(From left to right) Chris Osman, Chris McKinley, Kent Kroeker, and Talon Burton
At least four American veterans were among a group of eight men arrested by police in Haiti earlier this week for allegedly driving without license plates and possessing an arsenal of weaponry and tactical gear.
Police in Port-au-Prince arrested five Americans, two Serbians, and one Haitian man at a police checkpoint on Sunday, according to The Miami-Herald. The men reportedly told police they were on a "government mission" but did not specify for which government, according to The Herald.
They also told police that "their boss was going to call their boss," implying that someone high in Haiti's government would vouch for them and secure their release, Herald reporter Jacqueline Charles told NPR.
What they were actually doing or who they were potentially working for remains unclear. A State Department spokesperson told Task & Purpose they were aware that Haitian police arrested a "group of individuals, including some U.S. citizens," but declined to answer whether the men were employed by or operating under contract with the U.S. government.
The former founder and CEO of Blackwater says he needs just six months and roughly 3,600 men to make the Afghan War look far different from the shitshow it is now.
Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana — home of half the United States’ B-52 bomber fleet, and for decades a critical hub for overseas air operations — produces a lot of toxic waste. That includes thousands of tons of powder, with dangerous trace metals and chemicals, from sandblasting and cleaning aircraft. Normally, that much hazardous material would be a headache to dispose of, but the Air Force found a contractor willing to cart the powder off and recycle it into harmless cinder blocks for construction. .
Every so often when you’re sitting in the chow hall overseas, you’ll gaze up from your plate of Noodles Jefferson and take note of your surroundings. Depending on theater and tempo, the crowd ranges from monotone to “Star Wars” bar scene. Uniforms from different branches and different countries worn in different ways; government employees and contractors abound.
U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Steven King
When big life changes occur, it can alter the way one sees the world. This is also true for active-duty service members when they transition into veteran status. The way they view their service or certain details of military culture can change.
