Fort Huachuca post housing named Army’s best

Fort Huachuca post housing named Army’s best
FORT HUACHUCA (The Fort Huachuca Scout, Jan. 12, 2006)
The Fort Huachuca Housing Division, Di­rectorate of Public Works, was recently named the Outstanding Non-Privatized Housing Operation in the Army by the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management. The post Housing Division competed against Army housing divisions around the globe, with a panel of judges looking at a range of criteria from off-post housing, to how unaccompanied-Soldier barracks are managed. The Fort’s housing office currently serves 2,926 single service members, 1,070 families, and provides about 1,750 quarters off-post. Sylvia Pete, chief Fort Huachuca Housing Di­vision, attributes the honor to the Housing Divi­sion staff’s focus on customer service. “Our employees in the unaccompanied person­nel housing, furnishing management and family housing branches have been extraordinary,” Pete said. “They are all customer service oriented and always go the extra mile constantly keeping a pos­itive attitude, and I think that is reflected in what we are able to accomplish and in the Soldiers’ satisfaction.” According to the text of the award nomination, the Housing Division uses an “agent concept” by cross-training housing inspectors and counselors and then assigning neighborhoods to provide cra­dle to grave service to Soldiers and their families. The concept resulted in an increase in customer satisfaction and a swell in the agents’ ownership of the houses. The Housing Division collects customer feed back from a variety of sources such as customer surveys, town hall meetings and Army Family Team Building symposiums to determine custom­er requirements and to reenergize their customer focus. “Our customer comment cards are probably our greatest source of feedback and we use those on a daily basis,” Pete said. “Time and time again the customer satisfaction surveys show not only on assignment to quarters but also on termina­tion from quarters, out of a possible five points we consistently score between 4.6 and 4.9 and the comment sections repeatedly say we are among the best housing that they’ve ever been in.” Replacing housing that is more than 50 years old is also a priority for the office, with deterio­rated units being replaced with new houses with dual-pane windows, long-lasting tile roofs and low water use landscaping. Water-using swamp coolers were replaced with air conditioning units, saving water and increasing the comfort of resi­dents. “When we are finished with this cycle by the end of [Fiscal Year] 08 we should have either all brand new or all completely renovated housing on Fort Huachuca,” she said During the replacement process, the Housing Division worked with military units, law enforce­ment and first responders to allow training to take place in quarters awaiting demolition. “If you take a look at the facilities that we have at Fort Huachuca, we’ve done a really good job over the years in aggressively seeking fund­ing from the Department of the Army,” Pete said. “And we used the funds that were made available to us in the regular budgeting process, making the best use of that money to program long range plans and following those plans through.” The Housing Division also built the first fully handicapped accessible playground in Arizona, allowing physically challenged children access to all the equipment. The overwhelming customer response to the improvement motivated the office to upgrade all the playgrounds on post. With Fort Huachuca being a National Historic Landmark, housing is responsible for the stucco and adobe historic homes along Brown Parade Field which are some of the last of their kind remaining in the United States. Working with the Arizona State Preserva­tion Office, housing personnel improved the infrastructure of the homes, enhancing safety for residents and ensuring the buildings will remain standing another 100 years. “All of the houses on Grierson in FY 06 and FY 07 will be renovated as they are vacated, so all of the stucco will be repaired like we did on Quarters One and Two,” she said. The nomination went on to say that Soldiers living in the barracks are also experiencing an in­crease in their quality of life with the Unaccompa­nied Personnel Housing Branch’s implementation of centralized barracks management. Single Soldiers now report to civilian manag­ers who follow the same procedures as traditional family housing operations. The new measures ensure Soldiers move into a clean and well-main­tained room. “We did centralized barracks management, but it’s not 100 percent at this point,” Pete said. “But we took the initiative to hire civilian barracks managers to take care of the various complexes, excluding the [Advanced Indi­vidual Training] Soldiers.” The housing office’s influence reaches into Sierra Vista and Soldiers’ off-post housing. Every new listing is inspected and older archived prop­erties are re-inspected to ensure the liv­ability of the unit. The housing office also works with local utility companies to waive deposits for electric and gas service. The Housing Division will be honored by the Professional Housing Managers Association at a profes­sional development conference in San Diego, Calif., Jan. 30-Feb. 3. The Fort Huachuca Housing Division will receive the association’s outstanding Army housing installation team award for traditional locations. The award goes to the housing team that provides an outstanding living environ­ment for service members and their families to include areas such as bachelor, family and transient housing. The PHMA promotes, provides and coordinates professional training and certification programs in housing and lodging management. The organizations mission is to contribute towards better quality housing for military members and their families by continuously raising the level of proficiency and professionalism within the military services’ housing profession. (Editor’s note information for this article was taken from the Professional Housing Managers Web site at www.phma.com/index.html)

