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]

Ripley at The Bridge at Dong Ha

John W. Ripley

Marine colonel, member of Ranger Hall of Fame, was known for the destruction of a bridge during the Vietnam War

By Nick Madigan
November 3, 2008

John W. Ripley, a retired Marine Corps colonel and a renowned hero of the Vietnam War, was found dead at his home in Annapolis over the weekend, family members said. A cause of death for Ripley, who had undergone two liver transplants, had not been determined yesterday. He was 69.

A Virginia native, Colonel Ripley was best known for a daring feat during the Easter Offensive of 1972, when he dangled for three hours under a bridge near the South Vietnamese city of Dong Ha to attach 500 pounds of explosives to the span, ultimately destroying it. His action, under fire while going back and forth for materials, is thought to have thwarted an onslaught by 20,000 enemy troops and was the subject of a book, The Bridge at Dong Ha, by John Grider Miller.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/obituaries/bal-md.ob.ripley03nov03,0,1985920.story

Navy drafting Naval Operations Concept

By Christopher P. Cavas - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Oct 22, 2008 9:52:16 EDT

Deploying U.S. naval forces must be more flexible, able to split up and re-form in different combinations as situations require. The fleet still needs 11 aircraft carriers to meet its missions but more amphibious ships are required to support new missions. The number of formal and informal maritime partnerships will continue to grow. Even when mine-hunting Littoral Combat Ships come into service, a gap will remain in the Navy’s ability to combat the undersea threat. Ballistic missile defense is increasingly seen as a basic naval capability.

Those are some of the issues addressed in a working draft of the Naval Operations Concept (NOC) 2008, another in a series of documents meant to describe how, when and where U.S. naval forces will prevent conflict and prevail in war.

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/10/defense_noc_102108/

NavCivGuide: A Handbook for Civilians in the United States Navy

Just as Thomas Cutler's The Bluejacket's Manual serves as the standard introduction and continuing reference guide for American sailors, this new handbook provides a basic reference guide for civilians working for the U.S. Navy. It will acquaint them with the Navy's world of acronyms, n-codes, uniforms, and customs. The author explains that a big step toward fitting in has always been learning how to "talk the talk and walk the walk," and this guide provides new employees and veteran workers alike with the words and steps needed to succeed in the Navy. Among its special features are sections on using military salutations properly, reading naval uniforms, understanding the culture of the Department of Defense, and an introduction to ships and airplanes.

Thomas J. Cutler, Lt. Cmdr., USN (Ret.), is also the author of A Sailor's History of the U.S. Navy, The Battle of Leyte Gulf, and among other books, and is the recipient of the Alfred Thayer Mahan Award for Naval Literature.

http://www.usni.org/store/item.asp?ITEM_ID=1716

Yorktown Day, October 19th

On October 19, 1781, a British army under General Charles Lord Cornwallis was forced to surrender to General Washington’s combined American and French army. Upon hearing of their defeat, British Prime Minister Frederick Lord North is reputed to have said, "Oh God, it's all over." And it was. The victory secured independence for the United States and significantly changed the course of world history.

http://www.nps.gov/york

Remember USS Yorktown CV-5

Two weeks after the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Yorktown transited the Panama Canal to reinforce the badly damaged Pacific Fleet. The carrier's first combat operation was the Marshalls-Gilberts raid in early February 1942.

Yorktown then steamed to the South Pacific, where she participated in a series of raids and other operations that climaxed in the Battle of Coral Sea in early May. In this action, in which she was damaged by enemy bombs, her planes attacked two Japanese aircraft carriers, helping to sink Shoho and damaging Shokaku.

Quick repairs at Pearl Harbor put Yorktown into good enough condition to participate in the Battle of Midway on 4-6 June 1942. During this great turning point of the Pacific War, her air group fatally damaged the Japanese aircraft carrier Soryu and shared in the destruction of the carrier Hiryu and cruiser Mikuma. However, successive strikes by dive bombers and torpedo planes from Hiryu seriously damaged Yorktown, causing her abandonment during the afternoon of 4 June.

