Outside the Beltway

US Army Special Forces are the best we have at working with far-flung villagers. Are they good enough?

After a decade of war, suicides are surging among American troops.

In March, Janet Wolfenbarger became the first female four-star general in Air Force history. Now, she’s assumed command of all Air Force weapons programs.

NASA was in need of new telescopes and got a helping hand from their good pals at the DoD.

Health care is eating up 10 percent of the Pentagon’s budget and rising fast.

The United States may have slowed down Iran’s nuclear program without firing a shot–not counting the one at our own foot.

The first shots have been fired in cyberspace. How will it end?

You have Martin Luther King’s statue in your office, but you are sending these unmanned drones out, and bombs are dropping on innocent people.

Political disagreements about war are no reason to dismiss the sacrifices of those who have died for our country.

For the first time in 68 years, neither major party candidate for President has served in the military. Does this matter?

In office less than a day, Francois Hollande has already been forced to admit he can’t withdraw French forces from Afghanistan by the end of the year.

Another example of Republican foreign policy taking precedence over fiscal conservatism.

My first piece for The New Republic, “Why the Obama Administration’s Drone War May Soon Reach a Tipping Point,” is up.

Some Navy SEALs are weighing in on the brouhaha.

We seldom blame presidents for bold actions that go wrong. We despise them for appearing weak and indecisive.

Should the United States Navy name a ship after martyred gay activist Harvey Milk? This is not a rhetorical question.

My latest for The National Interest,Insurmountable Obstacles in Afghanistan, has been posted.

The commander of Fort Knox has canceled a Ted Nugent concert after the rocker’s recent rant about President Obama.

Some Marine women are going to Infantry Officers Course. Here’s how to make it work.

The consequences of ten years of war?

The story of Ensign Chuck Lord may be the greatest—or perhaps only—prank in Pentagon art history

American revolutionary leader George Washington has been voted the greatest enemy commander to face Britain, lauded for his spirit of endurance against the odds and the enormous impact of his victory.

Facts are stubborn things.

The body of Corporal Patrick R. Glennon will be returned to his family for burial, 52 years after he was declared missing in action in Korea.

Marine Sergeant Gary Stein will soon be free to criticize the commander-in-chief all he wants. As a civilian.

A Reserve Specialist who endorsed Ron Paul’s presidential candidacy in uniform will only be reprimanded, not court martialed.

What the hell was Leon Panetta thinking when he got dressed? He’s surrounded by fit Marines in battle dress and he’s wearing a poorly fitted blue short-sleeved “dress” shirt,* pleated slacks, and perhaps the most askew gig line ever, calling attention to his pot belly.

Joe Biden got a little braggadocious last night.

An attack on Iran is likely to unleash consequences that we are unprepared to deal with.

A tragic incident in Afghanistan that’s likely to have tragic consequences.

Another chapter in the annals of American Politicians as Royalty:

Carrol LeFon, better known on the Internet as Neptunus Lex, one of the original milbloggers, has been killed in a fighter jet crash.

CWO2 Edward Cantrell, a decorated Special Forces veteran, died trying to save his daughters Isabella and Natalia from a house fire.

Arizona’s senior Senator want’s to bomb Syria.

Over the last decade-plus of war, the US Army has relaxed its promotion and retention standards for commissioned and non-commissioned officers. As we transition into peacetime, the pendulum is swinging the other direction.

The Pentagon has released the name of the US Army National Guard major murdered in an Afghan ministry this weekend.

The latest round of protests in Afghanistan prove yet again that it’s time for us to leave.

Why should lying about having served in combat or been awarded a medal for valor should be legally different from lying about athletic prowess in high school, the number of sexual partners you’ve had, or the size of one’s sex organs?

Yet another sign that international intervention in Syria is most likely never going to happen.