7th General Speaks Out Against Rumsfeld

Bush Speaks Out for Rumsfeld - WaPo

The grievances aired by half a dozen retired flag officers in recent days resonated with many military veterans. "I admire those who have stepped forward, and I agree with the arguments they are making," retired Marine Lt. Gen. Paul K. Van Riper said in an interview yesterday. "I count myself in the same camp."

Van Riper, a lifelong Republican who voted for Bush in 2000 but did not vote in the 2004 election, said Rumsfeld has failed in a number of ways, including "disastrous" war planning and execution and fostering a poor command climate.

I think these generals are spesking out to try and save the troops they once commanded. Rumsfelds mislakes have cost many of our troops their lives. Like not enough body armour, unarmour humvees, low troop levels in Iraq, ect.

Marine Lt. Gen. Paul K. Van Riper was the Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command now retired.

Semper Fi

Two Marines killed, 22 wounded in Iraq - Reuters

Fri Apr 14,

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two U.S. Marines were killed and 22 wounded in combat against insurgents in Anbar province in western Iraq on Thursday, the U.S. military said on Saturday.

Semper Fi

Shot in head, Marine is fine - Charlotte Observer

Bullet tears through helmet; fragments are removed from his neck

TODD PITMAN
Associated Press

RAMADI, Iraq - The young Marine had just shot a suspected insurgent and was walking back across the villa's rooftop when he keeled over from a terrific thud to the back of his head.

A sniper had fired a single, well-aimed bullet that tore through the top of Lance Cpl. Richard Caseltine's helmet, traced a path along the edge of his skull and buried burning bullet fragments in the back of his neck.

"You expect when somebody gets shot in the head, they're dead," the soft-spoken Caseltine said Friday, cradling the battered camouflage helmet that saved his life. "I consider myself very lucky."

Semper Fi

WAR IN IRAQ: Injured GF Marine to start therapy - Grand Forks Herald

Ben Lunak may visit hometown in a month

Associated Press

A soldier from Grand Forks who was wounded by a roadside bomb in Iraq says he might be returning to his hometown for a visit in about a month.

Marine Lance Cpl. Ben Lunak, 22, was wounded in February when the Humvee in which he was riding drove over a roadside bomb. He had been stationed near Ramadi, west of Baghdad.

Two soldiers were killed in the explosion. Lunak lost a leg and his spleen, and has undergone more than a dozen surgeries.

"We turned a corner and everything just turned black," Lunak said. "I felt myself flipping in the air, and I was waiting to hit the ground so I could react. I looked down and saw my leg was pretty much severed."

Semper Fi

Afghanistan battle kills 41 Taliban: governor - Reuters

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan forces and coalition helicopter gunships attacked a suspected Taliban hideout in southern Afghanistan, triggering a fierce battle that killed 41 militants, a provincial governor said on Saturday.

Six Afghan policemen were also killed, but there were no casualties among the U.S.-led forces in Friday's battle in the Zare Dasht district of Kandahar province, Kandahar Governor Assadullah Khalid told a news conference in Kandahar city.

Semper Fi

Eleven killed in Iraq attacks - AFP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - At least 11 Iraqis, including three soldiers, have killed across the country in a series of bombings and shootings.

The three soldiers were killed when their convoy was hit by a roadside bomb in Baghdad's dangerous Al-Dura neighborhood, an interior ministry official said. Eight soldiers were wounded.

In east Baghdad four civilians were killed in a car bomb attack against a passing police patrol. The attack, which wounded 28 others, occurred on Baghdad's Palestine street, the official said Saturday.

I think the first line should read "have been killed across the country" and not "have killed across the country".

Semper Fi

22 Fallen, May They Rest in Peace - 1 MIA

Casualites in Iraq as listed on the DoD Website from 4/10/06 - 4/15/06

1. Sgt. 1st Class Gregory S. Rogers


2. Pvt. Jody W. Missildine


3. Pfc. Joseph I. Love


4. Lance Cpl. Juana NavarroArellano


5. Lance Cpl. Bryan N. Taylor


6. Cpl. Richard P. Waller


7. Spc. James W. Gardner


8. Sgt. 1st Class Randall L. Lamberson


9. Sgt. David S. Collins


10. Spc. Shawn R. Creighton


11. Cpl. Kenneth D. Hess


12. Lance Cpl. Eric A. Palmisano


13. Cpl. Joseph A. Blanco


14. Pfc. James F. Costello III


15. Pfc. George R. Roehl Jr.


16. Spc. Scott M. Bandhold


17. Pfc. Roland E. Calderon-Ascencio


18. Lance Cpl. Marcus S. Glimpse


19. Lance Cpl. Philip J. Martini


20. Spc. Andrew K. Waits


21. Cpl. Salem Bachar


22. Lance Cpl. Stephen J. Perez

Still Listed As Duty Status - Whereabouts Unknown

1. Petty Officer 3rd Class Marcques J. Nettles

Semper Fi