Two days later, while salvage efforts were underway, the Japanese submarine I-168 torpedoed both the damaged carrier and the destroyer Hammann (DD-412), sinking the latter immediately and Yorktown shortly after daybreak on 7 June 1942. USS Yorktown's wreck was discovered and examined in May 1998, in surprisingly good condition after fifty-six years beneath more than three miles of sea water.

This page features a number of images of USS Yorktown, selected from the more extensive coverage linked below.

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-xz/cv5.htm

Skelton Calls On Next Administration to Address National Security Challenges

August 19, 2008

WASHINGTON, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) called on the next administration to work with Congress to address the national security challenges that confront America today and in the years ahead.

“No matter which Presidential candidate American voters choose in November, we need to begin planning now for the issues our country must focus on when the new President begins to govern. All areas of American policy present challenges, but the challenges in the national security arena are particularly acute and critical to the nation,” said Skelton.

http://armedservices.house.gov/apps/list/press/armedsvc_dem/SkeltonDefenseChallenges081908.shtml

Skelton on the Principles for a National Strategy

August 1, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) released the fifth in a series of speeches concerning the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests. Attached please find Skelton’s remarks as prepared for delivery:

“I rise to speak about how the United States can best advance its national interests by adopting a new strategy. In my prior speeches, I have asserted that we currently lack an effective strategy and that the next President should engage in a focused effort, in concert with Congress and the American people, to identify and adopt a new strategy early in his Administration. I have noted that we live in a time when the U.S. is the world’s preeminent power, but also in a time when transnational events are increasingly significant and in which several large nations, and some entire regions of the world, are returning to prominence. All of this stresses the international system.
http://armedservices.house.gov/apps/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr080108.shtml

Skelton Speech on National Strategy at The Brookings Institution

July 31, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) spoke on national strategy at a luncheon seminar hosted by The Brookings Institution. Attached below please find Skelton’s speech as prepared for delivery.

"I want to thank Dr. Singer for inviting me to address this luncheon seminar. It’s an honor to be with you and to share the program with one of our country’s most distinguished soldier scholars, my friend Major General Bob Scales.

"From the time I was a young man, reading military history has been my hobby. And while this hobby didn’t necessarily serve a professional purpose when I was practicing law in Lexington, Missouri, it has certainly helped me in my work on the House Armed Services Committee. My background as a student of military history also impressed upon me the importance of professional military education, which is key to developing the strategic thinkers and innovative leaders who will serve as military advisers to the President and to Congress.

http://armedservices.house.gov/apps/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr073108.shtml

Skelton on Our Role as the Indispensable Nation

July 24, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) today delivered the fourth in a series of speeches in the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests:

“Tonight, I rise to continue my series of discussions about the future of American grand strategy. Last week, I suggested that we strive to remain and even bolster our role as the world’s indispensable nation, and that should guide our thinking as we consider the imperatives that define our national interest.

http://armedservices.house.gov/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr072508.shtml

Skelton on the United States’ Role in the World

July 16, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) today delivered the third in a series of speeches in the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests:

“I rise once again to discuss the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests in the world. Last week I delivered two addresses on this topic. In the second speech I argued that our understanding of the role the U.S. should play in the world is the foundation for our strategy. It will define our vital interests and will condition the means we use for advancing those interests.

http://armedservices.house.gov/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr071708.shtml/

Skelton on America’s Strategic Context

July 10, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) today delivered the second in a series of speeches in the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests:

"Yesterday, I rose to speak about the need for America to embark upon a process to develop a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests in the world. Today, I rise to continue that theme; I want to take the conversation a little further. A strategy, as I said last night, describes the way we employ all elements of national power to advance our critical interests. Ultimately, determining these critical interests depends upon the place America occupies in the world. What do we see as our role? Who do we want to be and how do we want to interact with the rest of the globe’s inhabitants to get there? That is the fundamental question, of course, but we are not ready to answer it yet.

