News of the Force | Saturday, January 31, 2015 - Page 2

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NEWS OF THE FORCE

Saturday, January 31, 2015 - Page 2

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U.S. Army

    

    Under the current Alaska National Guard rules, misconduct is only met with administrative penalties. Now, legislators are preparing to strengthen the code. For an hour and a half, acting Adjutant General Mike Bridges walked the House State Affairs Committee yesterday through the problems with the Alaska National Guard’s disciplinary system. The deficiencies with the Guard’s disciplinary process were laid out last year, when an investigation by the federal National Guard Bureau documented problems with sexual assault reporting, fraud, favoritism, and mistrust of leadership. The way the military code is currently written, a member of the Guard can be passed over for promotions or discharged from the service, but they can't be court-martialed in the way Army troops or Air Force members can. Bridges noted the Alaska force has been working with Guard leadership at the federal level, along with the governor’s office, to come up with a variation on the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) that would work for the state. “I call it a preventative measure,” said Bridges. “If folks know there’s a big hammer waiting with a criminal charge to it for while they're serving in the militia of this state, the National Guard, they're probably going to think twice about it, unless they're truly going to offend, anyway." Many of the questions Bridges fielded dealt with whether the federal code could simply be adopted wholesale. Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, an Anchorage Republican, also wanted to know if adopting the code could interfere with criminal charges being filed in the state courts system. The answer was no. "We’re going to call the cops anyway,” said Bridges. "What this gives is the state government, besides just the law enforcement side, it gives us a military tool, because we're a militia to prosecute as a state UCMJ - military code." A bill to update the code has not yet been introduced, but the Legislature’s Democratic minority has announced plans to file such legislation.

    MaxPreps and the Army National Guard are proud to team up with SpeedTracs to offer high school students across the country the opportunity to compete in the 2015 Fitness for Life Challenge, sponsored by the Army National Guard.

    And Gov. Bill Walker named retired Army Col. Laurie Hummel as the new adjutant general of the Alaska National Guard, yesterday.

 

CDC goes public to urge people to get measles vaccines

    Dr. Anne Schuchat, an Assistant Surgeon General of the United States Public Health Service, said vaccinations are the best protection the country has.

 

U.S. Navy news

    

    For the first time ever, the general public will be admitted free to the Naval Future Force Science and Technology EXPO general exhibit hall, Feb. 4-5, where they will be able to see the Electromagnetic Railgun, an autonomous swarmboat, a firefighting robot and much more. Held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, in Washington, D.C., the EXPO is the Navy's premiere science and technology (S&T) event, held every two years to showcase some of the Navy's latest technologies and bring together the brightest minds from around the world to share information, discuss research opportunities and build S&T partnerships between the Navy, Marine Corps, industry and academia.

    The U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) Brigade of Midshipmen held a remembrance meal at King Hall, on Jan. 29, for a 2005 academy graduate.
Marine Corps Capt. Elizabeth Kealey died on Jan. 23 as a result of injuries sustained from a helicopter crash. Kealey, assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 169, was conducting training at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., when her UH-1Y Huey helicopter crashed. Traditionally, the company for which the fallen alumni belonged to during their time at the academy delivers the remembrance remarks. With the Brigade Flag half-staffed, Midshipman 1st Class Joe Carbone, the 30th Company commander, addressed the brigade.

    USS Independence (LCS 2) departed San Diego, Calif., yesterday for Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., to conduct operational evaluation and testing of the mine countermeasures mission package. Independence, the lead ship of the Independence variant of the littoral combat ship, will sail through the U.S. 4th Fleet's area of responsibility, transiting the Panama Canal and making a port visit to Cartagena, Columbia. Cmdr. Michael Smith, commanding officer of LCS Crew 201, the "Spartans," credited the ship's "superb state of readiness" to the professionalism of the men and women in the LCS community. The ship is expected to return to San Diego later this year.

