ALWAYS MOTHERS: 

HOME OR DEPLOYED

Volume 13, Issue 27 Friday, May 11, 2012
Rear Adm. David Woods 

Commander, JTF Guantanamo

There has been a lot going on at Joint Task Force Guantanamo. Last week we hosted Gen. Douglas 

Fraser, Commander, U.S. Southern Command. He 

brought along Rear Adm. Vincent Atkins, the new 

J-3 SOUTHCOM Operation Officer. We had the 

opportunity to showcase all of the preparations, 

rehearsals and planning we had done in anticipation 

of the “9/11 five” arraignment. 

Capt. John Kall, Commissions 

Liaison Office expeditionary 

(CLOE) Director, Capt. 

Michael Barg, J2 Director, and 

Capt. Robert Durand, JTF 

GTMO public affairs officer, 

briefed our Four Star Boss on all 

of the hard work and dedication 

our Troopers put into preparing 

for this major event. He was 

extremely impressed and 

confident that we had left no 

stone unturned. We had the 

chance to take Gen. Fraser around for a JTF GTMO 

update. This tour included all of the changes and 

projects JDG, J2 and JTF Engineers have completed 

across the Joint Task Force. Also highlighted were the 

significant contributions of our Missouri United States 

Air Force Base Emergency Engineering Force team 

and the Navy Seabees. Again, he indicated his pleasure 

with all of the forethought that had gone into the 

conditions-based change undertaken in our operations.

The much-publicized arraignment for the “9/11 

Five” was next on our plate. CLOE, OMC Forward, 

J-3 and PAO all prepared to host and escort the 

visitors coming to the island for the event. Among 

the visitors were Col. James Pohl, judge, and his staff, 

Col. J. P. Colwell, OMC Defense Team, Brig. Gen. 

Mark Martins, OMC prosecution Team, 10 invited 

observers, six victim family members and 58 national 

and international media. In total, we had a surge of 

over 200 people who arrived at various times during 

the week and departed after the event on Sunday. 

Waterside security and courtroom security were 

flawlessly executed by the San Diego Maritime Safety 

Security Team who was augmented by the New 

Orleans MSST who was on ground for their “right seat 

– left seat”. (Note: the MSST Transfer of Authority 

was conducted on Thursday 10 May in 

a unique ceremony held at the GTMO 

Lighthouse and Museum, which San 

Diego MSST had renovated during 

their deployment). The 107th Military 

Police Company along with Naval 

Station Guantanamo Security provided 

the external security. All of the security 

surrounding this event was vigilant and 

professionally executed.

Detainee movement, security and 

escort were expertly provided by our 

Navy Guard Force, who with 13 hours 

of courtroom proceedings ended up 

working a 21-hour day. They maintained unwavering 

professionalism as the arraignment was broadcast via 

close circuit television to the media operations center 

at Camp Justice and six other sites in Maryland, New 

Jersey and New York. Also supporting the arraignment 

were members of our staff judge advocate, JMG and 

NS GTMO Hospital.

All of these activities were conducted like a finetuned world-class orchestra playing every integrated part 

to perfection! BRAVO ZULU to all who supported 

this event and made it a success. Truly a job well done!

Of course we accomplished all of this while the rest 

of the JTF GTMO team continued normal operations 

for the other 164 detainees and prisoners. Again 

without fanfare or incident, I am blessed to be a part of 

this professional team that does it all day-in-and-day-out! 

HONOR BOUND!

OBTW: Sunday is Mother’s Day! Don’t forget 

Cc

ommand

orner

Joint Task Force

Guantanamo Safe Humane Legal Transparent l l l

Cover: Army Sgt. Maj. Callie Leaver, command sergeant major with the Joint Detention Group, poses with a 

picture of her daughter. Leaver demonstrates that motherhood doesn’t end when deployment begins.

–photo by Mass Communication Spc. 2nd Class Kilho Park

Retraction: Last week’s cover headline should have read “Airman loses weight to fulfill life goals.”

JTF Guantanamo

Commander

Rear Adm. David Woods

Deputy Commander

Brig. Gen. James Lettko

Command Master Chief

Cmd. Master Chief Reynaldo Tiong

Office of Public Affairs Director

Navy Capt. Robert Durand: 9928

Deputy Director

Air Force Lt. Col. Laurel Tingley: 9927

Operations Officer

Army Maj. Jon Powers: 3649

Senior Enlisted Leader

Sgt. 1st Class Jerome Grant: 8141

The Wire

Command Information Officer

Army 1st. Lt. Amelia Thatcher

Editorial Staff

Army Sgt. Saul Rosa

Spc. Ryan Hallock

Spc. Vanessa Davila

Pvt. Loren Cook

Photojournalists

Sgt. 1st Class Kryn Westhoven

Mass Communication Spc. 1st Class Ty Bjornson

Army Staff Sgt. Lewis Hilburn

Mass Communication Spc. 2nd Class Kilho Park

Webmaster

Mass Communication Spc. 1st Class Keith Simmons

Contact us

Editor’s Desk: 3499

Commercial: 011-5399-3499

DSN: 660-3499

E-mail: thewire@jtfgtmo.southcom.mil

Online: www.jtfgtmo.southcom.mil/wire/wire.html

 The Wire | Page 2 Command Corner

I am blessed to 

be a part of this 

professional 

team that does it 

all day-in-andday-out!

HONOR 

BOUND!

News from the Bay

News from the Bay The Wire | Page 3

INDEX

The Wire

MAY 11, 2012

Taxes: Plan for 2013 

Army Commitment

Marine Q&A

A Filipino-American: CMC

Supermoms: Deployed moms

10 Things: Bike Month 

Movie: The Lucky One

MBS: Equal rights

The WIRE is the official news magazine of Joint Task Force 

Guantanamo. It is produced by the JTF Public Affairs Office to 

inform and educate the Troopers of JTF Guantanamo through 

news, features, command guidance, sports and entertainment. 

This DoD news magazine is an authorized publication for the 

members of the Department of Defense. Contents of The 

WIRE are not necessarily the official views of, or endorsed 

by, the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, or Joint 

Task Force Guantanamo. It is printed by Defense Logistics 

Agency Document Services with a circulation of 1,300.

5

7

8

9

10

12

16

17

Armed Forces Day 5k

Celebrate Armed Forces Day by running 

a free 5k! The run is scheduled for May 19 at 

6:45 a.m. at Cooper Field. Register at Denich 

Gym by May 16. There are free-T-shirts for 

the first 100 to register.

Follow up the 5K with a run for the kids, 

aged 4-16. Beginning at 9 a.m.. kids can run 

a 1/2 mile, 1 mile, or 2 mile race. All participants receive a free T-shirt. Register by May 

18 at the Youth Center.

For more information, call Alana at 2113.

North East Gate Tour

Cubans used to shine a spotlight at the 

Marine barracks at the North East Gate until a large eagle, globe, and anchor was built. 

Learn more about the history and lineage of 

the North East Gate and the United States 

Marines at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.

Meet at Marine Hill Parade Deck every 

third Friday of the month at 11 a.m.

Summer Sports Galore

Are you eager to get out of your quarters and be active this summer? Why not play 

soccer, softball, basketball, tennis, or sand 

volleyball this summer?

The men’s and women’s soccer and coed 

softball seasons start May 29. Register to play 

by May 18.

Coed basketball season begins June 4. 

Register to play by May 24.

Men’s and women’s sand volleyball season 

begins June 20. Register to play by June 6.

Tennis season begins June 24. Register to 

play by June 14.

To register for any of these events, go to 

Denich Gym. All registrations are free.

For more information, call 2113.

6th Street Closed

6th Street in the Villamar housing area 

will be closed until July 9th.

Soggy Bottom Regatta

Are you a man or woman of constant 

sorrow? Have you seen trouble all your days? 

Fight those blues away and register for the 

Soggy Bottom cardboard boat regatta!

To compete in the regatta, you must build 

a person-powered cardboard boat that can 

survive two trips around a 100 yard course. 

Each team will also race their boats for 100 

yards. Prizes will be awarded to the fastest, 

most GTMO, best Titanic, and best in show 

boats.

The event is scheduled for May 26 at 

Ferry Landing Beach from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. 

Register your boat at the marina by May 23.

For more information, call 2345.

Enrich Yourself!

Navy Child and Youth Programs are offering 14 new community classes for all ages. 

Many classes are free, and cover topics ranging from basic small engine theory to computer programming to improv comedy.

For more information, email Chris.Dickson@usnbgtmo.navy.mil or call 84616.

Vacation Bible School

The NAVSTA chapel’s annual Vacation 

Bible School is scheduled to be held June 18-

22 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Chapel Annex. This year’s theme is “Sky: Everything is 

possible with God.”

For more information or to register, contact Kathy Clark-Dickens at 2128 (office) or 

7769 (home), or go online to www.groupvbspro.com/vbs/ez/navstagtmochapel.