http://armedservices.house.gov/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr071008B.shtml

Skelton: U.S. Needs Comprehensive Strategy to Advance National Interests

July 9, 2008

Washington, DC – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) today delivered the first in a series of speeches in the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the need for a comprehensive strategy to advance U.S. interests:

“I rise today to talk about a fundamental problem affecting the national security of the United States which has not received the notice and consideration it deserves. The United States suffers from the complete absence of a comprehensive strategy for advancing U.S. interests. This strategic void detracts from almost every policy effort advanced by the United States Government. As a result, major policies are inconsistent and contradictory in different areas of the world and across different policy realms. We find ourselves unable to agree upon and set national priorities for addressing the major challenges of our time. We suffer from a splintering of national power, and an inability to coherently address threats and reassure and cooperate with allies.

http://armedservices.house.gov/list/press/armedsvc_dem/skeltonpr070908b.shtml

Former Clinton Navy secretary discusses post-Bush defense policy

By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr., National Journal

After Richard Danzig served as a Pentagon civilian from 1977 to 1981, President Bill Clinton named him undersecretary of the Navy and then Navy secretary. Since 2001, he has acted as a consultant to the Defense Department on biological warfare. He is now one of Barack Obama's top advisers on defense policy.

NJ: If Senator Obama is elected, won't his promise to pull combat forces out of Iraq put tremendous pressure on him to cut defense, especially by doing away with supplemental spending bills?

Danzig: Withdrawal from Iraq generates some savings, but it also generates some costs, [for example] the refurbishment of equipment -- the so-called reset of the Army and Marine Corps. Supplementals have not only been used to deal with unexpected contingencies in the operating budget, like the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq; they've also been used to smuggle in items that should be part of the base budget. One of the problems any new administration is going to have to deal with is this bad budgeting technique.

Full story: http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=40497&dcn=e_gvet

Marine Corps Vision and Strategy 2025 (new)

"The purpose of the vision and strategy document is to inform all Marines where we intend to take our Corps to give combatant commanders a concept of how we might best be employed, and to provide our civilian leadership a reference point as to how we see Marine Corps contributions to national defense in the coming years and decades. This document is grounded in the Marine Corps’ identity, ethos, values, and competencies. It serves as the principal strategic planning document for our Corps and reflects our legislated roles, functions, and composition. Derived from strategic guidance at the national and departmental level, it illustrates our utility and value within the joint warfighting community."

http://www.marines.mil/units/hqmc/cmc/Documents/MCVS2025%2030%20June.pdf

For summary and more, see our friends at Small Wars Journal:
http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2008/06/marine-corps-vision-and-strate/

SouthCom chief encourages military bloggers

Stavridis to TFX News: Write On !

By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 18, 2008 9:55:29 EDT

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The four-star chief of U.S. Southern Command urged service members to become published writers and bloggers at a three-day conference of the U.S. Naval Institute beginning here Tuesday.

Adm. James Stavridis, author of several guides and books on the Navy, said it’s important for members of the military, contractors and retirees to "read, think, write and publish."

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/06/military_stavridis_bloggers_061708w/

SecDef Remarks on “Next-War-itis”

As Delivered by Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Excerpts
"In my view, America’s key asymmetric advantage is our people. And getting the present right when it comes to care of our men and women in uniform will go a long way towards making sure we have the kind of force we need in the future."

"The risk of overextending the Army is real. But I believe the risk is far greater – to that institution, as well as to our country – if we were to fail in Iraq. That is the war we are in. That is the war we must win."

http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/speech.aspx?speechid=1240

Transcript: SECDEF lecture at the U.S. Military Academy (West Point, NY)

Excerpt:
"Marshall has been recognized as a textbook model for the way military officers should handle disagreements with superiors and in particular with the civilians vested with control of the armed forces under our Constitution. So your duties as an officer are:
· To provide blunt and candid advice always;
· To keep disagreements private;
· And to implement faithfully decisions that go against you. "

http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/speech.aspx?speechid=1233