The Musings of Sergeant Shake-speare

2014; The world stood and watched in shock as the Russian military moved into the Ukraine region, massed troops into the Crimea and cut off diplomatic communications with the west.This aggressive action came just after Russia had hosted the 2014 winter Olympic's. April 29th, 2014 Over the last few weeks, it has become very apparent that hostilities have been ramped up in the Ukraine and the reports  flowing in seem to indicate that forces are moving into the theater. NATO has increased air patrols, the U.S. is sending troops to Poland and as of today's date Canada has deployed fighter jets to eastern Europe.  http://news.yahoo.com/canada-deploys-fighter-jets-eastern-europe-patrols-153116631.html   These series of actions clearly signal a deep concern by the western world for Russia's sudden and bizarre behavior. As of today's date (05/01/2014), The second command in charge of NATO has declared Russia an "enemy." This powerful statement comes as no surp...

Over the last few days the web has gone viral with the story of a middle aged divorced man by the name of Chris Mackney. Up until a few days ago, Chris was virtually unknown to the world. But thanks to the internet and resources like "A Voice for Men" (AFVM). Chris's story can be told. According to several online resources, including AVFM. Chris Mackney was a 45 year man with two children, and like so many other men, service members and veterans included.He was going through what amounted to a very bad divorce. The end result of what Chris was going through culminated with him taking his own life.  http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/washingtonpost/obituary.aspx?n=christopher-mackney&pid=169166767 Whats unusual about this case is that Chris left behind a very detailed suicide note, and that note found it's way onto the internet. But that's not the clincher. What happened next is both disturbing and astounding. And it is something that the veterans groups and...

    Washington Lee University in Lexington Virginia has become yet another flashpoint for the proponents of liberal militancy. Several news outlets have reported that a movement began on the W.L. campus as several students demanded that the Confederate battle flags be removed from the Lee Chapel. The Lee Chapel sits in the same area where the famed and revered Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his family are buried, along with his beloved horse Traveler. The small contingent of students made demands and threatened civil unrest in the community if their demands were not met by September 1st.   The poorly timed protest and subsequent threats also come on the heels of other serious national problems. Including but not limited to a failed economy, a failed presidential administration, the implementation of the universally unwanted affordable health care act and in recent weeks, the threat of open insurrection in the Nevad...

The Battle of Shiloh; A Case Study Map  at The Civil War Trust http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/shiloh/maps/shilohmap.html In April of 1862, Generals Grant and Sherman marched into Tennessee with the intention of moving into Mississippi to begin the campaign(s) in the west. The over all strategy of the north during the civil war was to disrupt the southern trade by taking the Mississippi river and splitting the western theater and trans-Mississippi theaters of war into separate sections. A plan which would in fact be executed and would prove to be extremely successful. But at this point in time the union army would disembark at a place called "Pittsburg Landing" near a place called Shiloh Church (Shiloh is a Hebrew word which means place peace). They would establish camp there as the commanders (Grant and Sherman) awaited the arrival of more troops under the command of General Don Carlos Buell http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Carlos_Buell . Early on the morning...

The Cold War, as it is known by title, was anything but cold. The conflict began just as WWII (world war two) closed and by the opinion of many, is still going on. At the end of WWII Germany that had begun as a great protagonist was confronted by a coalition of countries, who together pounded the Atlantic wall to dust and begun the push into Germany. In the meantime, Hitler's army had set their sites on the Soviets (current day Russia). A terrible strategic decision which cost Germany not only the war, but over a million of German Soldiers (combined forces). As the allies entered Germany and occupation set in. Germans was divided into sectors and the Berlin wall was built. It was at this time that the Cold War as we know it began in earnest. But to say that the Cold War was a bloodless conflict in which not a single shot was fired, or a war in which no one died as a result, is simply incorrect.   The cold war conflict was (and still is) clash of the two concer...

     THE CONFEDERATE WE'LL NEVER KNOW Its been 150 years since Robert E. Lee sat with U.S. Grant at Appomattox Court house and hammered out the the terms of surrender for the ragged remains of the Confederate Army. The American Civil war was a terrible and unforgiving war which took the countless lives of people from both the north and south. The physical numbers of dead and maimed have been repeated over and over in countless books and documentaries for the last 150 years. But it must be mentioned as part of this article to establish a baseline. Approximately 625,000 died in the war. And unknown number of soldiers were wounded, suffered the loss of limbs (by 1870 approx 30% of the state of Georgia's budget went towards purchasing prosthetic limbs for Georgia Soldiers who had been wounded during the conflict.) and suffered mental anguish caused by civil war. The total numbers of Soldiers who suffered from combat related mental illness during this time will never be c...