Philippine Cuisine 

On your way out of the NEX, stop at the 

fund-raising event for the 114th Philippine 

Independence Day Celebration.

The food sale is scheduled for May 13 

and 27 and June 10 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Traditional Philippine dishes will be 

served including lumpia, pancit and adobo.

Filipino cookbooks are also available for 

$15.

For more information, call Menchie at 

74914.

Memorial Day 10k

Can’t get enough running? Celebrate Memorial Day by running a free 10k! The race is 

scheduled for 6:45 a.m. May 26 at Christmas 

Tree Hill. Register at Denich Gym by May 23. 

The first 100 to register receive a free T-shirt! 

For more information, call 2113.

Memorial Day sports!

All hands are invited to participate in 

free sports tournaments over Memorial Day 

weekend, May 26-28.

The schedule includes softball, indoor 

basketball, and sand volleyball. The events 

are open to anyone 16 or older. Register by 

May 18 at Denich Gym.

For more information, call Alana at 2113. 

Cardboard boat regatta – May 26
Many of us have heard the phrase 

“The early bird catches the worm!” 

or “Haste makes waste!” They are meant 

to inspire us to be successful and productive in our work and our lives. Many of us 

hear these age old adages and think to ourselves how true they are or aren’t based on 

our own perspective. Then we either forget 

about them amidst the hustle and bustle of 

our daily lives or embrace them in an attempt to guarantee our success.

In the military we may hear co-workers 

complain about still being at work at 4 p.m.; 

it’s messing up their plans for the evening. 

We often forget that we are a profession that 

is often called on at a moment’s notice to accomplish a seemingly impossible task under 

the most discouraging conditions with little 

assistance. We are asked to work extra hours 

without getting extra pay to accomplish the 

mission for the greater good. Sometimes we 

have to do things that are not within our 

daily job description to ensure that our units 

are successful as a whole. All persons who 

volunteered to join the Armed Forces, regardless of branch, made a choice to accept 

all the things that come with the profession. 

A wise man once shared his insight with 

me when I was a young boy at my first 

job 22 years ago. I had been hired on as a 

janitor/custodian at an asphalt plant. I had 

asked why we had to be at work so early and 

he replied, “A man who needs a job can’t be 

picky about when he works.” One morning, 

about an hour into the day, a truck arrived 

with about a dozen trees that needed to be 

planted. The manager told me that he was 

short a worker; it was now my job to get the 

trees into the ground and watered. It was 

scorching hot that day, and I complained 

all day long saying it wasn’t my job and asking why I had to do it? I kept mumbling 

to myself “I wish it was quitin’ time.” The 

man heard me mumbling and complaining 

and said, “Did the boss tell you to plant 

the trees?” I nodded. “It’s your job then. 

Besides, if the trees aren’t planted they will 

die in this heat,” the wise man said. Around 

6 p.m. the man joined me, and we finished 

working about two hours later. He said, 

“Son, if I teach you only one thing in life 

then I want it to be this; He who lives by the 

hand will always be a hand!” The wise man 

was my stepfather. I still live by those words 

today, and it still helps me to be successful.

“He who lives by the hand will always be 

a hand” is simple to understand. He who 

lives by the hand means that you constantly 

watch the hands of the clock and perform 

your duties with the expectation of stopping 

or starting at a certain time. Will always be a 

hand refers to being hired help, just like the 

workers on a ranch/farm. If you want to be 

a leader you can’t base your days around the 

proverbial 9 to 5 job and expect to be successful.

There is a difference between being in 

charge and being a leader. Those that are 

in charge often tell you what and when 

they want something done and leave you to 

finish it. Those that are leaders will assist 

you in being successful and will, without 

question, offer guidance and sometimes assistance to ensure completion of the task. 

Subordinates work for managers, however, 

subordinates work for, respect and try to 

emulate leaders.

The branches of service are changing 

and quality people will be let go. If you 

want to stay in the service and continue to 

succeed, you must outperform your peers 

and excel above the minimum standard. I 

challenge you to do some self reflection 

and ask yourself this question: Are you a 

manager or leader?

Trooper to Trooper

manager or leader

Army 1st Sgt. Jason M. Schofield

HHC, 525th Military Police Battalion 

 The Wire | Page 4 Trooper to Trooper

PSEC ALERT

PROTECT YOUR INFO!

Cyber crime is real.

Cyber criminals are out there. In 2010 there were over 300,000 cases reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. 

Internet scams and identity theft were two of the top three crimes reported. California and Florida are the two states with 

the highest reports of cyber crime. Beware of websites offering “Free Samples” if you pay shipping costs, or people from 

foreign countries offering a reward if you wire them money. There are also scams involving “mystery shoppers” or “make 

money from home”. These scammers ask for your information or credit card numbers only to steal your identity or charge 

up your credit. Don’t fall for it! Be safe and protect yourself from cyber crime, USE OPSEC.

By Sgt. 1st Class Kryn P. Westhoven

The deadline for filing your federal income tax return was less than a month 

ago, but it is not too early to start planning 

for next year’s taxes according to the Internal Revenue Service.

The IRS recently released a list of ideas 

that taxpayers can use this year to make next 

April 15 easier. Start with your pay stub or 

Leave and Earning Statement. Verify that 

your retirement account contributions, 

charitable payroll deductions and other 

items are being properly deducted. These 

payroll adjustments can make a big difference in your net pay. Fixing an error in your 

paycheck now gets you back on track before 

it becomes a huge hassle. If you owed the 

IRS or received a large refund, maybe it’s 

time to adjust your withholdings. By filing 

a new W-4 Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, you can increase or reduce 

allowances based on your exemptions. Common exemptions include your spouse and 

any dependents. You can also claim yourself 

as an exemption. The more exemptions you 

claim, the less money that is withheld from 

your paycheck. While this could reduce your 

potential tax refund, it could also increase 

your net pay.

If you owed taxes in 2011, you might 

want to reduce your exemptions. Having 

an additional dollar amount withheld from 

your paycheck is another way of ensuring 

you don’t owe taxes at the end of the year. 

There is a withholding calculator at www.

irs.gov. The website also offers Publication 

919, “How Do I Adjust My Tax Withholding?” as a guide.

If your deductible expenses are likely 

to exceed the itemizing threshold, you’ll 

probably be better off itemizing your taxes 

rather than taking the standard deduction. 

Identifying extra mortgage payments, predeadline property tax payments, planned 

donations or strategically paid medical bills 

early, could equal some tax savings. See the 

1040 Schedule A instructions for expenses 

you can deduct if you’re itemizing, and then 

prepare an approach that works best for 

you.

 The American Opportunity Tax Credit, 

which offsets higher education expenses 

up to $2,500, will expire after 2012. It may 

be beneficial to pay 2013 tuition this year 

to take full advantage of this tax credit before it expires. Refer to IRS Publication 970, 

“Tax Benefits for Education,” to see if your 

education expenses qualify.

 Organizing your charity receipts and 

other tax records can reduce stress during 

tax season. Whether it is a shoebox or a filing cabinet, establishing a central location 

where everyone in your household can put 

tax-related records all year long can help 

avoid a scramble for mileage logs or receipts 

come tax time. 

Keep an organized and easily accessible 

record of your financial documents. That 

way if you receive an IRS notice and need 

to refer to your return, it is easy to find. 

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, 

Cuba — The U.S. has finally started the 

prosecution of five Guantanamo Bay prisoners charged in the Sept. 11 attacks that 

killed nearly 3,000 people, but the trial won’t 

be starting anytime soon, and both sides 

said Sunday that the case could continue for 

years.

Defense lawyer James Connell said a 

tentative trial date of May 2013 is a “placeholder” until a true date can be set for the 

trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the selfdescribed mastermind of the attacks, and 

his co-defendants.

“It’s going to take time,” said the chief 

prosecutor, Army Brig. Gen. Mark Martins, 

who said he expects to battle a barrage of 

defense motions before the case goes to 

trial.

“I am getting ready for hundreds of motions because we want them to shoot everything they can shoot at us,” he said in 

the wake of Saturday’s arraignment, which 

dragged on for 13 hours due to stalling tactics by the defendants.

“Everyone is frustrated by the delay,” 

Martins said. He noted that the civilian trial 

of convicted Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias 

Moussaoui took four years, and he pleaded 

guilty in 2006 before being sentenced to life 

in prison.

On Saturday, Mohammed and his codefendants refused to respond to the judge 

or use the court’s translation system and 

one of the men demanded a lengthy reading of the charges. Connell called the tactics 

“peaceful resistance to an unjust system.”

The arraignment, Connell said, “demonstrates that this will be a long, hard-fought 

but peaceful struggle against secrecy, torture and the misguided institution of the 

military commissions.”

The defendants’ actions outraged relatives of the victims.

Super Troopers

Congratulations to the Joint Task Force 

Guantanamo Troopers who recently

 received commander’s coins! 

