In the first-ever Stand Up and Rock Out benefit event, American Legion Post 43 in Hollywood, California, got a heavy dose of comedy and heavy metal; attracting celebs, rockers, and plenty of vets. Held in the new, beautifully remodeled theater at The Legion, the sold-out event featured sets from Bill Burr, Jeff Ross, and Bob Saget and a performance by Eagles of Death Metal.
Rounding out the show was Joe Derosa with American Legion member Jon Stites hosting the whole event.
Jon is no stranger to comedy, having made the rounds all over LA and abroad. Before becoming a professional standup comedian, Jon was a grunt in the Army and even spent a little time as a college language professor. Now, he helps the iconic Hollywood American Legion get the street cred it deserves by bringing them acts like Bill Burr and Eagles of Death Metal. Check out the video above for a taste of the epic jam session and stay tuned for news about more rock shows coming to a Legion near you.
If you want to check out more Jon Stites, catch Mandatory Fun, where he breaks down the most hilarious clips from across the military.
Ronald Reagan probably helped save a number of lives on the front lines — and not because he was a big hero. In fact, Reagan’s eyesight was so bad, they kept him in the United States. But despite not being fit for front-line duty, Reagan still played his role for Uncle Sam.
While Reagan’s eyesight made him next to useless for combat, he did end up being involved in doing training films, one of which involved recognizing the Mitsubishi A6M Zero. Friendly fire has long been a problem — ask Stonewall Jackson.
A6M2 Zero fighters prepare to launch from Akagi as part of the second wave during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
In this training film, “Recognition of the Japanese Zero,” Reagan portrayed a young pilot who had just arrived in the Far East. The recognition angle is hammered home, and not just because of the friendly-fire problem.
Reagan’s character studies silhouettes drawn by a wounded pilot who hesitated too long — and found out he was dealing with a Zero the hard way.
Even with the study, Reagan’s character later accidentally fires at a P-40 he misidentifies, greatly angering the other American pilot. However, when he returns, he takes his lumps, but all turns out okay when the other pilots realizes there is a Zero in Reagan’s sights from the gun camera footage.
Reagan’s character explains that he stumbled across the Zero, then after a dogfight (not the proper tactic against the Zero, it should be noted), Reagan’s character shoots down the Zero.
There’s a happy ending as the earlier near-miss is forgotten and the kill is celebrated.
Colin Powell briefing President Ronald Reagan in 1988. (Photo from Reagan Presidential Library)
The film is also notable in that it revealed to American pilots that the United States had acquired a Zero that had crashed in the Aleutians. The so-called Akutan Zero was considered one of the great intelligence coups in the Pacific Theater, arguably second only to the American code-breaking effort.
So, see a future President of the United States help teach American pilots how to recognize the Zero in the video below.
Sightings of the NASA logotype (the “worm”), from left: Astronaut Mae Jemison preparing for launch; astronaut Bruce McCandless on an untethered spacewalk; the Hubble Space Telescope; astronaut Guy Bluford; and astronaut Sally Ride.
Mercedes Benz’s three pointed star. McDonald’s’ Golden Arches. Apple’s apple. Nike’s Swoosh.
NASA’s…. Worm? Yup, it’s back!
A logo can be an important part of an organization’s identity. It conveys professionalism and gives a familiar symbol that puts you at ease. We have all been on that road trip, looking for a place to eat in an unfamiliar location and seen those familiar Golden Arches. We have shopped for computers and looked for the Intel logo on the keyboard. Logos are a big part of marketing and make companies stand out from the crowd or be lost in the sauce.
Changing a logo can also sometimes cause your organization to be subject to criticism or ridicule. The Cleveland Browns infamously changed their logo from an orange helmet to slightly more orange helmet as if it were going to make people forget about how abysmal the team was. The New York Islanders replaced the logo they used to win four Stanley Cups with a character that looked just like the Gorton’s fisherman.
NASA has had two iconic logos over the course of its illustrious history. The first, nicknamed the meatball dates to 1959 and was approved by President Eisenhower. It was the logo that took us to space for the first time, around the earth and to the moon and back. In the 1970s, as NASA modernized, it looked to change its image and logo.
In 1975, the firm of Danne and Blackburn released a futuristic logo that was well ahead of its time. Dubbed “the Worm,” it became just as iconic as the meatball logo as NASA evolved its missions from moon landings to the new Space Shuttle System. The two letter As in the logo were missing the middle line which makes them look like the top of a rocket. The new logo was a smash and became synonymous with the Space Shuttle and era of the 80s.
