Introducing me and my Milblog
Tuesday, June 26, 2007, 04:39 PM
For those of you not in the know (pretty much anyone who lives in outer space), my name is “JP”, and I’m the webmaster of Milblogging.com. I’m also currently deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Although I’m based somewhere in Throughout this deployment, I plan on keeping a journal online (here on the Home page of Milblogging.com) and offline in a notebook (which I totally plan turn into a book). Of course, no one has expressed any interest in a book by me, but according to my family (Hi Mom) and about a dozen imaginary friends I have, they’d all like to see my adventures in
As far as my Unit, I belong to Bad Voodoo Platoon. We’re a kickass Infantry Platoon from the California National Guard. You can learn more about us on our Platoon Website here. Keep in mind, it’s just a temporary website while the great folks at GX: The Guard Experience Magazine finish up the logo and official website. And by the way, our Platoon has received outstanding support from readers, family, friends, Soldiers Angels, GX, Marlo and the school, and many more individuals and organizations. We plan on recognizing all of you once our official website is up and running. I, personally, am happy to see all my loyal fans who kept up with me during my deployment to
For new readers and supporters, every little bit of support helps. Honestly, you could mail me a bag of garbage and I’d find something useful for it. And by garbage, I mean care packages with Word Finds, beef jerky, and magazines dated back to 1980 in them. Sorry, but it's true. Beef jerky is garbage.
I also want to say Hi to my beautiful wife, Angelica, and my two boys, Joseph and Julian. My wife is so beautiful, I’m totally convinced I married Penelope Cruz. I could post three photos of Penelope Cruz and one photo of my wife and ask you to find Penelope, and all of you would just point to my wife’s photo and then say to yourself, “Who is that mutant in the other three photos?” Kinda like the contest I had to find the Brad Pitt look-alike: there were photos of a rock, a nail clipper, a unicorn, and me. It was too easy though, because I soooo look like Brad Pitt.
One last thought, there will be times when I’m on mission and I won’t be able to blog. So there might be days at a time, maybe even a week or so, when I don’t post anything. Nada. Zip. You could sit around staring at your computer screen until it catches fire, or you could just log off and check back later.
Anyway, I hope all of you stick around and join me and Bad Voodoo Platoon on this year long journey throughout
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Milblogger in the News: Undercover in Afghanistan
Tuesday, June 26, 2007, 10:04 AM
My good pal and milblogger Troy Steward who recently returned home from Man, because for all you know, I could be some Super Computer called JP that runs entirely on good looks.
(The Buffalo News) When they left last spring to go undercover training soldiers in the Afghan National Army, three local men knew they would be dealing with some pretty raw material. They had no idea how raw.
Read the entire story here.
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Military Supporter Blogger in the News: Canadian issue-a remarkable endeavour
Monday, June 25, 2007, 06:00 PM
(The Maple Leaf ) Anyone with an eye for art will certainly appreciate the tremendous talent and flair for detail expressed through the work of Melissa Ryan. Ms. Ryan is an emerging visual artist who is currently working on a series of paintings called "Canadian Issue". She began this unique project in January 2007 and has completed over 30 paintings to date. Her aim is to document the equipment that is presently issued to the Canadian Military by researching and creating still-life paintings of the objects (weapons, vehicles and equipment) of the CF. Read the entire story here about military supporter and blogger Melissa ryans art.
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How the Op Sec Guidelines have affected my Milblogging
Sunday, June 24, 2007, 01:48 PM
Despite all the hoopla with the new op sec guidelines these past few months, I haven’t had any problems blogging on the internet from over here in the desert. Kind of makes you wonder where the pundits who said the new guidelines were the “last nail in the coffin”, got their information. Then again, even if my blog were shutdown as a result of the updated guidelines, I’m guessing not too many people would be upset because most visitors never read the homepage of Milblogging.com. I could post the cure for baldness or pictures of me riding unicorns, and most visitors would never even bother glancing at this section of the website.