    A group of 50 students from the Naval Science and Engineering Programs at Coronado High School, in Coronado, Calif., demonstrated their ability to build and control underwater remote operated vehicles (ROVs) in San Diego on Jan. 28. The students are part of the Office of Naval Research (ONR)'s Sea Perch program, building their ROVs from kits provided by grants from the ONR and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). According to the ONR, Sea Perch is an innovative underwater robotics program that equips teachers and students with the resources they need to construct an underwater ROV in an in or out-of-school setting. Students build the ROV from a kit comprised of low-cost, easily accessible parts, following a curriculum that teaches basic engineering and science concepts with a marine engineering theme. Coordinating the local Sea Perch program is retired Navy Capt. Kenneth Ireland, the senior naval science instructor for the Coronado High School Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC) program.

    Sailors aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), along with a distinguished visitor from NASA, answered a long-distance phone call from the International Space Station (ISS), on Jan. 26.
NASA astronauts Navy Cmdr. Reid Wiseman, Air Force Col. Eric Boe, U.S. Marine Corps Col. Randy Bresnik, Serena Aunon, and Michael Barratt, along with NASA flight surgeons Air Force Maj. Anil Menon and Dr. Stephen Hart, visited TR for a taste of life aboard an aircraft carrier and a chance to meet her sailors. NASA flight director Gregory Whitney, and NASA military liaison Judy O'Connor, also joined the group visiting TR.

    Placed into commission nearly 30 years ago, the guided-missile frigate USS Elrod (FFG 55) was decommissioned yesterday during a Naval Station Norfolk, Va., ceremony, led by Cmdr. Brad Stallings, the ship's commanding officer. Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Raymond Descheneaux delivered remarks as the guest speaker while Capt. John Wade, Destroyer Squadron 28's commodore, presided over the event. Three members of namesake Maj. Henry T. Elrod's family were also in attendance: William, Kelly, and Mark Elrod.

    And the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) has embarked Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) to participate in amphibious integration training (AIT) and a certification exercise (CERTEX). Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) sailors and Marines from the 31st MEU will focus on amphibious assault and humanitarian assistance capabilities, disaster relief operations and non-combatant evacuation missions.

 

A confrontation outside a Minnesota City Hall

By Jim Corvey, News of the Force St. Louis

    The shotgun used by a man who was killed in a confrontation with police outside a City Hall meeting in suburban Minneapolis, Minn., was illegally channeled to him by a straw buyer, a sheriff said last night. But prosecutors said the suspect in the so-called straw purchase had to be released because they didn't have sufficient evidence to hold him.

    Raymond Kmetz, 68, had a long record of disputes with New Hope, Minn., officials. He was killed on Monday night after he opened fire on officers outside the New Hope City Council chambers. Kmetz could not legally buy a gun because of his history of mental illness, which included commitments to the Minnesota Security Hospital, in St. Peter.

    Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said told reporters yesterday that Kmetz bought three guns via an online auction site and had a 42-year-old Golden Valley man pick them up for him at a licensed dealer. The guns included the shotgun he used on Monday night. The buyer admitted to purchasing the guns for Kmetz and was booked into Hennepin County Jail, the sheriff said. "The evidence provided by law enforcement was insufficient to bring felony charges under state law, so justice required that he be released," according to a statement from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office.

    Kmetz's son, Nathan Kmetz, has said his father blamed authorities for the loss of his home and contracting business.

    The two wounded officers left the hospital on Tuesday. New Hope officers Beau Schoenhard and Joshua Eernisse were just leaving a swearing-in ceremony for Eernisse and another officer when Kmetz confronted them.

