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Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians

Commentaries

  • A brother's lesson in drug abuse

    It was Saturday morning, May 5, 1995, when the police told me my brother was dead. They told me over the telephone and were very cavalier about it. But I understand why they were so callous. My brother had died of a heroin overdose, and they probably figured I was junkie a too.I came from a normal

  • A rich heritage of religious freedom and respect

    On Sept. 23, 2001, 25,000 people gathered at Yankee Stadium for “A Prayer for America,” honoring those who lost their lives in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Jewish, Roman Catholic, Muslim, Hindu, Protestant, Sikh and Greek Orthodox clergy offered prayers. The prayer service was described as

  • No ‘I’ in a winning team -- really?

    Over the years, my favorite movies have become “The Mighty Ducks,” “The Rookie” and especially “Remember the Titans.” Was it because of the feel-good nature of the message? No, it was because they epitomized how I believed teams were built and what teamwork could accomplish. I’d always answered

  • Traffic deaths take emotional toll

    I tell myself I won’t cry this time.It’s been almost six years since my brother was locked up for vehicular manslaughter. As I sit and wait for him to be released into the visiting area, I remind myself, I will be strong, I will not cry this time.I’m thankful that he somehow survived the wreck he

  • Confessions of a reality TV addict

    I have to admit it. It’s tough to say out in the open, but I’m one of those -- a reality TV addict. I must watch each week, and if I’m out of town, most of the ones I watch are taped so I don’t miss a thing.I’m so bad that on a recent temporary duty, when I realized that I had only taped one of my

  • Today’s Airmen serve generations yet unborn

    Leon Alton Palmer was born April 27, 1945, in Mableton, Ga., the son of Nelly and Arvel Palmer. On Aug. 17, 1968, Sgt. Leon A. Palmer, C Company, 3rd Battalion, 39th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, was killed in Gia Dinh Province, South Vietnam. He was 23 years old and left behind a

  • Common thread: Air Force family unites through tragedy

    April 5 was both one of the saddest and proudest days of my life. As a new member of Air Force Special Operations Command, one of my first duties was to travel to Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, to help support the 352nd Special Operations Group after one of its MC-130H Combat Talon IIs

  • The golden rule of leadership

    In most cases, what is considered legal isn’t quite the same as what is considered ethical. In a Venn diagram (John Venn was a priest by the way), “legal” would be a larger area encircling the smaller area of “ethical.” That which is allowed almost always includes a wider range of actions than that

  • Mentorship, training essential to mission success

    At a fighter base back in the 1980s, we got goal days based on the number of sorties each aircraft flew every month. Known as utilization, or UTE, days, people were given the day off if the wing did well.One day, the wing commander came to a staff meeting and told us a story of a young captain who

  • Encouraging individual excellence ensures focus on team goals

    We all know excellence is an important Air Force core value. We each are challenged to apply it daily in our actions, our attitudes and in our planning and decision making. All Airmen have a responsibility to encourage, recognize and deliver individual excellence.Rewarding excellence encourages