The Army announced Tuesday that a sergeant first class assigned to an assault prevention program at Fort Hood, Texas, is under investigation for sexual assault. [CNN] THE contagion of news about sexual assault in the U.S. military, with the latest news out of Fort Hood, should wake everyone up to a cancer on our Armed [...]
Tag Archives | Pentagon
Stewart Slams Republicans, They Target Hillary
The Daily Show with Jon StewartGet More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Indecision Political Humor,The Daily Show on Facebook Is this an impeachable offense? No. Will Hillary Clinton’s evident involvement in the revision of the administration’s line on Benghazi harm her presidential chances in 2016? No. Will this be of great political utility to Republicans? No. Will [...]
Air Force to Female Sexual Assault Victims: “Submit”
Rape-crisis counselors sometimes advise, like the Air Force brochure does, that there are circumstances whereby fighting back against an assailant is a bad idea. Purchia doesn’t dispute that. “You can always identify some circumstances,” he said, “but as a general rule research indicates and it’s generally understood that fighting back often can fend off the [...]
Air Force Sex-Abuse Chief Arrested for Sexual Assault
The Air Force official in charge of its sexual-assault prevention program was arrested for groping, authorities said Monday. Lt. Col. Jeff Krusinski, 41, was removed from his position as head of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office pending an investigation, the Air Force said. [NBC News] REPRESENTING the Air Force’s continued war on women, [...]
Queer Talk: National Day of Prayer Lead by Anti-LGBT Pastor
Tomorrow is the first Thursday in May, and that is, by a joint resolution of Congress and a presidential signature, the day for the annual National Day of Prayer. This year Pastor Greg Laurie is Honorary Chairman and keynote speaker, and as it turns out, is also anti-LGBT proponent. That’s why the Human Rights Campaign [...]
News Desk: CIA Drone Program to Shift to Pentagon? Exclusive Report at Daily Beast
The Daily Beast reports, in an exclusive report, that there may soon be some phased-in changes in the Obama administration’s use of drones. At a time when controversy over the Obama administration’s drone program seems to be cresting, the CIA is close to taking a major step toward getting out of the targeted killing business. [...]
Women: Join the Military and Increase Your Chances of Being Raped
According to an NPR report, citing the Pentagon: (emphasis added throughout) About 19,000 sex crimes take place in the military each year. … Many of the victims are male, but men in the service face the same risk of sexual assault as civilian men do. It’s a different story for women. Women who join the [...]
Congressional Progressive Caucus Unveil “Back to Work” Budget *Updated*
WHILE EVERYONE is listening to the squealing talking heads on morning cable, none of whom know much about what a real budget looks like that doesn’t channel the disastrous notion of austerity, House progressives showed the Democratic party, the White House, and everyone else in Washington, how it’s done. You can read the Progressive Congressional [...]
Chuck Hagel, The Grunts’ SecDef, Asked to Downgrade Drone Medal
THE PHOTO essay at DOD is worth a look for those appreciating the history of Chuck Hagel’s appointment. Hagel is the first former enlisted man to ever become Defense secretary. In other news, Secretary Hagel is being lobbied to reconsider the prowess of a drone and cyberwarfare medal being considered. From the Washington Post on [...]
Obama, and Duncan’s Sequester Claims Both Get 4 Pinocchios, with an Asterisk *Updated*
“Starting tomorrow everybody here, all the folks who are cleaning the floors at the Capitol. Now that Congress has left, somebody’s going to be vacuuming and cleaning those floors and throwing out the garbage. They’re going to have less pay. The janitors, the security guards, they just got a pay cut, and they’ve got to [...]
Call Him Mr. Secretary
THE REPUBLICANS did their worst, but Vietnam war hero Chuck Hagel was confirmed today as President Obama’s Secretary of Defense. A simple majority won the day, 58-41. So, it’s finally over. The biggest loser is Jennifer Rubin, who disgraced herself and the Washington Post with her diatribes and rantings. Senator Ted Cruz was revealed for [...]
What Will Hagel McCarthyites Ted Cruz and Jennifer Rubin Do Next?
All of this is doubly concerning since the report from Rutgers. Contemporaneous notes recorded his words, and now Hagel can’t say definitively that he didn’t say them. Meanwhile, after a slumber, two major liberal Jewish organizations, the Anti-Discrimination League and the American Jewish Committee, have perked up. Gosh, if true, this is really bad stuff, [...]
Hagel ADVANCES, as Polling Shows Obama Trusted on Foreign Affairs and National Security *Update*
HAGEL NOMINATION ADVANCES Passed along party lines by 14-11 in committee Across nine issues, Americans give Obama his highest approval ratings for handling national defense (53%), followed by foreign affairs and immigration, each at 46%. [Gallup] SENATORS McCAIN, Lindsey Graham, Kelly Ayotte, James Inhofe and others have done their best to ruin the reputation of [...]
Queer Talk: Pentagon Extends Additional but Still Limited Benefits to Same-Sex Partners and Families
Today the Department of Defense finally issued new guidelines for benefits to partners and families of lesbian and gay servicemembers. The “finally” is related to the fact that Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) officially ended September 20, 2011 (it was enacted in 1993). The limitations in today’s announcement are, to a significant extent, tied to [...]
Republicans Threaten Hagel Walkout & Filibuster, While Levin Letter Reveals Their Hypocrisy
LET THEM walk out. “There are two options: If Hagel doesn’t fully disclose all the things in the letter [in which Republicans made requests for more disclosure] … either you will see a party line vote or Republicans will stand up and leave the room in protest,” said a senior Republican Senate aide. “Does Levin [...]
Recent Comments