Browsing: Military

A Brief History On August 10, 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War history observed the first battle between modern steel battleships in the Battle of the Yellow Sea.  (A minor battle had taken place a few months prior that lasted only 20 minutes that trapped the Russians at Port Arthur.) Digging Deeper The Battle of the Yellow Sea took place between what is referred to as Pre-Dreadnought type battleships, which were being built during this time.  Still, the all steel Pre-Dreadnoughts were heavily armed with a main battery of 12 inch guns that could shoot to an unprecedented range of 8…

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A Brief History On August 8, 1946, the Convair B-36 Peacemaker nuclear bomber made its first flight.  Later referred to as the “Billion Dollar Boondoggle” by the program’s opponents, the B-36 competed with the US Navy’s super carrier program for limited tax dollars. Digging Deeper The first bomber in the world able to carry a nuclear payload right from the start, the massive bomber also had the widest wingspan (230 feet) of any bomber in history and the most (10) engines of any mass produced airplane.  When the 6 mighty 3800 horsepower (apiece!) piston powered radial engines proved inadequate for…

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A Brief History The US brokered multi-country deal with Iran in July of 2015 to limit Iran’s nuclear research and delay Iranian development of a nuclear weapon has generated heated rhetoric by Israel condemning the pact, and strident criticism (mostly by Republicans) in the United States, with the US Senate poised to debate the merits of the agreement after the summer Congressional recess. Digging Deeper Question for students (and subscribers): Will the US and other countries honor the agreement if Congress fails to ratify the pact?  What will happen if the hard fought for agreement falls apart?  Please let us know…

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A Brief History Turns out Khzir Khan, the irate grieving father of a slain American hero (his son was an Army captain that died heroically in the line of duty in Iraq) may have more motivation to attack Donald Trump than merely sticking up for Muslims. Digging Deeper Mr. Khan, a Muslim immigrant from Pakistan, spoke at the Democratic National Convention and spoke emotionally about his son, an Army captain awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart while being killed in combat while saving the lives of other soldiers, and severely chastised Trump for his call to ban Muslim immigrants…

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A Brief History On August 2, 216 BC, the Carthaginian army of Hannibal defeated the larger Roman Army at Cannae, a major battle during the Second Punic War.  This battle was one of the most humiliating defeats in the history of Rome and is considered one of the great strokes of tactical military genius of all time. Digging Deeper After losing 2 major battles to the Carthaginians at Trebia and Lake Trasimene (218 and 217 BC respectively),  the Romans had regrouped and sought a decisive battle against the invaders.  Able to field an army of  86,000 men against only 50,000…

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