SGT Wilder

SFC Ruffing

1LT Berinstein

SGT Ball

SGT McCumber

SPC Reimer

SPC Smith

SFC Mower

 see GTMO page 16

 see IRS page 16

SSG Phillips

Start planning now for next year’s tax return

IRS recommends easy steps to take

Command Information The Wire | Page 5

Long fight 

predicted in

Gitmo Sept. 11

case

By Ben Fox

The Associated Press

Money Matters
Staff. Sgt. Lewis Purcell

–the boss says

“Staff Sgt. Purcell’s best trait, in my opinion, is his take charge and accomplish the mission attitude. 

He doesn’t wait to be given guidance and direction if it’s something he knows needs to be done.

 He just completes the task.”

Hobbies: Archery, do-it-yourself remodeling

Target or Wal-Mart: Costco

About his mom: “I think I got the craziness 

from her. Honestly, I think my mom’s a little 

touched.” 

Advice to junior troopers: “Learn something 

from everybody. You’ve got good leaders, 

you’ve got bad leaders. You can learn just as 

much from a bad leader as you can from a 

good one.”

Bullet Bio

By Spc. Vanessa Davila

ccording to MerriamWebster dictionary, 

a curmudgeon is a 

crusty, ill-tempered and 

usually old man. Staff 

Sgt. Lewis Purcell is all 

those things except old 

– at least when you first 

meet him. 

“I’m a negative person, and I focus on the 

negative; that’s just me,” Purcell declares within 

the first 5 minutes of a long and eventful interview. “I haven’t changed ever. I’m the same as I 

was when I was 18. I’ve always been the same. 

Honestly I’m no different. I’m really good at being angry.”

On and on Purcell goes describing himself. 

You can’t help but like him, though. His in-yourface honesty is refreshing in a place where customs and courtesies rule. Some might consider 

it brazen, but those that do just don’t understand 

Lewis Purcell.

A self-described workaholic, he is the human 

resources non-commissioned officer for the 

525th Military Police Battalion’s Headquarters 

and Headquarters Company. That wasn’t a typo 

– the curmudgeon has been a human resources 

specialist, a profession that demands he help an 

array of individuals with “human” issues, for all 

11 years of his Army career. That’s because Purcell isn’t all that cantankerous after all. His favorite part of the job is helping soldiers, especially 

the ones who are truly in a bind.

“If you’re an NCO you’ll spend most of 

your time dealing with one or two soldiers because the good ones don’t take up a lot of time,” 

says Purcell. “Every once in a while you’ll have a 

good soldier that runs into a rough spot...helping them through those times ... I like helping 

people.”

You’ll have a hard time finding a soldier, 

senior or junior, saying he isn’t great at his job, 

whether they like his persona or not. Don’t confuse Purcell’s many personality quirks for arrogance though; he is quite modest. Others say he 

is great at his job; Purcell only declares himself a 

workaholic. 

“I don’t know where they get it from,” says 

Purcell about soldiers who praise him. “I care 

and I try. I don’t think I’m a good NCO; I think 

I try.” 

Purcell isn’t like many others. He can shock 

and captivate all at once. He hunts with a bow 

and arrow and not a rifle like hunters usually do. 

Without a rifle, he has to get dangerously close 

to the animal he’s pursuing, making him with 

his bow and arrow and the beast with his horns 

equal opportunists. But it’s not the adrenaline 

rush that compels him to use the bow and arrow.

“It’s about fairness. It’s not like you go out and 

just slaughter whatever is running around,” says 

Purcell.

You have to keep peeling away the layers when 

you talk to Purcell. No need to chip away because he 

will tell you just about everything – you just have to 

take a second to stop disliking him to realize you’re 

enjoying the conversation and you like him after all.

A

Trooper Focus

TrooperFocus

What’s your fondest memory of your mother?

Boots on the Ground

 The Wire | Page 6

By C. Todd Lopez

Army News Service

News The Wire | Page 7

Information Assurance

Smart Phones

Smart phones, or mobile phones with advanced capabilities like those of personal computers (PCs), are appearing in 

more people’s pockets, purses, and briefcases. Smart phones’ popularity and relatively lax security have made them 

attractive targets for attackers. Smart phones recently outsold PCs for the first time, and attackers have been exploiting 

this expanding market by using old techniques along with new ones. Technical security measures, such as firewalls, 

antivirus, and encryption, are uncommon on mobile phones, and mobile phone operating systems are not updated as 

frequently as those on personal computers. Many users fail to enable the security software that comes with their phones, 

and they believe that surfing the internet on their phones is as safe as or safer than surfing on their computers.

Some of the vulnerabilities of smart phones Portability of mobile phones and PDAs make them easy to steal. 

Malicious apps and software. 

Phishing attacks. 

Vishing attacks (phishing voice calls). 

Smishing attacks (phishing SMS/MMS messages).

Some tips for users Set a password

Download the updates for your phone

Use discretion when downloading apps

Pay attention to the private data accessed by apps

Exercise caution with links in SMS messages

Download a “find your phone” app to help locate your phone if it is lost or stolen

Enable the Wipe feature on your phone, so you can clear all the data if you can’t get your phone back.

WASHINGTON -- While the Army has a 

new emphasis on the Asia and Pacific region, it 

doesn’t mean the service will be unable to meet 

obligations in the Middle East -- if need be, said 

the Army’s chief of staff.

Earlier this year, Gen. Raymond T. Odierno 

said the Army will put an increased emphasis 

on the Asia and Pacific region and a renewed 

emphasis on its partnerships there with allies, 

including a “trilateral” partnership between the 

United States, Korea and Japan.

But that renewed emphasis doesn’t mean the 

Army will abandon its roles elsewhere, he said.

“I don’t see us necessarily rebalancing from 

the Middle East to Asia/Pacific,” Odierno told 

lawmakers March 8 during a hearing before the 

Senate Armed Services Committee. “Based on 

the priorities we’ve established, Asia/Pacific is 

first, closely followed behind by the Middle East. 

But I don’t think that is causing us to have less 

attention and capability available to use in the 

Middle East.”

The general said in other parts of the world 

the Army may be diminishing its “potential to 

influence” -- but that’s not true in the Middle 

East.

“I have confidence that we will be able to do 

what we need to do if necessary, in the Middle 

East, even though we have now provided some 

focus in the Pacific region,” he said.

IRAQ

The Army recently pulled out of Iraq -- today, there are about 150 Soldiers in country 

there, who now work in support of the Department of State. But al-Qaeda continues to be 

active there, though Odierno said he has confidence the Iraqi security forces, originally trained 

by Americans, can defend themselves.

“There are reports that there has been 

some increase, especially in Anbar providence, 

of al-Queda, and also in Baghdad,” Odierno 

said. “I am still confident that Iraqi security 

forces can handle the violence. The issue becomes that we need the people of Iraq to continue to reject al-Queda and not allow them to 

get back in and form groups.”

The general also said that unrest, in places 

like Syria, could be exploited by al-Qaeda.

But in the Middle East, the Army still has 

Soldiers who can react in Iraq, if called on to 

do so, Odierno told lawmakers.

“We have a brigade combat team that 

came out of Iraq and is now inside of Kuwait, we have some aviation elements that are 

also inside of Kuwait,” he said. “We have people in Kuwait that also support Afghanistan. 

The current number is somewhere between 

12,000 and 15,000. It will come down over 

time, probably to something less than 10,000 

in Kuwait.”

Those Soldiers, he said allow the Army to 

“react with ground forces if necessary, if it 

was in our best national interest.”

DRAWDOWN

As part of budget cuts, the withdrawal from 

Iraq and the coming drawdown from Afghanistan 

-- the Army will cut about 80,000 Soldiers from the 

active force end strength. The service will go from 

about 570,000 to 490,000. The drawdown will last 

about six years, Odierno said, and will begin this 

year.

“We have developed this ramp, which we believe can be accomplished mostly through attrition,” 

Odierno said. “And with the rate that we’re reducing 

the ramp, we believe that we can continue to meet 

our commitments in Afghanistan and our other deployable commitments with rotational forces.”

Secretary of the Army John McHugh told lawmakers that nearly half of the Army budget goes 

to personnel. He told lawmakers that making cuts 

to the Army budget means balancing personnel 

needs against other needs, “the modernization, the 

equipping, the family programs, the things that, if 

you don’t support them, you’re on a quick path to 

a hollow Army.”

McHugh said the Army will try to make the cuts 

as “humanly as possible.”

“We’re working as hard as we can to try to 

manage both our discharges and our accessions in 

a way so that we don’t have to have forced outs,” 

McHugh said. “They’re not something anyone likes 

to go through, but the reality is, at the end of the day, 

we’re probably going to have to ask some Soldiers 

who have served honorably and who meet at least 

minimum criteria, to perhaps think about a next 

challenge in their lives.”

New Army focus on Pacific doesn’t 

mean abandoning Middle East

Thi s w e ’ ll d efen d
ENTER MASSInterview by Army Staff Sgt. Lewis Hilburn C

Question: How does that make you feel?

