US Army

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A Colonel's Toughest Duty: the Condolence Letter

US commanders continue 18th-century custom

(Newser) - American warfare has changed over hundreds of years, but one tradition that remains is a commander’s condolence letter to the family of a fallen soldier. The Wall Street Journal spends time with a lieutenant colonel in Iraq who writes his letters by hand whenever one of his men dies....

Repeat Combat Tours Zap Troops' Mental Health

Survey finds steep rise in mental problems among soldiers on third, fourth tours

(Newser) - Cutting the time soldiers have between tours of duty helped the Pentagon boost troop numbers in Iraq—but has taken a heavy toll on soldiers' mental health, Reuters reports. An Army survey found a steep rise in mental health problems among soldiers returning for their third or fourth combat tour,...

Iran Is Biggest Threat to Iraq: General

Points as proof to problem-free visit of Iranian prez

(Newser) - Iran is likely the single greatest threat to Iraq's longterm stability, according to a top US commander. The US has "pretty clear" evidence that Iran is training and supplying Shiite militias, said Lt. General Raymond Odierno, who just completed 15 months as second-in-command in Iraq.  Odierno pointed to...

Medal of Honor for Sioux Warrior
Medal of Honor for Sioux Warrior
Mar 4, 2008 6:32 AM CST

Medal of Honor for Sioux Warrior

Posthumous award first for Sioux

(Newser) - The first full-blooded Sioux to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor was awarded his medal 26 years after his death at a moving ceremony at the White House yesterday, reports CNN. President Bush presented the medal to family members of Army Master Sgt. Woodrow "Woody" Keeble, whose courage in...

Pentagon, Army Captain Differ on Obama Tale

Army doubts, captain confirms weapons, troop shortages

(Newser) - Pentagon officials moved quickly yesterday to rebut Barack Obama's tale of an Army captain whose platoon, deployed in Afghanistan, was stripped of men and so lacking in equipment that they resorted to using captured Taliban weapons. "I find that account pretty hard to imagine," an Army spokesman said...

Iraq Tours to Cut by 3 Months This Summer

Top Army general plans to return to yearlong stints

(Newser) - American soldiers deployed to Iraq this summer will likely serve shorter tours, the AP reports. Soldiers at war today are serving 15 months and coming home for a year before going back to Iraq for another tour. War tours are expected to be shortened to 12 months for units leaving...

Army Buried Report Critical of Iraq Planning

Study rips Bush, agencies on poorly managed rebuilding

(Newser) - A federally funded report harshly critical of President Bush's management of rebuilding efforts in Iraq was deliberately buried by the Army, reports the New York Times. The 2005 assessment by the RAND Corp. accused Bush of failing to smooth over interagency rivalries. It criticized the "uneven quality" of a...

GI Gets 10 Years for Iraqi Murder
GI Gets 10 Years for Iraqi Murder
Feb 11, 2008 5:12 AM CST

GI Gets 10 Years for Iraqi Murder

Sniper tried to cover tracks after killing unarmed civilian

(Newser) - A US Army sniper was sentenced to 10 years in prison yesterday after a court martial found him guilty of murdering an Iraqi civilian. The Iraqi was shot when he stumbled upon the sniper's hideout, and a weapon was planted on the body to make it appear that the victim...

Soldier Suicides at Record High
Soldier Suicides at Record High
Feb 1, 2008 4:26 AM CST

Soldier Suicides at Record High

Long deployments are raising stress levels, experts warn

(Newser) - A record number of US soldiers may have killed themselves last year and it's likely linked to the stresses of war, according to the latest figures from the military. The survey found 121 soldiers died in confirmed or suspected suicides last year, a 20% increase over the previous year and...

Uncle Sam Wants ... Anybody
Uncle Sam Wants ... Anybody
Jan 23, 2008 10:28 AM CST

Uncle Sam Wants ... Anybody

Military lowers standards, hits new low in recruiting high school graduates

(Newser) - The Army is lowering standards to meet recruiting goals, with the percentage of high school-educated recruits dropping to a new low of 70.7% last year, reports the Washington Post. The Army hasn't reached its goal of 90% since 2004. A new study also shows that the number of "...

