Urban Dictionary: The Definition of a War Blogger
Saturday, November 29, 2008, 01:30 PM
On Urban Dictionary this morning, I found this super awesome definition of a War Blogger. Check it out below:Definition: A nerd-type who fails their military duty, hides behind a computer feverishly opposing war of any kind by typing their delusional opinions in hope someone will bite. A Coward who fills the void by devoting many wasted hours hacking away at a keyboard, usually arguing with retired folks who have a mind of their own and have served their country. A “Wanna-be Hippie”, but lacks the motivation to get off their butt and go to rallies.
Usage: Josh, get off that computer and go to bed, you have to work tomorrow, it's
On a side note, I think I'm gonna throw away my copies of the Webster Dictionary. And also, my kids' textbooks. Then we'll just use Urban Dictionary for all our information.
Read more definitions over at Urban Dictionary.
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Social Media Websites Cover Mumbai Terror Attacks in Real-Time
Saturday, November 29, 2008, 01:11 PM
(ABC News) In the initial stages of the Mumbai terror attacks, when the public was trying to make sense of the chaos, social media sites like Twitter and Flickr produced some of the first inklings of the enormity and viciousness of the assaults. Those caught in the crossfire used their cell phones and computers to provide firsthand accounts of the casualties and damage.
One who identified himself as Vinu posted a photostream of the devastation on his Flickr page. Another blogger, Manish, liveblogged the attacks.
Concerned friends and family members, from
Others used Facebook and Google status updates to exchange information and prayers about loved ones.
Read the entire story here.
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Nominations Close for 2008 Weblog Awards, Best Military Blog
Friday, November 28, 2008, 04:18 PM
(The 2008 Weblog Awards) Thanks to everyone who nominated blogs this year! We had a record number of nominations - over 4,800 at last count.We've closed nominations in nearly all of the 49 categories, but we've left a few open while we work on producing finalist slates for all of the categories.
Here are the categories still accepting nominations:
Best Education Blog
Best Pet Blog
Best Fashion Blog
Best Gossip Blog
Best Large Blog (Technorati Authority over 1001)
Best Mid Major Blog (Technorati Authority between 751 and 1000)
Best Mid Minor Blog (Technorati Authority between 501 and 750)
Best Small Major Blog (Technorati Authority between 301 and 500)
Read the entire story here.
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French Media Covers TroopTube.tv and Military Blogs
Friday, November 28, 2008, 03:59 PM
The French newspaper Le Figaro did a story on the military and social media. The story even mentions Milblogging.com. Click here to read it. As you might expect though, the article is written in French so unless you speak the language you’ll need to use a Site Translator like Google. I actually went to the website and tried translating the story using my two years of high school French. But unfortunately, I didn’t find any bad words or French insults... Thus making the entire story pretty much unreadable. And boring.
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Long-time Milblogger Michael Yon Published in the New York Post
Friday, November 28, 2008, 02:55 PM
(New York Post) Nobody knows what the future will bring, but the civil war has completely ended. The Iraqi army and police grow stronger by the month, and even the National Police (NP) are gaining a degree of respect and credibility.
As recently as last year, the NPs were considered nothing more than militia members in uniform who murdered with impunity. To go on patrol with NPs was to invite attack. But the Americans worked to help alleviate the disdain.
On one occasion, US soldiers peacefully disarmed a local militia that was apparently about to ambush NPs who had harassed it the same morning, and the soldiers sent the NPs to their station and later gave the locals back their guns. The next day, we were at the NP station as the
Over time, the extremely frustrating process of mentoring the NPs worked. Last week, I went on foot patrol with US forces and NPs in the same
Read the entire story here.
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Military Blogger Who Takes Honest, Hilarious Approach to Blogging Getting Ready to Return Home from Deployment
Friday, November 28, 2008, 02:28 PM
(Fobbits Need Ice Cream Too) The task at hand is clean and turn in our M4s, M240B's, night vision, ACOGs/CCOs (weapons optics). I have all of these cleaned, the issue is now that our supply sergeant is taking day trips to the other FOBs in Kuwait to eat at the nicer fast food places and buy steaks to BBQ. Our PL or PSG will storm into the tent yelling at us to turn our shit in and we race up there only to find the supply sergeant gone. Good to know that things are just as fucked up at the end as they were at the beginning of this tour.Read the entire story here.
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Fresh Perspective on the 2008 Weblog Awards, Best Military Blog
Thursday, November 27, 2008, 02:30 PM
(Argghh!) I don't play in that arena any more - and not just because the field has so expanded with quality blogs that we, justifiably, don't make the cut anymore in the milblog category. This is an auld-phart blog that blogs about things military and other, we really dont fit the milblog niche that well anymore, and there are some really really outstanding military blogs out there that are much more focused than the quirky old Castle. Looking at the nominees for the Best Milblog category - you see the usual suspects of Blackfive, Mudville, Mike Yon, Op-For, and some rising stars like Big Tobacco, Information Dissemination, Lt Nixon, and some old-line hard workers like You Served, and Blue Star Chronicles - but you don't see Long War Journal, Small Wars Journal, Belmont Club or Abu Muqawama.
