Readers;

Thanks for the flood of e-mails expressing holiday greetings and helpful suggestions for upcoming issues. You should recognize some of your input this week, along with quotes and bumper stickers in upcoming issues. Keep the comments coming! It is great that you folks on the frontlines let me know what’s important to you.

Some sad breaking news to report this week as we say goodbye to two warriors who were instrumental in shaping our modern military.

Finally, the usual news from the fronts in Iraq and Afghanistan, but of particular note, Canada is returning another deserter and our government is looking for potential answers to stem the violence on the border with Mexico.

John Wrenn
Managing Editor, Tactical Weekly
Director, Corporate Communications

Thomas Jefferson

You've seen the link in our Community Chest, and now here is a great article about Divers 4 Heroes.

In 2006, while on vacation, Boris A. (Bo) Twillman, a Blackwater Worldwide contractor, and his wife Debbie Twillman saw several wounded veterans just trying to cope with their combat related trauma. Many of the veterans were missing limbs and were struggling in wheelchairs or with crutches. This firsthand experience moved the Twillman’s and to assist the wounded vets, Bo and Debbie founded Divers 4 Heroes, a non-profit organization.

Below are links to the race site, sponsorship information along with a sponsorship forms. Remember, all proceeds go to benefit the Special Operations Warrior Foundation (http://www.specialops.org/) and the USO (http://www.uso.org/).

http://blackwateree.com/

Link to sponsorship packages

Link to sponsorship form

Major Push Is Needed To Save Afghanistan, General Says
January 9, 2009
New York Times
Elisabeth Bumiller

Analysis of the Afghanistan situation by CENTCOM commander.

WASHINGTON - The top American commander responsible for Afghanistan, Gen. David H. Petraeus, said Thursday that the country would require a "sustained, substantial" commitment from the United States and other nations to stop a downward spiral of violence and a resurgence of the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

Without U.S. reward money, Iraqi leaders are worried that information sources will dry up.

BAGHDAD - Some Iraqi army leaders are worried that reward money for information on enemy fighters and hidden weapons will dry up when American units leave their areas.

The worries highlight persistent problems in the Iraqi security forces that continue even as local forces prepare to take over security responsibilities from the Americans, as required by the security agreement that took effect Jan. 1.

Changes in operational procedures as U.S. forces follow guidance of new SOFA in Iraq.

TARMIYAH, IRAQ - Army Capt. Christopher Loftis took in the scene: Iraqi soldiers raiding the home of a suspected insurgent wanted for participating in deadly attacks against U.S. and Iraqi troops.

An Iraqi lieutenant questioned three men found in the house about their brother: Was he home? No. Where was he? Syria. When did he leave? A year ago.

There were questions Loftis wanted asked, facts that needed to be clarified to determine whether they were lying. But under a U.S.-Iraqi security agreement that took effect hours earlier on New Year's Day, Loftis could only make suggestions and recommendations to Iraqi troops.

More analysis of increased defense spending to help break the recession. More importantly, if the defense budget increases, broken/worn out equipment will be replaced and maintenance accomplished.

Washington - The Defense Department has enjoyed a long budgetary heyday, but the golden times may be nearing an end as the Iraq war, which has been eating up $10 billion a month, starts winding down and recession pressures force federal budgeteers to rein in spending.

That's the conventional wisdom, at least.

But defense spending won't drop anytime soon, experts predict. Even as the nation gasped over a $1.2 trillion federal budget for this fiscal year, estimated Tuesday by the Congressional Budget Office, President-elect Obama this week signaled his resolve to spend the country out of recession. In the short term, that probably means more money for defense.

National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley says Pakistan and not Afghanistan is the biggest foreign-policy challenge awaiting the new administration. Article provides a link to the full transcript.

WASHINGTON -- The biggest foreign-policy challenge awaiting President-elect Barack Obama isn't Iraq or Afghanistan but Pakistan, President George W. Bush's national-security adviser said.

In an interview previewing a valedictory speech he plans to give on Wednesday, National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said Pakistan's increasingly turbulent border region poses threats not just to the U.S. mission in Afghanistan, but also to neighboring India, as evidenced by the recent Mumbai terrorist attacks, as well as to urban areas of Pakistan itself -- and the world beyond.

