image courtesy of FoxNews.com

My thoughts and prayers are with all of our military family at Fort Hood as well as those affected directly by this horrific act. If any of my readers at Hood need ANYTHING, please let me know and I’ll make sure to get you what you need!!!!

I just want to update real quick about what’s happening at Fort Hood.. these are the facts. I’m not going to speculate on ANYTHING (unlike certain members of the MSM)

• LTG Cone said all suspects were SOLDIERS!
• No kids were harmed .. they believe the situation is now under control. (at 3pm MT)
• The initial shooter (an Army major) died and the other 2 are now in custody.

Please remember – let’s not jump to conclusions on the speculations or rumors that we are hearing about. Let  CID, MP’s and FBI do their job and research the backgrounds of these guys before we start jumping to conclusions about the who and the why!

Now – as far as Obama’s press conference about Ft Hood. I think it was severely mishandled but what can you expect with someone who doesn’t have much leadership experience.

UPDATE
LTG Cone stated that MAJ Hasan was the ONLY shooter and that he is in fact ALIVE. Also – 13 people (including 1 civilian) have died and 31 wounded.

According to Fox News –

Survivors of the rampage that killed 13 and wounded 30 said the suspect, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, shouted “Allahu Akbar!” — “God is great!” in Arabic — before opening fire, base commander Lt. Gen. Robert Cone said.

AMEDD - to conserve fighting strength

This is a REALLY LONG POST — this came directly from my husband, SGT Daddy (with some minor edits from me for OPSEC reasons). This account describes what my husband went through over a 9 hour period.

The morning began with the siren signaling incoming. I ignored it. I hate putting on my gear and besides the big boy voice had dutifully reminded me that I should remain in hard shelter. I didn’t argue by deed or word. In the meantime the 155’s began to blaze away in support of some action that did not affect me. Later I was called out of my room to help in the aid station. Two of the COB (combat operations base )  were in the midst of a full on assault by the Taliban.

Rumor had it they had made it inside the wire signaled by claymores just outside the gate exploding in response to encroachment. Later some treated would say that some of the Afghan Army had turned their weapons on them.

I quickly changed and found the Aid Station in the midst of preparations. The toll was 12 casualties coming in with 5 KIA. This would later be amended to 15 counting Afghan forces. I was in the way and ill prepared to offer much assistance but did whatever I was instructed to.

I was asked if I could be a recorder, that is to record the ongoing medical treatment of a casualty at a specific bed, I dutifully answered yes. I had reservations. The only MasCal I’d ever experienced was in JRTC, did this make me ready? I would find out but not for hours.

The fighting was ongoing and in answer of support the 155’s ceased only to be replaced by jet after jet as well as rotary support. I knew it must be bad just seeing the amount of firepower flying in to make defense of our troops. The area had to be secured in order to enable evacuation of the wounded by Blackhawk.

Later SGT S would relay to me that he had word of a billion dollars worth of munitions being dropped to that end. Familiar faces showed up in support of the effort as well. Tom, an Army Doc with some other providers arrived in support.

When word finally came that the first to be evacuated were on the way over 9 hours had passed. The number of wounded remained the same meaning that these guys had held on all day, some with horrible injuries. All day soldiers had been waiting dutifully outside to help the ambulatory patients while the litter of patients would brought directly to the aid station. The big boy voiced beckoned those that were a specific blood type report to the aid station.

Later those that were CLS (combat life support)  certified were called in support of those we would soon be treating. Finally word came that the first medevac had come in. I was asked to tag the casualties as they came in order to track them.

The first litter patient came in and there was no time to affix the wrist band so I followed him back. My heart was racing. I put the bracelet on quickly and got the hell out of the way as the FST began quickly in a measured fashion working on the patient. I think he was American. I hurried back to the door as the next patient was coming in. It was an Afghan Army Soldier. I again followed the casualty to affix his bracelet. I again met the next patient at the door. It was another Afghan soldier. He could walk but he had to be guided in as his was face bandaged up. With shaking hands I put on the bracelet. The medics got him on a stretcher and began assessing his wounds.

PFC H would later recount how a soldier had taken shrapnel to the face and eyes, his nose and some of his lip. The next casualties coming in were to be all ambulatory. Some of us had 5 minutes to collect ourselves. For most it meant cleaning up and resetting for the due in casualties. For the FST,  it continued to be a fight to save a soldiers life.

The next casualties arrived and I was tasked to record. SGT A would treat and I would try to relay in shorthand what he was doing and what the soldier had suffered.

Throughout the night it shocked me how calm these patients were. Had I sustained these injuries I would have been beside myself. I reminded myself that they had had hours to reconcile to some degree what had happened to them. Our patient had been peppered by shrapnel on his left side, from is face down to his thigh. His left arm had been fractured as well. His response to all of this was calm and information. He told us that he’d been shot in the forearm a previous deployment. Once he was appropriately cared for I remember the call coming for people to perform CPR.