But tradition came back and in 1992, the meatball was reinstalled as the primary logo. The Worm remained on vestiges like the Enterprise; the Shuttle prototype that is now at the Intrepid Space Museum and on the famous Hubble Space Telescope.
Recent events, however, have led NASA to bring back the logo. Part of it is nostalgia to be sure. But there is a new era in America’s space journey and NASA wanted to usher it in with a bit of rebranding.
Since 2011, after the Space Shuttle program was shut down, Americans have only been able to make it into space by hitching a ride with the Russians. Our trips back and forth to the International Space Station hinge on a partnership with the Russian Space Agency. While this was supposed to be a cost-saving measure, it also meant that the United States went from building the Saturn V which sent men to the Moon, to designing a shuttle that could be used multiple times, to not having anything at all.
Enter Elon Musk. The billionaire entrepreneur is leading the charge in an American effort to put humans on Mars. As part of that, he has invested heavily in rocket development though his company, SpaceX. SpaceX has a new rocket, called the Falcon 9, which will be the first launch on American soil that will take Americans to space since 2011.
With the new rocket and era in American space flight, the Worm which is retro and modern in design helps capture the excitement of this new time in human spaceflight. The launch is scheduled for May and is still on track to be launched.
The United States is withholding a $255 million military aid payment from Pakistan until it cracks down on what President Donald Trump has called “safe havens” for anti- Afghanistan militant groups, officials said.
State Department officials said on August 31 that the funds won’t be released from an escrow account until the United States sees that Pakistan is moving against the Afghan Taliban and allied groups like the Haqqani network that U.S. intelligence agencies say have resided for years withinPakistan’s borders.
DOD photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith
Pakistan has denied that it harbors terrorists and has said the United States is using Islamabad as a “scapegoat” for its own failure to win the 16-year war in Afghanistan.
The new U.S. stance toward Pakistan prompted a protest resolution in the Pakistani parliament this week as well as anti- U.S. protests in the streets that Pakistani police had to disperse using tear gas.
In announcing the new strategy last week, Trump said “we have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting… That will have to change.”
120229-A-8536E-817 U.S. Army soldiers prepare to conduct security checks near the Pakistan border at Combat Outpost Dand Patan in Afghanistan’s Paktya province on Feb. 29, 2012. The soldiers are paratroopers assigned to Company A, 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment. DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Epperson, U.S. Army. (Released)
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said at the time that the administration was considering curtailing aid, severing Pakistan’s status as a major non- NATO ally, and even hitting Islamabad for the first time with sanctions, unless it tackles anti-Afghan militant groups within its borders.
“We’re going to be conditioning our support for Pakistan and our relationship with them on them delivering results in this area,” Tillerson said.
To Pakistan’s alarm, Trump also floated the possibility of inviting India – Pakistan’s archrival – to get more involved in Afghanistan unless Pakistan is more cooperative.
The administration’s notification to Congress of an indefinite “pause” in installments on a $1.1 billion military assistance package for Pakistan represented the administration’s first step to make good on those promised measures.
The United States has sought before to use aid to Pakistan as well as U.S. weapons sales as leverage to secure Islamabad’s cooperation onAfghanistan.
Pakistan maintains that it already is doing everything it can to eliminate terrorists in the country, and has been more successful at doing so than its next-door neighbor, Afghanistan, even with the help of thousands of NATO and U.S. troops.
Moreover, Pakistan has complained that the United States does not appreciate the sacrifices Islamabad has made by joining the U.S. antiterror campaign, which Islamabad said has caused the deaths of tens of thousands of Pakistani civilians and soldiers.
In a decade full of big mustaches and goucho pants, bell bottoms ruled the earth; something about extra ankle space was all the rage. Meanwhile, military surplus clothing was a must-have hit, and when it came to hair styles, bigger was better. These are only a few attributes that describe the 1970s. It’s also a decade that loved a good macho war flick — gruff soldiers with heartfelt stories fit right in with the counterculture and everything it stood for.
From these titles which are still modern favorites, to the films that changed the face of cinema as we know it today, take a look at these blockbusters and campy faves.
Catch-22, 1970
Released in 1970, Catch-22 is the film adaptation of the classic war novel of the same name. It’s considered a black comedy, “anti-war” movie where the main character tries to get himself declared insane so he no longer has to participate in the war — therefore a catch-22. It’s known for starring big names such as Art Garfunkel, Bob Newhart, Martin Sheen, Jon Voight, and Orson Welles.
2. M*A*S*H, 1970
Yes, MASH made a movie! In fact, the movie came before the show. An acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, MASH was first based on a book, then made into a film starring Donald Sutherland, Elliott Gould, and Robert Duvall. The Korean War film won an Academy Award for best film adaptation, as well as taking home the title for Grand Prix du Festival International du Film at the Cannes Film Festival.