Without enough time to cast absentee ballots, a study says many U.S. troops abroad are effectively excluded from voting. This is wrong and should be fixed before the next national elections in two years, which is what the Fleet Reserve Association is working on.

As the nation prepares to inaugurate a new president, the Fleet Reserve Association (FRA) continues its work to reform the absentee voting process for military and overseas voters. FRA advocates for enlisted members of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard and supports initiatives that streamline the process by which military voters request and cast absentee ballots.

Just 47.6 percent of overseas military voters who requested an absentee ballot actually had their votes counted in 2006, according to a report of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Although statistical data is not yet available from the 2008 elections, there has been little change to the absentee voting process in recent years, and FRA believes significant numbers of military voters remain disenfranchised. As a result, the association continues to seek support for reform initiatives to expedite the transmission of military overseas ballots.

Here is a positive view from across the pond on the success of our current Commander-in-Chief as he prepares to hand over the fight in the GWOT to his successor.

On much of the world stage, President Bush has been widely reviled as one of the worst U.S. leaders of modern times, and it is hard to think of an American president who has received a worse press since Richard Nixon.

Become part of the solution, not a statistic.

5 minutes to live. If a cop is going to die, it will be in the first 5 minutes - before help can arrive. Now YOU become the help!

Here is a new course from The Backup, a Blackwater Worldwide company that specializes in digital distance learning courses. Please check out the website or number below for additional information.

To view the latest contract opportunities at Blackwater, visit our Contract Web Page

TO FILL OUT AN APPLICATION AND SUBMIT YOUR RESUME CLICK HERE
Questions regarding Security Consulting or Training at Blackwater (252) 435-2488 or email webmaster@ustraining.com

Neat flashlight for the operator.

The U.S. subsidiary of FN Herstal S.A. of Belgium is producing six-volt, all weather xenon flashlights that crank out 150 peak lumens. They are powered by lithium CR123 three-volt batteries.

The flashlights are aimed at the law enforcement, military and sportsman markets.

Good look at how vehicles are changing in response to modern battlefield and threats.

Modern warfare -- where the battlefield is a mix of actors, motivations and weapons -- is in part defined by its rapidly changing threat scenarios and multiple layers of high- and low-tech on-the-fly innovations, all of which demand real-time responses.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, this has been especially true of armor protection for ground vehicles, which have been battered by all manner of increasingly powerful pressure plate and remotely controlled improvised explosive devices and explosively formed penetrators; weapons which morph as U.S. armor technology learns how to counter each successive generation of explosive.

Report on updated version of reconnaissance robot.

ReconRobotics' Recon Scout (TM) IR reconnaissance robot is the world's first throwable, mobile robot with the capability of seeing in complete darkness. As with the standard Recon Scout model that was introduced in 2007, the Recon Scout IR will save lives by allowing the military and police to gain inside knowledge about dangerous and hostile environments before sending in their personnel. With the Recon Scout IR, SWAT and special warfare teams will now also be able to gain mission-critical information in situations where there is no ambient light...

New flash drive back-up with built-in encryption for a basic level of security, and capacities from 8GB to 64GB.

SanDisk has extended its strategy of reinventing the USB flash drive as 'do-everything' device, with the announcement of a new one-touch flash backup product, the San Disk Ultra Backup.

Tactical Equipment Evaluation

As a staunch supporter of the 2nd Amendment I've repeated the statement that gun control should be a matter of education not legislation. While I am not in favor of gun control laws I do believe that civilian concealed carry permit holders should be required to meet a higher minimum standard of education and skill with their weapon. A side belief of that is that I think all of us who carry sidearms should continually update our knowledge and skill base to stay "fresh". The Armed Response DVD series offers not only good knowledge but also information about drills and other practical considerations that concern all who carry a handgun.

Full Story Can Be Viewed At:

Recreational Equipment Review

In today's economy it can be difficult to pay for the day-to-day necessities much less have any dollars left over to pursue recreational outdoor activities. Let's face it: sometimes the gear is just plain expensive. Top-of-the-line anything doesn't come cheap or even "cost effective". In two previous reviews I've looked at some surplus equipment that can help reduce the overall cost while still providing you with serviceable kit. This week we're going to look at some more surplus kit in a specific area of use: carrying your equipment. Surplus Load Carrying Equipment can offer a lot of options for convenient carry without draining your wallet quite so bad.