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Training in the desert
Thursday, June 21, 2007, 09:40 PM
from left to right: Me (Alpha Team Leader), my Squad Leader Ranger Nievera, and Bravo Team Leader Jones
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Getting back into Military Blogging
Wednesday, June 20, 2007, 07:39 PM
I guess it's time I got back into military blogging now that I'm over here. It's been a few years since I've milblogged, but it will definitely help me communicate with people back home, especially my family (Hi Mom). And it might even make for more interesting reading. I mean, I guess writing about my enormous muscles and good looks can get boring after awhile? I know I know, that's crazy talk. But seriously, I can't even remember how to milblog. Or, for that matter type a non-fiction story. I'm pretty sure if I wrote about my adventures here today, it would involve a handsome superhuman riding a unicorn while chewing beef jerky and rescuing baby orphans. And of course, talk of my muscles.
Because that sooo happened today.
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Let the Milblogging begin...
Tuesday, June 19, 2007, 07:30 PM
I’m here in [ 6 comments ] | [ 1 trackbacks ] | permalink | Discussion | Digg this | Add to del.icio.us
New Milblogs Added: May 31st - June 14th, 2007
Saturday, June 16, 2007, 06:39 PM
Here's another list of military blogs submitted to the Milblogging.com database. Sorry I haven't written in a few days, but my family was visiting me down here at He’s so cute I’m beginning to wonder if he’s even human. Seriously. It’s like my wife gave birth to a Care Bear.
The Hoorah Post , Hoorrah, United States, The (somewhat anonymous) other side of the US mili... , 14 Jun 2007
When the Smoke Clears , RSM, United States, pedantic journal of an IT exec who's putting it al... , 12 Jun 2007
Former Wisconsin football player now serving in Iraq , Jake Wood, Iraq, Jake Wood's days of being on the Wisconsin offensi... , 12 Jun 2007
Melissa ryans art , Melissa ryan, Canada, I am a painter, I am currently living in Oromocto ... , 12 Jun 2007
Fifteen Months - Deployment Journal , Stella Post, United States, An army wife's continuous search for the positives... , 11 Jun 2007
Captain KJ , Kjirstin Bentson, United States, Inspired to join the Air Force after 9/11, Captain... , 11 Jun 2007
A Pittance of Time , Katana, United States, I am a Psychology student and a part-time soldier ... , 10 Jun 2007
Jinx's Mental Notes , Johannah, United States, I have recently enlisted in The Navy, here is wher... , 04 Jun 2007
Me Over There , THE DEYOUNGS, Iraq, A Navy Nurse in Iraq. Amazing photos. , 02 Jun 2007
Loving A Soldier , Laura Roberts, United States, Day to life with a deployed Soldier , 02 Jun 2007
Jeremy M Burke , Jeremy M Burke, Iraq, I believe we have been extremely successful in our... , 01 Jun 2007
BlueJacket's Manual , Ann M., United States, I have a degree in English and worked for a big pu... , 01 Jun 2007
Fitz's Blog , Fitz, Iraq, military blog, which will be coming down. , 01 Jun 2007
USAF Guy's Milblog , USAF Guy, Iraq, I'm an Air Force officer currently deployed to Bas... , 01 Jun 2007
TroopTalk: Voice Of The Troops , Capt. Trip Bellard, United States, Troop Talk: Voice of the Troops brings the soldier... , 31 May 2007
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Story by Bear Creek Ledger: Darth Vader of Milblogging
Tuesday, June 12, 2007, 06:31 PM
Toni of Bear Creek Ledger (one of my first readers when I blogged from
Here’s an excerpt from the story:
JP’s reason for not attending the 2007 Milblog Conference was because he was training for his deployment to
You can find JP’s blog at milblogging.com. Be warned though, JP has a rather odd sense of humor……odd as in snarky, odd as in sarcastic, odd as in inflammatory, odd as in a guy’s just gotta have fun.
Here’s the picture from the conference:
With good looks like this, I’m surprised most of you are still on your feet. Ten minutes after posting this story, I received 13 complaints of people passing out after looking at this picture. You could combine the DNA of Brad Pitt and a Koala bear, and you still wouldn’t be this good looking. Or this adorable.
Also cute: a picture of my wife, Angelica, and youngest son, Joseph Miguel. My sister who recently got into photography, took the super awesome photo. Could this photo be any cuter? You could post a photo of a baby ferret in a stroller being pushed by a puppy wearing a tophat, and all you'd probably want to do is kick the puppy for being so ugly.