3. Johnny Got His Gun, 1971
Another anti-war flick — a common theme in the 70s — comes with Johnny Got His Gun. Donald Sutherland also plays in this film, however, it was a box office bomb and not well received. Years later, in 1988, the band Metallica used clips from the movie in their music video. They even purchased the rights to avoid paying ongoing royalties, and in the process, brough the film to prominence and turned it into a cult classic.
Michael Caine stars in this movie covering the thirty-years war in Central Europe. Set in the 1600s, the flick follows Caine as a mercenary soldier, during a religious war. Despite being one of the most popular movies at the box office, it still became a financial failure, only gaining popularity in decades since.
5. The Hiding Place, 1975
Another WW2 classic, The Hiding Place follows a Jewish family who’s taken into captivity and their hardships within a concentration camp. The film is based off of Corrie ten Boom and her family’s struggles and her famous book of the same name.
6. Midway, 1976
The Battle of Midway is arguably one of the more famous battles from WW2, partly thanks to this film. Midway covers the invasion of Midway Island when the U.S. attacked the Japanese Navy in April of 1942. The movie comes with a star-studded cast, including: Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, James Coburn, Glenn Ford, and Hal Holbrook.
7. The Eagle Has Landed, 1976
This flick takes place in a world where the Germans plotted to kidnap Winston Churchill at the end of WW2. It was directed by John Sturgess in his last film as a director. Donald Sutherland, Michael Caine, and Robert Duvall star in yet another war film, this time playing Germans in their attempt to find and take down the British Prime Minister.
8. Coming Home, 1978
Set in the timeframe of Vietnam, Coming Home brings a fresh twist to war films; it’s set back in the states and covers a love triangle between a military spouse, her husband, and another injured soldier. Jane Fonda stars as the film’s temptress, with Jon Voight playing another leading role.
9. The Inglorious Bastards, 1978
The original title to this film is actually an Italian film. The translation means, “That damned armored train.” A Euro War movie, the film was pitched to American filmmakers, but moved to Italy when it was not picked up. The film gained most of its success decades later when director Quentin Tarantino made his own war flick reusing the name Inglorious Basterds.
The 1970s was certainly a power decade for WW2 films, among others. Whether you’ve seen them or simply have these titles on your “must watch” list, don’t overlook the power they can bring to modern day viewers in cultural and historical importance.
A South Korean decision to allow North and South Korean athletes to march together under a unified Korea flag at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics may be costing President Moon Jae-in support.
A Gallup Korea poll released Jan. 26 indicates approval ratings for Moon, whose support had not dipped below 70 percent since he assumed office less than a year ago, now stands at 64 percent, local newspaper Kyunghyang Shinmun reported.
Moon’s nosedive in popularity comes at a time when North Korea may be taking advantage of the reconciliatory mood in Seoul, and calling for an “independent” unification that could split the U.S.-South Korea alliance.
‘2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games’ Torch Relay in Seoul. (Image Republic of Korea Flickr)
The United States may be making it clear to North Korea its tactics are not working.
Lt. Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, Joint Chiefs of Staff director, said suspending drills that occur regularly is not an option.
“We haven’t suspended, we’re de-conflicting during the period of the Olympics and exercises will continue immediately after the Olympics,” McKenzie said Jan. 25.
Senior South Korean and U.S. officials are expected to confirm the plans in Hawaii, with a ministerial-level meeting on the timing of post-Olympic drills and their scale, according to South Korean news network MBN.
But South Korea’s tough military stance on the North, which has shown no signs of giving up its nuclear weapons program, has not contributed to Moon’s standing in the polls.
According to Gallup, Moon’s approval rating has declined for two consecutive weeks, and decisions to unify the women’s ice hockey team and march in unison at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics are responsible for the fall.
Among South Koreans in their 20s, the approval rating dropped from 75 to 68 percent.
Other factors for the decline include a perception Moon’s administration is “retaliating” against past administrations and punishing conservatives, like former President Lee Myung-bak, according to the survey conducted this week.
French President Emmanuel Macron shared a video of a man zooming around the sky above celebrations on Bastille Day in Paris on July 14, 2019.
The man appeared to be carrying a rifle, or at least a replica rifle, while he soared above the crowds.
France 24 reports that the man is a former jet-skiing champion and inventor named Franky Zapata. He is riding a “Flyboard Air,” a device developed by his company Zapata. A photo on Zapata’s Instagram gives a closer picture of himself strapped into the device:
The Guardian reports that the jet-powered board can reach speeds of 190 km/h (118 mph) and was originally designed to fly above bodies of water.