The name of the US drone, 'Predator,' reflects what the United States has become

The name of the US drone, 'Predator,' reflects what the United States has become (November 18, 2008) by Brenda Norrell

TUCSON -- The bad news is that the US Border Patrol has four drones flying out of Fort Huachuca over the US/Mexico border for surveillance. One drone has already crashed near Nogales and these unmanned aerial planes, provided first by Israel's Apartheid spy technology maker, Elbit Systems, are a risk to the lives of those on the ground in Arizona.

The good news is that Airforce pilots are not flying over in their planes. Airforce pilots in Tucson were so eager to smuggle cocaine in uniform, that the FBI halted Operation Lively Green. More than 50 Army, Navy, Marine and National Guard soldiers have been sentenced for smuggling cocaine for cash, from Nogales to Phoenix.

Again, the bad news is that the Arizona National Guard soldiers are commanding an armed, remote controlled aircraft in Iraq from Tucson, drug central.

From Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, a unit controls the MQ-1B Predator, used for armed reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting in Iraq, according to the National Guard.

If drug-running soldiers weren't bad enough, now comes the news that the drones are being used by the US to spy on civilians at the US/Mexico border.

Michael Webster reports, "The Reaper/Predator B UAV´s robotic killing machines are currently in operation with the USAF, US Navy and the Royal Air Force. In addition non military users of the Predator B include: NASA and Homeland security though the US Customs and Border Protection agencies." The information is on also on the web from the Defense Department.

Webster said the use of drones by Homeland Security, FEMA and disaster management is troubling.

"Predator B carries out 'targeted assassinations' of 'terrorist suspects' across Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. The deployment of the robotic killing machines in the United States for 'disaster management' is troubling to say the least and a harbinger of things to come," Webster says.

As the US pours millions into spy technology, one has to wonder why there is so much crime ignored in Tucson. In 2008, there was a serial murderer, raping and murdering homeless women in Tucson. These women were raped and murdered on the same streets I walk down. There was little mention of this serial murderer in the news.

I wonder if any of those millions of dollars of spy technology, aimed at keeping us all safe, is ever used to keep the streets of Tucson safe.

Back at Fort Huachuca, the drones are part of the Army Intelligence Center there. This is the same place that produced the torture manual, exposed in 1996, of the School of Americas. The manual was used to train Latin military leaders, which led to the torture, rape and murder of thousands of people, including Indigenous Peoples, in Central and South America in the 80s and 90s. Corporations, under the cloak of US firepower and torture, reaped the benefits in land and resources.

Currently, Fort Huachuca is being protested because of training which resulted in torture in Abu-Ghraib. The news that Fort Huachuca now has four more drones, spy drones over the border, cannot be good news.

Over the weekend, torture protesters gathered at Fort Huachuca to protest US torture. The following is the statement released by torture protesters.

More than 200 people rallied against torture on Sunday, November 16, at Veterans Memorial Park in Sierra Vista, Arizona. The group then processed two miles through the city to the main gate of Ft. Huachuca, home of the U.S. Army Intelligence Center where interrogators are trained.

Soon after the procession arrived opposite the entrance to the Fort, three people crossed the street and entered the base to deliver messages to base Commander Major General John Custer and his soldiers, opposing the cruel treatment and abuse of detainees from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Sr. Megan Rice, 78, from Las Vegas, Nevada; Fr. Louie Vitale, 76, from Oakland, California; and Dennis Duvall, 66, from Prescott, Arizona, were quickly stopped and taken into custody. They were released within the hour with a formal letter barring them from entering the base for one year. A base spokeswoman told reporters, "We're trying to keep this as low key as possible."

Franciscan Fr. Vitale, a former provincial of the order's Santa Barbara province, was arrested during a similar protest at the Fort in 2006. Together with co-defendant Fr. Steve Kelly, he had served a five month prison sentence for trespass and failure to obey an officer.

Two of three people arrested at the Fort in November, 2007, returned to join this year's demonstration. Fr. Jerry Zawada and Betsy Lamb had both served two months in prison awaiting trial.