Read the entire story here.
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Today's Milvlog: 2008 Soldier Thanksgiving Day Greetings from the Middle East
Thursday, November 27, 2008, 02:21 PM
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In the News: A Slain Soldier's Diary Gives Insight Into His Life in Iraq
Thursday, November 27, 2008, 02:19 PM
(ABC News) All "This is Jon's last letter home, received two days after he was killed. 'Dear mom,'"
The letter served as the final words from her 22-year-old son, who died in
But, as
Read the entire story here.
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Upcoming Radio Show To Discuss The Power of the Milblog
Tuesday, November 25, 2008, 04:09 PM
(You Served) A special night and a special show. During this show we will be discussing the "Power of the Milblog" with a round-table consisting of Journalist and blogger Susan Keating, Milblogger and Listen online here this Wednesday, November 26th, at
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In the News - UNSUNG HERO: WWI Artist Private Len Smith Heralded
Tuesday, November 25, 2008, 12:01 AM
(iReport.com) He was no doubt handy with a bayonet and a rifle. But as a young soldier in the First World War, Len Smith's deadliest weapons were his pencil and his pad. In the days before satellite surveillance provided detailed images from the sky, Private Smith would creep behind enemy lines and draw.
His sketches were so accurate they could identify exact enemy numbers, the type of weapons used and the geography of the land ahead.
One of Private Smith's remarkable missions included making a sketch of German positions at Vimy Ridge, subsequently the scene of one of the war's most bloody and strategically significant battles.
He spent four days avoiding mortar shells while drawing, in intricate detail, the entire panoramic section of enemy troop positions.
Read the entire story here.
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In the News: Somalia diary: Arriving on the pirate coast
Monday, November 24, 2008, 11:56 PM
(Telegraph.co.uk) Daallo Airlines, which makes the hop in here from neighbouring Djibouti, lays on a rusting propeller-driven Antonov, flown by a Russian pilot sporting big 1980s sunglasses. Inside, everything except the plywood toilet cubicle is upholstered in leopard skin, making it feel a bit like the aviation equivalent of a Ford Capri.We're off to a port called Boosaaso, in northern Somalia, to do a story about the pirate gangs that are now operating all along the lawless coastline. Earlier this week, they made global headlines by capturing a huge Saudi tanker, the latest in a series of spectacular hijacks.
Our main problem, though, will be ensuring that in covering the story, we don't end up getting hijacked ourselves. Unlike traditional pirates, the Somalis tend not to be interested in a ship's cargo, which is too big to carry away in their small launches – instead, they're after its crew, whom they can spirit back to shore and hold hostage.
That same kidnap risk has now also spread to the mainland, and the handful of Westerners who come here face a certain risk. At least three foreign journalists and aid workers have been kidnapped n Boosaaso in the last year, and while all were eventually released unharmed, I don't fancy joining their number.
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogger's Dilemma: How much information is too much information?
Friday, November 21, 2008, 04:18 PM
(Times Union) So, I have somethings - well, just a certain something - that I want to blog about but Brendan, for the first time, has asked that I not. I told him I was going to write again and he said “oh some nice fluff piece?” with a certain tone attached suggesting that I not go there again. Now I just want to stick my foot up someplace. I don’t like being told (or having it suggested) what I should write about.Read the entire story here.
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Professional Writing Becomes a Reality for Many Military Bloggers
Friday, November 21, 2008, 01:51 PM
More and more military bloggers have plans to turn their experience with blogging into professional writing. Recently, Kaboom reported a book is in the works. Now, military blogger Big Tobacco in a recent post discusses the 2008 Weblog Awards and his thoughts on writing:#1. I may want to make a career out of this writing thing.
#2. If I win this award, people will notice me.
#3. This will either make the chain of command shut me down or I will be mentioned in the media.
#4. Either way, it will help me get an literary agent.
Read the entire story here.
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Military Bloggers, Friends, Family Connect with Facebook
Thursday, November 20, 2008, 02:42 PM
I signed up this week for a Facebook account, finally. Silly me, I didn't realize how great Facebook is for connecting with friends, bloggers, supporters and family. I know most of you have already signed up so I'm sure you're surprised it took me this long. I probably could've announced I bought my first DVD player, and you probably wouldn't be as shocked. I only have a few friends so here's my link in case you want to add me.
I don't want to sound like I'm begging for friends, but I saw a microwave oven on Facebook with more friends than me.
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Does the Pentagon Read Military Blogs?