 

Today in history

    On Jan. 31, 1605, Guy Fawkes, a member of the "Gunpowder Plot," was executed in Britain. In 1747, the first venereal diseases clinic opened in London's Lock Hospital. In 1846, after the "Milwaukee Bridge War," Juneautown and Kilbourntown were unified to become Milwaukee, Wis. In 1861, during the U.S. Civil War, Louisiana troops captured the U.S. Mint in New Orleans. In 1863, the South Carolina Volunteers, the first black regiment in the Civil War, was mustered into the U.S. Army. In 1865, Gen. Robert E. Lee was named commander-in-chief of the Confederate forces. In 1871, millions of birds flew over western San Francisco, darkening the sky. In 1874, Jesse James and his gang robbed a train at Gads Hill, Mo. In 1876, the U.S. Government ordered all Native Americans to move onto reservations. In 1895, Jose Marti and his followers left New York City to invade Cuba. In 1905, the first automobile to exceed 100 mph was driven by A.G. MacDonald, in Daytona Beach, Fla. In 1915, during World War I, Germany launched its first poison gas attack against Russian troops. In 1917, Germany notified the U.S. that its U-boats would begin attacking neutral nations' ships, In 1918, a series of collisions in dense fog led to the loss of two Royal Navy submarines and 100 lives, and caused damage to five other British warships, in Scotland. In 1919, the Battle of George Square took place in Glasgow, Scotland, as troops were deployed to stop a planned Bolshevik uprising. In 1927, the International Allied Military Command in Germany was deactivated. In 1928, Scotch tape was first marketed by the 3M Company. In 1936, "The Green Hornet" radio show was first broadcast on WXYZ, in Detroit, Mich. In 1940, during World War II, 40 German U-boats were sunk in January. In 1941, twenty-one German U-boats were sunk in January. In 1942, sixty-two German U-boats were sunk during the month. In 1943, thirty-nine German U-boats were sunk during January; Chile broke off its diplomatic relations with Germany and Japan; and German Gen. Friedrich von Paul surrendered to Russian troops at Stalingrad. In 1944, Operation Overlord (D-Day) was postponed until June; German U-boat U-592 was sunk off the coast of Ireland; and U.S. forces invaded Kwajalein Atoll, in the Pacific Ocean. In 1945, the U.S. 4th Infantry Division occupied Eicherrath; and Russian troops reached the Oder River - just 50 miles from Berlin. In 1949, the first daytime television soap opera, "These Are My Children," premiered on NBC-TV in Chicago, Illinois. In 1950, U.S. President Harry S Truman publicly announced his support for the development of the hydrogen bomb. In 1955, RCA demonstrated the first music synthesizer. In 1957, eight people were killed on the ground in Pacoima, Calif., following the mid-air collision of a Douglas DC-7 airliner and a U.S. Air Force Northrop F-89 "Scorpion" fighter jet. In 1958, the U.S. launched its first artificial satellite, "Explorer 1." In 1970, the members of "The Grateful Dead" were arrested and charged with possession of LSD. In 1971, American astronauts Alan B. Shepard, Jr., Edgar Mitchell and Stuart Roosa blasted off to the moon aboard "Apollo 14," and Shepard demonstrated his golf skills on the moon. In 1975, Barry Manilow's "Mandy" became a gold record. In 1976, The Ohio Rollers' "Love Roller-coaster" reached No. 1 on the record charts. In 1978, Israel turned three of its military outposts in the West Bank into civilian settlements. In 1981, Blondie reached No. 1 with "The Tide is High." In 1988, Doug Williams became the first black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl, and was named the game's MVP. In 1990, the first McDonald's opened in Moscow. In 1999, "Family Guy" premiered on the Fox Network. In 2001, a court in the Netherlands convicted one Libyan national and acquitted another for their involvement in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988. In 2007, suspects were arrested in Birmingham, England, and accused of plotting the kidnapping, holding and eventually beheading a Muslim British soldier in Iraq. And in 2013, 36 people were killed and 126 injured in a Pemex oil refinery explosion in Mexico.

 

The parting shots

    Actor Val Kilmer has been hospitalized after and emergency call, and the EMS report shows he has a throat tumor.

    Former Olympian and realty TV star Bruce Jenner is "transitioning into a woman," a source says.

    A 19-year-old woman has been accused of recording an adult film in the main campus library at Oregon State University, in Corvallis. OSU spokesman Steve Clark says the university learned about the video on Tuesday, but it apparently was recorded during the fall semester and posted on the Web. Clark says the Oregon State Police investigated and charged the woman with public indecency. The Oregonian reports that she was enrolled in the fall, but is no longer a student. Although the library is patrolled by campus security and the campus police, the film was recorded on the sixth floor, which can't be monitored all the time.