Answer: It is definitely different. You know the female Marines 

train just as hard as the males do. Like [five] percent of Marines are 

females, so we are looked at that much harder. We are expected to do 

everything the male Marines do.

Question: Being the only Marine female, do you get any 

weird looks?

Answer: Every day I walk into a chow hall and everyone looks up. 

You just don’t see to many female Marines. It kind of gets on my 

nerves a little bit, because I am an individual. It’s a little nerve racking. There are only four Marines, including myself, on this side (JTF 

GTMO) so we already get weird looks. Being a female Marine, I 

stand out even more. I have learned to deal with it and move on. 

Question: Everyone has a story to tell. So, what is your 

story?

Answer: My cousin Bobby joined the Marine Corps and I pretty 

much followed in his steps. I enlisted right out of high school. 

Question: Why was your cousin Bobby such an influential 

part in your decision to join the Marines?

Answer: Bobby and I were about the same age, and I always looked 

up to him because he is family. He sold the Marine Corps to me. 

Whenever you get someone to join you get promoted. Funny thing 

was, he made it all the way through boot camp and did a switch in 

service and joined the Navy. I don’t know, just growing up he was 

the one in my family always saying he would go somewhere and do 

something and I’m like ‘I can do that, too.’ It’s more of a competitive 

type relationship I guess. 

Question: What was your life like before the Marines?

Answer: I grew up on a farm doing a lot of heavy lifting and things like 

that. We had a bunch of different animals. I never really had any girls 

around growing up. It was just my cousin Bobby and my brother. It’s all 

guys. I was always doing whatever the guys were doing. I found it to be 

more of a physical challenge; to push myself and see how far I could go. 

Question: Do you have any siblings?

Answer: I have a brother but I really didn’t get along with him. 

Question: You’ve been in for eight years. Has anything 

changed for you in that time?

Answer: I have more rank and responsibilities I suppose. 

Question: Do you still have the same passion as before?

Answer: I strive to learn something new everyday. This is actually my 

first joint billet, so I am constantly learning new things. I get to see 

how the other services operate and conduct business. 

Question: What have you learned from the other services?

Answer: I’ve learned about the different traditions with each service. 

I’ve learned about their rank structure and the way they conduct daily 

operations. 

Question: Where do you see yourself in the future?

Answer: I plan on doing 20 years and maybe more. I’m going to go 

as far as I can. I definitely do enjoy being a Marine. 

Question: Do you foresee any obstacles in your way?

Answer: The Marine Corps, like all the other services, is downsizing. 

Before the downsizing, you had up to 13 years to make your E-6; 

now it’s 10 years. The average Marine has been in five years by the 

time they pick up sergeant. The average time spent as a sergeant is 

about four to five years. Right there you are at that 10 year mark. I 

will possibly be looking at E-6 before my 10 year mark. It’s competitive. I know they can extend you until you get looked at. However, 

if you get passed over you get kicked out. It’s that competitive now. 

Question: How do you set yourself apart from everyone 

else?

Answer: Being a sergeant for three years now, I’ve gotten that part 

down. Now it’s growing as a leader. Everyone has different leadership 

styles. You just have to find yours and develop it. Use the tools that 

you get from your peers and superiors and try to be yourself. On top 

of that, I have to go to additional schools and take those tougher 

positions. 

 The Wire | Page 8 Feature

United States Marine Corps Sgt. Rose Coleman 

Hometown: Slato, Texas

Age: 25

Married: Marine Sgt. James Coleman

Time in Service: 8 years

Height: 5’9

Weight: 150 pounds

Question: Are you the only female Marine on GTMO?

Answer: I do believe so, yes. Gunnery Sgt. Hurlburt, 

who just left, told me I was the only female Marine in the 

Joint Task Force. 

Nearly thirty years ago, Command Master Chief Reynaldo Tiong raised his right 

hand and swore to defend the people of the 

United States. To understand his dedication 

you must look at his past like looking at the 

foundation of a house, each brick solidifying 

his character and adding support to his future. 

The first brick in his foundation was 

placed there by his mother. Tiong’s father passed away when he was only four. 

To support her children, his mother traveled to America to establish a better life. 

Tiong and his siblings stayed behind 

and lived with family in the Philippines. 

“She influenced me by showing me that 

if you sacrifice, if you pursue your goal 

and you’re persistent and work hard towards that goal then you will achieve it,” 

said Tiong. “My mother didn’t want us 

to go through what she went through.” 

Tiong grew up immersed in his homeland’s culture and religion. There, he 

gained morals and values that would 

act like the mortar in his foundation. 

“Moral values are what I gained 

growing up in the Philippines,” said 

Tiong. “I saw the hardship, but if you 

strive to be better, the best you can be, 

then you can accomplish your dream.” 

With the base of his foundation started, 

Tiong, now fifteen, and his siblings left the 

Philippines to live with their mother in 

America. Tiong faced new challenges that 

would add more than one brick to his walls 

as he attended high school and merged his 

Filipino background with American culture. 

“Growing up during that time was difficult but beneficial,” said Tiong. “I faced 

the backlash of the racial movements as an 

Asian-American, but I also reaped in the 

benefits of the new equal opportunities.”

After high school, Tiong wanted to 

make a difference while not being a burden to his family. Inspired by the sacrifices that his mother made, he started a new layer in his life’s foundation. 

 “I graduated and I didn’t know what to 

do, but I wanted to make a difference for 

myself, my family and my mom,” said Tiong. 

Tiong’s uncles had served in the United 

States Navy, so knowing the opportunities that the military offered, Tiong decided to serve. He was mentored by senior 

Filipino sailors during his first assignment 

as a young aviation boatswain’s mate.

 Tiong expressed his pride in those 

sailors for what they sacrificed and 

went through as Filipino sailors 

so that he could have an equal 

opportunity to serve and advance in any rate he wanted.

“I met some Filipino sailors 

who were proud of what they were 

doing for the Navy,” said Tiong. 

“Those Filipino sailors who mentored me gave me all their wisdom 

not only as a sailor but as a Filipino-American. They told me that I 

should be proud as a Filipino joining 

one of the best navies in the world.”

Taking their words to heart, he 

transferred to a new rate and worked 

harder than ever to achieve his goals. 

These early years completed 

his foundation for a long 

military career. With 

time, Tiong 

grew in 

rank and responsibility, settling down and having children.

“I took their mentorship and made my 

life better,” said Tiong. “I joined the Navy 

because I wanted to see the 

world, but there’s more 

than that. It is more 

than just serving my 

country; I am representing the Filipino Community.” 

 

A Filipino-American: CMC Tiong THINGS I KNOW...

 By Army Sgt Saul Rosa

Feature The Wire | Page 9
 The Wire | Page 10 Feature Feature The Wire | Page 11

Mention Mother’s Day to the average American, and chances are good he 

or she will think of family dinners, sending 

heartfelt cards, attending church services, and 

wearing red or white carnations—traditional 

ways to celebrate the holiday.

Mention Mother’s Day to a deployed 

Trooper, and chances are good he or she 

will think instead about Facebook messages, 

Skype chats, cards mailed weeks in advance, 

20 minute morale calls, and SCSI phone cards. 

These are just a few of the options Troopers 

can use to honor their mothers on Mother’s 

Day.

What happens, however, when the kids 

are at home and their mothers are deployed? 

Servicemembers are used to making the extra 

effort to get in contact with their mothers, but 

what if mothers had to go the extra mile to 

contact their children instead? What if this 

wasn’t just a problem on Mother’s Day, but 

also on the other 364 days of the year? This 

is the reality faced by many women in the 

military; a reality that has become increasingly 

more common in the past ten years due to 

the widespread mobilization and deployment 

of both active-duty and reserve component 

servicemembers.

“My daughter is worried. She thinks I 

missed my birthday in February, and now she 

thinks I’m going to miss Mother’s Day too,” 

said Tech. Sgt. Gina Mezzacasa, a resident of 

Kansas City, Mo., currently deployed as a pest 

manager with the 474th Expeditionary Civil 

Engineering Squadron here.

Mezzacasa is the proud mother of a 5-year 

old daughter, Elliana. She thinks her daughter 

is at an age where she understands that her 

mother is gone, but can’t understand why.

“If she were older, she’d be able to 

understand a little better why her mother is 

gone,” said Mezzacasa. “She’d still miss me, 

but it would probably be easier.”

Army Sgt. Maj. Callie Leaver, a resident 

of Auburn, Ala., an adoptive parent, and 

the command sergeant major of the Joint 

Detention Group, thinks age and experience 

have made a difference.

“My daughter is 11, and this isn’t my first 

deployment away from her, so she’s pretty 

good at dealing with the separation,” Leaver 

said.

Army Capt. Ana Schaus, a resident of 

Savanna, Ga., and the logistics officer for the 

JDG, thinks her two boys are young enough to 

make the separation easier.