Thanks to all my readers for being such great supporters over the years. I’m looking forward to another year with everyone.
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogs in the News: Doonesbury.com's 'Sandbox' Military Blog Inspires Book
Tuesday, June 12, 2007, 05:55 PM
(Editor & Publisher) A 288-page book titled "Doonesbury.com's The Sandbox: Dispatches from Troops in "The Sandbox" military blog -- launched last October by "Doonesbury" cartoonist Garry Trudeau -- features stories soldiers send back to the
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogs in the News: Internet Insecurity
Friday, June 8, 2007, 06:12 PM
(AEI) In the opening pages of Catch-22, the bombardier Yossarian spends his time in the hospital censoring letters from enlisted men back to their families, sequentially redacting all modifiers, then articles, and finally declaring war on every written word but the letters "a," "an" and "the." Milbloggers saw the specter of such capricious censorship this spring, when the Army released a revised Army Regulation 530-1, "Operations Security (OpSec)," an apparent threat to almost all correspondence in such broad terms that milblogs became collateral damage in a total blackout on communication.Read the entire story here.
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Blogger creates Google Custom Search Engine for Milblogs
Friday, June 8, 2007, 03:21 AM
Sean Lawson, a blogger doing a research paper about milblogs, has created a Google Custom Search Engine that searches 27 different military blogs.“As part of my research on the paper I am writing about milblogs, I have created a Google Custom Search Engine that searches some of the top milblog sites as rated by milblogging.com, ringsurf, and TTLB. I plan to use this as a research tool for the paper. So, to keep the number of results manageable, the search engine only searches the top thirty sites. In the future, the list could expand, however, as the “Google Marker” for FireFox makes it very easy to add new sites to the search engine.”
To be honest, you could use the Milblogging.com Search Engine which searches thousands of milblogs and you might get better results. The only problem is that it’s far too advanced for the regular user, so many of you might not be able to figure it out. Although, when I first built the website I had my five year old test out the Search Engine, and he had no problems. But please, don’t feel bad. When he was three he was already in the eighth grade, and had written a dissertation on the moral decay of urban
Read more about the Google Custom Search Engine here.
Oh, and thanks to Kathi for the tip. As always, high-five!
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Milblogging.com in the News: Military blogs say the media have it wrong
Thursday, June 7, 2007, 08:35 PM
(Post-Bulletin) The Silent Majority is still too silent. It seems we haven't learned to speak up in the years since President Nixon first used that phrase in 1969. Since then, the phrase is used to refer to any group that is not sensational enough to be covered by the media. Currently, that is the huge number of people who would like to give our military the chance to finish the job that they started four years ago.
Read the entire story here.
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Website Update
Tuesday, June 5, 2007, 07:36 PM
I just wanted to let everyone know that the website problems with the email activations and stuff is going to be fixed in the next few weeks. I’ve been talking about fixing them for three months. Then again, I’ve been in mobilization training for Seriously, the only thing members and visitors really expect from the website these days is that a webpage will come up. Nobody is even surprised by the problems. A regular visitor could type in the web address “Milblogging.com” and then their laptop could catch on fire, and they would just be like, “At least it didn’t explode this time.”
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Doonesbury.com’s The Sandbox: Dispatches From Troops in Iraq and Afghanistan will be published Aug. 1.
Sunday, June 3, 2007, 03:36 PM
(KansasCity.com) In October 2006, “Doonesbury” creator Garry Trudeau started The Sandbox. Since then, many soldiers have contributed their writings to the “milblog,” or military blog.
Some of those posts from
Now many of those stories will be gathered into a book. At BookExpo
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogger Sack in Iraq Raising Money for Fisher House
Friday, June 1, 2007, 09:13 PM
Milblogger Sack in Iraq is raising money for the Fisher House. This is a great cause. It’s hard to imagine troops finding the time to do these things, but it’s nice. Wait, did I say nice? I mean, awesome. And yes, this is what milbloggers do, awesome things. I’ve heard being this awesome is illegal like in 167 countries. But this is what milbloggers are all about, being “awesome” and of course, “good looking”. You know, just cause... Read more from Sack in Iraq below:
This program is particularly good, because unlike other race sponsorships, where if you collect a certain amount they will pay your race entrance fee, travel/hotel, etc, the Fisher House team will get every dime of any money that you pledge. Also, they have very little overhead, according to their website 97 cents on the dollar go directly to help the families of wounded soldiers. These guys have a great reputation in the military community and are truly supporting a needed service.