Thursday, November 20, 2008, 12:10 PM
(Bouhammer.com) I wonder if they are? I mean if you look back at this blog I wrote, http://bouhammer.com/wordpress/?p=1882 or many of the other ones I wrote on this blog about the strategy and the path to success you will see that many of the things brought up by Mr. Edelman in this story http://www.military.com/news/article/an-afghan-surge-no-sure-winner.html are very similar to some of the things said on here. Granted I don’t think any of these ideas are crystal ball material and in my mind are really plain common sense by anyone that has been on the ground and observant to the geo-political environment and the background and mindset of the local people.Read the entire story here.
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In the News: Grandson Plans to Publish Grandfather's POW Diary
Thursday, November 20, 2008, 10:59 AM
(Mainichi Daily News) A Canadian in Japan is set to publish the prisoner-of-war diary of his late grandfather who served as a British soldier working on the "Death Railway" that Japan built during World War II between Burma and Thailand.The diary was written by Albert Moreton, who became a POW of the Imperial Japanese Army and was sent to work on the railway project. While the project claimed many lives and was known for its harsh work, the diary contains entries such as an instance of kind treatment by an Imperial Japanese Army doctor. Moreton's grandson David, who lives in Japan, is set to publish the English version of the diary in Canada, and is also looking for a Japanese publisher of the translated Japanese version.
Moreton was born in the south of England. In 1942, at the age of 31, he became a POW of the Imperial Japanese Army in Singapore, and was sent to work on the railway.
Read the entire story here.
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Blogger Creates 'Soldiers in the Blogosphere' Site, To Host Interactive Discussion on Military Blogs and Guidelines
Wednesday, November 19, 2008, 10:52 PM
I received an email today from MAJ Jakob Bruhl, who is the webmaster of Soldiers in the Blogosphere. We had exchanged emails earlier in the week after I wanted to learn more about his blog and requested information I could publish and share with my readers. MAJ Jakob Bruhl writes:Soldiers in the Blogosphere was created as part of a research project examining ways that the military can make better use of blogs. The majority of current efforts across the services are focused at using blogs at high levels. For example, the Commander of US Southern Command has a blog discussing current events in his command, the US Army Chief of Engineers has a blog to inform his internal audience of current intiatives and seeking input from them, and the Commander of the US Army Combined Arms Center has created a number of blogs intended to generate discussion among faculty and students on a wide variety of topics. These are all great blogs, and I encourage you to check them out. But something is missing in all of them - the words of more junior service men and women.
The military needs to conduct a thorough examination of how we can make better use of the increasing trend of military members blogging on their own. The Army's policy currently allows blogging (with certain, understandable, security restrictions) but does nothing to actually encourage blogging or make use of the information posted to these milblogs. The author of Soldiers in the Blogosphere, MAJ Jakob Bruhl, is an Army officer currently a student at the Air Command and
Soldiers in the Blogosphere was created as part of this research project and serves as a place for Jake to post his evolving ideas about this subject and, more importantly, get your feedback and ideas. Each week, Jake also has a poll question about use of milblogs, reasons for blogging, or Army policy. One of the benefits of blogs - as many of you already know - is the interactive nature. Jake seeks your interaction in the poll questions and comments about his posts. The discussion generated by your interaction will lead to better ideas. He looks forward to the future dialogue with you on his blog. Who knows, perhaps you will have an idea that will find its way into future Army policy. Thanks in advance for your participation.
You can keep the discussion going over at Soldiers in the Blogosphere.
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In the News: Soldier's diary sends mother on mission of her own
Tuesday, November 18, 2008, 12:05 PM
(KOMO News) The diary of a local corporal killed in Iraq sent his mother on a painful but inspiring journey.The 37 pages helped the mother of Jonathan Santos walk through her son's final days and ultimately led her to an unexpected discovery.
"My brother went off to
But he never did. On
In the days that followed, a large trunk arrived on
But something unexpected caught
"I told my family, 'look at what I found. He kept a journal,'" she said.
Read the entire story here.
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The 2008 Weblog Awards 'Best Military Blog' in Full Swing
Monday, November 17, 2008, 11:42 PM
The 2008 Weblog Awards are officially in full-swing! You can place your nominations for Best Military Blog here. It’s not all that difficult; all you have to do is leave your nomination in the comments section. A-hem, feel free to nominate Milblogging.com. Yeah, I’m shameless. Allow me to explain: we’ve been online since 2005 doing our best to promote military blog awareness and soldier-journalism. We help sponsor each year’s Milbloggies and give away prizes and donations in the name of each year's winner. We work tirelessly to index over 2,000 military blogs. In fact, I some times pull all-nighters chatting with visitors because I love milblogs that much. Even when I was deployed to
Anyway, this completes my shameless appeal for today. Next week - how I once rescued a family of orphan kittens from a burning building.
True story.
High-five to my pal Sherri for the tip!
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