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 7:33 AM, May 31, 2013 • By DANIEL HALPERThe Defense Department announced that it's sponsoring anonymous Internet chat groups for sexual assault victims, according to Defense.gov. The announcement comes after a string of high-profile sexual assaults among military personnel.
"In response to a need for peer support services identified by users of the Defense Department’s Safe Helpline for sexual assault victims, Pentagon officials have launched the Safe HelpRoom, a new service that allows victims to participate in group chat sessions to connect with and support one another in a moderated and secure online environment," reads the article.
"The Safe HelpRoom is available at http://SafeHelpline.org, officials said, noting that the moderator can provide referrals as necessary and will ensure that chat postings adhere to all ground rules."
Acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness Jessica L. Wright tells the military publication, "Survivors of sexual assault have told us that being able to discuss their concerns with peers can provide a level of support not available through other means. ... Safe HelpRoom is a groundbreaking development in the department's commitment to support military victims of sexual assault."
The help is not provided by the Defense Department, but by an outside group. "The Safe HelpRoom and Safe Helpline are administered by the Defense Department and operated by the nonprofit organization Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, the nation's largest anti-sexual-violence organization, through a contract with DOD’s sexual assault prevention and response office, known as SAPRO."
11:55 AM, Feb 6, 2013 • By JERYL BIEROn January 23, news broke that outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta had issued a directive that the military's ban on women in combat would be lifted.
Read more... 5:27 PM, Oct 22, 2012 • By DANIEL HALPERIt’s bad enough that the administration has repeatedly cut defense spending in the midst of fighting a war but it now appears it is also shirking its duty to make sure those serving in that war are able to vote and have their vote counted.
Read more... 5:25 PM, Jul 12, 2012 • By THOMAS JOSCELYNIn a report to Congress authored in April, and posted online earlier this week by Bloomberg News, the Defense Department has once again accused Iran of supporting the Taliban. The unclassified assessment, which is titled “Annual Report on Military Power of Iran,” makes it clear that the U.S. remains the primary focus of Iran’s military and clandestine designs.
Read more... The Pentagon is not ready for the 21st century. But it’s not too late to change course. Dec 13, 2010, Vol. 16, No. 13 • By JIM TALENT
Read more... How the U.S. government should respond to WikiLeaks.2:30 PM, Nov 28, 2010 • By WILLIAM KRISTOL
The editors at Der Spiegel can’t contain themselves. Even before publication of the WikiLeaks documents, they’ve taken to their website to announce jubilantly that the leaking of these documents “is nothing short of a political meltdown for US foreign policy.”
Nonsense.
Read more... WikiLeaks, again.12:00 PM, Nov 28, 2010 • By THOMAS JOSCELYN
The world is once again anticipating a massive leak of classified documents by WikiLeaks. The U.S. State Department is so concerned that it has published a letter addressed to the head of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, and his attorney, arguing that publication of the documents will “risk the lives of countless innocent individuals,” “[p]lace at risk on-going military operations,” and “[p]lace at risk on-going cooperation between countries.”
Read more... It's a mistake to just count dollars and cents. 2:08 PM, Jun 3, 2010 • By JOHN NOONANThe Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation has released study that's worth of a (scrupulous) look. Here's its central tenet:
Read more... Gates sings another tune.3:38 PM, May 11, 2010 • By MICHAEL GOLDFARB
When Secretary of Defense Robert Gates went to Chicago last summer to make the case for killing the F-22 -- the world's premier air supremacy fighter and the only "fifth generation fighter" currently in production anywhere -- he argued that the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter would be a more cost-effectve alternative. Though the JSF "has had development problems to be sure," Gates said, "It is a versatile aircraft, less than half the total cost of the F-22, and can be produced in quantity with all the advantages produced by economies of scale – some 500 will be bought over the next five years."
Read more... While potentially downsizing our military. 12:48 PM, May 10, 2010 • By JOHN NOONANI've had my nose buried in an interesting, if not a bit alarmist, piece on a potential naval spat with China. The paper, titled "How the United States Lost the Naval War of 2015" (how's that for an eye-catcher?), raises the red flag on the PLA Navy's intent to raise the black flag. That scenario, whether it's 5 or 10 years off, could be dire. China's strategy on high-end asymmetrical warfare is everything their ancestral tactician Sun Tzu said it should it should be: simple, focused, and aimed at all of the U.S. Navy's weak points. The United States, with its ever expanding list of warfighting missions, doesn't enjoy such simplicity.
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