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  • Force-shaping process requires 'long view'

    It's a difficult time to be in the Air Force. Regardless of rank, field or position, we're all under quite a lot of stress. At a global level, the U.S. military is in more places at the present time than we've ever been before—the Global War on Terrorism, ongoing peacekeeping missions or previous decades' obligations. As a result, the four services

  • Ducking Retreat sends the wrong message

    We recently received insightful commentary from members of the Schriever community about the flag etiquette commentary we published June 8 that clarified some of the points in the article. “Anytime the flag is going up or down, people need to stop and pay the proper respect,” said Senior Master Sgt. Micheal Robinson, 50th Mission Support Group

  • 101 Critical Days: Visibility, predictability key to bicycle safety

    When an automobile and a bicyclist are involved in an accident, it seldom matters who has the right of way--the bicyclist always loses. The 21st Space Wing Safety Office at Peterson Air Force Base shared good tips for automobile drivers in the June 1 Space Observer. Here are a few: • Bicyclists have the same rights as drivers on the road. In fact,

  • Respect the flag: Honor Retreat properly

    While not every servicemember knows the symbolic significance behind the retreat ceremony, everyone knows how to properly observe retreat. Or do they? The number of cars that continue along Falcon Parkway even as the national anthem begins to play and cars around them stop suggests that may not be the case. According to Air Force Manual 36-2203,
  • These words were part of President Harry Truman's address to a joint session of Congress April 16, 1945, shortly after President Franklin Roosevelt died. President Truman's address made clear that the United States would see World War II through to the end. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Staff Sgt. Olenda Peña-Perez)

    Determination, air power crucial to D-Day victory

    Many D-Day accounts focus on the lethal conditions servicemembers faced as they came ashore on the beaches of Normandy, and for good reason. Allied forces suffered heavy casualties at Omaha and Juno beaches, and by June 11, more than 53,000 had been killed. The role of air power in the success of D-Day, however, cannot be denied. Air power prepared

  • Keep your eyes open

    Everyone knows fatigue degrades alertness and performance—reaction times slow, attention spans shorten, and judgment deteriorates. Everyone one knows the primary sources of fatigue—less than seven hours of sleep per day and changing schedules due to shift work or deployment. However, not everyone knows we tend to underestimate our own fatigue level
  • Fortunately, these are the only head injuries Carmelo, Dextra Hoffman's fiancée, sustained in a recent motorcycle accident. If he had worn a helmet, he would not have sustained those injuries. Servicemembers must wear helmets and other safety gear at all times, even in states where helmet wear is optional.

    Save your brain: wear a helmet

    I got a call while I was at work not long ago from a woman I didn't know asking me if I knew Carmelo Baez. I said yes, then wondered why I heard traffic and an ambulance. She told me he's been in a motorcycle accident, and the ambulance was there to take him to the hospital. I asked how he was. She just said he was not able to talk and that they
  • The Mural Wall in Washington, D.C. was built to honor members of the U.S. Armed Forces who served in the Korean War, particularly those who were killed in action or are still missing or prisoners of war. The mural consists of 41 panels extending 164 feet. Its designers used more than 15,000 photographs from the National Archives to create the mural, which depicts Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard personnel and their equipment.

    Memorial Day: Why do we observe? Ask a veteran

    If you want to know why our nation observes Memorial Day, ask a veteran. I visited the Colorado Springs Veterans of Foreign Wars post Tuesday. The Lt. Marion L. Willis VFW Post, or Post 101, is "the oldest and friendliest VFW in town," retired Army Sgt. 1st Class Jose Vazquez, the bartender, tells me with an easy smile. He knows it's the only VFW

  • ROAD RAGE: Is it in you?

    As compelled as I've felt to write this commentary, I've been procrastinating for weeks. It's like scheduling a root canal; you know how important it is but just can't seem to find the time. Having only been stationed at Schriever since November 2003, I haven't experienced a lot of Highway 94 driving. Compared to others who have worked out here
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