    An older gentleman was on the operating table awaiting surgery and he wanted his son, a renowned surgeon, to perform the operation. As the patient was preparing to receive the anesthesia, he asked to speak to his son. "Yes, Dad, what is it?" His father said, "Don't be nervous, son, do your best, and just remember if it doesn't go well, if something happens to me, your mother is going to come and live with you and your wife."

    More than 2 million Toyota, Chrysler and Honda vehicles are being re-called for a second fix to faulty air bags that may inflate while the car is running.

    The daughter of the late singer and entertainer Whitney Houston was found unresponsive in a bathtub today and was taken to a hospital in the north Atlanta, Ga., suburbs, police said. Bobbi Kristina Brown was found by her husband and a friend and was given CPR, said Police Officer Lisa Holland.

    After generations of bootlegging, direct descendants of the Hatfields have teamed up with the McCoys to produce "legal" moonshine in southern West Virginia - with the state's blessing - the start of a new legacy for the families made famous for their 19th century feud.

    Actor Robbie Coltrane has been hospitalized in Orlando, Fla., after suffering from flu symptoms on a flight headed there.

    A new smoking ban in New Orleans, La., will cover casinos and bars, but not sidewalk revelry.

    So keyed up were news mavens for the possibility that Mitt Romney would run again for president that two media organizations, Bloomberg and the Daily Beast, initially misreported that the former Massachusetts governor would be running. Romney then rather blandly announced to donors that he felt that he was not the right person for the job, triggering headlines about how someone who had never been running for president in 2016 was not, in fact, running for president in 2016.

    And in today's celebrity birthdays (Jan. 31): Italian pop singer Malika Ayane is 31; Actress Carol Channing (Hello! Dolly, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Pygmalion, Sugar Babies, Jerry's Girls) is 94; Actor Joel Courtney (Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn, Sins of Our Youth, Super 8, Rogue) is 19; German rapper Cro is 25; Football player Vernon Davis is 31; British actress and voice actress Minnie Driver (Tarzan, The Phantom of the Opera, Good Will Hunting) is 45; British actor Chris Gascoyne is 47; Canadian soap opera actress Ana Golja is 19; Actress April Lee Hernandez (Freedom Writers, ER, Dexter, 30 Rock, The History of Future Folk, Person of Interest) is 35; Country singer Tyler Hubbard is 28; Model Amy Jackson is 24; Comedian Matt King is 47; British singer John "Johnny Rotten" Lydon ("The Sex Pistols") is 59; Actress Kelly Lynch (Drugstore Cowboy, The Beans of Egypt, Maine, Roadhouse) is 56; Soccer player Allan McGregor is 33; Punk rock musician, vocalist and bassist Fat Mike ("NOFX") is 48; Actor Bobby Moynihan (Saturday Night Live, Chozen, The Conan O'Brien Show) is 38; British singer Marcus Mumford is 28; Boxer Victor Ortiz is 28; Swedish pop singer Elena Paparizou is 33; Baseball player Nolan Ryan is 68; Australian actress Portia de Rossi (Scream 2, Ally McBeal, Arrested Development, Nip/Tuck) is 42; Irish actor Emmett J. Scanlan is 36; Hockey player Tyler Seguin is 23; Canadian actress Anna Silk (The Perfect Neighbor, Earthstorm, Being Erica, Lost Girl) is 41; British TV and soap opera actor James Sutton is 32; Singer/actor Justin Timberlake ("*NSYNC," The Social Network, Friends With Benefits, In Time) is 34; Director Glynn Turman is 68; Venezuelan actress Patricia Velasquez (The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Rescue Me, Arrested Development, The L Word) is 44; Actress Kerry Washington (Fantastic Four, Ray, Night Catches Us, Scandal) is 38; Football player Mario Williams is 30; Australian actor Lincoln Younes is 23; and Indian actress Preity Zinta is 40.

 

 

                

 

 

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