Mr Barnum motivating the 26th MEU

H.C. "Barney" Barnum Jr., Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Reserve Affairs), signs his section of a Medal of Honor book for Cpl. Murray Bartlett of Combat Logistics Battalion-26, 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, aboard the USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), Dec. 25, 2008. Barnum, a Medal of Honor recipient, visited while the USS Iwo Jima was in port in Bahrain. The 26th MEU is currently deployed aboard the Iwo Jima Strike Group in the Arabian Gulf in support of local operations. (Official Marine Corps Photo by Cpl. Patrick M. Johnson-Campbell) (Released)

Continuum of Service

H.C. "Barney" Barnum Jr., Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Reserve Affairs), serves a Marine from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit Christmas brunch aboard the USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), Dec. 25, 2008. Barnum, a Medal of Honor recipient, visited while the USS Iwo Jima was in port in Bahrain. The 26th MEU is currently deployed aboard the Iwo Jima Strike Group in the Arabian Gulf in support of local operations. (Official Marine Corps Photo by Cpl. Patrick M. Johnson-Campbell) (Released)

LtCol Victor H. Krulak Navy Cross Citation

The Navy Cross is presented to Victor H. Krulak, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism as Commanding Officer of the Second Battalion, First Marine Parachute Regiment, during operations on Choiseul Island, Solomon Islands, October 28 to November 3, 1943. Assigned the task of diverting hostile attention from the movements of our main attack force en route to Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville Island, Lieutenant Colonel Krulak landed at Choiseul and daringly directed the attack of his battalion against the Japanese, destroying hundreds of tons of supplies and burning camps and landing barges. Although wounded during the assault on October 30, he repeatedly refused to relinquish his command and with dauntless courage and tenacious devotion to duty, continued to lead his battalion against the numerically superior Japanese forces. His brilliant leadership and indomitable fighting spirit assured the success of this vital mission and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Victor H. Krulak, 1913 - 2008

Los Angeles Times December 31, 2008

Victor H. Krulak, 1913 - 2008
Marine general was a war hero

By Tony Perry

Retired Marine Lt. Gen. Victor H. "Brute" Krulak, celebrated for his leadership in World War II, Korea and Vietnam and for his authoritative book on the Marines, "First to Fight," died Monday at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla. He was 95 and had been in declining health for several years.

In a career that spanned three decades Krulak displayed bravery during combat and brilliance as a tactician and organizer of troops.

"Brute was very forgiving of young Marines who made mistakes," said retired Col. G.I. Wilson, a combat veteran. "But he was hell on senior officers who preferred careerism and bureaucracy over decisive action. He detested those who lost sight of looking after their enlisted Marines and young officers."

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-krulak31-2008dec31,0,3033208.story
or http://snipurl.com/9auir [www_latimes_com]

Despite uproar, officials say all well at WTU

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Dec 23, 2008 22:14:04 EST

At a recent gathering in a small auditorium at Fort Lee, Va., wounded soldiers listened as everyone in their chain of command up to a full colonel reassured them that life in the post’s Warrior Transition Unit remained good.

Capt. David Payne, their company commander, reminded them that Fort Lee had ranked in the top five of 35 WTUs for 15 straight months, according to monthly online polls. The barracks are "rated the top in the Army." Three members of the cadre are former wounded soldiers themselves.

Lt. Col. Robert Lather told them the hospital is being revamped, with more space dedicated to active-duty soldiers so they don’t have to wait in long lines with troops going through Advanced Individual Training.

"Your mission is to heal," said Col. Donna Diamond, head of Fort Lee’s Kenner Army Health Clinic. "We’re here to make sure your needs are addressed."

In the back of the room, Sgt. Loyd Sawyer shook his head.

"We’re having another dog-and-pony show," he said.

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/12/military_lee_warriortransition_122308w/

Defense lays groundwork for new management chief

By Elizabeth Newell enewell@govexec.com
December 22, 2008

While it will be up to President-elect Barack Obama to fill a congressionally mandated deputy chief management officer position at the Defense Department, the Pentagon already is making preparations for the new official's arrival.

The nomination and Senate confirmation of a management chief is statutorily required in both the 2008 and 2009 Defense authorization bills. But creating a new office to consolidate business leadership across the massive agency does not happen overnight, so the Office of the Secretary of Defense is getting a jump-start on the process.

Beth McGrath, principal deputy undersecretary at Defense's Business Transformation Agency, was appointed assistant deputy chief management officer in October and has begun coordinating business management across offices and military departments. Defense Deputy Secretary Gordon England, who also holds the chief management officer title, has developed a charter, timelines, and scope and responsibility papers for the incoming nominee.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=41679&dcn=todaysnews

Reserve policy board to be overhauled

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Dec 19, 2008 13:03:44 EST

The Reserve Forces Policy Board that advises Pentagon leaders on NationalGuard and reserve issues would be revamped with fewer service members and moreindependence, under a plan approved by Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

The initiative, which requires congressional approval, revises membership in away that makes active and reserve officers, who compose a majority of thecurrent 24-member panel, would be in the minority on the slightly smaller20-member panel.

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/12/military_reserveboard_121908w/

Army creates organization to oversee civilian training

By Katherine McIntire Peters kpeters@govexec.com
December 12, 2008

The Army this week announced it was standing up a civilian university to better manage employee education and training. With plans for a staff of 15, however, the university is less a physical entity than a governing headquarters that aims to better coordinate education programs.

The move is part of a broader plan to centrally manage career development for the Army's 250,000 civilian employees, about 60 percent of whom do not have established career paths. By centralizing management the service plans to level the playing field for all civilians and gain a better understanding of the skills it must develop to meet long-term needs.

Eventually, the service expects to create eight broad career tracks that will provide employees with a clear path for promotion and give them more visibility into opportunities elsewhere in the Army.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=41620&dcn=todaysnews

Defense Officials Address Sexual Assault Reporting Issues

By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
Dec. 17, 2008

Three years of data and study have helped Defense Department officials determine that unreported occurrences -- not frequency of assaults -- is the main issue concerning sexual assaults within the three U.S. service academies, the deputy director of the department’s sexual assault prevention and response program said.

“There’s a gap between the number of incidences … being reported to us anonymously on survey and the actual number of cadets coming forward and reporting those incidences to the authorities at the academies,” Air Force Lt. Col. Nathan Galbreath said. “And that gap is what we’re most concerned about.”

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=52374

Judge rejects bid to force quicker VA payments

By Hope Yen
December 17, 2008

A federal judge on Wednesday rejected a bid by veterans groups to force the Veterans Affairs Department to speed up handling of its disability claims, saying it was not the court's role to impose quicker deadlines.

Vietnam Veterans of America and Veterans of Modern Warfare, which represent roughly 60,000 military veterans, had filed the lawsuit asking the VA process initial disability claims within 90 days and resolve appeals within 180 days. If the VA failed to do so, the two groups were seeking interim payments of roughly $350 a month.

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1208/121708ap3.htm