Both Macron and French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly cast the display as a display of military strength.
“Proud of our army, modern and innovative,” Macron tweeted alongside the video. Parly, meanwhile, told radio station France Inter that the board “can allow tests for different kinds of uses, for example as a flying logistical platform or, indeed, as an assault platform,” according to France 24.
It is not clear if the machine is being formally tested by the French military. Zapata has previously marketed an adapted version of the board — called the EZ-Fly — for military applications.
Zapata’s Bastille Day display marks quite a turnaround for the inventor, who was banned in 2017 from riding the hoverboard in France.
This article originally appeared on Business Insider. Follow @BusinessInsider on Twitter.
Fans of science in space now can experience fast-moving footage in even higher definition as NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) deliver the first 8K ultra high definition (UHD) video of astronauts living, working, and conducting research from the International Space Station. The same engineers who sent high-definition (HD) cameras, 3D cameras, and a camera capable of recording 4K footage to the space station now have delivered a new camera capable of recording images with four times the resolution than previously offered.
The Helium 8K camera by RED, a digital cinema company, is capable of shooting at resolutions ranging from conventional HDTV up to 8K, specifically 8192 x 4320 pixels. By comparison, the average HD consumer television displays up to 1920 x 1080 pixels of resolution, and digital cinemas typically project in resolutions of 2K to 4K.
“This new footage showcases the story of human spaceflight in more vivid detail than ever before,” said Dylan Mathis, communications manager for the International Space Station Program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “The world of camera technology continues to progress, and seeing our planet in high fidelity is always welcome. We’re excited to see what imagery comes down in the future.”
Viewers can watch as crew members advance DNA sequencing in space with the BEST investigation, study dynamic forces between sediment particles with BCAT-CS, learn about genetic differences in space-grown and Earth-grown plants with Plant Habitat-1, observe low-speed water jets to improve combustion processes within engines with Atomization; and explore station facilities such as the MELFI, the Plant Habitat, the Life Support Rack, the JEM Airlock and the Canadarm2.
While the 4K camera brought beautiful footage of fluid behavior in the space station’s microgravity environment to the world, the new 8K video takes viewers through a variety of experiments and facilities aboard the orbiting outpost, which on Friday, Nov. 2, 2018, will celebrate the 18th anniversary of humans living continuously aboard and the 20th anniversary of the launch of the first two space station elements on Nov. 20 and Dec. 4, 1998, respectively.
Delivered to the station in April 2018 aboard the 14th SpaceX cargo resupply mission through a Space Act Agreement between NASA and RED, this camera’s ability to record twice the pixels and at resolutions four times higher than the 4K camera brings science in orbit into the homes, laboratories and classrooms of everyone on Earth.
“We’re excited to embrace new technology that improves our ability to engage our audiences in space station research,” said David Brady, assistant program scientist for the International Space Station Program Science Office at Johnson. “Each improvement in imagery fidelity brings that person on Earth closer to the in-space experience, allowing them to see what human spaceflight is doing to improve their life, as well as enable humanity to explore the universe.”
The RED camera is the same brand used to record theatrical releases such as The Hobbit trilogy, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2, and television programs such as, Stranger Things, Maniac, and Lost in Space.
Viewers can watch high-resolution footage from inside and outside the orbiting laboratory right on their computer screens. A screen capable of displaying 8K resolution is required for the full effect, but the imagery is shot at a higher fidelity and then down-converted, which results in higher-quality playback, even for viewers who do not have an 8K screen.
U.S. Marines have been engaging in combat against the Taliban since 2001. While the scenery has changed a bit as Marines have moved to different areas of operation, the fight has remained the same. From small arms to rocket-propelled grenades, the Taliban has continued to attack U.S. forces, and they have responded, often with intense and overwhelming fire.
This video from Funker 530 gives a good look at what it’s like for Marines engaging against the Taliban. With a compilation of regular camera and GoPro footage, this gives a look at what happens in a firefight.
As retired Marine Gen. James Mattis said, “there is nothing better than getting shot at and missed.” We definitely agree.
Iran has debuted a new, locally built long-range missile system as it continues its defiant stance against the United States amid heightened tensions between the two countries.
Iranian President Hassan Rohani said in a speech on Aug. 22, 2019, during the unveiling of the mobile air-to-surface missile system that since Iran’s “enemies don’t accept logic, we cannot respond with logic.”