SGT M told me later the First American brought in went into cardiac arrest. He’d gone back to perform CPR to no avail. The docs cracked his chest and began massaging his heart. He didn’t make it. The next patient to come through that I saw was another Afghan Army. He had major damage to his right arm. They removed his bandages and they immediately wept blood. He had chunks missing from his arm. The closest I can approximate the injury to is the effect a melon baller has on a cantaloupe. That is was his arm looked like.

I was then called by name to my surprise to assist with a new situation. Wow I was needed specifically. To my dread, Capt P was having issues with the X-Ray plate reader. I secretly hoped was a simple problem with a simple solution. At first it appeared that way. The CPT explained that that the plate was not being brought into the machine for exposure. When I went to grab the plate it fell into the machine and naturally the x-ray was spoiled due to it’s high velocity delivery. The plate had not been fed in correctly and my hands had dislodged it allowing gravity to deliver the plate unceremoniously onto the carriage. A grinding noise ensued and what might’ve been a simple problem was exacerbated. A grinding motor came in response to the melee that had just ensued.

I grabbed my tools and began disassembling the unit while fielding questions of the unit’s operability. It was out of commission until I could resolve the issue. This scared the hell out of me. Up to this point I knew all I had to do was my best but that ultimately the lives of the injured rested squarely on the shoulders of the medics and doctors. I was flustered and had no idea if I could remedy the situation; after all I had worked on such a machine only once previously. I stopped and thought, long enough to realize I was taking apart the backside. The motor is to front left, this is where I needed to be!

I took my queue from the medics and began working at a measured pace. Once I opened the unit up seeing what I needed to see I quickly diagnosed the problem and fixed the unit. While still reassembling the unit the reader was again back in use. One patient had to be sent back out to another facility with the x-ray down. The Afghan Army soldier with the injured arm needed immediate attention.

I was relieved at my success and also that all eyes were no longer on me. I had never been in such a situation and came out no worse for wear.

In the end, it had become more of a group effort than I had anticipated. I had counted on the medical folks to handle everything. While I know I by no means saved the day -  it was gratifying to see a real need for my skills. In the end I don’t think I’d have managed so well if I had not witnessed the controlled chaos. Throughout everything, I witnessed a synergy between all those present. All of the things every one of us learned came in to play and the theoretical use during training came to fruition via an actual event wonderfully successful.

It was an altogether exhausting day, both gratifying and heart wrenching. For my part I will never forget it. For others present it will be perhaps yet another tragedy marked by heartfelt effort.

- written by SGT Daddy (6 Oct 2009 @ 1310 hours)

As you probably have heard, this weekend 8 of our 4th ID , 4th Brigade soldiers gave the ultimate sacrifice in an attack from the Taliban(along with other groups) in Eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan Border.

I do not believe that SGT Daddy was one of the 8 (i would have heard by now), I haven’t heard from him yet either since the attack. In these types of situations, there is usually a communication blackout so that the families of our fallen warriors can be notified. I’m sure that is the reason for not hearing from him.

As the details get released about the 8 soldiers, I will of course update as much as I can. I will make sure to let everyone know if there is anything you can do. Of course, in the meantime, please pray for our soldiers and comfort for their families.

According to the story–

Afghans may be desperately poor, largely illiterate and without electricity, but that does not stop would-be presidents campaigning in cyber space on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Mimicking tactics made famous by US President Barack Obama, one of the top contenders to rule Afghanistan “tweets” on hot micro-blogging service Twitter and has a flashy website where supporters can make donations.

Of 41 presidential candidates standing on August 20, some trumpet policies on social networking site Facebook, while video-sharing website YouTube carries clips of campaign rallies from across the war-scarred nation.

You can view the whole story : http://tech.yahoo.com/news/afp/20090730/tc_afp/afghanistanvoteinternetmedia

I was emailed about this and thought I’d share it with all of you! If you or someone you know, enters the contest let me know, so we’ll be sure to vote for you!!!
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USAA and U-TURN are looking for The Next Great American Road Song !!! The call for entries has begun for U-TURN’s annual Garage Band Playoff ’09, a national battle-of-the-bands competition sponsored by USAA and open to aspiring musicians and songwriters ages 13-21.

This year – in the tradition of immortal songs like Steppenwolf’s “Born to Be Wild”, and Rascal Flatts’ “Life is a Highway” – U-TURN is looking for The Next Great American Road Song.

U-TURN’s judges are seeking original compositions that celebrate cars, driving and the freedom of the open road. Song entries can be something the artists have previously written and recorded, or a completely new creation.

If a song makes the cut, it’ll face off in a series of online, head-to-head match-ups against others… until only one song is left to be named The Next Great American Road Song.

