Bush With CENTCOM Commanders

As you've seen in the news, the President recently stopped in Iraq on the way to the APEC summit in Australia. Associated Press captured a few photos of the commanders and top political people in the administration. Included are General David Petraeus, commander of all ground forces in Iraq and his boss Admiral William Fallon, CENTCOM Commander.

From left to right: Gen. David Petraeus, President Bush, and Adm. William Fallon. I believe Fallon is the longest tenured general or flag officer in the military, having been commissioned in 1967.

From left to right: Lieutenant General Ray Odierno (Second in command in Iraq), Gen. Petraeus, President Bush, Adm. Fallon, Gen. Peter Pace (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker.

“Lef! Rah! Lef’! Yo Lef! Rah! Lo! Dubba Tahm!”

Centcom commander, U.S. Navy Admiral Willam Fallon began a “Centcom Run” after he arrived in March. Once a month, the 1,000 or so Centcom uniformed military types snarl up the morning commute for the thousands of other MacDill Air Force Base tenants like Special Operations Command, NOAA Storm Chasers, the 6th Air Mobility Wing and a few Coasties & Navy Reserves floating around here. (For some reason the DoD civilians and contractors choose to stay away. Must be their union!) I happen to think it’s good fun. Some of the Army and Marine Corps guys assigned to Centcom have drill sergeant experience and sing the cadence. The mood is upbeat and we can certainly use that here. Public Affairs just posted a bunch of the May and July photos. I even made two of the May photos. So I have proof that I have run (at least once.) [You can click on any photo for a close-up, as it can be difficult to read at the original size.]

Here’s the commander’s “Special Staff” of which the History Office is part. While we certainly look “special” as we run, it’s just a term for us misfit toys they don’t how to categorize. Other areas get cool “Joint Staff Numbers.” For example, Personnel is “J1”; Intelligence = J2; Operations = J3; Logistics = J4; Plans & Programs = J5; Communications & Computers = J6; Exercises & Training = J7; and Force Structure/Resources/Assessment = J8. The Admiral will snarl, “Get my three and five together and knock this situation out!” I’m just “Special.”

Oo! There’s my back! HF1

"You can't fight in here, this is the war room!"

If you don't understand the quote above, click here. If only 1% of you get it, I don't mind because I think it's funny and that's what counts. A "Bradyism" if you will, Jim & Tammy in LaCrosse... You probably have noticed very little about Centcom and its surroundings on this blog. Indeed, cameras are forbidden inside and on the premises. Only public affairs photographers may take photos and sometimes they’ll release them. I found these photos on a Google Image search (can we still do that at Shattuck? ☺). Here they are.

This photo shows people I do not know visiting Centcom’s Main Conference Room where the commander holds many briefings. The boss, Admiral Fallon, and his Joint Staff (mostly 2-star types and colonels as well as reps from the UK, Australia, New Zealand, & Canada) sit at this horseshoe desk. We in the “cheap seats” as the Admiral refers to us, sit behind.


This photo shows the view from the “cheap seats.” There are about 66 seats up here. It’s all part of the job right now, but I’m going to wake up in Neenah really soon and hardly believe I was sitting here twice a week. HF1

A Fun Run, Love Bugs, & A Concert

My day began with the second-ever "CENTCOM Run." Our new commander, Admiral Fallon, has directed that all 2,500 CENTCOM folks in Tampa meet for a two mile morning run each month. The 7:30 AM run became a trot (10:45 mile pace) around MacDill's narrow streets. But I enjoyed it with the blended collection of armed services, boisterous cadence that I haven't heard since basic training, and good-natured jabs amongst the troops. One note: the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps each have an official workout uniform. But the Navy, even with its 38 dozen different dress and work uniforms, does not. Some non-CENTCOM commuters appeared annoyed with the massive on-base traffic jam. But many more folks gave thumbs up from car and building windows as we inched by. Overall a good time.

Neenah folks that occasionally gripe about lakeflies apparently haven't seen Florida's love bugs. These annoying pests hang in the air much as lakeflies do but appear to be much more, shall we say, productive. Check out this Tampa Tribune capsule about these predator-free creatures that wreck car paint. Click here to read.

I finished the day by heading over to Bayshore Baptist Church to catch a national youth choir concert. Folks last Sunday invited me back. This troupe of 30 kids from Georgia really filled the place with excellent music and drama vignettes.

Another good day!

The work day? Well, you all see parts of it on CNNFOXNEWSMSNBC. Rather than those news outlets, I recommend reading all you can about the culture and tenets of the Middle East. My eyes have opened a lot these past two weeks. Much of the eye-opening info I've read isn't classified. Check some of my previous posts for good material. I will devote a future post to sharing some titles for helpful information.
HF1

Admiral Fallon in Charge Now

For those of you looking for some good unclassified background on my assignment, I found an Associated Press article about Central Command's relatively new commander (Mar. '07), Navy Admiral William Fallon. The article outlines the commander, Centcom's responsibilities, and the relationship with the President's policies. For the out-of-touch crowd too busy to notice that we are in a war of civilizations, you can click here instead. To read the Admiral Fallon article, click here.

HF1