Speakers at the rally included torture survivor and Colombian refugee Hector Aristizabal and retired U.S. Army Col. Ann Wright.

The procession was led by musicians Francisco Herrera, Jose Serrano, Ted Warmbrand, Chet Gardiner and Terry Pawlowski, along with people carrying large, colorful butterfly puppets. The puppets represented transformation from a nation that sanctions cruelty and torture to a world that embraces hope for humanity.

The demonstration concluded with a stop at the nearby office of CACI, a private military contractor implicated in the abuse of Iraqi detainees, and currently contracted to write manuals and teach interrogation.

Sunday's rally and procession capped a weekend of events that began in Tucson. Event coordinator Rev. Ken Kennon noted that the "Southwest Witness to Stop Torture is a regional action in solidarity with the campaign to close the School of the Americas/Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation at Fort Benning, Georgia, where the testimony of torture survivors has informed us and moved us to action."

Thousands of people will gather at Ft. Benning this coming weekend, November 21-23, for the annual vigil to close the School of the Americas. Human rights abuses in Latin America, including torture and murder, have been carried out by graduates of the school. The torture manual which was used at the School of the Americas came from Ft. Huachuca.

A statement written for the Ft. Huachuca demonstration follows this press release.

For more information see http://tortureontrial.org, http://southwestwitness.org and http://soaw.org

US torture protesters also released this statment, "Why We Protest at Ft Huachuca."

Gandhi teaches us that nonviolence needs to be practiced in places of institutionalized violence.
We practice nonviolence at Ft. Huachuca - headquarters of U.S. Army military intelligence training - to protest the policy of cruelty our country has carried out against captives in the so-called "War on Terror."

We practice nonviolence at Ft. Huachuca to open dialogue with soldiers and commanders about their rights and obligations to report cases of torture and cruel treatment. We call on enlisted personnel to speak publicly about their training and any abuses they have observed.

We practice nonviolence at Ft. Huachuca to protest our government's increasing use of private contractors - with little to no oversight or accountability - both as instructors and as part of interrogation teams in the field.

We practice nonviolence at Ft. Huachuca to call for civilian, human-rights centered oversight of all interrogation training and practice, which must include absolute prohibition of cruel treatment and command responsibility for any violation of this prohibition.

Our nonviolent presence joins growing, deepening movements throughout the world calling for an end to war and torture everywhere. We act in solidarity with the campaign to close the School of the Americas/Western Hemispheric Institute for Security Cooperation at Ft. Benning, Georgia, where the testimony of torture survivors has informed our outrage and moved us to action. We know that torture diminishes the humanity of both perpetrator and those who are tortured. It damages the very soul of our country.

We are told that basic training in military interrogation at Ft. Huachuca respects the Geneva Conventions and follows the U.S. Army Field Manual. Yet, despite the efforts of many honorable soldiers and commanders who respect human rights, this training has been inadequate to prevent abuses of prisoners in U.S. custody at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and other military prisons and secret detention centers around the world.

What is being taught in the field and in advanced courses about interrogation? What is happening in this dark space between training and the field? Has the policy of cruelty practiced by some U.S. military, CIA, FBI, and private agencies been integrated into military doctrine and advanced training? Does such activity take place at Ft. Huachuca?

We understand that secrecy and deception are part of the nature of military intelligence. We challenge this institutionalized silence, because torture and cruelty betray not only the Constitution of the United States, but who we are as a people. In a democratic society, such silence must not prevail.

To break this silence, interrogators and all other personnel (including private contractors) must be taught when and how to resist illegal orders that violate the laws of war, the Geneva Conventions and the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. They must be taught their obligation to speak out against such orders, and to report abuses to their superiors. And they must receive guarantees that speaking out will not lead to retaliation or punishment.

Ft. Huachuca's role in past military involvement in torture training must also be brought to light. Such involvement includes the creation of notorious manuals used at the School of the Americas to teach Latin American military personnel how to torture. Undoubtedly, records about past and contemporary use of torture exist at Ft. Huachuca. We call for the release of all such information, both past and present.

It is time for a light to shine on the darkness that has been hidden behind the walls of Ft. Huachuca.Monsignor Oscar Romero of El Salvador said, "Love begins where violence ends." To end the violence of torture and war we will stand at the gates of Ft. Huachuca. Together let's build a world without torture.