THE GRAND PRIZE INCLUDES:

• $2,500 cash
• a professional photo and video shoot
• an in-depth interview on U-TURN’s audio podcast
• tons of free buzz on MySpace, Facebook and more!

RULES OF THE ROAD:

• Open to solo artists, groups and bands of any musical genre
• Song must be original (no covers)
• Song topic must be about cars, driving or the freedom of the open road (instrumentals OK if evokes a driving feel)
• Song must be clean/radio-friendly
• Solo artist or at least one band member must also be a USAA member
• Solo artist or all band members must be ages 13-21 (as of July 31, 2009)

DEADLINE TO ENTER AT GARAGEBANDPLAYOFF.COM IS JULY 31, 2009. VOTING BEGINS OCTOBER 16, 2009. FOR MORE INFORMATION, E-MAIL UTURN@USAA.COM .

No purchase necessary to enter or win. A purchase will not increase your chances of winning.

Message from SGM of the Army Kenneth O. Preston :

Let’s make sure we support them and help them win a social media makeover from CommuniCause

A little info about the contest:

This year, we just couldn’t pick a favorite, so we launched CommuniCause, allowing America to help us select the organization to receive our pro bono social media services. We are allowing America to nominate and vote for their favorite charity that they’d like to see win the grand prize of a Social Media Makeover valued at $25,000.

So go over to the voting page and cast your vote for Soldiers Angels !!!

I’ll be honest I look forward to the LAST case lot sale of the summer because that means that the new school year is right around is right around the corner.

According to DECA (Defense Commissary Agency ) :

The Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) is sponsoring its first worldwide case lot sale of 2009 in May, offering about 100 more products than last year’s 260.

To find out when your local commissary will be having there Case Lot Sale, click here

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I’ve been to two milblog conferences now, and this one was great!  Meeting some of my “imaginary” friends is always a thrill.  Connecting with those I met last year again – a bonus!

Bouhammer was his usual self,  a gracious and great guy, and introduced me to a woman I admire very much, his lovely wife – who works so very hard for the troops! We are hoping to work together on some projects for Parents of Serving Military over at ParentsZone.   Matt/Blackfive was happy to hear from my husband in the Sand about his site and the fact that his hootch is decorated with a lot of the clip art from Matt’s site.

The special guest, MG Oates live from Iraq, is a blogger, who takes it seriously and uses it to keep in touch with his troops. His advice – candour!  Be upfront and honest with your readers and in his case, his troops.

Most of the panelists were intelligent, knowledgeable about their subject, and a couple of them were fascinating, and new to me, anyway.

Let’s start with Lily Burana. For those of you who haven’t read her book yet I Love a Man in Uniform: A Memoir of Love, War, and Other Battles-  go get it.  What are you waiting for?

Lily married a career Army officer who was teaching at West Point.  Lily had written a couple of books – a continuation of a varied career including punker, model and stripper. She continued being a writer, and a brutally honest one too. Reading her book gave me a great many “ah HA” moments,  “oh, yeah, been there!” , a lot of laughter and tears. As a panelist, her wit, ability to get to the point, and no fear, were refreshing.  She and AirForceWife were a terrific comedy duo!  After the panel, Lily was very gracious and signed books, and   I was very honoured to share a cocktail, and some good pizza afterwards with her and some new friends.

On the veterans panel, Genevieve Chase of American Women Veterans  (she is working to establish it as a non-profit) – after a fun surprise beginning (where she announced that we might not know it, but we were naked!) more than held her own when being confronted with someone who was rather reactionary and decided that the walls have to go up between Us (vets ) and Them (the public).   This panelist decided that the veterans community needs to pull in, not let the media in (after all, ALL media can’t be trusted….) etc.  Genevieve delivered a great rebuttal – which did take the wind out of his sails a while – and did it with grace, and firmness.   Many of us watching – are convinced there’s a new star on the blog/veteran’s horizon.

The final panel just BLEW me away.  Three very knowledgeable men, talking about the GWOT, they write policy blogs and are so incredibly smart, never talked down to their audience, and there was no evidence of (to quote one of my new friends) the “testosterone gunslinger”.  If you want to read thoughtful analysis, facts without spin, THESE are the sites you need to head to.  Small Wars Journal, Long War Journal, and Abu Magawama .

Problems – the usual – no internet access had been prearranged, and there was a scramble for the very few available power outlets. There must be somewhere we could have these conferences, with enough power strips! The internet access did eventually appear – but there were so many of us blogging (wow – imagine that- blogging at a bloggers conference!), we seemed to have exceeded the permitted sign-ins, and there were those that could not get on.

The Restaurant and Bar – great food – the pizza’s are really good – the service SUCKED! 25 minutes to wait for a Sam Adams – which came without a glass!!  I’d say the hotel needs a shakeup in the waitstaff.
It was a great conference with good panel discussions.

Great job, Andi, JP, Jeanie, Vince and Ward!

Guest Blogger LAW