A part of the Bill of Rights, the 8th Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified on 15 Dec 1791. It says, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” And on 5 Aug 1861, the US...
On 14 June 1775. Congress adopted “the American continental army” after reaching a consensus position in The Committee of the Whole. This procedure and the desire for secrecy account for the sparseness of the official journal entries for...
May 5th, Cinco de Mayo, is the date of the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Seguín. Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day, the most...
Yesterday, on the Ides of March, America paid tribute to a national treasure when the last veteran of Wolf War I was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery, with full military honors. US Army Corporal Frank W. Buckles, who lived to the ripe old...
There are a number of versions of the legend of St. Valentine; this is my favorite: On February 14 around the year 278 A.D., Valentine, a holy priest in Rome in the days of Emperor Claudius II, was executed. Under the rule of Claudius the Cruel...
On 5 July 1960, that’s 50 years ago, I stood on the plain at West Point as a brand new plebe and took the oath as a soldier, beginning my military career. I spent 4 years as a cadet, 22 years on active duty; since retiring in 1986 I’ve...
Like most families, the Gillem family has multiple branches. I seem to be the first in my direct branch of the family to serve in the military. I have a great, great, great uncle who commanded Gillem’s Cavalry for the Union in the Civil War. There’s...
When members of the 2nd Bn, 503rd Infantry (Airborne) working to help the locals take control of the security environment in Kunnar Province in Afghanistan noted that the local police, national police, and national army didn’t really like...
The City of Houston had a mayoral election last Dec. At the vicory party of the winner a Houston citizen appeared in the uniform of an Army general, resplendet with very high awards for valor as well as a Purple Heart. Someone took pictures, and it...
I am one of the many who have not been following the Army’s problem-filled effort to buy a new somewhat armored, tactical cargo vehicle–well, okay, a new truck. The Army awarded the $3 billion Family of Medium Trucks (FMTV) contract to...