Meet Gen. Ordinaro
March 13th, 2012 | Outside the wire | Posted by Richard Sandza
On March 8, Twitter spawned an alter-ego to Army Chief of Staff Ray Odierno.
He calls himself @GeneralOrdinaro and, if his Tweets are to be believed (a bit of a stretch) he’s a decorated career soldier just trying to lighten up the mood.
His Twitter Bio, next to a picture of the smiling CSA, includes a disclaimer: “I’m an ordinary guy. A garden-variety general officer. Do not get me confused with the 38th Chief of Staff of the Army. (Common sense, people.)”
A few samples:
Chiarelli Stays on Task
March 13th, 2012 | Outside the wire | Posted by Richard Sandza
Former Vice Chief of Staff Peter Chiarelli has a new job, and no one should be surprised at where he landed.
Chiarelli, who retired on January 31, spent an enormous amount of time dealing with brain injuries to soldiers. He pioneered research into traumatic brain injury and created a partnership with the NFL to advance the study of brain injuries.
On March 12, he took over as Chief Executive Officer of One Mind For Research, an independent, non-profit organization of health care providers, researchers, academics and the health care industry around the world working to cure all brain disorders. It was co-founded by former Congressman Patrick Kennedy.
New Army headgear?
November 10th, 2011 | Outside the wire | Posted by Richard Sandza
Forget the black beret and the patrol cap.
Army North CG Lt. Gen. Guy Swan is sporting an entirely unique headgear.
Swan trotted out his cheesy cover when ESPN’s First Take visited Fort Sam on Nov. 7.
He also posted the picture on his Facebook page.
The new beret rules allow commanders to choose the headgear for their units.
Could this be the choice for Army North?
It’s the thought that counts
December 10th, 2010 | Outside the wire | Posted by Richard Sandza
The trendy organic Whole Foods Market chain issued a press release Friday announcing that, as a “small token of our appreciation” to U.S. forces fighting abroad, they were offering free shipping of the five holiday boxes they have created as “care” packages for the troops.
The sentiment is nice, but the choice of items to send to soldiers makes me think the Whole Foods folks are a bit out of touch with the realities of the war zone.
But you decide for yourself.
Here are the items:
- The Gift of Grub ($60). Summer sausage, pretzel crisps, aged cheddar cheese straws, peppermint stick chocolate, classic shortbread and gourmet pecans.
- You’re Zenzational ($60). Soothing lavender lotion and shower gel, mineral bath salts, a sleep mask, a bath pillow, and even a candle and tea to further calm the soul.
- Get Warm, Get Fuzzy ($50). Specialty coffee, tea and hot chocolate paired with caramel sweetener, fruit-and-nut mix, mocha wafers, biscotti bites and dark chocolate espresso beans.
- You Rock Box o’ Choc ($50). Chocolates, dipped sandwich cookies and brownie bites, peanut butter chocolate wafers, chocolate cherry trail mix and hot chocolate.
- Ciao Down ($40). Italian herb pasta sauce, basil pesto, extra virgin olive oil crostini, dry roasted almonds and truffled espresso clusters. Buon Appetito!
No doubt this will lead to plenty of barter down at the KOP.
Something like: “Hey sarge, I’ll trade you some crostini for the lavender lotion —I felt really smelly out here.”