TRAVEL USA
| 02/19/2010

Outdoor events and activities blossom each spring in Front Royal, Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley.   Just a short, scenic drive from our Nation’s Capital will bring you back to a place where you can relax and connect with family and friends and watch nature return to life.

Chaplains Corner...
Chaplain (Col.) R. J. Gore Jr. | 02/19/2010

Let’s face it. We all look at the outward appearance. I think very few would want to argue the case that Britney Spears or Paris Hilton have made it to the top based on talent alone. We live in a culture that values certain physical characteristics and rewards those who are blessed with them, either through good fortune in the genetic lottery or through the skill of the plastic surgeon.

From the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate...
| 02/19/2010

AR 600-20 (Army Command Policy) has recently been revised with important changes involving Family Care Plans. A Family Care Plan should assist Soldiers in providing for the care of their family members while the Soldier is away from home due to military requirements including during annual training, regularly scheduled battle assemblies or deployment. Soldiers must arrange for the care of their family members in order to be available and able to perform duty at all times without interference of family responsibilities. Soldiers will be counseled on voluntary and involuntary separation whenever parenthood interferes with military responsibilities.

| 12/07/2009

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is considered an anxiety disorder. Anxiety is comprised of worrisome thoughts plus excessive emotional and physical pain.

Alcohol dependence (defined as five or more drinks in the same sitting) is a powerful disorder with enormous health consequences. Alcohol dependence and chronic, excessive alcohol consumption are associated with a high risk of developing various types of chronic diseases, including psychiatric conditions, neurologic impairment and cardiovascular disease, some of which are fatal. It is estimated that in the year 2000, alcohol-consumption was responsible for 85,000 deaths, or 3.5% of all deaths, in the United States, making alcohol consumption the third leading behavioral cause of death after tobacco use, poor diet and physical inactivity. More than 55,000 veterans were admitted into addiction treatment facilities in 2000 .

From the Commanding General
Maj. Gen. James B. Mallory III | 02/19/2010

A recurring theme of many of my columns over the past three years have been to discuss the rationale of unit transformations, impacts of realignments on our force structure, as well as how operations in the Army Reserve have changed and expanded missions of our Basic Combat Training, training support and ROTC units.  We are preparing to make the last major force structure changes which will reduce the number of our BCT battalions from 46 to 40, but which will retain all of our company structure, resulting in the remaining BCT battalions adding a sixth BCT company and necessitating some company realignments and adjustments to battalion geographic footprints.  I want to reiterate that no Drill Sergeant positions will be eliminated through this process, but after three years of  being on notice of the need to increase qualified Drill Sergeant strength, successful units will remain and others will “go where we can grow” to sustain our force.

HOMESCHOOLING OPTIONS
Ronald E. Johnson, C.Ph.D. | 02/19/2010

Lt. Colonel Bushue (SAC) taught me a valuable life lesson: identify what you want to do, assess options, make a plan, outline your steps to get there, obtain needed resources, and focus on daily priorities that lead to goal achievement.  That is the strategy for most successful military operations.  An effective home school program follows a similar prescription. Without a clearly defined home school plan, life can quickly “turn south,” especially with teenagers.

HOMESCHOOLING OPTIONS
Dr. Phyllis Rand | 02/19/2010

Many home-schooling families have difficulty knowing which curriculum is best. It might help to make this decision if you consider the differences between traditional and progressive education.

Traditional education emphasizes academic excellence and character training. It is called “traditional” because it was founded on the same distinctively Christian traditions that American schools were originally founded on.

Secular, or progressive, curriculums teach children to think humanistically, to believe that man is at the center of everything. John Dewey developed this approach in the late 1800s and based his ideas on evolution, experimental psychology, and child-centered classrooms.

The Griffon
95th Training Division (IET) Public Affairs Staff | 02/19/2010

The Battle

 Sixty years ago in the picturesque rolling hills of northern France, snow blanketed the countryside as November invited a bitterly cold winter. The residents of Lorraine were continuing to live in fear and duress under the rule of Nazi Germany as they had for the previous four years. The German soldiers were dug deeply into their defensive positions, confident in their ability to repel the American liberating forces.

Meanwhile, U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers of the 95th Infantry Division were mobilized and busy rehearsing battle plans to free the French from their captors. They conducted exercises specifically intended to prepare them for the fight of their lives.

In early August 1944, 95th Division Soldiers set sail from the shores of the United States, arriving in the United Kingdom in just over a week. This marked the first time 95th Soldiers would fight a war on foreign soil. For weeks they gathered equipment and made their way east to the Lorraine region. Their focus: break through the fortified walls of the French city of Metz which had been constructed and reinforced by generations of German soldiers.

TRAVEL USA
| 02/19/2010

Carefully nestled between the soft golden sands of the Atlantic Ocean and the winding rivers that precede it, lies beautiful North Myrtle Beach, SC. Discover the vacation spot where pure bliss and total relaxation are interchangeable with days filled with adventure and the idea on no commitments. It’s time to discover for yourself why our area is known as one of America’s top family travel destinations.

Over the years, North Myrtle Beach has welcomed thousands of our service men and women for some much needed R and R with family and friends. The area offers an array of affordable accommodations and a host of year-round local events and attractions to please every member of the family.

The Griffon
Samantha L. Quigley | 02/19/2010

WASHINGTON (AFNS) — In an executive order issued Oct. 1, President Barack Obama banned federal employees from text messaging while behind the wheel on government business.

Text messaging, or “texting,” encompasses more than simply sending a text message via a handheld communication device. It also includes reading from any handheld or other electronic device, including for the purpose of SMS texting, e-mailing, instant messaging, obtaining navigational information, or “engaging in any other form of electronic data retrieval or electronic data communication,” the order said.

The order defines driving as “operating a motor vehicle on an active roadway with the motor running.” This includes the time the vehicle is temporarily stationary because of traffic, a traffic light or stop sign or other cause.