News of the Force: Sunday, February 19, 2017 - Page 2

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  News of the Force: Sunday, February 19, 2017 - Page 2

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U.S. Coast Guard

    Advanced marine electronics systems will be supplied to the U.S. Coast Guard for enhancing situational awareness and navigation capabilities.

    The U.S. Coast Guard medevaced a 75-year-old woman from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship off the coast of North Carolina, yesterday.

    The Coast Guard has rescued two boaters in distress on the Houston (Texas) Ship Channel.

    An ice climber has been rescued after she fell at Pictured Rocks in Munising, Mich. according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

    And Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) has announced a contract for two additional Response Boat-Medium (RB-M) vessels for the U.S. Coast Guard.

 

American Red Cross

    

    The Red Cross is extending hours at many donation sites for more donors to give blood or platelets.

    And during Red Cross Month in March, the American Red Cross encourages eligible donors to give blood.

 

U.S. Army

    Although it has not been confirmed whether it is a legit order or not, U.S. Army W.T.F! Moments spokesman Mike Trysom says the Army is banning "terrible rock groups," including "Nickelback."

    Florida's Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue Special Operations Division and Hazardous Material Teams were involved in a civil-military maritime hazardous materials exercise with the U.S. Army, at the Port of Miami.

    The United States Army Field Band and Soldiers' Chorus will play a free concert at North Carolina's Asheville High School on Saturday, March 18th, at 7 p.m., ET.

    The United States Army will send about 1,000 military personnel to Poland in April.

    The Army is now offering two-year contracts and cash bonuses to grow the service. A decision on the ultimate end strength plan, to include the National Guard and Army Reserve, is due later in February, said Lt. Col. Randy Taylor.

    The Total Army philosophy encompasses active duty Army, Army Reserve, and National Guard troops as a Total Army force.

    Jefferson City, Mo., baseball enthusiast Toney Jenkins was 21 when he was inducted to the U.S. Army in October 1917 to serve in World War I. Less than a year later, he was killed while serving with the "Harlem Hellfighters." His photo is part of the Museum of Missouri Military History’s Black Heritage Month exhibit on display at the Missouri National Guard's headquarters, open to the public. "As a historian, I hope with the significance of this being the 100th anniversary will cause people to have an interest in this conflict," museum curator Charles Machon said. Jenkins served in Company G of the 369th Infantry of the 92nd Division, which sustained severe losses in the drive in Meuse-Argonne leading to the capture of the strategic village of Sechault, France. The first black soldier from Jefferson City to die in World War I, he is the namesake of American Legion Post 231, chartered in 1934 originally as an all-black post. Machon has been researching Missouri’s African-American service members during World War I in recognition of the 100th anniversary this spring of the United States entering that war. The Jefferson City News Tribune reports that this exhibit will be in the auditorium display case through the end of February. Then it will be available as a traveling exhibit to sites or organizations that request it across the state. Machon hopes communities will take advantage of the exhibit to educate Missourians about the sacrifices of African-Americans during the Great War. "We want to show they were equal in sacrifice and service," he said. Contributions of black soldiers, sailors and airmen from Missouri have been difficult to track, Machon noted. The limited details about Jenkins is a good example. "I'd like to learn more about him," he said. Machon, with Lincoln University professor Essex Garner, is researching Missouri African-American military contributions dating back 200 years for a future book on the subject. Documents and searchable database information at the website missourioverthere.org and at the Missouri State Archive have been helpful, he said. "For Missouri, these are excellent tools to research World War I," he said. At the time, the war was called "The War to End All Wars," and Americans believed it was necessary to "make the world safe for democracy," he said. The war was the first time chemical weapons, airplanes, tanks and submarines were used in warfare. All of Missouri’s National Guard units were called to duty, joining with Kansas to form the 35th Infantry Division. But the state had no black units during the era of segregation. Black Missourians serving during World War I were drafted or enlisted into all-black companies, led by white officers in each of the military branches, Machon said. Many Missouri residents became famous from their involvement in World War I, including Gen. John Pershing, President Harry S Truman and Maj. Gen. Enoch Crowder. Black service members from Missouri equally contributed their services and sacrifice, but records and photos are slim. They mostly served in "pioneer" or engineer units, working behind the lines moving supplies and building roads and bridges. "Those veterans deserve to be recognized; they did their part," Machon said. "Just because back then, with racism, many of them were put in non-combat jobs, those things needed to be done, too. They still contributed a great deal." Many black Missouri residents volunteered, Machon said. "It was a way to show that even though they were treated this way, 'we're going to do our part,'" he interpreted. "We can't go back and change history. This exhibit is done to honor their service and sacrifice."

