MetaFilter posts tagged with War

The women of Afghanistan

Joe Beese — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 08:11:54 -0800

87 percent are illiterate. 44 years is their average life expectancy. 70 to 80 percent face forced marriages.

1942 maps of the invasion of the United States

Rumple — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 12:11:51 -0800

Metafilter's own JF Ptak has an interesting post on the Life magazine issue of March 2nd, 1942, readers of which were confronted by some startling maps detailing possible Axis invasion strategies for North America. There was invasion down the St. Lawrence valley, there was invasion via Trinidad, via Bermuda, full frontal west coast, and down the west coast as well - note the mapping of the large "fifth columns". As Ptak notes, maps such as these with huge arrows pointed menancingly at the American homeland were very much not the norm of the day. In a second post on his marvellous site, Ptak discusses Life's dioramas of imaginary battles in the United States between Axis and Allied troops, and also outlines the development of the "Amerika" German heavy bomber.

Losing the War

deern the headlice — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 00:35:33 -0800

Losing the War "From the beginning, the actual circumstances of World War II were smothered in countless lies...People all along have preferred the movie version: the tense border crossing where the flint-eyed SS guards check the forged papers; the despondent high-level briefing where the junior staff officer pipes up with the crazy plan that just might work...The truth behind these cliches was never forgotten -- because nobody except the soldiers ever learned it in the first place."

"When the day's activities include the likelihood of getting your brains shot out, maybe a little slap and tickle - while not desirable - is not the end of the world."

oinopaponton — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 06:35:49 -0800

The New York Times examines several reports of sexual harassments and assaults on women in the US Military. In the article's comments, current and former troops chime in to suggest that this is an inevitable result of including women in combat zones. (Part of the NYTimes's Women at Arms series)

Military maps of The War on Christmas

Joe Beese — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 07:53:04 -0800

In celebration of Festivus: military maps of the War on Christmas.

Hacking the Predator

homunculus — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:38:38 -0800

Insurgents Hack U.S. Drones. "Militants in Iraq have used $26 off-the-shelf software to intercept live video feeds from U.S. Predator drones, potentially providing them with information they need to evade or monitor U.S. military operations." [Via]

HeroRATs Clear Landmines

pashdown — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 09:38:36 -0800

Unexploded landmines still remain a huge problem the world over. What is more, landmine clearance is an expensive business. One man has found a potential solution, however. All hail the HeroRAT.

Strange Medicine

reenum — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:04:54 -0800

Radovan Karadzic was a war criminal who was able to escape prosecution for his war crimes during the genocide in Bosnia. In a particularly strange twist, Karadzic assumed the name Dragan Dabic and rose in the ranks of the alternative healing community in Belgrade. “Across from Dabic’s apartment in New Belgrade, there lived a woman who worked at Interpol,” Vekaric of the I.C.T.Y. told me. “Every morning this woman switched on her computer and there was a picture of Radovan Karadzic and Osama bin Laden. And each morning she would say good morning to Dragan Dabic.” She never suspected who her neighbor was."

Lt. Brad Pitt and his Howling Commandos

Artw — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:04:44 -0800

Jack Kirby's Inglorious Basterds

War Photographer

netbros — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:44:44 -0800

David Guttenfelder is the chief Asia photographer for The Associated Press. Recently, he has been focusing his lens in Afghanistan. Photographer Collection: David Guttenfelder in Afghanistan and On Assignment: Afghanistan.

Inside Gaza

smoke — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:04:48 -0800

"Every opportunity for peace in the Middle East has been led to slaughter" Lawrence Wright in The New Yorker writes about the Israeli incursion into the Gaza Strip nearly eleven months ago, talking to Palestinians, Israelis and aid workers. Political context combined with incredibly saddening everyday civilian life.

The House on Garibaldi Street

reenum — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:35:26 -0800

The capture of Adolf Eichmann is one of the more daring spy operations in the post WWII era. The story spans 17 years, beginning with Eichmann's clandestine escape from the Allied forces and the Nuremberg trial, and ending with his hanging in Israel. After WWII, Eichmann was able to escape the Nuremberg trials and the subsequent efforts of Nazi hunters in Europe. He worked as a farmer for 5 years, before he was able to gain passage to Argentina with the help of an organization that helped ex-Nazis defect to South America. However, Nazi hunters like Simon Wiesenthal never forgot about Eichmann and the crimes he had committed. After years of chasing false leads, the Mossad finally found Eichmann and assembled a team to capture him. This team included Rafi Eitan and Peter Malkin. The team followed Eichmann and planned his capture, which ended with the Israelis smuggling a drugged Eichmann aboard an El-Al plane and making two transcontinental flights that pushed the plane's limits. The operation caused embarrassment for some of the world's superpowers. But, the trial went on nonetheless. Subsequent generations have studied this capture and the impact it had on the world as a whole. You can find repositories of Eichmann related documents here, here, here and here.

How An American Soldier Is Made

Effigy2000 — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:29:03 -0800

This is how an American soldier is made. A fascinating photo essay that details 27 months in the life of new US Army recruit Ian Fisher. It chronicles his recruitment, induction, training, deployment and finally, his return from combat.

Orson Welles's radio War of the Worlds recreated by the cast of Star Trek.

feelinglistless — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:55:13 -0800

Orson Welles's radio War of the Worlds recreated by the casts of Star Trek.