“When the enemy launches a missile against us, we cannot give a speech and say: ‘Mr. Rocket, please do not hit our country and our innocent people. Rocket-launching sir, if you can please hit a button and self-destruct the missile in mid-air,'” Rohani added in the speech from Tehran.
Rohani’s speech and the missile system are the latest volley in a war of words between Tehran and Washington that many worry will escalate into armed conflict.
The United States withdrew from a 2015 international accord to limit Iran’s nuclear ambitions and instead reimposed sanctions on the country.
The ministers of foreign affairs and other officials from the P5+1 countries, the European Union and Iran while announcing the framework of a Comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear program, April 2015.
Iran’s economy has suffered under the sanctions, which target its oil and financial sectors.
Iran’s oil production has plummeted to 300,000 barrels a day or less while its economy will shrink by 6 percent this year, the International Monetary Fund projects. Unemployment remains high, at 12 percent.
A series of recent attacks on international ships, which the United States has blamed on Iran, and the seizure of a British tanker, have added to volatility in the region and on the global shipping industry.
While Tehran has denied the accusations, Washington has asked its allies jointly to form a maritime patrol to guard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital gateway for the world’s oil industry.
The Aug. 22, 2019 ceremony to unveil the Bavar-373 system, which military analysts see as a rival to the Russian S-300 missile system, comes on Iran’s National Defense Industry Day.
Defense Minister Amir Hatami told state television that the missile-defense system can detect targets more than 300 kilometers away and destroy them at 200 kilometers.
Iran: Rouhani unveils homegrown Bavar-373 air defence missile system
Iran shot down a U.S. military surveillance drone in the Persian Gulf with a surface-to-air missile in June 2019. It says the drone was over its territory, but the United States says it was in international airspace.
Despite the increased rhetoric and animosity, Tehran maintains that it does not seek confrontation with Washington that U.S. moves against it are tantamount to bullying.
“Will there be a war in the…Gulf? I can tell you that we will not start the war…but we will defend ourselves,” Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said on Aug. 22, 2019, at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs.
Newly-released data from the Department of Defense shows an alarming spike in the number of American personnel wounded in the fight against ISIS.
Since October, at least 14 US troops were wounded in combat operations under Operation Inherent Resolve — nearly double the number wounded since the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria began in August 2014. At least 8 Americans were killed in combat since the campaign began, while 23 have died in “non-hostile” events.
Green Berets rehearse close quarters combat. (U.S. Army photo by 3rd Special Forces Group)
The Pentagon’s quiet acknowledgement of a spike in casualties was first reported by Andrew deGrandpre at Military Times.
The increase in combat wounds — which can be caused by small-arms fire, rockets, mortars, and other weaponry, though the Pentagon does not release specifics of how troops are injured — lines up with ongoing offensives against ISIS in the Iraqi city of Mosul and its Syrian capital of Raqqa.
US military officials have often downplayed the role of American troops in the region, saying they are there mainly to “advise and assist” Iraqi and Kurdish personnel fighting on the front lines.
The military has more than 5,000 troops on the ground in Iraq currently, a number which has steadily crept up since roughly 300 troops were deployed to secure the Baghdad airport in June 2014.
With 15 combat injuries, the Marine Corps has the most wounded in the campaign so far. The Army, Navy, and Air Force had 11, 3, and 1 wounded, respectively.
“Rambo” is one of the most recognizable military movie series of all time. The indestructible, bow-wielding Special Forces soldier was adapted for video games, comic books, animation, and much more. The series was a permanent fixture of the action movie genre during the 1980s and served as the inspiration for Chuck Norris’s “Delta Force,” Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Commando” and countless others.
Rambo is a guy’s guy with skills in all things badass: survival, weaponry, hand-to-hand combat, and guerrilla warfare.
As you may recall, Rambo is pulled back into war on two occasions by Col. Trautman and saved the day in both films. Key and Peel made this hilarious comedy sketch depicting what the Trautman/Rambo meeting would be like if it happened today.
Japan’s public broadcaster NHK issued a false alarm about a North Korea missile test.
The broadcaster sent a push alert to users of its disaster prevention app, warning of them of an imminent launch from Kim Jong-un’s regime.
But soon after, NHK said the warning was raised incorrectly and it apologized. The error was spotted by The Japan Times and The Wall Street Journal’s Japan editor Alastair Gale.
Public broadcaster NHK apologizes after accidentally sending false emergency alert about an imminent North Korean missile launch. https://t.co/idDhHRAl7k
It comes after the people of Hawaii received a false alarm on Jan. 13, warning of an inbound ballistic missile. It was apparently caused by an employee at Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency pushing the “wrong button” by accident.