American commandos flew into Somalia Tuesday and rescued two hostages who had been kidnapped by pirates based there, a mission ordered by President Barack Obama before he addressed the nation, the Pentagon said.
The Gun That Killed Osama bin Laden Revealed: SEALS reportedly used an HK416 in bin Laden assault
Two military gear blogs, citing multiple insider sources, credit the highly reliable HK416 rifle, an M-16 type weapon, with the “double tap” of 5.56 mm bullets to bin Laden’s head.
Army Scraps $600,000 Toad Art Project
Each of the four art proposals for the bus terminal included two wall murals and a sculpture. The Army budgeted $200,000 each for the murals and sculpture, for a total of $600,000. The one drawing most attention was the fairy and toad from artist Cheryl Foster. Her proposal describes the sculpture this way:
“A 10-foot fairy, using an American Toad as ‘transportation,’ scurries to the entrance of the station. The interior of the toad is illuminated and the sounds of nature emanate from his throat.” She said that nature inspired her.
The Senate voted overwhelmingly—65-to-31—Saturday to repeal the 17-year old ban on gays serving openly in the military. Eight Republicans joined 57 Democrats on the right side of history. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law some time before Christmas.
Americans’ Views on ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Care’: A recent study by the Pew Research Center shows that a majority of Americans have favored gays serving openly in the military since the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” ban was implemented in 1994.