Your Chance to Survive!

Ruthless Bunny — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:28:47 -0800

Duck and Cover! There are many aspects of the Civil Defense program that may seem funny today, but the period after World War II was a very scary time. Civil defense officials and volunteers during that time were very serious about their work and I believe they deserve respect for their efforts. They rendered emergency services after natural and man-made disasters and would have had an impossible task had there ever been a nuclear war. This virtual museum is dedicated to the Civil Defense and emergency workers of the United States who worked to protect the public from nuclear attack.

Superman standing in the Neuschwanstein Castle

Pater Aletheias — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:51:41 -0800

Superheroes in Old War Photographs. [via]

Violence, death, mud, insanity.

markkraft — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 03:43:26 -0800

Photos from the war. A slideshow of photos taken by German soldier Werner Wiehe... vermisst in Russland, 1944. (While viewing the slideshow, might I suggest playing some appropriate musical accompaniment, arranged in sequential order?!)

Obama's War

kliuless — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:24:43 -0800

Frontline in Afghanistan
In a war that has lasted eight years, what is the way forward now? BONUS

On The Front Lines With Frontline - "Pakistan is more an enemy of the United States"
Exum vs. Bacevich - "my fundamental contention is that we have better things to do than to try to transform Afghanistan into something it has never been"
On the chain of command - "the time to adjust the strategy is as new evidence comes in"
Obama On Afghanistan - "doesn't sound like a major counter-insurgency"
To Beat the Taliban, Fight From Afar - "American and NATO military forces themselves are a major cause of the deteriorating situation"
Nation building - "for some reason we believe that American policy is capable of accomplishing things in Pakistan and Afghanistan that we would never dream it could do in Mexico"
Lessons Learned - "the ongoing debate within the Army between those who say the service must prepare for major combat operations and those who argue irregular wars are the future is a false one... war is art, not science... trying to prevail in current conflicts and preparing for other contingencies, between institutionalizing capabilities such as counterinsurgency and foreign military assistance and maintaining the United States' existing conventional and strategic technological edge"

lastly, to give my personal opinion, after watching this i'm pretty convinced that escalation in afghanistan would be a debacle...

Women Veterans Historical Collection

tellurian — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:01:59 -0800

Jean M. Fasse (Red Cross during WWII, and later the Special Service). Shirley Ann Thacker (WAVE). Just two of the interviews from the extensive collection of material (photographs, letters, diaries, scrapbooks, oral histories and posters) at the Women Veterans Historical Collection.

Without using the words “man” or “good,” can you please define what it means to be a good man?

Non Prosequitur — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:36:10 -0800

War Dances: “I wanted to call my father and tell him that a white man thought my brain was beautiful”. Sherman Alexie doing his thing in The New Yorker, excerpted from his upcoming book (early review; interview 1, 2.)

The Three Human Bombs

XMLicious — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:19:53 -0800

The scene was the siege of Shanghai, the year 1932. It was more than half a year since the Mukden Incident had provided a pretext for Japan to invade Manchuria and begin moving down through Northern China. Three Imperial Japanese soldiers from an engineering division died in a bomb blast that took out a section of the Chinese fortifications, allowing Japanese forces to surge through the breach and advance. The fallen soldiers became known as the "Three Human Bombs" (Bakudan Sanyushi / 爆弾三勇士). Memorials were built and murals were painted and the Three Human Bombs were remembered as gallant and selfless heroes who gave their lives for the greater good of Japan, lauded on stage, in film, and in song. A military medal was created to award heroism in honor of the three. Problem is, it was all a lie. The story of the Three Human Bombs was one of the most successful propaganda campaigns of the early twentieth century.

Remembering the dead

MuffinMan — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 14:16:20 -0800

Every evening since July 2nd 1928*, at precisely eight o'clock, the Last Post has been played under the Menin Gate in Ieper (Ypres, "Wipers" as it was known to British tommies), Belgium. The ritual - performed by buglers from the local fire brigade - honours British and Commonwealth soldiers killed in the five battles at Ypres in the First World War. Today is the 27,888th day of the Last Post ceremony. Completed in 1927, the Menin gate is a memorial to the 54,896 Commonwealth soldiers who died without graves - the missing in action. The town itself has over 100 military cemeteries. Winston Churchill said of the town, "I should like to acquire the whole of the ruins of Ypres... a more sacred place for the British race does not exist in the world." *In fact, during the Second World War the Germans banned the ceremony, and the bugles were hidden away. On the day the Polish entered the town and retook it in 1945, the ceremony started again.

"Meet the Afghan Army: Is It a Figment of Washington's Imagination?"

Joe Beese — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:25:04 -0800

"Meet the Afghan Army: Is It a Figment of Washington's Imagination?"

"And they're not supposed to kill you while you're having chai with them"

Burhanistan — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 12:57:10 -0800

Afghan Lessons Learned for Soldiers - a collection of musings on life as a soldier in Afghanistan. It's on Blogspot but not much of a blog per se, more just a convenient place to post observations. There are currently two pages of posts. As a bonus for those interested in recent history in Afghanistan, be sure to bookmark/RSS Ghosts of Alexander.

An Iwo Jima Relic Binds Generations

alms — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:09:27 -0800

An Iwo Jima Relic Binds Generations. (SLNYTTJ - single-link new york times tear-jerker.)