“I have two boys: a 2-year-old and a 1-yearold. I’ve been gone more than I’ve been home,” 

Schaus said. “They’re with their wonderful, 

loving father. I don’t think they miss me at all.”

So how can mothers stay in touch with 

their children back home?

Leaver likes to draw pictures and send them 

to her daughter.

“I’m not gifted in the art department, so 

they’ll just be stick figures, but I’ve drawn my 

living quarters for her,” Leaver laughs.

Leaver also sends copies of the JDG’s 

newsletter home.

“Reading the newsletter lets her see what 

I’m doing and I think that makes her feel 

closer to me,” Leaver said.

As deployments separated more and more 

families during the last ten years, technology 

was improving, allowing for better and more 

efficient communication with family members 

Troopers balance motherhood with defending 

truth, justice, and the American way

Left:Tech. Sgt. Gina Mezzacasa proudly 

poses with a picture of her 5-year-old 

daughter, Elliana.

Right: Army Capt. Ana Schaus shows off 

her two boys, Leonardo and Sebastian.

-photos by Army Pvt. Loren Cook

By Pvt. Loren Cook back home.

All three of these mothers call home several 

times a week. Leaver maintains a routine for 

her phone calls.

“It’s tempting to be selfish and call home 

whenever I feel like it, but I don’t think that’s 

the right answer. Before I do something, I 

need to ask myself ‘Is this going to help my 

child,’” Leaver said. “By having a schedule for 

my calls home, I know my daughter isn’t sitting 

around wondering when the next call is going 

to come.”

“Texting also helps out a lot,” Leaver said. 

“It doesn’t need to be a long message, but a 

simple ‘I love you’ is enough to let my daughter 

know that I’m thinking about her.”

Skype is a popular option for many 

servicemembers who are trying to stay in 

touch with loved ones. These mothers are no 

different.

“I try to Skype with my daughter when I 

can,” said Mezzacasa. “Skype doesn’t work 

as well as I’d like all the time, but I know my 

daughter likes the face-to-face contact.”

“At five years old, there’s only so much you 

can talk about on the phone. With Skype, she 

likes to play, and she can show me when she 

gets new clothes. It’s more like we’re hanging 

out,” Mezzacasa said.

“My boys draw pictures and make crafts for 

me. They’ll show me on Skype, and then send 

them to me in the mail,” Schaus said.

“I can use Skype to do things I just couldn’t 

do with the phone,” Leaver said. “I always end 

phone calls to my daughter by blowing her a 

kiss. When I do it on Skype, she catches the 

kiss and puts it in her pocket.”

Technology has clearly made it easier for 

mothers to communicate with their children at 

home. Even so, it can’t solve all the challenges 

deployed mothers face.

 “When you deploy, you remember the 

kid you left behind. When you come home, 

you expect to come home to the same kid,” 

Leaver said. “Deployment isn’t a time warp, 

though. Your kid continues its life, and it’s 

not necessarily going to be the same kid you 

remember, anymore than you’ll be the exact 

same person you were when you left home.”

“I’m a single mother, and I’m used to 

making all of the major decisions in my 

daughter’s life,” Mezzacasa said. “Her father 

has been involved with her life, but now she’s 

living with him. It’s just very hard to let go of 

things back home and focus on the mission 

here. I had to learn to trust that he would take 

care of her.”

“I think the greatest challenge I’ll face from 

this deployment is the reintegration when I 

come home,” Schaus said. “Since my kids are 

so young, and I’ve been gone so much, they’ll 

have trouble adjusting to this strange woman. 

It’s a challenge I’m happy to accept, though!”

“I think the greatest advice I can give to any 

deployed parent is to listen to your child,” said 

Leaver. “Your child will tell you what’s going 

to help. It might not be as obvious as saying 

‘Mommy, this is how you can help me,’ but if 

you listen, they’ll tell you somehow. It’s like at 

the range, when you ‘take all commands from 

the tower.’ Now you take all commands from 

the child.”
10 THINGS I KNOW...

 The Wire | Page 12 Feature

Americans are lagging behind Europeans, literally. 

Americans use their 

bikes for less 

than 1 percent of urban 

trips. Europeans on the 

other hand 

ride their 

bikes around 

cities about 30 times 

more.

The first bicycle with pedals hit the 

streets in the 1860s. Its inventor Pierre 

Michaux called it the velocipede, but 

it soon got the nickname boneshaker 

because of its uncomfortable, boneshaking ride. The bike was 

made of wood and iron.

No study has quantified Davis, California’s claim of “most 

bicycle friendly town 

in the world,” but the 

evidence is pretty compelling. There are more 

bikes than cars in the 

town and 95 percent 

of Davis’ major streets 

have bike lanes.

As Joint Task Force Guantanamo Troopers, we have all seen our fair share of cyclists around the island. In honor of 

National Bike Month, here are some facts about bicycles and their riders. The twists and turns you can make with the 

simple-looking contraption are indicative of its colorful tales. 

In a little known part of the 

world, Colombia’s capital 

Bogota has a ciclovia every Sunday and national 

holiday. What is a ciclovia? 

Well literally translated it 

means bike path in Spanish, 

but as an event it means the 

capital closes down 75 miles of 

its city roads to motorized vehicles 

leaving cyclists free to roam.

By Spc. Vanessa Davila

Feature The Wire | Page 13

Yankees legend 

Babe Ruth is known 

for many baseball 

feats, but cyclists 

know him for one 

that has nothing to 

do with baseball. 

Before the Sultan of 

Swat signed with the 

Yankees in 1922, cyclists were the highest paid athletes.

Cars and cyclists often 

collide literally and 

figuratively. The New 

York Times found that 

cycling is still less 

deadly than the flu. 

The newspaper compiled data in 2007 showing that bike accidents 

accounted for 762 annual 

deaths while the flu accounted 

for 59,664 annual deaths. 

As 

uncomfortable as the 

boneshaker was 

it might just be 

the earliest documented bike used 

for police patrols. Reports suggest an Illinois 

sheriff provided bikes to 

his deputies in 1869.

The average cyclist will probably never exceed 100 mph. 

Dutch cyclist 

Fred Rompelberg is not your 

average cyclist 

though. He set 

the world speed 

record for cycling 

in 1995, clocking 

in at a whopping 

167.044 mph. He 

was 50 years old.

Copenhagen, Denmark, is one of 

the most bike-friendly cities. It is 

no surprise then that Denmark’s technical and environmental department says 

Nørrebrogade is the 

busiest bicycle 

street in the world.

The first bike helmets documented date back to around 

the 1880s but they wouldn’t do much for riders today. 

They were made of a material called pith and usually 

came apart on impact. The next generation of helmets 

didn’t im- prove much as they 

w e r e made of leather 

and wool. It 

wasn’t until the mid 

1970s that 

helmets became 

good at their job.
 The Wire | Page 14 At Your Service

on t h e D E C K

ARLINGTON, Va. (NNS) -- The Office of 

Naval Research (ONR) will bring its technologically advanced fuel cell vehicle (FCV) 

and scientific expertise to the 2012 Pacific 

Operational Science & Technology (S&T) 

Conference in Honolulu, March 19-22.

“The Pacific Rim is a key strategic area 

for the Navy and Marine Corps,” said Rear 

Adm. Matthew Klunder, chief of naval research. “Gathering worldwide leaders in 

S&T at this event to discuss defense, security 

and energy-related challenges will increase 

collaboration and help us find ways to accelerate delivery of new military capabilities.”

Klunder speaks during the March 22 “Research and Development Community” panel, along with representatives from the Space 

and Naval Warfare Systems Command; Air 

Force Research Laboratory; Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency; U.S. Army 

Research, Development and Engineering 

Command; and Defense Threat Reduction 

Agency.

Approximately 400 senior Department 

of Defense leaders, both military and civilian, as well as leading members of industry 

and academia from around the world, are 

expected to attend. The event will focus on 

how S&T can solve challenges related to regional defense, cyber security, power and energy, communications and maritime security.

Representatives from ONR will showcase 

one of five Hawaii-based Navy FCVs and 

provide information about the organization 

and its initiatives in Booth 6 in the exhibit 

hall.

The hydrogen-based FCVs, sponsored 

by ONR, are designed and manufactured 

by General Motors for an FCV program at 

Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH). The 

vehicles are being tested for possible use at 

Department of the Navy (DoN) installations. At MCBH, plans call for more than 50 

percent of the base vehicle fleet to use alternative fuels by the end of this year, increasing to 70 percent by 2015. FCV deployment 

ultimately could help achieve the secretary 

of the Navy’s goal of reducing fossil fuel use 

in DoN’s commercial vehicle fleet.

Additionally, fuel cell technology is being considered as a potential power source 

for unmanned undersea vehicles, auxiliary 

power units, pier-side generators and other 

applications. 

ONR outreach 

focuses on Pacific 

total force

By Walter T. Ham IV

Eighth Army Public Affairs

By Katherine H. Crawford

Office of Naval Research Public Affairs

YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea - The 

U.S. military’s top enlisted leader 

met with American service members here in South Korea May 1 - 5.

