| Friday, May 01, 2009 | | NATO Celebrates 60th Anniversary |
 Belgian Gen. Karl-Heinz Lather |
| Belgian Gen. Karl-Heinz Lather, chief of staff for Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), came on the bloggers roundtable to talk about NATO’s 60th Anniversary Summit, held April 3-4 in Kehl, Germany, and Strasbourg, France. The session reinforced the original declaration on Atlantic solidarity, Lather said, “what was at the heart, at the core of NATO, has been reinforced by that summit.” During the summit, the alliance nominated former Danish prime minister Anders Rasmussen to become NATO’s new secretary general and welcomed Croatia and Albania as new members. France also rejoined NATO’s integrated military structures for the first time in 30 years. Story | Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Thursday, April 30, 2009 | | “Advise and Assist” Brigade to Test U.S. Soldiers’ Adaptability in Iraq |
 COL Newell, Brigade Commander, 4th BCT 1AD |
| With Soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team 1AD preparing to deploy on an “advise and assist” mission to southern Iraq, brigade commander Col. Peter Newell told bloggers, “The keys to our success are in harnessing the exceptional capacity of the American Soldier to adapt to different environments. More than ever, the opinion of the young sergeant counts. And what he experiences while interfacing with various Iraqi agencies and the local populace affects the decisions that I make as a brigade commander.” The brigade will work with U.S.-led provincial reconstruction teams, military transition teams, and police training teams to help the Iraqi provincial governments continue to establish a foundation for long-term security. Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Tuesday, April 28, 2009 | | The Art of Design: A Military Approach to Critical Thinking |
 COL Johnson, Advanced Military Studies Program Seminar Leader, SAMS |
| Col. Michael Johnson, Art of Design course author and School for Advanced Military Studies seminar leader and Clinton Ancker, the director of the Combined Arms Doctrine Directorate at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., joined bloggers for a roundtable discussion, April 28 on how design provides a critical and creative thinking approach to aid commanders in understanding and shaping unique situations in the operational environment. "There's a recognition that we - the United States Army - is really good at solving problems," said Johnson. "The question is, 'are we solving the right problem?' And that's what design tries to get at. We really have to try and make a good effort to get at the right problem to make a significant change or transform wherever the area we're at for lasting change."
Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Friday, April 24, 2009 | | Retired Tuskegee Airmen an Inspiration to Troops |
 Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson |
| Retired members of the original Tuskegee Airmen completed their second journey to visit U.S. troops in the Middle East to connect and share stories with the present-day servicemembers. Members of the military characterize the Airmen as “the heroes upon whose shoulders we stand.” One of the retired Airmen, Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson, noted, “It’s inspirational to see the young people carrying on the tradition of the 332nd Fighter Group and Expeditionary Wing.” Story | Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Thursday, April 23, 2009 | | New Intelligence Strategies Seek to Predict Enemy Actions |
 Col. Eric Holdaway, AFCENT/AFFOR Director of Intelligence (A-2) |
| “The problem we deal with now is much more complex with enemies that will not only hide among the population, but will also open fire on our ground forces from amongst the population,” Air Force Col. Eric Holdaway, AFCENT/AFFOR director of intelligence, told bloggers. To combat these challenges, the Air Force devised new strategies for gathering information to target the enemy. “The purpose of all intelligence is to help our commanders get ahead of the enemies decision cycle so that we are able to anticipate what they are likely to do… so that we can obtain our objectives,” Holdaway said. Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Wednesday, April 22, 2009 | | Army Reserve Program Helps Employers, Soldiers Manage Deployments |
 Col. Dianna Cleven, chief operating officer, Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative |
| The Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative is a joint public-private venture that gives business leaders tangible benefits for employing and sharing their Soldier-Employees. Col Dianna Clevin, chief operating officer of the program, told bloggers that a big part of the initiative involves educating employers about deployment issues and helping them work through related challenges. Clevin explained, "It started with Lt. Gen. [Jack] Stultz [Commanding General, U.S. Army Reserve Command] who said that with the op tempo and the transition to an operational reserve, he felt that it was important to have the support of employers. ... And to go to them and very candidly explain what the rotations would be like and collaborate on the challenges the employers were facing in trying to support these Soldiers." Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Tuesday, April 21, 2009 | | General Provides Insight into the Joint Bilateral Exercise Balikatan ‘09 |
 Brig. Gen. Ronald Bailey, Deputy Commanding General, III Marine Expeditionary Force |
| Exercise Balikatan ’09, a joint bilateral exercise between the United States and Philippines, is the 25th in the series as it relates to U.S.-Philippine participation. U.S. Marine Brig. Gen. Ronald Bailey, deputy commanding general, III Marine Expeditionary Force; commanding general of 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade and U.S. director of Balikatan ’09 told bloggers, April 21 about the three events that they will be participating in during the exercise, which ends on April 30. “Our first one is the humanitarian and civic assistance projects. The second is a scenario-based staff exercise that we'll run from Manila with the joint force management headquarters, Philippines. And the final one involves field training activities in the Central Luzon and the Cavite province,” Bailey said. Balikatan is a term that means shoulder to shoulder. “The term ‘Balikatan’ is a Tagalog term which means ‘shoulder to shoulder,’ and for us it characterizes the philosophy and intent of the exercise,” he a Story | Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Tuesday, April 21, 2009 | | Coast Guard Discusses Their Green Initiatives |
 Mr. Thomas Granito, Coast Guard Office of Environmental Management |
| Coast Guard Office of Environmental Management’s Thomas Granito spoke with bloggers and online journalists, April 21, about the Coast Guard’s environmental initiatives over the past 10 years and how their environmental focus has changed for everyone in their service branch. “Today, it's a -- sort of a different world, and ‘environmental’ has taken a whole new meaning, and environmental is part of everybody's job,” added Granito. He also addressed Coast Guard's green initiatives, their Academy Award-winning recycling program, and an electronic systems detachment cell that harbors wind and solar energy systems. “We're also looking at seeking alternative and renewable fuels, eventually developing a good carbon footprint by assessing our impact from fuel usage and emissions,” he said.
Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
| Friday, April 17, 2009 | | Coalition Forces Helping Transition to Police Primacy |
 Maj. Joseph A. Musacchia, chief of Security Forces/Commander of the 81st Security Forces Squadron |
| Coalition Forces are helping Iraq transition to police primacy in security operations, Maj. Joseph A. Musacchia chief of Security Forces and commander of the 81st Security Forces Squadron said to bloggers. “We’re primarily responsible for all aspects of the rule of law, assistance with police primacy and to assist in anticorruption efforts within the ministry,” he said. In order to help the people understand police ethics and anticorruption, Musacchia said they have implemented various courses in the Inspector General’s office and Internal Affairs office. Story | Audio(Mp3) |
Files: Transcript(pdf) | Bio(pdf) |
|
|
|
The Bloggers Roundtable provides source material for stories in the blogosphere
concerning the Department of Defense (DoD) by bloggers and online journalists.
Where available, this includes transcripts, biographies, related fact sheets
and video.
|
|