    And MaxPreps, recognized nationally for its promotion of high school sports, in partnership with the Army National Guard, stopped to recognize Roanoke, Va.'s Salem High School teams and present them with a trophy.

 

Today in history

    On this date in 1600, Huaynaputina's eruption was the largest volcanic eruption to take place in South America. in 1803, the U.S. Congress accepted Ohio's constitution. In 1846, Texas' state government was formally installed at Austin.   In 1878, Thomas Edison patented the phonograph, the first device to reproduce recorded sound. In 1913, prizes were first inserted into Cracker Jack boxes. In 1941, Nazi troops rounded up 429 young Jews in Amsterdam for deportation after the Jews drove the Nazi police out of the city. In 1942, about 150 Japanese planes attacked Darwin, Australia; Japanese troops landed on Timor; and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the internment of Japanese-Americans living on the U.S.' West Coast. In 1943, Afrika Corps tanks attacked the Kasserine Pass, in Tunisia; and 823 Royal Air Force bombers attacked Berlin. In 1944, U-264 was sunk off the coast of Ireland. In 1945, a U.S. invasion force of 30,000 Marines landed at Iwo Jima; and 900 Japanese troops there were reportedly killed by crocodiles in two days. In 1963, the USSR informed the U.S. that it was withdrawing its troops from Cuba. In 1970, the USSR launched Sputnik 52 and the Molniya 1-13 communications satellite. In 1976, George Harrison was fined for plagiarism for the "My Sweet Lord" song's similarity to "He's So Fine." In 1984, the Mahre brothers won the Olympic gold and silver medals in slalom. In 1985, the first patient with an implanted artificial heart, William J. Schroeder, departed from the hospital. In 1986, the USSR launched its Mir space station into orbit. In 1987, anti-smoking ads aired for first time on American TV; and U.S. President Ronald Reagan lifted the trade boycott against Poland. And in 2002, NASA's Odyssey mapped the surface of Mars.

 

The parting shots

    Iraqi forces taking over an ISIS base in Mosul last month reported finding papers from at least 14 Islamic State "fighters" who had tried to claim "health" problems, asking commanders to please excuse them from real combat (and martyrdom). One, a Belgian man, actually brought a note from a doctor back home attesting to his "back pain." Five of the 14 were initiated by volunteers from France, a country that endures a perhaps-undeserved national
reputation for battle-avoidance.

    "I happened onto something called DASHLANE and ran it on a machine that is not online," NOTF's Jim Corvey reports. "Talk about unnerving, It finds 'all' passwords you have or have had, on the computer. For me, It found 51, (including 6 that are/were encrypted.). To me, it means you better damn well not trust anyone, or any repair shop that has access to your computers. Some went back over 20 years, when I still used the AOL service. It brings up a list of everything you have, or ever did have, that used a password to access. Be sure you trust who looks at your machines."

    Actor Jeff Daniels is 62 years old today. Actress Haylie Duff is 32; Actress Victoria Justice is 24; Singer Smokey Robinson is 77; Actress Christine Rowland is 39; and singer Seal is 54.

    It could be vendetta time for Ellie Bishop in NCIS' Season 14 Episode 16. Will she succeed in taking revenge for the murder of her boyfriend?

    Will Planned Parenthood ever lose its federal funding? Title X, which is part of the United States Public Health Service Act, was enacted in 1970 and is a federal program devoted to providing family planning.

    Supporters of Route 66, the iconic U.S. highway that carried travelers from Illinois to California, are pushing to have the roadway added to a national list of historic trails. A group of advocates called the Route 66 Road Ahead are supporting legislation in the U.S. House seeking the designation. It would likely make the 2,400-mile road part of the National Park Service, which would provide signs and online resources to promote the highway.

    NCIS and The Big Bang Theory were the top regular series in viewers last week, each drawing a three-day total of more than 18 million and cutting the Grammy Awards' lead.

    And Ocala, Fla., police detectives have released surveillance video which shows a man jumping through the drive-thru window to rob a McDonald's.

    

 

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