Marine Sgt. Maj. Bryan B. Battaglia visited 

with U.S. troops during his week-long visit to 

military posts across the Korean Peninsula. 

He also met with senior military leaders, 

including U.S. Army Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command and 

U.S. Forces Korea, and Eighth Army Commanding General Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson.

It was his first trip to South Korea 

since becoming the chairman’s senior enlisted advisor. He previously deployed to 

Korea for an exercise in the early 1980s.

A combat veteran with more than 

32 years in uniform, Battaglia assumed 

the duties as the senior enlisted advisor to Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. 

Martin Dempsey on Oct. 1, 2011.

“It’s been my honor and privilege to visit 

with Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and 

family members here on the Korean Peninsula,” said Battaglia. “I am very, very proud 

of their courage and commitment and the 

relationship especially that the U.S. has with 

the ROK [Republic of Korea] forces.”

Battaglia said the bilateral relationship enables the alliance to “deter 

and prevent the daily threat of possible conflict with North Korea.” 

Emphasizing the importance of the U.S. 

presence in Korea, Battaglia said American troops on the Korean Peninsula have 

to maintain a very high level of readiness.

“We have potential threats that live 

very nearby,” said Battaglia. “It’s extremely 

important for us to maintain a footprint 

not only in the best interest of our national security but in the protection and 

best interest of this Korean Peninsula.”

“There’s a constant state of readiness here,” said Battaglia, who served in 

al-Anbar Province during the Iraq War. 

“You really have to keep a game face on.”

As the U.S. military reshapes and 

downsizes after a decade of war in Iraq 

and Afghanistan, Battaglia said the Department of Defense will strike a “balance” that maintains military readiness.

The senior enlisted leader also 

highlighted the importance of resiliency programs to readiness.

“They are intertwined,” said Battaglia. 

“If I don’t have the ability to overcome 

adversity, I’m not ready. That’s simply 

what resiliency is -- the ability to overcome adversity. If a family doesn’t practice resiliency and is not ready, that causes 

a service member to not be ready either.” 

Battaglia said that American 

troops continue to serve with distinction in Korea and around the world.

“We ask more from our troops 

now than ever before in our history of our armed forces and 

these troops continue to clearly answer the call,” said Battaglia. 

Battaglia: U.S. troops in 

Korea ready and resilient

At Your Service The Wire | Page 15

Official: Asia-Pacific strategy 

drives planned Marine move

In t h e f i g h t

WASHINGTON – The agreement between 

the United States and Japan to relocate some 

9,000 Marines from Okinawa is an example 

of how American troops will build a more 

flexible, deployable force structure in the 

Asia-Pacific region, a senior defense official 

said today.

“We need to look at it in the context 

of ... enhancing our posture and presence 

in the Western Pacific writ large,” Robert 

Scher, deputy assistant secretary of defense 

for plans, told the Pentagon Channel and 

American Forces Press Service.

About 5,000 of the Marines leaving Okinawa will shift to Guam, up to 2,500 will fill 

rotational, deployed slots in Australia, and 

the rest will move elsewhere in the region, 

Scher said.

A Marine force spread across more area, 

made up of self-contained units able to deploy and perform a range of contingency 

missions, will increase the U.S. military’s ability to quickly and effectively respond to contingencies, he said.

He noted the joint statement the two nations’ representatives announced April 26, 

which outlines the Okinawa realignment, 

also provides for a more “politically sustainable” arrangement for basing U.S. troops in 

Japan. The two nations have agreed that the 

roughly 10,000 Marines remaining on Okinawa after realignment will move from the 

highly populated central part of the island 

to more remote areas in the north, easing 

conditions for the island’s people, Scher said.

“Based on our conversations with the 

government of Japan, this is something they 

would like to see done to help make sure that 

our posture is sustainable ... far into the future,” he added.

Both nations feel it’s important to accomplish the troop realignment “as expeditiously 

as possible,” Scher said, though they have 

not yet agreed on a firm timeline.

“There are a lot of different moving pieces ... to any of these moves,” he said. “But 

we’re looking to figure out a way that we can 

very quickly try to move ... elements of Marines off of Okinawa and on to Guam in the 

next couple of years.”

Scher emphasized projecting a timeline is always difficult, adding, “I would 

hate to predict when that move would 

be finally finished.”

Wherever Marines move from Okinawa, he added, the troop presence 

they establish will be a mix of permanently assigned and rotationally deployed elements, “to make sure that in 

each location, we have operationally 

relevant and capable units.”

One thing troops and their families 

can count on, he said, is there is “no 

chance that we’re going to [relocate] 

Marines permanently where they don’t 

have the services they need to take care 

of themselves and their families.”

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta 

announced Scher’s new position this 

week. Scher previously served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for 

south and Southeast Asia, within the 

office of the assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- During a 

whirlwind trip to East Africa, Maj. Gen. David 

R. Hogg, commander, U.S. Army Africa, and a 

small group of advisers visited U.S. Army troops 

at Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa, 

or CJTF-HOA, in Djibouti and attended meetings with African Union mission leaders in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, April 24-27.

Initially, Hogg traveled to Camp Lemonnier, 

Djibouti, where he, along with USARAF Command Sgt. Maj. Hu Rhodes, USARAF’s Political 

Adviser Alan Latimer, and Security Cooperation Desk Officer Ron Stafford took part in a 

series of briefings with Air Force Brig. Gen. Eugene Haase, deputy commander of Combined 

Joint Task Force Horn of Africa. Following the 

CJTF-HOA briefings, Hogg met with Texas 

Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve 

troops currently working in and around Camp 

Lemonnier.

Hogg explained the significance and the purpose of the trip, known as a senior leader engagement.

“Senior leader engagements are important 

tools to establish relationships and begin partnerships with our African Land Force partners,” 

Hogg said. “It’s critical for us to develop these 

relationships to open doors for further militaryto-military training and solid partnerships for 

future operations as they occur.”

Hogg said the trip to HOA and Ethiopia was 

unlike other SLEs he has taken.

“This trip was unique in that we traveled 

to Djibouti to meet with Army personnel. It 

falls under our Title 10 missions, [meaning we 

have administrative, legal, finance and logistical 

oversight]. We met with our soldiers to see how 

they were doing and discuss any needs we can 

support at the USARAF level. Though these 

Army units fall under Adm. [Michael] Franklin 

at CTJF-HOA, our role is to make sure that the 

Army supports him,” Hogg said.

Hogg stopped by to meet with members of 

the U.S. Army 490th Civil Affairs Battalion who 

provided more than 5,000 backpacks for school 

children at 16 schools in the Ali Sabieh area. Additionally, Hogg accompanied the civil affairs 

personnel to a local library to deliver books and 

other reading material.

U.S. Army civil affairs soldiers have created a 

relationship with the local library staff, frequently arranging donations of English reading and 

study materials and creating an English language 

discussion group.

“I’m impressed by the accomplishments of 

the civil affairs team. They are doing some great 

things in Ali Sabieh,” Hogg said.

The next stop on the SLE was Addis Ababa, 

Ethiopia.

For Hogg, it was his first official engagement 

in the Ethiopian capital.

In Addis Ababa, Hogg and his team met 

with U.S. Defense Attaché officials as well as 

European and African Union representatives.

“It was an opportunity to get to know the African Union and meet with Ugandan Brig. Gen. 

Jack Bakasumba, the Eastern Africa Standby 

Brigade commander,” Hogg said. The EASB 

is made up of personnel from Kenya, Ethiopia, 

Uganda, Sudan, Rwanda, Mauritius, Madagascar, 

Eritrea, Djibouti, Seychelles, Somalia and Tanzania, “so we’re looking at ways we can work with 

them in the future through the CTJF-HOA.”

“In the near future, there may be partnership events with the EASB as observers for a 

USARAF exercise and perhaps a command post 

exercise, it’s all very positive progress,” Hogg 

said. 

Hogg engages leaders in Djibouti, Ethiopia

By Karen Parrish

American Forces Press Service

By Richard Bartell

U.S. Army Africa
Only at GTMO by Mass Communication Spc. 1st Class Ty Bjornson

 The Wire | Page 16 Around the World

You can also use it as a helpful guide for next 

year’s return. 

Finally, keep up with changes in tax rules. 

The IRS offers an email service that will 

send you information on tax law changes 

and helpful tips all year. Subscribe to “IRS 

Tax Tips” through www.irs.gov or IRS2Go, 

the mobile application now offered. 

The IRS emphasizes that each household’s financial circumstances are different, 

so it’s important to fully consider your specific situation and goals before making large 

financial decisions. 

Correction: In last week’s article on the 

new Roth option, I stated that participants 

could make withdrawals when certain IRS 

requirements were met. However, I didn’t 

mention that contributors will face a substantial penalty if they withdrawal monies 

before five years have elapsed. The five years 

don’t begin on the date of your first Roth 

contribution, but instead they begin on January 1 of the year of your first contribution.