Army Rescinds Leave for Ill Newborn's Dad

First-time dad ordered back while son fights for life in ICU

(Newser) - The US Army has canceled the leave extension of an Indiana soldier whose newborn son is in critical condition and ordered him to return to duty on the next possible flight. The Chicago Tribune reports on the case of Chris Williams, a veteran of two tours in Iraq, who asked...

One of Last Remaining US WWI Vets Dies

At 109, oldest-known American veteran of 'Great War' never actually saw combat

(Newser) - The oldest-known American World War I veteran—one of only three remaining—has died at age 109, the Toledo Blade reports. J. Russell Coffey, who enlisted in the Army a month before the war ended, was never comfortable with that recognition because he never saw combat. He preferred to be...

Army Lapses Led to Suicide of Mentally Ill Soldier

Rate at all-time high in Iraq, Afghanistan

(Newser) - Depressed and constantly reprimanded by his superiors, Pfc. Jason Scheuerman shot himself in his Iraq barracks in 2005—raising serious questions about how the military handles mental illness, the AP reports. Scheuerman's was one of a record 152 Army suicides in Afghanistan and Iraq, but his parents had to fight...

Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Go!
Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Go!
Dec 14, 2007 5:08 AM CST

Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Go!

Military's 'Will and Grace' generation more tolerant of gays

(Newser) - The US military, whose resources are stretched overseas, has become far more tolerant of gays. One Army sergeant turned over a video of a passionate kiss with his boyfriend to superior officers and was merely told to go back to work, according to a "60 Minutes" investigation to be...

Army Deploys Anthropologists on Front Lines

Uncle Sam enlists social scientists; colleagues object

(Newser) - The US military has been employing anthropologists in Iraq and Afghanistan to help troops work more effectively with locals. The results have been so promising they've just launched a $40 million program to embed social scientists with all 26 combat brigades. But the response back home has been ugly, with...

600K Lose Power in Icy Storm
600K Lose Power in Icy Storm
Dec 10, 2007 6:55 PM CST

600K Lose Power in Icy Storm

15 fatalities reported; weather service warns of more storms tomorrow

(Newser) - An icy storm plunged more than 600,000 Midwesterners into freezing darkness today, crippling power and causing about 15 fatalities on slippery roads, the AP reports. Oklahoma fared worst, declaring a state of emergency as schools shut down and hospitals ran on backup generators. More is on the way, according...

Uncle Sam Wants You (But He'll Talk to Mom First)

New bonuses offer help on mortgages, business startups

(Newser) - Army recruiters will soon promise recruits hefty bonuses to buy a home or start a business in a bid to sway their parents that enlisting is a good investment, the Wall Street Journal reports. "We know most 18-year-old kids don't think about mortgages yet," says a Pentagon official....

Confident Marines Cut 'Bombproof' Truck Orders

Cite fewer attacks, changing mission

(Newser) - The Marines are cutting orders of a nearly "bombproof" Hummer replacement from 3,700 to 2,225, reflecting a more peaceful Iraq and the success of the vehicle, reports the Christian Science Monitor. “Combine the reduction in attacks with the fact that we're not losing as many vehicles...

6,000 Iraqi Sunnis Vow to Aid US
6,000 Iraqi Sunnis Vow to Aid US
Nov 29, 2007 7:44 AM CST

6,000 Iraqi Sunnis Vow to Aid US

Iraqi civilian forces help decrease violence as refugees return home

(Newser) - Almost 6,000 Sunni Arab civilians in Iraq turned against Al-Qaeda yesterday and signed a pact to help US forces police possible insurgent escape routes. As insurgents seek to gain a foothold in the semi-autonomous north, American officials hailed the alliance, which is the Iraq war’s largest single volunteer...

Army Uniforms Aren't Making the Grade
Army Uniforms Aren't Making the Grade
Nov 27, 2007 12:15 PM CST

Army Uniforms Aren't Making the Grade

Soldiers report 'crotch durability problems'; 1 million repairs on order

(Newser) - Army uniforms have an embarrassing problem—they’re tearing open at the crotch. New uniforms rolled out in 2005 use single stitching at the inseam, and soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan report "crotch durability problems" in combat. The troops are “literally sliding down steep hills and mountains,"...

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