Full Story Can Be Viewed At:

http://www.borelliconsulting.com/recevals/campback/surpluslce.htm

"endure hardness, as a good soldier" (2 Timothy 2:3).

"Champions aren't made in the gyms, they are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision. They have last-minute stamina. They have to be a little faster, and they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill." - World champion boxer Mohammad Ali -

Full Story Can Be Viewed At:

http://www.ustraining.com/tw2009/article/011209chaplain.htm

As most tactical operators know, having strong shoulders is important to carry that 80 lb. pack and operate. Here is an article on a good 30 minute shoulder workout.

There seems to be a fascination with training shoulders from "all the angles." Go into any gym and you'll find guys doing dumbbell front raises for their front delts, side raises for their side delts, and rear- lateral raises for ... you get the idea. In the end, they've done a lot of work, but not much to make their shoulders grow. [paragraph] Our program gets it right. The workouts are built around the barbell shoulder press, the one exercise you absolutely must do to build big delts...

Good article about what to eat before a workout, which can translate into what to eat before an operation.

What an athlete consumes before, during and after exercise is important for comfort and performance during exercise. While eating soon before exercise doesn't provide the bulk of the fuel needed for the activity, it can prevent the distracting symptoms of hunger during exercise. The major source of fuel for active muscles is carbohydrate, which gets stored in the muscles as glycogen in the days before exercise. This is one reason that the post-exercise meal is critical to recovery and being ready for the next exercise session.

Here are some links for charitable organizations.

Blackwater does not endorse any organization over another nor encourage charitable contributions, we provide these links as a public service, and take no responsibility for the actual sites. Although we strive to validate the sites before linking we caution you to do your own research, as the internet is ripe with scams.

Welcome Back Veterans

Here is an organization sponsored by Major League Baseball that wants to help returning vets.

Ten thousand young men and women come home from Iraq, Afghanistan, and other zones of conflict every month. They've served our country well, and have made sacrifices - of health, of family, of livelihood - that most of us will never have to make.

IT'S OUR TURN

To step up to the plate and GIVE.

The players and owners of Major League Baseball have contributed their time and resources to help returning soldiers and their families through Welcome Back Veterans. Now it's up to us to join the effort and do our part by giving generously.

Keep My Soldier Safe
Packages for Soldiers

Here is a great site that is trying to organize a bill that would allow free postage for letters and packages mailed to our service people overseas. Very relevant during the holidays.

Please go here and sign the petition so that we can help get this bill passed and get more packages sent to your troops for FREE...

We ask you to join us in urging our U.S. Senators and Representatives to support the effort to pass a law that would allow for the free mailing of letters and packages to our military personnel in the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters of operation.

Full Story

Paw Prints Dog Sanctuary

Here's an organization that cares for dogs of deployed service personnel.

Welcome to Paw Prints Dog Sanctuary & Canine Corps!

We provide a loving "home away from home" for dogs whose owners are deployed overseas in the military, as well as a safe haven for Central Pennsylvania's senior and special needs dogs. To date, nineteen of our guest have been adopted into loving homes, and we are currently caring for seven senior and special needs dogs and sixteen military pets.

Project Healing Waters Flyfishing

Great way to help our wounded brethren.

Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. is dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled active duty military personnel and veterans through fly fishing and fly tying education and outings.

Asian Tribal Ministries

Here's an organization that helps folks over in Asia.

Asian Tribal Ministries (ATM) is a non-denominational organization that for the past 30 years has been providing aid and ministry to people in the war-zone areas of Burma, aka Myanmar.

Not all who wander are lost.

The Tactical Weekly is a free weekly e-publication.

The BTW provides readers valuable information from diverse sources regarding tactical and strategic security issues.

Editor-in-Chief - Gary Jackson (btw@blackwaterusa.com)
Managing Editor - John Wrenn (btw@blackwaterusa.com)
Format Editor - Jennifer Granoff (JGranoff@blackwaterusa.com)
Frank's Review - Frank Borelli (frank@borelliconsulting.com)
Chaplain's Corner - Chaplain D. R. Staton (chpln1@verizon.net)
Advertising - Jennifer Granoff (JGranoff@blackwaterusa.com)

Questions regarding Security Consulting or Training at Blackwater (252) 435-2035

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