“They’re engaging in jihad in a courtroom,” said Debra Burlingame, whose 

brother, Charles, was the pilot of the plane 

that flew into the Pentagon. She watched 

the proceeding from Brooklyn on one of 

the closed-circuit video feeds around the 

United States.

A handful of those who lost family 

members in the attacks were selected by 

a lottery and flown to watch the proceedings at the U.S. naval base in Cuba, where 

Mohammed and his co-defendants put off 

their pleas until a later date.

They face 2,976 counts of murder and 

terrorism in the 2001 attacks that sent 

hijacked jetliners into New York’s World 

Trade Center and the Pentagon. The 

charges carry the death penalty.

The detainees’ lawyers spent hours 

questioning the judge, Army Col. James 

Pohl, about his qualifications to hear the 

case and suggested their clients were being mistreated at the hearing, in a strategy that could pave the way for future appeals. Mohammed was subjected to a strip 

search and “inflammatory and unnecessary” treatment before court, said his attorney, David Nevin.

It was the defendants’ first appearance 

in more than three years after stalled efforts to try them for the terror attacks.

The Obama administration renewed 

plans to try the men at Guantanamo Bay 

after a bid to try the men in New York 

City blocks from the trade center site hit 

political opposition. Officials adopted 

new rules with Congress that forbade testimony obtained through torture or cruel 

treatment, and they now say that defendants could be tried as fairly here as in a 

civilian court.

Nevin said it would be impossible to 

present testimony against his client that 

wasn’t corrupted by treatment that he says 

amounted torture. “It’s not possible to untaint the evidence any more than it is to 

unring a bell.”

Eddie Bracken of Staten Island, New 

York, was one of the victims’ relatives allowed to attend the hearing, and said it 

was important to him to see the people accused of killing his sister, Lucy Fishman, 

a Brooklyn mother of two who worked in 

the World Trade Center.

He said he came away with impressed 

with the military justice system, with defense lawyers putting up an aggressive defense.

“If they had done this another country it would have been a different story,” 

Bracken said Sunday. “But this is America.”

Human rights groups and defense lawyers say the secrecy of Guantanamo and 

the military tribunals will make it impossible for the defense. They argued the 

U.S. kept the case out of civilian court 

to prevent disclosure of the treatment of 

prisoners like Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced in 2009 that Mohammed and 

his co-defendants would be tried blocks 

from the site of the destroyed trade center in downtown Manhattan, but the plan 

was shelved after New York officials cited 

huge costs to secure the neighborhood 

and family opposition to trying the suspects in the U.S.

Congress then blocked the transfer of 

any prisoners from Guantanamo to the 

U.S., forcing the Obama administration to 

refile the charges under a reformed military commission system.

Mohammed, a Pakistani citizen who 

grew up in Kuwait and attended college 

in Greensboro, N.C., has admitted to military authorities that he was responsible for 

the Sept. 11 attacks “from A to Z,” as well 

as about 30 other plots, and that he personally killed Wall Street Journal reporter 

Daniel Pearl. Mohammed was captured in 

2003 in Pakistan.

Ramzi Binalshibh was allegedly chosen 

to be a hijacker but couldn’t get a U.S. visa 

and ended up providing assistance such as 

finding flight schools. Walid bin Attash, 

also from Yemen, allegedly ran an al-Qaida training camp in Afghanistan and researched flight simulators and timetables. 

Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi is a Saudi accused of helping the hijackers with money, Western clothing, traveler’s checks and 

credit cards. Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, a Pakistani national and nephew of Mohammed, 

allegedly provided money to the hijackers.

During the failed first effort to prosecute the men at the base in Cuba, Mohammed mocked the tribunal and said he and 

his co-defendants would plead guilty and 

welcome execution. The lawyers’ statements indicate that plan has changed.

GTMO cont. 

IRS cont. 

Mind, Body & Spirit The Wire | Page 17

By Capt. Garland D. Mason III

Are you ready for this? The “Encyclopedia of Genocide” reports that, “In total, 

during the first eighty-eight years of the 

twentieth century, almost 170 million men, 

women, and children were shot, beaten, 

tortured, knifed, burned, starved, frozen, 

crushed, or worked to death; buried alive, 

drowned, hanged, bombed, or killed in any 

other of the myriad other ways governments 

have inflicted deaths on unarmed, helpless 

citizens and foreigners ... The dead could 

conceivably be more than 360 million people. 

It is as though our species has been devastated 

by a modern Black Plague.”

This list of grotesque inhumanities could 

go on and on to include our own history of 

slavery. These acts are a violation of human 

rights and dignity. The question I want to 

consider is simply, but profoundly, “Why?” 

On what grounds do we not only feel but 

know these atrocities are a violation of 

human dignity? Is it because in most places 

these things are illegal? No, I think our moral 

outrage is rooted in something deeper than the 

question of legality. As Martin Luther King Jr. 

reminds us in “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” 

“We can never forget that everything Hitler 

did in Germany was ‘legal’ ...”

In what then do we ground our idea of 

human dignity and rights? Why should all 

people expect to be treated with dignity 

and respect? The influential philosopher 

Immanuel Kant believed human dignity was 

“capacities-based.” People have dignity if 

they possess certain “capacities,” and the 

highest capacity is the ability to reason. If 

you can do certain things like reason, create 

and communicate, you are due human dignity. 

Many philosophers have followed in Kant’s 

wake.

I believe this capacities-based idea is 

present in the way our culture honors the 

talented, the beautiful, the powerful and the 

wealthy. They are the people we are urged 

to emulate and pay our highest honors and 

respects to. If you are one of the talented, 

beautiful, powerful or rich you are “in.” If 

you are not, you are pushed to the fringes 

of society. This is the inevitable outcome of 

a capacities-based model, and I believe this 

is one of the dominant drum beats of our 

culture. 

Do you see the problem 

with grounding human 

dignity in a capacities-based 

model? What if you lack one 

of these capacities? What 

about prematurely delivered 

babies or Alzheimer’s 

patients? What about the 

poor? What about the 

outsider? Are we prepared 

to say that because they lack 

certain capacities, they lack 

human dignity?

My family and I once 

attended a Women’s Day 

event, and afterwards I ask 

my 13 year-old daughter 

what she thought about the 

overall message. Her simple 

answer was, “Women matter 

because we have been 

astronauts and generals.” 

There it is! Women deserve 

dignity and respect because 

of their accomplishments, 

or should I say capacities. 

My daughter walked away 

feeling she must try with all her might to live 

up to what the culture thought praise worthy. 

She must be beautiful, make lots of money, 

become powerful and, above all else, look 

like that girl on the magazine cover. If she 

had these capacities, society would count her 

worthy and valuable.

My fear is that society will misconstrue 

different groups’ accomplishments as the 

overriding reason why they are due respect 

and dignity. There is a better reason for 

human dignity. I prefer Dr. King’s argument. 

He did not ground dignity in a capacitiesbased model. He did not give a list of 

African Americans’ accomplishments or 

contributions to humanity and, in virtue of 

these, demand dignity and respect. Why not? 

Because he knew the people who held the 

power determined the acceptable capacities. 

In other words, if a minority says he or she 

is due dignity and respect because he or she 

has accomplished “A,” the power-holding 

majority could say “A” isn’t good enough. See 

the problem? Hitler didn’t care what the Jews 

accomplished. He would have still denied 

them human dignity. 

King argued that African Americans are 

due dignity not because of their capacities but 

because all people are created in the image 

of God. He believed that human dignity was 

grounded in God, because if you ground it in 

man you are left with only man. If man is a 

rule unto himself, who is there to adjudicate 

between competing questions of right and 

wrong? 

The late Arthur Leff of Yale Law School 

summed up the dilemma well in his article 

“Unspeakable Ethics” when he wrote, 

“Nevertheless: Napalming babies is bad. 

Starving the poor is wicked. Buying and 

selling each other is depraved. Those who 

stood up to and died resisting Hitler [and] 

Stalin . . . have earned salvation. Those who 

acquiesced deserve to be damned. There is 

in the world such a thing as evil. All together 

now: Sez who?” 

Rights do have their reason, and it seems to 

me Dr. King’s reason in God stands on much 

firmer footing than Kant’s capacities-based 

model. According to King, my daughter does 

not have to earn human dignity and rights; 

she is born with those rights. Do we really 

want a world where the people with the most 

power, money and weapons decide who is due 

Mind, Body & Spirit

Rights have their reason
 The Wire | Page 18 Movie Review

Do you believe fate brought you to your circle of friends and family? Was it 

merely coincidence, luck or circumstance 

that put you there? Here’s another question: 

does it matter how the people in your life 

came to be in your life? Perhaps it is more 

important that they are simply there. No 

whys, buts or ifs.