I would like to raise a $1,000 over the next 18 weeks. Please consider a gift to this worthwhile organization. Since I'm running 26.2 miles (I hope!) you could consider a dollar a mile and donate 25 bucks and I'll do the last 1.2 miles for free. This would only require 40 people to contribute.
Learn more here.
Thanks to Kathi for the tip.
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New Milblogs Added: May 8th - 28th, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007, 09:34 PM
I’m not entirely sure how I’m writing about new military blogs, considering most media and pundits are claiming there is a ban on milblogs. Even more amazing, I’m sitting here typing my blog which really doesn’t make any sense. Unless of course instead of “ban”, the media and pundits really mean “allow”. I mean, you’d be surprised how easy it is to mix up those two words. Seriously, when you’re a pundit you get to do things like change meanings, or punch people in the face, or call them demeaning nick names. Really. Like, just the other day on block leave I karate chopped one of my neighbors in the neck at the supermarket for looking at me funny...maybe he’ll think twice before asking someone “How ya doing?”. The Hectic Homefront, Erin, United States, A very proud Marine Officer's wife who is chronicl..., 28 May 2007
SgtDavis.Com, Sgt Davis, United States, I am a recruiter for the NY Air Guard. Prior Army ...,
The American Legion Vision, Not specified,
Bill's Bites, Bill Faith, United States, "Biting" commentary from an outspoken pro-America,..., 19 May 2007
Foreign and Domestic, SSG Dave Thul, Iraq, A MN National Guard SSG deployed to Iraq, 16 May 2007
Provide for the Common Defense, K. (Ham) Beall, United States, Conservative observations on Politics, Military, a..., 12 May 2007
Rmychk's Oh So Optimistic Blog, Rmychk, Iraq, A journey through my now two year deployment with ..., 11 May 2007
Red Storm Rising, LTC Brian Delaplane, United States, Chronicles of the Professor of MIlitary Science at..., 11 May 2007
Naval Warfare, Remo, United States, This blog examines warships that have made a signi..., 08 May 2007
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Milblogs in the News: More on Baseball and Blogs
Wednesday, May 30, 2007, 05:48 PM
(Washington Post) My inbox has been filled with comments from Red Sox fans and MilBloggers ever since I attempted to link the two last week. I used the metaphor of sports reporting to observe that Americans would be better off if we paid even a fraction of attention to the military that we pay to baseball. Also attracting comments was my post describing the tension between the YouTube generation's expectation of Internet access and the military's need to control its own.Red Sox fans essentially said this: Hey, baseball's interesting. As fans, we're a part of something.
MilBloggers said this: War is not fun, and we are not merely fans. In many cases, we are soldiers. The implication was that only they are qualified to comment about their endeavor.
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogging.com in the News: Soldiers React to Blogging 'Ban'
Saturday, May 26, 2007, 08:26 PM
(InternetNews.com) Are American soldiers in Earlier this month, news broke that on April 17 the
Read the entire story here.
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Milblogs in the News: If Only War Reporting Were More Like Sports Reporting
Friday, May 25, 2007, 02:35 PM
(The Washington Post) Let's see if I can do this without insulting either baseball fans or bloggers. Blogging baseball fans, I ask for your forgiveness preemptively.I went to a Red Sox game on Saturday, and up above home plate I couldn't help but notice the press box: five, six, seven tiers of desks, filled with print, radio, television and who knows what other media all reporting every move and anomaly. It dawned on me that there are more reporters covering the Sox, just one baseball team, than cover the Pentagon.
I've been wanting to write about the 2nd Annual MilBlog conference (I wasn't invited), and did write earlier about the brouhaha over the Pentagon's supposed new restrictions regarding blogging.
Read the entire story here.
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