Friday, December 15, 2006

OpinionJournal - Best of the Web Today

re: more "responding to Rangel" messages. Includes one letter from a man named Michael Reeseman, which states (in part), "...I thought my window of opportunity for military service was forever closed with my final discharge from the Army Reserve in 1999. After 2001, like so many others I tried to find a way back in despite a lengthy list of medical disqualifiers. If I've learned anything about the government, it's that there's always a loophole. Eventually I found it in the State Defense Forces. /Over half of the states have State Defense Forces, which are duly authorized uniformed services under Title 32 of the U.S. Code. All states can have them, but only 26 (plus Puerto Rico) have set them up. These military units serve entirely within their home state, cannot be federalized, and answer to the governor (usually through the office of the adjutant general). Since they cannot serve overseas, these units do not train for combat but to prepare to aid civil authorities and back up the National Guard. In practice this usually takes the form of emergency response, logistics and security duties. I am given to understand that there are also quite a few specialty units such as JAGs, medics and chaplains..."...

No comments: