Wired – Shell-shocked troops are coming back from Iraq with snakes in their heads. A new virtual reality treatment offers hope for vets.
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New York Times – When Chuck Norris joined the National Guard, he wasn’t expecting to end up in one of the worst corners of the Sunni Triangle. Now he’s home in Pennsylvania, with his fellow guardsmen and memories he just can’t shake.
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Economist – After brutal blunders in Iraq and Afghanistan, the American army has become more intelligentóand hopes to be more effective.

Any article that quotes General David Petraeus, Colonel H.R. McMaster, and Major John Nagl – three of the Army’s intellectuals – must be interesting???
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New York Times – A look at combat stress in soldiers in Iraq.
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IEEE Spectrum – Science-fiction fans have long become accustomed to the idea of steely commandos clad in robotic exoskeletons taking on huge, vicious, extraterrestrial beasts, shadowy evil cyborgs, or even each other. Supersoldiers encased in sleek, self-powered armor figure memorably in such works as Robert A. Heinlein’s 1959 novel Starship Troopers, Joe W. Haldeman’s 1975 The Forever War, and many other books and movies???Today, in Japan and the United States, engineers are finally putting some practical exoskeletons through their paces outside of laboratories.
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Wired – Another look at how the videogame Full Spectrum Warrior is being used to treat combat stress.
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Daily Telegraph – Historian Max Hastings on how the rules of conduct in war have changed since World War II???

For more background on this essay read: Daily Telegraph – Army risks losing its reputation, warns general.
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New York Times Magazine – There are dozens of private security companies operating in Iraq, and Triple Canopy is one of the largest. How was it formed, who are its men – and what is the line between “security” and warfare?
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Frontline – Outsourcing, military style???Over 120,000 private contractors are preparing the food, refueling the planes, and protecting the pipelines and generals in Iraq. But what are the dangers in bringing in the private sector to prosecute the war?

Read the transcript of the show here.
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Daily Telegraph – A superb recollection of what exactly infantry combat on the Western Front in World War II was really like. Sixty years ago W F Deedes led his British infantry company across Europe. Last month, aged 92, he retraced his steps, reviving memories and recalling old friends. This is his story, told for the first time. Lord Deedes later went on to become the Editor of the Daily Telegraph from 1974-1986 and continues to write for it.

Part 1,
Part 2,
Part 3,
Part 4,
and Part 5.
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The Economist – Russian conscription is one of Europe’s worst human-rights scandals. But the system is too lucrative for the top brass to scrap it.

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Washington Post – Ann Scott Tyson on patrol with an Iowa National Guard unit in Ramadi.
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Daily Telegraph – John Keegan on the difficulty of applying the rule of law in guerilla warfare.
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Washington Post – Many soldiers support qualified women joining infantry, but Congress is moving in other direction. A look at how US women serving in the Army in Iraq are in combat every day???
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American History – Major Richard “Dick” Winters of “Band of Brothers” fame speaks candidly about the men and actions of Easy Company and reflects on D-Day and the lessons he learned about leadership.

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Frontline – Over 30 days and 26 missions, the story of the men of Dog Company – the Army’s 1-8 Cavalry Regiment stationed in South Baghdad on the bank on the Tigris River. The final battle for Iraq will be won or lost in places like this and by soldiers like these. Read the transcript

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Washington Post – The US military is attempting to battle post traumatic stress disorder with virtual reality tools.

More from San Diego Union Tribune – Military to try virtual combat stress remedy
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Frontline – The military teaches soldiers how to fight, how to kill, how to survive. But who teaches them how to live with themselves? An examination of an underreported story of the Iraq war: the psychological cost on those who fight it. You can start by reading the complete transcript.
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LeanWrite – I just finished reading Thunder Run by David Zucchino, which is a superb account of the Battle of Baghdad as waged by the Third Infantry Division. It is being called the “Black Hawk Down” of Operation Iraqi Freedom. An excellent study of urban warfare and small unit cohesion.

More can be learned about this key battle here:

StrategyPage – The Battle of Baghdad

Army Magazine – Baghdad: The Crossroads

Daily Telegraph – The 10-Hour Battle for Curly, Larry, and Moe

PBS Frontline – The Invasion of Iraq – Interview with Col. David Perkins

Washington Post – 3 Key Battles Turned Tide of Invasion
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New York Times – An interesting follow-up to the article earlier this week on robotic soldiers and the Army’s Future Combat System. It asks an interesting question: Is there still a good reason to trust ourselves or should we defer to a computer’s calculations?
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New York Times – The Pentagon predicts that robots will be a major fighting force in the American military in less than a decade, hunting and killing enemies in combat.

Daily Telegraph – Pentagon prepares to build £70bn robot army
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Wired – A very interesting look at the new ground warfare technologies being shown at the Army Science Conference.

There are two separate articles by the author describing this conference: Army Wages War on Modern Menaces and More Robot Grunts Ready for Duty
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Washington Post – Thomas Ricks on how to reduce combat stress in soldiers.
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New Yorker – A look at how the dead come home.
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The New Yorker – We train our soldiers to kill for us. Afterward, theyíre on their own. A first person look at how combat stress is affecting the US Army – and Marines – in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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