivers (ROVER) system in December of last year.
The system allows for ground forces to view video via laptop computers which gives them the ability to view their surroundings from the aircrafts’ point of view in real time, and ultimately provides better reconnaissance and target identification, which are essential to combat air support missions in Iraq.
Previously ROVER had been used by the Air Force, and with a few modifications from personnel of Naval Air Station Oceana, Va., and members from NADEP Jacksonville, Fla.; it became one of the last great modifications to the Tomcat.
VF-213 pilots who are making the transition to the Super Hornet will begin F/A-18F (double seat) training in April, and the squadron will be operational, or “safe for flight,” in September. VF-31 pilots who are making the transition will begin F/A-18E (single seat) training in October, and the squadron will be safe for flight in April 2007. This will make VF-31 the last official Tomcat squadron in the Navy.

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Wild Thing’s comment…..
Remember when Ronald Reagan challenged the idiot of Libya by sending the Carrier Nimitz into the Gulf of Sidra in August 1981.
Two F-14s on patrol were attacked by two Fitters from Libya. One Fitter shot a short range missile at the F-14s, who were immediately cleared to return fire. The F-14s fired two sidewinder shots and made two kills.
Beautiful. The F-14 is still the baddest-ass looking plane ever made. Sleek waving design lines, broad wings, and arrogantly showing off it’s array of armament.
And from BobF……….
I can’t believe the Navy is going to retire the F-14…where is Tom Cruise when you need him. As far as today’s fighters go, I consider the F-14 and F-15 the heavyweights. The F-16 and F-18 are nice, fast, and sleek but when you have to kick some serious butt, send in the heavyweights.
F-14 Supersonic Flyby video
http://www.alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/SuperSonicFly_by.wmv
http://www.alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/Supersonic%20F14%20flyby.mpeg
http://www.alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/SupersonicF14_2.mpeg

U.S. troops employ innovative tactics to thwart counterinsurgency operations

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U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jason Simmons and Spc. Daniel Meyer scan the banks of the Euphrates River looking for terrorist activity, Feb. 16, 2006. Simmons and Meyer are assigned as scouts with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. U.S. Army photo by Cpl. Michael Molinaro
Written by U.S. Army Cpl. Michael Molinaro
2nd Brigade Combat Team
ISKANDARIYAH, Iraq, Feb. 22, 2006 — Some of them are tankers, some of them are infantryman. But now some of them are … sailors?

“It’s a nice change-of-pace to be on the river after patrolling the roads all of the time.
There are bad guys on the water, so we need to get them too.”
U.S. Army Spc. Michael Komaromy

U.S. soldiers assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, are keeping the pressure on terrorists in the Babil province and have taken counterinsurgency operations to the least common of places for an armor unit: the water.
Insurgents will do whatever it takes to go undetected in this area, and using the river is one of the ways they transport and hide bomb-making materials, said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Paul Jones, combat engineer with the battalion’s Company E.
The battalion has discovered numerous weapons caches since taking over its area of responsibility. During the past week alone, four caches were found over a 24-hour period. Last month, a substantial cache was discovered on one of many islands along the river.
Islands are a clever place for terrorists to hide improvised explosive devices and other weapons used against coalition and Iraqi security forces, said Jones.
Having a presence on the rivers to prevent terrorists from getting to those islands only makes sense. Soldiers probe the islands and search for weapons and other material terrorists use to do harm.

“It’s a nice change-of-pace to be on the river after patrolling the roads all of the time,”
said U.S. Army Spc. Michael Komaromy, also a Company E combat engineer.
“There are bad guys on the water, so we need to get them too.”

Soldiers from Company E never trained for water operations before deploying late last year, Jones said. Since arriving in Iraq, and the introduction of the mission, it has been on-the-job training for these medics, scouts and other soldiers tasked with keeping the water routes free from terrorists.

“We had two or three days of getting familiar with the boats:
knowing where everything is and going over man-overboard drills,”
said Komaromy, “but the reactions to contact are just about the same
as in a vehicle.”

The river operations have been effective, Jones said. Improvised explosive device emplacement was more prevalent in the area prior to 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment’s operations. Now, with checkpoints set up and a presence on the water, terrorists are finding fewer places to hide.

“Locals may feel more comfortable and secure knowing that we are
providing security all around them,” said Jones. “They want to feel better
about the area they are living in, and this is one of the ways to make sure
that happens.”

Company E lost one of its own during the early days of this deployment, and the reminder drives these soldiers to make sure terrorists are taken off the streets – and the water.

“If cruising this river all day and all night is what it takes to take the bad
stuff out of the (terrorists’) hands, then that’s what I’ll do,” said Jones.

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I got this link from Jack that has Conservative Insurgent Blog, and it is soooo cool to watch and the music they picked for it, well it is perfect!
Thank you Jack for sending this to me

USS Ronald Reagan (File photo, Pearl Harbor)
Feb. 22, 2006
The Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, the USS Ronald Reagan, has replaced the USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Middle East as the nuclear-powered carrier marks its maiden operational deployment, Navy officials said.
The San Diego-based carrier, which leads Carrier Strike Group 7, arrived in the Navy’s 5th Fleet area of operations Saturday, and is there to support U.S. military missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Our past nine months of training have been in preparation to support our troops on the ground in Iraq and carry out maritime security operations,” Rear Adm. Michael Miller, strike group commander, said in a Navy news release.
Aboard the $4.5 billion carrier is Carrier Air Wing 14, with about 85 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. The Reagan left its home port Jan. 4 for an expected six-month deployment to the western Pacific Ocean and Persian Gulf.
More than 6,000 sailors are assigned to the carrier strike group, which includes Destroyer Squadron 7, the guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain, the guided-missile destroyers USS McCampbell and USS Decatur, the fast combat support ship USS Rainer, and Explosives Ordnance Disposal Unit 11, Detachment 15.
The aircraft squadrons include Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 22, VFA-25, VFA-113, VFA-115, Airborne Early Warning Squadron 113, Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 139, Carrier Logistics Support 30, and Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 4.
Commissioned in July 2003, the Reagan is the Navy’s ninth nuclear-powered Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.
The departing Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group made history on its deployment when a pair of the Navy’s retiring F-14 Tomcats marked the jet’s final mission Feb. 8.

Rhod has been posting here as you all know. I have asked him if he would like to be one of the Authors of posts here at Theodore’s World. Rhod is a Vietnam Veteran, 25th Inf Div 66 and 67.
When I created my blog I wanted very much to make it a home to Veterans and a place you all feel welcome and comfortable always. As time goes by I would like to open this up for others of you Veterans to be authors as well. A real place to do rants, cheers, serious things, fun things and sharing.
Welcome Rhod from Angry Old Salt ( my husband a Navy Veteran) and myself.

The Golden Mosque, in the town of Samarra, is 100 km (62 miles) north of Baghdad

From AP

SAMARRA, Iraq – Insurgents detonated bombs inside one of Iraq’s holiest Shiite shrines Wednesday, destroying its golden dome and triggering more than 60 reprisal attacks on Sunni mosques. The president warned that extremists were pushing the country toward civil war, as many Shiites lashed out at the United States as partly to blame.
As the gold dome of the 1,200-year-old Askariya shrine lay in ruins, leaders on both sides called for calm: But the string of back-and-forth attacks seemed to push the country closer to all-out civil war than at any point in the three years since the U.S.-led overthrow of
Saddam Hussein.
“We are facing a major conspiracy that is targeting Iraq’s unity,” said President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd. “We should all stand hand in hand to prevent the danger of a civil war.”

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An armed Iraqi takes part in a rally in reaction to the explosion at a Shiite shrine.



An Iraqi child holds a weapon as Shi’ites take to the streets during a protest in Baghdad’s Sad’r city February 22, 2006. A dawn bomb attack wrecked a major Shi’ite Muslim shrine in the Iraqi city of Samarra on Wednesday, sparking street protests and forcing the government to issue an urgent appeal to avert sectarian reprisals. REUTERS/Kareem Raheem Email Photo Print Photo
From Iraq the Model

“Right now there’s heavy deployment for the police and other security forces with more frequent checkpoints that are stop-searching cars more often than they usually do. Sporadic gunfire is heard in different spots in Baghdad but no one knows for sure if the firing meant clashes or mere angry shooting in the air.
From where I’m sitting now I can hear both Sunni and Shia mosques are condemning the attack through their loudspeakers.
I believe there are foreign terror groups behind this attack and I don’t think local insurgent would do such a thing, simply because this particular shrine had been in Sunni territory for a thousand years and the residents of Samarra had always benefited from the movement of religious tourism and pilgrimage.
Things look scary here in Baghdad and I hope there won’t be more updates to report as I can’t see a positive thing coming out of this…”

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From Reuters
U.S. and Iraqi forces are battling a largely Sunni Arab insurgency against the Shi’ite- and Kurdish-led government in Baghdad.
**BAGHDAD – At least 28 Sunni mosques and an office for the Iraqi Islamic Party in Baghdad were attacked by gunmen after the bomb blast in Samarra. Police said one mosque was completely burnt while others were attacked by gunfire and rocket propelled grenades. Three clerics and three bodyguards were killed, and another cleric was kidnapped, according to interior ministry sources. Gunmen used rifles and RPG rounds in the latest mosque attack, in the southern Saidaya district of Baghdad, a witness said.
**Hussein al-Falluji, a leading Sunni politician, reported attacks on at least 75 Sunni mosques around the country with most in eastern Baghdad.

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Wild Thing’s comment….
I wouldn’t know one mosque from another and could care less. What I do know is that our troops are there and I want them to be as safe as possible. The insurgents that did the original bombing only show that the death cult does not (once again) respect others in their own cult.
We ( America) on the other hand have ways of dealing with people like insurgents and we don’t deliever our wrath half assed. God bless our Troops!