Demand increasing for drone operators trained in southern Arizona

Demand increasing for drone operators trained in southern Arizona (Sep 12, 2005)
The number of students training to pilot unmanned drones, which can be used to spy on enemy troops, has more than quadrupled at Fort Huachuca since military campaigns began in Iraq and in Afghanistan. The Army's Unmanned Aerial Vehicle training center at the fort's military intelligence school is in overdrive as it tries to produce enough soldiers who can operate the drones to meet growing demand from commanders overseas. "They want them faster than I can turn them out," said Mark Farrar, who runs the training center, the largest drone training facility in the world. The center turned out about 80 graduates a year in 2001, officials said. The number is now at about 360 a year. Demand is high because the high-tech devices are proving their worth on the battlefield as never before, said Farrar, who has been involved with UAVs and training for two decades. He said casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan would be much higher if not for the scores of military drones gathering overhead photos and funneling live video feeds to personnel on the ground. Farrar estimates that more than 100 UAVs from various branches of the military are in the skies over Iraq on most days. They scan convoy routes for evidence of sabotage, peer into alleys and look for suspicious activity around vehicles, buildings, ports and pipelines. "The UAV provides the commander with a god's-eye-view, like the mythological Greek gods had when they looked down at what's happening on Earth," Farrar said. The drones vary greatly in size, from a backpack-size model a single soldier can hand-launch to peer around a hillside, to the Hunter and Shadow UAVs that are launched with a catapult system and can stay in the sky for hours with a range of 50 to 100 miles or more. Sgt. Raymond Rivera, who flew drones in Iraq last year with the 4th Infantry Division, said just the sound of a UAV often leaves the enemy quaking. The chain-saw-like noise usually makes them scatter because they know that troops with firepower probably aren't far behind, Rivera said.

Arizona High Tech Drug Drone

Arizona High Tech Drug Drone (AP – date?)
TUCSON, Arizona (AP) -- An unmanned aerial drone used to help Border Patrol agents find smugglers and illegal immigrants crashed Tuesday in southern Arizona, authorities said. Operators lost contact with the $6.5 million Predator B about 3 a.m. A government helicopter found the crash site about three hours later, said U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Michael Friel. Officials didn't know the extent of the damage to the drone. The cause of the crash was under investigation. No one was injured and nothing on the ground was damaged. While in use, the drone has helped in the apprehension of nearly 1,800 illegal immigrants and the seizure of about 8,200 pounds of marijuana, Friel said. Flying at altitudes of up to 15,000 feet, the drone uses cameras to find people crossing the border.

Pakistani President Asks For U.S. Drones For Anti-Terrorism (30 March 2009)

Pakistani President Asks For U.S. Drones For Anti-Terrorism (30 March 2009)
Pakistani President ASIF ALI ZARDARI has asked for pilotless drones (more likely he’s been told by the U.S. – great PR!). Reminiscent of “tell them it was a training exercise gone wrong” in Iron Man. “It’s not as easy as that” – cut to press conference: “It was a training exercise gone wrong.” – Good flip-flop scene.
Obama announces that Pakistan must be a “stronger partner” in destroying Al Qaeda’s safe haven.In return, Pakistan will get $1.5 billion each year for the next five years – which they need because they are facing economic meltdown and rising violence.

Israeli Drones Reportedly Attacked Sudanese Convoys (JTA, 29 March 2009)

Israeli Drones Reportedly Attacked Sudanese Convoys (JTA, 29 March 2009)
Israel used unmanned drones to attack Iranian convoys in Sudan on their way to smuggle arms into Gaza.
Long-range missiles had range to strike Tel Aviv and Israel’s nuclear reactor at Dimona. 50 smugglers killed in the attacks.
Used UAVs because the convoy is a target that is on the move.
“When you attack a fixed target you are better off using jet aircraft, but with a moving target with no definite time for the move UAVs are best, as they can hover extremely high and remain unseen until the target is on the move.”
Attack took place in a remote desert area of eastern Sudan.“Israel hits every place it can in order to stop terror, near or far” – Israeli Prime Minister.