Well, for anyone who’s ever read a 

Nicholas Sparks book, or seen a film based on 

one of his books, you would be well advised 

to suspend all your beliefs in reality. Instead, 

you would have to accept his whimsical 

notion that love is blind and it will find and 

envelope people when they least expect it. It 

is a constant in all his tales, which include 

“Dear John” (2010), “The Notebook” (2004) 

and “A Walk to Remember” (2002). Let’s not 

beat around the bush here: the success of 

Sparks’ books relies heavily on schmaltz. Not 

that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s a 

little like going into Chuck E. Cheese’s and 

knowing what you’re getting yourself into. 

Did I say cheese? Yes! His novels are quite 

cheesy. This latest Sparks’ film adaptation, 

“The Lucky One,” is another unapologetic 

staple in Sparks’ highly improbable love 

stories. 

“The Lucky One” focuses on young 

Marine sergeant Logan Thibault (Zac 

Efron), a troubled man who has completed 

three tours of duty in the Marine Corps. He 

has a photo in his possession of a beautiful 

woman that he found in the Middle-East 

during combat. For whatever reason, he 

believes that the photo is good luck and that 

it has saved his life on several occasions. He 

returns home to Colorado and realizes he 

won’t find peace there. Looking for closure, 

he decides to walk to Louisiana in search of 

the mystery woman. That’s right; he’s going 

to walk to Louisiana and bring his dog too.

Are you still following? This is where you 

check your brain at the door when watching 

anything based on a Nicholas Sparks book. 

How does Logan know the woman is in 

Louisiana? Let’s just say, at the very least, he 

was able to deduce this astronomically. This 

fact could be construed as creepy, obsessive 

and stalker-esque, though these matters are 

relatively ignored. It is a Sparks absolute, and 

it must be accepted as such. 

The woman in the photo is Beth (Taylor 

Schilling), a plucky single mom living at her 

grandmother Ellie’s (Blythe Danner) large 

rural home with a dog kennel business. 

Logan wants to tell Ellie about the photo and 

why he’s in Louisiana, but the words simply 

elude him. Through a misunderstanding, 

Logan agrees to take a job at the kennel. The 

job conveniently comes with a place to live 

right on the property. 

Beth finds Logan odd and is cautious of 

him. Naturally in a story like this, the wise 

old grandmother knows the potential for 

young love when she sees it. She believes 

Logan to be a fine, noble young man. Let 

us forget he is a military drifter like Rambo. 

He looks like Zac Efron which clearly means 

he’s trustworthy and meant to be with Beth 

right? Uh, huh. 

Naturally, Beth’s young son Ben (Thomas 

Riley Stewart, “How I Met Your Mother”) 

is accepting of Logan. Yes, it’s a given that 

Beth’s ex-husband Keith (Jay R. Ferguson, 

“Mad Men”) disapproves of the mysterious 

drifter having a passionate romance with 

Beth. It doesn’t help the two lovebirds that 

Keith is a shady sheriff ’s deputy determined 

to learn what brought Logan to town. 

“The Lucky One” is directed by Scott 

Hicks who is probably best known for his 

Oscar nominated bio-pic “Shine” (1996). 

That film was a meticulous recreation of the 

life of driven pianist David Helfgott (played 

by Geoffrey Rush who won the Best Actor 

Oscar for the role). His next film was the 

heated racial period piece “Snow Falling 

on Cedars” (1999), which was also grand 

in scope. This time, instead of using an 

epic canvas to tell the fictitious “The Lucky 

One,” Scott lets the story’s whimsy carry the 

film. The story is treated as serious as it can 

be, given the premise, and Scott doesn’t shy 

away from being playful with the material 

either. Unlike his earlier works, this film is 

intentionally light-hearted and breezy.

Though “The Lucky One” is a romance 

at heart, it also boasts some impressive 

visuals. The rural Louisianan vistas are lush 

and elaborate. Whether it is something as 

simple as a tree house overlooking a river 

or sail-boating on the open blue water, this 

movie is great to look at. Simple shots like 

sunlight beaming through the treetops are 

masterfully done. Grandma Ellie’s home 

looks idyllic; like a place you would see in a 

Thomas Kincaid painting. I would be happy 

to live in Ellie’s house. The cinematography 

in this movie is one of its charms.

Overall, “The Lucky One” is a charming, 

likeable movie. We know it’s far-fetched, 

especially when we learn how Beth’s photo 

ended up with Logan and the connection he 

has to the incident that brought it to him. 

But we don’t care. Sure the movie has some 

clichés, but the good news is the film is 

honest in its sappiness. That’s what saves it. 

“The Lucky One” is nothing grand, 

but in the right context it is a satisfactory 

watch. True, there are better Nicholas Sparks 

movies out there. Nevertheless, this picture 

has earned the right to be among their ranks. 

How many of us watch the movies for reality 

anyway? If you’re not expecting too much, 

“The Lucky One” is a cute little movie. 

By Mass Communication Spc. 1st Class 

Ty Bjornson

The Lucky One

Movie Review

PG-13

101 min. GTMO Quick Reference

Bulletin Board The Wire | Page 19

GTMO Religious 

Services

NAVSTA 

Main Chapel

Downtown

Lyceum

Camp 

Bulkeley

 FRI SAT SUN MON TUE WED THU 12

Call the movie hotline at 4880 or see https://intranet/movies.html for more information.

11 13 14 15 16 17

The Avengers 

(NEW)

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

Gone 

(last showing)

(PG-13) 10 p.m.

The Avengers 

(NEW)

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

John Carter 

(NEW)

(PG-13) 9 p.m.

John Carter 

(NEW)

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

21 Jump Street 

(NEW)

(R) 8 p.m.

Act of Valor

(last showing)

(R) 8 p.m.

The Avengers 

(NEW)

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

A Thousand 

Words

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

Gone 

(last showing)

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

Silent House

(R) 8 p.m.

Act of Vaor

(last showing)

(R) 8 p.m.

The Lucky One

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

21 Jump Street 

(NEW)

(R) 8 p.m.

A Thousand 

Words

(PG-13) 8 p.m.

Silent House

(R) 8 p.m.

Daily Catholic Mass

Tues.-Fri. 5:30 p.m.

Vigil Mass

Saturday 5 p.m. 

Mass

Sunday 9 a.m.

General Protestant

Sunday 11 a.m. 

Gospel Service

Sunday 1 p.m.

Christian Fellowship

Sunday 6 p.m. 

 Iglesia Ni Cristo

Sunday 5:30 a.m. 

Room A

Pentecostal Gospel

Sunday 8 a.m. & 5 p.m. 

Room D

LDS Service

Sunday 10 a.m. 

Room A

Islamic Service

Friday 1 p.m. 

Room C

Protestant Worship

Sunday 9 a.m.

Bible Study

Wednesday 6 p.m.

For more information, 

contact the JTF 

Chaplain’s Office 

at 2305.

Intense Spiritual 

Fitness Power Lunch!

Study the Book of 

Romans with 

Chaplain Chouest

Thursdays 11-11:30 a.m.

JTF Command 

Chaplain’s Office

Downtown

Lyceum

Camp 

Bulkeley

Bayview Club – 75604

 Wed.-Fri. 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

Sun. & Holidays 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Bowling Center – 2118

Mon.-Fri. 6-11 p.m.

 Fri. 6 p.m.-12 a.m

Sat. 1 p.m.-12 a.m.

Sun. & Holidays 1-11 p.m.

Caribbean Coffee – 77859

Mon.-Sat. 6 a.m.-10 p.m. 

Sun. 1-10 p.m.

KFC and A&W Express – 75653

Daily 11 a.m.-10 p.m. 

Jerk House – 2535

Sun.-Th. 5-9 p.m.

Fri. & Sat. 5-10 p.m. 

MWR Liberty Centers – 2010 

Mon.-Th. 11 a.m.-12 a.m.

Fri. 11 a.m.-1 a.m.

Sun. 9 a.m.-12 a.m.

Sat. & Holidays 9 a.m.-1 a.m.

Cuban Club – 75962

(Call ahead!)

Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Library – 4700

Mon.-Sat. 8 a.m.-9 p.m. 

Sun. & Holidays 12-9 p.m.

Pizza Hut – 77995

Mon.-Th. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Fri. 11 a.m.-11 p.m.

Sat. & Sun. 12-9 p.m.

Windjammer Club - 77252

Fri. & Sat. 5 p.m. - 2 a.m.

Windjammer Cafe

Mon.-Th. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Fri. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Sat. 5-10 p.m.

Sun. 5-9 p.m.

Windjammer Sports Bar

Mon.-Th. 5-9 p.m.

Fri. & Sat. 5 p.m.-2 a.m.

Sun. 5-9 p.m.

Safe Ride - 84781

JTF Trooper 

Chapel

For other services, contact the NAVSTA Chaplain’s Office at 2323.
Super perigree moons occur about once a year. During this time the moon is 31,000 miles closer to Earth than when it’s on its apogee 

side. Although this year’s super moon fell about 250 miles short of last year’s super moon, it was still a sight to behold. 

– photos by Mass Communications Spc. 1st Class Kilho Park