Mexican Drug Violence Spills Over Into U.S. (Sunday Times, 29 March 2009)

Mexican Drug Violence Spills Over Into U.S. (Sunday Times, 29 March 2009)
“By the hair-raising standards of torture, kidnapping, extortion and other drug-related mayhem that has become tragically routine along the U.S. border with Mexico, the inspection of a battered red Ford pickup truck traveling south through the Arizona desert this month hardly seems worth recording. U.S. border patrol agents stopped the vehicle as it headed towards Mexico through the Organ Pipe Cactus national park. A search quickly uncovered seven assault rifles, a couple of handguns and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Compared with the seizure of 500 rifles and 100 fragmentation hand grenades close to the Texas border, it was scarcely a big haul. Yet it was the latest evidence that Mexico’s drug cartels are resorting to sinister techniques that are changing the nature of border violence and confronting Obama with an expanding threat on U.S. soil.”

U.S. officials call it “ant trafficking.” Cartel leaders are bribing or coercing armies of U.S. citizens to buy weapons from American gun shops. They smuggle the guns into Mexico in a continuous operation that steadily builds up arsenals.

“The cartels have fingertips that reach throughout the United States” - Janet Napolitano, homeland security secretary.

“It is an undisputable fact that the weapons and firearms used to fuel the drug-related violence in Mexico can be traced back to guns procured legally or illegally here” - Anthony Placido, chief of intelligence at the Drug Enforcement Administration.

While California, Arizona and Texas remain the principal sources of US firearms that turn up at Mexican bloodbaths, Placido said weapons used by drug traffickers had been traced to Denver, Philadelphia and Seattle, among other cities (Phoenix has become capital of drug-related kidnappings).
FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN THE CRIMINAL ELEMENT FROM MEXICO MIGRATING UP HERE.

Last year 368 abductions reported.
Will become Ciudad Juarez or Guadalajara?
In San Juan, Texas, a hand grenade was thrown into a bar but failed to explode.
Wealthy residents having bulletproof glass and armour installed in their cars.
US authorities have committed themselves to A VERY ROBUST MOVEMENT OF PERSONNEL to border areas.
Texas has requested 1,000 national guardsmen to be placed on border duty.
The Pentagon may supply pilotless drones for the same kind of man-hunting missions as in Afghanistan.

President Felipe Calderon: “The financial aid Mexico needs from Washington SHOULD BE EQUIVALENT TO THE FLOW OF MONEY THAT AMERICAN DRUG CONSUMERS GIVE TO THE CRIMINALS,” (between $10 and $35 billion).

“Our inability to prevent weapons from being illegally smuggled across the border to arm these criminals causes the deaths of police officers, soldiers and civilians.”

Obama has signaled his support for a ban on assault weapons – which brings him into conflict with America’s most powerful lobby – the NRA (4 million members).
Juan Manuel Pavon – Mexican chief of the Sonora state antidrug squad – assassinated by cartel hitmen hours after attending a US seminar on weapons smuggling. Guns later tracked to an Arizona gun shop.

Gaza – Israeli Drone Strike (Guardian, 29 January 2009)

Gaza – Israeli Drone Strike (Guardian, 29 January 2009)
Hurt civilians (children), as target was Hamas member riding a motorbike past a bus stop of school children.
“I could hear the zanana (drone) above me. Then it fired a rocket.”The shrapnel from the drone peppered his legs as it knocked him down.

Police use drone to spy on V Festival (Guardian, 21 August 2007)

Police use drone to spy on V Festival (Guardian, 21 August 2007)
Police used a remote-controlled spy drone to watch crowds at the V Festival, first time the technology has been used at a major public event.
70cm-wide flying surveillance device, fitted with high-res still an color video cameras, and infrared night vision capability, was used to keep tabs on people and gather intelligence.
The battery-operated drone’s four carbon-fibre rotors are so quiet they cannot be heard from the ground once it is higher than 50 metres, and at 100 metres it cannot be seen with the naked eye. It can fly 500 metres high. The vehicle, which takes off vertically, can be flown even when out of sight, because it beams images back to video goggles worn by the operator.

Use drones:
- Fire Dept – aerial view of buildings on fire for safest way to proceed
- The Olympics
- Firearm officers want to use in stand-offs with armed criminals.

MW Power, the company that distributes the technology in the UK, plans to improve the drone’s capability by adding a so-called ‘smart water’ spray – a liquid infused with chemicals that give each batch of the liquid a unique identity. It infuses one’s clothes and skin and could later be used to identify them.

No legal barrier preventing a private security firm or a paparazzo photographer from using the technology, but MW power said that it was only licensing the vehicle to customers from the military or emergency services. It costs less than 1k a month to lease.

Noel Sharkey – expert in robotics at University of Sheffield – worried about increasing use of robotic vehicles in military conflicts and policing.